sharky answers:

No, you don’t have to take the test if you pass a drivers education course. You also don’t have to take a test if you fail a drivers education course. But to get a drivers license in the state of Florida you have to take, and pass an actual, behind the wheel with an examiner in the car with you asking you to do things, driving test.

sharky answers:

You just schedule an appointment for your driving test and take your driving test. Your permit should have a star just after the license number. If so, you wouldn’t have to bring any documents. Just bring your permit and your parents (since you are under 18).

You do what the instructor tells you to do. They will tell you to do a 3 point turn, straight -in parking, a quick stop and reversing (possibly). Other things the instructor won’t tell you to do (and you will still be tested on) because you’re expected to know this. This includes knowing your signs and what to do at them, putting on your seat belt and using your signal lights.

sharky answers:

In NC you just walk in. You could call them and ask, if you need an appt they can make it then and if they say no you only wasted 2 minutes.

sharky answers:

‘Professional Driver’ can mean a lot of things. From being a driving instructor, to driving lorries, to giving race track tuition.

If you want to star in car commercials and movies, or be a test driver for a manufacturer then you will be an experienced high-performance driver. That means racing/rally experience, not necessarily at high level but experience driving single seaters or tin tops. Then you can branch into things such as track tuition and stunt driving. The pay varies with track tuition greatly depending on who you work for and how much hours you do. As a stunt driver you will get quite large payments for jobs on big films. So if you want to do this…save some money and get racing!

However, you can earn a living being a driver by doing more road based stuff. You can become a driving instructor, helping make the roads safer. You can go on from this and become an advanced instructor potentially giving lessons to qualified company fleet drivers, police and military etc. Pay rates vary but here in the U.K you can earn £500(ish) a week as an instructor and potentially double and more if you start your own driving academy.

What does it take? Comitment and great driving ability.

sharky answers:

I think you need to be surrounded with ppl who love you and need you .. As in yoru son… I know its hard but instead of him relying on his dad you should keep yoru mind focused on him tooo… Its not easy losing a parent i know cus i lost my dad at 17 .. But keeping active is a good thing.

sharky answers:

By becoming an expert, which means lots of lessons

http://www.bobbyoresports.com/schedule.htm

Contact them, and sign up.

sharky answers:

The movie ‘Driving Lessons’ with Rupert Grint

sharky answers:

You say that you have had many local roles – are these in school shows, in community theatre or in professional theatre? The more professional credits you have, the more attractive you will be to a casting director. If you don’t have any professional theatre credits yet, you may want to focus on that for a while.

If you have plenty of local credits that include professional theatre and you are specifically aiming at a movie or TV career, you may want to start looking for an agent to represent you. This isn’t easy. Do some research and find out who the legitimate talent agencies are in your area. Any agency that wants up-front money or requires you to take classes with them or use their photographer are not real talent agencies. You want an agent who is affiliated with AFTRA, SAG and Equity, the three big actors’ unions.

You should also understand that, until you are 18, you cannot sign with an agent on your own. A parent or guardian is the only person who can sign legally binding documents on your behalf – such as a representation contract with an agent, a contract with a studio, etc. Until you have your driver’s license, you will also need someone who can drive you to auditions, rehearsals, shooting sites, etc. Talk to your parents and make sure they are on board with your plans. If both your parents work, they may not be willing or able to do all the things you need to pursue a professional career now.

Good luck.

sharky answers:

This is the real deal: to be famous, you have to have a passion and drive to act. If you are just looking for movie auditions for your own fame, you will get NOWHERE! About 85-95% film actors never make a name for themselves but do the job because they love it too much to let it go.

First off, local community theatre troupes are a SUPERB way to gain experience for stage AND screen acting! Audition for as many theatres as you can, no matter how big or small the role you might get is or the likelihood of even getting a role. Theatre is well-respected on a resume, even for a film actor!

Secondly, you need acting lessons and the ability to accept small roles in local independent or student films. Check out Craigslist or regional websites like actingmidwest.com or newenglandfilm.com for auditions (Craigslist may not be legit so approach with caution!).

If you want to move up from independent and student films, you need experience and training (and a headshot!) to submit to an agency. If the agency asks for ANY money, it’s a scam!

