More Trauma Followed by a Perfect Show - Thank You Ellen

As I'm listening to one of my favorite songs, Dust in the Wind, by the group Kansas, I am reminded of the line, "...just a drop of water in an endless sea....", referring to us as beings granted a small time on earth, but otherwise as fairly insignificant, as the title of the song indicates. Well without being too morbid let me say that the song actually reminded me of the many travails I have faced in producing this show. Just when I think Ellen and I have seen it all, along comes yet another bump in the road. But I get ahead of myself, so let me go back one day to Thursday, March 29, when I watched the Apocalypse Varga Show on Woodstock Public Access TV. Christina Varga, who owns the Varga Gallery in Woodstock, is a wonderful, intelligent, and creative lady who has a marvelous show. You may remember I was interviewed by her on her show a few weeks ago, but other than that show I had never seen her, so I finally tuned in as she was trumpeting the cause of a local doctor in town who had given up his doctor's license pending the trial he was facing on writing too many of a certain drug to patients. Without going into the details, let me just say that the show was excellent and lasted for 90 minutes, thirty minutes over her normal allotment. It WAS that good. I called in a question to gain clarification of the situation, as I was unaware that the doctor was having such difficulty. She was doing a variety of strange photo manipulations and images that distracted somewhat from the issue, but showed Cristina's creativity and extraordinary range as a producer. All I was thinking was that I hope she doesn't mess up the equipment for my show the next night. As I was preparing to do my show, Ellen indicated a lot of problems were occurring, and up to the final seconds before I was to start, we were unsure we would be able to do the show. The image of Christina and all those strange things she was doing flashed through my mind. Ellen assured me that Christina's work probably had nothing to do with the current problems. Ellen finally figured out how to get me on the air, but for some reason the DVD machine did not give me a copy of the show !!! Now I am there to put on a show each Friday evening precisely at 5 PM for the citizens of the town, but I also like to give people who cannot watch at that time the chance to see the show, so using the DVD I get afterward, I then copy it for repeat mode two weeks later (it then appears on the station as a repeat at least a dozen or more times) and also on upload it to Youtube. Not having a copy on DVD is a hardship for at least a few score of people who avail themselves of one of these options (perhaps a hundred but hard to tell how many watch repeats, but Youtube indicates the number of views). I didn't realize this until I got home, and frankly always feared this would eventually happen; it took 14 shows for that to happen. I frantically phoned Ellen who assured me we would do the show over again, not on the air, but just to create a DVD. She indicated that 9 AM the next morning would be a time when the studio was probably free. So today, Saturday, we met at that time early this morning with me half asleep (now that I am retired doing anything at 9 AM is a hardship; this is after spending my 41 year working career waking up at 5 AM, so don't think I am lazy or anything !!!!). The bottom line is that we did a great show, better than the first one !!!! Ellen's technical work was flawless and amazing, and I did a very good job. This is as good a time as any to state here and now that Ellen is a wonderful, very bright, talented person who is an excellent technician working under sometimes hard conditions. Given some problems that would cause anyone else, I believe, to simply give up, she preservers and always comes up with a solution. She is totally sympathetic to my needs as a producer, director, writer, and performer, dealing with my neuroses, and always does so with a smile on her face and a cheerful disposition. She is absolutely great and the reason I am doing this show, so this particular blog is dedicated to her, my engineer, technician par excellence, and, of course, my savior and inspiration !!!! THANK YOU ELLEN !! Incidentally let me say that Central Tuscany is a stunning land of many wonders, and Part 1 of a 5 part series on Tuscany began successfully as I took my audience through the eastern portion of what I referred to as "Central Tuscany". My favorite of those towns, Anghairi, showed beautifully, and of course Laura's photos were as extraordinarily stunningly beautiful as ever, perhaps the best she ever took (but then again I always say that, don't I ?). Ellen, engineer par excellence and Laura, my amazing photographer  !!!!! Where would I her without them ? Thanks again to my readers for listening to all this.

