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Reid
Ha`aha`a
Andorra
1526 Posts |
 Posted - 09/29/2005 : 07:01:02 AM
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Julie,
How does being "semiretired" work? Around here it is all or nothing, unless you have some really special talent (or political pull) that causes the employer to take you back as a consultant at much more money than you were making as an employee. Did your employer cut you that kind of deal?
When I retired after my spine surgery, I was so happy to be away from Mother Yale (who is really a mean muthah, behind all the propaganda) that I never have gone back to visit, except for one show at the Art Gallery and to see the docs at the Yale Health Plan . I even dislike driving by or through the place. I still visit with some of my friends who still work there though - on neutral territory.
Taking up decor seems a natural for you - it must be just like painting with objects.
OK, now go practice :-)
Reid |
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hapakid
Luna Ho`omalu
USA
1533 Posts |
Posted - 09/29/2005 : 07:17:00 AM
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Karl, Reid, et al,
Carry a uke on Hawaiian airlines and they'll ask you to play.
"Auntie" is a sign of respect for kupuna. But as many of us prove, kupuna status isn't guaranteed with gray hair. "With age comes wisdom, but sometimes age comes alone."
Extended conversations here are a real treat, as Reid mentioned, because it doesn't have to be just slack key, or even just music. We can talk about grandkids, travel, other kinds of music or the weather where we are. There are a lot forums on the web and very few are as friendly and open-minded as this one.
E aloha mai,
Jesse Tinsley |
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wdf
Ha`aha`a
USA
1154 Posts |
Posted - 09/29/2005 : 08:50:32 AM
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quote:
Originally posted by jwn
Auntie jwn says 'hi'. (I've been here every darn day!)
And I've still got my ellipses...
And your double dashes --  |
Dusty |
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MahinaM
Lokahi
USA
389 Posts |
Posted - 09/29/2005 : 10:24:54 AM
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Reid: You must take on a new username after this thread: "The Stimulator" (oh, that conjurs up lotsa things, eh brah?)
M |
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Karl Monetti
`Olu`olu
USA
756 Posts |
Posted - 09/29/2005 : 12:24:57 PM
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Reid,
Well, the first to ask me to stop playing was a passenger; it was sort of an empty flight, and after my wife fell asleep i looked around for an empty row to get out the backpacker and play a bit. I found one but did not notice the large lump in the row across the aisle from me. I played for 2-3 minutes nad the lump riased it's ugly head and said "Could you cut that out, I'm trying to sleep!". Turns our she was sort of a neighbor of mine, (not really ugly either) but in her daze she did not recognize me. probably would have asked me to stop anyway...she doesn;t have very good taste:)
I did find another row, in the way-back part of the plane and played blissfully for a few hours. Then the first stew old me to stow it so we could land. I guess that doesn't really count as a put-down. On the way back, the flight was again somewhat empty, but all the coach rows were already taken by singles stretched out asleep. First class was almost empty, however, and i made my way up there, being careful to find a row with an empty row across the aisle as well as in front of me. I was there a few minutes when the 1st class stew came by and did a nice double-take..."well, where did you come from?" "Oh, i just wandered in from the slums" Well, she left me alone, even b rought some water, but after a while she had nothing left to do so she took up residence across the aisle and started doing some bookwork. I think she was just checking on me to make sure i would not steal anything from first class...finally she must have thought i was taking to much first class air, because she asked (well, actually told) me to quit.
No big deal, i had already learned the song and was trying my best to play the first part as fast as possible...i was actually not sorprised she asked me to leave...i can imagine sitting next to some pnk shredder nailing the same lick over and over and over, etc... What i really have to wonder, however, is; how did she (they) hear mo so well over the din of the engines? I can barely hear that little guitar on the plane. It must project a heck of a lot better out the front than it does to my (failing) ears.
BTW, any of yo have a Backpacker? Ever notice how many people stare at it in terminals or planes, and finallyc ome out and ask what kind of instrument it is? They must not be players at all, becasuse it is quite obvious that it has six strings, is played with the fingers, and sounds like a guitar. In vet school they taught us that if we heard hoof-beats, expect a horse. Maybe folks think this is a zebra or something.... Anyway, I never leave home without it. Even when i went to SoCal last spring i had it on the plane, the taylor in the hold. |
Karl
Frozen North |
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wdf
Ha`aha`a
USA
1154 Posts |
Posted - 09/29/2005 : 1:10:19 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by jwn
Double? I thought they were triple!?!
And... the final score: four 1's; five 2's; and three 3's. Dusty wins (again). Which also begs the question: doesn't wdf have anything better to do than to count dashes? (I guess I don't.)
