Train Travel Twitter:

It’s time to say good-bye, for now at least to trains, here is a record of my first use of Twitter – it clearly has its uses beyond a neat way of documenting train journeys and so I will now be removing the widget from the side – bar and leaving this as the archive. Twitter will continue for my continuing projects and updates.

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

could it be time to re-awaken, re-imagine, re-examine? To step into old footsteps and find new places to go. time to move on. almost ready.

3 Aug Favorite Reply Delete

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

About to board the train again, this time for camera. How many more times will this journey take place?

19 Jul

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

Commuting to Leeds been excited all morning, although past 9 so not a true ‘commute’.

23 Jun

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

The Art of Train Travel: Left Luggage http://wp.me/p1hxAu-3Y

10 Jun

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

Having just waved someone special off at York station. This journey feels sort of complete.

31 May

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

A girl in a black dress gets on a train… http://wp.me/p1hxAu-3D

31 May

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

Sitting in my old house, about to put on a black dress and take a train to York… re-making for documentation

30 May

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

another chance to see Left Luggage this Friday, http://bit.ly/jLCdni. Hope you can make it – it’ll be worth the journey

14 May

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

Another chance to see http://wp.me/p1hxAu-3r

10 May

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

Presentation writing http://wp.me/p1hxAu-3o

9 May

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

A Presentation on Performance as Research – should I also be blogging this process? http://wp.me/p1hxAu-3l

4 May

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

Sat on a train, felt the urge to tweet as I’m not making notes! It’s been a long time!

26 Apr

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

Left Luggage: Tomorrow evening, 6pm, YSJ Uni. Hope you can make it! x

4 Apr

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

Left Luggage – A Performance http://wp.me/p1hxAu-3f

30 Mar

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

could I really make this happen? http://wp.me/p1hxAu-3a

26 Mar

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

feeling swollen and sniffly. was meant to have three hours in the studio, resorted to re-drafting script snug and warm at home.

26 Mar

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

So I’ve just watched the footage from this afternoon. Turns out I’ve got a fairly flat, mostly depressing show… I say mostly.

20 Mar

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

1st draft performed. well we have a show at least.

20 Mar

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

Studio Time: http://wp.me/p1hxAu-37

20 Mar

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

I swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth so help me God http://wp.me/p1hxAu-32

16 Mar

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

a journey without a destination is no journey at all

12 Mar

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

Silence (or not doing anything as a research strategy)http://wp.me/p1hxAu-2R

12 Mar

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

my young person’s rail card is no longer valid after today. I can never be young again.

10 Mar

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

James Bond video for international women’s day shows 007’s feminine side gu.com/p/2nt4z/tw via @guardian

7 Mar

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

Off the page and into the Studio http://wp.me/p1hxAu-2G

20 Feb

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

off the page and into the studio

20 Feb

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

Word Cloud http://wp.me/p1hxAu-2A

15 Feb

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

Research trip York to Nottingham http://wp.me/p1hxAu-2v

13 Feb

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

Blackrod to York 30.12.10 http://wp.me/p1hxAu-2q

13 Feb

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

NRM Notes http://wp.me/p1hxAu-2k

13 Feb

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

form and structure, to do lists, thinking creatively and logically

13 Feb

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

How Many Excuses…? http://wp.me/p1hxAu-1h

9 Feb

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

Every Method http://wp.me/p1hxAu-1e

5 Feb

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

Every research area? http://wp.me/p1hxAu-1c

5 Feb

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

Every Question http://wp.me/p1hxAu-17

5 Feb

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

Sam smiths just off leicster square? Home from home.

29 Jan

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

South kensington station. I’ve been here before.

29 Jan

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

Please mind the gap between the train and the platform edge

29 Jan

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

Nearly there

29 Jan

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

Delayed. Geographicly. Physically. Mentally.

29 Jan

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

going mobile due to my htc having finally died, pink lights of death! Hope the txt message thing is as easy as it seems..

28 Jan

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

Returning from a journey back to the girl I was and the people we were.

