My birthday is next Tuesday and besides completing another revolution around the sun, I’ll tell you what it means. I’ll stop getting so many phone calls asking for money for any election that is being held anywhere in the country on that day. It’s good that some of the phone calls will alleviate because a new set of phone calls will begin from Medicare Supplemental plan providers for the next 30 days. I don’t answer any of them but I know for sure where they are coming from. My answering machine picks them up but they always hang up without leaving messages. After that, it will be some other driver for the calls that are never answered. I always get grumpy around this time of the year but don’t worry I’m not going to get into a SAD discussion.
There is really no reason for my grumpy attitude. I’ve had a pretty good year particularly in some creative pursuits. Although; I have no excuse for completely spacing out on last month’s 1st Thursday column. I just didn’t know what day it was. I received absolution from the PTB, as it was only my 2nd miss in almost 6 years.
It was a good year for music. Jams I attend are scheduled four times a week and about half the time I get to all of them and average about three. One of these jams is supposed to be a band and not a jam but this band doesn’t seem to get any gigs and actually turns down some. In addition to that, I have a serious woodshed project going on a couple of times a month on Friday’s. A great friend and guitar player and I have been hooking up for over a year about two times a month and recently, another newly retired friend has joined us on fiddle / violin. We are working on some repertoire (and chops in my case) to maybe begin playing out. Retirement is a good thing. We’re working on another “should be” retired friend to join us. The guitar player is also working on video production these days and we should have a video out in a few weeks. I’ll keep you posted.
I’m still working on beating this grumpiness thing I have going on and writing this is helping. I always have a great time playing gigs and this was a pretty good year for that, highlighted by playing a set at GOF with Page Brownton and Sidetrack. Also, my non gig playing band actually played a gig and opened GOF on the First Stage on Friday at noon.
Two of the jam groups I play with also had some gigs, a couple of private parties and a couple of closed winery parties. These are not the Grand Ol’ Opry but I always have a great time doing them. I almost forgot that I play some with a volunteer Contra Dance Band at Google. I have one coming up this month.
Life is actually pretty good these days and writing this is really working on changing my mood. In addition to music, I took on another writing project that required extensive research. In May, I began a project of reviewing pilsner beer. Over the summer and continuing into the fall. I tasted (drank) 23 different pilsners. In the interest of thorough research I sampled all of these more than once. It was tough work but I dove into the best I could. I’m going to publish my results on Facebook fairly soon.
Thanks for bearing with me through this somewhat personal exercise of improving my mood going into winter. I’m good now.
Speaking about mood improvements, this weekend is the SCVFA 1st Sunday Jam at Hoover School. I’ll be there and I hope to see you.
