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Thursday, December 3, 2009
Sad to See Them Go
I found out earlier this week that the BYU-I English department secretary, Jeannne Reinwand, died in a car accident. I didn't know her well but I definitely knew her and was sad to find out what had happened to her. She was a constant presence during my years at Ricks and later when I went through the job application process there.
Yesterday, I heard that one of my former BSU professors, Tom Trusky, was found dead in his home. He had a heart attack several years ago and I assume his passing had something to do with those issues. He was my bookarts teacher at BSU and was just generally a nice guy. We kept in touch for several years after I left Boise State and he was always telling me about his latest mad-scientist project - poems mounted inside old refrigerators, poems printed on Burmashave-style signs posted around campus, Ethiopian prayer scroll books, etc. I'm sad that he's gone.
I'm reprinting the article from the Idaho Statesman below. I'm in it and I swear I told the reporter twice that I work at a community college, not a liberal arts college.
With Tom Trusky, it was always something - writing and teaching poetry, inspiring students through his book arts class, starting a new program, researching overlooked subjects, pulling a prank, or writing arcane e-mails in meter - he was filled with energy and creativity almost constantly.
"A really bright star is gone from this university," said Richard Young, chairman of the Boise State art department. "He was a great raconteur, a curator, researcher and amazing writer. He had a major impact on the arts and culture at the university and the community."
Trusky, 65, died at his North End home of natural causes. The Ada County coroner's office confirmed his death Wednesday morning. Friends saw him at The Flicks on Saturday, but he did not show up for his Monday night class, which was a rare occurrence. His friends and colleagues are shocked at the news.
Trusky could be as difficult as he was generous. He had a great sense of humor and a penchant for sending poetic e-mails, said Michelle Payne, chairwoman of the Boise State English Department.
"They were funny, mostly sarcastic and filled with all kinds of allusions. It wasn't e-mail; it was art," Payne said.
Trusky started teaching at Boise State College in 1970. His accomplishments over the four decades since have helped change the course of the university and raise its national profile.
Trusky founded and edited cold-drill magazine, the university's award winning literary publication, from 1974 to 1995. He co-founded and co-edited Ahsahta Press, a small poetry press, from 1974 to 1996. Now headed by poet Janet Holmes, Ahsahta has recently gained national attention, publishing the work of nationally lauded poets. He was the director of The Idaho Film Collection and had recently stepped down as director of the Idaho Center for the Book. He also directed The Hemingway Western Studies Center.
Trusky did extensive research on Idaho artist James Castle and the forgotten silent screen star Nell Shipman, giving her previously lost films international exposure and reviving interest in her career.
One of his many lasting legacies was initiating the master's program in creative writing in 1998.
"Tom was the moving force behind that," said Bruce Ballenger, who teaches creative nonfiction and occupies the office next to Trusky's.
Mark Brown, who was a master's student at Boise State in 2003, now lives in Illinois, where he teaches at a small liberal arts college. He took Trusky's graduate level book arts class, which bridged the gap between visual and literary arts.
"Every class period was some new adventure with him," Brown said. "He was never done discovering."
Brown remembers learning an odd printing technique that used gelatin as a printing matrix. It had been used in Soviet Russia to print underground materials.
Stephanie Bacon, professor of graphic arts and the new head of the Center for the Book, considered Trusky a mentor and friend.
"He might not have called himself an artist, but he was an artist in everything he did," Bacon said. "He was always coming up with this stuff - such a lively intellect and enthusiasm."
Trusky chose Bacon to succeed him as head of the Center for the Book.
"I thought we would have more time," Bacon said. "He had more to teach me about how he did what he did. There will be some mysteries to discover."
Trusky never shied away from controversy or conflict, said his former student and friend Troy Passey.
"He could be polarizing. He had an acerbic wit and did not suffer fools," he said. "But behind the gruffness was a sentimental sweetheart. He made me laugh."
Yesterday, I heard that one of my former BSU professors, Tom Trusky, was found dead in his home. He had a heart attack several years ago and I assume his passing had something to do with those issues. He was my bookarts teacher at BSU and was just generally a nice guy. We kept in touch for several years after I left Boise State and he was always telling me about his latest mad-scientist project - poems mounted inside old refrigerators, poems printed on Burmashave-style signs posted around campus, Ethiopian prayer scroll books, etc. I'm sad that he's gone.
