Piano World Home Page Forums Restricted and Archives The Coffee Room Derick's life story:

To Dave Burton:

I have an interest in music from the perspective of a blind person. I'd like to see you expand on your insights.

I had a blind teacher as a teenager, and she taught me by drawing me into her world. She made me practice and perform blindfolded, relying on the image of the piano in my mind to navigate. I found that I could see more clearly with my eyes closed and that the keyboard in my head was easier to navigate. I also found myself with fewer mental distractions, and this allowed me to get more centered on the music itself and delve more deeply into the fundamental emotions being expressed.

Anyway, I'm interested in your insights on the subject.

Well, I’m not very self conscious about being half blind. Some people don’t even know, that’s how well I have compensated for it. I didn’t even really admit how blind I am until after my wife died. Then it dawned on me, that I really don’t see very well.

Anyway, until fairly recently, when I got a pair of glasses that allows me for the first time in my life to sit at a piano and read the music without having to take the book in one hand, hold it close and play one hand then do the same thing with the other hand and then of course memorize as I go and put both hands together, it used to be much harder for me. My goal is still to memorize everything I really want to play in public so that the music just plays through me. It started when I was young and my first great attraction was the music of Bach. He plays more automatically than most others. By the time one gets into the romantics and moderns, one has to be more conscious of what one is doing and that becomes part of the process of playing. Sometimes I do close my eyes as I play. In spite of the new glasses, I still find it quite a strain to do as much sight reading as I’d like. It will always be a challenge, but if piano playing were really easy, I’d have given it up to paint more.

>>>I have had too much to drink and am probably making little sense. Even when I'm sober I apparently make little sense on this forum so what's the difference. <<<<

You can find some solutions in AA meetings. Most people think AA stands for Alcoholics
Anonymous. It more properly stands for Altered Attitudes. Take this suggestion as it is intended, in friendship. I certainly can't label anyone as an alcoholic other than myself. If you would like to communicate more on this topic I'll do it by email only.

Regards

Steve

Steve,

Thanks for the suggestion, but I don't have a problem with alcohol. That night I had more than I should have (at home, so I didn't drive), but I rarely drink. Come to think of it, that was the last time I had anything to drink. And, when I do have a drink, I only have one.

Give me a box of chocolate however, that's a different story!

All joking aside, I know a few recovering alcoholics. I dislike that word 'recovering' when people haven't had a drink in 15 years -but since they are never completely 'cured', I suppose recovering is appropriate. FWIW, I think people who are alcoholics but are recovering emerge as some of the most amazing people I have ever met. They all seem incredibly 'in touch' with themselves.

Perhaps that is the silver-lining in this otherwise very, dark, cloud.

Derick

Haven't heard of Benjamin Barber but came across a short article in the UCSD paper (short clip below). Would be interesting to read a full copy of what he said. I only include it here as it seems to touch on some of the foreign labor issues.
http://www.ucsdguardian.org/cgi-bin/news?art=2002_03_14_03

Not always a silver lining. Recovering is the correct term. My very best friend slipped off the wagon after being a recovering alchoholic for about 13 years, went in and out of the BEST rehabilitation centers for about three, and then out of the lives of her husband and young children (and me). I don't even know if she is still alive. It is a terrible addiction. Jodi

[ March 15, 2002: Message edited by: jodi ]

Jodi,

Sorry to hear about your friend. Yes, it is a terrible addiction from what I hear. I have never had an emotional connection to anyone who is an 'active' alcoholic, only recovering alcoholics.

Perhaps 'silver lining' was a bad term to use. But what I meant was assuming the recovering alcoholic never takes another drink, many, at least the ones I know, have qualities I greatly admire.

Derick

Iainhp,

With all due respect, the quote you posted, which I pasted below, infuriates me.



The only paragraph I agree with in this comment, for which the author should be hung, is the first one.

The US does NOT exploit the citizens of other countries. Yes, we've all heard of the horrors of children working long hours for next to nothing. But, guess what, they provide their families main source of income. Yes, it still sucks, but demonizing the US for this is outrageous. And, by the way, it comes at the expense of US jobs. Considered in that light, such 'exploitation' should be regarded as charitable.

Regarding the US being the "Lone Ranger of the world". Unfortunately, we are out of necessity. The US is the only country that runs to the aid of every single country when a disaster, man-made or natural, strikes. Yet the US rarely, if ever, gets any aid from abroad. "Lone Ranger?" Yes sir.

When the US is attacked we lead the war effort and must convince others to go along. Many won't lift a finger to help. And many waiver in need of continuous convincing that the war effort is in their own best interest as well. "Lone Ranger?" Yes sir.

Mr. Barber can take his "September 11th wake-up call" and shove up his you know what. How dare he even make such a remark. The comment about US citizens voting based on a new globalized belief system is making me sit on my hands so I don't raise my middle finger

I have long been a proponent of the US being out for the US alone. Helping some, even many, countries out has earned us their scorn.

The icing on the cake:

"The global capitalist market and terrorists both share the benefits of the global anarchy..."

