tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-217294312024-02-20T05:56:12.086-06:00If at first you don't succeed......start another blog, or two, or move to twitter. Facebook? Never.gottagopracticehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08112740396190991150noreply@blogger.comBlogger555125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21729431.post-49392915912281377202010-12-20T19:12:00.008-06:002010-12-20T19:54:39.218-06:00Lessons LearnedThis blog is not defunct. Perhaps a step beyond sporadical, but I'll never say never again. I have closure issues, you see. And I note that this appears to be my 600th post.<br /><br />It's a rather lengthy post, as I've taken videos that in the past I would have strung out over a week, and instead posted them all together. I expect only the cello-hardy to remain until the end.<br /><br />This experiment was inspired by <a href="http://www.owldaughter.org/blog/?p=2914">Owldaughter's serendipitous discovery </a>that playing her recital piece over and over, instead of concentrating on the tricky bits, resulted in marvelous improvement. I wish I could remember who next mentioned <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0918316057?ie=UTF8&tag=ifatfirsyoudo-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0918316057">Burton Kaplan's Technique of the First Try</a><img src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=ifatfirsyoudo-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0918316057" width="1" height="1" border="0" alt="" style="border:none !important; margin:0px !important;" />, (if it was you, speak up and I'll edit in an attribution), but that inspired me to use that technique to prepare for my recent recital, on which I performed the D MAJ Mendelssohn "Song Without Words."<br /><br />Parenthetically, my preparation of this piece was hampered by a semester of pain in my bow arm generated by a neck condition, and on which I had a surgical procedure done at the beginning of the month. Let's just say I haven't been practicing very well this semester.<br /><br />So here's the gist of the technique. Each day I warmed up for 10 minutes with a martele rendition of Long Long Ago (may have to make a post about that as well - it's a great warm up). I then set up the camera and the music and recorded my first play through of the day - no prior preparation. I played through a couple of more times while the recording uploaded, reviewed it, and played through 4-6 more times with attention to a trouble spot or two between. That's it. About an hour of practice each day. <br /><br />Three days before recital...<br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/KQhhnsGI008?hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/KQhhnsGI008?hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />The biggest changes were after this recording. I changed many bowings, and really started working on getting my elbow down (releasing tension) on my up bows. I'm listening to the accompaniment on my iPod, BTW, which leaves little room for tempo manipulation.<br /><br />Two days before recital...<br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/3FEDM1mVKaM?hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/3FEDM1mVKaM?hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />Still need to get those facial tics under control!<br /><br />One day before recital...<br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/QTRgjWKSdVc?hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/QTRgjWKSdVc?hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />This was the day after my dress rehearsal, which went very well. It was suggested I focus on how I wanted to shape the music. The problem I began having at this point was that the music was nearly memorized after so many repetitions (much to my surprise) and I was beginning to have difficulty following it on the page without getting lost.<br /><br />Day of recital...<br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/9Joe8LPO_F4?hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/9Joe8LPO_F4?hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />I didn't bother with the accompaniment for this run-through, partly because I was short of time, and partly because I wanted to play a little more freely.<br /><br />Recital...<br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/MFN8AmGdJIs?hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/MFN8AmGdJIs?hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />The problems with "near memorization" really came home to roost. In addition to being cold and playing cold, I kept losing my place. The worst problems were in the B section, where my accompanist did a wonderful job of helping me when I entered a loop, and with many places where my bowings were simply, shall we say, unplanned.<br /><br />On the other hand, I think you can see how much improved this was over my 1st recording only three days before, as well as how I lost that predicted 20% from the "best" I'd done so far, under the stress of performance.<br /><br />I think my primary take-away is that this is an effective technique, but should be started well before recital, not just three days. Ideally, this would be the prelude to a studio class or mock recital for friends, and the recital would be performed from memory. In fact, that's what I plan to do. I am so inspired by my imperfect success that I plan to do exactly that at an upcoming all adult recital in a month or two. Then I'll really feel like I've done the best I can with this piece.gottagopracticehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08112740396190991150noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21729431.post-81833398054600847232010-05-12T16:49:00.005-05:002010-05-12T17:00:34.041-05:00Petting the dog<OBJECT class=BLOG_video_class id=BLOG_video-1eda3f6e0ca2cd2c height=266 width=320 contentId="1eda3f6e0ca2cd2c"></OBJECT><br /><br />By way of explanation: <A href="http://cgda.wordpress.com/2010/05/12/lesson-summary-511-kummer-50-and-scherzo/">Michael Tuchman</A> says that his teacher likens the bowing in this excerpt from the Webster Scherzo (Suzuki Bk 3) to petting a dog. OK, mystified. Here's what my bowing looks like. Would definitely not pet a dog this way. Waiting hopefully for full video elucidation.gottagopracticehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08112740396190991150noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21729431.post-71555765435705226012010-04-26T14:40:00.003-05:002010-04-26T14:47:09.322-05:00Shy kittiesMiss me? I'm still here, mostly hangin' out on twitter and <a href="http://ggplog.blogspot.com/">my practice blog</a> these days. Not having much to say, I'm not saying much. 140 chars at a time fills the bill nicely. <br /><br />I have several shy kitties among my fosters at the beginning of this year, sisters Buffy and Willow, and Arnie, about 2 months older. Someday I'll write about them in detail, maybe on our rescue blog, but in the meantime I wanted to post this little video. You see, Willow has a crush on Arnie, and nobody believes me. Here is video proof of Arnie washing Willow's ears. I wish you could hear her purrs.