One of my favourite songs at the moment:
7.10.2007
explanations...
So I feel I owe everyone an explanation for the lack of bloggage in your lives as of late. I have been incredibly busy at both of my internships since my last post in addition to my travels to Edinburgh, Scotland, and Florence, Italy...oh, and my evenings have been occupied with my 20 page research paper and homework. So, until the next full, fun-filled blog entry, here are some photos and videos to keep you guessing until more detailed explanations can be added here.
One of my favourite songs at the moment:
One of my favourite songs at the moment:
6.28.2007
Berlin and developments...
So I know it's been a LONG while..and there is no great excuse...I was exhausted from Berlin late this past Sunday night and have been CRAZY busy with development work at my internships this week...but more on that later. Here are some photos.
Our coach picked us up near our arpartment at 4:30 am on Friday, it's needless to say that we were all tired. However, what does need to be said is that I was sick with a fever all day Thursday and Friday, and paired with 3 hours of sleep, I was not the happiest camper. Here we are:
Once we arrived in Berlin, we went on a brief bus tour of the city's tourist highlights as part of our program with Anderson Tours. We got to walk around the famous Brandenburg Gate, which is historic, beautiful, and was not surprisingly hidden from most eyes when the wall was erected around it.
After napping, we enjoyed some informative ridiculousness at Berlin's Erotik (yes...with a 'k') Museum. While there were many sites, these giant penises from Indonesia are probably slightly more tasteful than whatever else I could post:
My favorite part about the Erotik Museum was the fact that you begin and end your erotic journey in their extensive porno shop. According to my MTV Europe book, it's one of the top 6 things you MUST see in Berlin. I think it was one of my highlights.
While I didn't sense any anti-Americanism in Germany, it's reassuring that Europe wasn't going soft on me:
The Charlottenburg Palace is supposed to be some big, beautiful palace (which is now a top museum), but compared with other parts of Europe, it was disappointing:
So, by the end of the day...I REALLY didn't feel well. I sleep 11 hours that night:
By Saturday morning, I was feeling MUCH better, and needed a little colour in my life. After Chicago pioneered the 'march of the cows thing' almost every major city (including San Francisco's) decided that they needed random painted animals and organs tossed amok around their streets. Berlin has the bears:
I'm not sure why, but they have them everywhere. So we ALL took photos with one.
Shannon and her bear.
Allison and her bear.
Cathy and her bear. Rock on Cathy.
Another big tourist attraction according to my MYV Europe travel book is this large TV Tower called the Berliner Fernsehturm, which roughly translates into Berlin TV Tower. One thing I definitely noticed about Berlin was that the Germans aren't particularily creative when it comes to nomenclature. If naming is concerned, they're just going to be quite literal. There is no point getting superfalous or flamboyant, the Germans would rather leave that up to the French. Here is one of the many views I took of Berlin from atop this literal TV tower:
After Cathy and I took time enjoying the audio tour of Berlin's many historical sights from above, we went to find food. We decided downtown Berlin would have food on a Saturday afternoon, so we wandered hungrily for too long...eventually discovering this strange duplex patio bar in the center of a weed-laden empty lot. Those Germans, so efficient:
Saturday happened to also be the Christopher Street Day Parade in central Berlin, and many of the local youth take the opportunity to prepare for next month's love parade:
Who said love can't come from war?
We all took advantage of the jovial festivities and relatively optimistic currency conversion (ANYTHING is better than the dollar to the British pound) and enjoyed some authentic German beverages: Caipis! I'm not sure what it is, but they were popular and tasty:
Shannon enjoyed a few caipis herself:
So did this guy...this older 'raver' type gentleman was so enthused about the day's festivities that he determined that he just needed to hug it out with the Berlin police...who carry big guns. Good thing everyone is having a good time in Berlin!
We kept the Berlin party train rolling that afternoon and enjoyed an authentic Berlin nightclub that night. We're not entirely sure what kind of club it was or even sure how to describe it. However I distinctly remember a LOT of women and a man dressed as Jeannie from I Dream of Jeannie, except he was overweight, painted blue, and dancing on a stage.
The following morning I got up and met with my old friend Clay for breakfast. We haven't seen each other in quite a while, so it was nice to catch up. Clay speaks fluent German and is working for the German government in Berlin over the summer, so it was nice to explore parts of the city with a German speaker. It made me feel slightly less like an American tourist...slightly. We were (of course) late meeting my friends at Checkpoint Charlie, so we did our own tourist thing and randomly met up with them later.
A marker and bricks lining what was once the path of the Berlin Wall:
A particularly colourful piece of the wall and me:
Clay took me to this beautiful new outdoor Sony entertainment centre. It's like an outdoor mall with restaurants, movies and shops, but with a stunning fan-like shade in the centre. We never saw it at night, but it's supposed to change colours.
After walking around Berlin and enjoying the absolutely stunning day, we went to the Holocaust Museum, or with it's proper German title: Memorial for the Murdered Jews of Europe. It is a massive and intriguing monument with massive steel columns that seem to lunge out of their cement grid, with no recognizable relation to height. They seem jut and repent independently, and juxtaposed with the grid of cement bricks beneath our feet, I perceive it as an endearing metaphor for survival and individuality. Clay mentioned that it's somewhat controversial because the artist never supplied an explanation for the meaning behind the piece.
Beneath the rows of columns is a modern and emotional museum to the Jewish victims of the genocide.
Just to give you an idea of how large some of these columns are, here is Clay and Shannon (who we met up with after a traumatic incident involving a subway bathroom...the sandwich shop, not the form of transportation):
Overall, we had an amazing trip to Berlin. We got a taste of the local flavour and plenty of history, which Berlin has plenty. It's an impressive city (on multiple fronts) with young and humble people.
In work news, I did accept my promotion/job position thing and spent much of the work doing research, co-facilitating focus groups, and writing proposals for a teen-oriented new multimedia platform/website for Channel 4 Education.
There are plenty of other things to write about, especially since I've learned SO much as of late. But alas, I have to pack for my trip to Edinburgh, Scotland this weekend. I hope you all are well and keep reading true believers!
Songs of the moment:
"Windowsill," Arcade Fire
The chocolate is better here.
Our coach picked us up near our arpartment at 4:30 am on Friday, it's needless to say that we were all tired. However, what does need to be said is that I was sick with a fever all day Thursday and Friday, and paired with 3 hours of sleep, I was not the happiest camper. Here we are:
Once we arrived in Berlin, we went on a brief bus tour of the city's tourist highlights as part of our program with Anderson Tours. We got to walk around the famous Brandenburg Gate, which is historic, beautiful, and was not surprisingly hidden from most eyes when the wall was erected around it.
After napping, we enjoyed some informative ridiculousness at Berlin's Erotik (yes...with a 'k') Museum. While there were many sites, these giant penises from Indonesia are probably slightly more tasteful than whatever else I could post:
My favorite part about the Erotik Museum was the fact that you begin and end your erotic journey in their extensive porno shop. According to my MTV Europe book, it's one of the top 6 things you MUST see in Berlin. I think it was one of my highlights.
While I didn't sense any anti-Americanism in Germany, it's reassuring that Europe wasn't going soft on me:
The Charlottenburg Palace is supposed to be some big, beautiful palace (which is now a top museum), but compared with other parts of Europe, it was disappointing:
So, by the end of the day...I REALLY didn't feel well. I sleep 11 hours that night:
By Saturday morning, I was feeling MUCH better, and needed a little colour in my life. After Chicago pioneered the 'march of the cows thing' almost every major city (including San Francisco's) decided that they needed random painted animals and organs tossed amok around their streets. Berlin has the bears:
I'm not sure why, but they have them everywhere. So we ALL took photos with one.
Shannon and her bear.
Allison and her bear.
Cathy and her bear. Rock on Cathy.