This is the real deal! Good luck with your future endeavors!

sharky answers:

During the summer at Woodward park they have the Shakesphere Festival. Each summer I think there are 2 plays that they act out. 4 weeks for each? I can’t remember.

To be honest- there really isn’t much other than what you listed. Madera has the drive-ins which is fun…

One of the schools (it changes each semester) offers swim lessons/free swims. They are really early in the morning though- but definitely fun.

Depending on your children(s) ages, you may be able to check out the Fresno Adult School. They have all kinds of classes like watercolor, ceramics, dancing, cooking, etc. Here’s the direct link and on the left side of the page are the lists of classes. I have done several (I’m not a teen though) and this will change in a few weeks for the fall semester

http://www.adultedreg.com/fresno/index.cfm?processtype=department&deptid=186

Theres a water park right near Shaw/99 if you are into cesspools of millions of children….

Hope I could be slightly helpful.

Good luck

sharky answers:

Are needles attracted to magnets? If so this may work, BUT IT POTENTIALLY COULD CAUSE PROBLEMS ON YOU COMPUTER. Turn off you computer. Try to maneuver the needle so that it is as far away for your where your hard drive is as possible. Next, use a weak as possible magnet to get at it and your set. Alternatively, remove one key where the needle is and get to it. This will mean you may have to strugg;e to get the key back on. But I would not be afraid to try my first option if you follow the instructions, because the only real danger to your computer if it is off, would be to the harddrive or possibly the screen. Good luck!

sharky answers:

Of course you can. As long as it’s a state approved driving school. I would check that out first and make sure they are.

sharky answers:

No, you have to go to a class for 5-10 day and then you can get a legal license. My sister was wondering about the same thing so she contacted someone and asked and they said that she has to go for either five or ten days. I`m not sure how many days but, I am sure that you have to go to Driving School!

sharky answers:

I don’t know how this works in the specific state your in. In my state once you turn 16 you are required to go to a driving school and take 6 hours of lessons (however prior to that you must pass the written test). And no, unfortunately you have to hire a driving instructor to teach you (which COMPLETELY sucks). But after that you get your permit. You then keep your permit for the next year until your 17th birthday. Then you take a drivers test, and if you pass that you get your provisional licence. This is a licence with many restrictions on it. A few of these are: you can’t drive certain hours of the night, can’t have more than 1 non family member in the car with you, you can’t use any wireless devices (ex: Bluetooth). And after a year with you provisional licence, on your 18th birthday you can get a normal unrestricted licence.

sharky answers:

I used to live in andheri west n i would say go to the rto……personally none of my family used a driving school………..but the people in rto will give u some names n they will give the best of the best……..thts the way friends did it

sharky answers:

You can do an online course, here are the details; http://www.online-defensive-driving-class.com/ms-mississippi-defensive-driving-school.html

sharky answers:

Seriously, a good driving school will increase your chances exponentially of getting your license as opposed to learning from your family. Family members, regardless of how well their intentions, have a tendency to make your nervous because they’re nervous. Driving instructors are trained to be patient and to keep you calm. Also driving instructors keep up to date with changes in the driving test, so they can better prepare you for what to expect (as opposed to your family who might have taken the test 30-40 years ago). They will also have a lesson plan worked out to ensure everything you need to know is covered. Also you may pick up bad habits from your family that could lead to a fail in your test.

sharky answers:

Most driving schools do have fees for individual instruction. Just look in the Yellow Pages. There are over 40 such schools in the greater Washington area.

sharky answers:

It seems to me that ‘driving school’ lasted for 6 weeks. (My kids went to driving school in 1989-90-91 — a long time ago!) But HERE is the clinker…In Indiana, you can take “Driver’s Education,” which used to be taught in schools, at 15-and-a-half. However, it is illegal for the student to drive with parents until 16-and-one-month. You can get your “beginners” at 15-and-a-half & go to driving school.

My daughter got her beginner’s permit at 15-and-a-half and went to driving school. Heck! I thought the driving school would teach her to drive! But the driving school expected the kids to already know how to drive before they came to the school! The school was just a “rubber stamp” that they knew how to drive.

