basketball / IU / television / Thursday / Twitter / video — Comments Off on There was basketball
10
Mar 22

There was basketball

I had a meeting canceled today because the people in the meeting wanted to watch the basketball game. And yet I still somehow had that meeting? Not sure how that happened.

At least they saw a good one?

If that’s not for you, maybe this is. Ernest Shackleton’s lost ship, Endurance, has been found after 107 years. This 4k footage shows the preserved vessel almost 10,000 feet below the surface. Shackleton was on the Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition, when his ship, Endurance, became trapped in pack ice and was slowly crushed. The crew escaped, camped on the ice, watching their vessel and their means of survival destroyed before them. And then the ice beneath them started to crumble. As it disintegrated, they launched lifeboats, and endured (see what I did there?) a miserable 720 mile, stormy journey to escape. And now, 107 years later.

Also, just last month, the British Film Institute (BFI) released restored footage of that expedition, including when the ship’s mast collapsed. Shackleton was adamant the film be saved, and it’s now a key part of early 20th century Antarctic exploration history.

Isn’t that something?

Here’s something else. More sports! These are the shows the sports gang produced last night. First up, let’s talk-talk-talk about basketball.

And you can also get the highlights and look ahead to all of the other sports in full swing around here.

And here’s still more sports talk, but this time with a broader range of subjects.

And now I have to go do laundry tonight, so I can pack tomorrow.

basketball / IU / photo / television / video / Wednesday — Comments Off on Counting days
09
Mar 22

Counting days

I went to a meeting at 9:30 this morning. I left work just after 8 p.m. In between I had to start writing things for next week, set up a meeting, opened a studio for another project, answered every email and probably some that weren’t sent. So a perfectly average 10-and-a-half-hour day.

Spring break next week will be fun. I am looking forward to taking a few days off, to be sure.

But we have to get through a few more days, first. And the studio wrapped up the day. It was sports, tonight.

And there was a lot of basketball. Both of IU’s teams are looking for a spot in March Madness. The women are a sure lock, as we learn from this panel talking about what’s to come.

The women are likely poised to make a deep run in the tournament. The men need to do a little work in their conference tournament to get a dance card. These next few days will be key for them. And those sports shows will be online tomorrow, or so, and I can share them with you then.

Tonight, though, you can check out the two shows the news division produced last night.

They brought in one of the nation’s foremost experts on Russia and Vladimir Putin for an in-studio interview. This is good stuff.

And the dance team is, like the rest of us, dancing toward spring break.

Two more days!

IU / television / Tuesday / video — Comments Off on So much video to show you
08
Mar 22

So much video to show you

I neglected to mention that we fell out of the mask mandates last Friday, coinciding with the state’s standards. I am still wearing a mask — one-way masking, as the soon-to-be-failed euphemism is called — and I am pleased to see how many others still are. (Almost as many as those who were last week, when everyone had independently and collectively given up on communicable disease and respiratory theater.) But the numbers continue to decline here, which is, of course, a delightful coincidence.

Lest we forget where we are …

I have reached the point in the school year where I have to leave myself notes in my calendar to do the most prosaic things at the most random times. At 1 p.m. today it was edit that one little bit of copy for that one project.

I have a standing note on my calendar for each day this week to work on a particular spreadsheet. That’s March at work. These little notes are in addition to my daily index card of meetings and appearance chores.

This is also March at work. Tonight, specifically.

I am once again behind on sharing productions with you here, so let’s get caught up before this gets woefully bad. (Comically bad is bad enough.)

Here’s the fill-in crew on The Toss Up last week. Take it away, Hank.

If that’s not enough sports talk for you, please enjoy The B-Town Breakdown.

And if you are after something with a bit of humor, allow me to share this fine group of human beings with you.

See!? I told you I was comically behind! We aren’t caught up yet. Here’s the morning show.

And here’s my favorite artsy show, where they talk to filmmakers about their work, and make preposition puns.

You might think I live in a studio, and sometimes that feels almost half-right, but I wasn’t even around for those last four shows. Other duties, and all of that.

Anyway, the two news shows will be online tomorrow, and I promise to post them here in a timely fashion. Hopefully I will have something else not TV related to share, as well.

Until then, there’s always more on Twitter and check me out on Instagram, too. Speaking of On Topic with IU podcasts, and, oh hey, did you know that Phoebe and Poseidon have an Instagram account? They do. Check them out.

Monday / photo / video — Comments Off on Standard issue Monday
07
Mar 22

Standard issue Monday

I worked a full day, and just a day and that was great. I left my office at 5:16! This is the earliest I’d left in four weeks, I think. I slept about four hours last night, so, though there was day left, there was not much left in me.

But that’s OK, because the day was a success, for a Monday. Four meetings and all the To Do list items satisfactorily To Done.

So it’s an early night, and not a lot of extra stuff. But! This is a fun challenge. Do you know where you’re at? Give it a try. I’m going to answer one of these questions when I have the rare lull.

And I’m also listening to this podcast with Jon Stewart, which is interesting if you like the level of thoughtfulness of a Jon Stewart.

In other nonsense …

And we must also check in with the kitties, who are insistent that I follow The Rules and post them on the Correct Day. One of these cats is very demanding. I’ll let you decide which one.

I had a nice cuddle with Phoebe, who spent her time alternatively telling on her brother and sleeping.

Poseidon, sitting on his favorite warm spot, in total defiance of The Rules.

Phoebe knows where to go when it gets too cold.

And if Phoebe is there Poseidon wants to be under that same blanket, too. (Like that’s the only blanket.)

They can’t coexist in such a small place. We make them take turns, because we need other, better hobbies.

Friday / IU / music / video — Comments Off on Unlike last year, there is no Lion King in this performance
04
Mar 22

Unlike last year, there is no Lion King in this performance

Yep, I’m ready for this to be over, too. And, finally, here we are.

Thirty-three percent of the people came to a morning meeting I run. And then there were two morning shows to oversee in the studio. That was interrupted by a tour. Immediately after I handed off the prospective new faculty member to someone else the singing show people stepped up with the latest news.

Two of the 18 people won’t be singing. That’s just live programming. Something will happen. But it requires a few changes to the script. So I had to go through the thing I set up yesterday and remove two people, and all the references to numbers. (The seventh contest was now the sixth, and the 11 was now the ninth and so on.)

This also allowed us to change the conclusion of the show, which was good. It was going to be too complicated, and this made it simpler.

And then suddenly it was time to do the show.

The singers came from campuses across the state, at least three of them. They were all good. Some of them were really quite spectacular. Goosebumps were given twice.

If that video isn’t working, try this link.

Some of the singers.

She sang Puccini.

I wish I had the chance to photograph the other 11, but, again, they were all quite talented and they gave the judges a lot to work with.

The best part of the show is listening to the professional artists being so kind to the younger singers. Everything was a dose of encouragement.

There were two technical issues, and the usual sort of adrenaline a live show brings while you’re trying to wrap it up. Most importantly, everyone seemed pleased.

Before we’d even struck the studio they were already asking us to do it again next year.

Second-most importantly, I left campus at 5:30 today.

After 50.5 hours, eight shows, a field shoot, a photo shoot and meetings, editing, rewriting, meetings, tour-giving, other meetings and toner-fighting, the week was mercifully done.

I’m going to sleep until Monday.

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