#meeting colleagues for coffee AND class AND hosting a club meeting

[ylkcheeeks]

Stretching asi get comfy, courting sleep , when I feel a warm long little leg stretching too, over the side of my thigh, and stay there. I’m part of her pack and this is where she wants to sprawl, feels safe and lovely.

I hope this is the year I learn to be (and. Feel it!) as good as my cats think I am.

[org3l]

3장: 우호 경쟁

You were already in the university early in the morning since the committee announced in your group chat on Skype announced it. 

Upon arriving to the venue, there were already several people around their booths putting up last minute decorations and a few people you have talked for a couple of days about the whole event. 

You sighed loudly from catching your breath from hurrying, you’re fidgety or restless you’re clueless especially from the third coffee you had since you woke up.

Terrible idea, but it keeps you awake even the upcoming stress is in front of you. Being in the organizing association is a blessing or a curse… because your colleagues kept sending you messages of luck and clues on what will occur.

Either way, you are grateful for this opportunity.

Yet you can’t help but to overthink, which isn’t helping you at all.

Luckily after this, your next class will be next thing in the morning at 10’o clock. Might as well just survive today.

By the time you looked up, you saw the trees once again. Giving you shade from the scorching heat. It reminded you about Friday, and remember what happened… with you two.

It was different, and even with a short reply it was memorable.

“________! Let’s go check with the booths! Did you prepare your… index cards?”

“Index cards?” Time to focus, no time to ramble on that.

“Your guide in presenting your booth to the administrators?”

You were already holding tons of stapled post-its coming from your pocket and you laughed from being clueless and out of the present by reliving moments from the past. Your boss told you that it would help you talk and when you forget about something, by just looking at a keyword would aid you to continue on speaking. 

Great advice. Great. Breathe in, breathe out.

Once all settled down, the open day has opened. 

Tons of sponsorship booths were set up, and the stage of the raffles all around the corner of the open field got the students riled up for the first leg of this academic year. 

It was alive, and everyone’s having fun.

The administrators and board members have arrived a few hours later where your booths will be introduced and the innovations and improvements that have been done since the last open day. 

And you recall how your co-workers at your faculty have mentioned that maybe 5 of them are the judges of the whole booth presentation and who gets the most votes for the best society or organization that year.  

Your heart suddenly skipped a bit from panic, but this was your first work assigned to you by your boss. Therefore you presented with every thing you’ve got. 

Even if you were already breaking sweats behind your back, you got it.

“School pride!”

After they went to each booths, there were excused for a brunch meeting from the investors and handed folders to the main organizing panel. And they even congratulated every single one of you for doing so well. 

Especially you, as a newbie, they mentioned how knowledgeable you were with the society and what it has to do with motivating students to build a camaraderie in the same interest. for the freshmen.

Meanwhile, everyone’s just trying to get along and showing who they are from these first weeks. 

To see students laugh in embarrassment and in joy over winning the university merchandises and gift checks already makes you feel contented from being part of this event.

Although, the coffee’s effect was descending.

Upon approaching the seats beside the stage, the host announced an exciting event that got your attention.

“For the next segment of our program, we will be hosting a talent competition!”

The media organizers placed mics and some props that students can use, and the host asked for a drink from you which you handed immediately.

“Calling everyone who are interested!”

To see that some of the students who previously already won tried to join, the host said. “Ah, I’ll be calling for some other representatives to be fair for others.”

A professor whispered to you. “Do you think that we should call representatives from each booth?”

“That’s going to be a lot.” You responded hesitantly, where he disregarded and suggested further.

“What about per society or club?”

“Excluding dorm accomodations?”

“Excluding student organized… clubs.”

“Are you saying that we should call up for… our own faculty members?”

He drew his lips back and said. “It’s going to be fun.”

“Are you serious…?”

“Yes. If you’re game, I’ll ask around first then we’ll see what we can do about this.”

“It’s your idea why are you pinning it to me!”

After a few rounds of the said talent competition of embarrassment and chatter, the said professor stood up and whispered to the host about the idea as you were holding his wrist to stop him. As if your pull was to help him stop it, which didn’t.”

“Ah, ah, a great suggestion from the organizing team. We will be calling volunteers from different societies, especially the faculty members on their booths. Not only we try to mingle with students but we also know how to have fun! Shall we?”

The other professors who were with you started to run away from their places and the students were yelling people’s name from different corners of the event. You were overwhelmed by the energy they are showing, but cackling by how their enthusiasm showed. 

One by one, the participants showed. You even saw one of your co-workers run away from the event up to the other side of the university. 

It was hilarious to see them being chased. Although, not too far from your sight, you see two of the people walked confidently to the stage with their eyes meeting one another as if they were about to stab each other.

It was Professor Ki Bum and Instructor Choi, eyeing one another as they step up to the stage. The marching band and the sports team cheered for their coach, while the English society were making their innocuous dances towards them for their mentor. 

As they stepped on the stage, they were gesturing one another’s defeat with glares, that made the whole event more thrilling to watch.

“Look who we have here, Instructor Choi and Professor Ki Bum!”

Instructor Minho borrowed a mic and greeted. “Hello everyone, I’m Choi Minho, coach for the Flamers Football Team and an Instructor in the Sports Science department! Let me hear you say Flamers!”

After his crowd followed his chant, Kibum introduced himself as well.

“I’m Professor Kim Kibum, representing the English Society! Make some noise!” They hollered, while they got from the other side were scorns. Minho then asked. “Why did you join, Mr. Kim?”

“I’m here to represent my society.”

“Now what gives you the confidence?”

“Did I just tell you?”

“But that’s the problem, you’re not a talent society.”

The woes were heard, and at the heat of the moment Professor Ki Bum snorted and brushed his hair, and placing his hands on his waist.

“Excuse you?”

“You’re being overconfident.”

“So as you. It’s time to lose and let me win.”

“What did I lose to you? I don’t… remember anything.”

“For the love of god, why do you think you’re so great all the time.”

The small crowd already formed around the stage. The heat of the moment felt like you needed to use your paper as a fan, yet it didn’t matter. 

While your organizing team tried to manage this situation, the host called for your attention and told you: “The multimedia arts society and your society doesn’t have a representative.”

The last thing you saw was your coworker being chased and they suddenly disappeared. What else? 

Nothing, which left you nervous.

“They are still chasing with ours and with regards to the multimedia arts society…. I think they are already doing their job to participate.”

Pointing with your hand to Instructor Taemin, who was being pulled of the booth and trying to resist by staying put to the ground with his folded legs. 

Everyone from booth started helping to get him on the stage. And when they weren’t able to pull him up, Professor Jonghyun carried him out of the booth to the stage while panting and weakly slapping one another.

Jonghyun borrowed a mic from your team and greeted you before speaking. “Me and my dear co-faculty would also like to participate in this madness!” Everyone laughed, and Taemin as hiding on his shoulder the whole time. “People think that we’re already too talented for this, hyung.”

The crowd for the multimedia arts formed and stomped their feet for their cheer.

“Look, we have a great crowd, what about you, Minho?”

“Are you not ashamed of what you’re doing? You just dragged yourself out of the light.”

“Didn’t you do the same thing?”

“They already know who you are. They’ll have to know that we have other sides too! This is unfair.”

Professor Kibum interfered. “I’m not going to surprised if you start bringing out a group of people playing a lyre xylophone as your back up.”

“As if books and paper can make you a beat. And fidgeting with your leg.”

“And your trumpets they go, blah blah blah blah”

“Do you guys even have throats? Ever heard of beatboxing?” Taemin tried to beatbox but Jonghyun covered his mouth and said after the crowd cackled. “Please forgive us, we’re just here for a friendly competition.”

The host couldn’t stop her laughter, but having no representative from your society made you feel bad. What if this affects the overall participation of your society in the said open day? And what might happen if you didn’t? This was just an impromptu at which the judges have no control with. 

Unless they decide to, which if it happens, will there be one who can represent?

[memorylang]

Five Thanksgivings in Snowy Mongolia! | #14 | November 2019

Thanksgiving’s season marks my one-year anniversary since accepting my invitation to Peace Corps Mongolia. This Thanksgiving, I reflected on all I’m grateful for. And I celebrated it nearly a week, thanks to Mongolia’s Independence Day and Chinggis Khaan’s Birthday leading up to Americans’ day of thanks! Plus, unrestricted weekend travel in-country began.