<br /><br /><OBJECT class=BLOG_video_class id=BLOG_video-f5f7dc4e173acc93 height=266 width=320 contentId="f5f7dc4e173acc93"></OBJECT>gottagopracticehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08112740396190991150noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21729431.post-60648906383350373482009-09-03T09:34:00.005-05:002009-09-03T09:54:07.263-05:00Who doesn't love a freebie?One of my (many) little neurotic "things" is that while someone is working in my house, I feel like I must be working, too. (I would have made a terrible aristocrat in times past.) This week a very nice carpenter is here replacing the storm doors, and while he is doing that, I have been attacking the neglected filing in my music and hobby space.<br /><br />OK, that's not quite fair. More accurately, I have been moving my stuff out of what is mostly DH's office space, and setting up my own space in one side of the open downstairs area. Truth be told, I have been mourning the loss of my previous closed studio to the gym a while ago, but am now ready to get over it and claim this area, even though I can't close the door on my practice time, as "mine." It's a combination music, stamping, blogging and study area. I have a table with two work spaces, moved the computer down, book cases and organizing cubes, the piano, and of course cellos, stands, and mirror.<br /><br />So this week I emptied and moved some plastic file boxes downstairs and have been busily sorting, labeling and filing. I hope to get through the last four partial boxes of "stuff" today, which will then be the first time I haven't been living out of boxes since we moved here. Whoa. Major paradigm shift.<br /><br />Now, based on the title of this post, I didn't start typing here in order to tell you all that, but rather to tell you what I found. I'm "pre-filing" the stuff from the boxes, sorting them into piles on the floor, and ran across a Shar flyer. It says that they have <a href="http://www.sharmusic.com/freedownloads">free sheet music downloads available</a>, so I checked it out. Looks like they post something new every week, and this week it's the parts and score for a Mozart string quartet, k458, "The Hunt."<br /><br />I love free sheet music. Did you know they were doing this? Great way to get folks to visit your shop every week.<br /><br />And even better, now that I have blogged about it I can discard the flyer. Hehe.gottagopracticehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08112740396190991150noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21729431.post-81361643668547151112009-08-31T10:16:00.003-05:002009-08-31T10:43:07.104-05:00The sound of one hand practicingJust getting in under the wire - one more day, and August 2009 would be the first month without a post in almost two years.<br /><br />August was a funny month. Between my travel and T4-'s I had half the expected number of cello lessons, plus I was building back up in practice time in fits and starts after my longer travel period in July. I'm up to an hour pain-free, but still lack the desire to work daily. I think it's coming, though.<br /><br />Two weeks ago I initiated the "what am I going to do this semester?" chat with T4-, and I'm excited about the plan:<br /><br />Repertoire<br />Set Allegro Appassionato aside in favor of Squire's Tarantella. I'll have many of the same bowing and fast-playing issues to be worked out in a slightly less complex piece of music. That was a relief, as I had reached the point of discouragement with AllApp. Now I can look forward to revisiting it with a new and improved skill set in the future.<br /><br />Bach<br />Suite #3, beginning with the Prelude. This will be my first pass through this suite with a teacher, so I'm excited. I love the expansive joy of the 3d prelude.<br /><br />Excerpts<br />We're going to spend some time on orchestra excerpts, which are important both as rep (I'm far more likely to play in an orchestra than to give solo recitals) and as an etude substitute. We're starting with Mozart Symphony #40 and Beethoven Symphony #5, which are the usual audition pieces for amateur orchestras in this area. Fun.<br /><br />Etudes<br />This is still a little up in the air. I'm continuing to work on Popper High School #1, and may look at the pre-high school book. Not sure about thumb position stuff yet, but for now I'll use the scales in Offenbach Grand Duo Concertante, which I am working up outside of lessons.<br /><br />Scales<br />T4- doesn't seem big on scale routines and checking on them in lessons, so I'm a bit on my own. I can play all 12 major and 12 natural minor keys in 4 octaves at the drop of a hat, using Duport fingerings, so I've been choosing a key of the day and practicing elements of articulation or bowing from my pieces using either a standard 4 octave or Galamian 3 octave scale as the substrate. That seems good for now.<br /><br />The impossible dream<br />Haydn Concerto in C. Yes, I'll probably get to start it later in the semester, and I'm thrilled.<br /><br />I spent three years with T3- developing flexibility in my bow hand, so it's a nice change to focus more on left hand flexibility in order to play fast. At my last lesson on Tarantella we discovered that when I finger the notes without using the bow I make no sound. My project for the week is to observe my left hand while playing without the right hand. When I achieve the right degrees of flexibility, floppiness, unrestricted expansion and contraction, and balance the notes sound as I play them. <br /><br />Very cool.gottagopracticehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08112740396190991150noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21729431.post-84447131111368975152009-07-14T12:48:00.003-05:002009-07-14T12:55:20.296-05:00Auf DeutschCool. I get to hog the computer while DH is at a dinner meeting here in Vienna, and just discovered that all of my Blogger toolbar is in German. One can never assume anonymity. Fortunately, all reverted to English after I figured out that anmelden had something to do with signing in.gottagopracticehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08112740396190991150noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21729431.post-72242153610480944352009-06-30T15:28:00.003-05:002009-06-30T15:52:50.335-05:00End of JuneMy, that month went by quickly. It's already time to look back and see how I did with my practice goals this month. Drumroll, please...