I used to have the well earned reputation as the kid who was always carrying a camera. Starting in about 8th grade or so I fell in love with videotaping all of the shenanigans my friends and I got into. Then in 11th grade I was introduced to the world of "non-linear editing" with programs like Avid, Final Cut Pro and Media 100 and my fate was pretty much sealed. This "Got Pat?" promo, along with its sister video, were the product of my video production education during my short stay in Grand Rapids and helping produce "Central Sights," the morning news announcements at Grand Rapids Central High School. My friend Chris Ostertag is the guy manning the camera here. After getting a well rounded feel for Final Cut I never put my camera down and ridiculousness ensued.
One of my favorite memories of my Grandpa Joe was him telling me I could drive with as many girls in the car as i wanted, it was when you get a car full of boys that you start doing stupid things. Well Grandpa as it turns out that rule applies to boyhood activities outside the car as well. Of course my video making skills weren't only used for tomfoolery...
This video my buddy Chris and I made for a 10th grade biology presentation. Chris dressed up in a dinosaur halloween costume I wore when I was 4 years old. All of the editing was done in camera with fades and hard cuts. Quasi-educational, ridiculous, and fun... a summary that works for this next video as well.
This video was actually the first thing I ever edited in an non-linear program. I think I used every transition and text color available. I still love this thing, but maybe not as much as the next video.
This "Friends" video was a gift I gave all of my close friends in high school. I threw in as much video I could find. I know, it is dripping in nostalgia. Makes me miss all of these kids.
Okay, this post is almost over, but before I wrap it up I must include my greatest high school accomplishment: Midwest $$.
Currently there is no bigger thing in our house than a fun little cartoon out of Australia called "Bluey." Emmalyn (my nearly four-year-old) loves it. Marieta and I laugh and cry at it frequently. Even Elliana (our five-month-old) loves the music and steals a glance every now and then. Beyond being a lot of fun, it is incredibly heartfelt and emotionally spot on. Currently all 50+, seven-minute episodes are available on Disney Plus and needless to say we have watched them all, multiple times. Marieta identified immediately how much the show's ethos lines up with our style of playful and attachment parenting. Bluey is the six-year-old playfully curious first born kiddo, Bingo is the four-year-old Bluey doppelgänger with a very big heart, Chilli is the too-smart-for–her–own–good, cautious, free spirit Mom and finally, the father dog "Bandit" is very much a variation of me; fun-loving, down for all kinds of silly games and adventures, and maybe cutting a corner h...
As I type this two drastically different things are happening; I'm in California for a film festival and my mother, Linda Boberg, is lying in a Des Moines hospice bed. In fact she started hospice care the day I flew out here. As you can imagine, I'm experiencing quite the emotional tug of war. When you have a kid you commonly examine where they get certain traits. I've always been able to parse that I get my emotional, empathetic tendencies from my mother and my pragmatic, compartmentalizing skills from my Dad (another raging tug of war at the moment). This list could go on forever, but one thing I've never fully understood is where my creative drive came from. Now with the writing on the wall, it's obvious my mom flipped the creativity switch. It wasn't until my Mom self-published a novel at 65 years old that I understood how creative she is. In the last three years she's self published half a dozen books and written many more. Her first bout of cancer in 2...
I am a positive person. I take people at their word, don't require anyone to earn my respect, and hope for the best. Living in the covid era has been an exhausting trial for many people, but I've always tried to ride the wave of no matter the situation, turbulence is to be expected and can be weathered. When our washing machine was overloaded and flooded our laundry room, I didn't freak out and get angry, I just started cleaning up. When our daughter was born and I had to juggle the new fog of parenting, I just put one hand in front of the other to change diapers, walk my daughter to sleep, and try to relish the fact that today's lows are tomorrows funny memories. Today, when I opened the fridge with a little too much gusto and a take home container of ranch went flying and exploded on the near by carpet I just ran, got some paper towels, and hopped too. Keeping cool and positive is state I try to maintain, even when life throws a deadly virus into your orbit. Skippin...
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