At one twenty this afternoon my good wife said she'd like to have a chicken fried steak delivered to her table about 2:00 p.m. I thought mickey mouse, I think I've forgotten how to oder and who did I use, so I said "How about 3 p.m? She said I'll compromise, at 2:30. I begrungingly said ok. I looked back on my emails to see who I had used before. It was Hubgrub. So I ordered or tried to. They asked me to sign up as a member. I didn't want to bea member, All I wanted was lunch, but when I couldn't get to first base., I decided to sign and did or tried to. They said I couldn't sign up that someone else alreeady had signed up with my email. I wanted to scream, "That's me,that's me. You cn't do that because this is a piece of software and you only get to asked the questions they want answers to. You can't talk, you can't explain so I think, did I go through this before. I must have. I backed off and started over and where it asked are a member, sign in. I did. I put in my email and was presented with the question, Password? I didn't remember giving a password to these people before and if I did I didn't remember what it was and punched, 'don't remember password. Another cheerful statement popped up and I'll have to paraphrase, but something like this: 'No sweat, we can get you a new password, click here. I did and entered what I wanted as a password. I had written it down in case it was accepted. I recorded it in my password book. I clicked on the menu and looked for chicken fried and added the sides and presto, they showed me the damage, I choose 2:30 as time of delivery and it was promptly accepted and I pressed, placed order. That was at like 1:40. I went outside to sit under the eve of my house where two chairs have been placed for my comfort and I sit myself down and decided to wait there for my order which was due in say fifty minutes. I thought life in 2021, about my life here in Oklahoma for the past eleven years or so. How I never, ever thought I'd live in Oklahoma. But my daughter moved to Austin and shortly and a couple years later was diagnosed with Multible Mieloma, an incurable bone cancer. My health got worse in Lubbock, my wife feared I get so she couldn't take care of meand wanted to move to Oklahoma where our son worked at the university. We did, actually she did all the heavy lifting. We didn't think our house would sell very fast in the Lubbock market. We had a four bedroom but it didn't have central heat or air conditioning and had a floor furnace. Most evrything else was in pretty good shape for our neighborhood. We had driven to Norman and looked for a place to live but hadn't found anything for what we were willing to give. Shortly after returning to Lubbock our house sold up on the condition they could take ownership in thirty days. I said no way jose, We can't handle a thirty day move. We wern't hoarders but we had a lot of stuff havng lived in the place for forty-three years. We agreed on two months. It is most difficult to dispose of the contents of a house that size in a short time. We set out to determine what we wanted to keep, and knowing we were going to down size. We had some nice antiques in the furniture from my wife's side of the family. We called the kids and some other family members telling them we were moving and we were down sizing and if we had anything they wanted, to come and get it. Some did. We donated most of the rest to charity organizations. I had a library I was proud of, In round figures, almost a thousands books. Only a dozen or so, fiction. We donated that to the Library and what the library didn't want we donated to the Friends of the Library. At the appointed time we called the moving company to come get us and thinking we might have to have the stuff stored, we might have to rent an apartment. But time was short and so was money in this market and that's why we ended up; where we did. The realtor told us the only other things she could show us was in another town south of Norman. My wife like the house and I thought what the hell, it is a good place to die. So here I sit and can't help thinking how very lucky we are, lucky in the kids we raised, lucky we still have each other and while both of us are handicapped, we still have enough going to help each other. Our meals arrived precisely at two-thirty. We were sitting at the table I had already started to chomp down on my chicken fried steak with mashed potatoes and green beans, covered with gravy with Texas Toast. I was thinking how good it was when my sweet wife said this is not steak, this is chicken. I looked, I tasted. It was chicken. Oh, I'm so sorry I must have ordered chicken fried chicken. She said you must have. Said I, I'm sorry, I'll take three canes on the back. And you will, she said, with a wet noodle.
