Are you concentrating on reading this or thinking of something else?
According to psychologist Prof Michael Corballis, it seems our brains spend half the time goofing off from the task at hand and there's nothing much we can do about it.
Corballis reassured us in his talk The Wandering Mind that it's probably not a big deal, and may even help us be more creative.
The creative process of the NZTrio was revealed in Behind the Curtain and Inside the Notes as they developed a new composition from Claire Cowan, who had not yet heard it performed.
After their first run-though, Cowan gave feedback, helped clarify musical notations and responded to questions of interpretation from the players.
Justine Cormack, Ashley Brown and Sarah Watkins generously took time to explain to a spellbound audience the changes they were making.
Prolific playwright Dave Armstrong's festival offering is a sharply focused comedy drama raising thorny questions about conservation, development and sticking with principles versus selling out.
Central, tightly directed by Conrad Newport, features carefully constructed and beautifully portrayed characters who poke barbed fun at attitudes and issues familiar to most people in Otago.
And as an insight into scripting and movie-making, it's closer to a reality show than many might think. Good fun.
- Nigel Zega
