Fandango’s Provocative Question #76
And so on we go to Fandango’s provocative question of the week which, I must admit, isn’t as provocative as usual.
To answer this properly, I need to describe yesterday. It was the day after taking Bonnie to the vet and i wasn’t feeling like feeling. I had to get up very early because a valve was leaking in the bathroom and the plumber was coming. So it was 7 in the morning, I didn’t want to be awake at all, but I was. I didn’t feel like feeling anything because I was pretty sure whatever I felt wouldn’t feel good.
So after the plumber left and the bill was small enough to pay without going into debt — we have a really GREAT plumber — I turned on the television and started watching year two of Boston Legal. James Spader before he found his inner darkness.
Garry eventually got up and joined me and together, we watched an entire year of Boston Legal, front to back. Somewhere in there, I managed to cook dinner.
I had been smart enough to set up most of the posts for today because I kind of knew I was not going to want to do anything. I was right. Today, though, I had to get my act together. The Duke is sitting in corners staring at walls and Garry was watching a movie about the Klan killing black people in southern prisons which I finally insisted he turn off or go somewhere else to watch it.
He turned it off.
Today i spent all day on line trying to find one of four items that I don’t need:
- A real wooden Xylophone
- Tuning forks
- Something that would make a noise so I can tune my ukulele by ear rather than electronically. Yes, i know the electronic thingies works, but I need to hear the sound. I can’t tune something without hearing the sound against the sound. Tuning isn’t just getting the right vibration. It has to mellow properly with the other strings.
- I wanted a marimba. Couldn’t even afford to look at them and where would I put one anyway and besides, that’s a LOT of money, so I looked at Xylophones. The good ones I couldn’t afford either and I realized that no one seemed to know the difference between a glockenspiel and a xylophone … and does anyone even sell a vibraphone?
Finally, I bought a Scottish tin whistle. I know of at least one guy who used to banish ghosts with a tin whistle. I also discovered, in the course of events, that the price of a few tuning forks is more than the price of several instruments. Oh, and I also spent $12 on a very small piano so I have something that makes a noise to which I can tune something.
I am looking forward to the tin whistle. If I can’t banish the ghosts of the dead, maybe I can banish hulks of some of the living. Is anyone really happy about life right now? This isn’t the year to feel satisfied with life. I’m hoping next year will be better. Actually, I’m hoping next year will be great.
Categories: Music, Musical Instruments, Television
2021 better be GREAT. We hoped for that for this year, but look how it has turned out. I dread another ‘worse’ year so severely that I can’t function if I try to think about it getting worse. Oh my goodness. Where did we all go so wrong?
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I think that you MUST be at a point where it only CAN get BETTER, no? As an (amateur) musician I know the prices of instruments, accessories, cords for my cello or even for the violine, I need a few bits urgently now…. I haven’t had the courage to even look at those items but I really, really need them.
I hope those purchases of yours give you some joy, at least! Blow that whistle….
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I’m hoping just to enjoy the fun of playing something entirely different than anything I’ve played before. It has been such a difficult almost four years.
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“I’m hoping next year will be better.” I said that about 2017. And 2018. And 2019. And yes, 2020. But instead of getting better, each year has gotten progressively worse. So I’m not even going to think that 2021 will be better. Maybe I’ll be pleasantly surprised, but I doubt it.
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I am counting on Trump losing and on Biden actually making some positive changes. It’s basically all I have left to hope for.
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I’m hoping you’re right.
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You can have a lot of fun with a tin whistle Marilyn….
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I thought so. Originally, I was thinking about a recorder, but all the ones I can afford are plastic. Not plastic recorders. But I tin whistle sounded like fun.
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Our daughter bought one when we were in Ireland…
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They aren’t expensive and are (so they say) easy to learn. Hope so. I’m so keyboard oriented, nothing else really makes sense to me. I sometimes finger the air so I know where notes are.
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You’ll get onto it…
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I look forward to hearing about your tin whistle experiences –
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It’s supposed to be easy to learn. I hope. I’m at a stage in life where long learning curves don’t work well for me.
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I hope the year gets better as we in the second half. Hugs.
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That’s about all we have to look forward to. This has really been a horrible year and seems, despite all the horribleness, to be getting worse. I didn’t think it COULD get worse.
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The loss of two fur-babies this year must be heartbreaking. My sympathies.
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I knew Bonnie’s day was coming for a long time, but Gibbs was a complete shock. He was fine, then he was dead. But at least we didn’t have to agonize over when the “day” was. But yes, a real shock and it will take a while before we feel better about it.
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I know, losing a family member is very hard.
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I bought a tin whistle like that in the 90s when I was in England. I have a hard time tuning to a piano, but I have a 440 A tuner on one of my synths and use it to get all of my instruments in tune (I use old school, analog synthesizers, which have to be tuned constantly). In ways, I am OK with my life right now, I just hate life in this country today. When the neo-nazis are gone, blacks are given the same economic, political and justice rights as whites, the rich don’t dine on the poor and everyone understands that fact-checked news is the real news, and it is the other stuff that is the fake news, then I will be satisfied…
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I’ll settle for half of that and still be happy that SOMETHING improved. I was sure the world couldn’t get worse. Each time I think we’ve hit the bottom, I realize — we HAVE no bottom. It’s just worse and worse and worse. So I have to hope because I need to believe that there are better angels somewhere in our world.
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Yeah, I’m shooting for the moon. I just don’t understand how we got here. Trump is not the cause, he is just a symptom.
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