<br /><br />And the answer is, very well, and very badly. I practiced 18 hours and 5 minutes over 19 days, which means I reached my total time and frequency goals handily. But I had a deuced time with the sit down behind the cello for 5 minutes before noon goal. I did OK for the first 6 days, missed a couple, tried again, and just gave up.<br /><br />Turns out I am completely unable to sit down behind the cello without a goal. What I found myself doing was getting to the cello at 11:55 to start an hour's practice, not my intent at all. The biggest question I am left with is why I thought I wanted to do this in the morning.<br /><br />Good reasons to practice in the morning.<br />1. If I practice in the morning, well, then it's done. Works for exercise, so I thought it would be a good idea with practice.<br /><br />2. Morning is both an introspective and a focused time for me (but do NOT talk to me before 9am OR before coffee, whichever comes later). Seems like the energy requirements should coincide.<br /><br />3. I used to practice for 30 minutes before work, with the benefit of starting the workday feeling relaxed and virtuous.<br /><br />Possible reasons it didn't work.<br />1. I also got back on the morning exercise bandwagon this month. Ran every day (but 3) for 10 minutes with 10 more minutes of walking, PT, and stretching. Doesn't seem like much, but a huge breakthrough as I am still trying to recover from knee surgery. <br /><br />2. I like to sleep late, now that I can. Thirty years of being up and at 'em before 6am was plenty long enough, and since retirement I have resumed my more natural night owl rhythms.<br /><br />3. I love to spend my first barely-conscious hour drinking my coffee and catching up on the overnight blogging and Twitter activity. After feeding the cats, of course.<br /><br />4. I don't have to, and no one can make me. <br /><br />Sleep late + coffee/blog time + work out + breakfast and the morning's over.<br /><br />I guess that's the bottom line. There are other ways I would rather spend the morning, and much as I like practicing, it just gets squeezed out. And you know what? It's not really important. I reached my time and frequency goals with no problem, and the practices I had were of good quality. So I guess I learned an important lesson this month. Just because a goal seems like a good idea doesn't mean it's right for me.gottagopracticehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08112740396190991150noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21729431.post-24702012585116140942009-06-03T14:33:00.003-05:002009-06-03T14:39:43.697-05:00June practice goalsThat last post has been up on top 'way too long. To move it down a notch, I thought I'd post my practice goals for this month, as per my CelloBloggers Practice Club commitment:<br /><br />Lots of things changing in my cello life right now - new teacher, new piece, fewer things in active progress, (which simplifies my practices and therefore seems to make me less resistant), integration of physical focus and learning music (which makes practice more pleasurable). But, though I have some intermediate performance goals, my primary practice goal for June is practice consistency.<br /><br />My resolution: at least 15 practice days AND 15 hours of practice in June, PLUS at least 5 minutes of sitting behind my cello in playing position and doing *something* every day before noon.<br /><br />There is method to my madness. I know I will face incredible resistance if I try to "practice every day." This allows me to take off on lesson and performance days without guilt. Plus I can plan practice lengths day to day, with a shorter practice on one day compensated for by either a longer practice later or an extra day of practice during the month. And I'm sneaking up on the goal of more frequent practice days by that very innocuous sitting behing the cello every day thing. Tee hee. I'll let you know how it goes.<br /><br />[<em>My first 5-minute deadline was very successful. Today I sat down at 11:53am, with time running out, and proceded to practice for 80 minutes</em>.]gottagopracticehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08112740396190991150noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21729431.post-60043458334601853822009-05-14T12:03:00.005-05:002009-05-14T15:21:21.002-05:00No-cello practiceWhen I first became an over-the-top obsessively-committed beginning cello player, I bought a <a href="http://practiceviolins.com/">Prakticello</a> so that wherever I went, for business or vacation, I could take my cello along to practice while I was away from home. There was no way I was going to backslide because I couldn't practice with no cello available. I became quite good at setting it up and breaking it down, and it provided endless fascination for TSA checkers. But I gradually came to resent the extra hassle of flying with it, and finally, when DH and I were living in separate cities for awhile, I left it set up at "his place," and used it for practice while I was there. That was (so far) it's last trip, as when I moved out to join him I broke it down, packed it in its box, and stashed it in a corner of the new house. I know it's there if I need it.<br /><br />As a more experienced intermediate-level cello player who still travels fairly often, I have gained confidence that I won't lose all of my hard-won skills and revert back to the beginning if I don't play the cello for a few days. But practicing is part of my life, something I do, and am, and I practice every day, whether I have a cello available or not. <br /><br />I don't mean to write an exhaustive treatise on no-cello practice, but thought I'd list the things I brought along on my current trip, by way of answering <a href="http://tennorthern.wordpress.com/">Ten Northern</a>'s question, "What do you mean by 'no-cello practice'?".