Another big tourist attraction according to my MYV Europe travel book is this large TV Tower called the Berliner Fernsehturm, which roughly translates into Berlin TV Tower. One thing I definitely noticed about Berlin was that the Germans aren't particularily creative when it comes to nomenclature. If naming is concerned, they're just going to be quite literal. There is no point getting superfalous or flamboyant, the Germans would rather leave that up to the French. Here is one of the many views I took of Berlin from atop this literal TV tower:
After Cathy and I took time enjoying the audio tour of Berlin's many historical sights from above, we went to find food. We decided downtown Berlin would have food on a Saturday afternoon, so we wandered hungrily for too long...eventually discovering this strange duplex patio bar in the center of a weed-laden empty lot. Those Germans, so efficient:
Saturday happened to also be the Christopher Street Day Parade in central Berlin, and many of the local youth take the opportunity to prepare for next month's love parade:
Who said love can't come from war?
We all took advantage of the jovial festivities and relatively optimistic currency conversion (ANYTHING is better than the dollar to the British pound) and enjoyed some authentic German beverages: Caipis! I'm not sure what it is, but they were popular and tasty:
Shannon enjoyed a few caipis herself:
So did this guy...this older 'raver' type gentleman was so enthused about the day's festivities that he determined that he just needed to hug it out with the Berlin police...who carry big guns. Good thing everyone is having a good time in Berlin!
We kept the Berlin party train rolling that afternoon and enjoyed an authentic Berlin nightclub that night. We're not entirely sure what kind of club it was or even sure how to describe it. However I distinctly remember a LOT of women and a man dressed as Jeannie from I Dream of Jeannie, except he was overweight, painted blue, and dancing on a stage.
The following morning I got up and met with my old friend Clay for breakfast. We haven't seen each other in quite a while, so it was nice to catch up. Clay speaks fluent German and is working for the German government in Berlin over the summer, so it was nice to explore parts of the city with a German speaker. It made me feel slightly less like an American tourist...slightly. We were (of course) late meeting my friends at Checkpoint Charlie, so we did our own tourist thing and randomly met up with them later.
A marker and bricks lining what was once the path of the Berlin Wall:
A particularly colourful piece of the wall and me:
Clay took me to this beautiful new outdoor Sony entertainment centre. It's like an outdoor mall with restaurants, movies and shops, but with a stunning fan-like shade in the centre. We never saw it at night, but it's supposed to change colours.
After walking around Berlin and enjoying the absolutely stunning day, we went to the Holocaust Museum, or with it's proper German title: Memorial for the Murdered Jews of Europe. It is a massive and intriguing monument with massive steel columns that seem to lunge out of their cement grid, with no recognizable relation to height. They seem jut and repent independently, and juxtaposed with the grid of cement bricks beneath our feet, I perceive it as an endearing metaphor for survival and individuality. Clay mentioned that it's somewhat controversial because the artist never supplied an explanation for the meaning behind the piece.
Beneath the rows of columns is a modern and emotional museum to the Jewish victims of the genocide.
Just to give you an idea of how large some of these columns are, here is Clay and Shannon (who we met up with after a traumatic incident involving a subway bathroom...the sandwich shop, not the form of transportation):
Overall, we had an amazing trip to Berlin. We got a taste of the local flavour and plenty of history, which Berlin has plenty. It's an impressive city (on multiple fronts) with young and humble people.
In work news, I did accept my promotion/job position thing and spent much of the work doing research, co-facilitating focus groups, and writing proposals for a teen-oriented new multimedia platform/website for Channel 4 Education.
There are plenty of other things to write about, especially since I've learned SO much as of late. But alas, I have to pack for my trip to Edinburgh, Scotland this weekend. I hope you all are well and keep reading true believers!
Songs of the moment:
"Windowsill," Arcade Fire
The chocolate is better here.
6.20.2007
Oh and...I do think the Thames looks nice at night...
(Sorry there are no real photos...there is no photography allowed in Parliament)
Last week my friend Trisha asked me if I would like to be her date to a function at Parliament. Trisha is working for a member of the Labour party in British Parliament who-among other things-sits on a committee that discusses alcohol. I'm not entirely sure what such a committee would do in Europe...but one of the things they do is promote alcohol trade with countries to encourage trade in general. This event was to recognize a new relationship in the trade of Ukrainian alcohol in the UK. I met Trisha (despite some communication qualms) on Monday evening across the street from Parliament. I walked with her upstairs (through metal detectors and all) and into the function with loads of liquor and tasty hors devours.
My friend Trisha and I. This was not actually taken at this event as Parliament doesn't allow photography within the building...and has very few dancer's poles:
We enjoyed many of the gastro-delights and mingled with the 40 or so people present. However, as we are both Americans, interns, and young, we mostly stuck with the people she knew, which mostly consisted of the researchers she works with. I was her guest after all. However I did have a nice conversation with a Ukrainian woman who does something with UK-Ukrainian business relations.
Afterwards, we joined her researchers at one of parliaments bars and discusses many things, with particular attention to (surprisingly) politics. After about an hour (and several glasses of wine/champaign/beer) their Member of Parliament (MP, the equivalent of a US Senator) called one of the researchers and asked if we would all like to join him on the Terrace of Parliament. Now, I've heard about the terrace a few times from all of my housemates who work in Parliament. It's an outdoor patio on the third or fourth floor of Parliament overlooking the Thames, South London, and has an absolute money shot of the London Eye...and only Members of Parliament and their guests are allowed access to the area. I was SO tempted to bring my camera out but fought myself and decided not to. It is one of the most serene view I have seen in London thus far, perhaps aided because of it's exclusivity.
I met her MP in person and he asked how I felt about American politics. He seemed relieved and downright jovial when I pointed out the anti-Bush button on my bag. Once again, apparently, it is expected that most Americans in some way voted for/support Bush...who (unlike the massively popular Clinton family) is not exactly in vogue over here. Everyone I've spoken with including her MP and his staff are quite supportive of Hilary in 2008. Eventually the conversation moved on to other things with more familiar faces, but we did sit out on the Terrace with several Members of Parliament and staff for about an hour, at which point we politely excused ourselves and took one of the last tube rides home. It was a fantastic evening and one I don't think I'll forget for some time.
This is some random photo I found online of Parliament's Terrace...just so you have an idea. I have no idea who this dude is, but the view is lovely.
Last week my friend Trisha asked me if I would like to be her date to a function at Parliament. Trisha is working for a member of the Labour party in British Parliament who-among other things-sits on a committee that discusses alcohol. I'm not entirely sure what such a committee would do in Europe...but one of the things they do is promote alcohol trade with countries to encourage trade in general. This event was to recognize a new relationship in the trade of Ukrainian alcohol in the UK. I met Trisha (despite some communication qualms) on Monday evening across the street from Parliament. I walked with her upstairs (through metal detectors and all) and into the function with loads of liquor and tasty hors devours.
My friend Trisha and I. This was not actually taken at this event as Parliament doesn't allow photography within the building...and has very few dancer's poles:
We enjoyed many of the gastro-delights and mingled with the 40 or so people present. However, as we are both Americans, interns, and young, we mostly stuck with the people she knew, which mostly consisted of the researchers she works with. I was her guest after all. However I did have a nice conversation with a Ukrainian woman who does something with UK-Ukrainian business relations.
Afterwards, we joined her researchers at one of parliaments bars and discusses many things, with particular attention to (surprisingly) politics. After about an hour (and several glasses of wine/champaign/beer) their Member of Parliament (MP, the equivalent of a US Senator) called one of the researchers and asked if we would all like to join him on the Terrace of Parliament. Now, I've heard about the terrace a few times from all of my housemates who work in Parliament. It's an outdoor patio on the third or fourth floor of Parliament overlooking the Thames, South London, and has an absolute money shot of the London Eye...and only Members of Parliament and their guests are allowed access to the area. I was SO tempted to bring my camera out but fought myself and decided not to. It is one of the most serene view I have seen in London thus far, perhaps aided because of it's exclusivity.
