it figures, right?

      THURSDAY 2/28//19 2:24PM--so I bust my ass to compose a guitar part for a certain song and the girl who's supposed to sing it tonight has taken sick...all that work for nothing...oh well, it happens often enough when dealing with Humans...after I calm down I may start to feel relieved...at this point, all I gotta do is take a shower and pick out an outfit; I've already washed my hair and shaved my face...I'm still planning to eat Dinner at Jackie's gig...we'll see...
5:09PM--So I made it to the load-in, after which some of us hung out chatting...Butch still wants to form a group; I'm ready, let's do it...
FRIDAY 3/1/19 2:20AM--I stopped off at Jackie's gig...I had a hot ham and cheese sub for Dinner, then when she took a break, I left for the OTWC to do the fourth Thursday open mic......there were a couple of performers there that I would possibly deny having backed up if anyone should claim to have seen me onstage with them, but otherwise, it was an okay evening, fairly typical ...the "gizmo" did what I wanted it to do most of the time...and of course I came home with $50 bucks...it was supposed to start snowing at around Midnight, but *I* think it didn't start until almost 1AM...the flakes were big and wet, but it seemed to stop by the time I got home...hopefully that's that...
8:04AM--recovering from last night's gig...thinking ahead to Monday...might be going to GYY...using the tablet, I created a SOLO SONG list...at this point it's 23 songs...that includes 3 (?) that I've never played by myself before...I have lyrics to all of 'em...I don't have to decide now, I can wait til Monday...MAJOR OOPS...I just remembered--there's a Combustibles practice scheduled for Sunday afternoon (1:30) and an ITN practice scheduled for Monday evening (7PM)...rats...good thing I hadn't started prepping a solo acoustic set...I think there's an acoustic open mic starting up at Hershey's on certain Wednesdays, hosted by (wait for it) Jackie! actually I think there will be rotating hosts...
SATURDAY 3/2/19 11:44AM--hoping that Sunday's Combustibles practice will be cancelled on account of snow...and almost praying that Monday's ITN practice won't be cancelled, for any reason...
10:31PM--just got finished working with the laptop, MS Word and Google Docs...I originally created my list of SOLO SONGS on the tablet and saved it (on the tablet)...not sure how or why but I saved it as a ".png". file--a photo...I was able to print it though...eventually, somehow, I was able to convert it into a ".doc"--a paper document, that I was able to edit, using Google Docs--on the laptop...IF I saved it properly, I can retrieve it and, if I wanted to, edit it some more...
12:37PM--maybe it's because I'm an atheist  but praying didn't do any good...it's not yet snowing enough to get the Combustibles' practice cancelled...I absolutely think it will be by the time we get started, around two o'clock...
5:32PM--well, it's doing something but it's not snow...

getting ready

   
       WEDNESDAY 2/27/19 5:18PM--I wrote a guitar solo for WHEN WILL I BE LOVED...I've almost got it down, if I can settle on what I actually wanna play...Of course, I need to go over the other songs too...Angela says she's planning on being there...Ann as well...I will continue to work on it tomorrow during the day, at various times, while I’m doing laundry for instance... I kinda like being able to plug directly into the gizmo and bypass the guitar amp--even though it means using headphones... I do think it would be a good idea to plug into the amp tomorrow just to get volume levels... oh shit! I just remembered… Load in is at 3 o’clock, if I want to participate in it, that is...
THURSDAY 2/28/19 7:30AM--I'm soaking my left foot in a solution of warm water Listerine, and Balsamic vinegar in an attempt to get the dead skin off of the big toe...I'm gonna soak it for 30 minutes, and then, whatever happens, I'll have breakfast at 8 o'clock...
9:37AM- for the past half hour or more, I’ve been working on when I called the Ronstadt riff... I think I’m 90% “there” with it and there’s still time to practice this afternoon... now I’m going to listen to some of the other songs that we are going to play tonight...but I'll say this: for all the stress I experience every month, I should get $75 dollars not $50...
10:18AM--I think I'll have it together by showtime tonight...not really looking forward to interrupting, er, uh, the nap I no longer get anyway to do the 3 o'clock load-in, but ultimately it saves a few minutes...
10:47AM--which is a good thing because I'm hoping to stop by Beers and Cheers Too (briefly) on my way to the OTWC to finally FINALLY see Jackie playing a real gig...I'll be lucky if I can stay 30 minutes, but I'm gonna try...I could be at B&C by 7PM or so and stay until  7:30-ish...I'm not sure I want to, but I might be having Dinner at the OTWC...unless B&C has food...SLIGHTLY LATER-- they have subs, so I definitely wanna be there before 7 o'clock, so I can definitely leave 'round 7:30...

