Tiger Outing

Wednesday I went to interview people with Alex and Ariel for the man-on-the-street portion of our TV show. We stood in front of a poster for 'Addicted to Beauty' in the subray station on 6th and 14th and asked people questions. I started asking people and was quickly shut down. It is really demeaning when people ignore you or get pissy when you want to ask them some questions. But I guess I understand because I would do the same thing. After being pretty productive and getting a few really good, short interviews, we were getting ready to go and one of the MTA workers told us we weren't allowed to record there. Perfect timing. I proposed we go out to sushi after our shoot, and they both agreed. We went to a sushi place and one pitcher turned into 3 and we all played never have I ever. It was really fun. After getting drunk and missing our meeting, we decided to stroll the streets with a different video tape to document our outing, because we had the vid cam. It was fun anf funny. After that we went to Ariel's brother's apartment and watched youtube videos and drank some more. After that, Alex and I headed back to BK to go to metropolitan. This was my first time actually hanging out there, it is a gay bar. I have been coming to terms with the fact that I am actually pretty attracted to girls, but I like guys more. I just like people and I think it would be completely possible for me to marry a guy, have some babies and then settle down with a woman later on in life. The whole demographics of older women dating men is not so good, because guys tend to like younger women. I mean, obviously if I did date a woman she would have to be beautiful, girly, smart and funny. IDK, sometimes I feel like I connect with girls way more than guys. However, as complicated as I think guys are, girls may be even more so. Oh well.

Sexism and Racism in Reality TV

Today I interviewed feminist, media critic Jennifer Pozner for Paper Tiger. I get a certain thrill out of asking people questions, especially interesting questions yo interesting people. We compiled a list of questions pertaining to our subject and I stood behind the camera and conducted a 2 hour interview at a studio at The New School. It was cool to be a part of the production. Jennifer Pozner is a great, enthusiastic, charismatic woman who passionately exposes women's rights and the debilitating stereotypes exhibited through reality TV. I was really excited to meet her and I have to say that she definitely lived up to my expectations. Maybe I will have her do a lecture for me/show this show to my classes. Here is a link to her foundation 'Women in Media and News'.



After the interview, Alex and I started walking back to PTTV for our weekly meeting and got caught in the rain. We got to the meeing late and I was too beat to visit Carissa at work. Oh well.

Tomorrow is my 5 year high school reunion. I am a bit nervous/excited. Who woulda thunk it? I am kind of excited to toot my own horn. Not that I don't do that all the time. Yeah, I guess I can get kind of boring to talk to sometimes.

Production

Yesterday I went to the park with said Aussie. He was nice and told me things about life down under. No, we didn't kiss or anything. It was nice to spend an afternoon with someone new, even though I am not interested. We got burritos at a truck in the burg. So good.

After that, I went to work and put some finishing touches on my naked bike ride video. Next, I went to my orientation to be a certified television producer. I think it is really cool that MNN has free classes to get certified, but the people who go there are really weird. Luckily, I met this cool girl (Alison) from the UK, who I quickly became friends with.

I came home to Nathan and Colleen watching Gattaca. All in all a good day.

Public Option vs. Single Payer

Thursday I went to a healthcare rally outside of Chuck Schumar's office. A bunch of individuals had gotten together to hand in a large number of signatures and make a scene on the street about passing the public option healthcare plan. This plan values the idea that everyone should be supported for less money. The single payer healthcare plan covers everyone, like how it is in places with a social democratic welfare regime.

Paper Tiger is doing a show on the single payer healthcare option, which is the more extreme and more comprehensive option of the two. I interviewed some of the people at the rally. This footage may make it onto the show. It is kind of funny that I got to play the role of reporter.

After that, I visited Carrie and started taking the stride back to the other island. I went and got Thai food with Boppy and figured out how to use Garage Band! I am SO excited! This means that now I can record myself and make a myspace. It is a bit overwhelming, but I am very very pumped to start recording practices and stuff.

After learning how to use Garage Band, I went and visited Smally at work and got a beer. I was tired beyond belief by this point. So next I called it a night.

So Naive

After giving away my cat yesterday, I decided that drinking a whole bottle of champagne by myself would be a good idea. I sat in the apartment and sulked and thought about how she is in a better place and that I did the right thing. After putting the remainder of my bottle in a sippy cup for the road, I headed out for PTTV.

I got to the office pretty tipsy, but I don't think anyone had any idea. I facilitated the meeting, pretty well; but it was an abbreviated meeting due to a friend of a member coming in to discuss racial and sexual diversity in our group. I brought up some valid points which needed to be assessed about our missions statement prescribing to educated, middle class individuals. I also noted that in this urban environment, it is difficult to assess that everyone has equal opportunity for enriched education. Most of the people in my collective went to ivy league schools and/or are white. People usually work on topics which pertain to their lives, it is very much, a self fulfilling prophecy. I felt like it took some degree of 'balls' to say all this stuff about race and class, especially being the newest member of my group. I am really proud that it didn't go unsaid though, especially since I am to teach about the importance of race and class in my upcoming job.

After a drunken rant, which was ideally received by my peers, I went out with a couple of members for a beer. Just quickly though, because I had made plans to meet up with Lewis for dinner/drinks. I had a lot of fun talking to him, and I feel so naive for thinking that he just wanted friendship because that's what I was after. He approached me from the friendship angle and I didn't believe he would come onto me, but whatever, I realized last night how dumb I am to think that anyone just wants to be friends with someone of the opposite sex.

