a quick study

Learning to play a new musical instrument or even learning how to improve on an existing one isn't such a big deal and can be a lot of fun if you know how to do it. Unfortunately, music teachers using the traditional methods can become extremely boring and often times the student becomes discouraged and quits. I recently (Jan. 2015) began learning a new instrument, the flugelhorn, a cousin of the trumpet.

me holding a flugelhorn

Playing the trumpet wasn't really totally new to me since 40+ years ago I was introduced to it in music college and had to pass a proficiency test on it along with all of the other band and orchestral instruments before receiving my teaching and performance degree. But....that was 40+ years ago and about the only things I could remember were how to hold it, some fingerings and how to form the embouchure. Between the time I decided to begin the task of learning to play or should I say re-learning (Nov. 2014) and the point where I finally got a playable horn 2 months later (January 2015) all I did was buzz into a mouthpiece I had from the college days.

It really was like starting from the beginning but I decided that I wasn't going to go thru the traditional method of learning. Back in 2005, I started learning to play the guitar which took me about 9 months. I used a different method than what was taught to me which was similar to the Suzuki method. I tweaked it for myself and used a program called Band In A Box. I created a melody and solo using BB along with the accompaniment tracks, listened to it over and over and then began learning it. Fortunately, I read music and was able to follow the notes. For most part, I had to look up the fingering but once I got them it was a piece of cake, well kinda. I learned the parts by playing phrases. First by myself to get acquainted with the notes and then to the music which got me used to playing with a band right away.

I also added scales to my practice sessions using an accompaniment which made it more fun. For endurance and breath control I would hold the note of a scale at first 4 beats and worked my way up to 16 measures (64 beats). This also helped for tone development. Using this method helped me learn to play much quicker and made me sound like I've been playing the horn for years. More to come in the future on my quick learning.

I'm sure you're interested in finding out how this all sounds so below is a player and you can check it out yourself.

lefty

Back in the beginning of March, I almost cut my right index finger off using a table saw. I'm not new to power tools and have used them since the early 1980's. I simply got overconfident and as I took my eyes off the project at hand for just a second or two, things could have been much worse. I suppose that my age had something to do with it as well and the concentration is just not there any longer.


Here's what I wrote on a music site blog after it happened: I had a run in with a brute yesterday. In his defense for 30+ yrs I've been manipulating him for my own selfish goals. Ever since the brute started getting older and older like myself and as my old friend also started breaking down with age and use, many a strong word had been said. Yesterday was no exception, I was using my friend, again for personal gain as I had been for so many years and when things just didn't go my way, out came some very harsh negative words and apparently my old friend just got pissed off and gave me an upper cut where it mattered.

Well, I have to say that there was a lot of blood involved and I had to seek medical attention, not that I'm that weak or frail. I'm sure that eventually the bleeding would have stopped. Perhaps had I not have taunted my old friend and push it to it's limits, things may have been a little different.

Unfortunately, picking a fight with a power tool such as a table saw while it was running as in my case, was a poor choice. I'm in no pain and seem to feel okay after the incident but came to a conclusion that wiping my ass now is going to be quite challenging.

The finger is healed up and the nail has regrown back to about 99%. There are no scars on the finger even tho I lost most of the skin and some meat from the finger. Half of the nail had been ripped out. Oddly, I was never in any pain until I bumped my finger or used it for anything. I had a feeling that there might be some damage to the nerves since two years earlier I had a situation where I almost cut my middle finger of my left hand off using a hack saw. There is definitely some nerve damage in that finger and playing guitar or keys has been a bit challenging in that respect.

In using the index finger of my right hand, I'm having the same problems as with my middle finger of my left hand so I can assume that it too has some definite nerve damage. There is a very strong pricking feeling at the tip of the fingers as I touch anything so even tho they are healed the severe pain has begun.

But you know me, it won't stop me from trying to play nor will it stop me from my woodworking projects. I try to work around it and move ahead. As a matter of fact the flugelhorn/trumpet's coming along nicely and another woodworking project has been completed.

Save big on your next woodworking ptoject

If you're an avid woodworker like I am, then you probably know that material for new projects can get expensive. Going out and buying lumber isn't cheap these days no matter where you buy it, whether it's on sale or not. I've done hundreds of projects and if I would have gone out and purchased material for them at a lumber store, it would have cost me thousands just for wood alone.

To save some bucks, I will use some used lumber. As long as the wood isn't dry rotted or have lead paint on it I will use it. I keep a good stock pile of used wood, some even with nails or screws still in them and when I'm ready to do a project, which is always right after I finish one. (It's like that with me...one project right after another as I'm always asked to make something for family or friends.) I'm always happy to oblige as long as it doesn't cost me a lot of money for wood, I'm retired and a cheapskate. You have to be since a sufficient amount of income is no longer there. I've had to figure out ways to cut down on expenses

Last spring, I helped my daughter re-build her deck using cedar. Not only did I keep some of the better treated deck boards, I saved the cut pieces as well. I also visit sites where new homes are being built and collect pieces of plywood and cut up lumber. I can pretty much pick and choose the bigger pieces as they would be taken to the land fill anyway or burned. Another way I accumulate my stockpile is driving by houses on garbage days. People are always throwing out good wood whether stained or painted. Most of them have nails still in them or nail holes, but for me that's not a problem.

I'm not afraid of a little elbow grease in cleaning used wood. Filling in nail holes is no biggie either. By the time I cut them up and use them on a project the holes are hidden. If the wood is weathered, I just sand them down. Most of the old wood is simply dirty and wet and just needs a little cleaning and drying out. I often find little cracks, especially in treated wood. If the cracks don't go all the way thru, I just use the other side. I will either stain or paint the wood and then cover it with several coats of polyurethane, outdoor type if the projects ends up for outdoors.

By now you're probably wondering how these projects look after using used/old wood. Below are just a few of my recent projects. Every one of them were created using either old decking or pieces I picked up from discarded material.

my stockpile of old used wood

a starting piece for the Adirondack chairs just below

Adirondack chairs and a pie shaped table from used wood

this outdoor table and chair set were made from discarded lumber

This rocker and table was made from used wood

this birdhouse was made from used wood

this birdhouse was also made from used wood

these birdhouses were made from discarded old weathered wood

this masterpiece birdhouse I created for a friend, was mostly made from both weather-beaten  lumber and discarded material I found next to a garbage can