My biggest Musical government project so far?

SATURDAY 2/23/19 9:26AM- As I’ve said many times before, I am not technologically savvy…  and because of that, I think it will take YEARS  for me to transfer all the song lyrics I have into actual documents or PDFs... for instance, I’m doing this on the phone because there’s no typing involved… I do not have that luxury with regards to the tablet-I am a lousy typist…I think if I were to put a stopwatch on how long it takes to convert one set of lyrics it would be at least five minutes per song... on the other hand, I have nothing else to do today and very little to do during the week… So, after breakfast I will get back to work…
     perhaps the easiest part of all this, and it’s not THAT easy, is deciding which songs I’m going to  convert and keep, either as band songs (whatever band I’m in) or solo songs...
11:05AM- as I hoped it would be, the government project is getting slightly easier the more I do it; which is true of any tech things I take on…I'm going to take a break, re-charge the tablet and get back to the Project later...
1:28PM--now I have (I THINK) eleven PDFs of song lyrics...but it's nap time...Jackie is playing nearby this evening...I DO wanna be there, for some of her show at least...we'll see...
 3:30PM- Who was I kidding? There is hardly any point in going to see Jackie, except for my infatuation with her… And that’s not really a good reason to go see somebody perform, is it?  Not to mention, that I’m still wiped out from last night’s gig… I can’t wait to see what I’m like next month when I play out two nights in a row… at this point in time Dianne is on her way home from the bead show that she attended, and I think we’re going to Potomac Pizza for dinner… That works for me…  when we get home from dinner, I’ll go back to work on the PDFs, maybe.
6PM--very VERY tired...I might keep going with the PDFs...or I'll work on the Streisand bio some more, although reading could make me even more tired...
8:20PM--the tablet has 62% battery juice in it...I'm tired, but it's early and I've nothing else to do, so I'll likely to a couple more...I've got 20 songs so far, more than enough songs to choose from if/when I go to any open mics--provided I've PRACTICED them!!!
SUNDAY 2/24/19 1:30PM--just got the setlist for next Thursday...I've got a fair amount of work ahead of me...
10:02PM--in addition to the artwork I've been working on, I've been fine tuning one of my originals...I'm thinking of possibly playing it tomorrow at GYY...
MONDAY 2/25/19 11:33AM--might not go to GYY tonight...it's cold and windy and if I practice anything after my attempted nap, it should be the setlist for Thursday's open mic...turns out DIRTY WORK  is easy compared to WHEN WILL I BE LOVED, which is not so easy...even utilizing the harmonizer, I can only get close...hopefully it will be close enough, and if not--too bad, I'll never be TWO guitar players at once...
5PM--just might go to GYY anyway, even though I haven't yet practiced anything...it's gonna be cold, but not too cold; and not nearly as windy...
6:02PM--well, for a few reasons, most of them mine, I'm staying in after all...and I'm fine with that...working on WHEN WILL I BE LOVED made me tired...so if I'm not gonna get the mid-day naps I like so much, hopefully I'll get more sleep at night...turns out it IS still quite cold and windy...
TUESDAY 2/26/19 4:35PM--didn't do anything Musical today...I was focusing on my photography and compu-doodles...probably won't go out tomorrow night, I should save my strength for Thursday...

all that work for nothing

SATURDAY 2/23/19 1:39AM--just got home from the gig at Clyde's in Chevy Chase..like always, there were some good moments, and a lot of bad ones...I personally played some good solos and a lot of bad ones...my use of the gizmo was for the most part trouble free..as for my use of the tablet, I learned from Stoney that it's best to cut and paste song lyrics from the Internet (when you're at home with guaranteed wi-fi) as a document--you're not at the mercy of having (or not having) wi-fi at the gig...I did have COME TOGETHER as a document, but not the BREAKUP SONG...I got thru BREAKUP just fine w/o a cheat sheet of any kind...after all that work on the guitar solo in COME TOGETHER, we didn't play it..using Barry's tablet, I sang LOLA by request--not from Sue Johnstone oddly enough...there wasn't much of a crowd there, but a handful of people said they liked us...the load-in and load out were torture...$80 per man doesn't feel like enough money considering the work involved in getting in and out of the place...we would get to the gigs and home from the gigs sooner if Barry would ignore his GPS...there was hardly any room onstage, because the PA gear took up abut a third of the space...