I met her MP in person and he asked how I felt about American politics. He seemed relieved and downright jovial when I pointed out the anti-Bush button on my bag. Once again, apparently, it is expected that most Americans in some way voted for/support Bush...who (unlike the massively popular Clinton family) is not exactly in vogue over here. Everyone I've spoken with including her MP and his staff are quite supportive of Hilary in 2008. Eventually the conversation moved on to other things with more familiar faces, but we did sit out on the Terrace with several Members of Parliament and staff for about an hour, at which point we politely excused ourselves and took one of the last tube rides home. It was a fantastic evening and one I don't think I'll forget for some time.
This is some random photo I found online of Parliament's Terrace...just so you have an idea. I have no idea who this dude is, but the view is lovely.
6.18.2007
An American in London
As usual, this has been an incredibly busy week. I've learned a lot in the past few weeks and there is so much I could include in this post, but hopefully, these are the highlights.
The week began with my second week interning with Prospect Pictures. I worked on some web stuff for dailycooks.com, including another REALLY great report on improvements they could make to their site as well as summarizing effective design elements from other cooking shows.
Work has in general been interesting, but I have a lot of down time as I'm doing a lot of independent work like creating photoshop images and converting video for the web or DVD, the latter which takes a lot of waiting around. I don't blame them for asking the intern to take care of it. However, every now and then-usually once every 1 - 2 days-something special will come up and I will get to do something different. Sometimes this means watch a film from Lebanon or conduct some research on tourist trends in the Arab world, but last Tuesday, I was asked to meet with two of Prospect Picture's development producers.
Exciting Developments
I met with Richard and Sally for about 30 - 45 minutes discussing everything from street fashion to MTV, but mostly technology, new media, and how young people use it. They're working on a new television show about how young people use the internet and I suppose they figured that having a young, American intern in the office might be a useful opportunity to learn more. We had a great discussion. I've been reading up lately on how new media has been changing the way young people interact. This knowledge in addition to just being in college in a hip city (such as techno-savvy SF) at this time has allowed me to be somewhat more keen than most about technology and youth. Experience has taught me that it's rare to find people who don't have a blood claim who are this interested in what I have to say: they were taking notes! I felt like some kind of buzzword-dropping, pop-culture enthusiastic, youth-observing authority...but in an un-oxymoronic way.
Apparently, they thought the meeting was successful as well, and asked me (via Louise, Prospect's Head of Production) to work with/for them on a part-time basis to help generate ideas for the show they're working on. Because I'm here on a student visa, I cannot legally get paid, however I was offered a stipend for food and travel expenses if I choose to work more with them. This is BIGnews. I've never actually been offered a paid media job other than USFtv, especially in development, which is what I think I'd like to do in media. The catch is that I'd be expected to work at Prospect more often which means giving up some of my hours at Out There News. I think I'm going to cut down to one day a week at Out There and try to arrange my schedule so that I can work on Friday's every now and then if possible. However, I have upcoming trips planned to Berlin, Edinburgh, Florence, and then my SF friend Katie Newman's visit to London...in addition to class and my research paper: this could be tricky...AND rewarding!
Back to Basics
On a more casual note, my social life in London has been pleasant as well. Last Monday (11 June), I met up with my USF friend Morgan, who is studying in London in July but is traveling around for about a month before. We were supposed to meet up earlier but there were some phone issues and something about a twisted ankle. Regardless of the circumstances, it was nice to meet up with another familiar face for a drink. I forgot my camera at home that day, but I'm sure she'll post the photos we took at some point when she has access to a computer that she doesn't have to pay for.
As far as class is concerned, last week was the best class we've had yet. We discussed business culture and how that is affected by national culture. It was more interactive and discussion-based than other classes which was a nice change. I haven't been a big fan of our class thus far for a few reasons. First, many of my peers are obnoxious and talk whenever given the chance...sometimes even during a lecture. Being disrespectful in a classroom and to a professor one of my BIGGEST PET PEEVES, and it would appear that very few other American students share similar values. Second, the material is VERY business-centric, which I should have expected, but I think I was expecting a more interdisciplinary approach to the study of policy, sociology, and politics. However, I forgot to mention in past posts that during one of our classes on the structure of businesses, we watched scenes from the original (UK) version of "The Office," you know...the one with Ricky Gervais. That was a welcome change of pace. As a social science (media studies) student, I have been pretty uninterested in our material thus far. Fortunately, much of our grade (and work) is devoted to our research project, which is entirely up to us.
At the moment, I'm working on both of these theses: 'UK Media Structure and Independent Production' or 'New Media and Traditional TV'. I will have to choose one of these in the next few weeks of course. I'm currently leaning more towards the latter which would examine the changing way in which people view, interpret, and ultimately interact with traditional television programming in new ways because of new media, particularly the web and video on demand. If I choose the other thesis topic, I would examine the differences between the structures of the US and UK media industries and how the UK media industry is inherently more supportive of independent production. I'll let you know which one I select.
Another thing I've noticed about living in London, is that unlike most of the major cities in the US, it is still legal to smoke indoors in public places here...at least until July 1st when a country-wide policy goes into effect and public places will become smoke-free. After witnessing two grandparents die from smoking-related diseases, it's extra-gross to be around cigarette smoke. At school (where many of my friends smoke) I don't really mind the smoke too much because you can only legally smoke outside. It's absolutely disgusting to sit in a pub or restaurant and be surrounded by smoke...like, ew. I am SO ready for Smoke-free London, fuck nicotine. There are much sexier vices.
I also discovered one of my new favorite local restaurants near my apartment. Just so you know, it's called As Greek As It Gets, and it's cheap, close, and great.
My American Thursday (long, but hopefully a good read...promise)
I had the most peculiar and unfortunate day last Thursday. I was especially tired after a long night of class, Greek, and making a late appearance at the birthday celebration for my housemate Alex, so I wasn't as motivated as usual for work. However, I told them I would come in between 10 - 10:30 and as it was a only 10 after 10, I thought I would stop by a local cafe I wanted to try for some breakfast take out. Everyone at this cafe is really nice, but many of them have indecipherable accents which made ordering a challenge. I figured I would get adventurous and order a veggie/egg panini with mushrooms and when asked what kind of sauce I wanted from the neo-cockney chef, I repeated: "uh...white?" I figured it would be like a light hollandaise and I would enjoy some type of fusion eggs benedict. Upon realizing that the white sauce was actually mayonnaise and much of the sandwich was fried/greasy, I recognized that I was certainly not in San Francisco anymore. I considered this a cruel lesson I needed to learn about British cuisine, so I took the breakfast to work. Unlike most Americans, I am morally opposed to most greasy food and feel socially obligated to not let anything go bad. This meal put me in a massive contradiction. Ultimately I couldn't eat much of it. It was covered in mayo and I just couldn't, I would rather go to social justice purgatory for throwing greasy bread away than put crap into my body, whatever...perhaps I'm vain.
The bits of meal that I ate I enjoyed from the communal kitchen on our floor as no one had arrived at the office yet. I was a little early so I didn't think too much of it. But after the first half hour rolled by, I began to worry. The worst case scenario was that I worked at my other internship, which wasn't a bad prospect (no pun intended) at all. I asked the building's reception desk and there were no extra keys available, so I decided I would give them an hour and then head over to my other office. I figured the lobby would be a pleasant place to wait for my coworkers and read...
On last Wednesday, a student from Iraq came into the office to translate some interviews from Arabic into English for a story they're working on. I'm not entirely sure how to spell her name, but it sounds like 'Roose-elle,' and I discovered after she left on Wednesday afternoon that she studies medicine and is working towards becoming a doctor. She and her family left Iraq after the war started for several reasons, paramount being that the universities in Iraq have been shut down. Intellectuals, artists, and students are all leaving the area in droves because there is no longer work/school/support for them. Some of the producers at Out There joked that they should film their American intern and their Iraqi student translator talking. I was a little taken aback at first, but it's actually not a bad idea.
