Krookie Posted April 10, 2011 Posted April 10, 2011 I've always wanted to lean how to play guitar, so I have all this spare time on my hands I figured I'd give it a shot. I bought two books and a book CD combo about teaching yourself to play then a went out and bought a Yamaha FG730 which someone told me was a really good one. I'm still not sure about that. But I have been making progress. I've mastered most of the chords and my fingering is getting faster. But there is one thing holding me back. My fingers hurt. They really really really hurt. I'm assuming thats normal though. I've found that bourbon does a lot to dull the pain. It also improves your playing, or at least your opinion of it anyway. Your fingers will hurt less and less as you develop callouses on your finger tips Is my guitar a decent one? Seems solid and sounds nice to me but I know next to nothing about such things. I don't know much about Yamahas but it should be fine for what you're doing. Good guitars are overrated.
Calax Posted April 10, 2011 Posted April 10, 2011 Deep thought: Enjoy the solitude because you never can get as much as you need. Victor of the 5 year fan fic competition! Kevin Butler will awesome your face off.
Nepenthe Posted April 10, 2011 Posted April 10, 2011 I went to a house warming party last night and wound up playing chess with a hot 6'1" blonde nurse. Unfortunately I had to split due to work commitments before we could change the rules to strip chess. Might need to look her up later, though. You're a cheery wee bugger, Nep. Have I ever said that? Reapercussions
Monte Carlo Posted April 10, 2011 Posted April 10, 2011 The weather is unseasonably warm in the UK this weekend so I am off to the pub with my family, after which I am inviting a friend over and firing up my BBQ. Have popped open the first beer of the day, as per our WWOT forum's titanic struggle against Death. Yum. Heroism was never this much fun.
Raithe Posted April 10, 2011 Posted April 10, 2011 Yes, the sun seems to be hitting the south coast quite firmly at the moment. Been getting some house cleaning and wotnot attended to. Which included having to declog the vacuum cleaner... Having some idle moments to poke at some Exalted books to spark random creativity. Although I've realised that if you don't count a couple of phone conversations and exchanging words with the checkout people while dealing with groceries.. I haven't actually spoken to anyone outside the house in over a week... "Cuius testiculos habeas, habeas cardia et cerebellum."
RPGmasterBoo Posted April 10, 2011 Posted April 10, 2011 Although I've realised that if you don't count a couple of phone conversations and exchanging words with the checkout people while dealing with groceries.. I haven't actually spoken to anyone outside the house in over a week... Don't worry, another week of that and you'll have plenty of imaginary friends to talk to Imperium Thought for the Day: Even a man who has nothing can still offer his life
Hurlshort Posted April 10, 2011 Posted April 10, 2011 Yesterday I did a ton of yard work. First I cleared out the first layer of the front yard. It was overgrown, we moved in a month ago and it was overgrown then, so now it was supersized. I finally found a decent gas trimmer, so I went to town with it. I managed to cover myself in green junk. The yard is a weird combination of huge weeds, some sort of ice plant, and grass, so I just cut it all down. Even my glasses were covered in it. Then I went and picked up my lawnmower, which was being repaired, and mowed the backyard. That went pretty smoothly. I went back to the front and finished off the second layer with the trimmer and then raked it. It was a mess, but it looks a good deal better now. I also picked up a very nice used BBQ for cheap. So for dinner we had tri-tip and some chicken with the neighbors. It was a pretty exhausting day, but I feel good about all the stuff I got done.
Walsingham Posted April 10, 2011 Posted April 10, 2011 Enjoying my garden today, interspersed with rounds of Baldur's Gate when it got too hot. Only fly in the ointment was the neighbour's kids listening to RnB. ...And they say Britons no longer have the endurance shown in the War. Our children freely endure the worst music I've ever heard. Monte has reminded me I've had no booze today. I'm off to the pub. "It wasn't lies. It was just... bull****"." -Elwood Blues tarna's dead; processing... complete. Disappointed by Universe. RIP Hades/Sand/etc. Here's hoping your next alt has a harp.