No. He is semiretired |
Dusty |
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Reid
Ha`aha`a
Andorra
1526 Posts |
Posted - 09/29/2005 : 1:46:00 PM
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Oh Man, Karl. I could hardly type this because I was laughing so hard my laptop was bouncing on my belly ( Sarah bought it for me so I could be prone - or is it supine - whatevahs, when logged on). This is a kind of experience that those of us poor saps who exist in Exurbia never get into. (If my typing is wierd it is because I am still laughing). Count it as a blessing, because the rest of us never even get to move - cowed 'bots that we are - and your freedom is a rare thing where I live. I suppose, that all together, we could come up with some neat putdowns for the "Flight Attendant Stewardesses" (the latest in HNL Pidgin) and the Lumps, or even a couple taiji moves that would look like you just shrugged your shoulders but expelled some yahoo into another realm. (My large muscles still work well and taiji is a world of its own).
Good for you - keep it up. I thought the Great White North was the last bastion where individuality reigned. (OTW, why would I want to be so cold :-)? Don't let 'em get you down. Keep on keepin' on.
Reid
PS.
Hope you got lotsa wood, Karl 'cause gas doubled in price this week and our No. 2 Fuel oil is gonna be priced like gasoline this winter. Lucky we got a new efficient furnace 2 years ago, and a cord of wood to prolong the mild Fall weather into Dec. in our nice fireplace. Gonna be a few Three Dog Nights. |
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Sarah
`Olu`olu
571 Posts |
Posted - 09/29/2005 : 1:55:11 PM
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Aloha kakou...
See what this thread started? It's great! We've got a wonderful 'ohana here!
Keith, Reid is right, I started learning Ke'ala's Mele after hearing you play it at Dusty's. I heard you play something so sweet, so quintessentially slack-key, that before you'd played very long I asked you what *was* that! I was very taken. You told me, and I made a mental note that I needed to try that. So, I spent a lot of time this summer doing that.
I noted your comment about the big slide up 5-10, and back to 5... the only place I can discern that that might be is in measure 31-32 of the only-known-tab (or, in the 3-4th measures of the 3rd variation). If this is indeed what you are referring to, my observation is that in the tab there is no indication that there is a slide back down to C, so I just jump fast (not the easiest thing to learn to do) back down to the 5th. It’s true it is a major disjunct, but I believed the tab. However, you have listened to Leonard do it more than I have, so I realize I have more homework to do. I don't have trouble with the 10s and 12s in the measure preceding the return to the 5th fret, so perhaps I can work in a down-slide that might actually be easier than the "leap" I have so far tried to do.
It's great to share notes like this - thanks, Keith. Let me know if I am, in fact, discussing the same section of the music you are.
To all the others -- first, last, middle, and “doubles” -- Aloha! And mahalo for sharing your news!
-Sarah
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cpatch
Ahonui
USA
2187 Posts |
Posted - 09/29/2005 : 1:59:35 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by Reid
I thought the Great White North was the last bastion where individuality reigned.
You obviously haven't spent much time in California! |
Craig
My goal is to be able to play as well as people think I can. |
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Reid
Ha`aha`a
Andorra
1526 Posts |
Posted - 09/29/2005 : 2:37:32 PM
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Craig,
Actually Sarah and I have, and have lotsa friends and relatives that have wound up there or have bounced outa there. Present Kaleponi is defined for me by William Gibson, creator of cyberpunk and the guy who coined the word 'cyberspace'. Major beauty combined with major dysfunction.
I can remember coming out of of the Russian River into the gorgeous Sonoma coast and driving to find fragile rhododendrons in the woods, and watching sea otter mamas whacking clams with rocks to feed the babies on their chests. I can remember vicious, viscous air over Century City that made me think that the lights I saw that night were from houses in the mountains, only to realise, next morning, that I had been looking at Downtown skyscrapers. I can remember taking a left, instead of a right, that got me into the barrios of East Palo Alto and tied me up with feral dogs and feral people. I can remember walking blindly all over SanFran and getting into, and out of, evil and wondrous places. I can remember a dam over a populated part of the LA basin that held back an ocean of sludge, ready to drown the people below in unspeakable muck. I can remember sitting with Paul Draper of Ridge Vinyards, on a mountain top overlooking Cupertino, for an hour and a half, talking about, and tasting, the mystery that is wine. I can remember an acquaintance in Napa who couldn't get a toilet installed because there was no water available to flush it, vacuum efficient though it was. I can remember being happily sandblasted by the driving winds on the beaches of Big Sur. AND, I can remember being puzzled about why I refused an unsolicited interview for a job at the Getty in Malibu.
I can remember lots more about that very peculiar place; a place that was the Holy Land for so many, and has turned into the potential precursor of our entire nation. But, I won't bore anyone anymore.