She came into the lobby about 15 minutes after I began reading and we spoke for a little while. I got the feeling that she was very shy and not entirely confident with her English abilities, but I quickly realized that there was a more profound reason for her standoffish demeanor. Like the first time you meet someone after secretly viewing their facebook/myspace profiles or hearing about them from a friend, I asked her questions I already knew the answers to. I asked what she studied and why she moved here, and if she liked London. There was a sincere sadness in her voice in describing that London is not the first place she would like to study, but being a refugee is easier when you have family in a city and speak the local language. I asked her what Iraq was like before the war and she lit up. She quickly responded that before the war, Iraq was the most beautiful place in the world. I feel like thats a pretty strong assertion, especially coming from someone who hasn't seen the whole world, but I realized this was probably not the right time and I was not the right person to point this out. I responded by foolishly joking that I was from the desert as well, that perhaps we had more in common than one would initially observe. She quickly replied that Iraq was MUCH different than the southern United States, even the part near Mexico. Rusell politely told me that she would walk around and come back later.
It was not disdain that filtered her statements, but instead a heavy level of dislike. She may simply have been shy or not liked communicating with men, and perhaps I'm reading into it too much. But, it was like she held me personally responsible for the death and suffering my country have brought to her country, as if I encompassed America, in all of it's nationalistic and vast greasiness. I have never felt more American, and fully realized last Thursday that whether I like it or not, I represent my country, our culture and our collective identity. I may live in San Francisco, but to some, I might as well have voted for Bush.
Trisha and Shannon on Trisha's first visit to a 'love' bookstore, Leicester Square:
That evening, I went with some of my housemates to an amazing bar in Leicester Square that has an event on Thursdays called Karoake Rock Star. It's basically just Karaoke, but with a live backing band. It was awesome! To make the night even better, I met up with an old acquaintance that I met through my friend Clay who quickly became a new friend. I didn't get home until 1:30 am that night, but it was a nice ending to my most American day. If the war in Iraq and greasy food identify America to some, it was refreshing to rediscover that so did good old fashioned rock and roll. Even if it does come with fries, I'd take American rock and roll any day.
My new friend Alicia and I at Rock Star Karaoke:
History in the making?
On Friday we went as a class to The London Museum (which was thoroughly LAME) and the Bank of England (which was much better than expected). I learned a lot about the role the bank plays and the history of British currency. They have a history of everything here...like...everything.
"Romans Go Home" and more at the disappointing Museum of London:
Outside the Bank of England:
Later that evening, I had a conference call with a woman named Esther who approached me at the USF Student Leadership Awards Ceremony. She heard we started USFtv at USF and explained that she worked with the Southern Sudanese Refugees and would like to help them set up an independent television station there. We've been corresponding back and forth about the project and finally spoke over the phone with several people who are extremely interested in getting a station on air before the 2009 election. It sounds like an incredibly daunting task, but I'm willing to help find the right people for the job so someone else can take the lead. I'm sure it will come up again on this blog.
Brighton
On Saturday some of my new friends and I traveled to the delicious British beach town of Brighton. Brighton's just about 1.5 hours from Central London, so we arrived via bus at around noon and since we couldn't get any hostels in advance, took the first bus back on Sunday morning...at 4:15 AM. I'll let the photos speak for themselves, but Brighton was absolutely lovely...and tiring.
Trisha looking into the ocean for the first time...ever:
even if it is the English Channel, it's still sea water, get over it ya'll.
The Brighton Pier which had some super fun amusement park rides:
Cathy, Shannon, Trisha, Allison, and me on Brighton's beach:
This American Apparel-esque photo of Cathy, part of Allison, and I at such a fun club night called "murder disco." It was like popscene, but with even better music and the people here were actually nice. Some female hipster even complimented me on my loose, 'comfy' jeans. Prediction: loose jeans are the new skinny pants...thank you Katie Newman.
Because we stayed up for about 21 hours solid, including a dance club, some pubs, and an amusement park, I was fairly tired on the bus ride back:
Happy Father's Day!
My father and I during his last visit to SF (Feb. 2007):
My Mother and Ernie, her long-term boyfriend:
Favorites:
British Digestive Biscuits, at first I thought (and still do) that they sounded disgusting...leave it to the English to name a cookie a 'digestive biscuit' just because they're high in fiber. Once I tasted them at work, I quickly became addicted, they're especially nice with milk chocolate coating.
The Cardigans' "I Need Some Fine Wine, and You Need To Be Nicer" from Super Extra Gravity. I've been a Cardigans' fan for ages but this song came on my ipod last week and gave me just the right amount of kick in the ass.
The week began with my second week interning with Prospect Pictures. I worked on some web stuff for dailycooks.com, including another REALLY great report on improvements they could make to their site as well as summarizing effective design elements from other cooking shows.
Work has in general been interesting, but I have a lot of down time as I'm doing a lot of independent work like creating photoshop images and converting video for the web or DVD, the latter which takes a lot of waiting around. I don't blame them for asking the intern to take care of it. However, every now and then-usually once every 1 - 2 days-something special will come up and I will get to do something different. Sometimes this means watch a film from Lebanon or conduct some research on tourist trends in the Arab world, but last Tuesday, I was asked to meet with two of Prospect Picture's development producers.
Exciting Developments
I met with Richard and Sally for about 30 - 45 minutes discussing everything from street fashion to MTV, but mostly technology, new media, and how young people use it. They're working on a new television show about how young people use the internet and I suppose they figured that having a young, American intern in the office might be a useful opportunity to learn more. We had a great discussion. I've been reading up lately on how new media has been changing the way young people interact. This knowledge in addition to just being in college in a hip city (such as techno-savvy SF) at this time has allowed me to be somewhat more keen than most about technology and youth. Experience has taught me that it's rare to find people who don't have a blood claim who are this interested in what I have to say: they were taking notes! I felt like some kind of buzzword-dropping, pop-culture enthusiastic, youth-observing authority...but in an un-oxymoronic way.
Apparently, they thought the meeting was successful as well, and asked me (via Louise, Prospect's Head of Production) to work with/for them on a part-time basis to help generate ideas for the show they're working on. Because I'm here on a student visa, I cannot legally get paid, however I was offered a stipend for food and travel expenses if I choose to work more with them. This is BIGnews. I've never actually been offered a paid media job other than USFtv, especially in development, which is what I think I'd like to do in media. The catch is that I'd be expected to work at Prospect more often which means giving up some of my hours at Out There News. I think I'm going to cut down to one day a week at Out There and try to arrange my schedule so that I can work on Friday's every now and then if possible. However, I have upcoming trips planned to Berlin, Edinburgh, Florence, and then my SF friend Katie Newman's visit to London...in addition to class and my research paper: this could be tricky...AND rewarding!
Back to Basics
On a more casual note, my social life in London has been pleasant as well. Last Monday (11 June), I met up with my USF friend Morgan, who is studying in London in July but is traveling around for about a month before. We were supposed to meet up earlier but there were some phone issues and something about a twisted ankle. Regardless of the circumstances, it was nice to meet up with another familiar face for a drink. I forgot my camera at home that day, but I'm sure she'll post the photos we took at some point when she has access to a computer that she doesn't have to pay for.
As far as class is concerned, last week was the best class we've had yet. We discussed business culture and how that is affected by national culture. It was more interactive and discussion-based than other classes which was a nice change. I haven't been a big fan of our class thus far for a few reasons. First, many of my peers are obnoxious and talk whenever given the chance...sometimes even during a lecture. Being disrespectful in a classroom and to a professor one of my BIGGEST PET PEEVES, and it would appear that very few other American students share similar values. Second, the material is VERY business-centric, which I should have expected, but I think I was expecting a more interdisciplinary approach to the study of policy, sociology, and politics. However, I forgot to mention in past posts that during one of our classes on the structure of businesses, we watched scenes from the original (UK) version of "The Office," you know...the one with Ricky Gervais. That was a welcome change of pace. As a social science (media studies) student, I have been pretty uninterested in our material thus far. Fortunately, much of our grade (and work) is devoted to our research project, which is entirely up to us.
At the moment, I'm working on both of these theses: 'UK Media Structure and Independent Production' or 'New Media and Traditional TV'. I will have to choose one of these in the next few weeks of course. I'm currently leaning more towards the latter which would examine the changing way in which people view, interpret, and ultimately interact with traditional television programming in new ways because of new media, particularly the web and video on demand. If I choose the other thesis topic, I would examine the differences between the structures of the US and UK media industries and how the UK media industry is inherently more supportive of independent production. I'll let you know which one I select.
