Why Don't Members Like to Post Here?

One of the things I think greatly helps those with T is to get one's mind off of T for a while. There must be topics that interest folks here that can be interesting and fun. For instance, I love to read, I write, I've had a very interesting career as a pest mgmt. professional, I love animals, I dislike the FL sun, and there's so much more that we could share, or even disagree about. I'm nearly retired, but you can still ask me about all the bugs in your home.

I'm not greatly into politics. Only once in a while when something very impossible to believe takes place, or if I have a fairly dull view of any one person in politics, I'll pipe in.

On the board which I was a member, TSMB, for about ten years, the topics on Off Topic were very engaging. It can be here too. Anyway, I'd like to encourage more participation in topics off the subject of T, but not that we should all fill in the blanks with all the endless "what's your favorite this or that". Let's write. It's amazing fun and can be one of the greatest distractions.

For those of you who like to write short stories, please, submit one. Or right about an experience that took place when you were a kid, like the times I used to nearly get sick as I moved from one fruit tree to the other, eating ripened cherries, pears, apples, plums, and so much more that filled the yards where we lived in PA. We also went blackberry picking. I'd come home with a pot full and Mom would make pies. Up to the age of nine, it was a great life, an ideal setting for rearing kids.
David

 

That's a very good post David,

There is a lot more to life than T and it's useful to have other things to talk to people about here - we can dwell on this condition far too much and that isn't healthy. I'm not so sure why this area isn't well used, any attempt to increase that is very welcome.

Picking up on just a tiny little thing, and being a typical Brit, the weather….

I'm not the biggest fan of the sun / heat (living in the North of England I don't see too much of either) so I was wondering how come you live in FL if you're not a fan of the sun? I actually prefer the darker nights of autumn and the cooler weather, love going out into the Dales and Moors around me which just isn't fun in the heat.

Steve

 

Hi David.
Yes I agree - I don't notice my T when I'm busy and distracted, and I manage to 'mask' / no, not mask - wrong word - as its still there - 'distract' is a word I prefer, with white noise. I also grew up on a farm in rural Western Australia. As kids we used to gorge ourselves from a chinese gooseberry (?) bush - I think that's what it was, little fleshy purple, fairly tasteless fruit but as kids who cares, we ate everything, even the wheat from the silo. We used to chew the wheat until it became like chewing gum! A neighbour had a mulberry tree and we collected the leaves for silkworms but got stains all over ourselves from the fruit. As I got older on weekends I drove the farm tractor with my younger brother to neighbours' farms to play cricket and football. It was the best of times. I also love animals and am dismayed by the Aussie Live Export Trade and the apalling treatment our animals are subjected to in some of the destination countries. We have five cats - all of them have been adopted as strays (they seem to know our place is cat heaven). I have recently semi-retired from Government, now working only two days a week and I am enjoying the extra time immensely. My wife and I are both into motorcycling seriously; we travel across the country once a year on a 4-6week adventure on our bikes.
I agree with your comments re politics; the pollies here are so bad there is virtually no-one worth voting for, so I stay out of it. What are your plans for your retirement?
Ray

 

Hi Steve
Many thanks for your album - excellent stuff! Perfect for my night-time 'distraction' sounds.
Cheers
Ray

 

@Steve , I used to love the winter here in NZ more than the summer, hated over heating, nothing better than a crisp winters morning when there's a thick frost on the ground and not a cloud in the sky but I've noticed the older I'm getting the more I am liking the warmer months! lol!

@UserID (finally learnt how to do this!) Florida sounds mighty good to me, only heard good things about your weather!

@Ray Seddon Chinese Gooseberries are another name for kiwi fruit so it must have been some other type of fruit, but purple? I hate to think what they could have been!
Being a kid your right, everything is nearly edible lol!

Rich

 

Steve, I've been living in Florida most of my life now. In the early 60s, my Dad brought us down here while he worked -- and even my brother and I did in the summer months as well -- on the Gandy Bridge. He was an ironworker welder. We also lived for a time near St. Louis where Dad worked on the Arch. Then, in 1969, I enlisted in PA and was stationed near Jacksonville, FL aboard a destroyer for three years, from '69-72, and on which I did two tours to the Middle East: India, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Ethiopia, Seychelles, Kenya, Mozambique, Seneca, Monrovia, Mauritius, and many other ports along the Atlantic and Indian oceans. Talk about heat and humidity. Visit Bahrain! Once discharged, I entered college and earned a BA in Literature. A six year break from FL to PA is where I first began to work as a reporter, and from there followed four additional newspapers.