Reid |
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marzullo
`Olu`olu
USA
923 Posts |
Posted - 09/29/2005 : 3:48:47 PM
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aloha e sarah,
i'm really glad that you're working on ke`ala's mele. i'm looking forward to hearing you play it some time. it was one of the first songs that really captured me when i was just learning about slack key. i wish i could've heard leonard play.
quote:
I noted your comment about the big slide up 5-10, and back to 5... the only place I can discern that that might be is in measure 31-32 of the only-known-tab (or, in the 3-4th measures of the 3rd variation). If this is indeed what you are referring to, my observation is that in the tab there is no indication that there is a slide back down to C, so I just jump fast (not the easiest thing to learn to do) back down to the 5th. It’s true it is a major disjunct, but I believed the tab. However, you have listened to Leonard do it more than I have, so I realize I have more homework to do. I don't have trouble with the 10s and 12s in the measure preceding the return to the 5th fret, so perhaps I can work in a down-slide that might actually be easier than the "leap" I have so far tried to do.
that's the place! the third variation starts at just before 1:00 in his recording. the low strings are dominant on the slide, which is where i get my feeling of an "exhale". i've been trying to duplicate that feeling by doing a brush with my thumb on the GD strings (ie strings 4 and 5, counting the high D string as 1 and the low C string as 6). i use a thumb pick, and so it takes some practice.
aloha,
keith |
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marzullo
`Olu`olu
USA
923 Posts |
Posted - 09/29/2005 : 3:53:15 PM
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hi reid!
quote:
When I retired after my spine surgery, I was so happy to be away from Mother Yale (who is really a mean muthah, behind all the propaganda) that I never have gone back to visit, except for one show at the Art Gallery and to see the docs at the Yale Health Plan . I even dislike driving by or through the place. I still visit with some of my friends who still work there though - on neutral territory.
i'm not trying to start a bidding war, but i think all universities have their mean streaks. i just became chair, and am really enjoying my ukulele class even more than normal (today was the first day!! they did really well; ah, young minds with ample time  ) i've also now brought my larrivee parlor into the office to play when the need calls.
aloha,
keith |
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Julie H
Ha`aha`a
USA
1206 Posts |
Posted - 09/29/2005 : 9:38:28 PM
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"Semi-retired" just means I work when the opportunity presents itself and I am broke!
Actually, the last contract I did was for a great little company that is developing a 3D sensor to install in vehicles. It measures the passenger's mass and velocity toward the windshield in a collision, and deploys the airbag in a corresponding manner. No more blasts in the face in a simple bumper-bump. More like a measured detonation of the airbag charges. I think it will be a huge improvement, and if the company's stock does what I hope it will, I'll be even more "semi-retired"!
And then I'll be able to play more music. Maybe I'll even be able to afford a Rickenbacker Frying Pan...
Sigh, Julie
Oh, and jwn, you are one hell of an auntie!!!! |
Edited by - Julie H on 09/29/2005 9:39:25 PM |
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Karl Monetti
`Olu`olu
USA
756 Posts |
Posted - 09/29/2005 : 9:45:06 PM
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Regarding California and the rest of the country, even Alaska, I am constantly replaying in my head a line from a Greg Brown tune ("Where Is Maria?") where he says..."and the whole world struggles to become one bland place"
I could plop you down in parts of Fairbanks and you would think you were in, how-you-say, Exurbia? Could be Anywhere USA. Only difference is, I can't find another slack key player anywhere nearby:)
I do have lots of wood cut, thank you. About 12 cords. Actually getting real electrictiy to our place (been on generator since '78) in the next month, so may, no, WILL put in a small oil-fired Monitor stove to keep the edge off, use the wood for main source when we are there. That way we can leave for extended periods in winter and not have to worry about having someone come over to keep the fire going...we only get 12-14 hours of heat without replenishing the woodbox. This development will also allow me to keep my barn/shop/garage heated at a constant tempreature all the time so i can get to building that Weissenborn i've been threatening you guys with for 2 years now. I figure that having normal electrical service to the cabin will give me back at least an hour a day...more practice time!
I'm thinking of switching my diesel Jetta wagon over to french fry grease. Any of you done that? Allows you to get 150mpg of diesel fuel. The say i understand it, a special, seperate tank goes in the trunk with the used veggie oil in it. You start the rig on diesel, once the engine temp gets high enough, it automatically switches over to the veggie tank and...."whew, what's that smell???? Hey, FOLLOW THAT CAR!" |
Karl
Frozen North |
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Pua Kai
Ha`aha`a
USA
1007 Posts |
Posted - 09/30/2005 : 04:39:43 AM
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Reid -
The term Auntie or Uncle is not a musical term. It is one of respect. I doubt anyone here who put her moniker on as say, Auntie Nancy, had not been called that for years from her family and friends in Hawai'i. Uncle is used exactly the same way. My son is not on TP, but he is called uncle by all his nieces and nephews and friends' keiki.
I am at a loss to understand why several folks here in this relatively small ohana have taken exception to Auntie and Uncle. Perhaps they do not live close to their own extended families. Perhaps they called all their parents friends Mr and Mrs surname, and now call the neighbor Miss Daisy or whatever.
In deference to you and your pals, I named myself a Hawai'ian name that seems to fit me - Pua Kai. That seems a little silly since I waasn't named a Hawai'ian name either at birth or in a ceremony... Pua has been a nickname off and on... so I added Kai (for the ocean I love).
However, in Hawai'i and here by the beach in California, both of which I love, my family and friends call me auntie nancy.
Sorry you don't know anyone who would like to call you uncle.
n |
Edited by - Pua Kai on 09/30/2005 04:42:37 AM |
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