A winter storm rolled in just after the last announcement I made. Then as the storm was passing I realized I had a little more preparation to do than I thought, so it kind of worked out... a little sorta'... maybe... right. We'll see....
The storm has passed but the winds have increased and it's a bit more cold. That won't necessarily be a good thing because I have to make music at the top using my bare hands, no gloves, and with a microphone that has minimal wind casing. This required more prep as well, which delayed me even more. It will be more of a challenge than I had planed on, but Hell/heck, I'm still determined to try and have fun performing if/when I get up there, which is kind of of the point of this.
The extra prep over the last week involved a few things: setting up a session in Ableton for the top, buying semi-important gear I had needed and setting up the Livestream page a little better due to unwanted audio and video looping. Fixed that. Also set up my new upgraded Livestream account to stream from my iPhone, so I will actually be able to broadcast some of the climb on the way up in addition to my performance at the top. The pre-arranged Ableton session is because I realized that a Macbook Air is not as powerful as my Macbook Pro, so Ableton doesn't actually work quite as well on it. I had to set up some rhythms and loops on it in advance to assure a decent performance at the top, and also to conserve on time up there, which will be mandatory. I will choose a couple of pads and melody sounds up there spontaneously. I will also explain to my audience what I'm doing before I start performing, so you can see what is involved with the creative process a little bit.
The gear turned into more of a disaster than I thought it would because I was so stressed about everything and sleep-deprived that I accidentally left an envelope with $550 in cash in a small deli restroom overnight. Next day it was gone and the owners said they didn't see it and that they felt bad. Had to borrow that money until my next check comes in.
They say you should feel okay when that happens because the money probably fell into the hands of someone who needs it more than you. In my case that's not difficult to imagine because I'm not struggling to survive. But another thought that keeps creeping in is some old white couple who decided to go to Vegas with it.
The gear turned into more of a disaster than I thought it would because I was so stressed about everything and sleep-deprived that I accidentally left an envelope with $550 in cash in a small deli restroom overnight. Next day it was gone and the owners said they didn't see it and that they felt bad. Had to borrow that money until my next check comes in.
They say you should feel okay when that happens because the money probably fell into the hands of someone who needs it more than you. In my case that's not difficult to imagine because I'm not struggling to survive. But another thought that keeps creeping in is some old white couple who decided to go to Vegas with it.
I did also however post a little autumn gift for some of my fans: a long ambient mix I made in autumn of 2011, while I was doing travels rendered on the East Coast. Turning leaves and snow. I made it at my cousin's house in Orange, CT, during a blackout. Finally posted it with an image from that same week. Settle in if you hear it; almost 3 hours of some of my favorite ambient music at the time.
So actually, now I seem to be ready and the weather will be barely warm enough and I'm actually getting in the car to drive to the mountain at this moment. Wouldn't have announced this or alerted any of you otherwise. Hopefully I won't have to come back for anything. ;))
Also in a grander sense I have mixed feelings about being able to climb Whitney right now: on one hand I'm happy to have such inviting weather at the top of the highest mountain in lower America during the transition to winter; on the other hand with clear skies and warmth right now it's an indication that we are likely on the verge of either one of the worst CA droughts in decades or are nearing the worst phase of global warming. I don't mean to be dramatic, but that's just the way it appears right now from where I sit and couldn't keep it to myself. Just a thought.
I plan on climbing to the trail camp tomorrow, Monday November 11th, and then on the 12th performing at the summit sometime in the early afternoon whenever I arrive. (This is changed from my original plan yesterday when I posted this. Sorry about that.) If the weather permits, I will succeed, otherwise you will at least see my attempt before some kind of storm covers the top, which is the other thing that will sway me from the summit at that point. There may also be a chance that my summit is merely delayed a day or two, in which case I will perform up there a day or two later than planned. (Not likely now though.) Just scan my Facebook pages or my Livestream page for updates on what's happening as it happens. And/but Hell/heck, if I don't succeed with this entire attempt, at least you will have the satisfaction of being some of the first people to see me broadcast my failure for all the world to see! Yay!!!
If I do succeed, then as cool and amazing as this summit broadcast will be, it will actually only be a precursor to an entire year of equivalent broadcasts in 2015, my last official year of this project. That is the plan as of yet; lots and lots of broadcasted moments next year. Whitney will essentially be a big bata test.
Oh... and I forgot to mention, what's making this possible is new new type of internet modem technology. All or most of your providers offer their own version of this now, but mine is through AT&T (in America) and it's called Mifi.
So again, for those of you who will be on your PCs during the day for the next two days, the key to this, if you want to catch any of what I'm doing, will be tuning into the Livestream page at lots of different times to see if I happen to be broadcasting. If I am, but you don't have time to watch the whole thing, I suggest leaving the sound on all day even if you have to do other things on your pc. You can always jump back and forth between that and other things.
I will also post on Facebook just as I am about to broadcast each time. Here are the links:
Livestream page where you can find the live broadcast(s):
Here's the Facebook page where you can check for my broadcast announcements:
Here is the broadcast window if you want to go right to it:
Lastly, as I may have stated before, I will be using these locations and performances as a backdrop for my philosophical endeavors as well, so you will soon see related films and so forth in that right. But for now, I'm just truing to get the basic portion of this artistic accomplishment underway. One thing leads to the next.
Lastly, as I may have stated before, I will be using these locations and performances as a backdrop for my philosophical endeavors as well, so you will soon see related films and so forth in that right. But for now, I'm just truing to get the basic portion of this artistic accomplishment underway. One thing leads to the next.
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