un...stuuuck

whew - figured out some forwarding problem... now I can write here again

You find the most amazing people along the way

Just made a phone call to someone who gave me a nice laundry list of companies to call.

recommendation from Kevin Newman

"Its about feeling safe on the high-wire of live television. And Ian has that rare ability to sense when you're about to take a risk, when you're staying safe, and when to throw out the rescue rope."

Epic

rollin' Epic 4G - niiiiiice

nissan maxima - firecracker on a quiet pond.mov

CNN iReport on Haiti

http://www.ireport.com/docs/DOC-393682

Prepping the show

Overall concept: check.
Online forms, check.
Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, FriendFeed, Domain Name: Check.
Laptop, WireTap Studio, Skype: Check.

1st Draft of Show No. 1 - check.

No estimated time of delivery. Still working on workflow - need a good USB mic.

On Entrepreneurship

Here's how I was drafted into the world of entrepreneurs:

I had come into some money, and soon thereafter, at a week long seminar at the Omega Institute with David Deida, I decided I ought to set people free, whatever that would mean.

I was an actor and kung fu student, but not self-supporting. I'd run into a friend at a cocktail party who introduced me to her boyfriend. We talked about art, and a few months and a couple hundred cups of coffee later, I thought, well -- here's the person, the artist I'm assigned to set free.

So I asked him if he'd had money and time what would he do? We discussed making a demo, but the industry was dying all around us. We discussed an EP but that seemed to me not a commercially viable option.

We decided on a full length album in order to make the maximal artistic statement. Then rather than make a low-cost album in hopes of it taking off, I approached someone who regularly made multi-platinum and multi-gold records, Daniel Wise. He gave me a price -- entry-level by major record label standards (where 1st albums can cost half a million) but inexpensive by, say, luxury sports car standards.

It's now a while since we started the album. The album turned out better than I'd imagined. 11 tracks, and 9 -- count 'em, 9 -- are singles. (Some feel lucky with two.) So the album is disruptive because it's major-label quality but we did it ourselves and retain all the money. It's destructive because, while home-brew is good, home brew with experience and the Kink's original analog equipment is better and I hope it helps raise the bar for every basement band in terms of complexity and sound. To paraphrase a quote I heard somewhere, it's better to obviate than to create bad art.

It's taken 3 years to get the album out. That's OK because it's taken time to get all the pieces in place. The game isn't over until it's over but it's also not on my clock. Someone else is timing this for me benevolently, and I'm rolling with the reality.

Maybe it is my deepest purpose to set artists and those in my life free , to open their hearts to God, through my actions and attitudes: the aggregate of that effort, the pearl, as between the sand (me) and the oyster (the artist or my beloveds) is this album which I can sell. Maybe this album will support me in discovering other talent.

I started with an angel investor and now I'm bootstrapping it. The story isn't over. Before and better than money, I'm galvanized by the experience. I know more who I am and what I'm capable of: Part of my entrepreneurial work, it appears, is seeing that in others.

A couple of years I could only have said that speculatively. Today I can say it empirically.

My favorite headline today

Salsa Dancers Respond to Deadly Natural Disaster Victims

Silversun Pickups - HOORAY

James Purdy Selected Plays

http://www.amazon.com/James-Purdy-Selected-Plays/dp/1566637988/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1248727112&sr=8-1

I'm mentioned as having worked on the manuscript. With love and thanks to John Uecker, Tennessee Williams's and James Purdy's literary assistant.

The Gospel According to John now available on Amazon

http://www.amazon.com/Gospel-According-John-Bultmann/dp/B0028N65CE

If you rock a kindle, buy one for yourself or your kinder

Pat McGrady's Cold War

My father, Patrick McGrady, was the bureau chief of Newsweek Magazine in Moscow, Russia, 1963. Some photos the magazine purchased. Others they did not publish or purchase from him and became part of his personal collection. For licensing and more information contact me at flowersmedia@gmail.com

Ian McGrady, News Writer / Producer

Everytime I listen to Adrienne Frantz' album.

I keep wondering about the place she lives in, between earth and heaven, an alogorythm of the years 1930, 1950 and 2200 producing the wave that is she. Dan Wise produced, which in no small part accounts for the voluptuous sound of this voluptuous album. It's like when roses are bursting out of their own petals with juice

Who edited this masterpiece? www.mendelini.com - Mike's a frickin' genius

Demo Reel - Thanks Mike Mendelsohn of mendelini.com for amazing editing

Zeta Vang Presentation

Buying a Bluetooth Keyboard

Foldable Bluetooth Keyboards

If your smart-phone or Personal Information Manager has a Bluetooth (TM) radio in it, you can link the device to any number of other devices wirelessly. This includes foldable, full-stroke keyboards that allow you to type text (almost) as normally as you would a keyboard and weigh a few ounces. (The caveat is, while the keystroke depth may be equivalent, the keys tend to be a little more rectangular and tightly spaced than you'd find on a full-sized laptop or full-sized keyboard.)

Foldable keyboards provide a solution especially for people with larger fingers who have trouble typing on touch-sensitive keyboards, or smaller keys. It's also a useful tool for people who enjoy the convenience of touch typing but forego carrying their laptop due to weight restrictions, or who want to maximize the power of their handheld before moving up to a laptop. Given the large market for discontinued or used portable keyboards, you can usually pick one up for around $25.00. If you're buying a keyboard new or second hand, make sure to find one that includes the original instructions with the box.

There are a number of portable Bluetooth keyboards on the market but most of them seem to have been re-brandings of the one originally made popular by the Stowaway brand. A quick search reveals what appears to be an identical keyboard branded as Targus, HP/Compaq, Fellowes and more.

By visiting this website, http://corporate.igo.com/support/Drivers.asp, you can find drivers that may work with your handheld device and support the foldable keyboard. The link takes you to a page that offers a "configurator", or a series of easy-to-use, drop-down menus that will assist you in finding the right driver for your device.

http://corporate.igo.com/support/Drivers.aspFor example, if you have a RIM phone, model Blackberry 8300, the configurator page will offer you the hyper link to the driver and a PDF instruction manual on how to use the driver and pair the device to your keyboard.

Here's where you can get your driver:

http://corporate.igo.com/support/Drivers.asp:

If they don't have your driver...

1. Identify your portable keyboard by brand name. Usually it's printed directly on the keyboard itself.

2. Visit the manufacturer's website.

3. Search for the "driver", or the program that allows your device to "speak" to the keyboard, on the website. If you can't find it, call their customer service department.

4. Follow the instructions for "pairing" the device, or letting it find the other device you need it to speak with. This is usually in "settings" under "connections" or devices.

If you search for and find the driver and instructions before you buy a used foldable bluetooth keyboard, you'll be sure to have the basic support you'll need to get your system up and running.

As a side note, Bluetooth keyboards are battery-operated. The model made by stowaway takes two AAA-sized batteries. I recommend keeping four rechargeables, two in the device, and two rechargeables in your computer bag along with two alkaline batteries. Rechargeables tend to lose their power over time, and keeping a few alkalines around will help keep your system dependable.

Bluetooth portable keyboards offer an inexpensive upgrade for smart phones that allow you to type longer documents. It's a great solution for note taking, journaling, or writing on days where you aren't at a desktop and don't want to carry your laptop around.