I'm reprinting the article from the Idaho Statesman below. I'm in it and I swear I told the reporter twice that I work at a community college, not a liberal arts college.
With Tom Trusky, it was always something - writing and teaching poetry, inspiring students through his book arts class, starting a new program, researching overlooked subjects, pulling a prank, or writing arcane e-mails in meter - he was filled with energy and creativity almost constantly.
"A really bright star is gone from this university," said Richard Young, chairman of the Boise State art department. "He was a great raconteur, a curator, researcher and amazing writer. He had a major impact on the arts and culture at the university and the community."
Trusky, 65, died at his North End home of natural causes. The Ada County coroner's office confirmed his death Wednesday morning. Friends saw him at The Flicks on Saturday, but he did not show up for his Monday night class, which was a rare occurrence. His friends and colleagues are shocked at the news.
Trusky could be as difficult as he was generous. He had a great sense of humor and a penchant for sending poetic e-mails, said Michelle Payne, chairwoman of the Boise State English Department.
"They were funny, mostly sarcastic and filled with all kinds of allusions. It wasn't e-mail; it was art," Payne said.
Trusky started teaching at Boise State College in 1970. His accomplishments over the four decades since have helped change the course of the university and raise its national profile.
Trusky founded and edited cold-drill magazine, the university's award winning literary publication, from 1974 to 1995. He co-founded and co-edited Ahsahta Press, a small poetry press, from 1974 to 1996. Now headed by poet Janet Holmes, Ahsahta has recently gained national attention, publishing the work of nationally lauded poets. He was the director of The Idaho Film Collection and had recently stepped down as director of the Idaho Center for the Book. He also directed The Hemingway Western Studies Center.
Trusky did extensive research on Idaho artist James Castle and the forgotten silent screen star Nell Shipman, giving her previously lost films international exposure and reviving interest in her career.
One of his many lasting legacies was initiating the master's program in creative writing in 1998.
"Tom was the moving force behind that," said Bruce Ballenger, who teaches creative nonfiction and occupies the office next to Trusky's.
Mark Brown, who was a master's student at Boise State in 2003, now lives in Illinois, where he teaches at a small liberal arts college. He took Trusky's graduate level book arts class, which bridged the gap between visual and literary arts.
"Every class period was some new adventure with him," Brown said. "He was never done discovering."
Brown remembers learning an odd printing technique that used gelatin as a printing matrix. It had been used in Soviet Russia to print underground materials.
Stephanie Bacon, professor of graphic arts and the new head of the Center for the Book, considered Trusky a mentor and friend.
"He might not have called himself an artist, but he was an artist in everything he did," Bacon said. "He was always coming up with this stuff - such a lively intellect and enthusiasm."
Trusky chose Bacon to succeed him as head of the Center for the Book.
"I thought we would have more time," Bacon said. "He had more to teach me about how he did what he did. There will be some mysteries to discover."
Trusky never shied away from controversy or conflict, said his former student and friend Troy Passey.
"He could be polarizing. He had an acerbic wit and did not suffer fools," he said. "But behind the gruffness was a sentimental sweetheart. He made me laugh."
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
The Jury Is Still Out
Suzanne and I started watching the most recent Indiana Jones movie last night. We would have finished it but viewing had to stop in favor of the latest episode of 18 Kids and Counting. (Am I a married man? Yes, I am. How can you tell? A film featuring fistfights, UFOs, and chase scenes was put on hold at my house so we could watch a tv show about a gargantuan family wandering through a corn maze.)
Aaaaannnyway, the jury is still out on Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. It got mostly tepid reviews and no one I know was particularly enthusiastic about it when it came out. Having lowered expectations, I haven't been terribly disappointed yet. The two things I noticed are: #1 - There seems to be an awful lot of nudge-nudge-wink-wink going on. The opening chase scene between the army trucks and the hot rod is obviously a reference to American Graffiti which was directed by Indiana Jones'es writer/producer George Lucas, the audience gets a glimpse of the titular ark from Raiders of the Lost Ark in the warehouse scene, and there are plenty of references to Indy's age and how things aren't as easy as they used to be. All of this seems to be a jokey way of acknowledging history and winking at the viewer as if to say, "We know it's been a while - stay with us though and we'll try to make it fun."