<br /><br />1. String quartet by Alexander Glasunov, op. 26. I'm not actually playing this, but a friend asked me for some fingering recommendations, if I had time. Marking a part with fingerings and bowings is a great thing to do when traveling. This quartet has lots of little chromatic puzzles to work out those fingerboard geography muscles.<br /><br />2. Brahms sonata no. 1 in e. I am preparing the first movement to play for T4- at my lesson in 2.5 weeks.In addition to marking fingerings, I'll totally mark this part up for memorizing, with bowings on almost every change and fingerings at the beginning of phrases in addition to on the shifts, where I usually mark them. That's so I can start anywhere on the right bow and finger when I am practicing tiny bits at a time, later. I will also survey the movement for structure and work out which parts are alike, and how the alike parts are different. Then I'll start memorizing it by singing it.<br /><br />3. Duport #7. I have already re-written this etude as chords, changing it from it's written-out arpeggios into something I can see the structure of more clearly. With this, I'll mentally practice chord changes as coordinated movements. I find this quite fatiguing, so I'll only do a few measures at a time.<br /><br />4. A chair. OK, I didn't bring that with me, but plan to use one here in the room. I'll tip it back toward me as I sit in another chair and practice one of my new motor skills. My directive is to develop more flexibility in my thumb mcp (left hand), particularly in thumb position. So I will pretend I have a fingerboard, and with thumb and one finger at a time observe what I need to do to vibrate with a flexible hand while keeping equal weight between thumb and finger. This is also something you can do with <a href="http://starkravingcello.blogspot.com/2008/12/on-4th-day-of-cellomas.html">arm cello</a>, but since I have a wooden chair handy I thought I'd use that instead.<br /><br />I also have two books with me: <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0452267560?ie=UTF8&tag=ifatfirsyoudo-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0452267560">Mastery: The Keys to Success and Long-Term Fulfillment, by George Leonard</a><img src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=ifatfirsyoudo-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0452267560" width="1" height="1" border="0" alt="" style="border:none !important; margin:0px !important;" /> and <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0316441589?ie=UTF8&tag=ifatfirsyoudo-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0316441589">Set Your Voice Free: How To Get The Singing Or Speaking Voice You Want, by Roger Love</a><img src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=ifatfirsyoudo-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0316441589" width="1" height="1" border="0" alt="" style="border:none !important; margin:0px !important;" />.<br /><br />Here's a quote from this morning's reading from Leonard's book to inspire you:<br /><blockquote>...the essence of boredom is to be found in the obsessive search for novelty. Satisfaction lies in mindful repetition, the discovery of endless richness in subtle variations on familiar themes.</blockquote>gottagopracticehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08112740396190991150noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21729431.post-68262846538572343832009-05-06T08:56:00.002-05:002009-05-06T09:10:48.463-05:00FandomYes, my computer is still dead, but I have delusions that I am going to try to revive it today. In the meantime, I am microblogging on Twitter, something I have been watching for a couple of years, but declined to jump in to. Finally had to, to respond to one of <a href="http://starkravingcello.blogspot.com/">Stark Raving Emily's</a> comments.<br /><br />Anyway, I'm one of the quarter million people following Zoe Keating's mundane and ever-so-fascinating life log. Yesterday Wired posted a video interview, which I am now linking to here, mostly so I can easily reference it later when I can find it no other way, and partly so the few people who read my blog but don't tweet can see it, too.<br /><br /><object id="flashObj" width="404" height="436" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=9,0,47,0"><param name="movie" value="http://c.brightcove.com/services/viewer/federated_f9/1813626064?isVid=1&publisherID=1564549380" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="flashVars" value="videoId=21847534001&linkBaseURL=http://www.wired.com/video/zoe-keating-playsescape-artist/21855031001&playerID=1813626064&domain=embed&" /><param name="base" value="http://admin.brightcove.com" /><param name="seamlesstabbing" value="false" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><param name="swLiveConnect" value="true" /><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always" /><embed src="http://c.brightcove.com/services/viewer/federated_f9/1813626064?isVid=1&publisherID=1564549380" bgcolor="#FFFFFF" flashVars="videoId=21847534001&linkBaseURL=http://www.wired.com/video/zoe-keating-playsescape-artist/21855031001&playerID=1813626064&domain=embed&" base="http://admin.brightcove.com" name="flashObj" width="404" height="436" seamlesstabbing="false" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowFullScreen="true" swLiveConnect="true" allowScriptAccess="always" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/shockwave/download/index.cgi?P1_Prod_Version=ShockwaveFlash"></embed></object><br /><br />This is what she says her current equipment consists of, as best I can make it out, being a dead-Windows user and not Mac (yet):<br />MacBook Pro<br />* Ableton Live<br />* Super Looper<br />* Applescripts to tie things together and allow everything to be controlled with her feet ("duct tape")<br />Foot controller mapped to the functions in the program(s)<br /><br />I loved her analogy, likening the way she builds her music to the way a programmer builds information technology. Start small. Try things out. Build on the foundation. Perfect each bit. Scale as needed.<br /><br />Thanks, Zoe, you make the impossible seem achievable. I have got to try this.gottagopracticehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08112740396190991150noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21729431.post-34661774685564286992009-04-22T20:53:00.003-05:002009-04-22T21:00:34.713-05:00BahMy short-lived blog renaissance has run into a roadblock in the form of a dead computer. It appears we had a power surge in the night, according to the tale told by the oven clock. It's really dead - no response at all from depressing the power button. Hopefully that means that the power supply bore the brunt of the damage, as it seems to me I'd get power up if I had "only" fried the motherboard. I happen to have a spare power supply sitting around, waiting to be transplanted into the computer that died a year and a half ago. That one can probably wait a little longer.