Sickness Reigns Supreme

Ok, I have Com Fest Cold. It strikes each year during the festival, taking away voice, energy and enthusiasm. Thank God it didn't happen sooner (although secretly I was hoping it wouldn't happen until the last week of the festival but that was being really optimistic). A night in (yes, still working away, but at least not out and about) is a much needed antidote, and I hope I can manage to still get what needs to be done out of the way.

I'm feeling a little drained and cynical about The Pun this week. Mostly because it was a hard edition to get out and there are a few problems going on I don't know how to sort out. The most rewarding thing, though, is actually handing the magazine out each night. We put out a new edition fresh from the presses last night and it was snapped up in no time at all. It's so infrequent as an editor that you get to see hundreds of people literally reading the magazine in front of your eyes. People lining up to get into shows, standing around waiting for friends, flicking through it to pick a show... it's amazing. We've also become unofficial ambassadors of the festival as we stand out the front of the Melbourne Town Hall; people come to us for advice on what show to see or where they need to go. Next year I'm demanding money as a festival usher 'cos we work just as hard as those guys! That's not the draining and cynical part obviously.

The draining and cynical part happens when I sit down in front of my computer or when I hear people telling me all about what they think should/shouldn't be happening. How come it's the people who do the least who feel like they have the right to tell you what you should be doing in the least productive manner? Our strongest team members work so hard for so little, the shows in the festival who need the biggest hand ask for the least. I'm open to criticism and already looking forward to sitting down with our 'mentors' to talk to them about where we went wrong (because I know there are so many ways we did!), how to improve on it for next time, resolving some of the logistical issues and how to build forward from here. But that's from people whose opinion I respect. I don't want to hear it from some hack who was happy about the magazine before the review of their show wasn't glowing (and has now cracked it, despite the fact that the review was not all bad), from a writer who didn't even bother to show up to one of their shows and is pouting about a review from another one, and team members who seem to have forgotten what their job is but think you need a reminder of yours (with little understanding of how many hours you are putting in or how difficult the job actually is).

Don't mind me, I'm just sick and tired (of people). For a project that was meant to be inclusive, people sure aren't treating it that way. It's only good for as long as they don't have to actually put their neck on the line, or step up and do the hard work. I wonder what our mentors will have to say about that. I keep trying to remind myself how well the magazine is working, how much we have achieved, the massive interest we have generated... all the positive things are really, really positive. I guess it just takes the shine off when there are a certain group of people who want to take the good bits and not accept the bad bits, which is what any kind of project like this demands by its very nature.

Winding down

It's just about over. I'm still sick, still tired, still frustrated. But it's nearly over. All my writing is done, I've only got about ten more shows to get reviewers to over the next week and our last edition is about to be proofed and sent off to the printers. It's a huge weight off my shoulders. While I feel better than when I wrote the last entry, things have still been difficult. The more unfavourable reviews we have published, the more complaints we get (of course). It's funny how quickly people forget that they used to love the idea of your magazine... until it doesn't go soft on them.

On the upside, I have two days in the office this week, then a week off to enjoy giving out the last edition and seeing some shows for myself. It's taken a while and I'm really looking forward to it. I saw Tim Minchin's show on Saturday night, which was everything I expected. He's heading to Sydney soon, so Northern Folk look out for him and go see the show - it's one of the best things you can treat yourself to! So damn good.

Now on to the next set of challenges... our next version of The Pun (meetings already set up for next week!), NSEMC planning, some homework for school (I really, really need to get that happening!) and helping Paul to take over Rabelais. I'm looking forward to my weekend of luxury with Himself in a couple of weeks... relaxation away from computers will do us both good I think!