First, a serial killer on the ferry boat. Then, a kidnapping with no ransom note. Last, another killer in an apartment building. Follow just the serial killer. He shoots five people with a revolver before the ferry hitting the dock throws off his aim. He turns himself in and gets off not guilty due to insanity. Turns out, he’s not and escapes the asylum. That’s where the title comes in. He thinks he’s safe because he can’t be re-charged with the crime, but the bullet that went astray hit a sixth victim. Who died after the verdict. Oops! As we plan ahead, the projections for June and July are looking good, but only if I spend part of another sweltering summer in Florida. We get record highs every year. You would not know it by the tropical storm last night, one of the worst yet. At street level the difference between a storm and a hurricane is the storm does not rattle the foundation of your house. And tropical means the rain has driving ferocity so you cannot even stand outside, much less walk around. But, anything is better than twenty below.
A new lady at the bakery, a kindred spirit. Such a nice term for a married lady that I get along with. We’ve chatted before and I think I’ve mentioned how super-educated she was. I lent her my copy of the “Fifty Year Wound” and she likes it. How do I know? A couple of reasons. First, she said it would take three months to read this book. Correct. Then she noticed my habit of marking interesting passages with a date in the margin. One can only do that with foreknowledge of who possessed the book at the time. Ergo, she’s reading the book. Kindred.
I’ve been making these marginal notes for forty years. I’m wondering when, if ever, I’ll again find one of my own on. Hey, some people put messages in a bottle. I also date learning material, so to dispel any thoughts that I take shortcuts, here is a record of how I studied motor controllers. So much for being “born smart”. The last date is today so you can follow the number of times I’ve had to read this same text to learn anything.Silver remains acting weird. It is again following a short term pattern and that is simply not supposed to happen. There are seven trading hours left today, I’ll be watching. Thrump. Thrump. What could it be? Prices fell a year ago but two years ago was a record high. Keep in mind, we act opposite to instinct over here. I hope prices continue to fall to around $20 per ounce as much as I hope they will hit $200. I’ve said before the only that hurts me is when nothing changes. See if you can figure out what causes that.
I get asked about silver leases. Fact is, I don’t know really how they work. But I know it has to do with banks “leasing” out silver they are supposed to have in their vaults. What a stupid and risky idea. I know a con job when I see one. But I’ll explain what I know as best I can.
Banks used to hold silver (and gold) as a store of value. But stores don’t produce income. So the bank would lease out silver at a 1% rate. In 2009, when the banks ran out of silver, it was $9 per ounce. So, you could lease a thousand ounces or $9,000 worth of silver for $90 per year, sell it immediately, and pocket $8,010. The catch is, at the end of the lease, the bank wants the silver back, not the money. A thousand ounces today costs $29,000. People could not afford to buy the silver to return, so the banks have been rolling the old leases over into new leases. Result? Useless certificates by the ton. I recall when silver companies would lease silver, sell it, and eventually replace it with newly mined metal. But most of the idiots holding those worthless leases don’t have a handy silver mine. In order to meet their obligations, they have every interest in keeping silver prices low. Insane hardly covers it.
Spending the day here means more than just practice. Everything of importance has been backed up and disks burned of the important material. I still require a high speed scanner to get rid of the paper copies. I purposely use a small C: drive to prevent huge backlogs of files from accumulating. I have six hard disks of backups, with very little duplication. And I ain’t dumb enough to buy one huge drive and put everything in that one basket.
That wraps up today. When I see the window saying “8 minutes remaining” that’s plenty of time for me to make a pot of tea, some biscuits, and find a good documentary. One place I could not find anything informative on is Pitcairn Island. Thought I’d take a look, but all I find is a few tourist videos and some loony expedition ship.
ADDENDUM
I’m well into learning the music for the new band. This is material that was already old when I was young. The tough-guy rumble chain music. Shoo-wap, shoo-wap get a job, yeah! I followed several ads for bassists other than the one I answered. There are lately around six bassists advertising for positions and around the same number of bands gone wanting. Something is off kilter that these people aren’t speaking to each other.
Therefore, I viewed the web videos of the unemployed bassists. They have many things in common. None use picks like I do. All use the limp-wrist pluck the string style like I don’t do. They are into jazz runs and string-popping, techniques. When asked to improvise, they start using their thumb. It is like they all went to the same academy. These people have been out of work for ages. And I assure you, there is no comparison between their bass solos and mine. They are infinitely better.
Now I turn to the working bands. I’ve also listened carefully as only I could to the larger groups that have bassists. And they [the bass players] are incredibly precise, to a fault. By that, I mean they do a musically great job. But why is nobody else really listening to them? I’ve had standing ovations; so why are they nearly invisible?
The answer is presentation. Most bassists seem indoctrinated to accept a secondary role. Not me, I’m a veteran of single-handedly packing dance floors. The funny part is when you see my show I am not the least aggressive. I reinforce what others are doing. But I say with a wink that none of this happens by accident.
Who is right? I say the marketplace. Bass is too complicated to explain how I do it, but I’ll pass on a few hints in a moment. I recognize the limits of my show and need to advance my career. That is why I’ve chosen a band that has a class act. Fewer gigs, but higher quality. This change in my musical goals is a very recent development.
How recent? Well, it took the combining of singing and playing bass to let me see the light. Making sure I didn’t, like most bassists, slack off on my bass runs when I was singing. (Did you get that, McCartney fans?) This produced some fundamental changes in the way I do both. I believe I am a better bass player thanks to nuances I would never have noticed just by singing or just by playing. It was struggling to do them simultaneously that clicked. And believe me, I had no help or lessons when I set out on this one.
Hint number one: no comping. Learn the notes down to the very essence of each song or don’t play it at all. I never repeat a single bass run during a four hour show. Yes, it is difficult, but this is one competitive game. I did not say avoid generic riffs. Does playing this way work? Ask the marketplace again. Very few bassists, as individuals have made what I have in tips. (I said, “as individuals”, a carefully chosen phrase.)
Other hints? Avoid stealing anyone else’s thunder. Look at other musicians when they solo. Don’t get lazy, let the right notes carry. Presentation, I say again. I over-learn my parts to the degree I can solo if the rest of the band flukes. I purposely play a little quieter so to hear every note, one has to listen closely.
One trick of the trade that can get dicey if you overdo it is helping out the guitarist during lead breaks. You see, he don’t need or want any help. The fact is, most lead runs make it difficult to play certain chord tones. It has to do with how the guitarist must hold his wrist. By artfully adding these tones as grace notes during the solo, this enhances the continuity. Use sparingly.
Last, and this is opinion, if you are playing more than 16 notes to a measure, you’re cookin’, but you ain’t playin’ bass.