<br /><br />In the meantime, I am typing this last post on DH's tiny laptop. The font is so small that I can barely see it even with maximal squinting. It may be awhile until I try this again.gottagopracticehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08112740396190991150noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21729431.post-78575256163744162952009-04-21T07:46:00.000-05:002009-04-21T07:46:00.843-05:00The hive<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_kq1lA9IWd68/Se0zhknalZI/AAAAAAAABzw/NJNaafTP6Sg/s1600-h/IMG_7214-790833.jpg"><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_kq1lA9IWd68/Se0zhknalZI/AAAAAAAABzw/NJNaafTP6Sg/s320/IMG_7214-790833.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326970586106860946" /></a><br /><br />The kittens are thriving. You can see a couple of them more clearly here, with Mama in milk bar-up position. That was the first afternoon, when they were just a few hours old.<br /><br />The second pic is a mere 72 hours later. It appears the volume of kittens is about equal to the volume of Mama, who quickly regained her svelte pre-pregnancy figure.<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_kq1lA9IWd68/Se0zh_cyusI/AAAAAAAABz4/bfdUhSHOYMo/s1600-h/MamaKiki+and+babies+day+3-791551.jpg"><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_kq1lA9IWd68/Se0zh_cyusI/AAAAAAAABz4/bfdUhSHOYMo/s320/MamaKiki+and+babies+day+3-791551.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326970593310063298" /></a><br /><br />We are so grateful that this is an experienced Mama (though it will be her last experience) and that all her milk stations appear to be functional, with a goodly supply of product. When we visit the nursery there is generally a pile of sleepy babies with big round bellies, and a rumbling purr emanating from Mama. D- likens it to the buzzing of a bee hive, with a surrounding swarm of kittens, so has decided on a bee theme for names. Mama will henceforth be known as Queenie Black, and we'll be choosing names that start with B as soon as we can reliably tell them apart and determine genders.gottagopracticehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08112740396190991150noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21729431.post-30724685474296539472009-04-20T07:32:00.000-05:002009-04-20T07:32:00.732-05:00I wonder where they were before?<span style="font-style:italic;">Life wastes nothing. Over and over again every molecule that has ever been is gathered up by the hand of life to be reshaped into yet another form. The molecules in you and me and indeed in everyone are secondhand, borrowed for the occasion and returned when outgrown.</span><br /><br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1573228567?ie=UTF8&tag=ifatfirsyoudo-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1573228567">My Grandfather's Blessings: Stories of Strength, Refuge, and Belonging</a><img src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=ifatfirsyoudo-20&l=as2&o=1&a=1573228567" width="1" height="1" border="0" alt="" style="border:none !important; margin:0px !important;" /> (Rachel Naomi Remen, MD, 2000) p 259gottagopracticehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08112740396190991150noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21729431.post-1282526937416010292009-04-19T07:26:00.001-05:002009-04-19T07:26:00.811-05:00VisitorYesterday DH stopped by for lunch. Yes, stopped by on the way from Phoenix to DC. He had just left to return to the airport when the phone rang. <br /><br />"I just saw a wild turkey across the street."<br /><br />"Really? OK, I'll go check."<br /><br /><p class="mobile-photo"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_kq1lA9IWd68/Seoo_SxtVSI/AAAAAAAABzI/plebpO-b5Xk/s1600-h/IMG_7219-785069.jpg"><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_kq1lA9IWd68/Seoo_SxtVSI/AAAAAAAABzI/plebpO-b5Xk/s320/IMG_7219-785069.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326114577156232482" /></a></p><p class="mobile-photo"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_kq1lA9IWd68/Seoo_ZxQCSI/AAAAAAAABzQ/WNq1YrP6vH8/s1600-h/IMG_7220-785559.jpg"><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_kq1lA9IWd68/Seoo_ZxQCSI/AAAAAAAABzQ/WNq1YrP6vH8/s320/IMG_7220-785559.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326114579033360674" /></a></p><p class="mobile-photo"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_kq1lA9IWd68/Seoo_tJNcNI/AAAAAAAABzY/13hn14yV8zM/s1600-h/IMG_7221-786425.jpg"><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_kq1lA9IWd68/Seoo_tJNcNI/AAAAAAAABzY/13hn14yV8zM/s320/IMG_7221-786425.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326114584234127570" /></a></p><p class="mobile-photo"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_kq1lA9IWd68/Seoo_t4FK5I/AAAAAAAABzg/MXu-1z3V6rc/s1600-h/IMG_7222-786915.jpg"><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_kq1lA9IWd68/Seoo_t4FK5I/AAAAAAAABzg/MXu-1z3V6rc/s320/IMG_7222-786915.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326114584430717842" /></a></p><p class="mobile-photo"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_kq1lA9IWd68/Seoo_92VWMI/AAAAAAAABzo/L4-3Jbttv1Y/s1600-h/IMG_7223-787484.jpg"><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_kq1lA9IWd68/Seoo_92VWMI/AAAAAAAABzo/L4-3Jbttv1Y/s320/IMG_7223-787484.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326114588718356674" /></a></p><br /><br />Not sure about the wild part, as I walked to about 8 feet away. I know it's not as unusual as a moose, but here in the metro area you take whatever Nature you can get.gottagopracticehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08112740396190991150noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21729431.post-82281393282997460502009-04-18T10:40:00.002-05:002009-04-18T10:43:47.144-05:00Little brothers (and sisters?)On Tuesday, during the hunt for Big Brother, we briefly considered taking his Mama downstairs to use as "bait." Considered very briefly, and rejected that option as being too stressful for this little girl, who was as big as a house and due anytime.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_kq1lA9IWd68/Senvj6_eN3I/AAAAAAAABzA/-EQ4Yf8XUx8/s1600-h/Ready+to+pop.