A Week Flies By...

It has been rather a frustrating week.
We had all been looking forward to having Robin home, for a whole week, but also knew that it would be a busy one.
We hadn't counted on me taking a few days out to recuperate from a heavy cold, but it was a relief that Robin was around to shoulder some of the domestic responsibilities, whilst I felt sorry for myself.

We also hadn't expected a sick, and very vocal, cat.
Poor Ramsbottom was also unwell, requiring a visit to the vets (he protested all the way there) an injection, and a week's worth of tablets.
I now have mastered the art of medicating cats very well, and he is improving daily.

Then there was son number two's birthday party.
We, along with one of his friends parents, hosted a noisy and chaotic party for over 30, 5 and 6 year olds.
All went well, and was greatly enjoyed by all the young guests. I was informed by his teacher the next day that the whole class had been very quiet, and it would be lovely if we could tire them out in such a way more frequently...No chance.

Then of course his birthday itself.
I was just pleased that Robin was home for such a significant event.
Over the years he has missed many of these family occasions when away from home and it's hard for all concerned.

By this weekend, he then had two private functions to play at, whilst I prepared everything for another trip which starts tomorrow.
This week has gone all too quickly, but at least it is only 1 week away from home this time.
We have coped with much longer.

However, communication will be hampered, as Robin is without his computer.
It has been sent away for repair.
This has been very frustrating, as he has been unable to do any recording in his time at home, and also, will not have his Apple back until after this next trip....

But this is the reality of life as a musician.
When travelling extensively, time at home is precious, whatever is going on.
But after a week of chaos, illness, vocal cat, parties, etc. I think there's a small part of Robin that will sit on the plane tomorrow, put on his headphones, listen to some calming music, (without interruption), and feel that a week away from home may just be rather refreshing....

The QE2, the Giant Cat, and Plenty of Practice.

Here's an image of the QE2 in Acapulco bay:



I can only assume that guests are transferred to shore in order to visit, and that she hasn't left port leaving Robin on land, as I have since had messages from him.
What a beautiful setting though.

It's another day at sea, which for Robin is good, as there will be no distractions for him, as his first guitar concert is tonight.
He happened to mention that yesterday he practised for 3 hours, 16 minutes and 34 seconds, before lunch...(he'd timed it on his iPod stopwatch.)
Whilst I could get concerned at this obsessive time keeping, I know that it is the effect of many hours isolation on the high seas, and he'll be fine. (If you saw some of the photos he has sent with the toy monkey you really would think he'd lost his mind!)

Luckily his neighbour, a German guest, is still enjoying all this music.
He may not feel the need to actually go to the concert though, as from experience, I know that Robin will run through the entire programme, at least twice, and probably more, over the course of the day.
But I hope he does attend, as it is always very different when you see pieces performed in public, with the atmosphere of a concert, and all the introductions.

Robin did take a little time out to sit in the sun and listen to Cecilia Bartoli and some Respighi.
He also informs me that the worlds largest cat is on board.
I know there are a lot of cat lovers out there, and many are fellow bloggers, so I have asked for a photo, as soon as possible.
This should be interesting.

Jekyll & Hyde, The QM2, and the Stowaway Cat

Robin is now on board the QM2, and preparing for the first of his two classical guitar concerts, taking place later today.
Prior to packing his suitcase on Friday, this, is what we discovered:



It appears that Ramsbottom the cat, quite liked the idea of a trip to New York, and was prepared to stowaway.
As you can see, the case hadn't been fully 'unpacked' from the previous trip, but it hardly seemed worth bothering.
In case you are interested, the book you can see is, 'Dr.Jekyll and Mr.Hyde and other stories', by, Robert Lewis Stevenson.

Robin did repack the book as he hadn't quite finished it.
I do have a slight concern over his choice of reading material.

One review said, 'Truly a great work of English literature, 'Jekyll and Hyde' is a magnificent story that takes the reader to the very edge of madness.'

We should be alright as long as the weather remains good, and therefore no bouts of seasickness follow, requiring long periods of isolation in ones room.
Cabin fever and Jekyll and Hyde may just push Robin's sanity to the limit.

As for the hairdryer in the background, well, I must admit that it's mine. I'm afraid I'm one of those annoying people that just leaves it on the floor instead of putting it away.
Now, I must go and see if I can find Ramsbottom...

