Here we go again...

 Happy as can be,

All good friends and

Jolly good company.

Another cold morning. Our heat pump has decided to stop working. Peter has already left a comment on Rob's latest post. He thinks that Rob has got his facts wrong. 

"Quintilis. In 44 BC the Romans change it to July in honour of Julius Caesar; though I doubt TC would accept that as he thinks everything back then was myth. Around that time Luke had written the first account of the life of Jesus or was it Mark?"

No doubt the boys will fight over this for a while. Ah well, it keeps them busy on a very cold morning. It's evidently 2 degrees in the Nui. It'll be warmer in Thorndon because it is considered a posh suburb. I think they have heat pumps on the side of Peter's street. 

I don't think that is the case in Moera. Evidently the temperature here is 4 degrees now. Both our car windows are covered in ice. At least it's not raining. That means that Peter won't have to drive Lynn to work. Though I suppose he still could. He could wear his new pants.

It'll make it look like Lynn is being driven to 
work by a tradesman. Cool!

I'm off work today, which is good because it takes the rush out of my morning when one is not feeling 100%. I was offered a break today because I am going in to assess performances tomorrow. 

I have a new routine in my practice. Every week day (Monday to Friday) I play 6 of my 30 repertoire tunes so that, over five days I've played every tune. I still practise on the weekend and it doesn't mean that I won't do extra practice on tunes that need it. It's just a way to make sure that no tunes are neglected. Peter will be pleased to hear that. I also MUST get some double bass practice done.

Well, that should do for today. 

Oggi la mia pratica inizia con la melodia numero tredici e arriva alla numero diciotto.

Ciao tutti.

Richard's Bass Bag* WET SATURDAY QUIZ.

 

Welcome to our WET SATURDAY QUIZ. This quiz is open to anyone who happens to read this blog. Good luck to all the competitors. Anyone who was in 3P in 1966 should find this quiz easy! Anyone who attended music lessons at St. Mary's College in the 1960s should do well too.

Here we go...

1. Mount Victoria in Wellington is named after which of these people? a) Donald Trump b) Father Bliss c) an English queen d) Victoria Tucker.

2. Richard (of RBB) is carrying his violin to a gig (yes, he does have one). How many violin strings are in his violin case?

3. Which one of these people has never played or practised the violin? a) Robert Prowse b) Itzhak Perlman c) Peter McDonald d) Hilary Hahn.

4. Which one of these people was not in 3P at St. Patrick's College in 1966? a) Peter McDonald b) Noel Kidson c) Danny Cotteral d) Ferruccio Baldas.

5. What are the four notes that make up the chord C#dim7?

6. Who taught the standard four boys at Marist Thorndon in 1963? a) Brother Benedict b) Father Woodcock c) Mrs. Carr d) Brother Leon.

7. One of these boys has the nickname Prowsey but has never played in the Prowse Brothers Band. Which one? a) Daryl Prowse b) Rodney Prowse c) Henry Prowse d) Robert Prowse.

8. On the violin I put my first finger on Eb on the D string, my second finger on C on the A string and my third finger on A on the E string. Then I rock my bow over these strings. Then I move each finger up a minor third, then another minor third and then another minor third. Which of these chords am I playing over? a) Ebm7 b) D7b9 c) Cmaj7 d) C7#9.

9. Which blog in this little community also runs a sightseeing extravaganza in the Wellington region? a) The Wine Guy b) The The The Guy c) Richard's Bass Bag* d) The Food Curmudgeon.

10. An Italian looks at The Curmudgeon's latest attempt at a quiz and says, "Che stronzata!" Which answer best sums up his feeling about the quiz? a) Fantastic! b) Silly questions! c) It's good that he never took up the violin! d) What a load of bullshit!

Well, wasn't that fun! Get your answers in, quick!

Ciao.

* the original bass bagging site

Tickle my arse with a feather.*

 

Excuse me, but I think you misheard me.

I said, "Particularly nasty weather."

There will be no golf or tennis for Peter today. At least Robert will still be able to clean the shit off toilets. I guess Shelley and I will wait and see what happens to the weather around lunchtime. I've just been out delivering our elderly neighbour's paper. I also put the lids back on a couple of neighbours' rubbish bins and pushed another couple up tight against a fence. It's rubbish day in the Nui today. The wind has been very strong and the rain is pissing down.

Like this but much worse.

If we do make it to Greytown, I've been asked to play some violin. I know the people at dinner are not really keen on jazz. As Peter remembers, one guy is a big Neil Diamond fan and he'll no doubt want to play tunes from Hot August Night. He's not a musician but will want to run his phone through my little amp. I've dug up my charts for 24 Irish tunes. The guy running the dinner is Irish, so that will win him over. 