being especially prepared, as if it makes a difference

       TUESDAY 2/19/19 11:07AM--stopped off at Victor Litz got another set of guitar strings...the plan is to put new strings on both Strats by sundown Thursday...6PM--actually the plan is to get it all done sometime tomorrow...
WEDNESDAY 2/20/19 8:51AM--it took the better part of an hour to put new strings on Butterscotch--I dunno why...I'm not gonna bother re-stringing eBay...it's too much work and the whole point is to have a spare guitar ready in case I break one on it...and the strings on eBay look like they're in pretty good shape...
        The gig is at Clyde's in Chevy Chase, which is a big deal, to me at least...I just might rehearse a teeny bit with the gizmo and the amp on Friday...I want the gig to go as well as it possibly can, because I know we're gonna stink...I'm gonna dress up a bit more than usual I think...trying not to be depressed about being a member of the Combustibles, but it seems inevitable...
3:47PM--the Combustibles were (are?) supposed to rehearse tonight...I won't be there...
4:36PM--practice was cancelled...it wouldn't make a difference...I think even if we practiced three times a week, we would still suck...
10:35PM--at 6:20PM I got a call from Barry...he was in front of the house waiting for me so we could go to practice(sigh)...when I asked him earlier (in an e-mail) what time was he picking me up, I meant on Friday evening, before the gig at Clyde's...I knew practicing wouldn't change the fact that the band sucks--I was right about that, but apparently wrong about streets being impassible...I just can't believe that Stoney wouldn't agree with me regarding the band and how bad it is...
THURSDAY 2/21/19 4:38PM--the Plan for tomorrow is to get a mic stand tablet holder from somewhere, I dunno where exactly...I don't wanna spend too much money; trying to keep the cost as close to $40 (or less) as I can get... and if I can save gas/money  by NOT going to Guitar Center in Rockville, that’s good too...
FRIDAY 2/22/19 7:37AM--well, as far as I can tell, I've got the lyrics to COME TOGETHER and THE BREAKUP SONG on the tablet...and yeah, I'm getting nervous...
NOON-so I went to Litz and got a mic stand tablet holder...it was absolutely a f**king Gov't Project to assemble it...after cutting a piece off of it (can't return it now) I was able to put it together...BTW the tablet DOES fit, so I'm gonna use it tonight...
         I've got enough batteries...I'm gonna set up a Gizmo Lab in the kitchen somewhere around 3 o'clock or so...I'm gonna try to make a patch for the guitar solo in COME TOGETHER...not that that will have an effect on the band's overall performance of the song...
   I shoulda gotten some chocolate/sugar while I was out; now I gotta make a special trip...
1PM--suddenly my stomach is full of butterflies...I know I won't get a nap of any kind, but I'm gonna try...after I go get the chocolate/sugar thing, I'll take a shower then have dinner--hot dogs probably...

