Category Archives: Personal Blog

Entries from my personal journal

Personal Blog

Books

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I brought The Stand with me to Stockbridge, because I thought I could use a big book to keep me occupied for awhile. I like it, I read it last summer, but I think the main reason I enjoy reading it is that it is very long, and thus can sustain my fast reading habits for more than a few days.

I finished the thing in a week and a half. After sitting a moment to figure out what to read next, I discovered that I still have Brendan’s copy of Watchmen that he loaned to me awhile back (so Brendan, if you’ve been searching for it, you know where it is now ^_^). I started it yesterday and am nearly through.

I was fretting all day about what I would read next, and where I would get a book, fretting all through checking my email. “Where on *earth* am I going to find a book to read?” I thought. Then I remembered I was in a library and felt really dumb.

Seriously, though, it’s been a long time since I’ve gotten books from a library for anything more than research, I’d nearly forgotten what wonderful things libraries are (and not just for an internet addict to check her email while she’s stranded in Massachusetts).

I picked up Watership Down, because it’s something I’ve always intended to read, and also The Once and Future King, because my friend, Carleton, and I were pondering over its role in X2, and he said that I should read it and then tell him all about it. I guess being a fast reader has its advantages. If I can finish The Stand in a week and a half, I should have no trouble finishing two normal-sized books in two weeks.

Meanwhile, if anyone has any good recommendations of very long books (like, 1500 pages or more…and Not Moby Dick), leave them here. I need long books!

Personal Blog

Rest

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I thought that I’d be so busy this summer that I’d burn myself out. While I am very busy at work, with plenty of different things to do, I’m actually getting a lot of rest. With none of the extra responsibilities and activities and work I usually pick up at school, I have plenty of time to sit quietly, read for fun (I missed it so much!), and sleep. I’m averaging 9 to 11 hours a night, and my body loves it, I think.

Activities vary quite a bit here. Either I’m running around doing everything or sitting and doing nothing. One night will be filled with volleyball and video games, while another will be sitting and watching movies all night. Thursday night was the company picnic and an exciting bowling night, while Monday I wandered quietly about the housing unit, finding maps with circles and x’s in them, and labeled them as “Helipad.”

I don’t mind the variation, and I certainly don’t mind the rest. I’m having time to write letters (though I only have one or two addresses to write to right now, hopefully that will change) and also journal (the for-real kind) and draw. It’s a perfect balance. The work keeps me from being bored out of my mind, and the free evenings give me plenty of rest.

Hooray for summer camp for grown-ups!

Personal Blog

Oh yeah…

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As a side note, I’m sad that I don’t get real mail. So, if you’re bored and have money for postage, send me a letter, or a scrap of paper, or a random doodle, or a photo turned into a makeshift post card. Anything. As a return, I promise to write back, as I LOVE getting mail, I love writing for real letters, and I have plenty of time to spend writing them. That is all.

Lisa Brown
c/o BTF
PO Box 797
Stockbridge, MA 01262

Personal Blog

the Brendan Phenomenon

Based on some of Jeff’s stories, the Berkshire Theatre Festival seems to have a history of lengthy summer prank wars. I think I just experienced a first strike of sorts.

Theater people, especially tech people, always baffle me with the supplies of tools they seem to have instant access to. So, when I woke up at 4:30 this morning to the sound of drilling in the hall, I wasn’t overly surprised.

I wandered out into the hallway in my pajamas, only to find the Master Carpenter screwing sheets of plywood in front of my neighbor’s door. He seemed quite startled at being found out, but I think I sleepily shook my fist and muttered something along the line of “Pesky carps and their confounded pranks!” and went back to bed, unconcerned that my neighbors were now boarded up inside their own room.

This brings me to a new addition to a strange phenomenon in my life, the Brendan series. I knew two Brendans before this summer. The first Brendan was my Kempo instructor back in Louisville, who was inadvertently poetic and insightful, if not a bit silly, and was a great teacher. The second was our very own Brendan Adkins, a multitalented and very close friend of mine. Now a third Brendan has been added to my series, one who boards up his crew in their own rooms in the dead of the night. I’m considering referring to him as #3, to avoid confusion in conversation with all the Brendans I seem to be acquiring.

Anyway, things are going well. We had a day off yesterday, but I don’t think I’ll have another for a good long while. No matter, I’m still having fun.

Personal Blog

Massachusetts

Woohoo! Here I am in the Stockbridge Library, alive and well. Things are going great. I really love my job so far, and the people I work with are all really cool, I’m so busy that I hardly even notice my lack of internet…

Well, that’s not exactly true. Yesterday, we managed to get dial-up in the prop shop for research, and I was able to check my email for the first time in a few days. After I was finished, I walked outside. My boss noticed me, made a strange face, and said “You look like you just had sex! You’re SICK!”

Okay okay, so maybe I am a bit addicted to the internet, but I’m sure I’ll get over it. Some highlights from the past week.

– I drove up here with Jeff, and for the whole 900 miles of the drive, his cat, Pollock, rode on my lap. My first impression at Berkshire was me covered in cat fur, but I didn’t mind so much.

– It was cold here the first couple of days. The other day, I spilled a bowl of hot soup on my leg, and my first reaction was “Mmm, that feels really good…”

– While prop hunting yesterday, I came across a shop called “Needful Things.” Is that not a little creepy? In New England no less! I was almost sure that if I went in, I would be able to locate the more difficult props (like a 1930’s payphone), but that I’d have to sell my soul in return. I passed the shop quietly.

