A Week of Italy

I cannot recall ever doing so much work to prepare for a show as I did for this show on Loggias of Italy. As fond as I am of the unique architectural features that distinguish Italy among the great countries of the world, this was one of those that always intrigued me. We had many photos of loggias and with the extra I found on the internet, it made for an excellent show, very esoteric, but also interesting to the viewers, I hope. I have decided in fact to not only explore loggias as a feature to discuss, but also arches, fountains, and other distinguishing characteristics of Italy. I loved starting with the well known loggias of Florence of which I have become very, very well acquainted over the years. In fact the most famous in Florence, the Loggia dei Lanzi, was the first and I did quite a background history. All of the Florentine Loggias are spectacular and meaningful to me. Then I went to Venice, and around the country seeking out the most unusual and famous. First I started the show with a history of temples and porticos from ancient times beginning with Greek Temples and going right to Roman Temples and private residences. A fine show, very rewarding for me and I hope the same for my audience.

Two days ago I taught my second class at New Paltz Lifetime Learning Institute. I am having computer/projector issues that are giving me significant anxiety. The projector turns off after several minutes, and after I restart it comes back for the remainder of the class. I allowed time at the end for questions and there were quite a few from restaurant opening times to traveling around the country. The people are wonderful and responsive and seem to like it very much, although I must say that the original number is steadily decreasing. I suppose that is ok, since it is better to weed out people who do not like the class, than have them finish it to the end and then criticize. I found myself becoming very tired teaching, and perhaps not being that used to teaching anymore, it just might be something to get back into; not sure. That also is a lot of work for no compensation. I wanted to work as a volunteer when I retired and this is it, I suppose, although I am working harder than I ever imagined. I am still pursuing getting back to math teaching, but those prospects are not looking that great right now.

On the Woodstock front, I tried to get some kind of announcement of a schedule of special events for our public access channel by having people submit small blurbs to me summarizing a special show they would like to let their know audience know about. The local newspaper has not been that helpful, but I keep trying nonetheless. It would be nice to be able to let our viewers know what's going on, so I will keep trying. For me personally I use my website for advertise shows, but I think I may be alone in their regard for advertising shows.

This week, Ric Hirst and I finalized our joint show on the Lazio town of Tuscania of which Ric is very well informed. That show debuts next Friday. Cannot wait. Two weeks from now I will host a show different in nature from the usual when I interview two founders of public access in the 1970's, Tobe Carey and Bart Friedman.