A Little Rap Up

Well this year has been a unique year to say the least. It started out at the end of March when I was notified that I had two weeks of employment left. I don't think that is the norm. It's usually "Sorry we need to let you go and don't let the door smack you on the way out. So I was thankful that I had some time to look for work especially since we just found out Nickie was expecting. It was a bitter sweet as I was not by any means feeling any fulfilment there and he was just abusing the cheap labor that I was. In the mean time I had met the production contractor for Women of Faith and had been told that he was in need of someone. He asked my past experiences and I told him. In the mean time I had picked up some temp work and crew calls for production work here in town. Women of Faith finally called and I got the job. I heard a lot of good about WOF and was excited even though I was not going to be doing my exact dream. So in April we had a few days of set up before the first event and then a week later did the second event. We then took a break for the summer where again I was doing temp work and whatever I could find.  Then finally in the fall we started the WOF events up again. Unfortunately after 3 more shows in the fall I got let go. It was nothing personal, just business. I just about fainted. I was sick, and felt like the biggest failure in the world. I of course started asking God a ton of questions. Nickie and I were both in disbelief. It had to be a dream but it wasn't. So back to the drawing board.

Two weeks into the job search I got a direct message through twitter from a friend who did lighting for WOF and was currently on the Road with Steven Curtis Chapman. The message asked me if I wanted a gig and that he might have something. The something was driving a truck for the Steven Curtis Chapman Tour. I of course said yes. It couldn't have been better time seeing how we would soon be in the hospital giving birth to our son Brayden. Was it my dream job no but it was a great way to work with and for a great group of people. So the night that Brayden was born I took off on my first date of the SCC tour.Then for two months of my life I got to tour with SCC. Will I get to work for him again? I don't know but I do know that I made some new friends and more connections into the industry.

It definitley has been a trying year in more ways than one but after touring with the Chapmans knowing what they have gone through I was reminded everyday how big of a God I serve.

I hope you have a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

Derek

How Are You?

How are you? I never really hear from you. I give you multiple ways to connect with me but for whatever you choose not to. When I write my blog it goes to mulitlple place to make it as accessible as possible so you can't say well I didn't know that happened. I also make multiple post on twitter which also goes to multiple sites like facebook, linkedin,myspace, buzz and multiple other places. I am very accessible. So why is it that you still don't try to connect with me. You have a phone ,you have a computer and you might even have a phone that can access this digital info. So you say well I am to busy. I find that hard to believe. You have access to the web, and I know you are on there it's just obviously not that much of a priority. So please commment on my blog, facebook and twitter. If this sounds like I am begging, well I am not. I just will not take the excuse that you don't know what's going on in my life.

Does this sound like friends and family of yours. I am sure it is. I believe it boils down to a priority and obviously you and I are not a priority. In this digital age it does not take long to just drop someone a message. So don't you be that person either.

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Wow, Been Awhile

To all my adoring fans I am so sorry that I have left you sitting there waiting for that email saying that I have posted another blog or your RSS feed for that matter. Needless to say my life has been a whirlwind lately. This past winter Iost my job but picked up another one with Go Live Productions. They are contracted by Women of Faith to do all their production work. It was somewhat of a dream come true. I got to be in the production world that I have such a huge heart and passion for. We only had two gigs in the spring and then nothing till this fall. Once the fall hit I did three shows before i got a phone call saying "Sorry but this isn't gonna work." Nothing personal it's just business. Those where some very hard words to hear. So as I wallowed in self-pity and felt like I was the biggest loser I got a Direct Message through twitter from the lighting designer of Women of Faith, he also just finished a tour with Keith Urban and now was out with Steven Curtis Chapman. His direct message said. "Want a job? I might have something for you" and he did. The job is not the most glorious job in the world but it's with the greatest group of people. Drum Roll please............ It is for Steven Curtis Chapman. They started out hauling everything around in trailers attached to the bus's. Money wise it was a great idea but when SCC would not want to show up to the venue till a few hours before the show or or would have to go to another town and a do Women of Faith show it got real sticky. So they put their brains together and said all the gear would fit into a box truck. So thats where I come in. So in the midst of losing a job God was putting another one together for me.   Now for the whip cream. The very first show I showed up to I met a crew member who was just filling in for the normal guy and was normally out with Mandissa. The following week instead of me tracking him down on facebook he found me. A few weeks later he came back out on the tour and was filling in again. While we were waiting for the go ahead to unload the truck he said hey I liked to talk to you about something. He went on to say that due to a another well know manager / sound-guy leaving the industry there were some holes to fill  and he would like to help me be the one to fill those holes. I was just blown away because literally the night before I was thinking to myself I want to catch up with this guy after the tour and see if he knew of any possible work or was willing to help me get more established in the industry. It was just so refreshing to have someone come to me vs. me tracking them down.

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Collecting Shoes

Well, I am doing again what I did last year and that is collecting shoes for Soles4Souls. Last year tho was probably more out of selfishness in the sense I knew I would need as much motivation to run a 5k as possible since I hadn't run one since I was 10.  So after reading a tweet from @MichaelHyatt who is the CEO of Thomas Nelson Book publishers about this great organization I just thought the shoe fit ( pun intended.) So I started tweeting and adding post to facebook thinking it would be really easy to get people to walk into their closets grab some old shoes and bring them to the race or after the race people would just drop by the booth and drop of their shoes on their feet .I was proven wrong but not discouraged. I was able to collect shoes but just cause it's a race and you are running for a good cause does not mean the people are going to show up in droves. I unfortunately  got a lot of I did not know you were going to be here, or I just gave all mine to Good Will. So it was a little frustrating. At the same time I really enjoyed doing this ,met some great people, had some great conversations and my wife even said for the first time today I saw you in your element.  So who knows where collecting something as simple as a pair of shoes could lead me. I am currently looking for employment with a possible job in the wing but who knows where all my experiences will take me. 

So I ask you to go into your closet , grab any shoes you know you will never wear, come out to the Menchies South Nash Dash, run , walk, stroll with your baby or dog, just have a good time ,come to me to drop off your shoes, hang out and have some good conversations. 

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