New Work, New Amp

The gaps between my personal posts gets longer and longer, I’m going to try and take more time to do a few more things that I want to do over the coming weeks and months, been spending far too much time doing things for work or to achieve something, and not enough frivolous fun, so here’s a blog post about not a lot in particular…

Firstly, I finally, after years of playing in bands, bought my own amp!

It’s a Fender Pro Junior and I got it $300 cheaper for some reason, so it cost $600, about £250. It’s 15 watt and all valve, so despite being only about 2 foot square it’s bloody loud, surprising the soundmen we’ve worked with so far.

I also bought a lovely Vox Overdrive pedal, so I finally have a guitar set up, I’m so professional!

Now, what else…

I’ve been teaching to top up the money I make from writing, I’m currently taking two classes (Introduction to Computing & Multimedia Scripting) both with their own set of interesting thoughts on my part…

Introduction to Computing : In this class I teach retired people the basics of computing and I mean the basics, how to turn a computer on, how to use a mouse, how to close windows etc. It’s been an interesting experience that relates back to my Human Computer Interaction modules at University, you take for granted how computers work and just knowing what does what, but when you try and explain to people who know nothing of how to do what and why, you realise it makes no sense at all. In fact on several counts I could completely discount the millions of dollars they spend on HCI research in ten minutes with a group of pensioners, places where the interface guidelines set out by Microsoft are completely ignored by them, confusing the hell out of beginners. I’ve also very quickly realised that the desktop analogy doesn’t really work, trying to relate a computer’s directory structure to someone’s desk, folders and files isn’t that easy, it’s something that I and a lot of people have just got used to, but again, for beginners, it’s confusing. Finally, my final and current thought on this (I’m considering writing something longer on this) is clicking, trying to explain what the difference between a single and a double click is, where they apply, why you use one in one situation and one in another… Poor OAP’s.

Multimedia Scripting : This course has been held at a college for International Students, and has been very frustrating, most of the students are basically there for Visas and don’t really want to learn anything and don’t understand what you’re teaching them anyway, as trying to teach people programming in 6 weeks who have never programmed before and barely speak English is very hard. The question I get asked most often is “Have I been marked for attendance”, and the staff are just as bad, they sort of float about the building hovering and lurking, I’m not even sure what they’re supposed to be doing, or if they understand themselves, all extremely dodgy and slightly uncomfortable, but hey, it’s a job.

Personally… Been a bit down recently, maybe it’s a seasonal thing, I felt a bit like this last year and the year before, or maybe a sort of nearing the end of the year and taking stock of what I’ve done and not being happy with it feeling. The thing is I thought after my travels last year that I’d got over feeling down about my situation and achievements in life and that I’d finally learnt just to enjoy whatever was thrown at me and be happy with whatever, but the old frustrated and dissatisfied feeling seems to be slowly creeping back. i think it may have something to do with me having stayed in the same place for more than six months, this is the longest I’ve remained in one place and had commitments (albeit quite small ones!) in over two years, I’m itching to be back wandering and exploring again, I miss being on the road. Perhaps this all just calls for a new challenge, or rethinking how I work at the moment, I mean, a writer needn’t stay in one place… That said, I like Melbourne and what it holds as my home, as a base to return to, if only I could drive…

Anyway, enough of all that, even writing it down and getting the thoughts out of my head has helped, I really must try to so this more often…

On a plus note, after two years and two line ups, Macaca Mulatta will finally be recording a debut album in a week!! Quite excited and I can’t wait, when it’s ready I will be pushing harder than I have ever pushed before, I see this as the final push, the final showdown in my musical career.

I’ve rambled enough and probably forgotten to mention loads of things, but I’ll be here more often from now on… promise :-)