interviewed by tchwrtr

[acroyear]

1. What do you do to unwind from this insane work schedule you have?

If I don't have reasons to stay busy in the evening, I just have classical music and a wee dram of scotch upstairs in the comfy chair, whilst reading a book (which is generally non-fiction).  Within seconds (and we demonstrated it yesterday), the cat (the black one in the icon) will be in my lap purring.

Update: since I haven't had that kind of time, instead the last week has been Muppet Show season 3 any chance we can glance at the TV for more than 10 minutes at a time.

And actually, the work schedule has been kinda normal - I'm 10-7 most days, no problem.  It's the weekend schedule that, in spite of everything I've tried to stop it, has gotten utterly out of control with no weekends without *something* going on until, yes  I'm about to say this: December.

2. I was there when you and faireraven were engaged, and again when you married. How was it that you met?

Invasion.  After having met some of the California crowd at MDRF's invasion '98, I decided to spend a little cash and join the RPFS invasion in California, memorial day '99.  She was there from Jersey, we kinda met among the crowds during the wench walk (with my bells I was kinda hard to miss), and we were talking on and off all weekend, particularly at the Irish Bar.  Most of the Sunday and Monday, I followed like cute puppy dog, to the point of coincidentally being next to her when the Poof kiss-in happened behind the Brassy's Booth (r.i.p.). :)

3. Why Morris Dancing?

The Beer. *

4. You have an amazing music collection and quite the ear for it. And yet, I do not know if you play an instrument. Do you, and if not, why?

Played Clarinet and Bass Clarinet in middle/high school, but never seriously enough to make it to the top-notch.  I never practiced, as it was "good enough". I was always more interested in the music and its complexities more than just my part in it (plus even being lazy it was still an easy 'A').  I'd like to think I'd make a good conductor and music teacher, if I didn't need to actually be good at playing anything as part of the process...and If I didn't find the current mechanisms for teaching theory to be insanely boring and pointless. **

I've never had the discipline/patience to get terribly good at anything unless I'm a natural.  Most things I never practice at.  I even hate it conceptually. "If it doesn't come naturally, leave it." -- Al Stewart.

I do have the Tambourine for Cat & Fiddle sets, out of necessity, and the whistles for kid-entertaining up close and for when she breaks a string.  I have several other instruments I likely will take more seriously when the legs stop and go "ok, that's it; you're done.", and have been using them, particularly the whistles, more actively in Morris practice nights.

I sing as well, but though I know the musical innards of complex works like Rite of Spring and Close to the Edge with incredible detail and depth, I have a severe handicap with remembering lyrics.  Whatever I'm doing, the 3rd line of some verse will simply "vanish" and nothing I can do aside from the paper in front of me will allow me to recall it.  Hence, as much as I want to add songs, Cat & Fiddle has remained a strictly instrumental act.

5. You have been given an all-expenses-paid vacation to wherever, for three weeks. Where will you go, and what will you do?

I have two vacations "in my head" that I have no idea when I'll get to them.  In 3 weeks, I could fit them both together, however, each is better in the right time of year...

1. Return to Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia.  Best done in the end of July, in order to catch the Broad Cove concert and dance.  I haven't been back since '97 and it kills me every year that something else comes up to keep me/us from going.
   
   
2. Driving Across California.  Better done in February or March.  Fly into San Francisco to see old friends (and the city itself for the first time), then drive across to Sacramento to see capi (you'd understand I'm sure!).  Drive south and over into Redwood Forest country and then into the LA & San Bernardino area to hang out with the other California friend set, along with a day in Disneyland.  If there's time, continue south back through San Diego and catch the things we didn't on our one-day pass-through in '06, like the San Diego Zoo and Coronado Island.
   

My company gives a "5 year splash" (5 days instant vacation, which you can combine with your regular vacation build-up, and $2000 cash to help pay for it) when we reach that employment milestone, and I'll cross that line in January of '09.  If faireraven can travel, I'll want to try a subset of #2 over, say, 8-10 days.  Frisco, Sacramento, Redwoods, San Bernardino/Arrowhead, and finally Anaheim/Disney.  That should cover most of our LJ friends out there that we rarely see nowadays, and a good part of the state that I've never been through...

* I've been told by thatliardiego I should stop there, so I did, but you can read more here.

** This is a long-standing problem with me since freshman year college.  Much of "theory" is taught as rules without reasons, simply "it's the way Bach did it so that's what you'll regurgitate back to me" and while that might work for teaching 2nd graders arithmetic, it doesn't do a damn thing to inspire me as a mathematical expert university student with 6 years of "proofs" under his belt.  I don't take "rules" anymore except as philosophical axioms (which themselves are still debatable), so without the "why", I quickly became bored and depressed with the class and the concept.  ESPECIALLY when I was an experienced enough listener to be able to pick out an exception to every "rule" they showed me.  I could probably respond to a different way of teaching it, one that showed the evolution of these rules more historically and how the exceptions to those rules in the 20th century developed, but nobody bothers that way since I'm in such a minority for my attitude.

Comments

Cali

[spicyapplegirl.livejournal.com]

As a former 10-year resident of Del Mar, California, I can tell you that the beaches are MUCH BETTER in the north San Diego suburbs than what you're describing in the Los Angeles suburbs. Not as warm as the shallow Atlantic, but better. And the beach sand is fantastic in its fine white homogeneity.

In fact, Solana Beach/Del Mar/La Jolla used to be consistently rated as some of the best beaches in the entire state. (Not sure about current ratings: I don't follow it anymore because I don't live there.)

I could go on and on playing pitchman, but I will end with one thing: GO TO THE SAN DIEGO ZOO and the Wild Animal Park! They are two of the finest zoos in the world! (no kidding) No cages/fewer cages than most zoos, and cleverly designed habitats that are good for the animals' physical and psychological needs. Each also has a world-class reproductive program, so there are often baby animals on display in the nursery! :)

~Apple
(wishing I could go with you and show you all the cool places in North San Diego. Just ask if you want to know more!)

Re: Cali

[acroyear70.livejournal.com]

I lived in San Diego for 2 years ('79-'81). I can even still drive it well (having been back in '96 and '06) even though I never drove there as a kid.

Both Zoo and Park rock and I certainly want to go see them again, but my new fav north county landmark right now has to be the new Stone Brewing brewery, where they make Arrogant Bastard on tap. :)

I'm not a beach person, so aside from catching on good Pacific sunset, I can do without the coastline. Point Loma has the best sunsets on a good day.

Re: Cali

[spicyapplegirl.livejournal.com]

I'm NOT a beach person either, as demonstrated by the fact that I lived 2 miles from some of the best beaches in California, yet I only went there perhaps 10 times in 10 years, and then, only when asked by friends who were having a party. I think I've swum in the ocean 5 times. Maybe.

I guess the only reason I mentioned it was because the rest of the posts seemed to be discussing beaches; having an Arrogant Bastard ON TAP sounds MUCH more interesting! LOL