I am fortunate enough to have a very nice viola on loan from a bluegrass friend. It’s been very fun to play with. The video above is the poignant one; next is the contrast piece…Continue reading ‘Adventures in Viola, Parts I & II’
Archive for the 'Music' Category
Carl and Luke don’t care about fashion. In fact I would say they are oblivious to it. For them clothing is about comfort. Kyle is the same but with a twist. The three of them wear shorts, shirts, and vests which I pick out at the thrift store. Biology supplies the skin for their ’shoes’.
Kyle is a man of tradition and doesn’t care for change. The clothing he likes, he wears until it’s nearly transparent, worn thin and tattered with holes. …Continue reading ‘Closet Picker’
It can be odd to open your mouth and not know what is coming out. I’m learning Chinese. The words can be problematic. As you may know, Chinese is a tonal language. Tones rule. In English, if we say “good”, it doesn’t matter what our accent is; we all understand what it means. This isn’t the case with a tonal language. The same word has countless meanings and it depends on its tone and the context.
You’re gaining credibility… but in the opposite direction.
—A frustrated Kyle, addressing Mama who had him walk from his computer to hers to help her find a computer file… which was right in front of her.
[Humor Alert: it's supposed to look like I'm banging my head against the wall!]
The challenge of helping the technologically challenged...
Here’s what happened last time, in case you missed it – I heard that Masahiro Nitta was coming here from Japan. I heard this *just* after I took the skins off my shamisen (so I could lacquer the wood). Talk about timing. Never the less, I was optomistic. Lacquering went so flawlessly. I stretched the backside first. That went on very easy. So, after letting the back side dry for a day, I stretched the other side much tighter. The next day, the glue didn’t hold the skin down! Augh! No worries I thought, I had two chances/days left to get the skin on before the troupe arrived. Well, I put it on another time, same tension. While I was waiting for the skin to dry, rather than being hopeful, I was already expecting that the skin would pop off again. The next day, I was doing construction work next door, still thinking about the skin, and what I was going to do to stretch it before tomorrow. Mama then called out, saying that Kevin called saying that today will be their only day they can come before their tour. Right then, my spirit and aspirations sank down into my intestines… Now for the exciting conclusion!…Continue reading ‘Shamisen Extravanganza! Part 2′
I heard that Masahiro Nitta was coming here from Japan. Note, this came to my attention roughly a week before the day he’d come. Mind you, I heard this *just* after I took the skins off my shamisen (so I could lacquer the wood). Talk about timing. Never the less, I was optomistic. I figured, lacquering would only take about 3 days, skinning would take two. Lacquering went so flawlessly (well, I had to redo it once, but that’s beside the point) that I had an extra day to skin. I stretched the…Continue reading ‘Shamisen Extravaganza! Part 1′
Kiwi on trellis over compost bin
Kiwi is king of all the fruits. Over the years I’ve compared all the fruits with each other and the kiwi always comes out supreme. Even so, fruit has no where near the overall nutritional value of veggies. Mostly, I see fruit as a healthy candy. Although, it’s true that each variety usually wins high honors in a few nutrient categories. The amazing thing about kiwi is how it even surpasses many a veggie on this score(1).
I’m attracted to statues of the Buddha and over the past few years have bought three. They evoke an emotional gateway to a place inside. Of course the image is of an ideal. The first one I got, the Buddha is sitting in lotus position and represents to me peaceful surrender. I got it at a stressful time. I obtained the big bellied laughing Buddha when everything felt too intense.The smiling Buddha is historicallyconnected with prosperity and wealth but that is not my attraction. For me it’s “Lighten up Leslie!”.…Continue reading ‘Buddha statues’
There were some signs that I shouldn’t go to Karate training today. [Meaning, a year ago, when this post was written. —Luke] Starting from the morning on…
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We were doing our traditional sunny morning exercise at the beach. After Yoga, the family did Tai Chi. I, on the other hand, decided to try full front flips.
I did many successful ones, but the thing with doing flips is you have to be 100% committed and sure that you can do it. Any shred of fear will probably land you on your head. a few times I’d start running to build up speed but just at the moment of launch…Continue reading ‘Day of Bad Judgement’
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