practice is the key

THURSDAY 2/14/19 4:23PM--spent a lot of the last hour practicing two songs...both of 'em are Beatles' songs...in fact the third one is too...theoretically the 4th one would be as well...one Xanax should help calm me down...and I plan to take the tablet...for what it’s worth, I’m playing for ME..if anyone else likes it, that’s fine... it is starting to get tiresome hearing about what seems to be everybody and their mother making an album--except me…
11:34PM-well I did it, three songs... I will give myself an 8.0-at the most... I didn’t have too big an audience, I think I’m ok with that...what boo-boos I made didn't have much of an effect on me; I just kept going...I guess it's gonna be awhile before I'm comfortable being onstage alone...
FRIDAY 2/15/19 12:14PM--a lot could happen between now and Monday, but the Plan is to play TAXMAN and TELL ME WHAT YOU SEE  at GYY on Monday...I hope to do a lot of practicing on Monday...the goal is to NOT have to think about what I'm doing...I got close last night, so I'm optimistic...
SATURDAY 2/16/19 10:13PM--nothing Musical happened today, and I don't think anything Musical is happening tomorrow...but Monday I hope to do a lot of rehearsing--until Dianne gets home from work...
MONDAY 2/18/19 9:06AM--today is President's Day, Dianne is off today...which probably means no practice of any kind for me today...I don't even know if I'm going to GYY tonight...I found out something inneresting a little while ago...It seems I have a gig with InToneNation on 3/15 and a gig with the Combustibles on 3/16...yikes...
4:30PM--staying in tonight...for one thing, I don't wanna catch a cold--I have a gig on Friday...and I haven't practiced anything...and...I don't quite feel like it...
8:31PM- I don’t have enough money yet to do what needs to be done with regards to guitar strings, etc.…so I am going to have to wait until Wednesday before I can change strings on eBay and/or Butterscotch... I’ve never changed the strings on both guitars on the same day; that will be a new experience…and it might be a Government Project...I guess I’ll find out soon enough...
8:44PM- it turns out I already have one fresh virgin set of guitar strings…The question is, do I put them on eBay or Butterscotch? I guess it doesn’t matter because I’m going to go get another set Wednesday morning…so by the time I hit the stage Friday night, BOTH guitars will have new strings on them--I’ve never been in that situation before…

I think I passed the audition

  WEDNESDAY 2/13/19 10:20PM--I think I'm now a member of InToneNation!!! I dunno how impressed the other guys were with regards to my guitar playing, if they were at all...like always, it took me a while to warm up...It did NOT take too long to relax, thanx to the Xanax I took before I left the house...I do think they were happy that I could sing...as it turns out, InToneNation is not just a blues band...for which I'm grateful...we played PEACE LOVE AND UNDERSTANDING, and not too badly...
               The plan for tomorrow afternoon is to PRACTICE for Charlie's Acoustic open mic...not that I have any idea what songs I'm gonna play, besides TAXMAN...I think Dianne is going out Thursday evening  as well...
THURSDAY 2/14/19 7:12AM--I'm wondering what, if anything, the other guys are thinking/feeling...I think there's a month until my first gig with them...whereas the Combustibles are playing at Clyde's on Friday the 22nd of February...
9:31AM--It's too soon to know for sure, but I'm hoping I've found the band I've wanted to be in for quite awhile now...mixed feelings about being the only guitar player, but at least we have keyboards...there's only five of us, so the money should be halfway decent...I dunno if Dave (the lead singer/band leader) plays an instrument at all, but I hope so...

restraint, something I'm not good at

                   TUESDAY 2/12/19 7PM--I want very much to be cool calm and collected at the audition tomorrow...that's what Xanax is for...I'm gonna try  to be laid back and mellow...not gonna hold my breath...and I don't wanna play every riff I know in the first  half dozen songs, or less...in fact, I don't wanna play too many standard riffs at all..I'm planning to make a dry run to the drummer's house in the morning (after rush hour) so I don't get lost after sunset...
               I'm gonna use the guitar amp that is already there--nervous about THAT too...NOT bringing the gizmo, just three stomp boxes--"dirt", chorus, and EQ...obviously, I'm gonna shower and shave and put on clean clothes...would like to get a short nap after Lunch, but I probably won't...I've forgotten when it is, but I think there's an actual gig in the near future...
WEDNESDAY 2/13/19 8:15AM--gonna make the dry run to the site of my audition; hoping to leave here at 9AM and get back at about 10:30 or so...planning on an early Dinner, at about 4:30 or so...which means an early Lunch...gotta leave time to shower shave and pack...hoping to leave here at 5:30--right in the middle of rush hour...the audition starts at 7...like always, I wanna be early...sundown is at approximately 5:42...
          11AM--went to White Oak, found the drummer's house, turned around and came home...I stopped off at MyEyeDr. and got my glasses fixed--they replaced the missing nose piece and replaced the other one...
12:12PM--getting really nervous...I hope ONE Xanax is enough...it's all in the timing...the Plan is to take one and then leave to go to the audition...
3:03PM--almost forgot that tomorrow is Valentine's Day...I took care of that, for $30 bucks...bringing the amp, just in case...the Manchester bag is (I think) packed and ready to go...the Plan is to sit down to Dinner at 4:30 if not a teeny bit sooner...which means I should be outta the shower and shaved by 4:15PM...
4:10PM--all clean and clean shaven...cooking the baked potato...hope/expect to be done Dinner by 5:15 or so...

