Not a Hero

Life can turn on a dime.  Fortunately for me, so can my broken down Saturn.  I usually take the I-95 express lane to work which is located in Miami.  The express lane charges toll is divided from the rest of the interstate with orange traffic markers about 4 foot tall.  There is one entrance in North Miami and you can not exit until you reach the down town area of Miami.  The regular highway is free but always congested so I opt to pay the toll.  Yesterday a black camaro lost control on I-95 and came across the traffic markers at a 90 degree angle hitting the car in front of me and continued at me head on.  I managed to hit the brakes a skid out of the way of the camaro as I drove through shattered glass and passed the car ahead of me which turnover due to the collision.  I immediately pulled over and ran back to help the people in the turned over vehicle.  I was surprised how many cars just kept going and did not stop to help.  Only one other guy, the one in the picture stopped to help.  A police officer on his way to work pulled over and turned on his lights and offered assistance until the Highway Patrol and rescue could arrive to check out the occupants of the vehicles.  Later, so one in my Jiu Jitsu class said I was a hero for rescuing the people in the flipped over vehicle.  I said I was not a hero, I just helped them out of the car.  They were dazed, but appeared OK.  It does not take a hero to stop and help, just a concerned citizen with compassion for his fellow man.  Maybe the people that kept driving thought some one else would take care of it or they were too scarred to get involved.  I will probably be inconvenienced and have to go to a deposition in the future since I witnessed the accident, but I could not just keep driving while some one might be hurt.  I just thank God that I could go home to my family that night.

Republished from my blog Capes and Kids Feb 15th, 2012 3:53pm

“You are her hero, you are Superman.”

On January 21st 2012 the world lost a hero. His name was Ernesto Custodio, and he was my good friend and mentor. Ernesto had a heart of gold, always in a good mood and always ready to go to work. He was one of the smartest men I have ever known. He was a broadcast engineer and at the top of his game when it came to high power radio transmitters. Ernesto was from the Dominican Republic and he built radio stations and transmitter sites in Florida, Puerto Rico, South America and the Caribbean. Ernesto’s real strength was improvisation, I used to call him the Dominican Macgyver. Working in poorer countries or stuck in a transmitter site on the top of a mountain, he learned to use what he had at his disposal. I worked with Ernesto over the past 13 years at Clear Channel Broadcasting and Univision Radio. I learned so much following him around and assisting him on radio studio buildouts and transmitter installations. Our boss Max would always joke that Ernesto was like a slave driver cracking his whip for me to climb up a ladder to run wires through the ceiling. He was a work horse, we even continued working on 911 when the rest of the world stopped to stare at the TV as planes crashed into the Trade Centers. “Dom, (his thick accent when he said Tom) it makes me too sad to watch this, lets keep on going on our project senor.” So why am I talking about this guy on a blog dedicated to super heroes? Because he was one. Ernesto’s personality and stature was like Ben Grimm the ever lovin blue eyed Thing from the Fantastic Four. His heart was just as pure, sure he had his faults…quite a lot of them. He could be very impulsive, greedy, wrathful and gluttonous. He even hooked up his fair share of pirate radio stations and illegal DirectTV systems. But he had a profound wisdom that helped him raise four exceptional children and solve almost any crisis. He was Mr. Fixit. The guy who came up with a solution for any problem. He was also very inventive, we would come up with ideas for all sorts of stuff on our long drives to our transmitter site locations. He was strong, I have seen Ernesto man handle transmitters weighing hundreds of pounds. He battled cancer for three years and refused to retire. Most people would have thrown in the towel after the regime of treatments he had to endure. Not Ernesto, he would show up the day after Chemotherapy and be lifting heavy equipment and installing it in the transmitter site. He was inspirational. Years ago when my Daughter Logan was around 4 years old I remember the words he told me. “You are her hero, you are Superman. Every thing you do she will emulate. She will look up to you. So you must always be at your very best.” He was right. I could not ask for a more responsible, intelligent, compassionate kid, Logan is now 15 and is a straight A Kid taking all honors classes and has won tons of awards for her academic achievements and athletic ability (Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Champion). Wise words coming from the guy who at the time was installing my pirated DirectTV system. Even heroes have their flaws. Rest in Peace my friend, I miss you.


