2) creation

• (last few days) recorded Ian dream and how he avoids dreaming.  transcription of journal entries into computer.

2) creation, 4) housekeeping

• (last few weeks) notebook entries, Kelli purchased new laptop - transfer of all writings, images, and artifacts to it - leaving basement computer solely for sound studio.  loss of baby through miscarriage - oval locket for ashes - these artifacts I do not want. 

2) creation

• (last night) hours of editing and correcting transcribed dreams from voice recognition software.  some hints of the old Burroughs' methods of random word replacement and new meaning to be teased out. 

2) creation

• (last few days) editing last 10 page span of ...fence posts rotting in the acreage... chapter 11, now the first chapter of book two.  changed the opening quote to a three paragraph excerpt from Sam Harris, The End of Faith.  typing out 5 years of daydreams or so on 1980s electric typewriter - the physical motions and writing happening right then are made apparent and manifest.  such intensity to hear the motors and belts running to transmit the key-types into inked letters on the page. 

1) creation, 4) housekeeping

• (last week) chapter 11 of ...fence posts rotting in the acreage... nearly done in a 5 day span when the toil of laying down rows spun back to the structural patterning and dense meaning to placement of images, alignments, and material used.  these are the ideal momentum-filled hours each night, staying just ahead of the associations, allowing the pages and rows to suggest adjacent artifacts.  switching out the quote for the chapter as now that book 1 and book 2 of ...fence posts rotting in the acreage... are combined into one book, 400 pages, chapter 11 is crucial to set up the next 10 chapters, the arc of 400 or so pages.  used the long excerpt from The End of Faith by Sam Harris.  
• backing up all work, including sound files to external hard drive and then work computer.  decision to let Gibson guitar go as paying the $520 to retrieve it from pawn exasperates the frustration of having floated the loan for 4 or 5 months at $40 each time.  simply too much money to reacquire - I can buy all of the boys' christmas presents for less - the weighing out immediately make the decision.

1) creation

• (last few days) several productive hours on ...fence posts rotting in the acreage... chapter 11.  six months of no progress, a series of images stopping up the momentum until a few nights ago and an elaborate referencing of patterns, placement and sizing condensed five pages to three and immediately through, on to ten pages of two rows, all coming into alignment.  euphoric.

1) creation

• (last few days) tracking high level damage control meeting within school district - primarily for protection against shit-storms that may take shape regardless of me but might still stain me in the tossing off.  
• days to fix website www.timcoalman.com as somewhere in process of updating link to bandcamp page and fixing off-set link fields, saving as web page, transferring to flash drive, uploading through ftp - the main page acquired an "official_website" page name instead of the "index" label that had been there in the past.  this effectively substituted the page name and left all links and loading of page at error messages.  finally noticed the change and had to backtrack through previous versions of website stored on computer to find what had been changed.

2) creation, 3) community, 4) housekeeping

• (last few days) reconnection with Naquin, short talk but the recurring lament for intersecting times.  substantial work-up of bandcamp page, http://timcoalman.bandcamp.com/, and thrill to discover uploading of .wav files is supported at higher than cd rates of 16 bit and 44.1 kHz - so hours to save ...fence posts rotting in the acreage... book 1 soundtrack pieces at rates that equal the quality they are tracked and mixed in.  
• updating of www.timcoalman.com so "soundtrack" link connects to bandcamp page.
• tracked one of Ian's dreams - first telling, instead of having him repeat.

2) creation, 4) housekeeping

• (last few weeks) on-going organization and de-weeding of sound files.  several pieces nearing completion for ...fence posts rotting in the acreage... book soundtrack and sorting clips of the boys into years as well as sample rates.  various notebook entries.  decision also made to combine book 1 and 2 of ...fence posts rotting in the acreage... into one volume, approximately 400 pages; the 200 pages per book attributable to early coveting of multi-book series instead of one or few phonebook installments - Pirsig would be disappointed.

2) creation, 3) community, 4) housekeeping

• (last few weeks) substantial progress on organization of all music, including last few pieces for ...fence posts rotting in the acreage... book soundtrack.  hundreds of tracks reevaluated for potential, at least half deleted, others reworked and filed away in categories for future use.  notebook entries.  found dictation software I'd used in studio (dragon) now available as free app. for iphone.  tracking a few sounds and discovering several sound design websites (my favorite -  http://socialsounddesign.com/) that are as relevant to the way I form musical pieces as the community on tape op message board http://messageboard.tapeop.com/.

2) creation, 4) housekeeping

• (last few weeks) tracking sound artifacts and dreams.  working on book soundtrack to ...fence posts rotting in the acreage... and evaluating/sorting all sound files for workflow - categories now include 1) sound artifacts, 2) timcoalman sound (book soundtrack), 3) pre-commissioned, 4) conversations, 5) Teeple (archival of his work done together or shared with me), and 6) family (primarily the boys' dreams and stories).