Hurlshort Posted April 10, 2011 Posted April 10, 2011 I've always wanted to lean how to play guitar, so I have all this spare time on my hands I figured I'd give it a shot. I bought two books and a book CD combo about teaching yourself to play then a went out and bought a Yamaha FG730 which someone told me was a really good one. I'm still not sure about that. But I have been making progress. I've mastered most of the chords and my fingering is getting faster. But there is one thing holding me back. My fingers hurt. They really really really hurt. I'm assuming thats normal though. I've found that bourbon does a lot to dull the pain. It also improves your playing, or at least your opinion of it anyway. Your fingers will hurt less and less as you develop callouses on your finger tips Is my guitar a decent one? Seems solid and sounds nice to me but I know next to nothing about such things. I don't know much about Yamahas but it should be fine for what you're doing. Good guitars are overrated. I started learning last November. The callouses will come, with my schedule I can only practice like an hour or two a day, so it never got too painful. It has been harder trying to build the muscles needed to do bar chords. I've been doing these youtube lessons by a guy named Marty Schwartz, it has been very educational. I like it better than the CD that came with my guitar.
Enoch Posted April 11, 2011 Posted April 11, 2011 (edited) I had never really done much cooking with eggplants before. Most of my eating experience with them has been either eggplant parmesan or baba ganoush, both of which are fine things, but not really anything that I was particularly motivated to try at home. But I bought one on a whim the other day, thinking that I would experiment with grilling it. Never got around to using the grill, but I'll be buying more of it soon. I sliced it into 1/4-inch half-rounds, along with a 3 yellow squash (seeded), half a red bell pepper, 3 plum tomatoes, half an onion, and 3-4 cloves of very thinly sliced garlic. Threw that all in a big bowl, salt & pepper, coated with olive oil, added a good dash of balsamic vinegar for added richness, a fistful of chopped parsley, and a nice dusting of freshly grated romano cheese. Tossed to combine, dumped it all in a 13'x9' baking dish, and added some more of the cheese to the top. Covered with aluminum foil, and put it on the lower rack of the oven that already had a half-done meatloaf in it. (Roughly 350F for about 25-30 minutes.) The result was absolutely awesome. Rich & earthy eggplant, complimented by the acidity of the tomatoes and by the still-a-bit-crisp sweetness of the squash and pepper, and all infused with the aromatic flavors of the garlic, onion, and parsley. I realized while eating it that, by simply using the vegetables I had on hand (and the spare heat that I was using for my meatloaf) in a way that made sense to me, I had essentially improvised the dish famously known as ratatouille. (The meatloaf was pretty good, too, although a little underseasoned. That left it rather upstaged by the vegetables.) Edited April 11, 2011 by Enoch
Raithe Posted April 11, 2011 Posted April 11, 2011 (edited) Mondays are always so much fun to start on about four hours sleep... The puppy chases the cat around.. and the cat teases the puppy (I could almost swear he's getting the dog's attention, springing some place the puppy can't get to and then blowing raspberries at him...). I'm wondering how long till they figure out some sort of detente. Edit: And then the puppy pukes on the hall carpet. The joys of cleaning... Edited April 11, 2011 by Raithe "Cuius testiculos habeas, habeas cardia et cerebellum."
Nepenthe Posted April 11, 2011 Posted April 11, 2011 Being pregnant agrees with the ex. Not being the one who impregnated her disagrees with me. You're a cheery wee bugger, Nep. Have I ever said that? Reapercussions
Raithe Posted April 11, 2011 Posted April 11, 2011 Being pregnant agrees with the ex. Not being the one who impregnated her disagrees with me. Wait until you see them with a pair of kids playing. That just really cuts into you. So for the platitude.. Enjoy the fact it's not that bad yet. "Cuius testiculos habeas, habeas cardia et cerebellum."
Nepenthe Posted April 11, 2011 Posted April 11, 2011 (edited) Being pregnant agrees with the ex. Not being the one who impregnated her disagrees with me. Wait until you see them with a pair of kids playing. That just really cuts into you. So for the platitude.. Enjoy the fact it's not that bad yet. I've got this nagging fear that I'm going to overcompensate by having a half-dozen kids with the next bitch I run into, just to one-up them. (yeah, misogynist day.) Edited April 11, 2011 by Nepenthe You're a cheery wee bugger, Nep. Have I ever said that? Reapercussions
Shryke Posted April 11, 2011 Posted April 11, 2011 eh maybe the next time you witness some screaming little brat you'll reconsider and be relieved you escaped that hell when your mind works against you - fight back with substance abuse!