I’ve been grateful especially for my students and the time to reflect on life and relationships. Part of why I chose Peace Corps after college was to refocus on people I hadn’t spent as much time with while a busy undergraduate. 

You can compare this to my story #4 (August 2019), from when I first arrived in my current city. Preceding Thanksgiving, I also shared a novena of photos and reflections from my first five Mongolia months, from training to beginning my service.

Snaking Snow

Many Mongolians call winter their favorite season. I like snow.

One morning, while seeing the glistening light blue snow merge with the horizon’s blend of smog, my view looked beautiful but bittersweet.

While leaving the orphanage one day, powder snow skirt across the creamy surface snow, blasting freeze in my face. They remind me of the summer’s dust storms, yet these stings linger.

I had never felt face-numbing cold before. Every exposed side of my face felt cold. I pulled down my beanie to even keep my eyebrows warm. I wrapped my scarf around my head to protect my cheeks. Even still, the furthest edges of my cheeks numbed. I get used to it, though. Best to bundle up!

Snowy Thanksgiving Adventures

This Thanksgiving outside America, I basically celebrated five times. Recalling the White Christmas ideal, we’d snow blanketing our Thanksgiving world.

First, I celebrated it Monday at a fellow Peace Corps Volunteer’s secondary school, with snacks for her and her students. She made amazing bread pudding. I enjoyed meeting her students again, too, since they participate in our student community English club.

Then the volunteer and I met again Thursday night (Thanksgiving Day) for the community dinner she helped with at the coffee shop of our World Vision building. As it happens, I dropped by the coffee shop to write, ran into our German volunteer friend, then stayed. An American couple from the Jesus Assembly group hosted the dinner. I felt impressed one shared the Thanksgiving origin story from the Native American perspective, because of his ancestry. I wished more Americans could hear his story, yet here I heard it in Mongolia.

University’s Thanksgiving

My biggest Thanksgiving came Friday (Thanksgiving Day in the U.S.). My department celebrated our university's Thanksgiving with our students. My department values teaching not only language but also culture. So, since I’m here as the American here this year, we celebrated my holiday. I helped make the itinerary.

Students included our English education sophomores, Mongolian language and literature education seniors and foreign relations sophomores. Their wonderful dishes made me more forgiving of the students missing in class. While eating, I recalled Friendsgiving events from my university years.

For our activity, I joined suggestions from other Peace Corps Volunteers with an activity from summer training I recalled during my Thanksgiving novena. I had students draw hand-turkeys then tape these to their backs. Afterward, they went around to write on each other’s backs what they’re thankful for. I felt delighted teachers and students loved these.

My colleagues also had students write in advance English thank you cards to whomever. I received two! One student gave me the craftiest little paper book, with a Pikachu face. She thanked me for everything. Her piece reminded me of my own crafts I loved to make. Another student gifted a letter he typed and sealed in an envelope. He gleefully commemorated the (only) PUBG match I was credit to team. He, too, gave many thanks.

 Above the Snow

I traveled to a neighboring province that night and reunited with one of my Mongolian teachers from the summer. They next day at brunch, I celebrated Thanksgiving with fellow Peace Corps Volunteers and a community group. Whatever food I missed at my university’s Thanksgiving, I found here.

Then I enjoyed my weekend leave with a hike to the stone гэр \ger\ and a Buddhist monastery.

The winter’s snowdrift was so packed, I could wake on top of it without falling through. I walked out from the slippery city square, across a park and up a hill to the stone гэр, as we called it. I later read it serves as a mausoleum. I felt somewhat sad to see industry’s smoke billowing across the quaint town from where I came. I donned my face mask.

Continuing, I saw the monastery over the ridge, as the Volunteers said. Though rebuilt after Soviets destroyed it, it still looked as though centuries old.

I love history. It makes me smaller.

Afterward, resting a moment, I returned to cook with my fellow Volunteers. That evening, we celebrated our Thanksgiving for the province with local Mongolian counterparts and phone called Volunteers celebrating their Thanksgiving another province over.

While in the cab ride back to my city, I mused how people compare Northern Mongolia’s snowcapped hills and mountains here to Northern Nevada. And while I find the comparison a bit overstated, I do, too, get the feeling from days like these.

Their Brother

I find comfort in being someone's “аг��а” \agaa\ (like 哥哥). Literally, “older brother,” the term extends to plenty males slightly older than us. You needn’t even be friends by Western standards to be one’s агаа. But the name feels so endearing to me.

All are brothers and sisters in the Catholic sense, too. But we don't usually call each other these in English. So I like this about Asia.

The first day I heard the word, “агаа,” I mused to the friend who said it how I’d never heard the word before. I thought it strange I’d been in Mongolia so long without hearing it. 

God must have noticed. That very night, in a video call with my language partner, over her shoulder suddenly popped her younger cousin, who beamed a huge toothy grin and just greeted me, “Aгаа!” giggling. I felt agape. Then the girl rushed away. 

I never quite know what about me excites small children and pets. It’s like… my presence is plenty. 

Maybe I stem the feelings from missing Mom. Or maybe the titles remind me of the bygone age when my own siblings were warmer toward me. That was the time we lived in Indiana, before moving to Vegas. Though I still call my siblings “sister” and “brother,” I feel more warmth from other languages’ terms. 

Have I mentioned, when Mongolians ask where I’m from, I consistently identify as an American Midwesterner more than as a Nevadan, despite living in Nevada just as long? Maybe childhood roots hold stronger.

 Fulfillment in My Service

During my first site placement interview this summer, the regional manager explained my backgrounds in helping students speak publicly, build confidence, and succeed in interviews and applications could help especially in a сум (soum), with high schoolers. Indeed, other managers also commented I did very well with our soum’s children. 

In August, I felt surprised then to five places especially where I fulfill what the need that manager described.

Weekly with working adults, I’ve helped the new Toastmasters public speaking club. And, with students and adults preparing for IELTS and TOEFL, I help them rehearse their interviews. On one occasion at a past Peace Corps Volunteer’s school, where my senior students did their practicums, I even gave a personal development workshop on goal-setting. At my own university, I’ve given resume workshops. But lately, this orphanage has felt most special. 

After co-teaching my very first English lesson for the orphanage teenagers, the 12th grader whose birthday was that day wanted to keep in touch. That night, we discussed her goals for life after high school. And I felt her eagerness, although she didn’t know how to get there. But I teach at a university, I explained. So I know a bit. Another time I visited the orphanage, she had me help with her homework. 

Unlike the younger orphans, who call me, “агаа,” she called me, “bro.” Being a supportive bro to her and the rest matters to me. 

Roots in My Community

The Saturday one week after Teachers’ Day was the first time I returned downtown, since recovering. That afternoon, one of my senior students doing his practicum invited me to help at his school’s speaking club. 

As I learned from the teachers there, this was a school where generations of Peace Corps Volunteers have served! I learned their previous Volunteer was Chinese, like me. And some of their staff even used to work where I teach now. 

That afternoon, I fielded a delightful QA about American teenagers. We also discussed social inequity and homeschooling. Cultural exchanges interest me plenty. 

Afterward, my senior student treated me to snacks, which was so kind. Then I returned to church, since it was en route to the birthday celebration of our teacher I wrote about some time ago. Church had rosary, since it was Saturday. Although I still struggle with the words, I felt peace. What a mystery! I actually prayed a rosary that morning, too. 

That night I even saw one of the students who visited me during my cold, during our teacher's birthday! Apparently he was her teacher, too. What a small community. 

Living Legacies

Before learning I would serve as a Peace Corps Volunteer in a city that’s known decades of them, I worried I would be boxed by those I worked with, being expected to look and act like whoever came before me. But instead, I’ve found excitedly the opposite.

I feel such joy when colleagues and community members compare me to the Volunteers they knew before, like the English Volunteers Rob, Sam and Adrienne and even the Health Volunteers Alice and Samantha. I feel comforted to enter into the legacies of those who served before me. I feel glad, in doing as I want and feel drawn to, I am for these communities like those they knew before. I think, no wonder we were placed in the same city and schools! There are things about us that just fit. 