Okay, Nancy, I'd like to be there, sitting across from you, suggesting a course of action for you to follow, but since I can't be, I have combed the internet listening to free advise on how to play the harmonica. I found one I like, Mitch Granger. He has five free lessons and I've watched them all as well as numerous others. They all cover similiar subject matter, but I like this guy's style and he even taught me something. I recommend him. He gives it to you straight. Everybody teaches a lessons, a multi-course or something like that, and offer some free ones but what you need, all beginners need, is the basics. These are the basics. Mitch has five lessons and a covid lesson. I watched all six, three of them twice. He lays it out for you. You'll have to use all your resources, your tongue, change your mouth shape perhaps and I suspect, your imagination. Learning a harmonica is repetitive, trying over and over, its called practice. Practice, practice practice, the way one learns. How long do you practice. He's the expert, he'll tell you. Of course you can go anywhere you like but I reccomend this guy, and one sesson by another guy that comes on after Mitch Grangers instruction when you think or are told you are. Ok? One other thing, keep your harp clean of food products and skin that might rub off your lips. I'll be here to discuss and answer a question if I can. I'm giving you the first lesson. The others come on immediately after some ads. You'll have to punch skip ads every once in a while to keep going, One at a time, then practice it. How long. Till you learn that instruction. He will tell you how long but don't be afraid to do them over, or over and over. Repitition is the way one learns. Here you go. , then 2,3, 4, 5, and Covid, maybe an introduction before one that I didn't look at. If so, view it. This is how you learn. His picture is different in lesson 2 through 6 and his accent better. Good luck. bill.
@Bill Boggs Just got home and unloaded groceries. Will take a look at your video right now. This harmonica needs a name. It makes me laugh out loud sometimes. I'll be trying to play the scale (C) cleanly, and all the sudden this moan, like a sick bull frog comes out, but it's the right key, only an octave lower. I understand that, so I just laugh. Then another time I'll be cruising up the scale, thinking I'm gonna make it to the last step, and this high pitch squeak comes out, not in key. Where the heck did THAT come from! Is my mouth/tongue full of secret passageways? . . (10 pm) Lesson 1. Never got past the pucker. I can't do it. Moved on to the train. Slow train is easy. Took a peak at lesson 2. The first comment in the comment section below the video made me laugh out loud: Charlie K: "I’ve been practicing lesson one for 10 minutes every day for the last eight years. I’m happy I finally get to graduate to lesson two."
Yeah, that's funny. I didn't see any comments to those lessons. I remember thinking myself I'll never get past the pucker, My son would come by, my son, the perfectionist, the musician, who plays so many instruments he's need a truck to haul them all. He's listen to me pucker until I was sick of it. He's say, I thought I heard a little squick from two side notes slipping in there, try it again. You'll get the hang of it but keep trying again every once in a while. Some day it will happen. Any way those lessons are the basics. You can go through all of them one after another but you won't be able to play anything. I remember my wife telling my son, your dad sust sits in there and plays the same thing over and over. Why is he doing that. Bruce answered, I believe it's called practice. Give it some time, do your best. You haven't spent much time at all at it. After all you recently got a harp. Keep on studing and learning. These are things you must learn and you must learn them while keeping house, doing all the things that's needs doing, maintaining your repairs around the house, keeping up with Seniors Only Club, running errands. How ared you ever going to learn to play. Listen to the tapes. Do as they say. Mitch has some pretty good stuff and he's articulate. Stay with him. He'll teach you how to play.
I figured it out. Took a look in the mirror. My pucker is heart-shaped. Maybe that's why I never could whistle. Sorry to interrupt your journal thread so much.
Great that you figured it out is good. See what happens with the rest of it. The harmonica is near and dear to me. Harmonicas have top priority. You’re not interrupting. What I’m doing is merely fill until until you have comments. You’re not interrupting. See what you think of the tapes. The harmonica plays in and out, up and down. Keep on trying to play it.
@Bill Boggs Your efforts as a coach have not been in vain... Before retiring for the night last night I could play the scale up and down cleanly. This morning only 2 times out of 3. Two steps forward, one step back. That's progress. Tongue blocking method. It just feels right. No effort.
