FINISHED!!!

We are FINALLY done with our project and the countdown hasn't hit zero yet! Who would have thought that could happen? Hopefully you guys will like what you see tomorrow and we will not have to change anything. The editing process was a pain in the butt and I hope I will never have to walk into the digital media lab EVER again. Best of luck to everyone else on their projects!!

Middle

Since Katy and I are working together we just wrote one blog post. It is on Katy's blog, here is the link:

http://sskab.blogspot.com/

More Photos!

Yummy

Cafeteria

Inside the cafeteria, not looking too good

The Cafeteria on the Men's Campus

Ooops, We didnt see the signs

Apartments On the Men's Campus

As you can see from the pictures, Katy and I have made it up to the Heavenly Mountain area a few times now. We went up there with Jessica, who lives in the apartments on the men's campus. The majority of our footage and pictures are from that side of the resort, we have not been able to figure out exactly where the women's side of the campus is located. We think it may not be as easily accessible as the mens. It was an exciting experience visiting all of the different areas of the resort and appreciating, in person, just how huge it really is. Among the most interesting places we were able to explore was the temple. I just couldnt believe how big it was! It seems like such a waste of a perfectly good building.

I think that our project is moving into its final stretch. We just need maybe one more interview, with David Kaplan hopefully, and then we will be able to begin the grueling editing process. We still have not been able to contact anyone who lived there doing the time of TM, maybe in the nect few weeks... Scheduling is the hardest part of our project, actually getting in contact with people and setting up interviews. Some people are completely opposed to being on camera. I am hopeful that the finished project we produce will be informative and interesting for people to watch.

Research

The research for the documentary is really coming along and I am only excited to learn more. The story behind Heavenly Mountain is more complicated then I thought it would be. At first I was worried that we wouldn't be able to talk to anyone who knew the real story. All the information online was so jumbled and limited. Then I got in touch with Joe Furman, the director of the Watauga County Planning and Inspections Department, and he gave me a much clearer explanation. He was involved in the resort's entire planning process, since 1993. He provided me with maps and several files. Joe Furman agreed to do an on-camera interview for us as well, so now we have our first key interview.

Katy and I have also discovered the file in the Appalachian Collections section of the library. There is an entire file of newspaper clippings with anything related to Heavenly Mountain, ranging from 1993 to today. We have been going through the clippings extensively and have been learning a lot about Transcendental Meditation and the Spiritual Center of America.

We need to figure out who our other key interviews will be for the project. I am hoping that we can get in touch with a former resident of the resort, when it was still the center of Transcendental Meditation. It would be really interesting to understand how it was to live there during the height of its time. Joe Furman told me that it was rumored that George Harrison visited the resort, he was an avid TM practitioner. It would have been awesome to live where a Beatle visited.

Getting Started

The Heavenly Mountain project has begun to come together very well. It seems less daunting now that I have a partner. Katy and I have been doing research on the resort and attempting to locate any information available on the subject. There are many sources online, but their realiability is questionable. We're going to have to sift through old local newspapers in order to uncover the most credible information.

I'm really excited about actually visiting the resort and seeing what state it's in. Does it really resemble a scene out of "The Shining" like one review described? The next nice day we have, Katy and I are going to have to make a trip up there.

Project Ideas

Before class on Tuesday I was completely lost when it came to ideas for my senior project. I have written so many papers on numerous different environmental subjects and would like this project to be completely different from those. I am extremely grateful to all the people who threw out suggestions for me, it really helped get the ball moving. The two ideas that stick out to me the most right now are:

1.) Exploring where the food on campus comes from. Is it viable to have local food on campus? Compare Appalachian to other campus cafeterias.

2.) Uncovering the mystery of Heavenly Mountain. Find out the history behind it and where it is going now. How environmentally sustainable really is the community?

Since I am attempting to stear away from a paper, I would like to incorporate my findings for either potential project into a film. I know that making movies isn't easy and will take time, I have actually made 4 or 5 over my college career. I am going to research both topics and see if either one's completion is actually possible before the end of the semester.

Major

I am an Environmental Policy and Planning Major with a minor in Biology. I chose this concentration because I have always held a passion for our surrounding environment and the creatures within it. My courses have covered a broad variety of subjects ranging from Planning, Philosophy, Sustainable Development, Anthropology, Ecology, and Environmental Studies. I have been studying the environment since I was in Middle School and was finally allowed to choose the topics of my papers. Every paper I have written since has covered an issue with at least some shade of green. My goal in life is to help salvage the Earth's environment, in whatever form it may take.