Gee, did I mean to write so much history? I guess all that is to say that I've been in FL for many years, and at one time owned and operated a landscape company while I was attending classes. It was how I afforded what I couldn't with the meager $220 each month the GI Bill provided me. Also, I worked as a roofer and general laborer for home builders, all of which took place outdoors in temperatures in the 90s. My skin was never less than a dark brown; and, in fact, when old friends see me today, they can't believe how I've "let myself go."

A few spots of worrisome, potential melanoma were found on my wrists and ankles, at which time my dermatologist insisted I end my romance with the sun. It really wasn't what I wanted, to be in the sun, in the first place; it's just where I had to be to work, and I paid a small price for it. As a pro musician, I once worked with a drummer who, in his spare time, loved to wind surf. The sun caused him to develop a serious case of melanoma. Before Mike died, he'd lost half his face to that dreadful condition.

I may stick around once I retire, but I won't be spending any time in the sun during the summer months. Most older people keep out of the sun, usually after 55. We try to keep busy the best we know how indoors, away from the damaging rays. My house is paid off, as is my car, so I really don't want to begin again, to pay another mortgage; so, it's here I'll be, unless a really good deal comes my way. I've read that Britain has the best healthcare system, which has my attention. Do they prescribe pain meds there, I wonder, as that is what I would have to easily obtain being that I suffer with fibromyalgia.
David

 

Anyone seen the movie 30 Days of Night (or read the comic books)? Thar little village in Alaska seems like the perfect place for people (and vampires) who dislike the sun

 

@UserID You've certainly been around a few places. Always gravitating back to Florida though.

It's crazy how bad the sun can be for you, even though we need the natural sunlight to stay healthy, I've never been a sun worshipper, always kept away where I can, but I also had work in construction that had me out in it for the day. Not much fun, especially with gas torches adding to the heat - though nowhere near the Florida heat of course.

What sort of instrument did / do you play? I'm into production these days, enjoyed being in bands but don't like to do that to my ears any more. I did a bit of singing mainly, I have a rock voice, a very loud one at that. My other half jokes that it was probably my voice that gave me tinnitus, it does resonate in my head.

The healthcare system in the UK is okay, free at the point of use is something we often take for granted. They are no good for tinnitus but in other health areas they can be quite good. I don't suspect there would be any issue with pain meds.

The only negative thing about our climate is that it can be very sticky with the heat, plus we have high pollen in the summer. On the plus side we don't have any poisonous creatures - yet (unless you count the adder, though I don't know anybody that's ever seen one).

@lapidus Yes, seen that. And the movie 'insomnia' set in Alaska when it's light all the time. That's some crazy system to have, must mess with your body clock - only for vampires and serial killers according to the movies.

@RichL It does happen like that, I'm happy at around 21 Celsius and nothing below zero now. My Mum has gone the opposite way as she's aged, we were up in Newcastle and she was complaining about it being too hot at around 15 Celsius in the mornings.

@Ray Seddon Glad to hear you like it.

 

I've been playing a bass guitar since I was about 20. My twin brother and I play mostly in restaurants now. We've done all the clubs to death, and quit a long time ago. Plus, I never was one to enjoy the patrons at most clubs. They are entirely too obnoxious for me, always they are sitting in the same stools everytime we arrive, and everybody is in charge, yet no one's in charge. Here's a sampling of what we play instrumentally in restaurants:

Wave by the twinsDennyand Dave (as seated)...

We have a gig this Wednesday night at a restaurant not far from my house. Last week, we played a seafood joint. We do also sing, but if we don't have to get out the PA, we prefer to work the job this way.

 

Believe me, Rich, it's beyond endurance in the summer months, which extend for up to six months. Truly, it is not the place older people should think of retiring to. Just step outside and the heat and humidity about take your breath away. Oh, it's okay for those young people who could care less about sun damage, but when you walk the towns near the seashores, as I once did as a reporter to get interviews from residents, you'd be amazed to see what the sun has done to the faces of so many of the older people. Valleys as deep as the ocean. Like masks, really. No, my advice is to stay well away from this tropical nightmare.

 

Nice and relaxed, just the way I like it these days - by necessity of course as much as choice. So did you used to be a bit louder as a group or have you always played laid back and jazzy - how much did tinnitus affect you as a musician?

 

So impressive guitar play! Love it!

I used to play a lot of guitar myself, bought a Martin D-18V a few months ago.. But after this damn tinnitus, neck, shoulder and face pain I had to take a break as it flares up while bending my head in certain directions while playing. Hopefully Ill be able to play again in the future!

Again, very impressive!

