I d like to know the aswer too 
2 Likes
We will shed light on that, Deborah 
. Sooner or later weāll know what to do. But I didnāt expect so much tempting things around the whole guitar thing! I need some extra decades of lifetime to enjoy all of that!
2 Likes
Thanks so much for asking, Andrea. The three of us are doing fine, except being tiredā¦ 
The little one is growing so fast (almost gained 2 kg in 5 weeks 
) and luckily enough isnāt screaming much despite being tormented by terrible flatulences, poor baby. 
Totally relatable for me!
Still not much guitar time for me, I hope this will increase after the first weeks of adjusting and finally finding a kind of rhythm. 
2 Likes
Here you are Andrea! Iāll be very happy to follow your Log and try to be supportive as youāve always been to me 
I was so sorry to read about the health struggles youāve been through and I much admire the strenght you faced them withā¦and luckily you have found in the guitar a sweet companion and an endless source of joy! I wish to you all your energy comes back to you soon!
2 Likes
6 Likes
Hi Andrea!
Your intro post for your Log is a really good one! I think youāve covered a lot of ground about where you are & have been in your guitar Journey! Sorry to see that you are expressing doubts about where you want to go.
I think this is perfectly normal - any time one comes to a āfork in the roadā, thereās some uncertainty about the ārightā direction to take. I think that with learning a new skill such as guitar, especially when thereās not a rush or urgent need to complete a level - as in a structured learning environment like a university program - taking time to consolidate your skills & explore your options is a GREAT thing. There are so many different paths available musically to check out now that youāve completed Grade 3. You have many techniques literally āat your fingertipsā!
Also, donāt forget your feelings as you progressedā¦
As you continue along, learning new songs, polishing up the ones you already have under your belt & generally improving your musicality, youāll find that it takes less energy to play. Have you ever watched somebody who is really, really skilled at something? A truly good skier makes slaloming down a mountain graceful & effortless. Gymnasts make doing flip-flops across the mat amazingly simple and smooth. Guitarists like Clapton for example can make truly difficult passages & bends appear second-nature. The better you get at your guitar, the easier is will be, the more you can spend that energy in some new skill you still have to achieve!
THIS!!!
Thatās the right attitude!!! I felt really good when I read that Andreaā¦ you have the love & the joy that will keep you moving forward - slower than youād like maybe - but forward!!! I remember once driving a moving truck from Southern California to Northern Colorado (it was about 1400 miles/2250 km) & the truck wouldnāt go faster that about 50 mph/80 kph. It took waaaaaaay longer to get there than I wished at the start of the trip, but still managed to get to Fort Collins in Colorado!
Playing guitar & exploring different paths will lead to to where your heart wants you to beā¦ donāt put pressure on yourself to āget thereāā¦ just relax & let it happen.
Thereās a lot of good hiking in the mountains & desert where I liveā¦ when I was younger, Iād put a lot of effort into finding the ābestā trail or the most difficult. After years I discovered that the best trail is the one that gives you a new view to enjoy, an elk at a pond or stream, sighting a bobcat as it stalked a rabbitā¦ things that were so enjoyable because they were exciting & unexpected. With guitar, Justinās Grade 2 lessons on Blues were like this for me. I havenāt ever been into Blues at all before - didnāt really want to even do those lessons - & I was BLOWN AWAY by how fun they wereā¦ I use the Beginner Blues Solo as a warm-up all the time! I realize now how fundamental Blues is to Rock-N-Roll which was what I grew up with!
This is where Iām at - the end of Grade 2ā¦ consolidatingā¦ learning to play different songs. Part of the issue as I see it is that itās so hard to narrow down because I Love so many different genres. Rock, Pop, Country, Blues (new, but I really love it), Flamenco & Spanish guitar, Big Band era Jazz, Bluegrass, Classicalā¦ more that Iām not even thinking of right now. So, I think that since Iām not going to try to impress anyone other than my close family, I donāt have to āexcelā at any one styleā¦ Iāll just play what I love or maybe a couple of requests from my wife to learn.
As we get older & donāt have as much time left to us as say a 20 or 30 year old, mediocrity isnāt really such a bad goal!!! Seriously though, itās not like playing guitar is going to pay the bills for the vast majority of us here in the Justin Communityā¦ so as @Richard_close2u preaches - Learn songs, Learn songs, Learn songs! Keep your journey full of Fun & Joy, use the guitar as a tool to ward off sadness & misery! Park your angst at the door, pick up your instrument & laugh!!!
Sorry - guess I got on a long-winded soapbox there!!! I do hope you continue to get better & soon feel more like your pre-covid self! Good luck, Andrea with whatever path you choose, just know that you have a lot of cyber-friends out here that wish you the best!!!
Tod
2 Likes
I canāt even get this right having him im front of me. How the heck does this work on the back then?
But I must admit itās cute and really cool - looks like first stage outfit of KKH+1. 
2 Likes
You asking me ?
Iād have gone full Navajo or Sioux, with a papoose on my back.
But I just pushed the buggy/pram around and brainwashed my daughter with Deep Purple and Lynyrd Skynyrd at bed time !
3 Likes
Deep Purpleā¦ lullabyā¦
Maybe this???
Tod
1 Like
CiT was on the agenda but it was pretty much the whole DP MIJ and DP in Rock albums most nights and all the pre October 77 LS albums. 44 years on she feeds me with some grand new Southern Rock bands and weāve both musically corrupted my grand daughter, who also bungs new bands my way !!
On my daughters wedding day waiting for the car to arrive I whacked on Billy Idol White Wedding and Maidenās Bring Your Daughter To The Slaughter and we still have a craic about that today !
Sorry @Helen0609 we digress - back to the plot !!