Republish from my blog Capes and Kids Feb 2nd, 2012 11:47pm

Becoming One With The Force

A few months ago one of our family dogs passed away from a heart attack. Her name was Love. She was a hundred and twenty pounds of pure mischief mixed with as her name implies…love. She was the watchdog of the family, the alpha dog that dominated the yard and kept strangers and creatures from invading our sanctuary. The UPS driver feared her so much that he would toss our packages over the front gate and run back to his truck as she ripped the outer package to shreds. People walking down the street were startled with fear as she ran growling towards our front gate with her wing man Rocket in tow. Two black labs protecting our lair as effectively as the dynamic duo. She was responsible for the untimely demise of several cats and multiple squirrels, hamsters, rats, snakes, birds, iguanas, and her favorite snack lizards. She was a holy terror to creatures large and small and even bit her buddy Rocket a few times that ended in expensive vet bills. I used to call her Darth Love because she would sit at the front door with her nose pressed against it, smelling an intruder on her turf and inhaling so loud that she sounded like the Dark Lord of the Sith. But this chubby puppy had a soft side and that was when she was with the kids. She was fiercely protective of them and never ever was aggressive with them. She had always been around as longer as they can remember. She was 11 years old when she passed and was an integral part of our kids childhoods. She passed away at Midnight on a Sunday. My wife and I loaded her into our truck and took her to the emergency animal hospital while Grandma watched the sleeping children. We did not tell the kids before school because we knew how devastating that would of been. I got home early from work that day so I could break the news. They were heart broken. Especially Hunter who is only 8 years old. I could not calm him down until I found a way to explain death in a way he could understand. Star Wars, Hunter loves Star Wars. Whose wisdom other than Yoda’s would be better to apply to the situation? After hugging him for a long long time, I sat him down and repeated these words to him. “Death is a natural part of life. Rejoice for those who transform into the Force. Mourn them do not. Miss them do not. Attachment leads to jealousy. The shadow of greed, that is.“ Hunter recognized the words belonging to his hero Yoda. He calmed down like any good Jedi would and we discussed what it means to lose someone we love. A green muppet was able to bridge the gap and connect with his young mind in a way that I could not. Our fatty patty dog Love has now become one with the force.


Republished from my blog Capes and Kids Jan 4th, 2012 3:58pm

Powerless

Yesterday 3PM.  The Broward Sheriff’s helicopter was repeatedly circling around my neighborhood.  That usually means a bad guy is on the loose and they are trying to locate him.  I anxiously awaited for the arrival of my 15 year old daughter Logan who would shortly be dropped off by the school bus.  I used the remote clicker to open our electronic gate to make it easier for her to get into the yard.  My wife Jennifer and son Hunter arrived home from his elementary school at the same moment as my daughter.  Relieved, we went inside and locked the door behind us.  Shortly, we received an automated call from the Broward Sheriff’s Office informing us an 11 year old Hispanic girl is missing and to please check our yard.  Jen went outside and was really concerned stating the girl is only a few years older than our 8 year old boy and the girl’s parents must be freaking out.  The address of the missing girl was also just a few blocks away.  A friend of ours called on Jen’s cell phone and broke the bad news.  “Tom!  It is Ashley!  Ashley from church!  That is who is missing!”  It struck.  The sense of urgency and panic.  My wife and kids started to cry immediately.  This is a child, a small child that we have known for years and is part of our circle.  The youngest child from a loving family with 4 girls, the father runs the parents group Jen attends every Sunday.  We see them every week, we work the church fair with them, we celebrate holidays with them.  Ashley is an A student, she has received awards for perfect FCAT scores and for playing the violin.  Ashley went out of her house around 1 PM to check the mail and never returned.  “How do we help?  Jen cried!  We immediately jumped in our truck and went to their house.  The street was filled with vehicles from the Sheriff’s office.  The father was crying as he walked with the officers and their blood hounds as they went door to door looking for Ashley.  Ashley’s mom started crying as soon as she hugged Hunter, which triggered my boy to also break out in tears.  Ashley’s older sister printed out a recent picture of her and we hit the road in search for the little girl.  We went to the closest store which was a supermarket and made copies of the picture to hang there and all the local businesses.  We scoured the neighborhood looking for her and showed everyone the flyer.  What would Batman do?  We printed out the addresses of every sex offender in the neighborhood and slowly drove by every one of their houses with eyes wide open and ears listening for anything unusual.  We got flashlights and searched a local canal, checked the local community pool, and a nearby go kart track.  The powerless feeling set in when it got dark about 3 hours later.  A cold front was moving in and temperatures were beginning to dip into the 40’s.  We really began to suspect foul play and our hopes of finding her turned into a prayer vigil.  We dropped off the kids with grandma and returned to our friends house to offer support.  Around 11 PM we went home fearing the worst, that some one has abducted her.  There were 3 sexual predators listed in the immediate area and about a dozen sexual offenders.  3 of them lived less than a block from Ashley’s house and one lived right across the street.  I began having flash backs from my child hood when we lost the neighborhood boy Adam Walsh; who later showed up decapitated in a canal.  Adam’s father went on to Washington to fight for victims rights and became the point man on America’s Most Wanted.  I always tell my family that he became a real life Batman.  Click here http://www.documenting-life.com/ for my videography blog discussing Adams story titled The Real Batman.  My kids were so scared last night that they both slept in our bed, I told them that I really wish I had super powers so I could find Ashley.  I tossed and turned.  Like a helpless child, I tried foolishly to reach out with my mind like the Martin Manhunter.  Like J’onn J’onzz using his telepathic ability I tried desperately to sense her whereabouts.  You will try anything in desperate situations.  Suddenly, the phone rang.  Ashley had been found walking in the parking lot of the local library about a mile from her house.  She was lost, cold and dehydrated but she was alright.  A good friend of ours Jenny and her daughter Julie did one last search before calling it a night.  God led them to that parking lot that had been searched multiple times before.  A place we had checked only a few hours earlier.  According to the Sun Sentinel, Ashley wandered off and disappeared, something she’s never done. Distrustful of strangers, Ashley didn’t approach anyone for help.  Instead, the girl tried to return home on her own and was lost.  This was a good lesson for all of us.  I think my kids realize what could of happened to Ashley and will take stranger danger a little more seriously.  They also shared the sense of community and love that our Church Saint Maurice brought to the family while going through those anxiety ridden hours.  Our kids were part of the team of parishioners that immediately came to the family’s aid and began the search.  Any one can make a difference, even without super powers.

