Reid My Mind

Continuing with audio, I decided to run or maybe just jog a bit with this concept of Reid My Mind Radio! The idea is to create a place where I can share various things I produce. My goal is simply to improve and have fun doing it. Getting something picked up and aired would be cool too! In fact… I recently produced a story for Gatewave Radio – a reading service for those who are print impaired. This includes people with vision loss and other disabilities. They broadcast on the internet and through special radios that receive a transmission available in specific locations 24 hours a day 7 days a week. Volunteers read over 100 periodicals and the station broadcasts to the NYC tri state area as well as the patient bedside of more than 60 hospitals and skilled nursing facilities, in assisted living facilities and to listeners in 28 states through more than 50 affiliated stations.  

Read My Mind Radio Presents…

At the conclusion of the AIR 2014 New Voices meet up which directly preceded the opening event of the Third Coast Festival, I exited the conference room to set out on my first non-blindness related conference. When I exited the room I was immediately reminded of my inner hater voice who two months earlier tried to convince me I shouldn’t even try to attend a conference that isn’t blindness focused.

What I encountered seemed like total chaos from my perspective. The conference center hallway was jammed packed with over 500 excited, enthusiastic men and women anticipating the start of the radio producer’s conference. My self-confident and assured voice said I should maneuver my way through the congested hall without help. I visited the conference center a day earlier to learn the layout. I had a pretty good visual map of where the rooms were located and practiced trailing the wall to find specific landmarks. For example, I often choose to take the stairs when it’s an option and I knew I could easily find the stairs where the carpet ended and the ceramic floors began. However, with the start of the conference, exhibitor tables lined the walls making trailing impossible.

One of the things I knew I needed to work on during this conference was accepting help from others. It’s not something I tend to do with ease. I think it’s more than being macho; it’s what I’ve been taught all my life. Whether by our parents or society, we are taught that doing things alone is good. Self-starters, self-motivators achieving their goals alone.  Picking ourselves up by our own bootstraps is an admired American trait.

What I am only beginning to realize are the benefits of accepting assistance. In the case of navigating the crowded hallways of this conference  while I could have done it alone it would have probably concluded with a broken white cane, other attendees labeling me an angry blind guy, reduced interaction with others and in general probably an uncomfortable experience for those who come in contact with me and myself.

Accepting assistance gave me the chance to meet new people. It usually went something like this; after I literally tapped someone with my cane and they excused themselves I would say:

TR: “Pardon me; I’m looking for the [insert name] room.

Kind Woman: “Oh, that’s this way, would you like a hand”

TR: “No, but I will take an arm if you’re offering” (Actually I just thought of this one now and may put it to work in a future conference)

Kind Woman: [While chuckling] “Of course”

TR: “My name is Thomas by the way”

Kind Woman: Introduces herself and now we are having a conversation. Boom!

All of that because I accepted help.

You may notice that I specifically say Kind Woman. That’s not just because my cane only finds women, it’s also because guys don’t really ask if I need help. I’m not sure if it’s because women are just more helpful in general. I would love to think it’s because they are checking for the TR, but I don’t think that’s the case. Either way, I’m not complaining. My friend explained that it’s sort of a mutual benefit. I get to the place I need to go and the person who assists feels good about helping someone. I used to have a problem with this because it made me feel like a charity case. I don’t think people who interact with me feel I am a charity case. Even more importantly I know I’m not. The experience really ends up as an even transaction of sorts.

The other area that I worried about and in fact I know bothers many blind people is the buffet line. There’s really no choice but to get assistance. It would be rude and disgusting if I were to put my nose or hands in different trays in order to determine its contents. Someone is almost always willing to help.

During one lunch a fellow New Voice Scholarship winner assisted me with maneuvering through the buffet line. In fact, it was a man. When we got to the end of the line I realized he was not getting his own food at the same time. This made me feel awful because I knew he would need to go back out and return to the line after he helped me find a seat. I was also upset because I was looking forward to speaking with him during lunch.

The lesson here applies to so many things people with vision loss need to incorporate into our lives; fully own the process. While I may let someone guide me, it’s up to me to steer. Not steer in the context of driving a car, but rather as in setting the pace and path for a project or task. In the example of the buffet line from now on I will make    sure that the person assisting me will not have to endure the additional burden of getting back online. I want to make sure that anyone who assists me gets a return on the investment. That could be benefiting from a special accommodation like priority seating, the satisfaction of helping their fellow man or just the enjoyment of hanging out with me. Well that last one needs a little work!