4 Likes
Thanks for sharing Andrea and congratulations on your progress. You have come a long was in your journey. Itās good that youāre taking a moment to explore your options whilst consolidating Grade 3 as gives you an opportunity to reflect on what path to take next.
Nothing to think about here. We all know youāre a big fan of the blues, itās a great structured course and youāre ready for it. It would be interesting to know who in the community is signing up for Class 2.
1 Like
I remember those āwindy daysā, we had a very hard time, until we got some help from our doctor. DM me, if you need a tip. We are off track here !
It will, for sure! and until things settle, indulge your sweety with a few lullabies on guitar! 
@Silvia80 Thanks for the good wishes, Silvia! You are definitely one of the persons here, spreading so much good vibes!
@CATMAN62 Tod! Iām out of breath after reading your post 
No, jokes aside, I really appreciate your thoughtful reply!
O my godness, I did ! Enough for a second life! My son used to be a competitive ski racer and Iāve spent literally years of my life on the slopes with endless training sessions and support! He was āoneā with his skis, precision in every turn, seemed to be effortlessā¦
Iām bit spoiled by sportsā¦ I always picked up everything in sports quite quickly from youth on, although training is key there too. I guess, guitar takes me longer to absorb new skills.
Playing guitar should be primarily a relaxing thing to do. I donāt have to proof anything, thatās really good. But I guess, when we are doing something with passion, we all tend to set the bars higher, itās just human. I know, I wonāt ever become a pro and thatās by far not my intention, but every day a little better 
.
My biggest āluxury problemā is, a bit like yours, to have a really broad taste of music. So I canāt break that down into a certain preference.
This, and the fact, that I simply enjoy almost everything on guitarā¦ so time will tellā¦ .
Oh, when all this annoying circumstances had an effect, itās that I learned how strong I really am. I do my best to deal with it and I never allowed sadness to take over. Not as long as I can hold a guitar 
! When it gets tough, I crank the amp, or do some fingerpicking āmeditationā, according to the moodā¦
All good, thanks for all the good wishes!
Cool dad! She soaked up good musical taste then !
You told that somewhere else already. How cool is that 
! Great memory for both of you!
Never mind! All good, feel free to hijack !
5 Likes
@Socio James! Nice to see you over here!
Hmā¦ not sure about that , simply not sure, if I could make a commitment like that, I plan to do a seperate post outside my log concerning this .
Not me 
, Iām simply not there yet skillwise and unfortunately have to sort out things in life and get more stable, but I would be really interested for the future!
Wish you lots of fun, should be the last module for your Blimmerās right now?
1 Like
Guten Morgen, Andrea
Maybe we should introduce a rule that folk shouldnāt be allowed start their learning log until theyāve settled into their guitar journey and become familiar with the Communityā¦
This was a lovely read
Youāre one of the growing bunch of decent, strong-minded, good-humoured women who joined the Community and have become regular contributors.
Much appreciated 
Whether something is good or bad, important or trivial, what makes it interesting and relevant for me is whether it is authentic. Your personality shines out of your comments, even when describing difficulty. Keep it up.
Regarding making the most out of this lifeā¦ Well, I canāt argue with that 
However, as a greedy, self-centred hedonist, I tell myself that when I move on, itās gonna be even better the next time around (whether here or āsomewhere elseā)-
Who cares if itās true?
Iāll not clog your LL responding to ābaby chatā like Lisa & Toby 
, but will comment in the appropriate thread
Have a good day.
Have a good 1000 days!
3 Likes
@brianlarsen Hi Brian, thanks for the nice reply, I still have a grin on my face!
At least one person cares about keeping everything nice and tidy , thanks for that . Aber hast du da nicht den Bock zum GƤrtner gemacht 
? (German saying, translated would be: donāt you let the goat do the gardening)
Was it such a menās world before ? As an āinvaderā into the holy halls of menās friendly guitar talk, I thankfully take this as a compliment . I hope all of you āold and honourable membersā can deal with some more female input 
?
Same for me, I see it as a big, big value of this community, that members are mostly sincere/honest and donāt hide their personalities behind a wall. At times, where self-promotion in social media is taking over, I find this to be very precious.
How do you even come up with such thoughts ?
At least the output from that is very entertaining for us 
.
Hey, thatās only 2,7 years ?? I guess I need at least a few decades!
Cheers!
4 Likes
Hi Andrea. This whole LL has been a terrific read. The serious parts with health issues and then the humorous parts. The constant interruptions and off topic subjects from the others adds to what could be published in a magazine.
Love it. Like @brianlarsen says itās great that we have more women contributing regularly on the forum. Funny thing is they mostly seem to come from the European continent and the USA/Canada and more recently Australia. Where are all the UK female guitar players?
I know Iāll immediately be proven wrong with my statistical analysis as all the UK ladies will now target me!
3 Likes
Where are all the other Aussie lady guitarists, we need to form a gang!
(Due to the sanctity of the sisterhood every woman is welcome, but youāll need to put on an accent.)
2 Likes
@sairfingers
Sorry for the late response, Gordon, had a busy weekend .
Glad you enjoyed it and thanks for the nice reply! Iām happy, that quite a few people replied and threw in some amusing stuff, I enjoy that a lot and hope folks will keep that up, as it adds a lot of inspiration!
Good question! I didnāt realize that so far, but you are right . Canāt see an obvious reason for this. I guess, itās just coincidence?
Hey, UK ladies, give us a sign !
Thanks again, Gordon and many greetings!
1 Like
Well, thatās a lot! Iām glad youāre hanging in there and persevering and I sure hope things get better for you!
1 Like
Thank you, Rebecca! I still hope, that everything gets better sometime soon.