A Short Little List Of Ramblings.....

Newest items:

** I think I have my essay for the "re-entering, non-traditional student" scholarship I've previously mentioned pretty well locked in. The only thing is that, as of this moment, it totals up to 340 words. And the email I have from the Financial Aid Office says "about 500 words"....sigh. Of course, another essay I submitted and which got my tuition reduced to resident level rather than non-resident was all of 316 words total. And I believe that was a "500 word maximum" requirement. So.....shrug. Of course, they still need to send out the official email with deadline and who to send it to and all. I hope to see that email this week, since the prior one said that the projected deadline would be mid August.....

** Found that the theatre department has updated the web page for the upcoming (Fall 2010-Spring 2011) season. And I have to admit that I am hopeful as far as production assignments may end up being. I won't say too much because I don't want to go all "cart before horses" and such. I'll just say that my hope is for good stuff for my portfolio......

** Still needing to get the whole "medical tests/vaccinations" out of the way. The main ones are the TB test and getting a meningitis vaccination. And as long as I can get records from my prior doctors I should be good for tetanus and mumps and all, based on my recollection of things.

** I was pleased to discover that the US Postal Service priority mail flat rate does appear to include Alaska. I had been a little worried thanks to some other folks comments...But even tho' it will take a bit longer then in the lower 48 the price remains the same. Which will almost certainly be a benefit for when I pack my tools (amongst other things).....

Like I said in the subject line, a short-ish list......More later.

Semi-Random Nostalgia And Reflections

Over the last few days I've had some long-ish drive times where I had little to do but think. And, not surprisingly, my mind wandered to the realm of nostalgia and thoughts about some things involving A) my first efforts in theatre in high school and B) my last period of collegia.....What follows is a semi-random and in no way complete list of some thoughts related to those musings:

** First work call in high school...a Saturday where I was assigned to disassemble some items using a cast iron nail puller and such.

** First lighting controls in high school...the panel in the "Little Theatre" at Waukegan West High....rather large handles (roughly the size of "police truncheons") that had this twist lock function to get them to gang together for cues....and a patch bay that worked like an old style telephone operators switchboard.

** Being cast in my first role (The Wizard in The Wizard Of Oz) and getting used to the idea of "sides" of scripts....and learning all the various leads lines, since I had to be there for the full rehearsals anyway....and realizing how my memory could work.

** My being initiated into the International Thespian Society....and Masque and Gavel.....and National Forensic League....

** An evening of Edward Albee in the Little Theatre at Waukegan West....

** Dramatic Duet Acting competition(s)....

** Our adult TD at Waukegan West spending most of the seasons scenic budget buying marine grade 3/4 ply for the "Hello Dolly" platforming and how we ended up making "flats" out of 4x8 sheets of meso/paneling held upright with shelf brackets for "Merton Of The Movies" as a result.....cursed his name at the time but on reflection it did teach me about making scenery from non-standard things using non-standard methods.

** "Bus Stop" in the Little Theatre at Waukegan West.....

** Directing "To The Chicago Abyss"....and how I still want to do an evening of Bradbury's short works, at least design-wise.....

** The glue pot at College Of Lake County's scene shop....and the glue made from hooves and hides.

** Becoming familiar with that wonder of technology, the Yankee screwdriver.

** Nail/screw pattern discussions...and screwing keystones and cornerblocks into place with the tool de'jour the Yankee screwdriver.

** The edition of Gillette and Gillette with the yellow cream-ish colored cover....which I still refer to from time to time ("no school like the old school").

** "Scenography" as a discipline/concept....

** Pneumatic tools....

** Being stubborn enough to climb the entirety of a fully extended and rather rickety wooden A-frame ladder during the introductory lighting session at the Krannert, which got me up to what was basically "focusing height" in the Playhouse theatre.

** Hanging by my ankles in what might be described as a "semi-riggers lock" position and loading stage weights into an arbor at the Playhouse Theatre at the Krannert Center during a changeover....

** The weird-ish "programming card" style of presets for the lighting control system in the Playhouse Theatre at the Krannert...You would set up the cue with sliders built into a tin box/rectangle which had metal pins in the bottom and then when the cue came, slip it (the "card") into a space on the control board...and you might need to "bang it down" to get the pins to register correctly so the cue would execute.....

