New Announced Release Date For The Harmony Tuesday, February 27, 2007

APRIL!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?

The general release date for the Harmony has been pushed back to April.

I’m frustrated. When I had the surgery in July, I was looking forward to a January release. That’s one of the reasons I went ahead and got it then, because I wanted to have the Harmony within a few months of having surgery.

Then the release was postponed to February, understandable. But I just got off the phone with Eric at Advanced Bionics, who informs me that the general release date is now April.

APRIL!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?

My friend David is getting his two Harmony processors next week, but he was a participant in the bilateral cochlear implant study at Boys Town.

As Mandy put it eloquently – “I feel like I’m waiting for something off eBay and it just never arrives.”

Recognizing Crazy Town’s “Butterfly” Within A Second Monday, February 12, 2007

Last time I talked about the sounds I was hearing at the hockey game. It held true for the next night.

The most exciting moment happened on Saturday. I was fiddling around with the camera, when I instantly recognized a song as soon as it started. Once again, Crazy Town’s “Butterfly” was recognized within less than one second and played for about 3 seconds, as the game started up again.

I turned to JJ and said “That sounds like Crazy Town’s ‘Butterfly’.”

“It is.”

“It is? No way, are you serious??? That is SO awesome!”

I was all excited over that because I have no idea what they’re going to play at the games, and usually everything sounds distorted coming through the PA system.

Finally, here’s a picture of me shooting away! I took about 12+ gigs of photos this weekend of ice hockey alone. It was my first time doing sports photography, and I found that I absolutely love love LOVE it. I plan to continue with it but next weekend is our last two home games, and then the season’s over. We’re not eligible for the playoffs this year, but next year.

I’ve met so many people this year through hockey, including some cute guys. I may have a date or two…we will see. ^.^

(photo by JJ)

The Magic Of Speech Saturday, February 10, 2007

Thursday during critique, I was sitting behind a classmate, Dustin. He started speaking, so I moved behind him so that I was 45 degrees from his face. I unable to see his lips, but could see his face moving with the motions of his lips.

I found myself able to understand 80% of what he was saying. It was pretty cool, considering that he has a goatee, and is soft-spoken. I’m not sure if knowing what we’re talking about helps in understanding what’s being discussed, or if my brain was just magically understanding things at that time.

I did my first-ever sports shooting assignment last night. I had a press pass, so I was able to go down right next to the glass, and cover the territory.

The coolest part was that while I was shooting, I could hear the crowd yelling, and instead of a bunch of noise, it had meaning. I’m staring through the lens, focused on the game, I hear exactly what they’re yelling, word-for-word, and able to jump in and follow along with them. That was exciting to me.

Tonight’s my second night of shooting, so let’s see what happens!

It Doesn’t Change How I Like It…LOUD Thursday, February 1, 2007

After a few months of avoiding music because my brain was tired, graduating to playing at low volume, then listening to it through headphones, I finally realized something tonight.

No matter how deaf I am, if I have a cochlear implant or not, I’m always going to like my music loud.

Unfortunately, this doesn’t bode well for the poor souls that are within a five-mile radius of me, whether on the road or at home.

There is nothing like the feel of the bass pulsing through your body. The vibrations cascading down your back. The ripples of the sound as it skips around your ears, giving you a pleasant rush, leading you to the crescending high. Music is my drug. It’s an addiction that I can shake, but only for so long.

I just have to blast it, drench myself in sound. I have to feel it through every inch of my body. And tonight, I had the feeling of being reborn through the songs.

“4 My People (Basement Jaxx Remix Radio Edit)” – Missy Elliott
“Lazy (Original Mix) [feat. David Byrne]“ – X-Press 2
“Young, Fresh N’ New (Timo Maas Remix)” – Kelis
“It’s Gonna Be…(A Lovely Day) [Bini&Martini Club Remix]“ – Brancaccio&Aisher
“Shifter (Full Vocal Mix) [feat. MC Chickaboo]“ – Timo Maas
“Salsoul Nugget (If You Wanna) [Extended Vocal Mix]“ – Girl Next Door
“Groovejet (If This Ain’t Love, Then Why Does It Feel So Good) [Extended Vocal Mix]“ – Spiller
“What A Girl Wants (Thunderpuss Dirty Club Mix)” – Christina Aguilera
“Freakin’ You” – Jungle Brothers
“Rendez-Vu” – Basement Jaxx
“Blue Skies (Deep Dish Blue Phunk Mix) [feat. Tori Amos]“ – bt
“Lapdance (Paul Oakenfold Swordfish Mix)” – N.E.R.D.

The cochlear implant won’t change how I like my music. It does give me the ability to hear it when it’s faint, but it doesn’t have the same energy and intensity for me. I cannot deny who I am.

So! In the words of Nintendo’s Game Boy Campaign from the 1990s…“Play It Loud”. Rock on! \m/

And for the eardrums everywhere who hoped that the CI would make things quieter…I’m so very sorry.

p.s. If you’re familiar with any of those songs, and can think of more that I might enjoy, please share!