Another thing I've noticed about living in London, is that unlike most of the major cities in the US, it is still legal to smoke indoors in public places here...at least until July 1st when a country-wide policy goes into effect and public places will become smoke-free. After witnessing two grandparents die from smoking-related diseases, it's extra-gross to be around cigarette smoke. At school (where many of my friends smoke) I don't really mind the smoke too much because you can only legally smoke outside. It's absolutely disgusting to sit in a pub or restaurant and be surrounded by smoke...like, ew. I am SO ready for Smoke-free London, fuck nicotine. There are much sexier vices.
I also discovered one of my new favorite local restaurants near my apartment. Just so you know, it's called As Greek As It Gets, and it's cheap, close, and great.
My American Thursday (long, but hopefully a good read...promise)
I had the most peculiar and unfortunate day last Thursday. I was especially tired after a long night of class, Greek, and making a late appearance at the birthday celebration for my housemate Alex, so I wasn't as motivated as usual for work. However, I told them I would come in between 10 - 10:30 and as it was a only 10 after 10, I thought I would stop by a local cafe I wanted to try for some breakfast take out. Everyone at this cafe is really nice, but many of them have indecipherable accents which made ordering a challenge. I figured I would get adventurous and order a veggie/egg panini with mushrooms and when asked what kind of sauce I wanted from the neo-cockney chef, I repeated: "uh...white?" I figured it would be like a light hollandaise and I would enjoy some type of fusion eggs benedict. Upon realizing that the white sauce was actually mayonnaise and much of the sandwich was fried/greasy, I recognized that I was certainly not in San Francisco anymore. I considered this a cruel lesson I needed to learn about British cuisine, so I took the breakfast to work. Unlike most Americans, I am morally opposed to most greasy food and feel socially obligated to not let anything go bad. This meal put me in a massive contradiction. Ultimately I couldn't eat much of it. It was covered in mayo and I just couldn't, I would rather go to social justice purgatory for throwing greasy bread away than put crap into my body, whatever...perhaps I'm vain.
The bits of meal that I ate I enjoyed from the communal kitchen on our floor as no one had arrived at the office yet. I was a little early so I didn't think too much of it. But after the first half hour rolled by, I began to worry. The worst case scenario was that I worked at my other internship, which wasn't a bad prospect (no pun intended) at all. I asked the building's reception desk and there were no extra keys available, so I decided I would give them an hour and then head over to my other office. I figured the lobby would be a pleasant place to wait for my coworkers and read...
On last Wednesday, a student from Iraq came into the office to translate some interviews from Arabic into English for a story they're working on. I'm not entirely sure how to spell her name, but it sounds like 'Roose-elle,' and I discovered after she left on Wednesday afternoon that she studies medicine and is working towards becoming a doctor. She and her family left Iraq after the war started for several reasons, paramount being that the universities in Iraq have been shut down. Intellectuals, artists, and students are all leaving the area in droves because there is no longer work/school/support for them. Some of the producers at Out There joked that they should film their American intern and their Iraqi student translator talking. I was a little taken aback at first, but it's actually not a bad idea.
She came into the lobby about 15 minutes after I began reading and we spoke for a little while. I got the feeling that she was very shy and not entirely confident with her English abilities, but I quickly realized that there was a more profound reason for her standoffish demeanor. Like the first time you meet someone after secretly viewing their facebook/myspace profiles or hearing about them from a friend, I asked her questions I already knew the answers to. I asked what she studied and why she moved here, and if she liked London. There was a sincere sadness in her voice in describing that London is not the first place she would like to study, but being a refugee is easier when you have family in a city and speak the local language. I asked her what Iraq was like before the war and she lit up. She quickly responded that before the war, Iraq was the most beautiful place in the world. I feel like thats a pretty strong assertion, especially coming from someone who hasn't seen the whole world, but I realized this was probably not the right time and I was not the right person to point this out. I responded by foolishly joking that I was from the desert as well, that perhaps we had more in common than one would initially observe. She quickly replied that Iraq was MUCH different than the southern United States, even the part near Mexico. Rusell politely told me that she would walk around and come back later.
It was not disdain that filtered her statements, but instead a heavy level of dislike. She may simply have been shy or not liked communicating with men, and perhaps I'm reading into it too much. But, it was like she held me personally responsible for the death and suffering my country have brought to her country, as if I encompassed America, in all of it's nationalistic and vast greasiness. I have never felt more American, and fully realized last Thursday that whether I like it or not, I represent my country, our culture and our collective identity. I may live in San Francisco, but to some, I might as well have voted for Bush.
Trisha and Shannon on Trisha's first visit to a 'love' bookstore, Leicester Square:
That evening, I went with some of my housemates to an amazing bar in Leicester Square that has an event on Thursdays called Karoake Rock Star. It's basically just Karaoke, but with a live backing band. It was awesome! To make the night even better, I met up with an old acquaintance that I met through my friend Clay who quickly became a new friend. I didn't get home until 1:30 am that night, but it was a nice ending to my most American day. If the war in Iraq and greasy food identify America to some, it was refreshing to rediscover that so did good old fashioned rock and roll. Even if it does come with fries, I'd take American rock and roll any day.
My new friend Alicia and I at Rock Star Karaoke:
History in the making?
On Friday we went as a class to The London Museum (which was thoroughly LAME) and the Bank of England (which was much better than expected). I learned a lot about the role the bank plays and the history of British currency. They have a history of everything here...like...everything.
"Romans Go Home" and more at the disappointing Museum of London:
Outside the Bank of England:
Later that evening, I had a conference call with a woman named Esther who approached me at the USF Student Leadership Awards Ceremony. She heard we started USFtv at USF and explained that she worked with the Southern Sudanese Refugees and would like to help them set up an independent television station there. We've been corresponding back and forth about the project and finally spoke over the phone with several people who are extremely interested in getting a station on air before the 2009 election. It sounds like an incredibly daunting task, but I'm willing to help find the right people for the job so someone else can take the lead. I'm sure it will come up again on this blog.
Brighton
On Saturday some of my new friends and I traveled to the delicious British beach town of Brighton. Brighton's just about 1.5 hours from Central London, so we arrived via bus at around noon and since we couldn't get any hostels in advance, took the first bus back on Sunday morning...at 4:15 AM. I'll let the photos speak for themselves, but Brighton was absolutely lovely...and tiring.
Trisha looking into the ocean for the first time...ever:
even if it is the English Channel, it's still sea water, get over it ya'll.
The Brighton Pier which had some super fun amusement park rides:
Cathy, Shannon, Trisha, Allison, and me on Brighton's beach:
This American Apparel-esque photo of Cathy, part of Allison, and I at such a fun club night called "murder disco." It was like popscene, but with even better music and the people here were actually nice. Some female hipster even complimented me on my loose, 'comfy' jeans. Prediction: loose jeans are the new skinny pants...thank you Katie Newman.
Because we stayed up for about 21 hours solid, including a dance club, some pubs, and an amusement park, I was fairly tired on the bus ride back:
Happy Father's Day!
My father and I during his last visit to SF (Feb. 2007):
My Mother and Ernie, her long-term boyfriend:
Favorites:
British Digestive Biscuits, at first I thought (and still do) that they sounded disgusting...leave it to the English to name a cookie a 'digestive biscuit' just because they're high in fiber. Once I tasted them at work, I quickly became addicted, they're especially nice with milk chocolate coating.
The Cardigans' "I Need Some Fine Wine, and You Need To Be Nicer" from Super Extra Gravity. I've been a Cardigans' fan for ages but this song came on my ipod last week and gave me just the right amount of kick in the ass.