– There’s a glass gallery here! Right here in little ‘ole Stockbridge! I peeked in the window today, and they have Lino Tagliapietra stuff and Chihuly stuff and Billy Morris stuff! I’m going to have to go in there on Sunday and gawk and drool.

– So far, this is like summer camp for grown ups. However, you should take that with a grain of salt, as I’ve never been to summer camp before. Maybe, if I’m lucky, I’ll get to update this journal every week or so (though, I’m afraid chances of getting my website updated look grim).

I hope everyone is doing well! Keep me informed of adventures on your end!

Games and Game Development, Personal Blog

The End!

Whoosh! I let a lot happen with no entries. Here we go…

Finals went well. Senior week was relatively good (a lot of packing and playing of video games). A lot of bonding happened. Jeff taught me to drive a stick (which is good, since I’ll be helping with the driving to Massachusetts, it’ll be good to know how x_x). For the first time since high school, we broke out the old Magic cards (D Flo and , after killing me and Brendan off, spent like 2 more hours trying to kill each other).

While Wednesday and Thursday were full of cheer and play and video games, Friday was a bit intense in the wrong way. The night was highlighted by the completion of our year long proclamation of “Dude! We should hook up two x-boxes!” I totally won. Anyway, that was the fun part. The un-fun part was that every sliver of residual drama leftover and building up throughout the entire year EXPLODED. Drama here, drama there, venting here, crying there, misery and ranting and purging, you know…it probably would have been less dramatic if not for the addition of alcohol to the whole formula. Feh, no good.

Saturday, I frantically gathered the last of my belongings, went home, spent like 3 collective hours with my family, came back to school, took one more “confidence drive” on the stick shift, bought a cake, sat down to spend some time with my friends before they graduate…and realized it was frickin midnight! Tomorrow will be madness, with graduation (I have to be a Junior Marshall, which, unfortunately, does not involve guns, a star, not even a cowboy hat). Jeff wants to leave for Massachusetts right after commencement, so no summer break for Lisa.

Long story short, I’ll be noticeably absent from the internet for the summer. If anyone’s trying to email me at my aol address, I’ve blocked it from email (to cut back on the spam for the summer), so mail me instead at my wertle.com address. I was intent on doing one more website update before I left, but that didn’t happen. Alas! Well, there will always be the library. I imagine it will be slightly difficult to cram all of my normal internet chores into 15 minutes, but I’ll manage. I’ll at the very least try and update this one.

I hope everyone has a lovely summer! I’d like to reflect on the year, what I’ve learned, experiences that have been important to me, life lessons and all that, but I don’t have time. Never enough time!!!!!!!!

Personal Blog

David Flora–musical genius (part 2)

The Centre composers put a show together awhile back, and I fetched up a recording of it so I could show off D Flo’s music again.

These pieces (I’ll post one now and one later) had to be played off the composition software, because our dear Flora writes music that is TOO COMPLEX FOR HUMAN HANDS. The midi piano sounds really good, though.

This is a theme based on one of his classmates:
Grace Period

Enjoy!

Personal Blog

Hello Moon

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The Matrix Reloaded has become a new and easy way to pick out exactly who speaks French among a group of people gathered in a movie theater.

I watched the eclipse tonight, it was nice and clear (save a few wandering clouds), and it was fun to rouse up others in the vicinity to go and watch. It started out as a large group of students and professors lounging on the side of the road to watch. As the eclipse lingered in totality for a bit, people wandered back in to study for their respective exams, or get sleep or some such.

I chilled out a bit longer outside, watching the moon with Sheldon’s cat, and took Inky’s departure to go do kittie night time things as a signal to head on in. By in, of course, I mean Rodes. Brendan, D Flo, and Alison left long ago to do a scene rehearsal, and have not been back. I fear Grant has eaten them. I hope they got to see the eclipse also.

Discrete Math exam tomorrow, then I’m clear until Monday. Although I feared the speed with which the year was ending, I forgot how everything seems to sloooooooooow down during finals week. It’s a good thing.

Personal Blog

CD Player Woes

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My CD player is shot, which I discovered late last night after tearing apart my entire room to figure out what that obnoxious buzzing noise was.

I got my first portable CD player for my birthday when I was in the 6th grade. It was a Sony, and it lasted me until my sophomore year in college. I think that…(does some finger-toe math)..8 years is quite a respectable lifespan for a cd player. Granted, by that time it was a clunky old warhorse, had to be held closed with a rubberband, and needed extra encouragement to get the buttons to work, but it still did its job.

Sophomore year of college, after Christmas and before my England trip, I decided to treat myself to a new cd player, and retire the warhorse. The wretched new thing barely lasted 6 months before it broke. I tried going up on price a bit with the next one, an Aiwa that was working wonderfully until last night. I had so much faith in it!

Now, I do put my cd players through some abuse. I fall asleep on them, drop them, smash them in my backpack, expose them to dangerous chemicals (oil paints), and the like. I might need to break down and buy a “really nice” one next. I don’t know if I can find one that I can squeeze another 8 years out of, but one that would last at *least* a year would be nice.

Anyone have any recommendations?