While I was preparing to leave the office for home one day, a colleague mentioned how one of her evening course students asked her if she knew me and whether I could come help teach the course. My colleague said she felt surprised! Me too! I’d hardly been in this city three months, and people already knew of me and wanted my help. What a marvel. I love to help, of course. So, I shouldn’t even worry about the legacy I’ll have… I will have made differences. And those will be enough.

Onward!

Gratitude is a lovely topic. I’m closing the year with December’s first story detailing a typical week from this autumn life, followed by last stories before my return visit in America.

You can read more from me here at DanielLang.me

[countrymadefoods]

“Not at all. Because food itself, as well as restaurants, played a significant role in helping to support Reverend King and his colleagues. After Rosa Parks’ arrest in December, 1955, for refusing to give up her seat on public transportation, the Montgomery Bus Boycott became a powerful form of protest. African-American residents of the Alabama city walked, coordinated car pools, and arranged for a variety of alternate means to get around the city.This was an expensive venture that cost money for gas, vehicle maintenance, security, and other logistics.”

”Georgia Gilmore, who worked at the counter of the National Lunch Co., had already been refusing to take the bus because of mistreatment by drivers for two months when the boycott was initiated. So she was more than willing to join in fund-raising efforts. She started by coordinating bake sales. Southern classics such as sweet potato and peach pies, as well as other treats — pound, red velvet, and 7-Up cakes — were sold at “local stores, groceries, laundromats, and beauty shops.”

“Mrs. Gilmore was the only one who knew the contributors in her group, though, with secrecy being essential to shelter them from arrest and/or losing their jobs. So, when she would arrive at boycott organizational meetings with the money that had been raised and people asked where it had come from, “Oh, nowhere,” she would reply. “Her brave group of women bakers became known as the Club from Nowhere.”

“When Mrs. Gilmore was eventually fired from her own job and subsequently blacklisted for her involvement in the boycott, Reverend King himself — who would hold meetings at her house over hearty meals — encouraged her to use her legendary cooking skills to cater from home. He even offered financial support when she needed to remodel her kitchen to meet city requirements.”

“In Premilla Nadasen’s Household Workers Unite: The Untold Story of African American Women who Built a Movement, the Rev. Thomas E. Jordan remembered Mrs. Gilmore: “I think [she] was one of the unsung heroines,” he said. “[Had] it not been for people like Georgia Gilmore, Martin Luther King, Jr., would not have been who he was.”

”In Atlanta, Paschal’s Restaurant and Coffee Shop — opened by brothers James and Robert Paschal in 1947 — was considered to be the cause’s unofficial headquarters. In The People’s Place: Soul Food Restaurants and Reminiscences from the Civil Rights Era to Today, Dave Hoekstra wrote that Reverend King himself had approached the establishment about hosting meetings. “How could we refuse?” James Paschal asked rhetorically in his memoirs. “We had the resources and the place. We believed we had been called to be part of the Movement.”

“Dooky Chase’s Restaurant served much the same role in New Orleans. “Leah Chase’s place was important because it was one of the few places you could have meetings of white and black people together,”... Mrs. Chase remembered, in Mr. Hoekstra’s book, that then-lawyer and activist and later U.S. Supreme Court justice Thurgood Marshall “would come and eat his gumbo and crawfish on the floor,” because of the number of gathered supporters. And she noted that Martin Luther King, Jr., “didn’t come to eat or drink ...It’s like he was always on a mission.”

“Those who once belittled restaurateur Mrs. Chase for being just a cook “[didn’t] realize I’m feeding a lot of people so they can do what they have to do,” she told Mr. Hoekstra. That was the way in which she, Mrs. Gilmore, and the Paschals were able to support Reverend King and the movement...But nonetheless, “[you] have to make a difference,” Mrs. Chase said. “Martin Luther King died for me to work.”

A look back at Paschal's, the soul food restaurant that became a hub for the Civil Rights Movement

“Started in 1947 near the Atlanta University Center, Paschal’s restaurant would go on to become a hub of civil rights activism, with the founders employing student sit-in demonstrators, bailing protesters out of jail, and providing food and meeting space to multiple organizations. Some participants referred to it as their second home, and the restaurant even earned the moniker “Black City Hall.”

“In his book Southern Food & Civil Rights: Feeding the Revolution, historian Frederick Douglass Opie describes this new Paschal’s as a white tablecloth restaurant for middle- and upper-class African-Americans who saw it as their first choice for a Sunday meal. It wasn’t by chance that Martin Luther King Jr. and other activists saw Paschal’s as a natural meeting place and de facto headquarters.”

“Restaurants like Paschal’s were successful because they were a part of their community, Opie says. And while plenty of other business owners avoided sticking their necks out by associating with controversy, Paschal’s was part of a trend of black-owned restaurants that played a fundamental role in supporting the civil rights movement, such as Dooky Chase’s in New Orleans and the Big Apple Inn in Jackson, Mississippi.”

“The Paschal brothers provided bail money and food for students jailed while protesting Jim Crow laws in Atlanta,” Opie writes. Once students were released, they’d head straight to the restaurant to meet up with their families for free chicken sandwiches and sodas. Hours were extended to accommodate the reunions. “Many times, the bailed-out marchers sat bent over chairs,” James Paschal recounts in his memoir. “Their heads rested on the table or their tired bodies dropped in heaps on the carpeted floors in various corners of the restaurant.”

(via A look back at Paschal's, the soul food restaurant that became a hub for the Civil Rights Movement | Creative Loafing blog)

[biofunmy]

The Work Diary of an Audio Erotica C.E.O.

Gina Gutierrez gets a lot of blank stares when explaining her start-up to people: It’s called Dipsea, and it sells subscriptions to immersive, short-form audio erotica. Venture capitalists, though, get it. They want to capitalize on dual booms in digital audio and sexual wellness, and some view Dipsea as the next Calm or Headspace. The start-up has raised $5.5 million in funding.

Ms. Gutierrez, 29, and her co-founder, Faye Keegan, created Dipsea when they realized that while there were plenty of companies offering tech-enabled vibrators, no one seemed to be addressing the mental aspect of female sexuality. In December 2018, Dipsea began publishing erotica podcasts, saying, “We think it’s downright powerful for people to discover the most turned-on versions of themselves.” The company charges subscribers $9 a month or $48 a year for access to a library of 10- to 15-minute stories in categories like “open relationship,” “hookup,” “crush” and “voyeurism.” Dipsea’s app also offers guides and exercises that can be done alone (“self love sesh”) or with a partner (“erotic meditation”).

Now the company, based in San Francisco, has 16 employees, 180 stories and 300,000 downloads. Ms. Gutierrez boomerangs between “I’ve never done this before” moments, she said, while juggling investor meetings, podcast appearances, script edits, Instagram caption-writing sessions and “Sacred Planning” meetings. She also has to deal with borderline puritanical rules from the big tech platforms while brainstorming about hunks, discerning what a hug sounds like, and puzzling over why people are so into stories about threesomes.

Monday

6:30 a.m. I hate the notion that the most successful people are up at 4:30. No thanks. I work on the couch for an hour before heading into the office.

9:35 a.m. My adrenaline surges when our social media and content manager, who started less than two weeks ago, Slacks me to say she has an urgent personal update. That’s never good.

She tells me she’s accepted another role. I’m shocked. We care so much about Dipsea being a great place to work, and have had zero attrition. So, 35 minutes into my workweek I’m dealing with my first “I’ve never done this before.”

The idea of kicking up the hiring process again so quickly after we’ve ended it makes my head spin. I spend the morning figuring out the transition plan. I really don’t want to go back to writing Instagram captions in the back of Lyfts between meetings.

2:30 p.m. I owe my editing team the final signoff on this week’s scripts before they pass them to the producers for recording. A section of dialogue on this one reminds me of a part from “A Star Is Born.” I send the movie scene to the team as an awesome example of realistic dialogue.

4 p.m. I hole up in a room with Faye and two other executives to brainstorm. We block 30 minutes per idea, throw out thoughts, sketch out designs, argue trade-offs. One idea we come up with is so good, I stand up to dance.

6:45 p.m. I debate bailing on plans to see “Hustlers” with some colleagues because I’m so behind. But I go. It’s an important piece of content for women right now, for God’s sake! I’m back at my computer on the couch by 9:45.