giving it one more shot

       THURSDAY 2/7/19 8:42AM--still thinking a little about my successful performance last night...it was a personal victory for me, even though I was onstage so briefly...and hardly anyone seemed to be paying attention...as for tonight, who knows? maybe a trip to Damascus...the Plan seems to be a few songs with Lou and (hopefully) a solo performance, my arrangement of TAXMAN...Lou didn't seem to understand the idea of doing it alone and acoustically...I'm pretty sure he won't like it...his OCD-ness does sometimes bother me...I'm only gonna go if Dianne goes out tonight...she says she hopes to...
    10:43PM--The roomie didn't go out, in fact she says that she never said she WAS going out...but I did...it took me 50 minutes to get to Damascus...as far as my solo spot goes, I chickened out again...Lou and I did three songs...I think it was just about our worst set...oh well, such is Life...
SATURDAY 2/9/19 10:15AM--still hoping to play TAXMAN somewhere...maybe GYY Monday evening...I'm still fine tuning the arrangement, once I settle on that, I'll practice it tomorrow...assuming that there's still practice tomorrow, so I'm not going out tonight...
SUNDAY 2/10/19 7:54PM--finding it very hard to stay awake...band practice always takes a lot outta me...maybe if we were even halfway decent, I'd feel better...but (IMO) the band sucks...It turns out In Tone Nation just might be looking for a new lead guitarist...now I'm nervous...as for Monday at GYY, the weather might not cooperate...
MONDAY 2/11/19 11:30AM--Now I'm starting to get nervous about Wednesday...it turns out I would possibly be more than a substitute for their lead guitarist--I'd be his replacement...it's basically a Blues band...I don't think there's any songs they play that I can't handle...I hope I didn't just jinx it...As for going to GYY tonight, don't bet on it...

trying to get the feelings back

   MONDAY 2 /4/19 1:19 p.m.- well, I said yesterday that I didn’t feel like going to GYY, but I  could change my mind…  maybe I’ll just watch, because I can’t think of anything to play yet…
    3:15PM--well, I've come up with one song so far; it's a start...
    3:27PM--came up with another one (maybe) so that's MOTHER'S LITTLE HELPER and TAXMAN
    4:04PM--maybe not TAXMAN...maybe RUBY TUESDAY instead...that's two...maybe POSITIVELY 4th STREET? I  need to decide by 6PM, because that's when I'm gonna leave the house...
9:13PM-I’m giving myself a 9.0...did three songs...had Jeff Karn onstage with me...I appreciated having company...considering I DIDN’T take any Xanax, I felt pretty damn good...harmonizing with Rob and Jeff was spot on,  but we’ve done that song before...harmonizing with Jeff and Matt Holson was just as good-we’ve never done LAY DOWN SALLY before...we NAILED it IMO...
WEDNESDAY 2/6/19 8AM--Just now experimenting with the tablet as  "lyric insurance"...I think it will work fine once I get a mic stand holder for it...If I'm going to the open mic in Olney tonight, I should pick the songs and practice the ones that need it...
9AM--there seems to be two ways to collect lyrics...1) go to a website and just read them from there, although there may be ads and pop-ups to deal with...2) go to a website and then cut and paste them into WPS, the word processor app that the tablet came with...the more I do THAT, the easier it will get...None of the more popular lyric websites work on the tablet...
4:24PM--I think I've got four songs ready for tonight...we'll see...
8:42PM- it was only ONE song, but it was my song, and I performed it almost perfectly… I’m giving myself a 9.75...I magnanimously volunteered to play just the one...I was pretty sure I knew my song better than I knew my new arrangement of TAXMAN...and it's a big audience...even if most of the people in here aren’t listening...as for my “set”, there might be some video or a photo or two...
9:37PM- well it took a while but now I wish I had sung more than one song…it probably would’ve been Ruby Tuesday...I woulda liked to have been invited by somebody/anybody to sing harmony...Michelle Jeff and I DID do CAN’T BUY ME LOVE...that should count for something, if my voice could be heard...I wanna leave now but it’s impossible to sneak outta here...