new bass

I bought a new bass on the weekend. It is so beautiful. Solid mahogony body, rich tone, 3 band eq, Bartoloni pickups and eq, just all around amazing.
'Cept for one little thing...the head stock is splitting. See the neck and headstock are made out of 5 pieces of wood (cut lengthwise) and 2 of them are starting to come apart. So I have to bring it back. I'm really hoping they have another in stock so I don't have to wait for another one.
Oh, here's a picture of it.

ashtray

the streets and sidewalks are not ashtrays, you fucking morons! you didn't spend 5 billion dollars on that fucking SUV for it to not have an ashtray. use it asshole, quit throwing your butts out the window.
oh, and you assholes that DO use your ashtrays, DO NOT DUMP THE FUCKING THINGS OUT AT THE INTERSECTION!! the streets aren't your fucking garbage dumps either.

More randomness...and explorations

Watching 2 back to back episodes of Grey's Anatomy isn't good for me. That is one and a half hours of continuous pain. But not a bad pain. It's the kind of pain that lets you know you are a caring, compassionate human being, if a little sappy. See I've fallen in love with this show. I enjoy it more than Desperate Housewives now, which is saying alot. I even stopped myself from watching this weeks episodes because I hadn't finished downloading and watching the previous week's episodes. And it's a good thing to because watching this weeks before last week would have left me so messed up and wondering what was going on.

In other news...

My dad went in for emergency surgery on Thurs. He went to emerg Thurs morning with severe abdominal pain, was admitted around noon and had surgery for appendicitis at 3pm. See it was kinda a big deal because the last time he was in the hospital it was because his gall bladder was gangrenous and about to explode, which would have killed him. But he is fine, and recovering at home. He was home the following day, where as most ppl are in teh hospital for a few days at least. He'll be off work for up to 6 weeks, whereas when I heard he was out, I didn't really think anything of it, and that he'd be back at work the following week. Boy was I wrong.

Our wedding blog is updated as well. Mama Bean is currently working on the layout and whatnot, so it's under continuous construction for the next little bit here. You can check it out here After "Yes"...Before "I Do"...Planning our Wedding.

I'm sad. I miss people. But it is so hard to go out. Not because I'm lazy. But because I'm scared. I fear social interaction. Yesterday, after watching American History X I learned that life is too short to be pissed off all the time. To be so full of hate. But what about fear? Isn't life to short to be full of fear? Fear and anxiety. Fear of people. Not of people, but of interacting with them. Of small talk. Of not knowing what to say, what to do. I'm lonely, but I don't want to go out. I don't want to meet with people. It is so much work. It is so stressful. It's scary. What if I don't do something right, or say the right thing? But it isn't even that. It is something else. Something...something different. It scares me enough that I think I make myself physically ill in order to avoid the situation. Not conciously. But there is something wrong. And when I do force myself to go out, to interact with people, sometimes it will go well. I can say the right things, people will laugh, will respond, will treat me decently. Sometimes I'll know how to interact with people and not feel like...like I don't know. It's just a feeling. And sometimes things don't go so well, and that feeling is there. That feeling of inadequacy. Of...of awkwardness, of fear.
I don't know what to do. I don't like this. I don't like being a hermit, but just forcing myself to go out doesn't work. I need to find another route. Another way of approaching this.

random bits

- i played at church again this sunday. i'm actually getting pretty good. i still get pretty nervous for the bigger services when there are close to 500 people there, but i learned today that if i don't even think about it, and just lose myself in the groove and the music it goes much smoother. when i break the concentration i make mistakes. (which i only made a few of, and they were only in one service)
- my parents are helping me purchase a new bass, as a christmas present. meaning nothing christmas morning, but that is okay, because i'll have a shiny new bass. :) i'm going to talk to my instructor this week about what he thinks about the different types. i found one i quite like. the sound is a little different from mine as well, it's alot more growly, which i enjoy.
- women that drive trucks automatically move up on the hotness scale
- i finally got my notice to start paying back my student loans, it'll be just over $100/mo for the next 12 years *laugh*
- i'm learning that buying a new house is the way to go, you just have to be careful which builder you buy from as some are shitty, others not so much.
- i'm getting excited about buying a house. i can't wait to move out on my own and have a house that is all mine (until i get married anyway, then i'll be even more excited)
- i play bass next sunday as well
- in 2 weeks i will be head of maintenance at a $13 million facility. i've been working at purolator every day for 4 hours each morning assisting maintenance there, doing PM's (preventative maintenance, ie: greasing bearings, lubing chains, tracking belts, etc...). and the guy i'm assisting is going for brain surgery at the end of the month so i'll essentially be taking over his job for approx 2 weeks. i'm not even done my probation. i'm starting to get a little stressed about it. i shouldn't really, but i am.
- my social anxiety is a pain in the ass
- i'm not sure what else...i thought i had something interesting to say...guess not.
- oh yeah, i sold my rolling stones tickets for $550, i paid $400, so that is helping to pay for my bass as well. :)

Sold!

I sold my Rolling Stones tickets. I paid just under $400 for the pair and sold them for $550. I most likely could have gotten more, but I felt bad enough charging this much. So Yay! This means a new bass for me. How very excititing!
Oh, and when I was on everquest last night, I witnessed a marriage. Now I don't know if these people were married in real life or what, but it was all very interesting/amusing. I'd never witnessed anything of the sort before.

what i want

i played this last night...it's amazing! i want one.
what with this $400 Alberta prosperity check coming, and my $80ish GST rebate check, and my ticket for going last night is worth $100 off a Yamaha bass, so...
we'll see what happens.
maybe i'll get the 5 string.

Nathan East

I went and saw this amazing bass player tonight. His name is Nathan East. He's played for EVERYONE! He started playing with Barry White, and he wrote the bass line fo Eric Clapton's Layla, and co-wrote Easy Lover with Phil Collins. He did lots of stuff with Elton John and Michael Jackson, and so many other cool people.
He was so amazing!
I want to play like him one day.

Top 7...err...6

Apparently it is "implied" that this 6 are the TOP 6, not just "any" seven. (so sayeth Jo, but not all of mine are) Oh and I modified it from Top 7 to Top 6 b/c that is all i could

come up with for most of them.

(1) Six things I plan to do before I die
become a pastor
start/plant a church
be a wonderful father, grandfather and husband
become a "good" bass player
write a book
visit australia again


(2) Six things I can do
I can play bass
I can squat 800lbs
I can be unselfish
I can build/fix computers
I can teach people how to swim, and make them feel comfortable in the water
I can make Mama Bean laugh when she is grumpy


(3) Six things I cannot do
I cannot walk and drink at the same time
I cannot wrap my head around the logic required for programming
I cannot stop constantly second guessing all of my life choices
I cannot draw
I cannot handle large social situations
I cannot be an astronaut

(4) Six things that attract me to the opposite sex
cuteness (not just looks)
happiness
intelligence
a kissable face (if you have to put a bag over their face everytime you see them you aren't going to want to kiss them)
a backbone (not literally)
nose



(5) Seven things I say frequently
my goodness
fuck (i have quite the potty mouth, unfortunatly)
i want
i love you
sorry
i miss you

(6) Seven celebrity crushes
Nicole Kidman
Meg Ryan
Christina Ricci
Natalie Portman
Allyson Hannigan
Julia Roberts