Goals & Aspirations

I have become increasingly goal-oriented, especially as of late. With so many trying circumstances going on in my life, I can't help but stop and think deeply about my deep-down goals & aspirations, which I hope to attain in this life--both immediate and far-reaching. Instead of starting with top-priority goals like family, church, etc. I'm starting with what's most immediately on my mind at the moment, then working my way through my mind to get everything down.

What's most immediate on my mind today is Audio Production. My brothers and I have recently recorded a 5 song EP album (Extended Play. There are three different type of "albums" that can be released--well, two--one is a Single, then Extended Play--2-7 songs, and Long Play--8+ songs). We are in the final stages of production, and I anticipate we should be ready for a release within the next couple of weeks--maybe sooner. We have album artwork, a band logo, and we have some pretty good songs to start with. We're not doing a full-scale release with this one, but it's mainly to get our name and brand out there (and style). Once we're completely done with this one, we start preparations for our 10+ song album we plan on releasing Spring 2014. There are many things that went great with the album, and a few things not-so-great. I am very happy with how it turned it out, but, as an analyst I have to set goals for the next album that I didn't feel were hit on this one. Here they are:

1. Audio interface/converter. One thing I notice about the album is that even though it sounds great and full, I can immediately tell the difference between our stuff and stuff that was recorded and produced using better converters (like Falling in Reverse "Fashionably Late" album). Better converters just make it sound bigger, fuller, with better stereo imaging, accuracy and consistency. I have always wanted a better interface. I am stuck with a M-Audio Profire 2626, and not only does it have sub-par converters, it's dying on me. I've thought about modding it with Black Lion Audio, but I'm no so sure that's the best thing, since converter technology has evolved since Black Lion's mod, and if I'm going to upgrade, I want it to be a significant one.... like an Apogee Symphony. But alas, for this next album, I'll probably just want to get one that just WORKS on both Apple and PC... I'm still looking at the Focusrite Forte, but am open to other options. I'll probably end up selling something I have and buying it. I also need to upgrade my computer, but that'll have to wait--this one will suffice to get the LP done. After that, my ultimate goal is to have an Apogee Symphony running into a brand new MacBook Pro with a core i7 processor (or stronger), running into Pro Tools 11 (or the newest when I choose to upgrade). Alas, dreaming again.

2. Slate Digital. I have been using Steven Slate Drums for a little while now, and definitely now that I have the signature kits, I absolutely LOVE his products. I will be investing more in his products, and I definitely want his mastering compressor FG-X. After the LP we'll be recording to release in Spring, I will be saving for more slate digital products, but we'll see how the audio industry changes by the time I'm ready to buy again.

3. Vocoder and Vocalizer software. I will be searching for the best of the best, and most flexible. We want to have the ability to make our vocals sound digital and catchy--pitching better to a digital generation.

These are things I hope to have when we go to record the LP album. Not only will it make our sound better, but it will make the process go faster with less hiccups. It seems the battle of an audio engineer is to effectively eliminate as much work as possible in the chain while preserving performance and ensuring the highest caliber sound. Though it is possible to achieve decent sound without the best signal chain, it takes triple (sometimes more) the time and effort, and it's just less desirable for both the engineer and the artist. So, moving on.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. I have always had a very deep conviction to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. My biggest (and, I'm sure I'm not alone in this) beef with the Church is not the Church itself, or the leaders at the top... it's the people near the bottom (like me) who feel like they know church doctrine and feel like they can judge others because they don't have as many serious sins in their recent history--or whatever the reason may be. I know I'm judging them for their judging me and others, but it's just human nature. That's exactly why I can move past it and keep pushing forward with the Church and trying to get the Gospel of Jesus Christ more present in my life. I can't judge them too harshly, because I become them. I'm doing this because I don't want to consciously allow anything or anyone else to get in the way of my eternal progression. It will still happen, but not while I can avoid it. So, the sins with which I am wrestling shall remain in speculation to the public. Nobody but me needs to know. How is "The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints" a "goal"? Well, it's simple. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is the Lord's Church on the Earth today. It IS the vessel of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It's not easy to be an active member, but the best things in life don't come easy (so they say). I want nothing more than to be as happy as I can possibly be in this life--and from what I've found, following the precepts and concepts of the Gospel within the Church brings the most blessing and happiness. Not only that, but I will stop at nothing to take my sweetheart Bethany to the temple. Which leads me to my next ultimate goal:

I WILL take Bethany Childress to the temple of our God to be sealed for time and all Eternity. There is nothing that means more to me at this point in my life. I have found my other half, and I'll be damned if I fail and lose her. Enough with the negative, however... I will not lose her because I am consciously starting to take a stronger stand with the situation. This will test my every fiber, but I am determined. It WILL happen, we WILL make it there, and we will be the happiest eternally married couple to ever have stepped foot in the temple (at least in our eyes haha).

Career. I got offered a job with Vivint, but I really hope I don't have to actually work there. I start on August 5, IF I don't get hired elsewhere before then. I'm planning on calling Justin at 4Home Control here shortly, but I kind of have a feeling that they won't be able to hire me back on for some time. I also applied and interviewed at Peak Audio & Video... I wouldn't mind working at either place, but like I was discussing with my mom recently, my list of top to bottom of where I would like to work is as follows:

1. Argenta (4Home Control)
2. Peak Audio & Video
3. Blue Host
4. Vivint

I really hope I get Anything on that list other than Vivint. If not, I will suffer until I can find something better.

Ultimately, I just want to do something in Audio/Video, just like I have always said. I have a Bachelor of Science in Digital Media, which it not turning out to be very impressive to prospective employers. Which is what leads me to my next goal, or aspiration.. whatever.

I want to get a specialized Master's degree. I'm leaning more towards the Media Forensics program at UC Denver, but I'm also considering the Recording Arts program there, or the Media Arts and Technology program at UC Santa Barbara. Those are my top three. One problem is that one requires the GRE and one the GMAT (these are graduate entry exams). That's why I'm leaning more towards the Forensics program because it doesn't require either. It's a "hybrid" program, which means that it is mostly online, but they still meet once a week for classes on campus. So, another small obstacle is that I'll have to uproot to Colorado for a couple of years. I just thought of something though... there may be a possibility I can do inactive duty for two years and put my six year re-commitment on hold... I don't think I can do that though because when I resigned, I only resigned for six, and I think that erased the two inactive year requirement. I hope it's still a possibility though--that would save me TONS of money of having to go back and forth for drills to Utah.

Being financially secure is also among the top priorities on my list, though I feel it's also one of the things I've struggled with fairly constantly over the span of my adult life. I started with debt very early, got out of it, got married--which put me back into it, and now I'm struggling again to dig myself out. It doesn't help that I'm currently unemployed, but it also doesn't help that I was expecting to be making a lot more since I have a Bachelor's degree. Oh well. I guess the struggle will continue for some time... but I will eventually be debt-free. The goal is within the next 3 years to have not one iota of debt left. Except maybe school loans--which up to $45k will be paid back by the National Guard anyway if I get my master's degree within the next 3-5 years. If I can get my specialized master's, I will in no doubt have a starting salary in the 60k range, with a potential to grow to well over 100k a year. Financial freedom will happen for me...hopefully sooner than later.