2) creation, 4) housekeeping

• (last two weeks) journal entries and collecting photos from phones and computers to back them up on primary computer.  pulling audio files from zoom h4 and small digital recorder.  working on music for ...fence posts rotting in the acreage... book soundtrack and also organizing material under "pre-commissioned" folder.

2) creation, 4) housekeeping

• (last few days) several notebook entries on dreams and artifact pieces.  collected photos from various devices and computers and put on my computer.  organized and sorted dozens of audio files.  backing up small digital recorder to computer (why do I keep using this equipment when the zoom H4 would be better for immediate uploading instead of tracking from headphone jack to mixer?).  backing up all files to external hard drive.  realization that soundtrack is not done for ...fence posts rotting in the acreage... book 1 - having miscalculated final running time.

2) creation

• (last two days) wrote dream in notebook.  tracked Ian's dream on small digital recorder.

2) creation, 4) identification

• (last few days) work on soundtrack to ...fence posts rotting in the acreage... - finishing a piece and sudden realization the album is complete.  now archived for a time when i can generate money to have it mastered and duplicated.
• notebook entries and tracking series of voicemail messages left by jones as he drank, slit throat, drove towards my home (arriving at parents home), taunting my unwillingness to come met him.  a fine progression of dispatches from a rolling degradation - his driver fulled by recent arrest of wife on prostitution, raging for the toddler daughter.  pleased with decision not to set out for connection.

2) creation

• (last few days) pawned old yamaha mixer and bought mackie 802-vlz3 http://www.mackie.com/products/802vlz3 after researching for teeple.  installed into studio.  a few notebook entries.

2) creation

• (last few days) finished editing comedy overdub video for kids.  pleased to be rid of the obligation.

2) creation

• took photos of damaged mirror backing.   

2) creation

• tracked dream into small digital recorder.

1) identification, 2) creation

• (last few weeks) dreams and ian tracked on small digital recorder, notebook entries, and setting up studio in new house.  researching new mixer for teeple and now coveting for myself as it would support a more streamlined work flow and a better understanding of signal flow - my current mixer still a confusing piece of gear years into usage. 
• reading book - the information: a history, a theory, a flood by James Gleick.  also enamored with reading articles, dispatches, and news items on iphone apps for npr and general anytime access to the week and wired through internet.
• finishing student voice overdub project after months of delay.  pleased with video editing software on mac.

2) creation

• (last week) notebook entries, skits and bits done under comedy pseudonym.  several hours on ...fence posts rotting in the acreage... book 3 after no progress/work for many weeks - reworking beginning rows, quotes, et cetera.  tracked broken fan at parents' house - a sound of swells and cycles of vibrations that I always adore.

2) creation

• (last few weeks) a few notebook entries.  editing video and audio for student overdub session - realization I will never do such work again - my own artifacts ignored as the limited spans of time available are for projects begun with ambitions but which subsist on just-fucking-finish-it energy level.

2) creation, 4) housekeeping

• (last month) fifty or so pages of writing for school to finish portfolio artifacts.  editing and creating year-end dvd for my students and variety of notebook entries.

2) creation, 4) housekeeping

• (today) backing up audio files from zoom h4.  considering combining book 1 and book 2 of ...fence posts rotting in the acreage... to make a more sizable work but the decision goes against the creation of each as separate pieces at the time.  preparing materials to record student play tomorrow.

2) creation, 3) community

• (last few days) tracked dreams from Ian and I on small digital recorder, also Beckett wanting to share his dreams to join in the moment - mumbles about his head being cut off, echoing an element of Ian's dream he just heard.  writing piece for music liner notes - re: lack of use of sound libraries, samples, or pre-existing files.  also designing performance desk of three screens on pivot arms and three sound players for shows.  gave copy of ...fence posts rotting in the acreage... book 2 to friend at school.

2) creation

• (last week) tracked students doing voice-overdub project using zoom h4, creating sounds and new story for cartoon movie.  dream written in notebook.  tracked another dream and Ian in the car with small digital recorder.

2) creation, 4) housekeeping

• (last two days) going through sound files to organize material for future use.  recording my dreams and Ian's on small digital recorder.  entry into notebook.

2) creation

• (last few weeks) various notebook entries and pages of responses to on-line application fields.

2) creation, 4) housekeeping

• (last few days) notebook entries on horrors of parental cleanliness, finished girl scout interview with basic editing, eq, and balance.  one of the first times I have taken audio to such a finished form - cd for the .wav files, a cd with mp3 versions of each interview, and on a memory stick.  each piece named so any player will display all relevant information instead of the ubiquitous "track 1," "track 2" etc.  also sorting through endless audio files and project folders to streamline all the music and sound artifacts I've built as an audio library.  sets up studio for a much more fluid creative process.