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 250px; height: 320px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_kq1lA9IWd68/Senvj6_eN3I/AAAAAAAABzA/-EQ4Yf8XUx8/s320/Ready+to+pop.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326051434752259954" /></a><br /><br />Anytime turned out to be less than two days later. On Thursday I got an 8am wake-up call, and the report that Mama had been birthing since about 4am. D- was concerned that, while everything appeared to be going well, the babies were ice cold and Mama wasn't keeping up with the cleaning, so I packed up one of my portable radiators and hurried over. <br /><br />There were eight (8!) babies! The last one still had an intact umbilical cord, and the placenta had been delivered, so I cut the cord (with rather blunt scissors - probably more effective that way, anyway) and we discarded the last placenta. She had already eaten seven, and I don't think she could take another bite. In fact, she didn't eat again until late that evening. We helped dry the kittens who were still damp, D- heated some gel packs and placed them, well wrapped, around the periphery of the storage box (she had already moved them off the middle of the bathroom floor, where all the action had taken place), and I cranked up the radiator.<br /><br />Mama spent the rest of the day lazing around on her back (hah!) so all the kittens could find nipples, being an absolutely perfect mother. Completely unlike our last, Marmee, who had to be taught what feeding and cleaning were all about. I will never forget Laurie running around the tub screaming that he was hungry.<br /><br />Not these kittens. So far, utter contentment.<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_kq1lA9IWd68/SenuNlrPrSI/AAAAAAAAByo/B27NUI14Xjc/s1600-h/IMG_7205-738584.jpg"><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_kq1lA9IWd68/SenuNlrPrSI/AAAAAAAAByo/B27NUI14Xjc/s320/IMG_7205-738584.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326049951561526562" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_kq1lA9IWd68/SenuNyKY1hI/AAAAAAAAByw/tCF5JdtGSo0/s1600-h/IMG_7208-739002.jpg"><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_kq1lA9IWd68/SenuNyKY1hI/AAAAAAAAByw/tCF5JdtGSo0/s320/IMG_7208-739002.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326049954913375762" /></a><br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/4q3O6dFEImk&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/4q3O6dFEImk&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />This is the sight that greeted me when I finally came downstairs. Aunt Layla and the uncles were calmly sitting in the waiting room. They knew what was up, being experienced foster home assistants.<br /><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_kq1lA9IWd68/SenuN_GpKdI/AAAAAAAABy4/zRmE3zogiEg/s1600-h/IMG_7213-739343.jpg"><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_kq1lA9IWd68/SenuN_GpKdI/AAAAAAAABy4/zRmE3zogiEg/s320/IMG_7213-739343.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326049958387329490" /></a><br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">BTW, did you guess what colors they are? Only 6 are black, with two brown tabbies. </span>gottagopracticehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08112740396190991150noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21729431.post-33065309915813204642009-04-17T07:56:00.002-05:002009-04-17T07:56:00.402-05:00Tactile intonationI think I might have had a breakthrough at my lesson last night. I was playing the g minor scale, and we had stopped to work out the intonation of the IIF# to IIIEb. After trying it a couple of ways involving different combinations of fingers and strings, T- asked me to feel with the bow whether the note was in tune. A bit of Zen Cello. To my amazement, I caught the gist of of what seemed to me a ridiculous directive, and played with that concept through the rest of my evening activities (Irish fiddling and cello quartet).<br /><br />I am totally psyched. I think I have finally opened the conduit so my energy gets all the way from my back down my arms into my fingertips and to the bow.<br /><br />That was the best kind of day - but you have to wait until tomorrow for a kitten update (Mama and all 8 babies are doing well).gottagopracticehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08112740396190991150noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21729431.post-68260290962743736022009-04-16T07:38:00.004-05:002009-04-16T08:41:35.163-05:00Big BrotherThis is my new cello coach, Big Brother.<br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_kq1lA9IWd68/SeaoCxlrYAI/AAAAAAAAByY/ghSMg12XTLM/s1600-h/IMG_7201-767642.jpg"><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_kq1lA9IWd68/SeaoCxlrYAI/AAAAAAAAByY/ghSMg12XTLM/s320/IMG_7201-767642.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5325128375036764162" /></a><br /><br />Big Brother to whom? Why, to <a href="http://gottagopractice.blogspot.com/2009/04/loaners.html">Angelina and Brad</a>, of course. Didn't you notice the family resemblance? Angelina, Brad, Big Brother, and their very pregnant Mama came into foster care together - we won't go into the details of why they were surrendered. Angelina, Brad, and BB stayed with me for awhile, while Mama is confined at D-'s, waiting for those babies to pop.<br /><br />Last Thursday A, B, and BB went back to D-'s house as well. Angelina and Brad were adopted on Saturday (yay!) and about the same time Brother disappeared. I was on kitten watch Sunday, and poked around the house very thoroughly without spotting him. On Tuesday I went over in spelunking clothes, flashlight in hand, and D- and I started systematically dismantling her basement.<br /><br />I was very afraid we were going to find him here, where the spaces between the rafters reach 10 feet over top the next room. That was quite a trick, to get my head up between the HVAC and the wall to peer down the chute.<br /><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_kq1lA9IWd68/SeaoC3l4dFI/AAAAAAAAByQ/JNlbdjLVYjE/s1600-h/IMG_7196-767148.jpg"><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_kq1lA9IWd68/SeaoC3l4dFI/AAAAAAAAByQ/JNlbdjLVYjE/s320/IMG_7196-767148.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5325128376648234066" /></a><br /><br />This is where we finally found him. This little alley had been partitioned off with a sideways piece of paneling, precisely because this is a tough place from which to extract fugitives. What, you don't see him?