** The Strand Century console that was the most advanced light board in use at the Krannert at that point.....

** The whole way the BFA program at the Krannert was designed back in the early 1980's....It seemed a pain at the time, but on reflection I sort of like the concept now....

** "Just Kiddin' : Theatre 106 on Tour" and my role as Ferdfoot.....I still have the "much worse for the wear" t-shirt that was the core of our costumes with it's "smiling jazz hands" logo.....

** After the acting/directing section of Theatre 106, being asked by fellow classmates (why, I am not really certain) if I was going to be auditioning for the acting program at the end of that first year....

** Shozo Sato....Kabuki class...The Zen Substitute.....dinner at Japan House.....

** Doing lighting designs in the Armory Free Theatre...which, upon some serious reflection, still is really one of my favorite venues....at least, back in it's old configuration.

** The old theatre space at Parkland College in Champaign (a converted classroom with a strange angled ceiling)...and my first experience(s) with a "Genie lift"....and the location of my first real paid theatre job.

And a variety of other, occasionally more personal memories....some of which may find their way into some later post.

Housing Assignment And Stuff.....

Apparently the letter carrier gets here later than I would have thought during the week. I checked the mail about 1230hrs and there was nothing. But when I checked again (just for grins) about 90 minutes ago (roughly 1830hrs, +/-) a letter from the Department of Residence Life was there. And when I opened it, it confirmed what I had requested. So, starting on Sept 7th 2010 my physical address in Fairbanks will be:

Carl L Sage
Wickersham Hall
Room 228
732 Yukon Drive
Fairbanks AK
99775

This is where I will be BUT (importantly) this will NOT be my US Postal Service mailing address. Now that I have a physical address there in Fairbanks I can submit an application for a post office box at the University substation. I hope to have that address by mid-week or so.....FedEx, UPS, etc packages would be able to be sent to the residence hall tho'.

Still no info on who my roommate(s) will be....I suspect that I won't know what I am getting till I get to Fairbanks. Sigh.

As for the "stuff " portion of our show today:

1) I am back to sifting yet again more stuff to figure out what I can do without. Spent this last weekend down at my brothers house doing sorting and packing and such. Tried to pack/label my belongings in such a way that it would/will be easy for someone to get things out to ship up if I need them. However, I have to admit that process has me a bit concerned/nervous. Not quite certain as to the why of it....just tense about someone else having to rummage thru boxes of my stuff to find something I guess. Especially as last weekend may be the last time I get any significant chance to sort anything that is there in Arkansas before I leave......

2) I am working on yet another essay for an additional scholarship opportunity. I've been in touch with the Financial Aid Office and have most (tho' potentially not all - such as the official deadline,etc) of the details for a scholarship aimed at older, non-traditional, returning students. Sounds like someone we know, huh ? Apparently, the university has received a $1 million dollar endowment to allow for these scholarships (yep, plural - potentially up to 12 recipients). They announced receiving the endowment on July 9th and the "rough deadline" for the application essay that I heard from the Financial Aid Office is "mid August". The essay subject is pretty straight forward: 500 words addressing my inspiration for returning to school. If I understand correctly, these scholarships would be disbursed prior to the Fall semester payment deadline, so if I am selected I could "stack it" with my other scholarship. Potentially paying for virtually the entire Fall 2010-Spring 2011 school year with little or no out of pocket costs. Suffice it to say, it would be an amazing help....

Well I suspect that, when I began typing this post, I had more to say...however, at the moment, I have nothing else.

A Bit Of Misc..... 07/11/10

It's been a bit since the last entry....And a few things have happened:

1) According to a post on the UAF Facebook page on July 9th, the Residence Life Office should be sending the housing assignment letters out this coming week. So I'll know soon what my room-mate status and such will be.

2) Another post on the UAF Facebook page (also on July 9th) has led me to an additional scholarship that I might qualify for...Still hunting more details about it and hoping.....

3) I've begun packing for the dorm. Yes, I still have 56 days (+/- 18 hours or so) till my flight leaves St Louis for Fairbanks. But all things considered I'd rather be way early than crushed for time.

4) As you could probably tell from #3, I already have my Fairbanks ticket reserved. Frontier Airlines. They only fly in and out of AK during the "Summer" so my flight in will be one of the last ones they will have for the season (they stop flying into Fairbanks about Sept 10th..My flight is on Sept 6th).

