As you know, I'm here in New Zealand to pursue a PhD, but as that wise philosopher Cindy Lauper once noted, "Girls just want to have fun."
When my working day is done (usually around 4-ish) I want to have fun by playing music that will make people dance.
I've missed Dj-ing at Indian Summer and the MIIS Social Hour in Monterey.
My one night out in Christchurch lead me to believe there was a musical niche for me here somewhere and I made plans to speak to one of the club owners at some point in the future.
Instead, I stopped in to a rather large Irish pub on the way home from Christchurch one night and casually mentioned to the owner that I was a DJ.
It quickly became apparent that he was interested in having me play at the pub.
I wish all job interviews could be that easy!
We met a few nights later and I brought in my laptop so I could show him the DJ program I used and the type of music I had on hand. He liked it and we agreed that I would start on Saturday.
"What's your DJ name?" he asked.
I had been thinking about this for a while and still didn't have a good answer.
"How about DJ Red?" I said finally.
I wear a lot of black and red when I go out and this was just an abbreviation of the "Little Red Riding Hood" nickname some of An's mates had given me.
"You could say I'm direct from the U.S.," I told him, "It makes me seem like a mysterious import."
He next asked me if I drank while I DJ-ed and if I had some colorful past I was running away from.
"Alas, no," I said. "I had to go through a pretty rigorous health and background check to get my student visa."
I told him of my honorable discharge from the military and my pursuit of a PhD at Lincoln.
He seemed slightly dismayed that the legend of DJ Red wouldn't contain any undertones of scandal or criminal misdeeds but he was still cheerful about my upcoming debut.
He asked if I had any requirements while I Dj-ed and I said I wanted all the free tap water I could drink.
"Seems fair," he said.
I left the pub feelings a little nervous and hoped I hadn't gotten into anything I couldn't handle.
I went to a music shop that sold Dj equipment and bought a teeny tiny little mixer made by Pioneer. It was so small that the guy selling it to me applied the word "wee" to it.
In New Zealand the term "wee" brands an object with an adorableness that strips away any chance the object might have had of being taken seriously.
I bought a "wee" tool kit from the local hardware store not long ago. It contains a wee tape measure, a wee hammer, and an assortment of wee nails. Due to its wee-ness I will never be able to take it to a construction sight without being laughed at. Luckily, I don't foresee getting any invitation to work at a construction site any time soon.
The wee Pioneer mixer wasn't my first choice- there was a Numark which I took a shine to but for some reason they had switched to another type of Dj software that I was unfamiliar with.
I didn't want to lose my membership and remix cache with Virtual DJ and since the Pioneer came with it, I bought it.
I decided not to hook up the mixer for my first gig because I knew I would need to familiarize myself with it at home first.
Saturday night wasn't bad but it was a bit of a learning experience as far as what sort of music to play for whom and when.
I spent most of the night shyly stooped over my laptop trying not to draw any attention to myself.
There is a phenomenon here where bus groups come through and disgorge a bunch of (often costumed) young people who drink and dance for about 30-minutes before moving on to the next venue. I had never seen anything like it but the groups do fill up the dance floor quite nicely.
I also learned the term "bogan" that night. It's what they call rednecks here (and would be an apt description of some of my cousins back home).
21st birthday celebrations are also a big deal which surprised me since the legal drinking age is 18. I was told this wasn't always the case and that it used to be 21 so the date is still special.
A group of friends will all go out to drink and dance and at some point they will stop the music and make speeches for the birthday girl or guy.
It was really sweet to watch people take a microphone and recall their fond memories from the celebrant's past. After that concluded, the birthday person drank a bunch of shots and then her entourage hit the dance floor with a vengeance.
I had a very interesting experience with one party-goer that evening but I think I'll keep that story to myself for now.
Last Saturday I returned to DJ with my new mixer and the carrying case.
I got a small thrill when I saw a poster the pub owner had made for "DJ Red, Direct from the U.S.A."
We had two bus groups, one 21st and one rugby team who stopped by that night.
I got several compliments on my musical choices as well as being told I was "gorgeous" by a ridiculously good looking Maori guy.
At some point, a drunk rugby player wandered over and said, "Can you turn up the music sweet-aht?" and I almost said, "Sure thing, sweet cheeks," but decided against provocation at the last minute.
I had a good night and stayed hydrated with lots of free water ( I know my worth dang it!)
