final project update

as the internship seems to be winding down, now entering my last week as an intern, so has the work required of me.
as a result, more time for a final project.
and i've done two things...

1st: a faux music show that is a wannabe 2 hr program on XM Cafe featuring some of my favourite (yes, i prefer the british spelling of that word) songs currently.

2nd: the food show i mentioned some posts back.
i've completed a couple 10 minute interviews, one about markets, and one about soup. i also might throw in a segment about making chorizo and/or uncle brothas hot sauce, a local favourite (i managed to do it again).

and i have some perfect Tuvan throat singing for the interlude!

hopefully this will all be done by tomorrow.

cheers.

Soul Street

I finally plugged my Inno into my TV so I can blast it throughout my row house for my roomates and neighbors to hear.

all i find myself listening to is Soul Street...just too many grooves...

The Emotions - Best Of My Love

i wish i could just embed it already!

Radio+ Food + DC

In the past few weeks I've been coming up with ideas for a final project. And while I love doing music shows, and I have a playlist going that I plan on voicetracking over (that would porobably fit well on XM Cafe or XMU), I would like to do something more challenging and utilize at least some of my journalism skills.

Anyways, I'm going to do a food show.
Name ideas:
DC Eats
District Consumption
Patomac Grub....
...ok, im still working on the name...but clearly you can tell, it would initially be focused on food in DC.

segments:
In the midst of this whole bacon craze, I have recently become obsessed with sausage. In the past week alone i have eaten Chorizo, Italian, and North Carolina Loose Sausage...and I'm dying to try more.
Luckily I live 3 blooks from Eastern Market where I can get a wide variety of home made sausages from my man Jose at Canales Deli.
anyways, so yea, we got a segment on sausages, types, making them, their history, blah blah blah...

Something I've noticed sausage goes exceptionally well with is Soup...
here we talk soup, preferably with a soup kitchen owner, discuss recipies, caned vs box soups, puree vs chunky, home made vs restaurants, and then if we have time, garnishes and accompaniments.

While in DC i've become fascinated with Carryout joints accross this city. For those of you who have never been outside of DC, it isnt there.
So why not do a Carryout taste test tour. Go from street to street tasting the best Lo Mein Friend Chicken Pizza. I shall begin this journey on H street.

There are many more ideas in the works, from Papusarias, to Ginger Milk Shakes, to the explosion of Gourmet Cupcakes, and of course a few restaurant reviews....

hopefully this will come together.

Writing for Radio

Writing for radio is harder than it seems. I've been assigned to write a lot of intros for shows and audio books, and im noticing how easy it is to sound confusing and incoherent while still being completely grammatically correct.

Shim Sham

I'm finally done editing massive amounts of radio dramas. Woot!
The past three weeks, I've essentially locked myself on one of those dalet booths and chopped up about 400 or so radio dramas for non-commercial play. Fun and engaging, yet at times tiresome and repatitive. I'm definately looking forward to some new projects....

...in thoughts...I've been going to this 'Japan! Culture + Hyperculture' event at the Kennedy Center and seeing some awesome, culturally unique, and perhaps quite weird music. I realized that they not only have free music everyday at 6pm for this event, but 365 days a year just about. Plus...there are no media sponsors...I think daily or weekly live events like these would be perfect for live or taped broadcast. Not only would this be a great marketing initiative on behelf of XM, but it would be an opportunity for all forms of music from pop to classical to avant garde/experimental to be heard, live...and yes i know theres an XM Live channel...but is it doing unique stuff quite like this?...

...and in a much more loosly related item regarding radio...i think one day i'd love to host a radio cooking and food show...it'd be a mix of cooking, recipies, criticism, interviews, international cuisine...just everything food!...Boss!

North Mississippi All Stars

sick jams...

Not having a computer has really hindered my capacity to blog. But in the meantime I've been making use of this handy little notebook of mine to record thoughts and also anything i need to know regarding databases or ingestion (a rather disturbing sounding word for CD ripping).

I realize that I always come into a new place with the expectation that it runs somewhat perfectly. And then everything I discuss about it ends up sounding negative because I dont always see the point of discussing something that runs smothly.

But cathcing a free show of the North Mississippi All Stars in front of 40 or so people is pretty fucking awesome. And I really enjoy, although it becomes rather repetitive, editing all these old radio dramas. I realized that I've never really listened to them before and its quite a shame that they will never again become prevalent in American culture. The masses just don't have the patience for it anymore.

Which makes me wonder what the ratings for Sonic Theater are. I really wonder how the ratings in general for all the unique XM talk and music channels line up to the basic hits stations or syndicated news channels.

In two weeks, I've also had some grievences about a few elements of XM radio. But most of them have become subdued after realizing that many idea's i've had have already been considered and/or implemented.
But there is still one thing...
I can't seem to reconcile the fact that all the posters of musicians around the headquarters are of old/classic artists, with the exception of Lenny Kravitz, whom I would argue is on the verge of washed up. I just think we could use some fresh faces around, especially walking into the lobby. I mean c'mon, who really wants to watch an acoustic performance of REO Speedwagon's "Heard It From A Friend Who..." (or whatever its called) everytime one comes into work. I'm sure there have been some better, more recent performaces worth projecting...(at least, hmm, North Mississippi All Stars).

Okay, back to the editing bay.

Week 1

I was initially questioning my internship last Wednesday when I was asked to essentially write an essay on Ernest Hemingway and the aspects of A Farewell To Arms that related to his life. But I quickly realized that this exercise was meant to help me decipher the differences between writing a typical literary analysis and a piece for radio. So in the past couple days I have been writing introductions for the broadcast of the audiobook of the aforementioned.

Also, in an effort to honor the birthday of acclaimed short story dramatist and playwright Anton Checkhov, I wrote a couple minute introduction for one of his short stories.

I'm surprisingly getting way into literature. Score.

a preface

If there is anyone reading this here blog who has no connection to XM Radio, this note is for you.

I have recently decided to take an internship at XM Radio in Washington DC. For those of you who have not noticed, I am not in Los Angeles anymore, and the thought of not knowing where to go for some legit cheap, dirty Mexican food saddens me (but I have been informed that such businesses do indeed exist). Until I find them, I shall resort to the Great Taco Hunt blog for my Mexican food needs.

Anyways, DC is awesome. Last time I was here was during the 8th grade trip through John Adams Middle School where I got in a fight with Daniel Adams in Williamsburg. Its not nearly as dangerous as everyone says. The bums on the street are way friendlier than anywhere else I've lived and always make time to say "hi."

So yeah, for the next 12 weeks, I've been instructed to keep an online journal of the on-goin's of my internship at XM Radio, which is in this giant gorgeous brick building that looks like some kind of former sweatshop, slightly redesigned with a modern industrial look. I will be working on programming for the Sonic Theater channel dedicating most of my time to helping produce book talk programming. It sounds like a pretty exciting venture since it's not my forte in the broadcasting world, but I'd like it to be. Thanks to a Starbucks sponsorship on the XM Cafe channel, we get free coffee. (I don't think I am supposed to say this, but too bad the deal wasn't with Petes. Damn, their coffee is Legit!)

Oh, and those interested in what I will be doing in DC outside of this internship, avishaithinks.blogspot.com will have its occasional updates, hopefully mostly food related.