Classical Guitar without Gas

Dragged my guitar and cello to chamber music class this week. Haven't touch the guitar for several years, so tried some reading which came back quickly. Then tried to play some pieces that I had memorized. Oops, forgotten. So today, I brought out the sheet music and sat down to play through the pieces that I knew by heart once upon a time. The classical guitar is such a nice, mellow, quiet instrument. I won't be needing the guitar for chamber music class but I think I should remember to play it once in a while.

Relaxed Kitty

I got this in my email this morning and thought I'd share...
Why my computer crashed, the mouse is missing also.

Chamber Music Update

Chamber Music Class has been in session since the end of August. However, tonight was my first appearance since I had been out of the country. We have a recorder player, a guitarist, a mandolin/viola/violin for this term.

Attempted reading the treble bass line off a guitar and flute arrangement of Handel, Sonata in F. Pizz'ed it as bowing didn't seem appropriate.

The viola and recorder player played a nice Baroque piece and the instruments complement each other. The recorder player is enthusiastic but hasn't done a lot of sight reading so he'll be challenged with this course.

Tried reading a Trio sonata by Quantz in C minor. The only difficult part is nine measures of sixteenth note runs in the Allegro. That will require some work with the metronome.

We also attempted an Irish tune for the fun of it. Cello was designated drone. However, the piece is so easy, I may give the flute a try.

Guitarist may bring music that requires an additional guitar next week. How many instruments do I need to drag to class with me?

OK, I'll Bite

Melissa had this on her blog so I got hungry.

The Omnivore's 100

The rules are:

1) Copy this list into your blog, including these instructions.
2) Bold all the items you’ve eaten.
3) Cross out any items that you would never consider eating.
4) Optional extra: Post a comment here linking to your results.

And the list:

1. Venison
2. Nettle tea
3. Huevos rancheros
4. Steak tartare
5. Crocodile (I think Alligator is close enough)
6. Black pudding (and black sausage)
7. Cheese fondue
8. Carp (just had some last week)
9. Borscht
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Calamari
12. Pho
13. PB&J sandwich
14. Aloo gobi
15. Hot dog from a street cart
16. Epoisses
17. Black truffle
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
19. Steamed pork buns
20. Pistachio ice cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes
22. Fresh wild berries
23. Foie gras
24. Rice and beans
25. Brawn, or head cheese
26. Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper (once was enough)
27. Dulce de leche
28. Oysters
29. Baklava
30. Bagna cauda
31. Wasabi peas
32. Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl
33. Salted lassi
34. Sauerkraut
35. Root beer float
36. Cognac with a fat cigar
37. Clotted cream tea
38. Vodka jelly/Jell-O
39. Gumbo
40. Oxtail
41. Curried goat
42. Whole insects (do rice weevils and ants count?)
43. Phaal
44. Goat’s milk
45. Malt whisky from a bottle worth £60/$120 or more
46. Fugu (no I will not play russian roulette with my food)
47. Chicken tikka masala
48. Eel
49. Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut
50.Sea urchin
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi (well, not the Japanese fruit, but the Chinese preserved plum)
53. Abalone
54. Paneer (maybe, it would have been in an Indian dish, I suppose)
55. McDonald’s Big Mac Meal (well, when I was a kid, I'll admit to eating this)
56. Spaetzle
57. Dirty gin martini
58. Beer above 8% ABV (Bulgarian homemade people's beer)
59. Poutine
60. Carob chips
61. S’mores
62. Sweetbreads
63. Kaolin
64. Currywurst
65. Durian (ah, smelly fruit, I've seen it in the oriental market)
66. Frogs’ legs
67. Beignets, churros, elephant ears or funnel cake
68. Haggis
69. Fried plantain
70. Chitterlings, or andouillette
71. Gazpacho
72. Caviar and blini
73. Louche absinthe
74. Gjetost, or brunost
75. Roadkill
76. Baijiu
77. Hostess Fruit Pie
78. Snail
79. Lapsang souchong
80. Bellini
81. Tom yum
82. Eggs Benedict
83. Pocky
84. Tasting menu at a three-Michelin-star restaurant
85. Kobe beef
86. Hare
87. Goulash
88. Flowers
89. Horse
90. Criollo chocolate
91. Spam
92. Soft shell crab
93. Rose harissa
94. Catfish
95. Mole poblano
96. Bagel and lox
97. Lobster Thermidor
98. Polenta
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee
100. Snake (I don't remember, I think I may have tasted rattlesnake years ago)

OK to I can claim 81 for sure, 3 maybes and only one that I won't touch (fugu) although head cheese would probably rate a quick nibble.

Hubby ordered a stew of mixed veal parts while in Bulgaria last week. It had tongue, brain, tripe etc. I passed on tasting the brain. Don't want to get mad calf disease.

I was always an adventurous foodie. My mother took care to point out all the poisonous vegetation in the yard, lest I try a taste. I found out that water hyacinth really tastes yucky even if Manatees do eat it.

A Week in Bulgaria

Our dental-tourist trip to Bulgaria has been interesting. My hubby ended up needing more work than me which meant 3 trips to the dentist. He had 4 fillings that needed to be replaced. When one's fillings are over half a century old, they rate as antiques.

Staying at the hostel has been fun as there's always friendly folk to chat with during breakfast. It also has wi-fi and internet which is always a big plus. One day we went with a Czech couple out to the suburbs. Because of economy of numbers, we were able to take a taxi to several places for the same cost as the bus. The other couple wanted to go to nearby Mount Vitosha so I had a chance to ride the ski lift. The lift only cost a whopping $2 for the 35 minute trip. Great fun skimming along the treetops in the cool breeze. Since my hubby doesn't do hikes/heights, I probably wouldn't have done this trip on my own. Hubby just had to wait for us and be bored for a couple of hours while we went up the mountain.

Also took in the National History Museum and the Military Museum. The Military Museum was pleasant because most of the signs were in English. It had just opened last time we visited it so wasn't complete. It was certainly worth another visit. Still needs a cafe though.

The weather has been hot. Today we went to the local market to buy a couple of liters of homemade rakia (grape brandy) in plastic bottles. Watched the locals bring huge gallons jugs to the local fountains to fill with water. As always, I see the most photographic scenes when I don't have my camera with me.

I'll have to check our passports but I think this ranks as trip #9 or 10 for hubby and trip #5 for me to this country. My hubby has been coming to Bulgaria since the 1970's so there have been a lot of changes. I was lucky to see it before the change in 1989. It was a fascinating time. There's a lot more color in Sofia these days. I was last here five years ago. I think it is a little cleaner now -- less graffiti, fewer beggars and gypsies. We walked through the dimly lit streets of downtown last night at 11 pm and it didn't feel unsafe, except for maybe tripping on the cobblestones.