I'm looking forward to growing the "Legend of DJ Red" in the coming weeks.
When my working day is done (usually around 4-ish) I want to have fun by playing music that will make people dance.
I've missed Dj-ing at Indian Summer and the MIIS Social Hour in Monterey.
My one night out in Christchurch lead me to believe there was a musical niche for me here somewhere and I made plans to speak to one of the club owners at some point in the future.
Instead, I stopped in to a rather large Irish pub on the way home from Christchurch one night and casually mentioned to the owner that I was a DJ.
It quickly became apparent that he was interested in having me play at the pub.
I wish all job interviews could be that easy!
We met a few nights later and I brought in my laptop so I could show him the DJ program I used and the type of music I had on hand. He liked it and we agreed that I would start on Saturday.
"What's your DJ name?" he asked.
I had been thinking about this for a while and still didn't have a good answer.
"How about DJ Red?" I said finally.
I wear a lot of black and red when I go out and this was just an abbreviation of the "Little Red Riding Hood" nickname some of An's mates had given me.
"You could say I'm direct from the U.S.," I told him, "It makes me seem like a mysterious import."
He next asked me if I drank while I DJ-ed and if I had some colorful past I was running away from.
"Alas, no," I said. "I had to go through a pretty rigorous health and background check to get my student visa."
I told him of my honorable discharge from the military and my pursuit of a PhD at Lincoln.
He seemed slightly dismayed that the legend of DJ Red wouldn't contain any undertones of scandal or criminal misdeeds but he was still cheerful about my upcoming debut.
He asked if I had any requirements while I Dj-ed and I said I wanted all the free tap water I could drink.
"Seems fair," he said.
I left the pub feelings a little nervous and hoped I hadn't gotten into anything I couldn't handle.
I went to a music shop that sold Dj equipment and bought a teeny tiny little mixer made by Pioneer. It was so small that the guy selling it to me applied the word "wee" to it.
In New Zealand the term "wee" brands an object with an adorableness that strips away any chance the object might have had of being taken seriously.
I bought a "wee" tool kit from the local hardware store not long ago. It contains a wee tape measure, a wee hammer, and an assortment of wee nails. Due to its wee-ness I will never be able to take it to a construction sight without being laughed at. Luckily, I don't foresee getting any invitation to work at a construction site any time soon.
The wee Pioneer mixer wasn't my first choice- there was a Numark which I took a shine to but for some reason they had switched to another type of Dj software that I was unfamiliar with.
I didn't want to lose my membership and remix cache with Virtual DJ and since the Pioneer came with it, I bought it.
I decided not to hook up the mixer for my first gig because I knew I would need to familiarize myself with it at home first.
Saturday night wasn't bad but it was a bit of a learning experience as far as what sort of music to play for whom and when.
I spent most of the night shyly stooped over my laptop trying not to draw any attention to myself.
There is a phenomenon here where bus groups come through and disgorge a bunch of (often costumed) young people who drink and dance for about 30-minutes before moving on to the next venue. I had never seen anything like it but the groups do fill up the dance floor quite nicely.
I also learned the term "bogan" that night. It's what they call rednecks here (and would be an apt description of some of my cousins back home).
21st birthday celebrations are also a big deal which surprised me since the legal drinking age is 18. I was told this wasn't always the case and that it used to be 21 so the date is still special.
A group of friends will all go out to drink and dance and at some point they will stop the music and make speeches for the birthday girl or guy.
It was really sweet to watch people take a microphone and recall their fond memories from the celebrant's past. After that concluded, the birthday person drank a bunch of shots and then her entourage hit the dance floor with a vengeance.
I had a very interesting experience with one party-goer that evening but I think I'll keep that story to myself for now.
Last Saturday I returned to DJ with my new mixer and the carrying case.
I got a small thrill when I saw a poster the pub owner had made for "DJ Red, Direct from the U.S.A."
We had two bus groups, one 21st and one rugby team who stopped by that night.
I got several compliments on my musical choices as well as being told I was "gorgeous" by a ridiculously good looking Maori guy.
At some point, a drunk rugby player wandered over and said, "Can you turn up the music sweet-aht?" and I almost said, "Sure thing, sweet cheeks," but decided against provocation at the last minute.
I had a good night and stayed hydrated with lots of free water ( I know my worth dang it!)
I'm looking forward to growing the "Legend of DJ Red" in the coming weeks.
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