25 September 2024
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Simon and I did a slot at the Cask Bah Rocks open mic in Loughborough tonight. Three jazzy tunes: Fly Me to the Moon, Corcovado (Quiet Nights) and Autumn Leaves. All are ones we did several times in the park this summer but I was on one of my electric basses tonight (Squier Affinity Jaguar) – easier to transport, easier to unpack in what is quite a small venue and much easier to stretch out on.
24 September 2024
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One of the things I inherited from my Dad was a bench grinder, which has sat up in my loft for a few years. I got it down a few days ago and determined that it still worked. Having ordered a couple of accessories – a diamond wheel dresser and an adjustable tool rest – most of my DIY time this week has been working on a storage solution so I can keep it all accessible in the shed.
It is quite heavy but I’ve decided to go with an addition for my French cleat set up. Essentially, I’ve got an L shaped shelf that hooks over two sets of cleats to spread the load. However, the back continues a little lower, which means I can then put the shelf onto my workbench and clamp it tight when I’m ready to get grinding.
It has been quite a design process, figuring out how to fit it all together and making use of various wood, fixings and tools that I already had but it is now in place. All I need to do now is to develop some skill in using it!
23 September 2024
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In a Bible study this afternoon, I was looking at Job chapter 1 with some friends. I shared the opinion that Job could be a mythical figure; part of an extended parable rather than the account of actual events found in much of the rest of the Old Testament. There has certainly been artistry in how the story has been composed into a narrative. One YouTube video I saw recently was an interview with someone who has memorised the book in the original Hebrew. She observes that the main body of the book does seem to drag on so that we feel a longing for God to return to the story, like a dry and weary land thirsting for water. Further to the study, I’ve revised my opinion of Job to “actual historical figure” although the story remains detached from the main flow of Old Testament narrative. As well as the mention I had turned up in James 5:11, I also found Job mentioned in Ezekiel 14 (vv. 14, 20) alongside Noah.
As a side note, Ezekiel also mentions “Daniel” but, as the NIV footnote suggests, this may not be the Daniel of the Bible (alive at the time of Ezekiel) but a figure known from ancient non-Biblical writings.
In the uncertainties, we need to keep in mind what is sure, just like a cyclist needs to keep their eye on where they want to ride and not on all the hazards they want to avoid. The book of Job tells us that God is sovereign. Ezekiel reminds us that God is holy. The good news, revealed in the gospels and the canonical story and teachings of the early church, is that, through our Lord Jesus Christ, God has made a way for us to be reconciled to him.
22 September 2024
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Towards the end of yesterday afternoon, it rained a lot, to the accompaniment of thunder and lightning. In fact, it came down so hard and heavy (weather reports suggest a month’s worth of rain in one sitting) that I thought ought to brave the elements and check on my water capture system. As expected it was full and I was pleased to see water making the run from the primary collection near the house to the addition water butt in the far bit of the garden which finally overflows into the canal. However, the hosepipe wasn’t keeping up with the flow level so I needed to switch to the larger bore pipe that does the long run and goes straight to the canal.
The downside of that is that it presently involves unscrewing the tap the hose was connected to and screwing in the large bit of hose that connects to the outflow pipe. That’s easy enough but not when the system is completely full, it is dark and water is pounding down. I managed it but it would have been very difficult if I’d dropped the rubber ring that creates a proper seal on the outlet.
However, once inside and drying off, I had a brainwave. Why not create a second hole, higher than the tap and hose outlet which goes directly to the pipe? Yes, this is what would be called an overflow and I don’t know why I didn’t think of it before. I will look into that this week and hopefully save myself having to venture outside on cold, wet evenings in future to attend to the system.
21 September 2024
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Most of the work I did preparing for this week’s sing-around session was on a song led by someone else. My friend, Steve, wanted to reprise the Kick the Cat song we did about a year ago but, since it is just voice and double bass, and the double bass also gets a series of breaks after each chorus, that was quite a lot of responsibility on me! Here’s the version we were working from:
Out of interest – does anyone have any idea about the tune that comes at 0:41? The next two are Greensleeves and Vaughan-Williams’ Fantasia on a Theme from Greensleeves but, although it sounds familiar, I still haven’t quite placed the first one.