11 p.m. Quick Slack to Faye about a lead for the social media manager role before I shut my computer. I’m tired. When’s the last time I had a sip of water? Did I eat lunch today?

Tuesday

10 a.m. I talk with our audio production team about an article on aftercare, which is essentially affection and communication after sex. It’s the default in the BDSM community, but a good ideal to aspire to in all sexual encounters. We talk about not ending our stories too abruptly.

11 a.m. We have a monthly meeting called “Postpartum” where we discuss what we learned from our last month of stories and how people reacted. Most of our narratives are crafted so a female listener can identify with the woman, but one of our recent stories is about three men at a gay club, and we discuss whether listeners identify with one character, or if they’re more of a voyeur, excited to have eyes into the whole relational dynamic.

1:15 p.m. Over tacos I get book recommendations for my upcoming vacation — the first real one I’ve taken since starting Dipsea — from our content editor and writer. The whole team is voracious. Books lie in stacks around the office, especially Dipsea-relevant reads like “Conversations With Friends,” and “A Billion Wicked Thoughts.”

2:50 p.m. A construction company works in our building and I chat with one of the workers in the elevator. The contrast between their mostly male, neon-vest-wearing crew with our almost all-female team of erotic content creators is funny, but we’re strangely symbiotic.

Wednesday

9 a.m. I get coffee with an investor that we’ve been talking to since our seed round. Meetings like this are a mutual way to keep the relationship warm even when we’re not actively raising.

10 a.m. At the office, Mel Scott, our head of growth, tells me she’s spoken to a few podcast hosts who are going to run our ads. This is exciting. Facebook makes it very challenging for us to advertise as a sexual wellness business, and it’s frustrating. Sometimes our ads perform really well; other times we discover something was disconnected. Ads that were approved mysteriously get disapproved, and we’re left guessing why.

10:05 a.m. Faye and I have a weekly one-on-one meeting we call “Sacred Planning” to remind ourselves never to book another meeting over it.

11 a.m. The founders of an A.S.M.R. app visit our office to learn about how we create our content. I’m curious to learn about their work, too. One of them says the most polarizing A.S.M.R. sound is “mouth sounds.” I tell him mouth sounds can be tough for Dipsea listeners, too.

2 p.m. Our editorial team presents a plan for a new process of developing scripts. No one has ever made exactly what we’re making, so it’s a constant learning game with no instruction manual.

3 p.m. I sit in on a “Hooked on Sonics” meeting, where our storytelling lead and one of our producers talk to the rest of the team. This one covers what feelings sound like: A hug being akin to the sonic experience of going underwater, or anxiety as a high-pitched ring.

6:30 p.m. The entire company goes to a breath-work class at Chorus Meditation. You breathe in a fast, rhythmic way that oxygenates your brain, activating your parasympathetic nervous system and relaxing you. The crazy part is, it can also have effects like tingling, visual experiences or semi-lucid dreams.

I wake up in a jolt, even though I feel mentally present: An hour has passed and it felt like 20 minutes. My body feels amazing, slow and quiet. We all eye each other, while the instructor wraps up, mouthing, “Cool, right?”

10:25 p.m. Faye texts me asking to borrow a shirt. I wonder how many other co-founders sign off with a “Night love you.”

Thursday

10 a.m. All-hands meeting. As our analyst presents which story tags performed the best, the team debates the underlying reasons. We know stories tagged as “group” or “threesome” are highly rated, but we don’t necessarily know why. The novelty? The explicitness? What are the creative differences between “crush” and “hookup” stories? They seem to overlap a lot, so what makes one more successful than the other?

1:45 p.m. I take a call with an investor who’s been persistent. He describes Dipsea as part of the “N.S.F.W. space,” which tells me I have to take a step back and explain our perspective on sexuality: We’re not interested in creating an erotic utility, we’re interested in empowering women with content designed for their pleasure. To his credit, he understands the difference.

4 p.m. “Hunks Brainstorm” session. The editorial team discusses stereotypes about attractive men that still feel relevant, or that we can modernize. A college athlete isn’t necessarily interesting without some other underlying reason. (Ah! Maybe they’re fed up with the extortive system they’re a part of and lean on a female confidante. She sees his depth in a way that her peers don’t get to. Write that down!)

We talk about the way that passionate people are attractive, and especially so if they’re a bit unattainable because of their focus.

Every “Fireman!” is met with an, “O.K., but why?”

5 p.m. I join Faye and Mel to figure out how to meet our greater goals for the quarter. Five hundred Post-its and two hours later, we take a step back to admire our work.

Friday

12 p.m. I meet with Mel to review the past week: how we spent marketing dollars, where it’s working best, trends we’re not sure what to do with yet. There’s one international market that’s going gangbusters.

12:45 p.m. We always order in and eat Friday lunch together.

5 p.m. I find a quiet booth for an interview with Tristan Taormino, host of the podcast Sex Out Loud, which I just found out is airing live. The host, a sex educator who really knows her stuff, gives us advice on creating content for older listeners, shares her favorite story (“Virgo Season”), and asks how I deal with running a women-focused company while also navigating the world of venture capital. I say it took me some time to realize I was more than one thing in different contexts, and that that’s O.K.

6:50 p.m. I find myself alone at Bamboo Hut, a tiki bar, with a blue salt rim mai tai in front of me. I’m evaluating whether this bar will fit our loose holiday party theme of “dive bar fancy.” The bartender tells me that yes, the lamps over the bar are real taxidermied puffer fish.

7 p.m. A friend texts, “‘Blue Salt Rim’ should be the name of a Dipsea story!” It’s a joke I probably hear once or twice a week but still haven’t gotten tired of.

Interviews are conducted by email, text and phone, then condensed and edited.

Sahred From Source link Business

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[evnoweb]

An Interview with David Carruthers

David Carruthers is a Technology Coordinator with the Thames Valley District School Board.  From his website, his bio says – Tech Coordinator, @TVDSB | Google Certified Edu, LV 2 | GEG Ontario Leader | Apple Teacher | Change Agent | Always Living in Beta | #tvdsbtech

  Doug:  Thanks for agreeing to be interviewed, David.  My first question is always the same – do you remember when we first met?

David: Hi Doug. Truth be told, I don’t think we’ve ever met in real life. Years ago, I remember you doing a video conference at EdCamp London that I helped organize, but I think that’s the closest we’ve been to meeting in person.

Doug:  You’re part of a club that I’m in.  My birth certificate lists me as Douglas but I go by Doug.  The only people that call me Douglas are doctors, nurses, and police officers.  Oh, and teachers on Day 1 of a class when doing the roll. Are you David everywhere?

David: Good question. I’m David to most people but my family. It’s Dave and dad around my house.

Doug:  Recently, you changed your domain name for your website and let me know about it.  I appreciated that and updated the entry in my Livebinder. You went from thepluggedinportable.com to dccarruthersedu.com.  I think that I know why but is there a bigger story?

David: In the 2010 – 2011 school year, I taught in a portable for the first and only time. At that time, I decided to start a blog and join something called Twitter. As you know, I’m active on both platforms to this day. My Twitter handle used to be @pluggedportable, but nearly a year ago, I changed it to @dcarruthersedu, so I thought it was also time for a change to my blog. Additionally, I wanted something a little more professional sounding and my time teaching in thepluggerdinportable seem like a distant memory.

Doug:  I never taught in a portable.  But, a dear friend of mine did and told me of the other reality to education.  Cold in the winter, hot in the spring and fall, no internet access until a single drop got put in, repurposed PA system, you can’t easily send a child to the library or the office without follow through and washrooms are a nightmare for both students and teachers and not being able to work at recess or lunches due to balls being bounced against the outside walls.  On the other hand, it helped her give up coffee. Do you have some stories to share?

David: I agree with everything you mention above, but we made the best of the situation. My whole portable was powered by a single drop, daisy chained to 3 switches! I had about 15 desktops, 3 laptops, and a host of personal devices brought to school by my grade 6 students. We had what felt like our own little, globally-connected community out there in the portable. I remember wires, cords, and power bars everywhere! I even had cords running through the ceiling! I remember asking students on a nearly daily basis if they could assist with wire and cord maintenance, which involved the use of a lot of tape! Tape was a staple in those days. Needless to say, I wasn’t always in the good books with the custodians. I’ve included some pictures to give you an idea of what I’m talking about. We had a lot of fun in our portable, and my students really enjoyed this new twist on learning. To this day, if I run into a former student, they always bring up our year in thepluggedinportable.

