Homework 6

TASK: The past few days I did a few chores in which I definitely noticed a rhythm. While folding laundry I noticed this rhythm: pick up, fold, fold, fold, put down. While vacuuming I noticed a very simple rhythm that is very relaxing when you focus on it: push forward, pull backward, push forward, pull backward, etc. And finally, while making my bed I noticed this rhythm: lift, place, tuck, tuck, tuck, and this was repeated three times for my sheet, top sheet, and comforter.

THEATER: I decided to research the word "academy". While reading up on its etymology, I found that the word has a pretty straight forward history. There was a famous Athenian from the ancient Greek Trojan War tales named Akademos. His name actually means "of a silent district" but that has no bearing on the meaning of the word today. He owned an estate in Athens that was the place where Plato taught his school therefore similar places were referred to as "academies".

EMPATHY: I'm imagining walking in the shoes of my favorite NHL goaltender, Dominic Hasek. Growing up as boy in Czechoslovakia behind the Iron Curtain is a difficult life. I have an aspiration to be an athlete but in my home country there are not many options. I grow up looking up to the elite hockey players of the USSR and eventually play throughout my school career. I move to a very strange country, the United States at a young age and must adjust to a whole new culture. I eventually earn fame and money on my way to having a very successful career in the NHL and going on to win the Stanley Cup.

If Dominic Hasek grew up in my shoes, I believe his life would be very different. In my hometown and in my schools growing up, hockey was not a popular sport and there are not many opportunities to play. He would probably begin to play roller hockey and be very successful at a very low level, probably going on to playing ice hockey in high school, then eventually playing in the NCAA during college before most likely starting a successful NHL career at a later age than he did in his real life.

Light House Balloon (Brain Bank 7/31)

This is a picture taken by photographer named Ilamo Ibai Acevedo. This photograph was taken as is without any type of manipulation taking place. I am inspired by the ability of photographers to snap a moment that is simply amazing without the need to alter it in some way using photoshop or other techniques. What I love about this photograph is that it feels like it's telling a story, it almost makes you imagine that balloon drifting slowly toward the right, traveling with the rays of light emitted by that lighthouse. I also really love the colors. This photograph was taken at a perfect time of day.

Bokeh Photography (Brain Bank 7/30)

This photograph is an example of Bokeh Photography. This is an un-manipulated photograph that uses depth of field in very interesting ways. Bokeh is a Japanese word meaning "blur" or "haze". Bokeh photographs use this manipulation of focus and depth of field to combine blurry and sharp elements into a new unique image. What I love about these images is the creativity and ingenuity. It takes a lot of foresight and imagination to look at an object and its surroundings and think of what that might look like if photographed using the Bokeh method.

Bus Ad (Brain Bank 7/29)

This is an advertisement found on a bus somewhere in Asia. I'm not sure what the ad is for, but I believe it is very effective in the country it's in. I think one of the most important things an advertisement does is get the attention of its audience. In order for it to do this it needs to be entertaining. This advertisement is really entertaining to me. I think that it is so creative and ingenious. This advertisement will definitely turn heads and have people looking long enough for it to be effective.

Couch Image (Brain Bank 7/28)

This is a picture that I took of a smudge on my couch. My couch is made up of that kind of material that if you rub it in a certain direction, you can add marks to it that can be erased by rubbing in the opposite direction. This smudge of marks appeared tonight after I stood up. My girlfriend noticed that it looks like the profile of a man (a la Alfred Hitchcock) sideways with the front of his face pointing down. I really love when accidental things like this can turn into a cool image. I like to look for neat images hidden inside other patterns and images.

Invisible Hotel (Brain Bank 7/27)

This is a photograph of an invisible treehouse located deep in the natural forests some 40 miles south of the Arctic Circle in Sweden. It's not actually invisible, this is a room sized mirrored cube that seems to be virtually invisible because it reflects the trees and skies around it. Inside the cube is an eco-friendly hotel room that one can stay at. I love this idea because it is just so unique. Also, the idea of invisibility is just such a cool concept to me and this hotel seems to really capture the essence of that idea.

Take Inventory of Skills

List of skills required for my field of work: technical mastery in various programs such as photoshop, illustrator, after effects, dreamweaver, flash, soundboard, maya, unity, and many other programs, hard work ethic, organization skills, creativity, interpersonal skills, perseverance, charisma, design, time management, composition, to name a few. Of these skills, I believe that I have an intermediate technical mastery of certain programs like photoshop, illustrator, dreamweaver, and flash, organizational skills, creativity, perseverance, design, and composition. Some other skills that I have are good strategic abilities that I may be able to use in dealing with handling my time or resources on a given project, my stamina while doing exhaustive tasks that could help me while I'm spending all night or any significant length of time working on a certain project, and my ability to delegate work to people based on their individual skill set, which could come in handy if I'm in a position of leadership and delegation is an important responsibility of any good leader.