The three I led were Down in the Hole, Enjoy Yourself (It’s Later Than You Think) and I Wish I Knew How it Would Feel to Be Free. The first one is a reliable 16 bar blues that works well for my voice. I think it dragged a little but it still worked. I’ll have to check the key on the second. For some reason I had it transposed to G which pushes a note or two too high. C was what I used to do it in with the ukulele group where I learned it. Moving to D or perhaps higher might make better use of my strongest vocal range but G is too far (or I’d have to be down in the region that doesn’t project so well for much of the song). I think I made up for that though with my third one – also in G but it fits my voice like a glove and works through the bass with infectious energy. Definitely my best of the day, even including the Cat one (in which no actual felines were harmed).
20 September 2024
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I’m not sure that I had used Hammerite paint before doing the work on the BBQ earlier this week. It goes on well and gives an excellent finish but is not the most pleasant paint to work with, particularly when it comes to cleaning up. I declined to buy the Hammerite branded thinners but it took ages to clean up using white spirit (then rinsing with washing up liquid) after the first coat.
Before the second, I did a bit of reading. Some suggested that you had to buy the (expensive) official thinners and others said you might as well just use a cheap brush and throw it away. The latter feels wasteful but probably cheaper on the cost front! However, another suggestion was to soak the brush in olive oil. I ended up using some rapeseed oil, which is a bit cheaper than the olive oil I had and I wonder if any vegetable-based oil would do?
It did seem to work through. After a couple of days sitting in the oil, the brush was supple, although still dirty. I painted the oily mess from the brush onto several sheets of newspaper before using a little bit of white spirit, followed by the washing-up liquid rinse and I think that brush might still be useable next time I need to break out the hammerite. I still prefer the ease of working with water-based paints but, when you need an extra tough surface, the cooking oil trick seems worth bearing in mind.
19 September 2024
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We got another load of soil improver from the university team at the allotment today. This one didn’t come quite as bright and early as I expected but, fortunately, I didn’t have anything else on so was able to make use of the time to do some harvesting and catch up with a few other things that needed doing. I’ll have to see if I can get a more defined timeslot next time though, in case I don’t have all morning to spare. Still, can’t complain too much given that this is a free and useful gift which seems to be widely appreciated not just by myself but by my fellow allotmenteers too.
18 September 2024
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As a bassist, turning up to gigs typically involves more than just arriving with my instrument. I’ve typically got an amp, an FX unit and various sundries to cart around, including somewhere to mount the iPad holder for the iPad I have most of my notes on. Last weekend, I picked up a new hand trolley (a Magnusson unit from Screwfix), which is robust but folds down to a compact size; good for portability and, as you can see from the photo, I’ve worked out a couple of additions.
Originally, I envisaged attaching my iPad hold directly but it turned out the vertical poles were too thick. Out came the woodworking tools. In step one, I fitted platforms to the top and bottom, joined by a hollow metal rod.
That was the iteration I used on Sunday’s gig but, although it worked, it felt a bit loose and the curves I’d cut to hold the bass neck turned out to be too close to where the iPad sat. Version 2 involved an extra bit of shaped wood to hold the top pole holder flush to the pull handle and a squeeze clamp with a couple of old socks softening the handle to rest the bass in.
That worked well for last night’s rehearsal. I think there will be a version 3, with a horizontal piece of wood on the lower addition to provide an integrated bass support without the clamp and perhaps also a recess so my tuba mouthpiece can be rested on it without danger of being knocked off. Will there be a version 4? I’ll try #3 and decide if I need another iteration. By the time I get to next year’s overseas tour (the incentive for improving my gear portability set up) I should have a tried and tested set of customisations to assist.
17 September 2024
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So much for weather forecasts – this morning was misty or even foggy. To be fair, it did clear by mid-morning and it hasn’t rained so another coat has gone on. Here’s hoping tomorrow’s forecast is accurate because I’ll need to put another coat of paint on.
16 September 2024
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In the end, yesterday’s CSWO gig wasn’t rained off. It was drizzling a bit when I arrived but had stopped raining by the time we went on stage and actually brightened up to quite a pleasant evening by the time our set finished. That has led to a resurgence of warm, sunny weather today which is due to carry on until at least Wednesday… so time to get on with some outside painting jobs.
Priority number one is a decent sized BBQ, which we were recently given. It will have to live outside and, although still structurally sound, already had a few bits of rust. Today we’ve brushed it down with a wire brush, lightly sanded the surface and put on a primer coat of red oxide paint. It is going to have to stand outside overnight and tomorrow we can start on the top coat – one layer if it goes on well and two if it seems a bit thin in places.
We’ve already got a fairly sheltered spot for it and, combined with a cover, that should be good enough to see it through a year or two and let us decide if we want to do a more thorough job by taking it apart and pay attention to every surface of every component.