The other thing I noticed is Spielberg's now-frequent collaborator, cinematographer Januz Kaminski. He's shot just about every Spielberg film since Schindler's List and his style is a little too grainy and sophisticated for the Saturday-matinee-cheesy-cliffhanger nature of the Indiana Jones films. His style makes the most innocuous scene seem heavy and ominous. When Spielberg is doing something like Minority Report, it works perfectly. When he's doing something that involves Shia Labeouf as a motorcycle-riding character named "Mutt," not so much.
Anyway, once we finish it (you know, once my wife lets me use the tv again), I'll give a full report.
Aaaaannnyway, the jury is still out on Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. It got mostly tepid reviews and no one I know was particularly enthusiastic about it when it came out. Having lowered expectations, I haven't been terribly disappointed yet. The two things I noticed are: #1 - There seems to be an awful lot of nudge-nudge-wink-wink going on. The opening chase scene between the army trucks and the hot rod is obviously a reference to American Graffiti which was directed by Indiana Jones'es writer/producer George Lucas, the audience gets a glimpse of the titular ark from Raiders of the Lost Ark in the warehouse scene, and there are plenty of references to Indy's age and how things aren't as easy as they used to be. All of this seems to be a jokey way of acknowledging history and winking at the viewer as if to say, "We know it's been a while - stay with us though and we'll try to make it fun."
The other thing I noticed is Spielberg's now-frequent collaborator, cinematographer Januz Kaminski. He's shot just about every Spielberg film since Schindler's List and his style is a little too grainy and sophisticated for the Saturday-matinee-cheesy-cliffhanger nature of the Indiana Jones films. His style makes the most innocuous scene seem heavy and ominous. When Spielberg is doing something like Minority Report, it works perfectly. When he's doing something that involves Shia Labeouf as a motorcycle-riding character named "Mutt," not so much.
Anyway, once we finish it (you know, once my wife lets me use the tv again), I'll give a full report.
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
So What Do The Kids Do Now?
When I was in high school, a mix tape was a sign of high affection. If you were interested enough in someone to go through the labor of making a mix, it was serious. I think it's become kind of a silly cliche now -- Michael Cera's character in Nick and Nora's Infinite Playlist is shown as a pathetic, heartbroken loser through the number of mix CDs he makes for his ex-girlfriend.
What I'm wondering is, what do music lovers and lover lovers do now that even CDs are pretty much going the way of the Dodo? Digital music is so convenient, so portable, so generally smacking of awesomeness -- and yet, what's a schlubby sixteen year old with stars in his eyes supposed to do for that delicate flower across the room if he wants to put together a mix of songs to express his true love?
These days you wouldn't give someone a cassette tape any more than you'd send them a telegram. People still have CD players, of course, but they aren't nearly as ubiquitous as mp3 players. So what's a kid to do?
(If you know the answer to this, I'd really like to know.)
Incidentally, the other thing that's suffering in the digital revolution is album design. I've heard old-timers complain about the shift from full-size vinyl records and how the great art and design that went into an album cover would become a lost art with cassette covers and CD covers. Cassette covers were pretty much a lost cause from the start but a lot of artists did cool stuff with CD packaging. But now? If I buy a song online, I get a one-inch by one-inch image of the album cover that floats around on my iPod screen while the song plays. It kind of sucks.
(I don't even really like Jackson Browne but I acknowledge this is an ingenious album cover. The whole thing was silk screened onto an actual canvas water bag and then photographed. The inner sleeve that protected the disc itself had bright blue water printed on it. It was awesome. Something like this isn't coming across on my iPod screen, you know?)
Why November Has Been A Crappy Month For Blogging
It's just after midnight on December 1, the deadline for Nanowrimo or National Novel Writing Month. I've been chopping away at a story all month long and tonight, around 11:45, I crossed the 50,000 word "finish line." The story isn't done yet but I'm clocked in at a nice, round 50,133 words for tonight. That's plenty for the moment, enough to earn me my silly "Winner" certificate from the nanowrimo website (as if I needed a certificate to tell me that, right?).
Anyway, I'm really excited. The draft is a hot ghetto mess but it's a draft, not just a half finished idea in the back of my head. I have something on paper to work with and, as we all know, something is better than nothing.
So hopefully December will be better in terms of blog updates. I'm done with the QE, I've written the draft of a novel -- maybe now it's time for some high quality blogging. We'll see.
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