Our discussion from last night and this morning found my piano time. And I had fun. I can’t wait to play again, tomorrow.
My husband got a new guitar yesterday. Is it wrong of me to be excited that we might jam one of these days?๐ธ๐ช๐ต๐ถ
Real flounders entice sea turtles down to floor. The flounders are having a feast!
I’m getting a little better with chording on the ukulele. I almost don’t have to look when changing from C to F to G7 and back to C all the while singing. Almost time for a new lesson. It’s supposed to be a 30 day course, but my soft, achy fingers needed more time. I’m still learning day 9 a couple weeks later.
The recorder comes and goes. Teaching myself and my fingers soprano, alto, and tenor. I can finally reach all notes on soprano and alto, though not consistently. I can barely get the top three holes of the tenor.
And. AND I CLEANED THE PIANO WELL SO IT WELCOMES ME! Maybe tomorrow I’ll actually play!!!!
A quick note. Door push-ups, floor to ceiling stretches, then more than 30 minutes or more than 5 miles on the stationary bike. All still happening. So some things are growing into habits. Others are still work. But a lot of flounder still happens. Ah, well, it’s February!
After National Novel Writing Month in November, then the birthdays, Christmas and cold, and the occasional editing and keeping up the journal, somehow, January needed help. Linda G. Hill gives us Just Jot It January. The prompts help make sure we write something every day.โI have done those for a couple of years now. I am gratefulโfor the push to Just Jot.
But always, in the past, I found myself floundering in February. Hence, the fish:
He is a quick sketch, and the eraser was smudgy. He’s a little cross-eyed. That’s how I feel in this short month that lasts a couple years. Let’s think about this guy. He is the bottom feeder. He lays on or under the sand, both eyes looking up to catch whatever morsel floats down to him. I’m sure he is grateful for the tensionโthat occurs above. That is how I feel about the tidbits of passion the muses drop to me.
It’s too cold for walks. But I am being steady on the stationary bike.โKnitting is to keep the hands busy during TV or chats. When I am nearing the end of the day, Duo calls me, and then I do my blog. Whatever comes to mind. I’m trying to go earlier on these, so there is enough time and energy to build callouses on the uke and stretch the fingers for the soprano and alto recorders. Learning how the music theory I learned and applied to the piano and voice can apply to these other ventures.
To help me get back into playing scales, which will help with getting back into piano playing, I picked up one of these roll-up pianos to play with in my bedroom. It has an earphone plug-in, so no one has to put up with the noise but me. So these are my musical flounderings. Right now, it is just mechanical. But I am hoping that my tidbits of time and energy will spark a real musical enjoyment.
My diamond painting area is now open as the dragon is being shipped to his friend. I don’t know which one will be next. But I intend to flounder and fuss about in there and seek the enjoyment.
So that is what my Flounder Feb is all about. Finding enjoyment, if not passions, and hoping that all the flotsam and jetsam of tidbits build a healthier me. We’re not looking for perfection. That’s what happens up topside.
What is your Flounder doing this February? If you choose to play, use my pic and link back here.
I finally organized my wig stuff I’d been playing with since before Halloween. Now it’s all in it’s own bin.
Then I started organizing my hobby shelf. Just the art cubby.
And now I can get back to
And
But before I can go to bed these two are wanting attention.
Rose Among Thornes: an inspiring World War II historical fiction by Terrie Todd
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
This book was a bit of a surprise. Though a Christian fiction, it was uplifting, not preachy, and often about church music. That has always been my favorite part of church. The main character is a pianist, so I could relate in many ways to her need to practice when there was no piano around.
The above theme runs through the book set in WWII, Canada, and then Japan. The bigotry towards the Japanese since Pearl Harbor is shown to us through Rose and her family. That is another theme.
Though this is fiction, I heard enough stories from my dad and other WWII vets that this felt quite true. And for those who like romance, there is a little of that. Not sickeningly so, just something positive to look forward to.
I enjoyed the book. Maybe you will, too!
The prompt word for January 22nd is โseasonal.โ Thanks go toย Kayeย for the wonderful prompt!
Please be sure to check out Kayeโs blog here!
For Just Jot it January, click the following link to see how you, too, can join in!ย https://lindaghill.com/2023/01/22/daily-prompt-jusjojan-the-22nd-2023/ย Itโs fun!
Linda spoke of how her writing was seasonal. NaNoWriMo, CampNaNo and Just Jot It January becomes her writing time. Me, too. It seems those programs help motivate me properly. I haven’t won every time. And sometimes, like last month as I tried another goal, I made no progress at all. But often I make the 50k. Even on the camps. That would probably not surprise my teachers. Most of my report cards had comments like, ‘Darlene talks too much in class.’
