It's the Sunday Thread for late August, 18, 2024

There's been a turn of the weather, but I fear the dog days are still ahead. So, enjoy it while you can. The rain brought by Huriricane Debby was welcome, and the heat dropped for a few days. Enjoy it while we can.

I'm enjoying my new guitar and have come to the realization that one reason I buy guitars is that I love having a new one: The smell, the feel, and the sound of playing it. It's a sickness, they say. But it hurts so good!

Not much on the docket today. The usual baseball in the afternoon, even though my team continues its race to the bottom. I'm finishing my latest read, Connie Willis's The Doomsday Book. I only started reading Willis's stuff, wondering why I'd not been aware of this multi award-winning author. But since reading is a leisure time activity and I have lots of leisure time, it's nice to find new authors!

Time to finish my coffee and slowly get ready for church. Have a wonderful Sunday, everyone!

I was up at 1:30 this morning watching “The Rose” on the Movies network and was going to start the Sunday thread but crawled back in the sack at 3:30 and forgot about it.

We finally got some rain this past week so I finally didn’t have to water the new lawn every day. I needed a break so the rain was quite welcome. Each morning that I’m out there the little gnats are having a field day chewing on my flesh and even coating the skin with deet could not stop the little bugs.

I played an outside, hot and humid gig on Tuesday evening that was kind of a pain in the butt. I don’t know if anyone else experiences it, but my hands seem to sweat and that, for me, makes it harder to move on the neck of the base.

Hope all have a great week.

I have what the runners call an "active metabolism. " Which is just a clever way of saying I perspire a lot. Perspiring is nature's cooling mechanism. The evaporative process pulls the moisture away from the body resulting in a cooler "microclimate." When I was distance running, I used to tuck a hand towel into the waistband of my shorts to help wipe away the perspiration from my eyes. And if the relative humidity is high, no evaporation takes place, and the feeling is like swimming in a swamp.

Of course, I'm no longer distance running, so sweating isn't a real joy anymore. Still, I've learned that when I'm out in the heat, it's always best to wear synthetic, wicking garments. As much as I like the feel of cotton, wet cotton doesn't wick and then it's like trudging around with a wet bath towel covering me.

I perspire when playing guitar at times, too. Which is always why I keep a rub-down cloth handy!

cool rainy start of the day, not at all what was forecasted. Bought burgers yesterday thinking I'd have them for lunch. Looks like rain for the next 3 hours and if what I saw on the radar is accurate, they're probably being optimistic. Do not want to cook them indoors, hate the lingering greasy fried smell. What I would give for a good indoor grill with a vent, even a regular stove with a vent. May suck it up and grill them in the rain as long as it isn't pouring.

Finally sold that oddball 22 fret no overhand tele neck. putting a bass body up next. my goal for today. The guy who bought the tele neck had just sold two bass necks he had for over a year. D'oh.

Going to do a little clean up in the music area. Might set up some shelving to hold stuff so I can empty moving boxes although possible impending construction down there makes me want to wait. But then, it may not happen for months and I suppose I can always repack (with lists of what's inside) if and when any building gets started. Can't sell what you don't know you have. Gotta get hands and eyes on things.

I am on vacation for the next two weeks, but all my plans got screwed up. I posted in another thread how we planned on going to Nashville on Tuesday to visit my Mom and her family, but they are all down with COVID. Her husband has it bad. He's 93 has a pacemaker and had beaten lung cancer a number of years ago so he's in bad shape right now. I hope he gets over it - he's a real nice guy and has accepted me into the family like I was his own son. We'll know more in a day or two. Anyways, I'll have a chance to play some guitar - I'm starting to write again and that feels good!

Praying

Only one show this weekend so got to fart around Friday. Outdoor show season is a grind. Last night we had to stop for a thunderstorm for a bit. On the fun side, one of my Telecasters got a makeover. I removed the mini-humbucker in the neck and the middle pickup, replaced the 5 way with a three way and put a Burstbucker in the neck. Played it onstage last night and l tell you what, that PAF marries perfectly with the Antiquity bridge and this thing now breathes fire. I was loving it. I mean, Les Paul Special territory. You give up the subtlety of a Les Paul Standard but it makes up for it in attitude. Fun little beast.

On the humorous side, a person counselled me on electricity, telling me to touch the back of my hand to the mic because of potential ground loop issues, and I asked him why I should be concerned since both the guitar and mic are wireless, lol! Oh well, I'm sure he had positive intent and I appreciate his concern. Just funny to see how so many outdated ideas still persist with modern equipment.

Here's a new screw-up mode I discovered: After the thunderstorm we went back onstage, A little more well-fed and maybe a little more baked. They hand me my Tele and out of instinct I walk up to the rack and hit the tuner. Danged thing would not tune! WTF! I keep farting with it, and finally the lightbulb goes off, during our dash off the stage I stuck the pick between the strings, something I very very rarely do. And of course, I was checking my tuning with a pick in the strings. Bass player thought it was pretty funny. Dang, that must've been some good stuff on the bus.

Chuck

A nice easy day so far.
Did church from home today as the wife lost track of time and couldn't be ready.

Yesterday (as I noted in another thread) I picked up the Firebird from getting the new pups. While there, also grabbed a used Fender CS 60 Tele at a good deal. The thing never even made it to the show room LOL. It was traded in 1 hr before I saw it (it was in the service area). I know the owner made the trade in deal as he knew he had some potential customers (suckers) that would love it. (Me being one). Well I auditioned it and it was great. Then I 2 other workers (both better players than I) audition it so I could hear how it sounds (a weird thing I do, but taping me wasn't an option). Anyways it came home with me and is different from my current Tele (Current is a CS Thinline with maple board and a Duncan Antiquity PAF in the neck). I finally again have a true good Tele neck pup git in the toolbox. The neck pup was great. Not the typical under brother of the bridge pup. It has no issue keeping up volume wise.

As I am out of wall space in the music/office room to hang stuff up, these need to be kept in the closet in cases. I prefer staging them vertically, but I was out of room. Had to re-orientate to horizontal (bummer) and now there is room.
With the recent acquisitions, I needed to order some more straps, straplocks, capos, wipe down cloths: so got that done.

Today I finished making sure each acoustic has its own strap, straplocks where applicable (TapaStrings), capo and picks.
An odd thing I do as I prefer to not share things across instruments. That allows me a "grab and go" scenario. Grab the guitar and the case, and I'm out the door in 5 minutes. No worries about not having something I need. My truck stays stocked with an additional processor and a gig back with IEMs, cables both guitar and XLR, batteries, testers, small tool kit, tuner, etc.

I always try to minimize load in/out time. Its an element within my control.
If you get to know me, you'll know I say: Time is the most precious thing we have.
I can always make more money, I can't make more time.

Anyways, I'm off soon to play a bass gig today.