November 10, 2019

Yesteryear
One year ago today: November 10, 2018, locked out by Google
Five years ago today: November 10, 2014, favorite bass tunes.
Nine years ago today: November 10, 010, but no.
Random years ago today: November 10, 2012, the 3-pizza trunk.

           Another eight barrels of leaves incinerated, which means I was in the yard most of the day. I don’t like leaving fire unattended, barrel or not. I hauled JeePee out of his aquarium and he now recognizes the outdoor cage. He’s got the model hacienda and water out there now, which he took to. Good, I think six and a half hours outdoors the most he has spent in his life. There’s no climate control so it’s interesting to watch him adjust to sun and shade almost every few minutes. I have the strange idea that cold-blooded animals like to be warm. Not JeePee. When he is sleeping he is cold to the touch.

           The leaves are still damp, so it take a half-hour to burn each load. Same old routine, pile new leaves on the embers, choke in the smoke and eventually it flares up and all over in five minutes. It might have been a long time outside for the dogs as well. Good, by the time they get back inside, they’ll appreciate it more. We took an extra long walk this morning so they were completely tuckered. It was an extended outdoor nap with the occasional barking fit at something or other. What I did was finish a workable base for the router table. None of my plans worked out, there was always a metal rib or flange in the way, or the wood didn’t match where I had to drill.

           Here’s a photo showing the pieces I built not attached as an exterior frame. It works the same and I had trouble with the bit. Whoever gave it to the thrift had over-tightened the collet. Dumb-bunny must have figured he broke it, but I still hate people who donate non-working items. It was a two-minute fix because I happened to have the right kind of oil handy after fixing my transmission. The two horsepower motor and 1/2” drive shaft are worth it. The base also has a built in light And did I get a deal with those router bits. I tested a few pieces and like most cutting equipment, there is an offset that doesn’t match the measurements. I’ll quickly adapt to that.

Picture of the day.
Plywood boat kit.
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           Neat machine, that table router. The one Agt. R lent me as a toy compared to this unit. I went right ahead and cut some pieces for my first rabbet joint box, shown here. These photos show the pieces already cut as I check them for fit. There are slight gaps no matter how carefully you measure, but I was impressed by the results. Takes my box-building to the next level. This box is pinned together as I have already taken it apart several time to discover the way to fix small gaps. There is a misfit on some pieces even when measured to the 32nd of an inch. This box was built after maybe two minutes of experience.

           The manuals rarely say so, but the tolerances on these machines is best compensated by building a series of jigs. This box took me less than an hour, but time and again I got pieces that measured exact, yet still would not fit. I’ll look it there is a jig for this situation since I don’t really want to fiddle with calibrating anything unless I have to. It was fun to build the box and again, I learned a lot. For example, for the final fit, mark, don’t measure. I didn’t pay attention to the wood grain and have one piece where the grain goes the wrong way. I see the carbide blade on my chop saw isn’t the best for this smaller work. Changing the bits is always a hassle, but the stand is light enough to tilt up easily. I found the tool intuitive and easy to use. I may go on-line to see if there are any interesting specialty projects. This setup further makes it easy to produce the parts for the candle lanterns Agt. R and I looked at two years ago.

ADDENDUM
           Okay, music. This is the part I just know everybody wants. Nashville is one quirky town for bands. Even the smallest nothing pubs have bands and they are top quality. By now you’ve guessed the impasse. These guitarists are not bar musicians, but bars are the only places they can get paid to play. The competition is ferocious. I last saw this situation up close in Los Angeles back in 1991. That where I worked six months doing resumes for the wannabes. Time and again I’d meet people with unbelievable talent, just unbelievable. But not marketable.

           I’m sure I must have mentioned the guy who built and painted miniature chess pieces. They looked like any others until he let you take a look under a microscope. He could paint these with fantastic detail using a single bristle. To make a living at it, each set would probably have to sell for a thousand dollars. It just ain’t gonna happen. Well, now I’m encountering the same situation with musicians. This is also why I know my concept for a duo that specialized in bar music would blast other acts out of the water. Every last one of them is doing it wrong.

           Last evening I attended a full set by the slide player. Nobody in the place paid him any attention. He’s invested a lifetime picking and sliding music from the 1930s. He did not have one standard in his set, so I could not even judge how it could be applied to my material. On the other hand, he was aware of all this, which is probably why he answered my ad. That ad said, in essence, that I know their current material isn’t working, or they would not be answering the ad. So, don’t expect me to learn it or play it unless it is or can be made into bar music.
           My concept of playing bar music in a bar is really only a segment of my larger philosophy of playing what the room wants rather than you own favorites, Glen. Why do I get the impression I’m the first person these people have heard stating that fact? The bar tonight was a working class watering hole in east Nashville, maybe 30 chairs, the only good-looking gal in the place is the barmaid, who’s screwing the owner. There probably isn’t a job within driving distance that pays a decent wage. The only customers were a couple tables sitting at the far back of the room, farthest from the stage.

           This is the crowd that wants to hear “On The Road Again”. These musicians might as well have been playing opera. No audience appeal at all. The first band was two guys in the 80s playing Dixie swing, the next was the Owen Kennedy duo playing excellent but unknown originals. Then my slide player who had to retune his guitar after every song (slide guitar works that way), though he covered it by relating music history quips. I was the only listener. The last group, again amazing musicians, played new country, which even die-hard country fans don’t like.
           We have the same south Florida situation, but this time with musicians who are undeniable top notch. They have every right to consider their material the best. It is, but it is not the right stuff for crowded smoky bars—yet that is exactly where they are playing most of the time they get any work at all. My plan is to formalize a group around what is known to work in bars. It would be hard to go wrong. So I guess I won’t tell you I got up and played three songs and made $18 in tips. I won’t tell you the other guy made 75 cents in his whole hour. Nope, I won’t say that ever happened. What? Of course I kept the $18. I’m the one who earned it.

           The picture? Just some trees in the front yard with most of their leaves on the driveway or my car. This section needed a picture and this one was handy.

Last Laugh