Doug:  Thames Valley is a huge district.  I remember when I worked for Greater Essex County, I was the technology turn to person.  When we’d meet for RCAC meetings, Thames Valley always had at least four learning coordinators in attendance.  What’s the reality these days?

David: There are 7 of us on my team. We each have schools where we are the assigned learning coordinator. I have 31 schools in east and central London. Each of us also have unique responsibilities in our portfolios where we are the lead contact for the whole board. Some of my lead areas include emerging technologies, media production, video announcements, and Apple support.

Doug:  In your position, you’ll have to support just about everything.  Do you have preferences? Mac or PC or Chromebook? Google or Microsoft?

David: I like to consider myself device agnostic. I use whatever platform I feel is best for the job. Rich learning experiences are typically a mashup of a variety of tools and platforms. That being said, I’m typing this on my computer which is a MacBook Pro, and I personally buy into the whole Apple ecosystem, but I would never go around saying Apple is best. Yes, in my capacity as a learning coordinator, I support a lot of different platforms. At the current time, I feel that Chromebooks and iPads both have a place in the classroom. As a corporation, we use Office 365, which I also feel is a good choice. I just use it on my Mac. We need to be careful not to focus too much attention on the tool, but rather the learning outcomes and the opportunities created by the use of a device to redefine the learning experience of students. When we look at it this way, the device fades into the background, and doesn’t become the focus of learning.

Doug:  In a district your size, what techniques do you use to support all of your schools?  How do you make sure that every school follows through on all initiatives?

David: This can be a challenge in a district the size of TVDSB, but I think we do a good job. As I previously mentioned, we are a team of 7, and 6 of us have schools where we are the assigned learning coordinator. It works out to approximately 30 schools for each of us. Apart from working with administrators, teachers, and students in each of our assigned schools, we work together as a team to plan and deliver PD to educators throughout the district. When we plan PD, we usually incorporate a variety of check-ins to ensure that teachers are following through with initiatives. We also work with administrators to help set the precedent in their schools.

Doug:  Your name comes up with various PD activities – Google Summit, edCampLondon, various Twitter chats, etc.  Is this a passion or a technique to keep the district learning?

David: I’m going to put a spin on this question. My passion is to keep the district continually moving forward, and these are the tools I like to use to facilitate this learning. I’m passionate about power of bringing people together and we have incredible tools at our disposable to make this happen.

Doug:  I like that there are so many wonderful bloggers from your area that I run across periodically – Jennifer, Ramona, Heidi, Marc, Anne Marie – do you stay on top of their thought sharing?  Are there bloggers that I don’t know about but should? I need to update my big list before edcamp London.

David: Doug, I think you’ve mentioned most of the frequent bloggers in TVDSB, but I know there are more. Perhaps we can put this question out to those in attendance at EdCamp London. That should help you populate your blog list.

Doug:  What’s your personal inspiration to blog as much as you do?

David: Blogging is an outlet for me to clarify my thoughts. I often have a lot of ideas floating around in my head, and when I sit down to write, I find that I am able to articulate my thoughts in a more coherent manner. Also, I speak to others about the importance of sharing ideas, building relationships, and being connected, so I think it’s important that I lead by example. We can’t expect others to do something if we’re not modelling it ourselves.

Doug:  Have you ever regretted writing a particular post?

David: I don’t have any regrets about a particular post, but that doesn’t mean that when I look back at some of the posts that I’ve made, that I hold the same view now, compared to when it was written. My thinking has evolved over time, and my blog acts as a portfolio of my thoughts. I don’t have regrets about what was on my mind at any particular point in time.

Doug:  What’s your current biggest project underway?  If successful, what difference will it make to Thames Valley?  Is it something that other districts could pick up on?

David: My colleagues and I have just wrapped up a big project, and another rather large project is still underway. The project we just finished involved 60 teacher from 60 schools. The purpose of this project was to increase awareness of the global competencies, and provide strategies for implementation in the classroom. The large project that is still underway involves providing support for teachers involved in a Chromebook 1:1 pilot in 7 of our secondary schools. Every grade 9 student received a Chromebook that is theirs for the duration of their secondary school education. This project will have significant implications for the near future. If deemed successful, every grade 9 student in TVDSB will be provided with a Chromebook in the fall of 2019, and all students in grades 9, 10, and 11 in our 7 pilot schools will have a Chromebook in a year and a half.

Doug:  That truly is an ambitious set of projects.  We’ll have to keep tabs on them and I’m sure that there will be lots of blogging to share successes.  All the best. 

Thanks for the interview, David.  It’s been great to dig a little further beyond the latest blog post and get some of your futuristic thoughts.

Where can people follow you online?

Twitter: @dcarruthersedu

Blog: dcarruthersedu.com

This interview is part of a series of interviews that I’ve conducted with very interesting people.  You can see all of them here.

An Interview with David Carruthers published first on https://medium.com/@DigitalDLCourse

[memoirsofagenie]

A Spring Conversation with Rino Barillari, “The King of Paparazzi”: From “La Dolce Vita” to “La Vita Dolce”

Imagine S.,  a young boy from Southern Italy, who starts falling in love with Rome at the age of 10, through the movies he saw at his uncle’s cinema. Does this sound vaguely familiar? Although the opening lines of this plot might be reminiscent of Giuseppe Tornatore’s 1988 Academy Award winning film Nuovo Cinema Paradiso, based in Sicily, it might catch you by surprise to know that the “S.” we are talking about is not “Salvatore”, the protagonist, but “Saverio” –or “Rino”,-  from Limbadi, a small town in the bordering  Calabria region. Indeed, as I was soon to find out, Rino Barillari’s -“The King Of Paparazzi”- biography is a classic case where not only life imitates art, but life proves out to be, once again, a million times better than a beautiful film. 

While at first slightly challenged by Mr. Barillari’s diffident, piercing gaze, our meeting in Piazza San Lorenzo in Lucina on the eve of the American Presidential Visit to Rome last March,  gradually progressed into a flowing, relaxed spring conversation where he shared details of his 52-year career, spanning from the real “Dolce Vita” of the sixties, into the modern “Vita Dolce” (as he dubbed it), accurately portrayed by yet another Academy Award winning film, The Great Beauty(2013), where Mr. Barillari himself made a cameo-appearance. 

Why and when did you arrive to Rome? Were you already a “photographer”?

It was through the movies shown at my uncle’s cinema that I grew fascinated with “Hollywood on the Tiber” and its characters. After watching Fellini’s “La Dolce Vita” even for three times in a row during a same day, it got to a point where I would dub the film myself, as I knew all the lines by heart (in Italian, of course.) I would say the “Italy” portrayed in that film is what really fascinated me, since you could not find that life in the province of Catanzaro! So, in 1959, at 14 I came to Rome. I was not a “photographer”. In fact, I started out helping the “scattini” (literally, “small photo-takers”) by Fontana di Trevi, who shot pictures for the tourists. I later bought my own camera and started hunting for my own pictures. 

How so?

My first months in Rome I would often sleep in Villa Borghese, in the open, and practically spend my entire nights at Rome’s official first disco, “Club 64.” I would wait for the v.i.p’s at the crack of dawn. But, the true stage –or “ring”, if you will- of that glorious period was Via Veneto. In our own (photographers’) jargon, the street was divided into 4 cantons, and I would patrol all of them. The best time would be from 8pm to 4am. I would personally be there starting from 8pm, as there was little competition. My colleagues would also go to the Trastevere, Parioli and Aurelia neighborhoods… but by 11pm, almost all of them regrouped in Via Veneto. 

Sorry to interrupt, but outside of the set, it is sometimes difficult to recognize a famous personality. Aside from your love of movies, how did you manage?

Well, regular people would stop and stare at the personalities often times… so one could definitely understand they were famous. I would then take my pictures and sell the negatives to press agencies such as the Associated Press (AP), United Press International (UPI) and the Italian agency ANSA. If the shots were exclusive, then I would be paid well. If somebody else had taken similar photos, the final price would be clearly catastrophic. 

Let us discuss more in depth Via Veneto. You already mentioned it was divided into four “cantons.” What else was so unique about this street?