I spent a lot of time playing through those Irish tunes yesterday and will do the same this morning. 

Well, that's enough from me for this morning.

Fai il solletico al mio sedere con una piuma.

Ciao tutti.

* A very old joke. Peter may remember it.

Blog posts around here are getting shorter.

 

That's Peter, second from the left, and Robert next, to his right.

It looks like it's going to be a wet weekend. They say it's even colder in the Wairarapa. Yes, I'll get some face masks today. Peter told me what to do on his last short post. 

I'll take my violin with me, if we make it to the Wire Wrapper. Just so that I can get some practice done on Saturday. Don't worry Peter, I'll use a mute in the motel room. There is a good chance that we may not go. Time will tell.

Some pieces in my 30 tune repertoire need some work, so I need to keep working through those tunes. My double bass has been a bit neglected lately. Maybe I should give it some time today? Guitar practice happens when it happens. 

Compared to efforts of the other two bloggers, this can now be considered a long post. 

So, I'll sign off there.

Ho letto da qualche parte che questo è l'inverno più caldo mai registrato. Sì, e io sono il papa!

Bye.

I've picked up a bug.

 

A bug.

I have a cough and a sore throat and am a bit short of breath so I'm staying home from school today. I guess that means I have time to write a post.

I see that Robert is back. He's going on about Original Sin and how three people were born without it. That doesn't seem fair. The story goes that God the Farter Father inflicted it onto everyone because Eve bit his favourite apple. This 'all loving god' evidently let three people off. 888 was one of those three people. Hang on, he's part of the three entities in one god. One of the other two was a woman who became 888's earthly mother. Then there was a bloke named John. I don't know why he was so highly respected by this third of a god. Is God the Farter Father supposed to be older than 888? Well, they have both evidently been around for eternity, along with Karen. That makes them both very old, by human standards. If this father - son stuff is true, Karen MUST be the real mother and not Mary. Robert should start saying the rosary to Karen.

"Hi, I'm Karen, 888's 'real' mother."

In case anyone is wondering, my practice is presently one hour ahead of schedule - 175 hours, as of yesterday (day 174). Wow, if there really was a god, that should be enough to make me free from Original Sin! You'd better correct that last post, Rob, and change the number to four. 888, Mary, John and Richard of RBB*.

This is not the coldest morning I've experienced so far this year. Still, it's nice to be sitting near the heater. Shelley and I are due to spend a couple of nights in Greytown this coming weekend. I hope we're both feeling a bit better (Shelley is not well either). It'll be nice to get away for a couple of nights. Don't worry, Peter, I'll take my violin and keep the practice up. Evidently there are big celebrations on in Greytown on the Saturday night for Winter Christmas. Evidently the celebrations go on for a month. In my present state, I'd be happy just sleeping in our motel. We have friends who will be there too. One couple has a house in Greytown and the rest of the people are staying there. I chose a motel so that I'll have a better chance of finding an empty bathroom. 

Well, I guess that's it from me this morning.

No need to say the rosary for me. Well, I am one of the chosen four, at least I think I am.

Ciao.

* the original bass bagging site

Very cold.

 Off to work soon but having a little bit of time in front of the heat-him.

Today is going to be a busy day. Fitting in my practice is always a bit tricky on a Tuesday, but I'll do my best. Where there's a will there's a way.

888 it's cold!

I'm off to get my morning 'jobs' done.

Hey, this post is as short as some of Peter's posts!

"It's cold! I'm glad I 
brought my hat to Thorndon!"

Ciao.

God the Father, God the Son and Karen.

 

I don't think the Holy Spirit (formerly the Holy Ghost) is a bird, I think it is more likely to be God the Mother. Catholics tell us that there are three entities in one god. Supposedly they have always been there, so the labels father, son and mother are a bit silly. This god has existed forever. Imagine just a little bit of this eternity, before man was created and God the Father sent his 'only begotten' son down to Earth.

Here is just a little bit of this pre JC time...

1,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 years.

Hey, eternity is a very long time!

I suspect that the whole mum and dad thing only came along when '888' was sent down to Earth to die on a cross. 

* * *

Rob's blog has gone again.

Hey, it's just like old times!

* * *

Well, the good news is that my left hand is feeling better this morning. That means more violin practice today. I've kept my practice up to date during the worrying time of an injured hand. I got some cream from our chemist shop and it seems that has done the trick. Thank you, young lady in the chemist shop who served me!

I guess I'll wrap it up there for today.

Ciao Peter (he's the only known post reader left).