5) Given flight costs and such, I am planning to "Winter over" on campus rather than coming back down for the Winter Holidays.....Once I get my housing assignment I'll be able to fill out the required forms. If I get the dorm I requested, I should be able to just stay in my same room.....

6) I'm already looking for a Summer 2011 gig that would start after classes end and end before classes start again in the Fall....I'll be working the department up there for contacts/ideas as well but if anyone has any ideas please let me know.

Getting more and more excited by the day....

Fall Schedule, Some Housing Stuff And A Bit Of Misc.....

Well, the newest news is that I've completed my registration process and have all my classes laid out for the Fall semester. For those interested they include:

On Mondays/Wednesdays/Fridays

Costume Design and Construction
Dramatic Literature
Theatre History

And on Tuesdays/Thursdays

Lighting Design

Additionally, there is a zero credit required course that meets at various times during the semester called Audition or Portfolio Review Participation that I have on my schedule as well.

The other big news is that I have submitted my housing paperwork and should be receiving my housing assignment sometime after the first of July (ie: beginning the end of this week or so). I requested to be housed in Wickersham Hall, which is generally non-traditional/upperclass-person/graduate student housing. The layout is "suites" of 2 two person rooms sharing a study room between them. And yes, I am planning on having a room-mate sharing my room with me. Not exactly something I am used to, with the exception of some overnights on the TLTOTS tour(s). It should prove to be an interesting test of my adaptability...As well as my new room-mates tolerance of my snoring, talking in my sleep and insomnia.

Beyond those points, I'm just continuing to work on the whole "putting my life into just a few pieces of luggage" puzzle as well as the "making a plan so that folks here in the lower 48 can find some of my theatre/art books to mail to me if needed" challenge...

More as it comes/happens/I think of it.

Now St Louis...Then Fairbanks. (Part 2: Our Story So Far....)

As many of you (perhaps even most of you) who are reading this may already know, I left my initial collegiate career prior to being awarded my Bachelors degree. And how it has long since been a personal as well as professional goal of mine to return to school and complete it. Thus the prior, albeit failed, attempt at a blog such as this.

In 2004, I was offered admission for the Fall at the University Of Alaska Fairbanks. Sadly, due to hurricane related damage to family housing in Florida and my being needed there, I had to pass on going back to school at that time. However, that did allow me to do more freelance work and further build my resume and portfolio with "real world" (if anything related to theatre can be called "real world") credits. And I continued to do school related research and planning...

Then, after being "at liberty" (a term some of us in the entertainment trade use for being unemployed) for the entire year of 2009 I decided that it was time. I re-applied and was accepted at UAF. In addition, I qualified for what is called a Theatre Transfer Student award, which reduces my tuition level from non-resident to resident. And to top it all off, I was awarded a scholarship based on my portfolio as well.....So, come September and the end of my contract here (with Stages St Louis in St Louis, MO) I will be boarding a plane to Fairbanks, AK !

As of the end of last week I had submitted my housing request/application and have had email contact with both my faculty adviser and one of my instructors for the Fall semester. My class registration should be complete by the end of next week (with the opening of "Big River" and the start of the "Promises, Promises" build here at Stages I'm a bit behind, sad to say). After that it's post office forms and medical forms and...well, more forms. I had almost forgotten how much paperwork can be involved with school enrollment. But I don't mind, since it gets me closer to school.

Of course, prepping for a move to Alaska and life in a dorm room is also an excellent exercise/reminder in "simplifying ones life". I spend at least a small portion of my day each day debating "will I really need to pack/bring that tool ? And if I do, how much weight will that add to my footlocker ?", etc.

Well, the dawn is fully up and I have stuff to do. So a discussion of my probable class schedule for the Fall and other stuff will have to wait till next entry......

Now St Louis...Then Fairbanks. (Part 1: Introduction)

So...Here I go again, attempting to document my return to the world of collegia. Some time back, I began one of these new fangled bloggy dealys on the oh so stylish Tripod. Or was it Geocities ? Well, either way, it died a silent death and passed into the realm of things only found thru the Internet Wayback Machine. But as the series of tubes known as the interweb has developed over time, so have my efforts to return to school. Also, I have realized that bloggy style notes on Myspace and Facebook have grown cumbersome.....As such and without additional hyperbole, I present:

"NOT QUITE THE WORLDS OLDEST UNDERGRAD"

Which will be, in the main, a documentation of me returning to school this coming Fall semester and the activities and adventures connected to such.