Tigranes Posted April 11, 2011 Posted April 11, 2011 Accepted PhD offer at Pennsylvania. Had to turn down LSE, Warwick, Goldsmiths and some more, which is a pity since I'd much prefer to live in England. God help me I will find somewhere that does a proper curry. Let's Play: Icewind Dale Ironman (Complete) Let's Play: Icewind Dale II Ironman (Complete) Let's Play: Divinity II (Complete) Let's Play: Baldur's Gate Trilogy Ironman - BG1 (Complete) Let's Play: Baldur's Gate Trilogy Ironman - BG2 (In Progress)
Nepenthe Posted April 11, 2011 Posted April 11, 2011 Congrats anyway, Migranes. I hope doing a PhD (or LL.D.) won't turn out to be the biggest mistake in YOUR life. Sure has felt that way for a while. eh maybe the next time you witness some screaming little brat you'll reconsider and be relieved you escaped that hell Yeah, several times a week. I'm bipolar that way. You're a cheery wee bugger, Nep. Have I ever said that? Reapercussions
Malcador Posted April 11, 2011 Posted April 11, 2011 Accepted PhD offer at Pennsylvania. Had to turn down LSE, Warwick, Goldsmiths and some more, which is a pity since I'd much prefer to live in England. God help me I will find somewhere that does a proper curry. Good luck, what field are you studying in ? Silent day is over, now I'm going to do the opposite today, so maximum chit chat. Was sort of refreshing to see how little I really needed to say to coworkers to get work done. Makes sense though, the only work related chatter here happens behind closed doors in meetings (top secret!...apparently). Why has elegance found so little following? Elegance has the disadvantage that hard work is needed to achieve it and a good education to appreciate it. - Edsger Wybe Dijkstra
Guard Dog Posted April 11, 2011 Posted April 11, 2011 Accepted PhD offer at Pennsylvania. Had to turn down LSE, Warwick, Goldsmiths and some more, which is a pity since I'd much prefer to live in England. God help me I will find somewhere that does a proper curry. Congrats Tig that is great! "While it is true you learn with age, the down side is what you often learn is what a damn fool you were before" Thomas Sowell
Guard Dog Posted April 11, 2011 Posted April 11, 2011 Being pregnant agrees with the ex. Not being the one who impregnated her disagrees with me. I don't know if it will lessen the sting but you can watch this for a different perspective: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xWkZ_StRjU0 "While it is true you learn with age, the down side is what you often learn is what a damn fool you were before" Thomas Sowell
Nepenthe Posted April 11, 2011 Posted April 11, 2011 Being pregnant agrees with the ex. Not being the one who impregnated her disagrees with me. I don't know if it will lessen the sting but you can watch this for a different perspective: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xWkZ_StRjU0 Well, the sting was two months ago, now it's more like a dull ache. And yes, that did help considerably. You're a cheery wee bugger, Nep. Have I ever said that? Reapercussions
Gfted1 Posted April 11, 2011 Posted April 11, 2011 Congrats Tigranes! What made you choose that university over the others? "I'm your biggest fan, Ill follow you until you love me, Papa"
Walsingham Posted April 11, 2011 Posted April 11, 2011 Booooooooo! I was looking forward to Tigs joining me and Monte for a proper pub crawl. "It wasn't lies. It was just... bull****"." -Elwood Blues tarna's dead; processing... complete. Disappointed by Universe. RIP Hades/Sand/etc. Here's hoping your next alt has a harp.
RPGmasterBoo Posted April 11, 2011 Posted April 11, 2011 Booooooooo! What? Imperium Thought for the Day: Even a man who has nothing can still offer his life
Tigranes Posted April 11, 2011 Posted April 11, 2011 Yeah, I was literally this close to going to Warwick - my field is media (cultural studies, globalisation, consumer culture, etc) and UK fits me a lot better. In the end though the array of resources Penn had was impressive, and the reputation the dept in particular has. Not to mention the UK economy in the gutter, some of the unis couldn't even offer full funding to anyone. In the end I wanted to have as varied a career prospects as possible in terms of countries, and perhaps subconsciously 5 more years in school rather than 3. Wals/Monty hopefully I'll be able to visit the UK at some point during my studies though. Guard yer liver safe till then. Let's Play: Icewind Dale Ironman (Complete) Let's Play: Icewind Dale II Ironman (Complete) Let's Play: Divinity II (Complete) Let's Play: Baldur's Gate Trilogy Ironman - BG1 (Complete) Let's Play: Baldur's Gate Trilogy Ironman - BG2 (In Progress)
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