2) creation

• (last week) a few notebook entries.

2) creation, 3) housekeeping

• (last few days) more transfers of audio files to studio for girl scout project where they interviewed residents at assisted living facility.  some frustration that the project is only transfer, some light eq, balancing, and dithering down to mp3 for master cd copy for one of the mother's to generate copies for the girls and residents.  the sections would be much improved with fades, careful signal processing, small guitar sections within the narratives, and heavy editing of repetitions, stammering, "ums," speech missteps, etc.  Also 2 hour run of sorting images used for each chapter of ...fence posts rotting in the acreage... and the rear so searches for unused images is not so cluttered with pieces already used.  several notebook entries.

2) creation, 4) housekeeping

• (last two weeks) handling collection and uploading of various audio formats for girl scouts project - interviewing people in retirement home.  notebook entires and continued massive filing and organizing of studio material while listening to hours of these interview tapes.  Some work on ...fence posts rotting in the acreage... book 3 - especially in finding student artifacts for chapter 11.

2) creation, 3) community

• (last few days) completed transfer of audio files from small digital recorder - hours to finally be done and empty the thing.  regret to have ever used it to such degree with no ability to easily transfer files. plan now to never again use extensively, now stashed at work as resource when needing something documented.  during long transfers sorting and organizing files.  some progress on ...fence posts rotting in the acreage... book 3.

2) creation, 4) housekeeping

• (last week) transferring of audio from small digital recorder that I'd used for years - admonishing myself to never use it again for so many samples, child recordings, conversations, dreams, etc as there is no ability to upload or move audio into computer without taking earphone jack and wiring through two connectors to finally arrive at mixer and sit there for hours playing the files into computer.  terrible process.  several notebook entries.

2) creation, 4) housekeeping

• (last few days) notebook entries and itemization of various social networking, e-mail, and website usernames and log-ins into a central file for reference.  sorting hundreds of video clips pulled from kelli's computer as it approached failure.  no folders or organization was retained from hard drive so all clips were data dumped to a general folder.  sorting will likely take another week or so before I can begin using kelli's new mac for video editing.

2) creation, 4) housekeeping

• (last week) recorded Jones again with better audio and from the beginning of his story attacking his mom with extension cord.  wrote several notebook entries and finished extensive file reorganization in studio.  

2) creation, 3) community, 4) housekeeping

• (last few days) massive undertaking of combining and organizing files in studio computer for 6 or 7 hours.  another update of website www.timcoalman.com and continuous entries in notebook.

2) creation, 3) community, 4) housekeeping

• (this week) large effort to merge all files from Kelli's computer with mine as hers crashed and was replaced with a imac.  over 270 gigabytes needing to be incorporated into my studio computer from external hard drive.  recorded conversation with jones on phone of him beating his mother with extension cord in retribution for similar attacks during his childhood.  missed the beginning of the story when his grandmother came to him in a dream and told him to do it.  will need to prompt him to retell it so can record entire conversation soon.  obvious decision to not renew outings with him as his schizophrenia remains severe - several more suicide attempts, personal relationship with jesus, constant stream of self-defining narrative, and theories on egyptian pyramids as sound resonators for the cosmos.  
• website updated again - www.timcoalman.com - having problems with hyperlinks and several work-arounds only somewhat successful.  pleased with the newest version.
• recorded an Ian dream.

2) creation

• (last week) steady series of notebook entries, pleased to fill pages but few dreams - a dry spell. some efforts to move studio to another computer but enough difficulties to then retreat back to the steady, reliable machine that has hummed along for the last 5 or 6 years.

2) creation, 3) community

• (last few days) final revisions on website - www.timcoalman.com for clarity of reading and to reduce pages exposed on passing readings. multiple notebook entries and several pages done on ...fence posts rotting in the acreage... book 3.

3) community

• revising websites to reduce cost and exposure.  www.unmannedprobe.com and www.fencepostsrottingintheacreage.com both redirect to www.timcoalman.com after discovering that main website could host more than the five page limit I had originally understood to be in place was not a reality.  now the main page holds everything and money saved on paying for hosting on the other sites.  also wanted to pull back actual samples of the books as career is advancing to a point I would be more visible and under greater scrutiny.  although I've taken great lengths to make pseudonym separate from career want to ensure anonymity as much as possible.

2) creation, 4) housekeeping

• (last few weeks) pages in the notebook on everyday bits and working up pieces for some further progress not yet finalized. finally a new external hard drive to back up studio computer. more work on ...fence posts rotting in the acreage... book 3.