Super. I'm not going to tell you how long it took me to do that. I'll just say you are ahead of the game. Both clear note and tongue blocking, I think, are necessary. But know this. It is not I who knows anything. It's is the guy on line who knows how to present to you. Stay with him for a little while. He'll help you play. If you were my student and I was a teacher all I could say is, "really, how did that happen? And tell you I'm proud of what you have already accomplished." I merely paly a little. I think you're in the hands of a good online teacher Stay with him through these free lessons, try them out, see what you think. You're doing good.
I do not have an online coach, except for you. I'm not following anyone's lessons. This article helped a lot last night. Particularly the tips on tongue blocking:. LINK Scales are one thing, but I have trouble finding the 4th hole to get started on a scale. How the heck am I ever gonna find notes when they aren't in order?
If I'anm the only coach you may already be hurting. I plays a little, don't know much else. Well, try the one on improvisation. Have you looked at them all, all five? Yeah, the tips section is pretty good. When you do view them all let me know. I have the Tips on my computer, ready to give you but since you've already found it, I'll delete it. About finding a hole. If you want to find out where a hole is, take the harp out of your mouth and look atr it then stick it in your mourth. You'll eventually find your way around ten holes. The most important holes for the time being are four through seven. Blow them close together. Hold one a while longer. That's stretching a note The notes are not supposed to be in any order but what they are already laid out. A harmonica is merely a bunch of notes that sound good together, that's all. Leave the single holes for a while. Blow the first three notes (holes) in and out, go up and down thee harmonica blowing two or three at a time. A harmonica sounds better blowing two or three at a time. Blowing notes like chords or two or three at a time, back and forth, change the shape of your mouth, stick your tongue in a hole, put your thumb or finger over one of the holes as you blow or draw. Blow in the bottom of a note by cutting off some of gthe sound by squeezing the side of your mouth against the hole. Blow in the top the same way. See how it changes sound. Squeeze your mouth a little. Make it happen. A harmonica is a little device with good sounds but you have to make it happen Try out different things. Find tabs of songs you like or something you know or have heard of. Play the tabs. That Lee Oskar harp is a music machine. Learn to use it. Learn a little something about timing, ( look up timing on a harmonica ) Blow the holes (notes) in time with your foot tapping. That will help a whole lot when you learn a little timing . Practice it. At the kitchen table. You don't need your harmonica all the time. Keep time with the sound of your voice, your sound: Dot a dot dot, dot.dot Put some of these dot-dots together the way one of your songs go. Keep time as you sing. Did you ever see a guitar player tapping as he played. He's keeping time of some song he's playing or keeping time to one he has heard. Timing is most important in playing anything. Try to keep time with your foot and some sound you are making with the harmonica. Do something, make some music. Play around with your harp. You can make it sound good. Look up timing. Try this one on for size. Look it over, it might be fun. http://harpamatic.com/tutorials/ Cheers.
Bill, I guess this was meant to be one of those ree-torical questions. With foresight that it is going to be difficult to play the melody of even simple songs, like Mary had a Little Lamb, admiration for those that have had the perseverance to learn the instrument, and doubt I can ever get to even below average ability. The harmonica is designed to play chords. You almost can't go wrong if you only want to play a chord. If you want to play a simple melody, with a little extra noise to accompany it? Looks like it's going to be really tough. I can play the piano reasonably well. Only spent about 3 years really working at it. Can't help but compare the two instruments. With a piano it's not that difficult to crank out a melody. You don't have to pick up your hands and look under them to find the keys. It's pretty easy to hit one key at a time and avoid hitting the adjacent key. The keys are huge. There is no bending. In C, you just hit a black key instead of a white one. Chords are also easy on the piano, so is the melody. But you can't take a piano with you.
I don't know exactly. Maybe that I have serious doubts I can ever get to the point to be able to stand listening to anything I'm able to play, no matter how simple. If it's this hard just to hit a single note, there will always be stray notes popping up out of nowhere. But I'm not giving up.
My, my, you sure do carry on. I'm not giving up. I was just making an observation that this is hard. On to lesson 3, with Mitch Granger (the show off ), minus the pucker.