Tuesday, October 11, 2011
What a beautiful day to wake up to! Skies are blue, sun is shining .. I quickly go about household stuff ..looking forward to continuing on with the adventures of my backyard.
Look out the kitchen window .. the skies are pastel now, I think that the rains are coming. Wind buffets the tree branches. The birds are hovering around the sunflower heads .. such a lively scenario.
Decided to clean up the h/bird feeder at the front of the house, so I unhook that, bring to the kitchen, disassemble, scrub, scrub .. rinse rinse .. and fill with the winter 3:1 sugar syrup (3 cups water to one cup sugar, boiled gently, cooled and kept in the fridge). Took outside and hung from a laurel branch. There . .now the backyard family and the front yard family each have a rich mixture for the cold weather.
And I’ve been stocking up on various suet blocks to feed the birds – for the upcoming cold weather. Today’s paper indicates that we are in for a brrrrr type of winter. I might even invest in winter boots .. or maybe I’ll just keep with what I have. They’ve worked well so far.
One pair of hiking boots, one pair of medium weight winter boots .. with bobbles on strings that, unless I tuck them into my boots .. constantly get caught up together and so I have to stop and untie them. Otherwise, I’d have to hop hop hop on two feet .. and that loses its charm when you are over 10 and out walking in public by yourself. Funny how things change, eh?
Time to organize, so I head into my little office/study. And notice one of the books that I purchased on sale yesterday. This one is a treasure and one that I never knew existed for the likes of me.
It’s called “Beginner’s Guide to Reading Music” by Jake Jackson. I’d picked up the book out of idle curiosity .. thinking it was for children. Turning the pages, I see mysteries unfolding before my eyes. The clear explanations of basic concepts, symbols, scales, chords, stave, key signatures. A language that I sought to learn, searched for such a book for a long time. This is a language that I can learn.
Over the past number of years I’d taken fiddle/violin lessons from a variety of people. From the Victoria Conservatory (group) classes; individual lessons from an instructor with two first names (amazing fiddler); a young lady who was also a street entertainer, quite funny; an instructor who had played in the Bulgarian Symphony .. she was my favourite, we would converse in French and she strove to teach me classics.
Each instructor would attempt to explain the significance of the notes, but I always felt ungrounded without the basics. Often wondered if I should have taken a child’s course, working my way up.
Time passes, years went by. I haven’t opened up my violin case for a few years . .and had considered getting rid of it. However, I don’t plan to give up yet on this. So I’ll read through this little book and let the information sift into my mind. My violin is right close by .. so I plan to open up the case, dust it off and practise some bowing. Not this morning .. perhaps this afternoon.
I did have an Egyptian drum which I sold years ago, in a fit of paying off my bills and ridding unnecessary things from my life. Sometimes I miss having the drum to practise on … but if I really do want another, they are always available somewhere.
I turn on Chante France and listen as the lively music fills the room. And I’m all set to organize my little office. Using my DYMO label maker, I quickly print labels for some of my new storage containers, purchased yesterday. Looks good.
Seeing my newly purchased (on sale!) Sudoku books, I decide to just sit down and work through a puzzle. So content. Listening to the music I love and have listened to for many years .. quietly solving a Sudoku .. . Simple things. I’ve certainly earned the right to a few moments of relaxation.
Then I make the mistake of going to the kitchen. Both kitty kats are curled up together cosy as can be in their little bed. This means cold weather. Looking out the window .. blue skies .. ok, that does it .. I’m going outside till the rains come. Sheer torture being inside when I can be out there digging.
En y va!!!