I walked out of the bar in somewhat of a frenzied hurry, I had to get out of there because I realized where the night may be headed if I had kept drinking. On my way to find a subway route that connected to where I was going, I asked two random strangers for directions. Little did I know, they were both psychics. One was a tall, handsome, flamboyant, black man with bleach blonde hair, probably in his mid-twenties. The other was an older, shorter, hispanic woman, with big hoop earrings. Both of them said that they had visions of me in a dark red room with huge piles of books, that I should do some work with a pendulum and that I seem like I may have healing powers. We talked astrology in front of the train station which they led me to, for about half an hour. I didn't want to go because our conversation was SO interesting.

After a long train ride, (or long time spent waiting for the train) and having to transfer to a shuttle bus outside of the Lorimer station (UGH), I stopped in the deli downstairs from my house to get a snack. Who should come in right behind me but Jason and his friend Brittany. I had been meaning to meet up with them earlier all night! However, both of our nights had lasted longer than originally planned, so it was weird that we happened to cross paths on the way home.

So yeah. An eventful night. I feel like there should have been a full moon or something.

Quarantined and Kept

Monday I came home to find my apartment in the messiest condition EVER. It's annoying to come home from vacation and have everything in your kitchen, living room and bathroom be in disarray. I immediately started cleaning my bedroom, in hopes that somebody would come over and adopt my cat. Later on, Jason and I did some laundry and then I went to Prospect park to see David Byrne (of the Talking Heads) play a free show, and to meet up with Blair.

There were a bajillion hippies everywhere, sprawled out on the grass, smoking grass and loving life. I finally found B and we went to a diner to get some eats. After a lovely night, I woke up and went straight to work at PTTV. I finished my flyer and then stopped home to pick up clothes for the next day. My bed is sealed with plastic so that in case if Pika pees anymore, I can easily get rid of the scent. Not to say that I mind sleeping at B's house. :)

After a quick slice of pizza and a trip home, I went to meet up with B at Cobble Hill cinemas to see Angels and Demons. It was pretty good, I thought. I didn't actually finish the book, so the ending threw me for a loop. One part of the movie with I particularly enjoyed was how they portrayed the press. The news companies from around the world shown in the movie were always misinformed and wrong, doling out incorrect or incomplete information. I felt like this was an accurate portrayal of news media and applaud Ron Howard for including this aspect in the movie.

Purpose

This morning I awoke at 7am to find out that I didn't have work. That started the day on a good note.

I was really productive on the last paper I am writing. One more day and I should be done.

I went to that meeting for Media Justice Fund/May First to represent paper tiger. I was introduced as 'the newest tiger'. It was really cool to brainstorm and be sort of non hierarchical with people working toward a common cause. My new 'boss' is really sweet and really allows for creativity. This is a sort of outlet where I can be creative, in a way and learn a lot from a variety of different people who are educated and worldly. I am really excited about volunteering/interning/networking/making a difference in the world.

I have just recently gotten this burst of confidence, where I realize that this is a big city and you gotta make yourself stand out in one way or another in order to get ahead in any way.

I think I am gonna make a video about the overmedication of America. Muahaha

The World of Social Media

So, since my obsession with Paper Tiger and other social justice media companies, I have entered into this whole world of figuring out what different non profit organizations do, and what they stand for. It is a world I never knew existed, but am so glad to have entered. Now that I am researching for internships or part time jobs, I have thrust myself into this world of non profit organizations. I must say, it feels good.

Last night, I went to talk to the woman, sort of in charge of paper tiger. She told me about the internship position that may be available. It is still tentative, because there is someone who may be staying the summer who originally said they were going to leave the country, so I don't know if I have that yet. However, regardless, I have chosen to be a collective member. This is sort of like a volunteer, but it is with a group of people who are interested in the same sort of social justice that I am, who I can really learn a lot from. I am thrilled to sort of be out in the business world. Even though I have barely begun this non profit adventure, I feel like I have already learned a lot about myself and how I come off in the business setting.

What I really love about Paper Tiger is that they have meetings once a week, and they are totally non hierarchical. It sort of feels like doing a group project for a class, where everyone is interested and wants to contribute information. My new pseudo-boss told us about a meeting tonight about the trajectory of social justice video's on the internet. It seems like a really important topic to me, especially since I just finished a paper about the trajectory of the public sphere with use of the internet for one of my classes.

I also agreed to volunteer for this healthcare thing. Since I am also working on and interested in direct to consumer pharmaceutical advertisements, AND I saw this particular group of activists called 'Healthcare Now' at the protest I surveyed, I feel like it would be interesting to help out with the videotaping of those kinds of things.

Ok. Enough about me.

Paper Tiger

I just went to an orientation to volunteer/intern at paper tiger. Paper Tiger Television (PTTV) is an open, non-profit, volunteer video collective. Through the production and distribution of our public access series, media literacy/video production workshops, community screenings and grassroots advocacy PTTV works to challenge and expose the corporate control of mainstream media. PTTV believes that increasing public awareness of the negative influence of mass media and involving people in the process of making media is mandatory for our long-term goal of information equity.

I am thrilled, as the goals of this organization are very similar to the goals i hold in my own professional life. This will look excellent on my resume, as it is more suitable and subject-appropriate for what I want to do with my life. Check out the website if you get a chance. www.papertiger.org