kuilo I Don't Know - hotamboyan

Post number 200 and what to write about? 

What can take us into the next hundred posts?

What one magical, mystical thing can I talk about for this occasion? 

The answer …

I don’t know.

No, for real, that’s actually it: I don’t know.

There seems to be something the road pups of today aren’t aware of: you need to be extra careful who you is around when you utter the phrase “I don’t know.” 

Here are a couple of examples where it is okay to say I don’t know: 

• When you are working on a fixture and need help, find the person that you are currently working under and say to them, “Hey, I don’t know how to take this ballast out. Can you show me?” Simple, perfect.
• Another would be the first time you run across something on a show. Find one of your other crewmates and say to them, “Hey, I don’t know how to wrap the spansets to counterweight the truss being heavier on the downstage side. Can you show me?” Easy peasy.

You could even take “I don’t know” out of those two situations by saying, “I haven’t done this before. Can you show me to make sure I’m doing it right.” By doing this you are telling the other person that you have some form of idea how to do it but you are looking for guidance.

Now, when is it NOT okay to say “I don’t know”? Basically any other time, especially on a gig.

Nothing removes confidence like those three little words.

Read it again. Nothing removes confidence faster than “I don’t know.”

Now while you really truly may not know something, there are other ways to phrase it until you figure it out.

• Give me a second and I’ll get on that.
• I’m working on it right now and will get it sorted out.
• It could be X or Y. I’ll go find out which it is. (Note: You better know that it could actually be X or Y before you say that, though.)

True, you are really doing nothing more than deflecting the question, but your answers are true. You will get on it. You will get it sorted out. You will find out what it is. That’s your job, it is what you do.

I know it may be fudging a little bit, but it is all about perception. Can your PM or LD or Crew Chief read between the lines if they want? Of course. In the heat of the moment, when the shit has hit the fan, will they? Maybe, but that doesn’t matter. And here is why …

And all for the low, low price of $19.95!

Yup, it’s not $20.00, is it? Or 20.01 or 20.05. What’s the difference between 5 or 6 or 10 cents? Pretty much nothing, but we are wired to react differently seeing 19.95 versus 20.01. And if we weren’t, companies wouldn't price things the way they do.

A lot of our job is about your persona, how you carry yourself, your self-confidence (sometimes this crosses over into egotistical and we’ll deal with that another time). You often hear (and maybe even utter the phrase) “fake it till you make it” and it is usually true.

It takes a bit of practice, so start now. Stop saying "I don't know" and in the end you’ll be much better off for it.

I think I’ll finish the first of the next hundred posts here.

What’s on tap for the next 99?

I’m working on it right now.

Until next time, “There are no secrets to success. It is the result of preparation, hard work, and learning from failure.” Colin Powell

Mark

kuilo Countdown to 200 - #1: 100 - hotamboyan

This is the last in out Look Back at 10 Posts Leading Up to 200 and we go back to number 100 this week. Last week was post 1, this week is post 100, next week is post 200. See what I did there? It’s the little things, people!

There are a few posts I have written that I felt didn’t do as well as they should, and this is one of them. It’s probably because it was one of the hardest for me to write, Shakespeare I am not.

In lighting, and writing, the phrase, “be sure to save often!” comes up. In the case of this post I had gone about an hour and a half (told you this was a hard one) on To Buy without saving. Then my computer crashed and I couldn’t find where the last autosave was hiding. After much cursing at myself and some pecking around I found it. I never go for more than 30 minutes without saving now.

This post was written around the time when Martin was ending their run with the 2K line of fixtures so I decided to do a special shout out to them in Ode to a 2K. Martin didn’t run with it like I thought they might. Maybe they will this time. Hint Hint.

If you so desire, here is the original 'To be or Not to be' soliloquy. 

