Who will post this morning?

Heater on, banana toast. I will post.

Peter will be squiggling around in bed thinking about bowls.

Robert will be thinking about his shepherd because he is a sheep.

 

I'm thinking about my practice. It's going pretty well. The shoulder rest is feeling more comfortable too. I think I'll add a slice of peanut butter toast to my breakfast. Done. If the old boys both take up or return to bowls, will they take their golf gear to op shops? They'll both need to get white outfits too.

[To bathroom.]

Toast sent to the coast.

[Back.]

I suppose that Robert could wear his white outfit to mass. Peter will be up and dressed now, in white, and drying his phone. I think he will have dropped it in the bath again. I'm pretty sure he will have. He'll be ringing Lynn for a cup of tea about now. With oatmeal milk.

As usual I'll start my practice with some long notes and then some chords. I need to do work on my double bass tunes too. It's nice to be near the heater. I'll make a trip to the Hutt today. Lower Hutt. I want to pop into a couple of music shops. I'm looking for some music for a violin student. 

The sun has shown a face in the Nui. All the carparks will now be full in Thorndon but there will be some spare ones in Moera. I don't know what the parking will be like at mass. It probably depends on how many church shop people turn up.

I think that's all I have to say this morning.

Bye to the boys dressed in white, for now.

Be careful if you're taking orders from a shepherd. He may finish up eating you.

BOTH.

 

I did 2 1/2 hours of practice yesterday. Half an hour on the double bass and two hours on the violin. I kept getting the shoulder rest out of my drawer to try it one more time. Then I finally made a decision and put it in my violin case. I did one hour of violin without it and one hour with it. Why not go both ways? That way I'll see what works best for my hand. Both ways were successful yesterday. There you go.

* * *

Good morning. I'm not long up (the same height really) and the heater is on. I think I might even commit the sin of having a coffee [and then a trip to the bathroom]. I have no pies left. Damn! My daughter flies to Melbourne today, so at 11am we head to the airport. It is her intention to get a job and a flat over there. It could be good for her. I guess that time will tell. Shelley and I are thinking of moving to Thorndon.

NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!

You are not allowed to eat things containing chocolate and cream there. Pies are probably off the Thorndon menu too. 

I see there's a post from Robert this morning. I had a quick read but I kept thinking of that song 'The Lord Is My Shepherd'. You often hear about Jesus being compared to a shepherd. Shepherds look after herds of sheep but, when the time is right, they also join in the procedure of eating them. I wonder if Gsus will end up eating Robert?

Robert in Heaven?

I'm drinking that coffee now. Boy, I'd love a pie!

Never mind, the coffee is nice. Maybe I could get a pie at the airport?

It seems that both Peter and Robert are finding golf hard going at the moment. Maybe they should try rugby? No, I don't think that would work. Robert mentioned the possibility of bowls in a comment. That could work. 

You don't hear much about lawn bowls these days.

[Bathroom.]

[Back.]

Maybe Peter should take up the cello and the boys could work on those Haydn concertos together? Or maybe violin? He could use his golf trundler and bag to push the violin around.

Yes, that would work. They could take their violins to Berhampore Golf Course and play duets. Probably best if they memorised the music and didn't need music stands. Sheet music would be a nuisance if there was a bit of wind.

Boy, I certainly solve problems for the two old boys!

I wonder if Robert would let Peter use a shoulder rest?

Would that stop the sound travelling to Peter's body via his collar bone?

I guess the boys will have to work that out between themselves. Hey, they might decide to both wear skirts kilts.

I'll leave you there for today.

Ciao tutti.

Another very cold morning. That's why I'm up and by the heater.

 

A7b9

I might even have a couple of little pies for breakfast (I have three). I'm sure that Peter will understand. He came around yesterday and ate some things that he's not allowed to eat at home. 

Breaking all the rules.