Inside the Uffizi Galleries with Ric Hirst

I spent most of Thursday getting ready for the Friday, March 23 show which was intended to be part 1 of a two part series on Central Tuscany. I even prepared my own maps of the regions involved and scanned them into my computer, so that I could explain to my viewers how I was going to present our hundreds of Tuscan photos. My plan was to divide the photos into 5 sections of Tuscany of which I have some knowledge, Central Tuscany, Eastern Tuscany (The Casentino Area), Chianti, Western Tuscany, and Southern Tuscany. I already presented Southern Tuscany along with Alto Lazio in a previous show (my first with Ric). After much soul searching I almost started with the Casentino Region and absolutely stunning photos, and then moved in the logical geographical sequence to Chianti, Central Tuscany, and then Western Tuscany. I felt more comfortable doing the area which I labeled Central Tuscany, because that was the first area I ever explored in detail, and felt much more comfortable with that. My version of "Central Tuscany" consists of starting with Caprese and Anghiari moving south via Arezzo, Cortona, and Lake Trasimeno, to Chiusi and then back north through the Val d'Orcia, and Bagno Vignoni, Montepulciano, Pienza, and Montalcino to Diena, San Mignano, Monteriggioni and then ending at Volterra further north. I felt great about those two shows and eagerly went to visit my friend, Ric, to discuss his contribution to a show 2 weeks hence on The Uffizi Galleries in Florence. After a wonderful 2 hour preparation, his wife, Sharon, suddenly remarked they  had plans for April 6, i.e. the day of the show !!! Arrrrggggghhhhhh, I shouted. Ric said, now what. Some fast footwork and a lot of the flexibility I have learned (and become quite adept at I must say !) to accept as par for the course. Ok so we'll just do it tomorrow ! And, put off Tuscany another week. So off we went and on Friday that is exactly what we did, and it was a marvelous show !!! There was a hissing sound during the first 10 minutes or so, which Ellen quickly noted and turned off the studio air conditioner ! OMG ! We even had 3 phone calls, one on the show and 2 others after the show ended. Let me just say that Ric has extraordinary knowledge of artistic technique, and I could not have performed this show without him. We were an excellent tandem, if I may ay so.  I happily went home, uploaded into my computer, and then on to Youtube (without reviewing it) and went to sleep with a clear and relaxed mind. I woke up watching it and was horrified to see that Ric and I were being cropped in half on the right side photo box. I immediately called my computer technician like an insane maniac. I removed the video from Youtube, but not before 20 people had already seen it ! The problem was fixed by my tech taking over my screen and making a few adjustments, and then I uploaded again to Youtube. Let me tell you truthfully that being the producer of this show is NOT THAT EASY !!!!  However, the endeavor is well worth it and I love the opportunity; I just have a few more grey hairs to go with my already greying areas, which are numerous. Anyway, all is now well, and tune in to Central Tuscany Part 1 next week. I hope there will be no disasters.

Franc Palaia's Debut A Success

Once again trying something new I introduced Franc Palaia to my audience. I met Franc at a group show at the Beacon NY venue, The Daniel Aubrey Gallery a show curated by Carl Van Brunt, Director of the Woodstock Artist Association Museum in town. Never having shared the stage with such an illustrious artist I was naturally a bit apprehensive, but very excited as Franc and I had already "hit it off" with our mutual passion for Italy. Although I had dozens of images ready, following my usual penchant of having too much, we only got through about 10, accompanied by a wonderfully relaxed and informative discussion between us. Franc is a wonderful guy, and I thoroughly enjoyed the talk. Introducing the show as a "down home" local broadcast, which it is and should be for my neighbors in Woodstock, I began with a thank you to my friend at my local YMCA, Dan, whose expertise as a swimmer helped me to hone my back stroke skills during that morning's three times a week exercise session. Also I corrected a slight error I made the week earlier when I suggested that a friend of mine skied to safely during the Cold War, when in fact he simply took a freedom producing skiing vacation. I like to start the show with some personal notes that sets a relaxed tone and also settles me down for the show. This time around I felt good sharing the stage with an expert, as another technique to get me going. Ellen, my engineer, did a flawless and fabulous job of putting the show on the air and on DVD for all to see on Youtube, and people even told me the show streamed live on the internet, so this is about as good as it gets. Franc has agreed to return about once a month with me, so between him and Ric, I have some regulars appearing to break things up. Franc's lovely wife, Eve, even volunteered to do a couple of shows on Rome for me during the summer, one on The Roman Forum and another on Female Portrait Busts with a specialty on Ancient Roman Hairstyles of Women, a topic that always fascinated me. Eve D'Ambra teaches Art History at Vasser College, and is an acknowledged expert in her field. With those three helping out I have a significant amount of flexibility to now intersperse traveling and location shows with specialty shows as well. This week I may make yet another such contact when I dine with another well known Italiaphile who lives in town. I am also exploring one of my pet ideas of actually planning a trip on the air using the same techniques I use. I would require that the studio version of the internet be up and running that particular night, which by all accounts is hit or miss at best, so subscribing to the 4G network night be in my future. I have also been informed that 5 people have signed up to participate in my lecture on Venice at my local YMCA for Monday evening, so yet another fun option has materialized. And so, I off and running and feeling very harried, yet healthfully busy. I'll keep you abreast as always. Next week I begin a two part exploration of Central Tuscany. Thanks for taking the time to join me in this venture. Incidentally for further exploration of Franc's work, please feel free to explore his website at www.francpalaia.com