The driving school lady said that I should have already taught my daughter to drive before she came to the school. When I pointed out that it was not legal for my daughter to drive with me, the lady said, “Well, everybody else does it!”

What the heck am I paying for!?!

Schedule driving school soon!

sharky answers:

Most forces now require all applicants to hold a full UK licence. Forces that don’t have that requirement put every officer through the driving test and then onto the police driving course.

sharky answers:

No is the simple answer.

However it depends on where in the firm you want to work…and when you want to work there.

Trading in general doesn’t attract huge amounts of Ivy League types, but in the more complex markets sometimes all traders are PhDs…. Meanwhile on the other side, M&A is traditionally a lot to do with poise and contacts, so coming from Yale may be a benefit. As deals get more complex this is also breaking down. Gone is the time when bankers were just well-connected but slightly dim people who got paid to have lunch. Gone is also the time when some firms (like Bear & Lehman etc) employed the cleverest but also most psychotic people they could find..

GS attracts the smartest people around, for each area they need, and as such are also clever enough to know that they need people from many backgrounds, not just from rich families with connections in Washington, and not just hungry bright guys from Brooklyn.

I have many friends in GS and have worked with the house for years, even in derivative-land, and its demonstrable that most often the best people who do well there are non-classical Harvard-types.

The issue is rather firstly to be very intelligent – not solely to get through the interviews, but rather to actually get the interview to start with. Certainly a good school will help with connections to get in to see them, if you are looking at a first job position, but its not the whole story.

If GS had some strict requirement for entry, they wouldn’t be so famous for often requiring up to 20 interviews before offering a position.

If you want to go into Investment Banking, and are looking at schools my advice would be find a solution between your Major and the place you study. A good degree in Physics at MIT will get you into all the banks, a good degree in Philosophy at Harvard will not necessarily, a good degree in Maths at Brown might… Etc etc

The driving factor should be and is, what are you studying, how do you apply it, and how can you use it to demonstrate your ability.

Further, how do you differenciate yourself…. Be interesting, demonstrate an ability to lead, to think differently, to work your a$$ off. Get a decent education from a second-league school with a presidency of a Campus Society, plus loads of interesting work-placements is so much more interesting to an employer than someone with a second-rate degree from Yale with a silver spoon in their mouth.

Lastly, even if you eventually get rejected after finishing school, go somewhere else, prove you are capable and then reapply. I personally applied to all the banks having left my studies and didn’t get one interview (not surprising, given I studied Philosophy). I’ve since worked at 2 major management consultancies and 3 bulge-bracket banks in highly mathematical areas, and now look to employ people as described above.

Hope this helps

sharky answers:

Drive By – Train
Rolling In The Deep – Adele (Might be a bit hard!)
Somewhere In Brooklyn – Bruno Mars
White Horse – Taylor Swift (A girl at my talent show sang this)
What Makes You Beautiful – One Direction (People will go crazy..)
Call Me Maybe – Carly Rae Jepsen

sharky answers:

Don’t know the name but my friend got shot in the arm and lower stomach area and he was bleeding quite alot. Anyway we drove to this hospital in (don’t know whether it was brooklyn or queens) and went to the trauma center and was like he need a doctor he’s been shot, and the woman behind the desk was like ‘just take a seat and the doctor will see you shortly’ we had to wait in some long queue of people. He didn’t get seen for over an hour and was told we were lucky to be seen so soon. This was bad because he was in a lot of pain but they weren’t bothered.

I suppose all hospitals are like this, i dunno. You probably have to convince them you’re dying so you can be seen.

sharky answers:

I am not sure, I think the law is 10 feet behind the school bus, and you have to stay stopped until the lights go off

of course, I once got pulled over for the same thing, but the lights were not on, so I passed the bus, and I realize that if I had hit a child, I would not have been at fault, but that would not have made me feel any better. Bus drivers are some of the worst ones on the road, they think they are hot stuff because they have the power to stop traffic. That’s why I wait an extra 10 minutes in the morning before leaving for work, because they drive me crazy

the best thing I could suggest is just not to be out on the road when they are out there, but to answer your question, I think it is 10 feet, but I am not sure about Brooklyn

sharky answers:

How are you traveling? I’d suggest the subway since driving even short distances in NYC is a pain. Brooklyn is large, so the distance/time will depend on where you are going and what subway lines serve that area.

sharky answers:

I have lived in Park Slope since 1981. It has changed a lot since then – mostly it’s become more expensive! But for 3,000 a month, you will surely find a two bedroom apartment, possibly even an apartment zoned for PS 321 (considered the best school in the area, and one of the best in the City.)