Rain, Rain, Recording and More Rain

I knew it wouldn't be easy when Robin decided to record his new CD from our studio at home.
The most obvious reason is unwanted background noise.
With two small children, two dogs and a cat, the potential for extraneous noises filtering through a series of closed doors, is quite high.
But our children have grown up with this and understand that when we tell them 'Daddy is recording', they actually do respond by creeping around the house quietly.

We've turned bath time into a game.
Who can go upstairs the quietest.
Who can manage to get through an entire bath time without squealing.
That sort of thing.

Don't get me wrong though. We haven't cramped their style too much and in fact they do quite well out of it.
When the 'red light', so to speak, is not on, then mayhem ensues.
Running up and down stairs making as much noise as possible is actively encouraged.

Sing songs around the piano become a daily occurrence - usually made up by the boys themselves.

The timing couldn't be worse. Final decisions on recording equipment were made just as school broke up for the extended summer holidays....
That makes two children at home all day plus assortment of friends.
Ohh well.

But the biggest problem has been the weather.
Anyone with children will know that boys in particular are like puppies. They need regular and lengthy exercise.
Since the end of term it literally hasn't stopped raining.
A constant stream of water slides down the window pane.
We start each morning with, 'How many beats per minutes is it today?'
It's July - we want the sun....

Even the amount of rain has had to be turned into a game.
Is it:
1) Drizzle
2) Fine rain
3) Large drops but coming down vertically
4) Huge drops bouncing on the ground
5) Daddy stops recording because the microphones are picking up the rain as it lashes down on the window.

If it doesn't stop soon I think I shall have to relocate to another continent....

The Many and Varied Uses of Savarez Guitar Strings...

After the technical blog yesterday, about the tremelo technique, I thought we would have a light hearted approach today. Don't worry though, there a plenty of exciting things coming up, including some video footage.

As you can imagine, we get through a large amount of guitar strings, in this house.
Robin uses Savarez, Corum, strings, and as I've said before, regularly changes them.
The bass strings will certainly be changed before every concert, and in between as well. The treble strings, less frequently, but they never stay on longer than a couple of weeks or so.
But what happens to them......
Where do they all go.....

Well, on the whole, you can open any drawer in our house, and a curling mass of strings spill out, and try to escape.
They are unceremoniously returned, and the drawer shut quickly, to prevent any further spillage.

They are also frequently found wound around my vacuum cleaner, with me beside it, patiently 'unwinding'...

But there is an upside.

Robin is not known for his DIY skills, (not a good hobby for someone who relies on his hands to make a living), but he does have to occasionally 'fix' items around the house.
This ALWAYS involves an old guitar string.

The most useful attempt was on our toilet.
For more than 10 years a 'G' string allowed the smooth flushing system to work by holding the ballcock to the lever. It only had to be changed once in that time, and we were quite sad when we had a new bathroom fitted, and returned to a more conventional method of plumbing.

Other uses have been, threading through the locks of a suitcase broken in transit, holding down the bonnet of a car, tying on the bumper of a car, (different cars and only temporary repairs...), attaching bird feeders around the garden and very handy for travellers, to attach to plugs in hotels when the chain has broken.

One of the most ingenious uses was to retrieve some car keys, from the ignition of our locked vechicle, with the aid of coat hangers and a sort of 'noose system'.

But one of the most satisfying, was the repair of these glasses.



Son number two likes to transmogrify into a character, he refers to as 'Mr.Snug', whilst wearing these glasses.
He was therefore devastated to find the 'nose' had fallen off. Not to worry, 'Savarez' saved the day.

Ohh, they are also excellent play things for cats. Our cat Ramsbottom spends many hours chasing them around the house before they get relocated to a drawer, toilet, car, glasses etc.
But don't forget, this is only once they have played many thousands of notes....

Mozart's Dog Revisited

Meet Coco (Bimps)

Having met Ramsbottom the cat the other day I thought it was time I introduced you to one of our two Labradors. So here she is, Bimps.
As I've said before, she is actually called Coco, but we always call her Bimps.
This is because Mozart had an English Terrier called 'Miss Bimperl', shortened to 'Bimps', which when translated means 'Spot'.
Mozart must have had a sense of humour to call his dog, 'Spot the dog'.
As you will see our Bimps doesn't have a spot in sight as she is chocolate all over, but she is probably the most eccentric dog you will come across, or some might say 'dotty', hence the name 'Bimps'.
She's an essential member of Hillhouse as loves long, rambling walks, particularly if very muddy puddles are involved, and therefore it provides Robin with the perfect reason to put his guitar down and take a break.
She will in fact sit and stare at him until he does.