Thursday, August 12, 2010

12 August 2010


The focus for today was the piano. Workers moved it into the piano room/bar a couple of days ago. It needed a serious cleaning as construction dust and beach dust had accumulated over the last 6 months. I was able to clean the soundboard, and use an air compressor to blow out most of the dust. It seriously needs a tuning, which is no surprise after all it has been through since we left our house in September.
The piano has suffered a bit of damage in its travels; the piano has been stored on the bass side and the finish along this side is damaged. There is a significant amount of corrosion evident in the bass section; both strings and pins. The rest of the pins look pretty good, but all of the strings show some rust.
Once things were cleaned up and the dust blown out; it was playable. It has been almost a year since I've played, and it felt so good to sit and make music tonight. I haven't come across any of my printed music yet, so tonight's tunes were improvisation. Since improv is my weakest link, it was extemely satisfying to be able to produce music that the workers enjoyed listening to out of my head. Eglesias came and asked to sit and listen...it was really sweet. I have always been so reserved about sharing my music making with others, but this felt really natural. I'm hoping to come across my sheet music soon, so I can play with more variety!

Doug has traveled to the US today to be with his Mom and family. A large part of the afternoon was spent trying to find airline tickets for Wayne, Doug's son, to travel to Phoenix to see his grandmother. Last minute tickets were ridiculously expensive, but Carolyn, Wayne's wife, found some that were more reasonable.

I also had a visit this afternoon from Bob...who is building a home in El Ă‘uro. He is from Ohio, and has connections with a hotel chain. He has invited us to his home here for a Thanksgiving dinner with a turkey and all the fixings! In all the time I´ve been here, I have not seen a turkey for sale and am looking forward to an honest to God turkey dinner. Being involved in construction in the same area at the same time gives us lots in common. Our carpenter that did our roof approached Bob and gave him a bid for his roof. Bob also wanted a recommendation for wooden doors and windows. Networking...



Doug is now in Arizona with his family. All of his siblings are rallying together to give his parents the support they need. I know it is a tough time for all of them, but it is comforting to see them all work together to get things done.

The caulking in the pool should be finished tomorrow. Eglesias has been digging out the fire pit. Others have been working on the entry way. The wall they are building in the entry way is where I want to do a mural. I´ve thought about doing a line drawing in the cement. I´ve also thought about doing a painted mural. Mandy tried to convince me to do a mosaic. No decisions have been made, although I know I want to depict the local marine life.

OMG there are so many things that I have planned in my mind; curtains, kitchen linens, time at the piano...where does one begin.

Chairman Meow, the kitten is very vocal and quite energetic! I was completely convinced the other morning that she was crazy loco and needed to be put down. Whatever sort of magic Sanchez wielded seemed to bring her around. From what I understood, she suffered from a kind of colic; once she was able to vomit and clear her system, she was able to recuperate. I felt so badly that I had essentially written her off. I could hardly believe it was the same kitten he brought back to me. Stormy still thinks Chairman Meow is food; and is very intent upon snacking on her. So far we have managed to keep them apart and spared any unfortunate confrontation resulting in the consumption of the kitty. I always thought they would eventually learn to live with each other, but I am not so sure. Stormy truly wants to consume this kitten! And she is so determined! If the kitten is inside with me, Stormy is outside barking at the window. When the kitten is in the third bungalow, Stormy is frantic at the window. I don´t really think Stormy wants to eat her, but she just wants to play. But her desire is like an obsession!ast night I took the kitty to bed with me as she was very sedate and cuddly. In a couple of hours though, she was up and restless. It was soon a hissy fest between dog and cat; and I was only patially awake. Imagine, the only light available was a head lamp. I was trying desperately to rescue the kitty from the jaws of my dalmatian. After several scratches and questionable interventions, the kitten was detained in one bungalow and Stormy and I in another. I don´t think the middle of the night upheavals are worth the trouble. I´m going to bring Stormy´s kennel into the bungalow and put her to sleep within. This will allow the kitten to move about during the night without traumatic upheaval!

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