What is in your cup?

[ProfCrash]

Very cool.

Work on my third cup of a green rice pu erh. Very yummy.

[Stitchawl]

Bombay Blue...


Stitchawl

[CRussel]

Third (14 oz) cup of tea this morning. I definitely didn't get enough sleep! But two steeps of Anniversary Breakfast Blend, and now I've switched to this purported Keemun Hoa Ya 'A'. And if it really is what it claims to be, I'm really Prince Charles. But it's an acceptable Keemun, if not particularly spectacular.

[Stitchawl]

What did you learn in school today,
Dear little boy of mine?
What did you learn in school today,
Dear little boy of mine?
I learned that Washington never told a lie.
I learned that soldiers seldom die.
I learned that everybody's free.
And that's what the teacher said to me.
That's what I learned in school today.
That's what I learned in school.

( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wf5Jn8O3s0c )

Good morning, everyone! I just learned that I'm going to be a student again! Yippee!!

My wife signed me up for a series of guitar lessons with three different instructors at a prestigious music school. She's been watching me struggle through daily practice lately, trying to learn some stuff I should have mastered 50 years ago, and have been having trouble with, and so without my even knowing about it, researched the best teachers for this in the area through my friends in the music business, contacted them, and signed me up for a series of 10 lessons. I am sooo ready! After 56 years of playing guitar, performing, teaching, and jamming, I'm finally going to learn how to play guitar!

So to her, I raise my mug of Taylors of Harrogate's "Yorkshire" tea, and say 'Thank you dear, for being my wife!'


Stitchawl

[poohbear_nc]

Worship that woman Stitchy! You don't deserve her!

[or maybe your practicing is so painful to listen to, she wanted to get you out of the house? ]

Have fun!

[Stitchawl]

Originally Posted by poohbear_nc

Worship that woman Stitchy! You don't deserve her!

I spent 17 years between divorce from my second wife, until I met her, 17 years as a very active, happy batchelor with no plans what so ever of remarrying. Then I met her. And after the third date I knew I was going to marry her. A year later, I did. That was 18 years ago, and I've been thankful every day. t:

[or maybe your practicing is so painful to listen to, she wanted to get you out of the house? ]
Have fun!

What's not to like?
I was just running scales over and over... and over... endlessly... Do, re, me, fa, so, la, ti, do, ti, la, so, fa, me, re, do, re, me, fa, so, la, ti, do, ti, la, so, fa, me, re, do, ti, la, so, fa, me, re, do, re, me, fa, so, la, ti, do, ti, la, so, fa, me, re, do, ti, la, so, fa, me, re, do, re, me, fa, so, la, ti, do, ti, la, so, fa, me, re, do, ti, la, so, fa, me, re, do, re, me, fa, so, la, ti, do, ti, la, so, fa, me, re, do, ti, la, so, fa, me, re, do, re, me, fa, so, la, ti, do, ti, la, so, fa, me, re, do...

or... Do, re, b/me, fa, so, la, ti, do, ti, la, so, fa, b/me, re, do, re, b/me, fa, so, la, ti, do, ti, la, so, fa, b/me, re, do, ti, la, so, fa, b/me, re, do, re, b/me, fa, so, la, ti, do, ti, la, so, fa, b/me, re, do, ti, la, so, fa, b/me, re, do, re, b/me, fa, so, la, ti, do, ti, la, so, fa, b/me, re, do, ti, la, so, fa, b/me, re, do, re, b/me, fa, so, la, ti, do, ti, la, so, fa, b/me, re, do, ti, la, so, fa, b/me, re, do, re, b/me, fa, so, la, ti, do, ti, la, so, fa, b/me, re, do...

Well, to be honest, sometimes it was... Do, re, b/me, fa, so, b/la, b/ti, do, b/ti, b/la, so, fa, b/me, re, do, re, b/me, fa, so, b/la, b/ti, do, b/ti, b/la, so, fa, b/me, re, do, b/ti, b/la, so, fa, b/me, re, do, re, b/me, fa, so, b/la, b/ti, do, b/ti, b/la, so, fa, b/me, re, do, b/ti, b/la, so, fa, b/me, re, do, re, b/me, fa, so, b/la, b/ti, do, b/ti, b/la, so, fa, b/me, re, do, b/ti, b/la, so, fa, b/me, re, do, re, b/me, fa, so, b/la, b/ti, do, b/ti, b/la, so, fa, b/me, re, do, b/ti, b/la, so, fa, b/me, re, do, re, b/me, fa, so, b/la, b/ti, do, b/ti, b/la, so, fa, b/me, re, do...

... in 15 different keys. What could be bad about listening to that? Over and over, and over...


Stitchawl

[dreams]

Ouch *slowly moving hands away from ears to see if it's finally stopped*

What a nice surprise gift from your wife.
Maybe we should send your wife some money for a few more lessons for you.



Sumatra coffee in my cup.