On November 7, 2014 I attended my first Third Coast Festival as one of AIR’s 2014 New Voices. In order to explain how much this meant to me, we should go back a few years.

I had an interest in audio all my life. My early interest in producing audio began with music. In the late eighties my first “production” was an original outgoing message for my answering machine. I didn’t have any fancy computer equipped with Pro Tools or Garage Band; I had an answering machine with a mini cassette recorder and a small stereo component system that included a double cassette recorder. I had a tiny Casio mini keyboard and a very rich sounding wooden desk which served as my percussions.

First, I laid down the   beat by manually drumming on my desk and recording into my answering machine. Next while recording on the stereo I played back the beat and tapped out a little melody on the Casio keyboard. Then I added some vocals and repeated the process about 2 more times including additional vocals and even a sample from an existing cassette. I wish I still had this recording. The process was very time consuming, but I remember loving every minute. I felt as though I discovered something no one else knew about. Come to find out this was just a very crude way of multi-track recording.

This led me to think more about the real record production process and a desire to become a sound engineer. I looked into actually pursuing this, but I was dissuaded by both the exorbanent tuition and the fact that I was only a few credits short of graduating with a degree in Finance.

Fast forward more than 15 years and I find myself once again tinkering with audio. This time creating a personal project that captured my experience during my first Pennsylvania Council of the Blind convention. The piece was awful! I had no idea what I was doing, but more importantly it was a lot of fun; it felt like I was once again tinkering. Later, I began reading more about recording and audio editing and started producing segments for an existing program within PCB called PCB Reports. Eventually I started producing Talking Advocacy & Government while listening to more and more NPR shows and podcasts.

I became aware of audio production educational programs like Transom, the Salt Institute and the Center for Documentary Studies, but none of these fit into my schedule or lifestyle. I learned of the Third Coast Festival, but that too I thought wasn’t for me.

Looking back, I think I talked myself out of all of these programs. Some of them were truly out of reach due to cost and logistics, but the truth is, where there’s a will, there’s a way. That negative inner voice took over and unfortunately, I didn’t have a way to tune him out.

This year, tired of wondering how and what if, I decided to figure out a way to attend the conference and be a part of the festivities rather than sitting at home wondering what it was all about.

While reviewing the Third Coast Conference registration, I came across a link to the AIR New Voices Scholarship. Now I find it much easier to focus on my inner cheerleader who can drown out the negative talk coming from my inner hater who tried to convince me that I would never win a scholarship. He tried to get me to believe that I wouldn’t be able to get through a conference that wasn’t specifically for people who are blind. “You know what will happen, the presenter’s will refer to the screen and you won’t know what they are talking about,” he urged. “You won’t find the different conference rooms and I bet you all meals will be buffet style.” Ignoring all of his attempts to manipulate me, I began completing the scholarship application.

A few weeks later I received the congratulatory email notifying me that I was a recipient of the 2014 AIR New Voice Scholarship. So to that hater within, suck it!

Some may simply say this was a coincidence that I learned of the scholarship, but I think it was more of a gift. I’m ok with calling it luck based on;

“Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity” – Seneca.

Understanding that life will present me with more gifts, my goal is to do more right now to assure I am ready and able to receive them.

Ever since my interest in audio was reignited and I began listening to different shows from This American Life, Snap Judgment to Radio Lab and The Truth, I’ve been looking for others who are not only interested in listening to these shows, but also audio production.

Every two years the Third Coast Festival holds a conference where audio producers, radio journalists and even audio listeners get together to participate in workshops, listening sessions and parties. Two years ago I thought about attending this conference, but was unable for various reasons. This year I decided I would give it a shot.

The Association for Independence in Radio or AIR offers scholarships to new interested and up and coming audio producers. This scholarship called New Voices not only helps with funding the conference, but it provides several other opportunities to meet others in the industry.

Well, yours truly is extremely honored to tell you that I am one of 26 New Voice Scholars who will be in Chicago this weekend. That’s right, I actually won. I am so honored to be in the company of some really good audio makers. Several of my fellow scholars work in radio producing for both radio stations and podcasts.

I’m not only excited for the chance to learn from the experts, but finally I think I may meet members of my tribe. The folks who like me are moved by audio; those who really feel the power of storytelling and like to create interesting things with audio. I can honestly say I haven’t been this excited to attend an event in quite some time. Check out this SoundCloud playlist of the AIR 2014 New Voice   Scholars.