6.11.2007
Further Down the Rabbit Hole... (revised)
Well kiddos, it's been a while since my last post, and I know I said I was going to post more often, but I can guarantee at least one long post on Sundays and perhaps one or two smaller ones throughout the week. I just had SO much going on this week I barely had time to sleep. Here's what's been going on:
"Daily Cooks" Update, followed by Professional Debauchery and Mild-Mannered Frivolity
So on Monday I briefly described my first day of interning on the "Daily Cooks" set. I was doing runner work and general PA stuff. It was a lot of action which was a perfect first day in my opinion. I quickly met some truly friendly people.
I learned a lot (or 'much' if you've ever taken a USF class evaluation) about television production. The crew had been working on "Daily Cooks" for about 5 months so it was more or less like a well oiled machine. Everything is pre-made, measured, cleaned, garnished, and blocked perfectly in both the rehearsal and subsequent taping (which is conducted as if it were a live show, so precision is important).
"Daily Cooks" Control Room:
I arrived fairly early on Tuesday (10) and did a little PA work, but sat in on the control room most of the day. While it was definitely interesting to watch the taping from the nucleus of the "Daily Cooks" world, I missed out on some great snacking and hanging out between takes with my new British peeps, who I engaged with on a diversity of issues, including American politics (overall the Clintons are celebrated like foreign monarchs delivering well wishes and clotted cream), British newspapers (everything Rupert Murdoch owns is complete shit, which is refreshing, because I thought it was an American phenomenon), and the relative sexiness of my accent. On that last note, I explained to my some of my co-workers that in the states, English accents are considered sophisticated, sexy, and exotic: like some kind of fantastic dessert like rich chocolate soufflé, the kind of dish no one can resist, and only someone of immense, god-given talent can create. In return, I was informed that American accents (because of the 'californication' or globalization of our media) are so common that they appear mostly dull in person. However, apparently, my accent has a bit of twang that renders my voice slightly more desirable than my fellow yanks. I think Liz was just being nice, but I do feel kind of special recognizing that every time I speak here someone does a double-take.
Anyway, not only was Tuesday MY second day working on the show, it was THEIR last day of production, which meant a sweet and long-overdue ending for this bi-daily, 8 - 14 hour-a-day production team, BUT...it meant the official "Daily Cooks" season (or series in English English) finale after party. Now, I've never been to a real season finale party, and certainly never any kind of media-professional function in Europe, so I determined that it was in my best interests to follow the lead of my peers and supervisors. After we finished cleaning the kitchens, all of the runners + crew grabbed giant tote bags and looked through all of the food that was left over and would otherwise be thrown away. Cooking shows are wasteful. Although Britain is very environmentally conscious, when space and time are issues and you've got a show to produce, a lot of food is thrown away. So we were grateful that we could alleviate the communal burden by taken massive amounts of amazing ingredients home. My tote bag contents included, but were most certainly not limited to: spinach, basil, zucchini, oranges, two loaves of different kinds of bread, some cake, eggs, pasta, hummus, and probably something else my roommates and I have probably eaten. After this shopping spree, we all met up with the cast and control room team at a local pub.
My new British friend and fellow runner (PA) Liz with her bags of bounty:
I don't think I've mentioned it yet on this blog, but England, like much of Europe, is a drinking culture. I was only planning on slowly nursing my modest glass of rosé and sat at the 'kiddie table' with my fellow runners, BUT my rosé was followed by a surprise gin and tonic from a fellow runner, which was followed by more drinks from the crew. It was either a bizarre case where the American college kid wasn't expected to drink due to modesty (a challenge), the crew taking pity on my poor economy and providing alcoholic offerings not unlike our collective ancestors offered native peoples (a gift), or they were all proud of my 48-hour whirlwind performance (an award). I'd like to think it was the third selection. To ensure my modesty as the new American intern, I chose to devour some pita bread and slowly sip my tonic. To be frank, I never knew interning could be this fun. I had a long and in-depth conversation with our Executive Producer and several other producers. Not only did I get much more inebriated than I would have ever expected at a work function (and I was probably one of the least intoxicated people present), but I had a great time, some memorable conversations, and learned even more about British culture. Although I did have to guide a very drunk co-worker to (and through) the tube. I finally returned home at around 1:30 am. It was my longest non-USFtv media day.
The "Daily Cooks" 'kiddie' table:
class
Because it had been a long and exhausting couple of days...and also because Wednesday was my day off this week, I gorged myself on an epic night of rest. The following morning I enjoyed the serenity that accompanies a rarely empty house and felt satisfied as I dined on some of my bounty. I proceeded to run some errands which included meandering in a boxy and fun Notting Hill record store. I eventually found my way to class quite early, which is a sensation I have not experienced in some time. Our class this week was on business structures. Nothing to report. I had some Chinese food with friends and watched one of the documentaries done by my second internship: Out There News.
Libya and Bobby Lee (USFtvers may enjoy...)
The following day I found my way to North London for my first day with Out There News. Paul, the managing editor and founder of Out There was in meetings all day and didn't have anything for me to work on, so I did some homework and helped the OT producers with some research on Libya. Specifically, how Americans feel about Libya. I'm going to be frank: I know virtually nothing about Libya, and not too much about most Arabian and/or Muslim countries outside of Iraq, and even that's dodgy. I'm hoping to learn more about this region and the stories Out There tells on behalf of many people who can or will not. The central office for Out There is composed of only about 4 - 6 people, and most of them have a personal connection and real conviction to do their work. One of my new coworkers named Zeina is one of the researchers/producers for Out There. She is also a filmmaker and I was moved and intrigued when I watched her short film at work about the recent bombing of Lebanon. It's called I Remember Lebanon, if you'd like to watch you can check it out here:
That evening I met up with my good friend Bobby Lee and his friend from high school named Larry. The two of them had been traveling through the French Riviera with Larry's family and then progressed to London together. We had a delicious meal at a Japanese/Korean restaurant in Soho that Zeina recommended and caught up. Bobby Lee is always a hoot, a highly intelligent, often offensively humorous (or humourous) hoot, but a hoot nonetheless. After dinner, we walked around and went to a few bars/pubs in Soho and Piccadilly Circus /West End. We didn't go to several bars/pubs because we were having a raucous time drinking like fish, but because Bobby is very particular about what bar he will settle into, so we tried a few before he found one that was just right. He's like 'goldiepubs.' I'm not sure about the name of where we ended up, but it was okay enough. They played electonica music and had expensive cocktails, it was sufficiently European. We mingled with some local college student and one kid's aunt and headed home before the tube closed.
Bobby Lee and I, up-close and personal in London:
TV Online and Kitchen escapades....(more Bobby Lee for you fans out there)
On Friday I arrived to a mostly full office which included Paul, who had some significant research for me to on online video platforms. It took me all day to complete this report, but I am now a temporary expert on online video platforms and produced one of the finest reports I have ever commissioned. I'm tre proud of it and if anyone really wants a copy, I'd be more than happy to email one to you: dbinegar@gmail.com. Remember, its 'binegar' with a 'b' as in boy or butter. Here are two sites that you should definitely check out: Joost is an invite only service that may be the front runner of the next wave of online video, and Democracy, a free service that's shockingly familiar and easy to use.
I also had several entertaining conversations on perceptions of the US and UK, popular culture, and media with another new coworker, Huda, who has an extensive resume of media work...including a show she once did with Scary Spice. I thought she was cool before, but now I think she's rad. After work, I raced home and met Bobby and Larry at my flat.
Now, I don't do a whole lot of cooking. I grew up with a bevy of talented chefs at home(s) that were more than willing to cook (or order fantastic takeout) on a regular basis and have had a meal plan since leaving home. And while I did have to cook my meals when I lived in an NYU apartment last summer, I did very little actual cooking. In fact, I'm an expert at heating up Trader Joes frozen dishes, making peanut butter and jelly, and applying dressing to pre-made salads. So, since I had some amazing homemade, organic, gourmet pasta sauce from one of the "Daily Cooks" chefs, and a lot of pasta and salad. I though Larry, Bobby, and I would save some money and make dinner at home. Fortunately, Bobby is like...really good at making pasta, which was tough in our strikingly dirty kitchen. Our dinner was quite good and I enjoyed a nice (and cheap) change of pace. You'll be happy to know that I have since made pasta successfully by myself. It's been a liberating experience.