Aside from being an open-air theater, every club or bar on the street hosted its habitual personalities. Writers would go to one place, starlets and actors to another place, diplomats would go to yet other places on Via Veneto. Looking back after 50 years, however, I have come to realize that hidden amidst many of these v.i.p.’s, there were surely con artists and/or spies. (He utters a surreptitious chuckle…) 

The figure of the “paparazzo”, coined precisely in Fellini’s “La Dolce Vita”, implies a very intrusive –and often times, annoying- nature. Do you feel you fit (or fitted) this description?

In a way, yes, but mainly during my younger years. I was inexperienced and quite restless. Some things I did back then, I would never do today. In those days, I would take pictures “in your face”, despite the vetoes and restrictions of the personalities. However, I have matured too and have less energy, so today I would certainly use a different, more “courteous” approach. 

Can you give us a concrete example of your past restlessness?

In 1963, Peter O’Toole –“Lawrence of Arabia”- was leaving a club on Via Veneto accompanied by British actress Barbara Steele. O’Toole was married, of course, but not to Barbara Steele. I took a couple of pictures and ended up at the hospital with a torn ear, following his aggression. My father filed a suit against O’Toole, especially because I was underage. O’Toole’s passport and luggage were withheld and he could not leave the country, until he compensated my father with 1 million Italian Lira. Naturally, O’Toole ended up breaking up his own family because of those pictures. Another similar episode, albeit with no significant personal damage, happened in 1964 with Frank Sinatra, always on Via Veneto. He noticed I was taking some pictures, basically starting a brawl. Tables flew in the air and the police arrived, asking him to stop. But it wasn’t until our very own Domenico Modugno (author of the song “Volare”) showed up and told him “Frank, go home”, that he finally started to calm down… 

Did your camera author any controversial/delicate “scoop” during those days?

As I said, Via Veneto didn’t only have movie-stars. There were also diplomats, politicians and their families. There was a case involving the daughter of Sir Winston Churchill, Sarah. One day, she was found extremely drunk at lunchtime, to the point that the police took her to the hospital thinking she was an unknown, homeless person. I knew who she was and I took pictures of the entire episode; however it was not until later that I could speak up and openly reveal her identity. 

Changing subjects, on a lighter note, were there any generous stars?

Overall, I’ve got to say that life was slower in the past. Stars back then were truly larger-than-life individuals, of a totally different caliber of those of today. They were very polite and deep down, still had strong family values; they were very high-class and true professionals. Our local stars as well, of course. Claudia Cardinale and Sophia Loren, for example, would not hesitate to offer you a cup of coffee. I also have a good memory of Liz Taylor and her daughters shopping by the Spanish Steps. They were extremely proper and well-to-do. On another occasion, always by the Spanish Steps, Audrey Hepburn gave some coins to a poor lady walking on the street with her small child. You also had male actors who were very kind and respectful, even more so in light of the fact that I was very young… in particular, Tony Curtis and Stewart Granger, who would allow me to photograph them without any problems. 

Is there a shot that you’re particularly proud of?

Yes, it is a photograph I took in 1965, of Robert Kennedy and Russian dancer Rudolf Nureyev, strolling through Via Condotti. 

At one point, the Dolce Vita started vanishing, ending definitively with the onslaught of the 1968 riots and the subsequent “Years of Lead”, accompanied by the terrorist attacks of the “Red Brigades”. How did those years affect your profession?

During those years, I entered the staff of “Il Tempo” newspaper, covering crime news. At the same time, Cinecittà had halved its movie production. You could still catch some personalities here and there, however the continuous shoot-outs and armed robberies made the environment very unsafe for nightly exits. In those days, Paul Getty was kidnapped as well. I do remember running into Federico Fellini, nevertheless. When we would meet (he lived on Via Margutta, close to the Spanish Steps), he would ask me for updates of what was going on. Aside from this, he and his wife Giulietta Masina led a very normal life. She would go buy fresh fish every Friday on the nearby Via della Croce… In any case, going back to your question, one’s style has to go hand in hand with the times one lives in…(I discreetly interrupt him…) 

…which brings me to my next question. In a recent interview, you claimed that conversely to the past, we are now living in a “Vita Dolce”, which theoretically means the same, but is practically different from the “Dolce Vita”. What do you mean exactly?

The present times place more emphasis on decorum and morality… or the lack thereof, to be honest. Famous people today are nothing like the ones of the past. At most, they last three to four seasons, not to mention that they all look very much alike, and don’t have relevant distinctive traits or talents, aside from tattoos or different hair colors.  Seriously – and I don’t know how to put this in a more polite way, - the real scoop today revolves around the relationships they have and the “beds” they change. Back in the Dolce Vita days, you had fascinating characters like Joan Collins, Kim Novak, Marlon Brando, Yul Brinner, Jane Mansfield, Paulette Godard and John Wayne, whom, aside from having stage presence (John Wayne was really tall, for example), could actually act! Today very few people know how to act: the very petite Meryl Streep, Jodie Foster, Penelope Cruz, Matthew McConaughey… nonetheless, the glitz and glamour of the Hollywood and Cinecittà heyday is gone for good. And in the specific case of Rome, the true protagonist is the city of Rome itself, with its eternal beauty, not the people… (I could perceive a hint of critical nostalgia in Mr. Barillari’s words…) 

During the course of our interview, you gave me some personal “statistics”: 164 times at the hospital, 68 broken cameras, 11 broken ribs, 6 operations (some of which were due to stabbings and shootings during the seventies), a honorary degree in photography from Xi’An University in China, and a permanent exhibition of your works at the iconic Harry’s Bar on Via Veneto.  Considering these numbers and considering that anyone with a smartphone can be a competitor in this day and age, are you still as busy?

After 52 years in the industry, I am still working. I am actually working more than before, although not with the same regularity. I too have “aged” and have adapted my style, as I was saying earlier. In recent times, I have dealt a lot with American Ambassadors, for example. In those institutional, elegant settings, any faux pas could really cost you! Ultimately, you really reap what you sow in this business…

 %%%%%%% 

Sadly, the clock was ticking. Thus, after taking a few pictures, I quickly bid him farewell. He nevertheless walked me halfway towards the Spagna subway stop. In those precious additional minutes, I popped a few more questions on The Great Beauty, where aside from the cameo-appearance, he also shot all the backstage stills. He revealed that the script was inspired by “actual Roman socialites” (and not merely on hypothetical decadent situations or characters of the “Vita Dolce”), a detail which made its Oscar victory ever more deserved. In his gentlemanly demeanor, he proceeded to kiss my hand. On my part, I could only wish him luck for his future assignments… and naturally, for the coverage of the American Presidential Visit, which would begin none other than the following morning.                                                 (Genie, Rome, 10 May 2014)

...24 March 2014 - with Rino Barillari, "The King Of Paparazzi", discussing La Dolce Vita and The Great Beauty...@ Caffè Ciampini (Pzza. San Lorenzo in Lucina)... (This was the last and best picture of a couple we took together... he kept on giving the waiter indications on what the best lighting was... but in the end he was satisfied...!)

...24 marzo 2014 - con Rino Barillari, “Il Re dei Paparazzi”, commentando La Dolce Vita e La Grande Bellezza... @ Caffè Ciampini (Pzza. San Lorenzo in Lucina)... (Questa è stata l’ultima e miglior foto di un paio che ci siamo scattati insieme... continuava a dare istruzioni al cameriere riguardo la miglior illuminazione... ma alla fine fu soddisfatto...!)

Una conversazione primaverile con Rino Barillari, “The King of Paparazzi”: Da “La Dolce Vita” a “La Vita Dolce”

Immaginatevi S., un bambino del sud, che all’età di dieci anni s'innamora di Roma attraverso film proiettati nel cinema dello zio. Vi ricorda qualcosa? Seppur questo inizio di trama ricordi il film di Giuseppe Tornatore, Nuovo Cinema Paradiso, basato in Sicilia e vincitore di un Oscar nel 1988, potrebbe sorprendervi scoprire che il “S.” in questione non è “Salvatore”, il protagonista del film,  bensì “Saverio” o “Rino”, da Limbadi, un paesino nella confinante Calabria. Come stiamo per scoprire, la vita di Rino Barillari –“The King of Paparazzi”- è un classico caso dove, non solo la vita imita l’arte, ma la vita si rivela, ancora una volta, un milione di volte migliore di un bel film. 