[Stitchawl]

Originally Posted by dreams

Ouch *slowly moving hands away from ears to see if it's finally stopped*
What a nice surprise gift from your wife.
Maybe we should send your wife some money for a few more lessons for you.

She put the contract on my keyboard so it was the first thing I saw after making my tea this morning. I am delighted!
As for money... This is Thailand. Compared with the cost of private lessons in good American or European music schools, the lessons here are almost free! Folks will pay between $40-$75 per hour or more for this sort of thing there, but here, it's less than $9. For under a hundred dollars, I'll get the resources and attention of three different instructors for more than 10 hours.

So now... a big glass of papaya juice and it's off to practice my arpeggios...
If he knew what I was doing, Woody Guthrie would be turning over in his grave!


Stitchawl

[ProfCrash]

You have a wonderful wife. First, she has listened to your pained playing (although I doubt it was that bad given that you have some performance experience), she has suffered your frustration at not playng how you want, and now she has gotten you out of the house for at least 10 hours of blessed silence.

I am already stocking up on ear plugs for when the Little Man starts playing a musical instrument. I was so bad at the clarinet that the music teacher suggested to my Mom that I try the Baritone Horn. I was game, it made awesome farting noises. I played all the way through college. I sucked but I played. I had to be really bad on the clarinet....

[Stitchawl]

I was a very fortunate child. My parents would provide me with lessons for anything I wanted to learn, providing I practiced; tennis, riding, drums, skiing, fencing, guitar, etc., etc., etc. The ONLY lessons they ever refused to let me have were for playing the bagpipes. They were probably wise beyond their years...

Originally Posted by ProfCrash

You have a wonderful wife. First, she has listened to your pained playing (although I doubt it was that bad given that you have some performance experience),

Not so much 'bad,' as incredibly tedious. I'll bet you didn't read through each of those scale notes I wrote a few posts back. Waaay too boring to do so, right? Even though it would only take 20-30 seconds to read. Now imagine listening to them for 20-30 minutes 2-3 times a day... That is difficult, which is why I never bothered to do so when I first began to play the guitar. I didn't need to do it to play 'Kumbaya' or 'This Land is Your Land.' But now I'm at a point where I really can't move forward musically without a solid foundation in theory, both scale theory and chord theory, and that means drudge work... boring drudge work, and some good teachers. I want to play classical Indian raga by tuning the guitar like a sitar, and that takes a solid foundation in music.

and now she has gotten you out of the house for at least 10 hours of blessed silence.

Proof that I married a smart woman! But it will pay off for her in the long run, especially when I become a Guitar Hero...

Time for a small glass of rum, and then off to bed! Oh, it's SO nice not sleeping on the floor any more! 20+ years of it was more than enough. I really like beds!


Stitchawl

[CRussel]

Originally Posted by ProfCrash

I am already stocking up on ear plugs for when the Little Man starts playing a musical instrument. I was so bad at the clarinet that the music teacher suggested to my Mom that I try the Baritone Horn. I was game, it made awesome farting noises. I played all the way through college. I sucked but I played. I had to be really bad on the clarinet....

I also played the clarinet. But when I went out for the swim team, I had to drop Band. And my teacher so forgot himself as to say "good". I sympathized. I was awful.

Then, when I got to college, I ended up dropping the swim team. I simply couldn't spend the hours on it, and the hours lost from study do to the effects of chlorine on my eyes, and still do well. (This was in the days before swim goggles, obviously.)

Fresh squeezed orange juice while I wait for my Anniversary Breakfast Blend to steep.

[dreams]

Beds are nice, especially since I feel that I am away from most crawly things (snakes, even though there aren't many that get into the house here). It's that false sense of security.

Sumatra coffee in my cup.

[ProfCrash]

I wasn't in the band in College, I took two semesters of lessons to fill my arts credit for general education purposes. I enjoyed it, but I wasn't great.

A black pu erh today to go with my burrito. Munching on a burrito for lunch.

We are working on cooking more at home and taking left overs to work for lunch and for dinners during the week. I have Dr Pepper pulled pork working in the crock pot at home for dinner tonight. I like crock pot meals for the week, easy to make, plenty of left overs and most are yummy. My hubby does not. (shrugs) Little Man and I eat more of those meals then Hubby does and I bring lunch five times a week, he only brings lunch three times a week. He has better eating out options and the three times a week is three times a week more then he was doing two months ago. It all adds up.

Next will me my steaming fresh veggies at home instead of using the frozen veggies but they are convenient and not to badly priced and it saves me a step at home. And when the LM is pulling on my leg wanting dinner now that 5-10 minutes saved feels huge.

[CRussel]

Using frozen veggies is not a bad thing. Yes, seasonal fresh veggies grown locally are good. But reality intrudes and a frozen vegetable is better than a "fresh" one that has been shipped from California, then sat in a warehouse for several days, and then finally sitting in the local IGA for who knows how long. And as you point out, the one is a good deal less work. And likely to have less waste.

Sitting here with an empty mug and too lazy to go downstairs and make more tea.

[dreams]

Hot chocolate in my cup.