This year I’ve over-goaled my life with all the gifts I’m trying to make and so writing has fallen by the wayside.
And I still have to podcast and start reading aloud my books, starting with my memoirs. The area in my house I planned on using, suddenly has Diamond Paintings.
My recorder playing, piano and voice practice have fallen off.
There are only 24 hours in a day. Still!!! I stay up reading until 3 or 4. With my old dog waking me often, sleep also seems seasonal. Heat and smoke and bugs of summer, icy cold and snow of winter affects everything in our house. Where we hang out, how we sleep, either covered up over my head with warmth or sheet to keep bugs off. And all this affects energy and pain levels, ya know?
Maybe I need to organize my day better and my week to include everything I want to do.
Thank goodness for the treadmill. It still gets used most days of the week.
How does anyone get anything done with a job? I did do NaNo. But the rest of this, writing, knitting, especially learning new stitches, artwork, music, etc. Little got done. Too tired. Housework. Phew!
Seasons of our lives are as influential as the weather. Whew!
Solo, Han please sing.
I bet his song was about somebody else’s daddy or a confused girl who seemed to be in love with her brother.
I don’t know where that came from. Just a trip into a bit different.
This was a prompt from the Random Word Generator. Sometimes random feels personal!
I could spend hours in therapy over this word. That may be one of the most exciting words while being the most perspiration producing of all times.
I remember the first day of voice classes. I had decided never to come back. I wouldn’t walk out like one guy. That would draw too much attention. But why’d I come to this class? No, nope!
I took 8 semesters and then voice classes with the teacher. I ended up soloing in local churches, singing with a Renaissance recorder group. We even made a recording in a studio. My prof sent students to me. Yeah.
But piano accompaniment was also part of the class for me. Whereas I learned to love singing solo, I’m still terrified to play the piano in front of people.
On the flip side of it all. I haven’t sung a solo for decades. Now I think I’d nearly die. But really, I miss singing.
Well, that sums it up. Therapy is too expensive. You’re welcome.
When you can’t hear it, it’s Solo.
I thought I had it made! I saw Golly Gee and Animal Crackers came to mind. Ah, alas, I was wrong, as the lyrics point out below. She says, Gosh, oh Gee. Well. Too bad. Shirley needed the nod. I bet if I did a deep search, we could find when she actually said, Golly Gee!
I think I’ve talked about how I was/am a Shirley Temple fan. In sixth grade, (60 years ago!) I was the leader of my class’s Shirley Temple Fan Club, membership ONE, ME. I would sing the songs for my classmates. Where did I get the courage? Well, the year before, my friends and I did The Wizard of Oz, so…
In sixth grade, I was 12. My mother told me she was Shirley Temple’s actual age. Ms. Temple was already an ambassador. Well, here’s her wiki.
My piano teacher did everything she could to keep me interested in playing the piano, so she found this book for me, yes, I still have it, and it is in the same shape as I am these days.
Lyrics
Animal crackers in my soup
Monkeys and rabbits loop the loop
Gosh, oh gee, but I have fun
Swallowing animals one by one
In every bowl of soup, I see
Lions and Tigers watching me
I make ’em jump right through a hoop
Those animal crackers in my soup
When I get hold of the big bad wolf
I just push him under to drown
Then I bite him in a million bits
And I gobble him right down
When they’re inside me where it’s dark
I walk around like Noahs Ark
I stuff my tummy like a goop
With animal crackers in my soup
Animal crackers in my soup
Do funny things to me
They make me think my neighborhood
Is a big menagerie
For instance, there’s our Janitor
His name is Mr. Klein
And when he Hollers at us kids
He reminds me of a Lion
The Grocer is so big and fat
He has a big mustache
He looks just like a Walrus
Just before he takes a splash
Animal crackers in my soup
Monkeys and rabbits loop the loop
Gosh, oh gee, but I have fun
Swallowing animals one by one
In every bowl of soup, I see
Lions and Tigers watching me
I make ’em jump right through a hoop
Those animal crackers in my soup
When I get hold of the big bad wolf
I just push him under to drown
Then I bite him in a million bits
And I gobble him right down
When they’re inside me where it’s dark
I walk around like Noahs Arc
I stuff my tummy like a goop
With animal crackers in my soup
When they’re inside me where it’s dark
I walk around like Noahs Arc
I stuff my tummy like a goop
With animal crackers in my soup
Source: Musixmatch
Per Linda:
Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is โgolly gee.โ Use โgolly geeโ or another interjection that displays the same sentiment in your post. Enjoy!,,
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