This is a lovely neighborhood, partilcularly for families with children. And many, many people own dogs, so that shouldn’t be an obstacle.

As for owning a car, it depends on you. Yes, you can get away without owning a car here, but if you have kids, it’s easier to have a car sometimes. I have two kids of different ages, and they have different activities in different parts of the neighborhood, or in nearby neighborhoods. When my car has been in the shop I’ve gotten to see how time consuming it is to get the kids to their activities and remain sane. Of course, I work in a different part of Brooklyn, so it makes sense for me to drive to work. But I know people who live here and work in Manhattan, who also have kids, and they are glad to have a car for certain things. A friend of mine just moved here from California, and she sold her car because she thought she wouldn’t need it. Now, with two kids, she’s sorry she doesn’t have it anymore.

Of course there is Zipcar, which you can join, and then you can rent a car for as little as an hour (Zipcar has cars parked all over Park Slope, and you can just reserve a car for a certain time and just go get it.) A lot of people do this instead of owning a car themselves. Owning a car is an extreme hassle here, but I am torn about whether it is necessary or not. I find it useful.

But as to whether this is a kid friendly neighborhood – it is KID CENTRAL! Most people have young children here, and it’s a great place to raise children. There are great schools here, wonderful activities for kids, and a wonderful kid friendly atmosphere.

It’s also become very upscale in the past few years, with trendy restaurants and bars, boutiques and cafes – so it’s adult friendly as well. Not to mention that Park Slope is a beautiful looking neighborhood, with tree lined streets and late 19th century architecture.

Anyway, it’s a great place to live if you can afford it.

sharky answers:

Your question is impossible to answer because the real answer is “it depends.” let me see if I can break it down for you a bit:
to make a movie you probably need:
a director
a cinematographer (guy in charge of lighting)
a sound guy (guy in charge of recording sound)
a writer
two actors (or more)
an editor
when I did school projects they all got paid zip.

But if you were to pay them, it would probably be based on number of days they worked. How do you estimate that? Depends on your script length. A page of standard formatted script runs at one minute for each page. So a 2 hour movie is about 120 pages long. How long is yours?
A crew can be as complicated as hair/make-up, wardrobe, props, grip, best boy, script girl, etc., etc. Etc… Or if you did them like we did, everybody held multiple jobs.
Plus, a camera
some film….
What you need is to find a production budget spreadsheet. Or read Robert Rodriguez book on filmmaking.
Are you shooting film? Or digital. Film requires you to process the film and transfer it so you can edit it. Digital saves you money. You can look at what you shot right away and import it into your computer to edit.
Digital is also more forgiving – meaning you won’t have to rent or borrow lights to see what’s going on in the scene. You can use “available light” to shoot your scenes.
You also need to consider paying for rental of locations, costumes, props and stuff like that. And food for the cast and crew. Again, if you use the rodriguez method, he created a script using stuff he already had access to and people who were already interested in doing it for free.and they made spaghetti to feed everybody.
Cgi? That’s crazy talk unless you know somebody who can do that as a favor. Other things you’ll have to consider after the shoot is paying for music, sound effects, color correction, dubs, titles… And the list goes on. Check out web sites like filmmaker.com to look for answers to your questions.
I’d suggest you find someone who owns a digital camera and make him/her the director. Find someone who has an editing program on their computer and make him/her the editor. Then get together with some friends who want to “star” in a short film and brainstorm simple story ideas. It could be story as simple as wimpy guy trying to make it through the day without the neighborhood bully catching him, or a poor girl trying to raise money to buy a new swim suit for a cool pool party, or a kid who’s afraid of the dark trying to make it through the night when his parent left town.
George Washington by David Gordon Green; Straight Out of Brooklyn and Mariachi are three films made by guys who did a lot with very little.
If you do this right, you should only have to pay for digital film tape and some DVDs to burn. You shouldn’t try to be “professional” and budget studio space or hire actors. Since you’re learning the biz, do it with others who have a desire to try something without pay.
As a student, you should spend more time worrying about telling a story that people want to watch than going for a high budget “studio” effects.

