Sad Television
The main drama in my life this week has been the death of our BT Vision box. It had been titting about with failing to record or recording weird skipping images so I made the possible mistake of contacting BT for some support. Well… I should preface this by saying I’ve been fairly content with BT for all the years we’ve been with them, so I have no grindable axe. The straw that broke the TV’s back seems to have been the factory reset where you unplug the box and hold down some buttons. The box has never recovered from it and it’s sent the TV picture all washy and shadowy, no matter whether the aerial is plugged in, or if it’s the Wii or DVD we’re using. Sigh. I’m talking to BT now… my hopes of a swift resolution are low. The screen is now strobing at me. Positive? Actually I have a tiny axe to grind and that’s about their infuriating password reset process failures on the website. That has nearly driven me insane.
Never mind. It’s been quite a nice week. Our Level One improv beginners class is nearing it’s end, which is sad. They have been marvellous though and it is enormously cheering to see people internalise the kinds of behaviour we teach and promote in improvisation. They’ve come a long way. I look forwards to taking them further. It’s also been great fun to teach with Parky again, I find it a very rewarding thing to do together.
We’ve got more improvisation to enjoy this week – the last session with our Level 1 group, then Unspeakable Acts on Tuesday, on Wednesday I’m exploring improv on a one-to-one basis with a client, Thursday’s more improv jam time and then I think I get to sit down and read a book on Friday!
I’m compering several Knickerbocker Glorious(es?) in the run up to Christmas in Derby city centre. Last Saturday’s was a blast. I very much enjoy working with the Furthest From The Sea crew and I’m looking forwards to further collaborations, including improv shows and workshops in Derby in the new year. Oo-rah! I’ll be back there on the 7th and 21st December, hopefully with MissImp.
♥ Last Week’s Scribbles
Slightly Broken: Morbidly Musing – Gravity made itself felt.
Writing
Okay, so I still suck at getting stuff done. I’m beginning to realise that I’m genuinely struggling, rather than just not being organised or focussed enough. I’m finding it hard to re-engage properly. I find I just stare at the screen. It’s annoying. Perhaps I need to ease my brain back into it and initiate a new series of morning pages to convince myself it’s alright and I can still do it. It’s possible I should also be making better choices of films to go and see – Gravity was brilliant but it really didn’t help.
Media Intake
I’m reading Gozeul’s Dark World Toy Box by Michael Nokes on Kindle. It’s one of a dozen or so free ebooks I downloaded, but of those I started is the only one that survived beyond the first page. I’m not certain whether I regret starting it or not. The premise appears to be some kind of Bermuda Triangle style island/world where people end up and their lives are controlled by the evil god Gozeul. I’m fine with that but it’s lurching weirdly between characters and feels like it’s implying more than is being revealed. I don’t know whether I’m enjoying it. The book does suffer very badly with spelling and grammatical errors (at least three on every page) which is distracting me beyond all reason. I wish to persevere, but I won’t hate myself if I don’t. That said, I do dislike abandoning a book once I’m more than a quarter of the way through it – I feel I’ve invested the time and want the pay off.
We finished watching Dexter series 6 last week. It ends on a great cliffhanger! I’ve been consistently impressed by the show and its cast and I’m going to be seeking out bargain prices for series 7 right now… A friend lent us Boardwalk Empire too and we’ve watched the first two episodes. It’s beautiful, a truly gorgeous set design and vision (the tailoring is impeccable) and it’s already shaping up to be as much fun as Justified. Steve Buscemi is finally getting a chance to shine and I’m thrilled to see Michael Shannon getting so much screen time. I’m also hugely cheered that there are at least three seasons already in the can.
Events and Excitement
Tuesday 19th November 2013
Unspeakable Acts
Nottingham’s longform improv troupe, will create a mutant hybrid of scripted drama and improvised comedy.
The players will begin performing a scripted play chosen by the audience; as the show progresses, the script is distorted, violated and abandoned. In its place we will create a new narrative, a squalid perversion of the playwright’s intentions or a beautiful butterfly made of broken dreams.
The Corner
8 Stoney Street
(off Broad Street)
Nottingham
7.30pm – £4
https://www.facebook.com/events/711364735543846/
Friday 29th November
MissImp in Action – live improv comedy show
Thrilling all-action end of the month show sporting the best of MissImp inventing scenes and playing games.
The Glee Club
The Waterfront
Canal Street
Nottingham
8.30pm (doors open at 8pm) – £4.50 in advance/£6 on the door (£3 students/MissImp)