Ode to a 2k: is based off of this:

Alas, poor Yorick! I knew him, Horatio, a fellow of infinite jest, of most excellent fancy. He hath borne me on his back a thousand times, and now, how abhorred in my imagination it is! My gorge rises at it. Here hung those lips that I have kissed I know not how oft. —Where be your gibes now? Your gambols? Your songs? Your flashes of merriment that were wont to set the table on a roar? Not one now to mock your own grinning? Quite chapfallen? Now get you to my lady’s chamber and tell her, let her paint an inch thick, to this favor she must come. Make her laugh at that.—Prithee, Horatio, tell me one thing.

Without much ado (about nothing) ….

100

It doesn't seem that long ago that I wrote the first post of Bandit Dimmer Beach. And yet, here we are on Number 100. 

I promised I would not do any recap, or look back, or greatest hits, or any of that nonsense. But what to write about as BDB hits the century mark?

I wasn't actually sure I could give this special post its due justice, so I looked for someone to assist this week. I turned to The Bard himself for guidance, and of course he did not disappoint. 

Without further ado, BDB presents a look at lighting through William Shakespeare:

TO BUY

To buy, or not to buy: that is the question:

Whether ‘tis nobler in the mind to suffer

The creaks and groans as the gear wastes away,

Or to take arms against their cries of despair,

And by purchasing, end them? To de-loom: to re-loom;

No more; and by a re-loom to say we end

The heartache and the thousand rolls of e-tape

That empty away, ‘tis a wonderous dream

Devoutly to be wished. To wonder, to think;

To think: perchance to dream: ay, there’s the rub;

For in that wonder of thought what dreams may come

When the lights begin to dim for the last time,

Must give us pause: there’s the comfort

That makes the life of gear so long;

For who would bear the barbs and jests of time,

The worker’s insolence, the bosses wronged,

The pangs of lights lost, desire for them to stay,

The audacity of employee, and the spurns

That endured merit that goodly gear takes,

When he himself might this repair make

With torch of solder? Wouldst thou leave this gear,

To wheeze and pass on under silver truss,

But that the dread of something put to rest,

The undiscover’d country from whose lights

Designers desire, give us pause,

And makes us rather restore those faults they have

Than fly to others we know not of?

Thus apprehension does make cowards of us all;

And thus the stand of resolution

Is sicklied o’er with the pastel cast of memory,

And opportunity of great pitch and moment

With observation their currents turn away

And lose form and action – calm you now!

The Proprietor comes! Sir, in your assessment

Be all my words remember’d.

ODE TO A 2K

Alas, poor 2K! I knew him, Martin, a light of infinite shows, of most excellent quality. It hath been upon my rig a thousand times, and now, how cherished in my imagination it is! Here hung the fixture that I have programmed I know not how oft. Where be your lamp now? Your gobos? Your colors? Your strobes that were wont to set the crowd a roar? There is not one to mock your beam now snuffed. Quite dejected. Now get you to the shop and tell them, let them morn as I have, to this realization they must come. Make them remember, make them laugh. Prithee, Martin, make them.

Until next time, “Better a witty fool, than a foolish wit.” William Shakespeare

Mark

kuilo Countdown to 200 - #2: Brainstorming and Bus Etiquette - hotamboyan

We are two posts away from #200 (boy, have we built this up) and I think it's time on our Ten Post Look Back to where it all began: post Number One. There are actually quite a few highlights from this one: 

We learn that I say roadie and not tech.

I am the Shop Foreman – not one of the greatest lines I’ve written, but they can’t all be gold.

I mention a Top Ten list. Do I have a problem?

Great Aunt Ida in Boise is born.

‘In no particular order’ begins.

I remember calling Adam and Terese asking for the bus pictures. It sounded something like this on my end, “I don’t know. Just a few pics of the bus, but stuff I can put online. Yeah, a blog. Just wing it, send me a few pics, I’m sure they’ll be great.”

Brainstorming and Bus Etiquette 

“Write a blog,” they say. “A blog for Bandit Lites about lighting and such.”