In film school I made a 5 minute movie about a women who was driving around the neighborhood on her way to get her new dog. The trick was, she was really stalking the neighborhood and when she found the perfect dog, she jumped out of the car, grabbed it and took off. It was a shocker ending that film festivals loved. Simple idea – One actor, one car, one director, one camera guy. One editor. One dog.
Everything starts with the script. Do you have one?
Hope this helps.
What you’re doing right is asking questions. Keep doing that. It’s the only way you’ll learn what you don’t know.
Good luck.

sharky answers:

Allow me to frame your question as a comparison
Is Chicago a really cold windy city?
All Ghetto and former home to the Mafia. Al Capone
or is it the birthplace of the White Sox & T^he Bears
every major city in America has a reputation
more often than not they are garbage interpretations
That fail to live up to their calling
I live in Central Los Angeles now (downtown)
Grew up in the sub burbs of LA
With a sister in Brooklyn
A mother in Austin
& my dad is in Salt Lake City
The diversity of S. CA is unmatched
I’m not a university student
& I’ve been to Australia twice and the aforementioned cities
What’s wonderful about LA is that people here are friendly
Don’t know about Chicago but in NYC
its perfectly ok to ask a stranger for directions or advice on which subway goes where you’re going
there’s just this invisible shell that surrounds them like a suit of armor because their safety might be compromised at any moment
I respect their boundaries
after all The winter there is colder than the slopes of LA
while the summer is muggy and hot
I find people in LA to be more pleasant every time I leave here
The weather is the biggest determinant of the moods of the people in any city
Australians have a pleasant mood about them
they’ve never suffered a major catastrophe. Los Angelinos similarly have a jovial perspective on life
as an experience to be enjoyed rather than endured
before you come to LA
do your homework
learn some spanish
The tap water here has a bad rap because it’s chlorine level is higher than bottled water
Which compared to NYC is unacceptable
the trick is to allow your glass of water to sit for ten minutes
while the chlorine evaporates away
then you can’t tell the difference between tap & bottled water

In fact the only real problem most people deal with here is the end of another perfect day-
there’s always tomorrow!
Also
LA is not a walking city
everyone drives
it’s spread out such that even a bicycle is not an option
I use the metro system quite efficiently. Though I am a rare commodity amongst the rest of LA

sharky answers:

I’m a student at College of Staten Island. If you’re going to be driving to CSI then you’ll end up paying a lot more than just the school’s tuition. The Verrazano Bridge Toll is $11 when entering Staten Island from Brooklyn, you also have to buy a parking sticker every year to be able to park in campus which about $100. If you don’t get the parking sticker you’ll be paying a lot of parking tickets. Another option would be to take the subway to Manhattan and from Manhattan take the Staten Island ferry, which is free. From the ferry there’s a bus that brings you here, but i’m not sure which one. There should also be a bus in Brooklyn that brings you to Staten Island but i’m also unsure of that. The school has the “Loop buses” that take you from one building to another building. CSI is a very BIG campus it’s about 204 acres. Why don’t you check for some colleges in the City or in Brooklyn? Manhattan has some really great community colleges. I’m soon going to transfer to a college in the city because College of Staten Island doesn’t have the degree i want to major in. But if your decision is to go to CSI then i suggest when you register for classes try to make your class schedule as simple as possible. This way you don’t have to drive or take the bus here every day twice a day.

Best of luck to you.

sharky answers:

Suggest he takes a ciggy break during the lesson, but add the time taken to the lesson.
Here in Spain you can often see instructors and pupils stopped for a smoke.

sharky answers:

They have different grades or ratings now. You need one with a highish rating.

sharky answers:

Get in touch with ( being a driving instructor online there are plenty of sights they will give all info.good luck.

sharky answers:

Here is a recommened list..
Http://getformesingapore.com/Info_vehicles_drivingschools.htm

sharky answers:

Do you really think she’ll remember you?

sharky answers:

Yes