(no subject)

[catsittingstill]

Good news! Such as it is. I called support for iRiver (the maker of that mp3 player/recorder I've been trying out) this morning, got a live human on the phone with admirable promptness and discovered that the reason the player software can't tell when the player is hooked up is probably a bad usb port on the player. It means driving all the way back into/through Knoxville, but I can swap the player for another one and that one will probalby work. Think I'll bring my computer along so I can try it right there in the store.

Also my back is definitely getting better. I'm still eating ibuprofen, but I'm down to 2 every eight hours, and going to my mando lesson today was no big deal back-wise.

The mando lesson was...interesting. I've been practicing every day, usually twice a day, but I'm still having real trouble getting up to speed. Roy (my teacher) thinks that pick control is the real issue for me--apparently it's important to pick with small motions, so the pick doesn't move very far from the string it's supposed to strike. The pick should kind of dance or bounce over the strings. Me, especially when I'm trying to play fast, I keep dragging it through the strings and waving it around. Sometimes I miss the string altogether--sometimes I can't get it across the string fast enough to get to the next place I need to go. I haven't actually thrown it away yet. But I'm sure it will come.

So Roy suggested I spend the week working on tremolo, try to get that fast and even and so I can change strings without missing a beat, and then work on matching the left hand to the right hand. I'll try it--I'm desperate.

Comments

[catsittingstill.livejournal.com]

Yes, I figured you were talking about grinding down the edges to get a more spike-shaped, less equilateral pick.

I could try doing pushups, I suppose (to get jelly-like arms) :-)

[braider.livejournal.com]

Push-ups are really pretty darn hard on the body. If your body is up to it, get a couple of three-pound weights and work out with them for about 10 minutes. If your local library has Denise Austin's Hit the Spot: Arms & Bust, work with that video, doing the first 10-minute workout.

[catsittingstill.livejournal.com]

I tried it yesterday--my back has been pretty good, almost back to normal, so yesterday I took a couple of 3 pound weights and worked out with them for a bit, until my arms felt kind of rubbery, and then tried to play.

It seemed like it helped. It felt like I was faster and not as tense. If my back's okay today I'll try it again this afternoon.

[braider.livejournal.com]

Go, you!