Even the 'evil' CEO's that I've spoken of don't hold a candle to the evil of terrorism and evil of the global anarchy that TERRORISM creates.

No, the US isn't perfect, nor is the brand of capitalism that it promotes, but in no way does it compare to terrorism. And not to sound haughty, the the rest of the world owes the US a tremendous debt of gratitude.

Send me Mr. Barber, I have my 2x4 in hand.

Derick

Wow - just read your reply as I'm about to run out the door. Half of the words in the quote don't mean much to me "global capitilism", "axis of inequality", "myth of independence", "globalized belief system" - sounds like a person trying to impress with complicated words. Guess I should have printed less of the quote.

I was really more interested in the "exploit citizens of other countries". I don't agree with your comment on that. A US company doing business in Mexico must abide by US EPA guideliines. If I remember correctly, Union Carbide was held to US standards in Bhopal. If this holds true then why not apply this to employees working for US companies overseas too (hold companies accountable to minimum employment standards)? Course it's a double edge sword as could make US companies less competitive. However as the US imports way more than it exports, I could almost argue that it might not make a difference.

Have to go or SWMBO will not be happy.

Wow, Derick! I guess we're not all that far apart after all!

penny

iainhp - I didn't mean to come down that hard in my post, but it really irks me when people make such ridiculous comments about the US. That man's statement reminds me of the whiners who are upset over the US's "treatment" of the detainees in Cuba. You know, the ones who are being held for no good reason. I wish people would think a little - like the US government has nothing better to do than hold those particular Muslims for no good reason.

Penny - See, I am a good American! We just don't happen to agree on CEO salaries. If we could stay away from that topic, I bet you and I would be best friends.

Derick

[ March 15, 2002: Message edited by: Derick ]

Go Derick! No need to sit on those hands, give 'em some of that digital communication. I would.

Well, we both share a love of chocolate and pianos! So there is an excellent beginning. And I even agree with you that there are some outrageous bonus packages for CEOs who deserve it, believe it or not. But I'm not sure government intervention is the way to go. Active shareholder participation seems like the "obvious" choice for me.

So which half of the best-friends charm do you want???

penny

Penny,

Yes, be both love chocolate and pianos and you agree with me that there are some outrageous bonus packages for CEOs who don't deserve it! We have to discuss different philosophies on how to make sure such inequities don't happen.

In the meantime, how 'bout we share a box of See's chocolates. Have you had them? They are from San Francisco (near you?). My mother-in-law sent us a box for Christmas. SWMBO hides them from me and doles me out 1 piece on Sunday. I could easily eat the whole box in 15 minutes. Anyway, I thought it was fantastic chocolate when I first had it, but had never heard of it. In the January edition of Consumer Reports they rated it "A Best Buy" and ranked it very near the $60/box chocolates. See's is only $12/box.

I get first dibs on the dark chocolates ones!

Derick

No way! Dark chocolate is the ONLY chocolate for me! See's is OK. I like their truffles. I'm really liking Scharfen-Berger these days. It's also from the Bay Area. I don't know why such great chocolate comes from San Francisco area (Guittard's, Giradheli). Here's a really interesting article from today's LA Times about chocolate:


article here

Enjoy!
penny

Penny,

Interesting article. But I see I'm going to have to fight you for those dark chocolates!
Anyway, do you have any suggestions as to who makes the best dark chocolates with liquor in them? Those are my favorites, particularly with Schnops in them. I'm not happy with any I've tried in the NY area.

Thanks,
Derick

Well the kids finally let me on the internet but my brain is on a "go slow" so won't pick up the discussion I left off on Friday.

Saturday's paper had a good Dilbert.

Ever wonder why the British call it chocolate and milk chocolate instead of chocolate and dark chocolate? I assume because they consider dark chocolate (which they call chocolate) to be normal and milk chocolate to be watered down? Cadbury's Bourneville is my favourite.

You can make your own chocolate liquors. Buy a jar of marachino cherries, empty out the liquid, replace with the liquor of your own choice. Let marinade for about a month in the back of your refrigerator. Melt your favourite chocolate and dip the cherries into it and let cool. And voila!

Derick,
The best liquor-filled chocolates I've ever had come from Russia. Don't know where we can get them here. Will do some research! But if you're in New York, there's got to be an immigrant importing them, don't you think?

Russia makes wonderful dark chocolate. Russian chocolate must have the red dome with Russia written on it in cyrillic to be true Russian chocolate (some Swiss and German chocolatiers put pictures of Moscow and other Russian locales on their boxes to full ya!).

I wish I could import the Russia chocolate here. They'd make a fortune. I could even become the CEO of a big company!

penny

Mmmm, chocolate. Penny, you and I are of one mind when it comes to chocolate. Scharffenberger (sp?) is the best American chocolate I've found. In July, when the real strawberries ripen, we like to dip them in the dark chocolate.
Why is it that it's so tough to find good chocolate in the U.S.? Last time I was in Germany on a business trip, I went to the supermarket and just filled my cart with a suitcase full of chocolate and chocolate biscuits (I had to fed ex all my paperwork back to the office to make room in my suitcase). What is standard fare in Europe, is exceptional fare here.