Republished from my blog Capes and Kids Jan 3rd, 2012 4:13pm

She is no push over

This is a video promoting our Brazilian Jiu Jitsu teams Mixed Martial Arts program for kids. My daughter Logan is being put through the paces by our coach Marcelo.

Notice how I use a shooting technique called WALLDO. Wide shot, Angle shot, Low shot, Linking shot, Depth of Field Shot and Opposite. It is a great acronym to remember for shooting video or photography. The wide shot can be used to establish the scene. An angled shot is more interesting than a straight forward view. Low shot gives a unique perspective while the linking shots establish your local and prevents jump cuts during editing. Depth of field is shooting with an opject in the foreground such as the fence in this video. Opposite would be used to provide the subjects point of view. Example, while shooting a concert that focuses on the stage, also grab shots from the bands perspective looking into the audience.

Back From Hiatus

It has been awhile since I last posted here. I recently terminated my website where I hosted my blog. I decided to keep the url and use this blog as my new vehicle to discuss all things video related. New content is coming and I hope to cross promote my families Brazilian Jiu Jitsu blog and how our BJJ school has used video to help market our team. I also plan to make more tutorials to help you create your own video productions for fun and profit.

Thanks for visiting,

Tom

The Real Batman

Today I attended a Get Motivated Seminar in Fort Lauderdale. The speakers were Rudy Giuliani, Zig Ziglar, Gen. Colin Powell, DR. Robert Schuller, Dwyane Wade, Dan Marino and John Walsh. They were all great motivators but the one who I connected with the best was John Walsh from the TV show “America’s Most Wanted”. John has always been a personal hero of mine. I always tell my kids that he is the real life version of Batman. In 1981, John’s six year old son was abducted and murdered by a drifter in Hollywood, Florida. His son Adam was in the Sear’s toy department watching some older boys play Colecovision and Atari video games. A teenage security guard kicked the rowdy boys out of the store along the six year old Adam who was waiting for his mom while she picked out a lamp. That was the moment that serial killer Ottis Toole capitalized on. No one knew that Adam was thrown out of the store. That was information that was just released last year by the Hollywood Police Dept. At the time there was no system in place to help locate missing children. No tracking system of known pedophiles or communications between police organizations and morgues. John and his wife Reve fought to change that. They helped bring about the Missing Children’s Assistance Act and help form the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. John was approached by the newly created Fox Network to host a reality show AMW that would track down criminals. He reluctantly agreed to host the Pilot since it’s focus was a child serial killer.

I have always felt a connection to this case. As a twelve year old boy, I played the video games daily at the Sears Mall where Adam was abducted. Except that day. I was even on the local News playing the very same games the next day. I thought that carrying a pocket knife would protect me from any one who would want to harm me. I remember the posters for Adam all over Hollywood. The freedom to go out and play was lost. Parents were terrified that their kids would be next. How a once vibrant neighborhood became almost vacant around Halloween. Everyone was scared, it took awhile before the murderer was caught. John is one guy who turned a horrible situation into an opportunity to make the world a better place to live. He has helped capture over 1000 fugitives…and that was done with video.



Reenactments to tell a story, that is how America’s Most Wanted is able to relay the information in a gripping format that requires a call to action from it’s viewers. You too can use reenactments in your own video biographies to tell a visual story. Stock footage is readily available on the Internet and entire low cost libraries can be purchased off websites like www.digitaljuice.com. Old historical film can be downloaded for free from www.archive.org. These clips can help move along a narration and help illustrate the subjects recollections of their lives.