After dinner, we joined some of my flat mates for drinking and dancing at out local wannabe hip bar mango-lounge (FOR SFers: our Poleng...only you're money is worth half as much and it actually isn't that cool). Larry went a little crazy with the Lychee martinis, and before you knew it, most of our house joined us and we danced to all of the best European hits of...2003...including my personal favorite: that Romanian "Numa Numa" song. You know, the one made famous by that dancing fat kid. We had the place mostly to ourselves on the basement dance floor and we went off. It wasn't quite sexy, but it was surprisingly comfortable.
The next day, while Bobby escorted Larry to the airport, a few of us made plans to visit the London Zoo while most of our house was on a day trip to some castle or something. It took us a little longer to get out then we thought because I slept in a little and there was a lot of construction on the tube. We exited the tube at Camden Town, the stop closest to the London Zoo, but when we exited we did not see a massive complex of caged animals and snow-cone clad children, but discovered a bustling street with vintage and trendy clothing shops, canals, bars, street vendors, cheap sunglasses, and young people with multi-colored weaves for hair. It was like a bizarre, but brilliant mix of SF's Haight-Ashbury, beach towns of Mexico, the cool parts of Bangkok (I imagine), and an Amsterdam rave...but with alterna-malls. If there is a consumer Bohemia, it's London's Camden Town. Trisha, Shannon, my flatmate Thom and I all quickly decided that the zoo would have to wait until another day. We were all a little hungry/tired, so we stopped by one of the bars overlooking a canal and chilled for what seemed like hours of a most desirable afternoon. I enjoyed an amazing soy bean burger with chips (we call them French Fries). We then walked around and took in the ambiance of the scene. I'm sorry I don't have more photos, but I WILL be back there for sure.
Bobby came over that evening and we enjoyed a nice, long (and CHEAP!) dinner at wagamama, an amazing London-based Asian restaurant chain that is bent on cheaply tasty world domination. We then walked around to a few pubs (once again, 'goldiepubs' came out to visit) and we eventually met up with my housemates at our neighborhood pub O'Neill's, to conclude our celebration of my flatmate Jayson's birth. Bobby left for the tube before it closed and I continued to hang out with my housemates. Shannon, Trisha, Trisha's friends, and I hung out and enjoyed rich conversation over trail mix and hummus.
Joe, Andy, Katie, Jenni, and Jayson celebrating at O'Neill's:
Happy Birthday Jayson!
After very little sleep on Saturday night, I awoke early to meet Bobby for breakfast near his hotel and help him get his luggage onto the train. I returned home and freshened up for an exploratory day with Shannon and Cathy. We just started walking and stumbled into South Kensington and Chelsea. We walked for about an hour or so and then hoped on a double decked bus for an elevated perspective. We exited after a leisurely drive through Kensington and ended up at the shockingly beautiful Victoria and Albert Museum...having no idea it was there. The V&A Museum was on the top of my list of things to do, so it was perfect that we ended up finding it. Even more fortunate for us was that it was the last day of the Kylie Minogue exhibit, which I had wanted to check out. I don't have any photos of the V&A collection because they request no photography, which I usually ignore, but felt some level of responsibility since the museum is free. The V&A Museum was a delightful surprise addition to our day and I hope to check it out again.
Shannon, Cathy, and I sitting on a replica of Dali's "Mae West Lips" in the V&A:
Once again, I'm exhausted, but that's a substantial update for now. Check again in a few days/next week and there will be more fertile narrative of my adventures abroad.
British Phrases of the week:
1. Brilliant - used to describe something positive. Example: "these scones are perfect...brilliant, good job."
2. Fuckwit - used to describe someone who is incapable. Example: "I feel like a total fuckwit right now, can we run that one more time?"
Song of the Moment:
Tiga, You're Gonna Want Me
By The Way:
Paris is big news over here as well.
Victoria "Posh" Beckham is like...hotter than the sun over here. She is in the paper every day...literally. I have some really gross and juicy gossip about Victoria if anyone wants to hear it when I'm back in the states.
"Daily Cooks" Update, followed by Professional Debauchery and Mild-Mannered Frivolity
So on Monday I briefly described my first day of interning on the "Daily Cooks" set. I was doing runner work and general PA stuff. It was a lot of action which was a perfect first day in my opinion. I quickly met some truly friendly people.
I learned a lot (or 'much' if you've ever taken a USF class evaluation) about television production. The crew had been working on "Daily Cooks" for about 5 months so it was more or less like a well oiled machine. Everything is pre-made, measured, cleaned, garnished, and blocked perfectly in both the rehearsal and subsequent taping (which is conducted as if it were a live show, so precision is important).
"Daily Cooks" Control Room:
I arrived fairly early on Tuesday (10) and did a little PA work, but sat in on the control room most of the day. While it was definitely interesting to watch the taping from the nucleus of the "Daily Cooks" world, I missed out on some great snacking and hanging out between takes with my new British peeps, who I engaged with on a diversity of issues, including American politics (overall the Clintons are celebrated like foreign monarchs delivering well wishes and clotted cream), British newspapers (everything Rupert Murdoch owns is complete shit, which is refreshing, because I thought it was an American phenomenon), and the relative sexiness of my accent. On that last note, I explained to my some of my co-workers that in the states, English accents are considered sophisticated, sexy, and exotic: like some kind of fantastic dessert like rich chocolate soufflé, the kind of dish no one can resist, and only someone of immense, god-given talent can create. In return, I was informed that American accents (because of the 'californication' or globalization of our media) are so common that they appear mostly dull in person. However, apparently, my accent has a bit of twang that renders my voice slightly more desirable than my fellow yanks. I think Liz was just being nice, but I do feel kind of special recognizing that every time I speak here someone does a double-take.
Anyway, not only was Tuesday MY second day working on the show, it was THEIR last day of production, which meant a sweet and long-overdue ending for this bi-daily, 8 - 14 hour-a-day production team, BUT...it meant the official "Daily Cooks" season (or series in English English) finale after party. Now, I've never been to a real season finale party, and certainly never any kind of media-professional function in Europe, so I determined that it was in my best interests to follow the lead of my peers and supervisors. After we finished cleaning the kitchens, all of the runners + crew grabbed giant tote bags and looked through all of the food that was left over and would otherwise be thrown away. Cooking shows are wasteful. Although Britain is very environmentally conscious, when space and time are issues and you've got a show to produce, a lot of food is thrown away. So we were grateful that we could alleviate the communal burden by taken massive amounts of amazing ingredients home. My tote bag contents included, but were most certainly not limited to: spinach, basil, zucchini, oranges, two loaves of different kinds of bread, some cake, eggs, pasta, hummus, and probably something else my roommates and I have probably eaten. After this shopping spree, we all met up with the cast and control room team at a local pub.
My new British friend and fellow runner (PA) Liz with her bags of bounty:
I don't think I've mentioned it yet on this blog, but England, like much of Europe, is a drinking culture. I was only planning on slowly nursing my modest glass of rosé and sat at the 'kiddie table' with my fellow runners, BUT my rosé was followed by a surprise gin and tonic from a fellow runner, which was followed by more drinks from the crew. It was either a bizarre case where the American college kid wasn't expected to drink due to modesty (a challenge), the crew taking pity on my poor economy and providing alcoholic offerings not unlike our collective ancestors offered native peoples (a gift), or they were all proud of my 48-hour whirlwind performance (an award). I'd like to think it was the third selection. To ensure my modesty as the new American intern, I chose to devour some pita bread and slowly sip my tonic. To be frank, I never knew interning could be this fun. I had a long and in-depth conversation with our Executive Producer and several other producers. Not only did I get much more inebriated than I would have ever expected at a work function (and I was probably one of the least intoxicated people present), but I had a great time, some memorable conversations, and learned even more about British culture. Although I did have to guide a very drunk co-worker to (and through) the tube. I finally returned home at around 1:30 am. It was my longest non-USFtv media day.
