Drifting Peacefully-Assesment 2

Looking back on my first two drifts, although I was unsure of what to expect at the beginning, I found the whole drift experiences to be satisfying, enjoyable, and at times very peaceful. For instance while on my first drift, after walking around for and hour or two with unsatisfactory results, I found my way to the shore of Lake Michigan in the middle of one of the most brutal winters (in terms of snowfall) just as the sun was setting. Because of the heavy snowfall, a large ice/snow ledge formed on top of the large rocks on the shoreline protruding out over the water. (to see a hand-drawn map of the location click here). Although, one of the limitations of the drift was to not spend more than fifteen minutes in one place, I had spent an hour and fifteen minutes at this location before I even thought to check how long I had been there. This was where I first started to experiment with different approaches to finding interesting audio events (to listen to one of the sounds I recorded there, click here), and even though it was cold and dark after I watched the sun set, the place had a very calming effect on me and inspired me to continue searching my drift area for unique sounds. More contemplation and ease would come my way as I continued on my first audio drift. After spending such a long time along the shoreline, it was much later than I thought and while heading back into the city I was surprised to see how dead it was. Walking through the empty, calm streets that I had only ever experienced during the usual crowded and very active daytime or evening was a very reflective experience, allowing me to gain a new perspective about the city and appreciate some of the details that I normally miss while dealing with the frustration of maneuvering around all the cluster of the city.

Drift Dilemnas- Assesment 1

On my first sonic drift with, with little prior knowledge and experience with audio recording, it was a little perplexing and irritating while first setting out on my journey to know what to look for and how to tell what was an interesting, unique sound. I was unsure of what exactly I was supposed to be doing while on my trek and at first disappointed with the results because everything seemed to have the same ambient sound, but then as I continued I kind of realized that that was the whole point of the experience and I just embraced it and tried to experiment and find interesting audio rather than let it come to me, which made the whole experience much more enjoyable for me. Also while on my sonic drift, wearing my large headphones and carrying my home-made mic-rig (click here to see a picture), I was particularly aware of how aware everyone was of me, and as a result often timid, irritated, and even fearful. People would walk over to the other side of the street when they saw me coming with my weird contraption, cars would honk at me, a bus-driver fled when I approached her vehicle, homeowners would come and question me while I was on the sidewalk outside their homes, not to mention the stares from people inside restaurants and shops I passed by. This would make the experience frustrating and uncomfortable at times, but it also kind of made the whole expedition a nice inside joke for myself.