1. Describe two situations that aggravated, bothered, shocked or otherwise stressed you during Drift One.

On my first walk which proved unsuccessful, I walked around Riverwest. I didn’t really have a strategy in mind except for recording on the go. There weren’t very many interesting sounds that I found that way, and the ones that I did record were short lived because I was on the move, and the change in my pocket made it easy to hear my steps. Another difficult aspect of the drift experience was trying not to make myself too known the people in my surroundings. Being by myself I wanted to avoid questioning if at all possible.

2. Describe, with details, two situations during Drift One in which you felt unusually peaceful, at ease, or contemplative.

The first situation in which I felt unusually at ease was when I walked out over the river underneath the Holton Bridge. I stood there with the wind in my face and took in a good three minutes of sound. I had a nostalgic feeling that reminded me of the many summer days spent chilling along the banks Mississippi. I spent time reflecting on the river. I contemplated the river’s start point and end point and related the river’s flow to my drift walk which was in essence a flow itself since I just walked blindly and overcame obstacles as they arose. Another point at which I felt at ease was on the walk home after finishing my recordings. I continued to listen to the environment and experienced a heightened sense of sound. I hope that I will continue to use this in any creative endeavors that I might accomplish.

3. Describe three surprises or unexpected situations you encountered on your Drift and in the days that followed. The surprise could stem from your expectations that conflicted with "on the ground" realities, cultural or social issues of which you were previously unaware, feelings and reactions that you did not expect to have, appearances and soundings of things you did not expect, good or bad outcomes of "on the spot" decisions you had to make, or the discovery of "deeper" realities in the materials you brought home. (Again, skip anything technology-related!)

On my first Drift walk through Riverwest, I was relatively unaware of my cultural surroundings. As I moved farther East, I noticed that I stuck out as a minority. It was a bit of a shock and at first I was a little uneasy about it, but I continued my walk and began to notice that people were relatively friendly and curious about what I was doing with my microphones. A couple people stopped to ask me about it and I explained the project to them. They were interested and wanted to know more. Another surprise that I found on my drift walks was the number of people looking for handouts. In Riverwest alone, I had three people ask me for spare change. I felt for these people, but didn’t feel the need or want to look in my pockets. Instead I lied and said that I had nothing to spare. While recording on Brady, I captured a woman screaming angrily, “HEY! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?” I was shocked to find out that she was yelling at me. Apparently she thought I was writing graffiti on the dumpster that I was standing next to. I was a little startled and I explained to her what it was that I was doing. She seemed a little embarrassed and went back in her shop.

4. Describe your favorite experience, situation, place, or recollection from your Drift. Be specific about what happened, how you felt, how you reacted, and why you think this particular experience affected you so much.

When I came across the children playing at recess, I knew I had to make a recording. They were so joyful and energetic and in the moment. I watched them for a minute from across the street and laughed to myself as they chased each other around the blacktop. The teacher kept a watchful eye on them, but failed to notice me. I walked along the opposite side of the street and began my recording. I envied those kids. Their lives are simple and they have yet to feel the pressure of responsibility. A feeling of wonder washes over me when I think about who they are to become, what choices they’ll have to make and how they’ll make a difference in this world.