Messages From The Heartland

[David In Indy]

We have another ice storm coming.

[injest]

We have another ice storm coming.

BATTEN THE HATCHES!!

[David In Indy]

BATTEN THE HATCHES!!

Yup!

Grab a bottle, hunker down and pray for daylight!

They said it will either be here late tomorrow night, or early on Saturday morning.

So I made an emergency run to the grocery store and stocked up on milk, bread, eggs and what have you.

I hope it won't end up being really bad. But it probably will. We are due for a major slam from Mother Nature. She's a beeyotch. And she always seems to do it to us at least 4 or 5 times each year. So....

[injest]

Yup!

Grab a bottle, hunker down and pray for daylight!

They said it will either be here late tomorrow night, or early on Saturday morning.

So I made an emergency run to the grocery store and stocked up on milk, bread, eggs and what have you.

I hope it won't end up being really bad. But it probably will. We are due for a major slam from Mother Nature. She's a beeyotch. And she always seems to do it to us at least 4 or 5 times each year. So....

maybe you should start being NICER to her...

[optom3]

Hi,
I thought I was way overdue for a nosy around here. I love that you are a musician,I just play the piano badly.Mind you I have only played it for 3 years so what do I expect. I love classical music, actually I love music period, pretty well all sorts. You should teach if you can find the pupils. My brother plays, piano, violin, mandolin, guitar.His great love is violin though, always has been.
I envy him his talent.
I remember seeing Julian Lloyd Webber, Andrew's brother play cello and he was amazing.

If we were not so strapped financially I would be back with my piano lessons. I can read music courtesy of a brief flirtation with the clarinet, about 3 years.I gave it up simply because I needed more time at ballet.Then ended up with arthritic feet,and a ballet career went down the toilet.

I had a lovely piano teacher who did not have me do scales etc. I told him the pieces I wanted to learn and then we hammered away at them. I have always loved Beethoven's piano concerto No. 5 .So I asked him to teach me the slow movement. He looked at me as If I was insane.Well as stubborn is my middle name, the more he said I would never manage it,the more determined I became.  It took me 4 months but it was worth it, man was I proud.

My oldest son was very talented at the piano,but gave it up for guitar.

O.K I have taken up quite enough of your blog, so I will just say, I hope the weather does not become too bad.I hate the cold, hence Florida.!!! Can't play the piano at all if I get too cold as my fingers seize up now as well as my feet.

You must be a very patient man if you can consider teaching music. My brother taught violin for a year to raise some extra money. He was demented by the end, nowhere near enough patience. I think his BP nearly went off the Richter scale. I suspect some of his Japanese students learned some brand new English cussing as well !!!

[David In Indy]

Hi Fiona!

You are welcome to post in my blog anytime you wish! I love reading your posts. I'm over in your blog reading it all the time!

Did you ever see a movie called "Music of the Heart"? Meryl Streep stars in it. It's the true story of a woman in New York City that teaches violin to inner city kids. It's one of my favorite movies. If you can find it online, or if you ever see it for rent at the video store please take the time to watch it. It's a beautiful movie and very inspiring.

[optom3]

Hi Fiona!

You are welcome to post in my blog anytime you wish! I love reading your posts. I'm over in your blog reading it all the time!

Did you ever see a movie called "Music of the Heart"? Meryl Streep stars in it. It's the true story of a woman in New York City that teaches violin to inner city kids. It's one of my favorite movies. If you can find it online, or if you ever see it for rent at the video store please take the time to watch it. It's a beautiful movie and very inspiring.

My brother told me about it when we were talking about BBM of all things. He said I should watch it as well as eat,drink man woman. To my chagrin I have watched neither yet. I will watch both, as I have been now I have been reminded.

I have an abiding respect and envy of those who can really play an instrument well. I will use music so often to accentuate my mood. Sometimes happy, sometimes sad.Very indulgent but I have always done it. I find it helps me work through my sad times.Sort of an all cried out state. I listened to Bocelli, singing time to say goodbye,untilI could no longer cry anymore, after Heath.

[David In Indy]

Music can bring out many emotional responses in people. Music itself is emotion really. The composer was feeling something at the time, and he or she attempted to convey it in musical composition. I find playing an angry piece when I'm feeling angry will help me calm down - a bit like thrusting my fists against the wall over and over. I take it out on my violin or cello. Or sometimes if I'm feeling angry, I find playing a calmer piece, or an emotionally charged piece will help me. It just depends.

I was happy to learn you play the piano, and you also played the clarinet at one time. I played the alto and baritone saxophone in high school. I was in the marching band too, but I switched to orchestra because I had been playing the violin and cello since and early age, and I really didn't care for the saxophone all that much. And when I was attending Catholic school (St. Matthew's) I played trombone, but I only stuck with it for about a year. I really didn't care for it either. My love is in the piano and the bowed string instruments. I also own a banjo and self taught myself that instrument. I have a friend who plays the guitar. We often have a lot of fun playing "Dueling Banjos". Our friends often ask us to play it when we are together and have our instruments with us.

[David In Indy]

My Dad's house has central heat in it except for one room - the family room. It used to be a porch, but was glassed in many years ago and it is now just another regular room in his house. But because it used to be a porch, it is not connected to the main furnace. It has electric heat. There are little registers along the floor on three sides of the room.

I was helping Dad up out of his chair tonight and I noticed something weird. I had just shut off the lights out there in the family room and I noticed a strange orange glow coming from inside one of the registers. I helped Dad up the stairs and got him to his bedroom and then I went back down to investigate. I took off the register covering and there was a little wire in there glowing bright orange. And it was just fractions of an inch from touching the carpeting. And it was very VERY hot. I ended up shutting off the heat in that room (there is a heat control dial on the wall) and I called the heating company. They said they would come out tomorrow to fix it. Anyway, that could have EASILY started a fire and burned down the entire house! The carpeting was fairly hot too, just below the glowing wire. I wonder how that happened? It looks like the wire was melted and came apart into two pieces. Scary.

The register with the hot wire was extremely hot, but the register just next to it is ice cold.

I don't understand it.

So anyway, I was planning to drive back over to Speedway tonight, but I will wait until tomorrow after the heating people leave.

[David In Indy]

People don't stay here late like they used to!

I'm looking down there and only THREE people are online, and it's not even 1:00 am on the east coast yet (10 pm Pacific)

Where you at?!!!! Where is everyone?!!

And it's FRIDAY night too! Maybe they are all out at the bar partying like it's 1999!