Sure, I can do that. No problem. After all, I am the Shop Foreman.

Except one problem: Where do you start? Do I start with something about lighting gear? Maybe a topic on the industry as a whole? What about a funny story or anecdote any roadie (yes, roadie. Get used to it. That will be my preferred general term) would get a chuckle over?

Or how about a classic “Top Ten” list?

What style should I write? Dare I go super lighting nerd and talk about the beam spread of a 2K Wash at 35 feet, or maybe something a little more easy to grasp like the difference between a wash and a spot? Do I want the 20 year road veteran to read this or focus on the younger generation? What about people that want to learn more about the industry or Great Aunt Ida in Boise who wants to know what her nephew does on them crazy bus thingies?

The answer, of course, is yes to all of the above; however, none of that actually answered where to start. It seems as though we are back to square one. I got it! Let’s start with something nice and easy. For those advanced in years, you will know all this but it will be a fun walk down memory lane to a simpler time. For those of you that are new or looking to get on tour, it’s time to get your learn on. Without further ado I bring you…

BUS ETIQUETTE YOU REALLY NEED TO KNOW WHEN YOU START ON THE ROAD

(In no particular order)

Your home away from home.

When on the bus, sleep with your feet towards the driver. 

If it all goes to hell, it is better to break your legs then your neck. As a side note, I was always partial to a bottom bunk. Most people prefer middle bunks because you don’t have to jump in them or roll on the floor to get in it. All that is moot: if you are a new guy to a tour you will get a top bunk anyway.

Your bus driver is not your mom. 

Pick up after yourself. Don’t leave empty soda cans or paper plates around. The bus isn’t that big, so walk to the trash and throw it out.

No solid waste or paper product of ANY kind in the toilet. 

This makes it much easier for the driver to dump and clean the tank. On most tours, there will be a fine if you break this rule. Stay tuned for Advanced Roadie-ing: “Bagging it”

Do not fall asleep ANYWHERE but your bunk. 

If you do, you are fair game for all types of hi-jinks and shenanigans. Old road vets are quite creative with sharpies and a camera. No one will feel sorry for whatever is done to you. You have been warned.

Unless your name is on it, it is fair game. 

If you bring food or drink on a bus, put your name on it. Otherwise, people will think it is just bus stock, and bus stock never lasts.

Bunk space is private. 

Do not go into someone’s bunk without permission. Men have been killed for lesser things. Speaking of bunks, be quiet in the bunk area. Always. Quiet.

Teresa demonstrates the best kept practice of leaving bunks ALONE.

Lock the doors and bays! 

Look people, this is simple: it’s just buttons now. Not even a key! Lock the doors whenever you leave the bus. It’s always interesting when a random person decides to open the door and stroll on the bus to “see what it’s like.” On top of that, everybody’s stuff is in there. You wouldn't leave your house unlocked, would you? As a side note, lock the door when you are in the bus for the same reasons.

It isn't just your "house." 

We all bring family and friends to the show. Most tours are very cool with guests on the bus, but as a courtesy, check with everyone on the bus before you bring the guests on.

Bus water ain’t for drinkin’ son. 

The buses get filled with water at truck stops and it sits in a tank. There is always bottled water. Use that for coffee, tea, brushing your teeth, etc.

Pics courtesy of Adam McIntosh. 

It’s cold in the bus for a reason. 

Keeping the bus cold helps to keep germs at bay. A bus full of sick roadies is no fun. If you are new it is really for the best to just not touch the thermostats at all. Hell, I was on the road for 12 years and didn't mess with them.

There you have it, a few simple rules to live by. I hope you enjoyed this first installment of Dimmer Beach. If you feel I missed any bus rules, please feel free to comment so we can all spread the gospel of roadie-ing.

Until next time…

No matter how bad you want to, don’t lick your finger and stick it in a live cam-lok.

-Mark 

And until next time, “I’d rather go by bus.” Prince Charles

Mark