Taking the Show on the Road

I was very apprehensive wondering if I could sustain a whole show on my own on the topic of just looking at different ways to travel, even just walking around. Not only did I not think I could talk for an hour on that, but that doubted that my regular audience would even like such a show. Although the morning after I clearly gave a one hour presentation, I have no idea if anyone actually liked it. Ellen had some difficulty at the beginning and after a couple of minutes of the introduction, she told me to stop and start over. That part appeared in the DVD she gave ma after the show, but did not for some reason upload into my computer. Couldn't figure that one out at all. This show ventured into strange territory for me. Two of the last 3 shows did in fact do that. With 11 shows under my belt, 9 of them cover places, while 2 talk about themes, Michelangelo in Florence and Traveling the Country. Not only do I like those themes, but must do that if I am to sustain the show into the future. Once I got into this, at 5:30 PM, I realized that I was never going to finish the show, after all I had only covered a couple of the "ways of traveling" so I speeded up tremendously, and just made it as Ellen gave me the sign to stop. I love traveling around so this show was very pleasing to me. Now it's back to work getting more shows and potential shows together. Next week I inaugurate Hudson Valley Artist, Frank Palaia, who has an extraordinary knowledge of Italy that is inbreeded into his work which is extraordinary. I have 5 shows planned for him over the next few months. I am continually meeting with artists up here who might be able to contribute. I like the idea of shows devoted to planning trips, and I hope that will also continue. Perhaps the next show of that type could be choosing hotels, but for that I really should have use of the internet, which is another matter; there is a  4 G Network in my future !!!!

Alan's Italy Show # 10 - Starring Cinque Terre and Luca Rolloni

This show had many wonderful moments for me starting with my phone call to my dear friend in Italy, Luca Rolloni. I wasn't at all sure it could work. After all first I had to use the phone, which Ellen, pointed out to me when I tried to use it that I need to dial "9" first. I had never used the studio phone, so that was at first an issue. Then I had to go through the machinations of calling Europe, using the access number, then my pin, then the number remembering that the number must be preceded by 011, then the 39 country code, and then the city code. Then hopefully Luca's voice would come through the broadcast and finally, on the other end would Luca be home, after all it was after 11 PM on a Friday night. Of course Luca and I set up the whole thing a few days ago. And all this LIVE ! Everything worked perfectly except for one glitch. I put a wonderful photo of Luca that was taken a few years ago within the slide show for that evening, and Ellen expertly presented his picture next to mine throughout the conversation, usually with my picture larger than his: two boxes appeared on the screen as she does quite often using the tricaster. I even had a text box under his picture, so that people would always be aware that the strange face on the screen was indeed my friend Luca from his hometown. The problem was that I spelled the name of his town incorrectly. Instead of "Figline" I spelled it "Filigne". I actually caught this mistake a few hours earlier. I had the show fully prepared by the preceding Wednesday, which is the way I do things, so that I never have that on my mind as the day of the show gets close. When I was in college, I never studied for a test at the last minute, never the night before the exam; I always needed to settle down and relax before a big test and in this case a big show (they are ALL big to me !!!). But a few hours before I left the house at 4:30 PM, so say at about 3, I made a change which required resetting the slideshow mode. I noticed at that moment that I spelled the name of Luca's town incorrectly, and "vowed" that when I finished what I was doing, I would make that simple change, but being a little tense about making last minute changes, I simply forgot, and the result was that when viewers saw Luca's picture on the screen, they also were looking at the name of his town, misspelled !!! Thus one of the great drawbacks of doing a show live; but, hey that's all part of the package, so that's the way has to be. My sincere apologies to Luca and everyone who lives in Figline, which truly is a lovely town and very close to my heart, and to all my viewers. I mentioned on the show about my other Italian friend, Lidia's mom being ill and send my love and desire for her speedy recovery. Then I showed some stunning photos of Cinque Terre, and followed with those horrifying photos of the destruction created by the storm in October 2011. I had to do that to complete the story, even though it put a small damper on an otherwise beautiful presentation. And the coup de grace was to indicate that the prognosis by the inhabitants of Cinque Terre was that they are rapidly putting at least the tourist areas back together, even though my friend who was staying in La Spezia, told me by phone that morning that the residential areas were progressing more slowly, for obvious reasons unfortunately. The other fly in the ointment was that the videos I showed apparently don't play well in slideshow mode, which I started using with Show # 9 the previous week. Ellen told me this after the show, and I realized it when I got home and viewed the DVD of that night's show. So I now I have to find a solution for that problem. This show has become a real challenge, and all of this is quite time consuming, but I am quite driven by the whole Alan's Italy thing. I even signed on this week to do courses for two adult continuing education programs around here for the Fall 2012 semester, one at Lifespring Saugerties and one for the New Paltz Lifetime Learning Program. The former will involve 6 sessions and the latter, 8 sessions, all on Alan's Italy. That should not be too difficult, because I have most of those topics already prepared from the weekly shows on TV. There will have to be some modifications, however to conform to the two programs. I will basically do what I do, that is to take people on a visual tour of Italy in segments. The former will be a two week "tour" and the latter a three week "tour". Anyway, thanks for taking the time to read all this, and I apologize that this is so long, but so much is going on with this. It started so small, just an idea by my handyman in my bedroom one afternoon as he was fixing our window shades. Oh, so long ago it now seems....