 

I developed tinnitus from the noise of artillery and pneumatic tools. When we used to play clubs, which was a much louder sound, I wore earplugs. They took a lot from the experience, since your vocals are in your head, not out there, and the music doesn't blend well. There were lots of times I was there simply because I was keeping a commitment to a contract. There were some spikes I endured from playing, without a doubt. At the same time, I was a haunting presence on the stage with my insistence that no monitor be facing me -- which also took away from the experience. What we do today, what you heard us play, is the best level for both of us, as, ironically, both my twin brother and I have T. We play tomorrow night at a cafeteria, can you believe it? I think we'll be a hit with the old farts who patronize there more than the younger crowd. Yea, we should be there for a while.

 

Thanks for the nice compliment, Mr. Cartman. Things will likely change for you, maybe not in the short term, just give it some time. Your situation does sound like nerve damage. That can take a while, so be patient. I take Lyrica to help with fibromyalgia nerve pain and it has helped me in others ways as well: the T sometimes diminishes noticeably while on it, it enables me to hold my bladder for the longest periods of time, and it cuts down on nerve pain throughout my body.

It's certainly not a cure, but sometimes when I take it, with xanax, the nerve intensity dies down enough to feel nearly normal again. I wish you the best. You want to get your fingers back on the Martin, the same one I have, I think. Mine is a D, but the exact numbers after would be a guess to me right now. I am also a very good chord player; that is, I am well able to provide rhythm and could go solo if ever I chose to, but without any lead. One of my favorite solo tunes is James Taylor's "Don't Let Me Be Lonely Tonight."

 

Thank you for the kind words, I really appreciate it.

I didnt know that fibromyalgia could come with nerve pain. That being said, I think a few members in my family have been diagnosed fibromyalgia, but they just have some minor muscle aches. But I do have some weird stuff going on.. Like painful muscle spasms not only in my upper body, but also in my legs. I have no idea what this is, and the neurologists I have seen are also clueless. Waiting for a neck MRI, hopefully that could provide some answers.

I love James Taylor Don't Let Me Be Lonely Tonight. So relaxing

Yiruma - River Flows in You was one of the first guitar solos I learned to play, and it got me really into fingerstyle, and Ive been addicted to fingerstyle ever since. I found a video of someone playing it.
Maybe Ill upload a video myself when my health is slightly better.

(Yiruma) River Flow in You - Sungha Jung

I love Martins! I fell in love with the D18V instantly

Im going to talk to my doc regarding Lyrica and xanax. If they help you, maybe they can help me as well.
Thanks a lot for the tip and kind words

 

Great selection, Mr. Cartman. I've listened to this young man many times on youtube. His talent has a great touch to it, and it's been a lot longer than what his age would seem to indicate that he's been playing. One of those child prodigies, he is, and among so many others that are as young or younger, some of whom perform now as the soloist for orchestras. It's amazing the sort of talent that is out there. Emily Bear, a young pianist who began at age 4, is another gifted prodigy. The last I heard her say, she has composed over 350 songs, all of which have been published, and is now a world traveler, performing orchestral and jazz compositions she wrote all over the world. And I doubt she is out of her teens at present.

 

Thanks for the guitar work guys - great stuff.

Rich, you're right - not Kiwifruit - just out of idle curiosity I tracked down the fruit we ate - it is the Lilly Pilly, native to Aus but also with varieties in California:
LillyPilly Acmena smithii
Syzygium paniculatum

Myrtaceae
Magenta Lilly Pilly
Daguba (takuba) to Eora people
Endangered species.
Ray

 

Yeah, theres a lot of great talents out there! I also found Tommy Emmanuel to be very inspiring, Chet Atkins, Mason Williams, Masaaki Kishibe, the list is endless Emily Bear is indeed one of those child prodigies.

Tommy Emmanuel - Angelina

Tommy Emmanuel - Angelina

Mason Williams - Classical gas

Mason Williams - Classical Gas (1988)

 

Here is some swedish guitarplaying. In the beginning T destroyed a lot of my musical experience. I am not going to let that happen anymore. Hope you like it!

Toni Holgersson - och så går dessa...

 

Maj. 7s, 6ths, min 7s, minors...very pretty. Tenderhearted. Straight from the heart. I don't know the message, the lyrics. They sound either to be about the love of one's country or woman.

Mr. Cartman, those videos you uploaded were great. I've heart most of them before, but they always have more to offer in another listening. Thanks.
David

 

Broken love, in Sweden we do not wright that much about love to our country even do we have a lot to be proud of.

 

I love Scandinavian singing voices. There's something about the pronunciation that appeals to me, they generally sound great singing English.

One of my favourite relaxed artists are "Kings of Convenience" from Norway. If you see some of their lyrics written they don't sound like they will work as singing, yet they do it with a beautiful melancholy and to me it just sounds amazing.

(Sorry but there's an advert at the start of this - you can skip after 5 seconds though)

Kings of Convenience - I don't know what...