W1D1
Practicum Experience at Shaw TV Edmonton
6:40 AM
Alarm goes off. Shut it off. Second alarm goes off five minutes later. I consider it five bonus minutes of rest before dragging myself out of bed. Stumbling to the bathroom in a lighter path of dark while being still drunk off sleep is every student’s problem — The Monday Effect.
Just after 7:00
Showered and dressed. I kept it simple with dress pants and my checkered collared shirt. Kept the sleeves down for the morning, but ended up rolling them up in the afternoon.
Headed straight for the Keurig machine and tapped the power button. Water heated. K-cup ready. Brew. My 20 oz Starbucks tumbler with the original siren logo and bold white text stretched from top to bottom. Filling a cup to 10 oz and then 8 oz seemed to work the best without overfilling it — already added the cream and sugar.
7:34
The correct time that my bus was supposed to arrive at. I believe it came five minutes later. I wasn’t bitter. I seemed to not factor in weather conditions apparently.
Once I got on the bus, I finally ended up at my next transfer (three buses). After watching about five buses driving by including the one I needed to take plus my backup, I immediately searched for plan C. Thank goodness plan C worked. Second transfer complete. Waiting for the next bus to come for my third transfer. Sadly that one did not arrive until 8:32. When it came, I felt more at ease when I sat down.
8:50
Traffic slowed down even more despite the treacherous conditions. The bus came to a complete stop. A train was beginning to go by — not an LRT. It seemed to be a longer one for a Monday morning. It’s funny, but I seem to have a new appreciation for overpasses. They probably should install one to elevate the track from the road. It’s looking clear that I’ll be late.
9:00
Late. On the first day. Still waiting for the train. Will it ever end?
9:02
It ended. Finally! I finally took out my headphones and plugged them in. I immediately went for the two new singles from Ed Sheeran. I bet you were expecting something from Eminem. That one’s apparently not here…yet. Ed Sheeran’s new tracks were catchy and on repeat. My version of zen first thing in the morning.
9:15
Arrived at Shaw TV. Pulled my swipe card (still have it from my volunteer time there) toward the door and walked in. Entered the office area of programming. It begins.
I was shown where I’d be sitting during my time. Yes, it’s not near my dad’s old desk, but that’s alright I suppose.
It’s strange. Not seeing him there is difficult to process even still. I do have full intentions to seek his support in any kind of storytelling in the next four months, because I value it. I value his definition of storytelling. Up until now, it would seem that I’ve been given a slightly altered version. Not the version I want to do. Telling a story from beginning to end. Not rushed. Not incomplete. The full story.
9:40
Some slight scares with certain controls on my Macbook. They kept freezing up. I had to shut down several times. As I write this first recap at home, it seems to be working fine; however, I do see an appointment at the Apple Store in my near future.
Rest of the morning
I must admit, it felt like I was an employee coming back from vacation and checking emails. Received more information about the WHL game that we’re going down to Red Deer to shoot — RD Rebels vs. PG Cougars — on Tuesday. I’ll be attempting handheld in the corner, so that should be an experience. Getting the action and following the play will be my roll. Little nerve-wracking, but I might as well run sometimes before walking. Breaking in the shoulder for handheld will be a good start to the practicum.
2:30
After the chatting with different people, I managed to stop and grab a bite to eat. Unlike my father, who went for lunch walks, I do eat.
2:58
Continued on some notes on story ideas, a shoot day scheduled in a week from now and an upcoming pitch meeting later this week.
3:00
I helped move the set around in the studio to show the green screen for a promo that someone was going to be doing later. Some nice new LED lights (Stu would probably like them).
3:28
Did a little practicing on handheld with one eye on the viewfinder and the other eye open. A little weird since I kept the one eye closed up until now, but it makes sense. Keeping an eye on the action is crucial. Easier said than done to get into the habit, but it’ll take time of course.
4:50
Although I still don’t have a vehicle, thank goodness that my dad was getting off at 5:00, so he picked me up. Better than the bus.
5:01
5:16
In the van with dad.
10:34
The episode of Corner Gas just ended. My eye lids are getting heavy. It must be time for bed soon. Debating on reading a couple more pages of The 48 Laws of Power. Maybe I’ll wait until Wednesday night.
I’ll be in a motel bed tomorrow night (Tuesday) in Red Deer. The lack of sleep continues. #TVLife
Moving forward
Expect a weekly story update on my adventures near the end of each week. They will be shared here on Medium. I will be sharing them on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook also.
The night before
Getting prepped for the week. Still needing to brush up on my writing for Medium and best practices for the unique platform. Bag’s all packed, minus a few things.
Honestly, my room looks like a photo out of the IKEA catelogue. It’s perfect. It’s new, but different.
