I blame the smoke

 I know it’s lame. Our air here hasn’t been as affected as other places in our County. I shouldn’t wine. But, it was bad enough the other day that I just didn’t accomplish much. So, not much to share here. I didn't find a picture I wanted to link to either. Photographs do not convey how wrong things look. I'm sure you can find a story from a reputable news source to read. 

Yesterday, the air at my nose level wasn’t bad. The upper atmosphere was very smoky. The orange tint to the sky upset the animals. If you’ve ever witnessed an eclipse of the sun, it was like that. For the whole day. The sun burned through a bit, but looked like the orange ball you see just before it drops below the horizon. Up over your head at mid-afternoon, it just looked “wrong” and creepy! I tried to keep busy. I keep working on the sample for the October classes. I’ll be sharing an in progress picture next week. I promise!

For today, I’ll be demonstrating an organ for visitors from out of town. We all will be wearing masks and staying a respectful distance apart. The room is large and airy. It will be fun to play a different organ. Yes, I love the Rodgers, but it’s still fun to play something different every once in a while.

Details

We’ve found the parts of the organ that still aren’t working. We’re taking a break before puzzling through that. You see….much like looking at a vintage tatting pattern the schematics are not 100% accurate. That means you can’t be 100% that a specific part is toast. And these were manufactured in the 80’s. So, yeah….lots of trial and error. 

Think of working a New York Times crossword puzzle originally published in the late 50’s where the numbering of the clues does not match up with the numbering in the puzzle. And did I mention you’re working with a soldering iron on a printed circuit board that was assembled in a specific order that doesn’t match the order in the schematics that makes removing one transistor quite difficult and tricky? Yeah…..lots of walks by the Bay.

In the meantime, I’m working on the earrings. I changed the thread I’m using for the curled rings. It’s much easier to execute the final join to curl, but I would like the rings to lay closer to the beads, so may need to cut and snip and re-tat. I plan on wearing these a lot, so it's worth the 2 hours to re-tat. We’ll see…..

Back to....Success.....

The organ works again! I’m so relieved!! Replacing the organ was looking to be very, very expensive. A peek at Ebay last month gave me pause: Most of the organs of similar size were listed for several thousand dollars. I lost a bit of sleep over that, but resolved to do what I could to get my baby back working.

After a trip to an electronics parts shop, and several days of puzzling out the schematics, my repairman took a deep breath and plugged in the soldering iron. A few minutes late, things were sounding back to normal. There are still components that are not working, but success!!!!

I’ve also been having success getting back to the designing. No pictures as yet, but plenty to try out with the shuttles. Here’s what I can share:

These will replace the pair of earrings I’ve worn so much they are stained and looking rather sad!

Ready for Play

It is my custom to review what I do each day, each week, each month, each quarter……… You get the idea. I need to know I’m making progress, making the world a better place, meeting my goals…….

BWV 549 by Melanie Cervi

June, on that list, looks like one big celebration! When you glance at my blog posts, you see posts that seem to be wrapped up in just one project. I really was involved in more than that! Really!! (BWV 549)

Sonata by Melanie Cervi

(Sonata) July, on that list, looks like one big concert!Lots of listening and writing, not much tatting or playing. I did play organ several times. I set the date for my workshop in Sunnyvale.

August wasn’t so positive. The organ went on the blink. The snowflakes went missing. I played a lot, so the hands have been limping along. I’m determined to end with a more positive week!

Yesterday, I spent most of the day preparing for the concert at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Salinas on Friday. Today, I’ll wrap up that preparation and work on repairing the organ. Tomorrow, I’ll be finishing my in-progress samples for the classes at Tat Days. (My classes are listed about half way down the page.) And Saturday is the last day of August! Whew!!

I'll be ready for some Play Time in September............

More studio adjustments

No picture today. I’ve been working on the flag again and have added another motif to the Tablecloth pattern from Workbasket. Picture soon of that.

I’ve also been spending quite a bit of time at the organ. Not because I have a deadline approaching, but because we found some shutters at a resale place. They are tall. Like about 6 feet tall. There are also 5 of them, so they will fill a space between the pillars in the studio. When I saw them, I thought they might eat up the highs from the organ. I think they do. It’s hard for me to judge because I’m sitting at the organ playing, but I think they do. Now I need to figure out how to fix them up, attach them to the pillar, and get them in place. Oh, and I need to decide which gap to fill with them. I hope the organ voicer likes them. I’ll try to snap a picture once they get in place.

I also realized yesterday that there is barely 10 weeks left in 2016. I took the time this morning to refresh my memory of what I’ve accomplished, browse my goals, and pick the 5 most important. Normally, this would result in needing a walk to clear my head and refocus. Well, I’m pleased to say that after 55 years, I’m finally getting the hang of working towards goals. I have accomplished my 5 most important 2016 goals. Mind, that doesn’t mean that I’ve done what I really SHOULD be doing, just what I picked. More on that after the New Year.