Out of My Comfort Zone

I have stepped out of my comfort zone recently and undertaken a volunteer position as a Reviewer with a local cultural event portal website culturehunter.org  To date I have written and posted two reviews and  I am making the understatement of the century when I say I am on a steep learning curve. From my viewpoint I'm at Base Camp on Mt Everest!    

My first attempt at reviewing an event was a nerve-wracking affair.  I chose to review an art exhibit for a local pioneering deceased artist.  The exhibition was being held by his wife at the Newcastle Community Arts Centre. I had seen the exhibition mentioned on the Centre's Facebook page and was interested in seeing a local painter's works which included many well-known Newcastle vistas.  The fact that this painter had also immigrated from Italy when he was 9 years old was not lost on this self-confessed Italiophile either. So off I trotted excitedly one Saturday afternoon to the exhibition, completely unprepared in hindsight, with the Lord of the Wetlands in tow.  My Lord was performing photographer duties for me. 

Now looking at art is not a hardship for me, I enjoy perusing the canvases but asking the hard questions is!  My first gaff was on introducing myself to the artist's wife and the curator, I recognised the wife's surname but I hadn't cottoned onto the fact that she was his wife (being in her early 60's should have been my first clue) and said "Oh your his daughter?", "No",she said, "I'm his wife!" ... D'OH!  My second gaff came when giving artist's wife and the curator the URL for the website I was reviewing for, I completely ballsed it up getting the actual name of the organisation wrong!  Worse, the light-bulb didn't come on until later that evening when my Lord and I were relaxing at home.  Needless to say I crept shamefacedly back into the gallery the following day to rectify my mistake.    

This Saturday just gone I undertook a short creative writing course through the Hunter Writers Centre.  I was unsure at the time of attending this class whether or not I would able to review the course for the culturehunter.org website so again I wasn't properly prepared.  Once I got the go-ahead on the Sunday evening I was forced to email my teacher and ask (beg?!) her to supply some of the information regarding her qualifications and the background of how the course and the Centre came about.  Thankfully she was lovely about it all and happily supplied me with a virtually pre-written review.  

I have had some feedback on my first review which was considered a bit 'clumsy' and I concur.  I have yet to hear back about my second attempt but I did have some help with the factual content, actually the mere fact that there is factual content is due in thanks to my creative writing course teacher!  One thing I know for sure is that I have no desire to be a journalist.  I am quite content being a blogger for the moment.  However, I am not quitting.  This experience has plenty more to teach me and it is forcing me to get up out of my typist's chair and from behind my widescreen computer monitor and out into the real world!