Golf Gone Wild

I came home from the golf course feeling that I am mediocre, at best, at almost everything I do; it was a bad day. What a challenging game is golf. There are as many degrees of freedom as there are body parts, so much can go wrong. An objective analysis reveals that of the average 100 strokes I take on the course, 18 are from the tee, 45 are on the green, which leaves 37 between the tee and the green. Today, of the 18 from the tee I hit 10 of them well, in or near the fairway and about 180 to 200 yards out. Of the 37 interim shots, 18 were approach shots, i.e., either chips or pitches; 2 were out of sand traps with good results, and 8 were good second shots; the other 9 were wasted strokes. The 45 putts are the sad part of my game. If the nine holes that were three putts were eliminated, my score would be about 90. Then if the 9 or 10 wasted strokes were eliminated, we’re talking about the low 80’s.

The grand conclusion of this is my game sucks, my putting is terrible, and my mind gets screwed up on the course. I caught myself in emotional response and unfavorable opinion often; the good news is that I caught myself and changed same in each instance except for the over-arching opinion that I am mediocre at just about everything, which is probably pretty close to the truth. The only redemption is to keep on keepin’ on in my four chosen areas—the script, the club, the crop, and the cue.

All of these are fun and worthy of achieving at least the Skill level (see the added presentation) with acting going beyond Skill into job. Ultimately, dreaming extravagantly, I would reach the Awards level in acting, the Medals level in golf and pool, and the Skill level in riding. This resolve lends itself to development of the kind I do every Sunday when I plot and scheme. I have all the tools and the knowledge to do this and I still need external input in all of these to make the dreams come true. The external input is 2nd line work; the 3rd line is the statement of the dream and working for the dream itself where the 2nd line is working with others to achieve the dream, or Aim.

There are fourteen other endeavors but they are secondary and complimentary to these four. All of them together make up a full slate of activities that, when managed properly , lead to the achievement of Aim.

The Accomplishment Structure

A clear and vivid vision of what that is, and what it entails, is fundamental so all of the required personal resources can be focused on the effort. The vision will never be perfect; it must be made and refined. One can continually refine the vision as he becomes more aware of what it takes to reach this, or the next level of the endeavor. This vision, no matter how incomplete and unrealistic, is the starting point and it needs to be written because writing requires and records thought processes and allows review and revision. Then it can be formulated into terse statements that allow one to be quickly reminded of what he is trying to accomplish. I want to… and not I wish to…

Three strategies for accomplishment are the puzzle, which relates to rules and a framework; the game, achieving successful results within a set of rules; and the dance, moving in prescribed motions to produce desired results.

The pre-requisites are Desire, Capability, and Discipline.

The steps to successful achievement are: Assimilation, Application, Refinement, Competition, and Fulfillment The movement from one level to another is a process and not a single event. Innovation is utilized repeatedly. There may be different and independent strategies employed as one makes progress through the various levels.

Skill relates to the assimilation of knowledge and enough formative practice that one can perform the endeavor with confidence when performing alone or in a controlled environment, such as a lab or class.

Riches relates to being able to perform the endeavor at a level of proficiency that produces profit. This refers to being well paid for performance in the marketplace. Activities at this level relate to the practical application of the skill in a journeyman-like manner that results in utility for which others are willing to pay.

Job is an acid test of the endeavor. It relates to the willingness and continuing interest to pursue it, rain or shine, good times and bad, in times of growth and sideways plodding, and commitment to it for the fulfillment of obligations either to others or to self.

Awards is where the performer demonstrates his skill to objective others who are superior and/or knowledgeable in what the endeavor entails and can pass judgment on the performance. The activities at this level result in a level of performance that is recognized as superior when judged against the accepted standards and norms for the endeavor.

Medals is the level where the performer is compared to others in competition. Activities at this level relate to building the confidence necessary to compete against other performers who are likewise seeking superiority. The immediate example is sports but it also relates to being successful in auditions, publishing, negotiating, anywhere that the performer rises above other practitioners of the same skill.

Stardom is performance to a wider audience who understands what top performance is and acclaims it when they see it. Activities at this level relate to earning the adulation of people who vicariously participate in the performer’s success.

Progress through each of these levels is an end in itself. Since the amount of effort required to reach perfection is infinite, there is a point/ region/ place/ time/ level of achievement where the increase in level is so slight compared to effort that further pursuit of perfection in the endeavor becomes futile.

Being aware of approaching this level of futility is critical; it requires decision. One can continue to (a) accomplish with incrementally more effort, (b) abandon the endeavor, or (c) decide to move to the next level.