The "Daily Cooks" 'kiddie' table:
class
Because it had been a long and exhausting couple of days...and also because Wednesday was my day off this week, I gorged myself on an epic night of rest. The following morning I enjoyed the serenity that accompanies a rarely empty house and felt satisfied as I dined on some of my bounty. I proceeded to run some errands which included meandering in a boxy and fun Notting Hill record store. I eventually found my way to class quite early, which is a sensation I have not experienced in some time. Our class this week was on business structures. Nothing to report. I had some Chinese food with friends and watched one of the documentaries done by my second internship: Out There News.
Libya and Bobby Lee (USFtvers may enjoy...)
The following day I found my way to North London for my first day with Out There News. Paul, the managing editor and founder of Out There was in meetings all day and didn't have anything for me to work on, so I did some homework and helped the OT producers with some research on Libya. Specifically, how Americans feel about Libya. I'm going to be frank: I know virtually nothing about Libya, and not too much about most Arabian and/or Muslim countries outside of Iraq, and even that's dodgy. I'm hoping to learn more about this region and the stories Out There tells on behalf of many people who can or will not. The central office for Out There is composed of only about 4 - 6 people, and most of them have a personal connection and real conviction to do their work. One of my new coworkers named Zeina is one of the researchers/producers for Out There. She is also a filmmaker and I was moved and intrigued when I watched her short film at work about the recent bombing of Lebanon. It's called I Remember Lebanon, if you'd like to watch you can check it out here:
That evening I met up with my good friend Bobby Lee and his friend from high school named Larry. The two of them had been traveling through the French Riviera with Larry's family and then progressed to London together. We had a delicious meal at a Japanese/Korean restaurant in Soho that Zeina recommended and caught up. Bobby Lee is always a hoot, a highly intelligent, often offensively humorous (or humourous) hoot, but a hoot nonetheless. After dinner, we walked around and went to a few bars/pubs in Soho and Piccadilly Circus /West End. We didn't go to several bars/pubs because we were having a raucous time drinking like fish, but because Bobby is very particular about what bar he will settle into, so we tried a few before he found one that was just right. He's like 'goldiepubs.' I'm not sure about the name of where we ended up, but it was okay enough. They played electonica music and had expensive cocktails, it was sufficiently European. We mingled with some local college student and one kid's aunt and headed home before the tube closed.
Bobby Lee and I, up-close and personal in London:
TV Online and Kitchen escapades....(more Bobby Lee for you fans out there)
On Friday I arrived to a mostly full office which included Paul, who had some significant research for me to on online video platforms. It took me all day to complete this report, but I am now a temporary expert on online video platforms and produced one of the finest reports I have ever commissioned. I'm tre proud of it and if anyone really wants a copy, I'd be more than happy to email one to you: dbinegar@gmail.com. Remember, its 'binegar' with a 'b' as in boy or butter. Here are two sites that you should definitely check out: Joost is an invite only service that may be the front runner of the next wave of online video, and Democracy, a free service that's shockingly familiar and easy to use.
I also had several entertaining conversations on perceptions of the US and UK, popular culture, and media with another new coworker, Huda, who has an extensive resume of media work...including a show she once did with Scary Spice. I thought she was cool before, but now I think she's rad. After work, I raced home and met Bobby and Larry at my flat.
Now, I don't do a whole lot of cooking. I grew up with a bevy of talented chefs at home(s) that were more than willing to cook (or order fantastic takeout) on a regular basis and have had a meal plan since leaving home. And while I did have to cook my meals when I lived in an NYU apartment last summer, I did very little actual cooking. In fact, I'm an expert at heating up Trader Joes frozen dishes, making peanut butter and jelly, and applying dressing to pre-made salads. So, since I had some amazing homemade, organic, gourmet pasta sauce from one of the "Daily Cooks" chefs, and a lot of pasta and salad. I though Larry, Bobby, and I would save some money and make dinner at home. Fortunately, Bobby is like...really good at making pasta, which was tough in our strikingly dirty kitchen. Our dinner was quite good and I enjoyed a nice (and cheap) change of pace. You'll be happy to know that I have since made pasta successfully by myself. It's been a liberating experience.
After dinner, we joined some of my flat mates for drinking and dancing at out local wannabe hip bar mango-lounge (FOR SFers: our Poleng...only you're money is worth half as much and it actually isn't that cool). Larry went a little crazy with the Lychee martinis, and before you knew it, most of our house joined us and we danced to all of the best European hits of...2003...including my personal favorite: that Romanian "Numa Numa" song. You know, the one made famous by that dancing fat kid. We had the place mostly to ourselves on the basement dance floor and we went off. It wasn't quite sexy, but it was surprisingly comfortable.
The next day, while Bobby escorted Larry to the airport, a few of us made plans to visit the London Zoo while most of our house was on a day trip to some castle or something. It took us a little longer to get out then we thought because I slept in a little and there was a lot of construction on the tube. We exited the tube at Camden Town, the stop closest to the London Zoo, but when we exited we did not see a massive complex of caged animals and snow-cone clad children, but discovered a bustling street with vintage and trendy clothing shops, canals, bars, street vendors, cheap sunglasses, and young people with multi-colored weaves for hair. It was like a bizarre, but brilliant mix of SF's Haight-Ashbury, beach towns of Mexico, the cool parts of Bangkok (I imagine), and an Amsterdam rave...but with alterna-malls. If there is a consumer Bohemia, it's London's Camden Town. Trisha, Shannon, my flatmate Thom and I all quickly decided that the zoo would have to wait until another day. We were all a little hungry/tired, so we stopped by one of the bars overlooking a canal and chilled for what seemed like hours of a most desirable afternoon. I enjoyed an amazing soy bean burger with chips (we call them French Fries). We then walked around and took in the ambiance of the scene. I'm sorry I don't have more photos, but I WILL be back there for sure.
Bobby came over that evening and we enjoyed a nice, long (and CHEAP!) dinner at wagamama, an amazing London-based Asian restaurant chain that is bent on cheaply tasty world domination. We then walked around to a few pubs (once again, 'goldiepubs' came out to visit) and we eventually met up with my housemates at our neighborhood pub O'Neill's, to conclude our celebration of my flatmate Jayson's birth. Bobby left for the tube before it closed and I continued to hang out with my housemates. Shannon, Trisha, Trisha's friends, and I hung out and enjoyed rich conversation over trail mix and hummus.
Joe, Andy, Katie, Jenni, and Jayson celebrating at O'Neill's:
Happy Birthday Jayson!
After very little sleep on Saturday night, I awoke early to meet Bobby for breakfast near his hotel and help him get his luggage onto the train. I returned home and freshened up for an exploratory day with Shannon and Cathy. We just started walking and stumbled into South Kensington and Chelsea. We walked for about an hour or so and then hoped on a double decked bus for an elevated perspective. We exited after a leisurely drive through Kensington and ended up at the shockingly beautiful Victoria and Albert Museum...having no idea it was there. The V&A Museum was on the top of my list of things to do, so it was perfect that we ended up finding it. Even more fortunate for us was that it was the last day of the Kylie Minogue exhibit, which I had wanted to check out. I don't have any photos of the V&A collection because they request no photography, which I usually ignore, but felt some level of responsibility since the museum is free. The V&A Museum was a delightful surprise addition to our day and I hope to check it out again.
Shannon, Cathy, and I sitting on a replica of Dali's "Mae West Lips" in the V&A:
Once again, I'm exhausted, but that's a substantial update for now. Check again in a few days/next week and there will be more fertile narrative of my adventures abroad.
British Phrases of the week:
1. Brilliant - used to describe something positive. Example: "these scones are perfect...brilliant, good job."
2. Fuckwit - used to describe someone who is incapable. Example: "I feel like a total fuckwit right now, can we run that one more time?"
Song of the Moment:
Tiga, You're Gonna Want Me
By The Way:
Paris is big news over here as well.
Victoria "Posh" Beckham is like...hotter than the sun over here. She is in the paper every day...literally. I have some really gross and juicy gossip about Victoria if anyone wants to hear it when I'm back in the states.
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