Hello 2010

Another year with all its promise and days to look forward to. Time to start planning for a year of picking and other activities.

We have a few dates set up for the year, but just beginning to have a calendar going for the year. Have to decide what is going to happen to set the rest of the year. We haven't played anywhere since October 27th and have only practiced together once.

David admitted before we practiced that it would not take him much to just stop performing. I hope he doesn't follow through on that, as he is such an excellent picker, not to mention musical partner and friend for me. He took a couple of years off back in the late 1990's and I continued to perform as a solo act. He would often show up at my programs and then we would pick afterwards. There are things I enjoyed about performing solo, but I prefer performing as a duo.
We also need to finish our CD.

I am hoping to lay down some more tracks for the CD this weekend. We will see how that goes. I have been able to work a lot more since our practice session last week. It has reignited my picking fire and I hope it has done the same for David.

I even played for the social at Branan Lodge yesterday. I managed to get through the songs and even some flatpicking.

It is a time to look forward and things I would like to do. I would like to get another canoe. I enjoyed canoing so much when I was younger. It is such a great way to go down a river or to float on a lake. So quiet and soothing. It can be work, but is more fun than work.

I have been interested in sailing for a few years also. I like the non motorized types of travel on water I guess. It would be great to have a small sailboat, maybe a dinghy type boat that could hold 3 or 4 people and sail on the lakes around here. Almost found one on Craig's list last month, but it was gone when I got with them.

The other thing I am looking at is getting a motorcycle. I had a Harley Sportster from 1974 until around 1981, after my first son was born. I love riding motorcycles and since my youngest son has taken my vehicle after turning 16 last year, I need something to get to work with and other places. This winter would be rough, but I could stand a motorcycle for most of the year, at least 3 seasons. So I am on the hunt, and hunting for some money or financing at the same time. I have had a long love affair with motorcycles, which I am sure I got from my dad, who had one when he was young also. He got an old motorcycle, when I was quite young and we still lived in the first house in Morganton. We moved from there when I was 10 years old, so it was before then. This motorcycle, which he said was mine, had a belt on it to crank it. He took the belt off and I could push it up the hill beside the house and then ride it down the little hill. I never got to ride it when it was cranked, though my dad did and also rode me on it. When I was 13, I got a Honda Trail 90 motorcycle which I rode all over the yard and neighboring areas. I learned to hillclimb with it and even to jump it a little bit. I still own that motorcycle, though it isn't running.

I sold it a few years ago to my uncle for him to ride with his youngest son. He already had a Trail 90 that he had bought about the same time I got mine. He kept it a couple of years and then I bought it back. When I got it back, the tool kit was gone and it would not crank. I need to take it to the cycle shop and get it running again. I have a son who could be riding it now.

Still I want a street bike to use. I have seen some nice bikes that I would enjoy. I really want another Harley and have seen a few Sportsters that are reasonable. Maybe something will work out this spring.

The other thing I have though of for a lot of my life is flying. I have looked at getting my Private Pilots license since I was in my teens and keep putting it off. I once had enough money saved to get me through soloing (at the time). Then the Minolta camera I wanted went on sale and I bought it instead. The flying got put way back on the back burner. David has never been real interested in flying, though his dad flew a small plane for several years and loved it. I think that is part of the problem for him, as he was in the plane and saw some of the problems of landing a small plane in a strong cross wind.

When I had my stroke this summer, I figured this dream was ended. Still I decided to check the medical requirements and found that the stroke would not keep me from getting my license. So My interest is piqued again. I have sent for some information from Sporty's Pilot Shop and should get that right away. We'll have to see if this dream is followed through on or postponed again.

In the meantime, I need to get busy setting up places to play. To do that, I need to clear with Buck if he will be willing to play on them as well.

See you down the road. Keep the rubber side down and the shiny side up.