For example, as the performer approaches futility at the Skill level, he can choose to continue for the fun of it, as a hobby, or go on to the Riches level. If he should choose to go on there is a step function change in the pursuit of the endeavor where he is no longer working to hone his skill but now to profit from the application of it. This has a totally different complexion than the Skill level. And so on through all the levels.

Acting Business--Lines

Since writing this in July, I have been introduced to another method, i.e., learning the lines based on the first letter of each and every word in the line. It works.10/10/10

It is 2:15pm of the same day that I returned from an audition that didn’t go very well. I will be very surprised if I hear back on this one. The mood in the office and of the auditor was impersonal at best. It seemed like I was an intrusion on their peaceful day. This reaction was/is mine and could be far from the truth of the situation that existed in the space where I was; it is my fault that it took hold like it did. I received the script last night, printed it, and ran through it several times with Carola but it wasn’t enough to give me the confidence I needed to do it in front of a camera, talking to a picture on the wall and another person in the room, whom I took to be a disapproving camera man. It was, however, an audition and that’s a plus, another experience in the acting world.

Learning lines is a professional requirement, it is also very difficult and I say that not for myself but for all with whom I have come in contact in this endeavor. Alan had a monstrous task to learn all the lines for the Inspector in Murder on the Nile (MOTN); he never did completely know them with enough confidence to get through them without hesitation and mistakes. John and Jeff, as Earnest and Algernon, in the Importance of Being Earnest (TIOBE), likewise had beaucoup de lines and messed them up in every performance. On the other hand Beth and the Carries had equally lengthy parts as Aunt Augusta, Gwendolyn, and Cecily and performed them without a flaw from the second rehearsal through the end of the run. It is imperative for me to be able to learn lines with enough confidence to deliver them in front of Carol, aaudience, or camera.

I’ve done some research on this subject and there isn’t much offered by way of advice, or how to, in accomplishing this feat. I can recall the experiences I’ve had and glean from them the technique(s) I’ve used. They may not be efficient but they are effective because in every case, when I went on stage I said my lines without mistake. The prevailing advice is to read them a minimum of five times through without trying to memorize them. This seems to be a good starting point and I do that and continue from there. Perhaps I can list a step by step that will take me through it and embellish that with what I think will work. My objective is to reduce the amount of elapsed time it takes to not only learn the lines but be confident enough in them that I can deliver them in a variety of settings and circumstances including the stage, in front of the camera, or to individuals or small groups not even associated with the acting assignment. The key here is to reduce the time required to learn the lines. The prescription then:
1) Read all the information available about the character and the play/story
2) Read through the script from start to finish
3) Read through my part, including the cue lines, five or more times from the script
4) Make a spreadsheet of two columns; the cue line on the left and my line on the right
5) Fold it and read the cue line, turn the paper and read my line
6) Tell the story as presented by the cue lines and my lines in my own words, not in any way trying to relate the script in the words written
7) Take each cue line and my line couple and learn it by heart
8) Recite the lines to Carola/or another with her taking the cue lines
9) Repeat with her taking my lines
10) Imagine the stage/set and do the script with whatever associated actions
11) Keep doing 7-8-9 and 10 until it is in mind.

This process takes a long time; so there must be a way of shortening it to suit the time available for auditions and performances that are on a tighter production schedule than those with which I am familiar. We had six weeks for TIOBE and MOTN; shorter than the UofL productions but the film work seems to allow less time for lines and no time for rehearsal. This was a problem today and the reason for this writing because I think it is a permanent condition of working in film.

So how do I get the time required down to a day; overnight? I have a new script, it is for the film wherein I play the part of an older police chief. I could try some new techniques on this because if they don’t work I have time to learn them using the above listed method.

A method that seems to make sense would be to record the lines in front of a camera; use our VCR until a better camera is available. Critically evaluate each reading but don’t tape over any of them. Look for ways to improve, then make same. Use the camera from the beginning, even when reading the script for the first time. This may be important to get habituated to seeing my face and features on the screen; heretofore I have eschewed reviewing performances because I didn’t want to be disheartened by the experience. This is probably not a good idea as I go forward with film acting since I will want to create certain effects but need to see if they are working or not. I don’t know, this is a tough area; if I am “acting” then I’m not going to convince anyone that I am the character. It is as important in film as on stage to naturally assume the character and become that role as it is played. Yet objectively reviewing the results will/should improve my performance.

Yes, I think I may have hit upon a good place to start for learning lines more quickly; camera, action!