16 Jan

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

Abscence and presence

16 Jan

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

Reunion anxious. Sad. Happy. Sad. Bored. Happy. Reminded. Reminiscenced

15 Jan

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

Bk home strange all the memories, scared now in this big unfriendly city…think I might be a bit soft or even posh

14 Jan

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

In the wrong seat, coach a

14 Jan

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

Arrived Sheffield will go thru Chesterfield after all. Must speak to someone other than the man who’s foot I just grabbed

14 Jan

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

No Chesterfield option, apologies.

14 Jan

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

At the station in plenty of time, no need for the anxiety. Feeling excited. Station is alive with Friday evening people.

14 Jan

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

Setting off

14 Jan

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

Just worked out the meaning of life

13 Jan

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

updating, promoting and working on new material!

12 Jan

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

Checking out Gemma Alldred’s Profile on The Art of Engagement:http://ning.it/fGLcTw

12 Jan

gemmaalldred Gemma Alldred

A little bit of snow

7 Jan

The Art of Train Travel: Left Luggage

Click here to read to read about the making of Left Luggage

A girl in a black dress gets on a train…

Documentation

Methods for Presentation writing

So far I have attempted the following methods for assisting the creation of this presentation:

Reading things other people have said – this means I have a set of statements I agree or disagree with and may or may not have evidence or arguments for holding these positions. Most of the things I agree with, will be congruent to the statements I already hold to be true.

Mind Map – What is it I want to say? A rough linear or parallel drawing showing the connections between ideas or tracing their epistemology.

A non critical, say everything without censorship essay (6 pages unfinished)

A beginning of the essay which would form the presentation (4 pages, unfinished – descended into questions and ideas to look at in more detail see above)

A Powerpoint presentation, it was hoped this more visual and ‘one thing at a time’ way of representing would help focus the narrative I need to create (14 pages, unfinished, mostly more unanswered questions)

A series of digital post it notes – hoped this would help ‘order’ ideas whilst allowing me somewhere to put them as they floated right to left sides of the brain…. worried that again they mostly have questions not answers and the range of topics and ideas is vast yet so interrelated I’m not sure which ones to cut at the expense of the others.

Plan going forward:

Being aware that there are two main ways of thinking occurring which need evidencing:

PaR thinking – eg how what I did is research. This is a sort of evidence based evidencing, eg I didn’t sit on a train making notes, I was engaged in a process of ehtnography

Creative Thinking – eg: I discovered that in writing this happened so I did this to see if it would help to improve the performance.

Also Performative moments aren’t written, so I’ve got to keep a section of my brain alert to ways of articulating that aren’t written and are better shown.

It feels like talking about what I did to make the work and talking about what I did using research languages, whilst also arguing for these ways of expression to support the work as research and the associated knowledges around knowledge in this context.

knowing this

I am going to write what I did that I think was of interest – including writing in ‘my’ style.

Then

I’m going to find evidence of this in documentation

Then

I’m going to translate some of it into PaR speak and talk about why I might do that

Then

I’m going to try and find clever visual images that support the words

Then

I’m going to edit & refine & rehearse.

Another chance to see

I will be performing ‘Left Luggage’ for a second time on May 20th as part of Create ’11 Festival at York St John University.

It was very well received the first time around, its quite probably worth a watch, it is free after all and there’s other stuff to watch before and after what with it being a festival and all!

More details here on the Facebook Event Page or on the Create Festival pages

Hope to see you there!

Presentation writing

This is no more rigourous than performance making, sensing the whole, having to focus on the part. But which part?

Choosing to present an argument is a little like being asked to re-paint from memory a large scale landscape picture on a postage stamp and also to change it a bit in accordance with your own ideas, whilst adopting a style that you hope and assume will please the people marking it.

A Presentation on Performance as Research – should I also be blogging this process?

As I begin the endless wandering through one firing thought to the next in attempting to hone in on the key points I’d like to make about the assignment set, learning about PAR, creating a blog and attempting to frame and construct the work which became ‘Left Luggage’ in this context I am struck by the similarity of feeling about the ideas I want to communicate in academic presentation and performance.

They’re over there somewhere, I can hold a few of them for a second, I can feel their weight and begin to pick out their connections but I can’t articulate them yet. There’s a fear I’ll miss the point, I’ll forget something important, I’m scribbling triggers and questions down on scraps of paper like I scribble down images and sentences.

Should I be documenting this process too?