<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_kq1lA9IWd68/SeaoClDWYQI/AAAAAAAAByA/zh3wLU0Usl8/s1600-h/IMG_7194-766104.jpg"><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_kq1lA9IWd68/SeaoClDWYQI/AAAAAAAAByA/zh3wLU0Usl8/s320/IMG_7194-766104.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5325128371671556354" /></a><br /><br />Try tilting the door the other way. Yup, that's him at the end. <br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_kq1lA9IWd68/SeaoCkP7DlI/AAAAAAAAByI/HDbNeUe6f4o/s1600-h/IMG_7195-766596.jpg"><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_kq1lA9IWd68/SeaoCkP7DlI/AAAAAAAAByI/HDbNeUe6f4o/s320/IMG_7195-766596.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5325128371455856210" /></a><br /><br />I was able to squeeze down the tunnel, pick him up, trembling, and back slowly out without squishing him. He went into a carrier without much fight (to our relief) and we brought him back to my house - where he promptly made himself at home, much to the displeasure of The Ladies. <br /><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_kq1lA9IWd68/SeaoDG0Tr_I/AAAAAAAAByg/1g4wlNgohrU/s1600-h/IMG_7203-768077.jpg"><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_kq1lA9IWd68/SeaoDG0Tr_I/AAAAAAAAByg/1g4wlNgohrU/s320/IMG_7203-768077.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5325128380735270898" /></a><br /><br />Why did he have such a reaction at D-s house? Our hypothesis is that he was very bonded to his (female) former owner and had transfered that close attachment to me. He was very distressed when he lost two people in the course of a week. He's a complete doll, and very affectionate. Stay tuned while we figure out how we are going to transition him to a permanent home.<br /><br />In the meantime, he has work to do.<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/0fs5AR1bRU4&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/0fs5AR1bRU4&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Late-breaking news - kittens this morning! Guess what color?</span>gottagopracticehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08112740396190991150noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21729431.post-87973549355503275112009-04-15T07:49:00.002-05:002009-04-15T07:49:00.141-05:00State of the Bow Hold, 2009It occurred to me that it's been a year since I recorded what my bow hold looks like, a year of steady focus and (I hope) change. I asked DH to help me record another few clips, so I can take stock and figure out where I'm going from here.<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/KQJ3EdbGFqg&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/KQJ3EdbGFqg&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />For comparison, this is last year's video:<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/TLxCGoXJaBk&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/TLxCGoXJaBk&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />I am very pleased to see my thumb nicely curving and extending - much better than the locked out version last year. I think my down bow motion is actually a little sloppy - perhaps my finger tips are a little too loose? And I can finally see an up-bow motion that is happening in response to the bow change, rather than because the bow is slipping within my hand in anticipation of the change.<br /><br />I also suspect the motions are a little exaggerated because I am playing an open string and can thus concentrate on making my bow hand as relaxed as possible. It will be interesting to see what that hand is doing when my left hand and brain are also occupied. Partially to that end, I filmed some "cello trial" clips, since I switched out one loaner cello for the other this week. As I post those you can see my bow hand in action while helping me to decide which cello to keep.gottagopracticehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08112740396190991150noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21729431.post-59748859953440289962009-04-14T08:44:00.004-05:002009-04-14T08:50:37.957-05:00Looks like...One of the traditional Easter dishes in my family is called... well, I don't know how to spell it, but it's pronounced <span style="font-style:italic;">look-sha</span>. It's not a very complex dish - or at least, it looked simple when my grandmother made it. White yeast dough is rolled into 2-foot long snakes, which are placed on a baking sheet, brushed with egg, and sliced into 1-inch pieces. The bread is baked, then put into a bowl and drenched in honey, water, and poppy seeds. It's basically bread and water. Sweet, soggy bread. Ick. The Aunts loved it, but I ate as little as possible.<br /><br />The day before Easter I found myself with a half loaf of very hard, stale, whole-grain, seedy bread. I sawed it into pieces and soaked it in custard (3 eggs, 3 cups milk which turned out to be 1 cup reconstituted goats milk, 1.5 cups 1 %, and 1/2 cup half-n-half, because that's what I had in the fridge, a pinch of salt and a slurp of sugar), topped with melted sweet butter and a thick sprinkle of black sesame seeds, and baked at 325 F for an hour, more or less. (Yeah, that's what most of my recipes look like.)<br /><br />I ended up with a chewy, custardy bread pudding, slightly under-sweetened, and improved it with a glop of honey on top.<br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_kq1lA9IWd68/SePqfZs0dII/AAAAAAAABx4/UXcnLEI030Y/s1600-h/IMG_7156-769150.jpg"><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_kq1lA9IWd68/SePqfZs0dII/AAAAAAAABx4/UXcnLEI030Y/s320/IMG_7156-769150.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5324357009677776002" /></a><br /><br />Amazingly, it looked and tasted like <span style="font-style:italic;">look-sha</span>. Except good. I had it for Easter breakfast. <br /><br />Where do you suppose that inspiration came from? <br /><br />(Thanks, Grandma!)gottagopracticehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08112740396190991150noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21729431.post-31220366133534173542009-04-13T07:42:00.001-05:002009-04-13T07:42:00.401-05:00True confession<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_kq1lA9IWd68/SeK0ukYevHI/AAAAAAAABxw/rrqPaj5Vtsg/s1600-h/IMG_7155-770017.jpg"><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_kq1lA9IWd68/SeK0ukYevHI/AAAAAAAABxw/rrqPaj5Vtsg/s320/IMG_7155-770017.