Sebbene all’inizio mi sentissi scrutata dallo sguardo diffidente e penetrante del Sig. Barillari, il nostro incontro a Piazza San Lorenzo in Lucina, alla vigilia della visita presidenziale Americana a Roma del marzo scorso, si è gradualmente tramutato in una conversazione primaverile fluida e rilassata, durante la quale raccontava alcuni dettagli della sua carriera di 52 anni, iniziando dalla vera “Dolce Vita” degli anni sessanta, fino alla moderna “Vita Dolce” (come lui stesso l’ha chiamata), tale come accuratamente raffigurata nel nuovo film, anch’esso vincitore di Oscar, “La Grande Bellezza”(2013), dove egli stesso recita un cameo. 

Quando e perché è venuto a Roma? Era già un “fotografo”?

Nei film visti al cinema di mio zio, mi hanno particolarmente affascinato quelli sulla “Hollywood sul Tevere” e i suoi personaggi. Dopo aver visto “La Dolce Vita” di Fellini, addirittura tre volte di seguito nello stesso giorno, ero arrivato a un punto di recitarmi il film da solo. L’Italia raccontata in quel film è ciò che veramente mi ha affascinato anche perché quel tipo di vita era, a dir poco, inimmaginabile nella provincia di Catanzaro! Decisi pertanto, a 14 anni, nel 1959, di andare a Roma. Non ero un “fotografo.” Ho iniziato aiutando gli “scattini” a Fontana di Trevi che scattavano foto per ed a turisti. Appena potetti, acquistai una macchinetta fotografica e iniziai la caccia per delle foto tutte mie. 

Che intende dire per  “ foto tutte sue”?

Nei miei primi mesi a Roma, dormivo quando e dove potevo, frequentemente all’aperto, a Villa Borghese. Principalmente passavo intere notti nella prima famosa discoteca di Roma, il “Club 64” in attesa dei vip che normalmente si presentavano all’alba. Il vero palcoscenico –o “ring”, se vogliamo- di quel glorioso periodo era però Via Veneto. Fra noi fotografi, avevamo diviso la Via in 4 cantoni. L’orario migliore per scovare e fotografare qualche vip era fra le 8 di sera e le 4 del mattino successivo. Personalmente sostavo li continuamente dalle 8 di sera mentre alcuni miei colleghi iniziavano da altri luoghi, a Trastevere, ai Parioli, sull’Aurelia per poi verso le 11 di sera radunarsi tutti a Via Veneto. 

Scusi se la interrompo, ma fuori dal set, può essere talvolta difficile riconoscere una personalità famosa. Oltre al suo amore per il cinema, come ci riusciva?

Certamente, però mi accorgevo di loro anche notando persone normali che si fermavano a fissare ed esclamare in presenza di personalità famose. Scattavo foto anche se a me sconosciuti e cercavo di venderne i negativi alle più famose agenzie di stampa, come l’Associated Press (AP), la United Press International (UPI) e l’ANSA. Se le foto erano interessanti ed esclusive, mi pagavano bene, altrimenti, se già qualcun altro aveva scattato foto simili, oppure se non allettanti, il prezzo finale era chiaramente una delusione. 

Parliamo più a fondo di Via Veneto. Ha già detto che era divisa in quattro “cantoni”. Cos’altro c’era di così speciale in questa strada?

Oltre ad essere un teatro all’aperto, ogni bar o club di Via Veneto aveva in genere i suoi habitué. Gli scrittori in uno, le stelline ed attori in un altro, i diplomatici andavano da un’altra parte ancora. Ripensando in retrospettiva dopo 50 anni, (mi confessa, sogghignando,) di essere sicuro che fra molti di questi presunti vip, si nascondevano anche cialtroni e spie… 

La figura del “paparazzo”, coniata precisamente dal film  “La Dolce Vita” di Fellini, implica una natura molto invadente, a tratti snervante. Sente di rispecchiare –o di aver rispecchiato- questa descrizione?

In un certo senso si, più che altro durante i miei anni giovanili. Avevo poca esperienza ed ero abbastanza irrequieto. Alcune cose che ho fatto allora, non le rifarei oggi. Allora scattavo foto noncurante dell’approvazione o no dei personaggi, attori e altri... Sono poi maturato, ho meno energia e quindi oggi adotterei un approccio diverso e più “cortese.” 

Potrebbe darci un esempio concreto di questa sua passata irrequietezza?

(Sorridendo mi racconta:) Nel 1963, Peter O’Toole –“Lawrence of Arabia”- stava lasciando un locale su Via Veneto, accompagnato dall’attrice britannica Barbara Steele. O’Toole era sposato ma non con Barbara Steele. Feci un paio di scatti. O’Toole mi aggredì e mi ritrovai all’ospedale con un orecchio strappato. Ero giovane e minorenne. Mio padre denunciò O’Toole. Gli furono trattenuti passaporto e bagagli fin quando non risarcì mio padre con 1 milione di vecchie lire. In seguito, per colpa di quelle foto, si sfasciò la famiglia O’Toole. Un altro episodio, ma senza danni personali, lo vissi nel 1964 con Frank Sinatra e di nuovo su Via Veneto. Si accorse che stavo scattando delle foto e diede inizio a una rissa. I tavoli volarono in aria e arrivò la polizia, chiedendogli di smettere. Ma non fu fin quando apparve miracolosamente Domenico Modugno  che gli disse, “Frank, go home”, che finalmente iniziò a calmarsi…

Il suo obiettivo fu autore di qualche “scoop” controverso/delicato in quei giorni?

Come detto, Via Veneto non ospitava solo stelle del cinema. C’erano anche diplomatici, politici e/o famigliari. Ci fu un caso che vide coinvolta Sarah, la figlia di Sir Winston Churchill. Un giorno, fu trovata molto ubriaca durante l’ora di pranzo al punto che la polizia la portò in ospedale come fosse una barbona qualunque. Io sapevo chi era e documentai l’intero episodio con fotografie, ma solo in un secondo momento ho potuto parlare e rivelare apertamente la sua identità.

Cambiando discorso a qualcosa di più leggero, c’erano delle stelle generose?

In generale, devo dire che la vita nel passato scorreva più lenta e tranquilla.  Le stelle allora erano Dive, veramente mitiche e di un calibro completamente diverso rispetto a quelle odierne. Erano molto educate, con forti valori familiari, professionalità e molta classe. Anche quelle italiane, ovviamente. Claudia Cardinale e Sofia Loren, per esempio, non dubitavano nell’offrirti un caffè. Ho un buon ricordo anche di Liz Taylor e delle sue figlie, facendo acquisti a Piazza di Spagna. Erano molto cortesi e per bene. In un’altra occasione, sempre a Piazza di Spagna, Audrey Hepburn diede degli spicci a una signora povera con in braccio un bambino. Anche gli attori, stranieri e non, molto gentili e rispettosi, ancora di più perché mi vedevano molto giovane… in particolare ricordo Tony Curtis e Stewart Granger che mi lasciavano fotografarli senza problemi.

C’è uno scatto che l'ha reso particolarmente orgoglioso?

S��, una foto che scattai nel 1965 a Robert Kennedy e al ballerino russo Rudolf Nureyev, a spasso per Via Condotti. 

A un certo punto, la Dolce Vita cominciò a svanire, finendo definitivamente con l’avvento delle contestazioni del 1968 e dei successivi “Anni di Piombo”, accompagnati da attacchi terroristici delle “Brigate Rosse.” In che maniera hanno influenzato la sua professione, quegli anni?

Durante quegli anni sono entrato a far parte dell’organico de “Il Tempo” occupandomi di cronaca nera. In quel periodo Cinecittà dimezzò la produzione cinematografica. Si scorgevano ancora raramente delle personalità, ma le continue sparatorie e rapine non rendevano l’ambiente sicuro, specialmente di notte. In quei giorni fu rapito anche Paul Getty. Ricordo comunque di aver incontrato spesso e per caso Federico Fellini. Viveva in Via Margutta, vicino a Piazza di Spagna, e quando ci incontravamo, mi chiedeva aggiornamenti su cosa stesse succedendo per le strade. Con sua moglie, Giulietta Masina, vivevano una vita piuttosto normale. Lei andava a comprare il pesce ogni venerdì nella vicina Via della Croce… In ogni caso, tornando alla sua domanda, lo stile personale deve andare di pari passi con i tempi in cui si vive… 

…il che mi porta alla mia prossima domanda. In una recente intervista, lei ha sostenuto che contrariamente al passato, noi stiamo vivendo ora una “Vita Dolce”, che in teoria ha lo stesso significato, ma in pratica è diversa dalla “Dolce Vita”. Che cosa intende esattamente?

