Strings that last forever

  • by Drew

I was never a big fan of high end strings. At least. not until I bought my Taylor 214. Like all Taylors, it came with elixir strings. And man, I love me them things. I will say this – if you want strings that last like three times longer than the norm, try these guys. But go with the nanoweb ones if possible. The original, polyweb strings feel a little heavy and gunky. So yeah. Go with the nanowebs. I can’t feel the difference between those and plain strings, but man… they just seem to last forever with a ring a ding ding.

Sweet soundin’

  • by Drew

I just made a purchase, a slightly impulse purchase, but man, I can’t wait to get it. I bought a new Taylor guitar. I mean, I love my 214, but this will be a big step up. The step from laminat Rosewood back and sides to solid rosewood is just… wow, I’m excited as can be. And if you don’t get it… well, not your fault. But if you were a guiatr player, maybe it would get your juices flowing.

Whale of a what?

  • by Drew

I’ve been slowly breaking back into live performance lately. Did a thing at the library, just booked a whale watch fundraiser. Pretty soon I’ll rocking a Peel session and the King Biscuit Flower hour. It’ll be mostly acoustic and vocals. Maybe a little ukulele, harmonica, dulcimer, and Ashbory bass. (Look it up, it’s awesome.) Who knows, an affordable lyre might sneak its way in.

Rock ’em sock ’em robots. Right kiddos?

Skin down

  • by Drew

When I got my elliptical and started exercising daily, I tried a few different footwear options. First I wore the best sneakers I owned. I thought the support was probably key. But given the number of times I’ve messed up my feet and ankles, maybe it wasn’t the best. I put checkerboard grip tape on the foot pedals of my elliptical  particularly bitchin’ if I do say so myself, but it was really tearing up the soles of my sneakers. And honestly I didn’t love wearing them.

I moved on to socks after considering other more conventional footwear options. Non Conventional too. Yogitoes, for example, have always held more than a passing interest. Ultimately, though, I went with socks. I’ve seen so much about going barefoot when it comes to walking or jogging or similar exercise. Who knew how rough the griptape would be, though. After a couple of weeks I needed a new bag of socks to replace all my holey failures.

Now I do it barefoot. Totally barefoot. And without griptape, because the first couple of days before I removed it ut calluses on my calluses.

Take a deep one…

  • by Drew

One fo my favorite topics, particularly when talking about singing, is breathing. I’ve said it many times, but the reality is that most people don’t know how to breathe. Hepa home filter or not, do you really know how to breathe? Let’s take a look. Stand up, put your palms on your belly and take a deep breath. Do your hands press in or move away?

Here’s the thing – if you take a deep breath, your lungs and related internal workings should expand. But in my experience, most people “taking a deep breath” actually compress their lungs and suck it in. Not so good. Certainly not so “expansive.” Can you dig it?

It’s all part…

  • by Drew

When I was younger I wanted to be a rock star. I mean, I said I didn’t. I pretended to be an artist, that all I cared about was pushing the limits of creativity. But let’s be honest… I wanted to be a rockstar. I didn’t need to be the Beatles, I didn’t want the contemporary clothing line/fragrance line/sneaker line/B-movie tie-in required of contemporary mdeia properties… I mean artists. Artists seeking services… drug rehab California type services.

No. But I did want to be successful. Successful enought to pay the mortgage without a day job. Successful enough to write and practice and play every day. Sheesh. What a selfish jerk, right?

Parking the Pups

  • by Drew

Not to get too ahead of myself, but you can look for an update to the Parks and Pastimes website pretty soon. Not sure what I’m talking about? Well, this is a site I’ve been maintaining for a friend and associate for several years now. If you are into a big barker or little nipper, you may want to know more. Among other things, Parks and Pastimes is the home of a leading dog park expert and consultant. Love your four pawed friend? So do they!

Spamalamalam

  • by Drew

Got a great spam message this morning with this subject: New Pope Announcement Has Major Impact On Your Auto Rates!

Who knew? This guy has been Pope for like half a day and he’s already saving me money? I love this guy!

Six String Love

  • by Drew

Veteran readers know just how much I love my Dearmonds. They’re just such great guitars, but alas they haven’t been manufactured in… a decade or so. So, if you want an alternative in a reasonable price range, you might look at the affordable Ibanez Artcore. model. They’re good looking guitars, and Ibanez can be counted on to make a pretty decent instrument. I mean, I remember the days when Ibanez was making knockoff Kramers. But then the Kramer dude went to prison and Kramers were gone for a while and Ibanez guitars went from being second rate imitations to top notch contenders. Most youngsters these days have no idea of the history. So, just rock it with classic semi-hollow body style is what I say.

Ellipticalishious

  • by Drew

When I committed to massive regular exercise to keep from, well, dying from the reality of my less than stellar genetic profile, I decided I should get an elliptical. I mean, I knew that a public gym or health club wasn’t my thing, so buying my own equipment was more or less a requirement. There was a good deal on a nice machine at Sports Authority and I bought. So, I guess in an indirect way I can thank Martin Hanaka.

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