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5324016421638683762" /></a><br /><br />I am a purple peep eater.gottagopracticehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08112740396190991150noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21729431.post-30982965655330053162009-04-12T10:07:00.004-05:002009-04-12T13:39:59.615-05:00Cognitively complex<span style="font-style:italic;">"...whatever it is that an IQ test measures, it is not the ability to engage in cognitively complex forms of multivariate reasoning." That last phrase is not one that most of us use very often, but it's actually a very good description of what most of us do every day in our working</span> [and cello-playing] <span style="font-style:italic;">lives, and what the best performers do extremely well. You just don't have to be especially "smart," as traditionally defined, to do it. </span><br /><br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1591842247?ie=UTF8&tag=ifatfirsyoudo-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1591842247">Talent Is Overrated: What Really Separates World-Class Performers from Everybody Else</a><img src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=ifatfirsyoudo-20&l=as2&o=1&a=1591842247" width="1" height="1" border="0" alt="" style="border:none !important; margin:0px !important;" /> (Geoff Colvin, 2008)<br />p. 44gottagopracticehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08112740396190991150noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21729431.post-86760618421037979522009-04-08T15:01:00.003-05:002009-04-08T15:44:30.180-05:00LoanersI see it's been almost a month since I last posted. Where has the time gone?<br /><br />My friend D- knew I was still missing Frankie, so she kindly lent me these two four-month-old monsters to occupy the void in my heart for a week or two. That's laid-back Brad on my left and squirmy little Angelina on my right. She has the barest of white tippy toes on the left side, along with one white whisker and one white chin hair. Adorable.<br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_kq1lA9IWd68/Sd0CtBj3bQI/AAAAAAAABxo/PHVQTQUgTs4/s1600-h/IMG_7133-716440.jpg"><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_kq1lA9IWd68/Sd0CtBj3bQI/AAAAAAAABxo/PHVQTQUgTs4/s320/IMG_7133-716440.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5322413307158031618" /></a><br /><br />And I have another loaner in the house today - a cello. In the continuing saga of the exploding cello from last winter, my new replacement cello developed a crack in the top of the top just as I was getting ready to take it in to have a new bridge made and some adjustments done in the hopes of making the playability more to my liking. I have been more and more disappointed, because this wasn't the cello I would have bought if it had been one of the candidates in my search.<br /><br />Though the shop that I bought the cello from won't simply refund the money (which I completely understand), they have always been willing to trade the cello at the original purchase price for another cello. So that's what I'm (finally) doing. And I must say, even though I don't need another cello at this moment, having two perfectly good ones (and two cello-shaped objects, CSO's), it is always exciting to try new cellos.<br /><br />But that's all I'm going to write about that now, because I want to go practice some more.gottagopracticehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08112740396190991150noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21729431.post-87912248442938822222009-03-14T13:50:00.003-05:002009-03-14T13:57:29.442-05:00I'm going to miss themI know, it's a wonderful home, and I really like the people. But sometimes you just especially love them. I'm going to miss those warm, purry, snuggly wakeups. Johnny leaping from the dining room table to the counter to enjoy his goat's milk. Frankie grunting, unsuccessfully imitating a Maine Coon's trill. And so many other things.<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/Oe8DKvZSaQk&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/Oe8DKvZSaQk&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />Have a good life, Frankie and Johnny.gottagopracticehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08112740396190991150noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21729431.post-36121087897950109092009-03-08T23:14:00.003-05:002009-03-09T09:37:19.793-05:00Weekly practice reviewYesterday, I welcomed Daylight Savings Time by sleeping all afternoon, after being up early to play for church, then succumbing to insulin toxicity induced by the carbohydrate load of the apple fritters I consumed at a local dining emporium.<br /><br />Why do I mention that in a post about practice review? Because I slept all day, I didn't start to practice until after 8:30pm, which is fine for me, but DH has a weekday 4:30am date with the alarm clock, and our house is very open. So I didn't want to practice more than about 30 minutes. I did that, however, instead of skipping it because it was the last day of the week and I wanted to report a good practice week, 5 days out of 7. Thanks, Practice Club.<br /><br />The funniest moment of the week happened just as I came to the end of my 30 minutes. I was playing the first four bars of arpeggiated chords from the Sammartini Sonata in G (Suzuki Book 8, 1st mvmt, p3) with my eyes closed so I could concentrate better, when DH stopped by on the way to bed and kissed me on the top of my head. Oh, my! I nearly jumped out of my skin! Then dissolved into laughter as my heart rate returned to normal, and asked him to please, never kiss me when I am playing the cello with my eyes closed.<br /><br />How romantic is that?<br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_kq1lA9IWd68/SbSXmtRucLI/AAAAAAAABxg/RBxVD9pjUTQ/s1600-h/IMG_6902-758413.jpg"><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_kq1lA9IWd68/SbSXmtRucLI/AAAAAAAABxg/RBxVD9pjUTQ/s320/IMG_6902-758413.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5311036551821422770" /></a>gottagopracticehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08112740396190991150noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21729431.post-67753273395351750772009-03-07T14:33:00.002-06:002009-03-07T14:34:24.447-06:00Weekend<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_kq1lA9IWd68/SbLaLtSdB2I/AAAAAAAABxY/mMGWVDjO_qQ/s1600-h/IMG_6825-730104.jpg"><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_kq1lA9IWd68/SbLaLtSdB2I/AAAAAAAABxY/mMGWVDjO_qQ/s320/IMG_6825-730104.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5310546805293647714" /></a>gottagopracticehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08112740396190991150noreply@blogger.com2