Il presente sottolinea di più il costume delle persone… o la mancanza di esso, per essere sinceri. I personaggi famosi oggi non sono per nulla simili a quelli del passato. Al massimo, durano tre o quattro stagioni, senza contare che si assomigliano tutti e non hanno tratti o talenti distintivi, a parte qualche tatuaggio o colore di capelli diverso. Sul serio –e non saprei come dirlo più educatamente, - il vero scoop oggi ruota attorno alle relazioni che hanno e ai “letti” che cambiano. Durante la Dolce Vita, c’erano personaggi affascinanti e divi come Joan Collins, Kim Novak, Marlon Brando, Yul Brinner, Jane Mansfield, Paulette Godard e John Wayne, i quali, oltre ad avere una notevole presenza scenica (John Wayne era molto alto, per esempio), sapevano recitare! Oggi sono pochi gli attori che sanno recitare, l’assai minuta Meryl Streep, Jodie Foster, Penelope Cruz, Matthew McConaughey… nonostante ciò, i fasti dei giorni d’oro di Hollywood e di Cinecittà sono andati per sempre. La vera protagonista è rimasta Roma stessa, con la sua bellezza eterna, non la gente… (Potevo scorgere un pizzico di nostalgia nelle parole del Sig. Barillari…) 

Durante il corso della nostra intervista, lei mi ha fornito alcune “statistiche” personali: 164 volte all’ospedale, 68 macchine fotografiche fracassate, 11 costole rotte, 6 operazioni (alcune dovute ad accoltellamenti e pallottole durante gli anni settanta), una laurea honoris causa in fotografia presso l’Università di Xi’An in Cina e una mostra permanente dei suoi scatti presso il celebre Harry’s Bar di Via Veneto. Tenendo conto di questi numeri e del fatto che chiunque abbia uno smartphone può essere un concorrente al giorno d’oggi, lavora ancora tanto?

Dopo 52 anni in questo settore, lavoro ancora. Sono addirittura più impegnato di prima, anche se non con la stessa frequenza. Anch’io sono “invecchiato” e ho adattato il mio stile e preferenze, come le ho detto prima. Recentemente, ho avuto molto a che fare con Ambasciatori Americani, per esempio. In questi contesti istituzionali ed eleganti, ogni passo falso può veramente costarti caro! In definitiva, in questa professione raccogli ciò che semini…

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 Purtroppo il tempo è volato… Dopo aver scattato qualche foto, lo saluto velocemente. Gentilmente, mi ha accompagnato per un tratto verso la fermata Spagna della metropolitana. In quei preziosi minuti addizionali ho approfittato per fare qualche altra domanda su “La Grande Bellezza”, dove oltre ad aver recitato in un cameo, ha anche scattato tutte le foto dietro le quinte. Ha rivelato che la sceneggiatura era “tutta vera” (non si basava solamente su situazioni o personaggi decadenti ipotetici della “Vita Dolce”), un dettaglio che rende la sua vittoria agli Oscar ancor più meritata.

Nel suo fare da gentiluomo, mi fa il baciamano. Da parte mia, solo un “in bocca al lupo” per i suoi prossimi lavori… e naturalmente, per la cronaca della Visita Presidenziale Americana, la quale sarebbe iniziata la mattina successiva.

(Genie, tradotta dalla mia intervista originale in inglese, Roma,   10 maggio 2014)

[thelostexecutive]

City hotels can feel the same after a while, as they typically offer the same features and services. In the end, it’s only the decor that changes and distinguishes one from another. You may be lucky and find one that offers a dream pool or even spa facilities, but these are shared among the guests, so you get little time to enjoy them on your own.

Sometimes we desire something a little more special, something unique that offers endless opportunities to sigh, as a result of being overwhelmed by contentment and here, at The Lost Executive, we found exactly this, in a high-end penthouse in Cape Town. It left us in awe, so come and find out why.

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The Penthouse

Perched at the top of an 11-floor building and spiralling over four levels, the penthouse has been meticulously designed and furnished for comfort and luxury. Add some ambient relaxing tunes and the whole place simply oozes sophistication. The hardest part is choosing a place to relax, as you continuously want to see it all. The balcony and dual roof decks provide spectacular views of Cape Town, placing you in the central city and offering vistas that you simply can’t get anywhere else.

The whole experience of staying in this penthouse is something to treasure. From entering the lift, which opens into the kitchen, through to swinging in a hammock on the top deck, there are many touches that add a really special feel to this property. There is even an entertainment area between rooms, featuring a couple of sofas and a tv, perfect for unwinding. Every facet here truly is so versatile and spectacular, which is why the penthouse is suited to many occasions, whether travelling solo, with another couple, hosting a party or shooting a film, it really ‘rises’ to every occasion. You can imagine clinking champagne glasses with a partner, overlooking the city as the noise of a cocktail party fills the air.

Standing on the rooftop, you are gifted with surrounding views of Lion’s Head mountain, Bo-Kaap, city high-rises and the Eastern mountains, where the early morning sunrise is not to be missed. Hosting a meeting here would create a lasting impression and offer something far more special than a standard conference room or coffee shop. Perhaps you could even consider a BBQ (or Braai – South African for BBQ) to create a lasting memory for your guests.

Every corner has been carefully crafted and decorated for our guest’s utmost comfort and design appreciation – Corina Rosca

The penthouse can host up to five guests, in two bedrooms, effortlessly offering amenities such as a fireplace, rooftop cinema, lightning-fast stable internet, smart tv for streaming, stunning artwork, 24-hour security, a doorman, two secure parking spaces and last but not least, it’s centrally located one corner street away from the heart of all the action. This property is like no other in the city, in terms of views, outdoor living and entertainment spaces. It’s such a holistically designed space and every corner of the penthouse has something exciting to showcase, making it a perfect venue for entertaining clients, or simply getting away from stuffy meeting rooms.

Things to do

We asked Corina Rosca, our host, for her suggestions as to the best things to do in the area.

TLE – Cape Town is known for its markets, which would you suggest guests go and visit?

CR- OZCF market; it’s where the locals shop and it’s a seaside market, basically an unbeatable experience. Also great is the Lourensford Friday night market or the Stellenbosh slow market on Saturdays.

TLE – Guests are hungry, where should they eat?

CR – There are so many good places to eat and drink. I would suggest, Hemeljuis, ShortMarket Club, Kloof Street House, Mano and Nourish’d Vegan Cafe to name a few.

TLE – Where are the best shops?

CR – The best shops are Stable, Lim, Kin, Pichulik, Alexandra Hojer, Biscuit Mill, Woodstock Exchange, Dark Horse and Eleven Past.

TLE – If you’re looking for something special, where would you recommend?

CR – Merchants on Long, Africa Nova, Weylandts, Shops at the new Silo Hotel, Linde Collection & Swarovski, Kat Van Duinen Design.

TLE – What should every guest see?

CR – The full moon. From the penthouse, we can see hikers and their LED lights peppering the mountain like twinkling fairy lights; reminding us how magical this city really is.

Corina Rosca – Stay At Mine Founder & SuperHost

A great consideration is that this penthouse is very affordable for many people. When I visited, in a quiet season, the price was the same as a room in a nearby hotel and the more of you there are, the better the rate looks as well. Great if you’re attending a trade show or have several meetings with colleagues. In fact, why not host all meetings at the apartment and blow your colleagues’ socks off? The penthouse is so versatile that you could host absolutely anything, from a fashion shoot, to a cocktail party, to a powerpoint presentation on the top deck cinema screen. The penthouse has been tried and tested by The Lost Executive and we cannot recommend it more.

If you’re looking to enjoy one of the best places to stay in Cape Town, you can find the Airbnb listing here.

  For #business travellers seeking #bleisure. This #Penthouse is like no other in #capetown City hotels can feel the same after a while, as they typically offer the same features and services.