I watched Rob's latest video this morning. It had funny sound and he spend the first part trying to convert us to the Catholic religion. Personally, I've been there and there is NO WAY I'm going back.

So, I'm back without a shoulder rest on my violin. That didn't last for long! Peter made some snide remark about not using one on his bagpipes. Well, I think he does wear a dress when he plays them. Peter was once asked what's worn under the kilt. He replied that it's all in perfect working order. (Old Spike Milligan joke there!) I did quite a bit of practice yesterday. The little bass snippets on this post are really just me experimenting with recording myself. Short snippets are easy to load onto the blog.

The three little pies will be ready soon. 

Then I guess it'll be bathroom time.

That's about all I have to tell you.

Ciao tutti.

The shoulder rest is gone!

 

BACK TO NO SHOULDER REST!

I think I'll start today with a coffee.

 

Gosh! Going to an opera is very expensive! Fortunately, I don't want to go to any operas. I'd rather have a coffee and face an extra trip to the bathroom. The only obvious cost is some toilet paper.

Oh, and I suppose the price of the coffee and milk.

Still, it's a lot cheaper than going to a silly opera.

Going back to using a shoulder rest has been quite a big decision.

I think I'll go with it though. As I've said, the idea was to look after my smaller fingers. I can't guarantee that this is the correct solution, but I feel like I need to give it a good go. There are probably advantages both ways, with and without the shoulder rest. Sometimes, though, one has to persevere with an idea. Ah well, I can always take it off again if things don't work out.

I'll put in some quality time with the shoulder rest today. I need to do some good double bass practice too.

My elder grandson was calling my violin and my double basses guitars. I've put him right on that and he is now familiar with all their names. I remember the first time I took his dad into a music shop at about the same age (3). At the time I was playing a lot of bass guitar. He looked around at all the guitars in the shop and said, "Look at all the basses!" As it turns out, my son is now an excellent bass guitarist. The double basses in my living room are still a bit too big for Harrison to play. 

I'm thinking that, if I put on my 'Playing With Myself' concert in August, I might charge $200 per person. What do you think? People might think that, at that price, it has to be good. 

[Bathroom time.]

[Done.]

It feels a bit like my bell might disagree with my pricing for the concert. 

"Hey, that's far too much!
Go to the bathroom and think about it!"

As Peter pointed out somewhere, you can hear that old guy in the Cuba Mall play his mouth organ for free.  Do money and the arts have to go together? Like Akish, I do find it hard to understand how a painting can be worth a million dollars. I certainly don't play music to make money. Ah well.

That's about it from me this morning. I see that Robert has written a short post. There is nothing new from Peter, though he did leave a couple of rude comments on my last post.

"Philistines are everywhere." "It’s the only growth strategy in Richard’s Bass Bag."

Who knows? Perhaps he dropped his phone in the bath again and was pissed off? Maybe he has mislaid his bagpipes? Actually, I don't know if he actually knows how to play them. Probably doesn't matter with the bagpipes though. You just carry them around and wear a skirt.

Ciao tutti. Tieni i pantaloni addosso.

Not much time this morning.

 I have an early start - I'm dropping off my elder grandson at childcare and my son at the railway station in the Hutt.

I did see that TC has had a go at Akish, but I won't bother commenting.

"Well, he could have just commented
on my blog, but that seems to be beneath him."

Friends asked if we'd like to go with them to an opera in Wellington in August. It turns out that tickets are $162.11 each.

Ridiculous!

It would be $324.22 for two tickets! That's why we need people like Akish!

See you later, alligator.

"In a while, crocodile."

Nothing new in the Stinks this morning.

 And no comments from Stinks in the Links.

Business as usual, I guess.

The shoulder rest is slowly settling in and seems to be helping the hands. It is taking a while to get comfortable. Hey, I've gone six years without one!

I'm off to work soon. I'll go in early and get some violin practice done. I start at 10am., so there is time to get in some good practice.

That's it.

Ciao.