Category: Guitar

My Guitar is Home!

I went to the guitar shop at lunch. I made excellent time despite a road closure somewhere in Andover, MA.

I played my newly refretted guitar with its new bridge and its new nut and my first impression is that it still feels pretty good. The frets are a lot higher than I’m used to on this guitar, but not too different than a couple of other guitars. The action is a little higher than it used to be, I think, but it’s still super low the way I like it. It felt good. First impression, again, is that I am really happy.

I took my guitar home!

What do you think, beautiful, eh?

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Dig that new bridge!
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Dig that new nut!
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Dig those new frets!
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Dig those new frets again!

He did mention that a couple of the inlays on the neck popped out while he was removing the old frets. That happens. He fixed them. That’s good. I didn’t see anything and I couldn’t feel any difference during my quick inspection. All in all… happy. Can’t wait to get the band back together so I can play this babie at practice and wind up the volume and let it loose. Anyone know anyone who lives near Haverhill, MA who can sing and wants to join a dad-rock cover band?

No Word Yet

No word from the guitar shop today. The guitar looked finished in the pics he put on the bookfayce yesterday but I couldn’t really tell. There was likely some finishing work that needed to happen (file down, polish, adjust the new frets maybe?) that I don’t know anything about. Hopefully I will hear something tomorrow. I can’t pick it up on Wednesday as I’ll be in the office. I don’t even know if he opens his doors on any other days. His website books appointments on Wednesdays and Saturdays. Let’s see what happens, okay?

Two things that I need to do today. One, call a plumber to look at a leak in the old bathroom. Two, I have a doctors appointment after work. I also have 3.5 hours left in my work day. I am just wrapping up lunch now.

Harry is coming home this weekend. How awesome is that? Looking forward to having him around. Also really looking forward to Thanksgiving. The actual holiday we will travel to my sisters’. The following Saturday we will have Thanksgiving Part II (electric turkey boogaloo) with the kids and Jen’s folks. I am really excited about both. Not that I can eat like I used to, but I’ll still love every minute of both days.

When are we going to go Christmas tree shopping? We usually try to do that while the kids are home for Thanksgiving, but I don’t know how the schedules will work out this year. We’ll have to figure that out too.

Have I mentioned that I am absolutely freezing today? Stupid cold. Stupid winter (even though we’re still over a month away from the first day of winter, it’s basically winter already).

Okay. Lunch break is over. Get back to work, Robert. You have some custom code to deliver. Get to it.

Out and About

I went to the drugstore today and got myself a couple of vaccine shots. I got a flu vaccine and a shingles vaccine. I’m still not far enough removed from my Covid-19/Disney World experience to need a Covid booster, so I’ll probably get one of those next month.

I drove through downtown so here is the obligatory clock/downtown pics. You’re welcome.

On an unrelated note, the guitar shop posted some more photos of my guitar today. I think it’s done. New bridge, new frets, new nut. Here’s hoping I get another phone call from them tomorrow. Fingers crossed.

Self Manipulation Through Guilt

I really want to play some guitar today, but I don’t think I am going to have the time. Still, I took today’s photo a day picture as a specific attempt to try and guilt myself into playing. I do this a lot and it almost never works. Oh well.

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The New Les Paul

I’ve been spending so much time stressing over my old Les Paul that I thought that today’s photo a day picture should be my new Les Paul. This is the one Jen gave me for my 50th birthday and I love it that much more because of her.

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I Need a Musical Weekend

Just looking ahead to this weekend. I need to make some music. I need to play some guitar. I need to play guitar through an amplifier and not just headphones. It is imperative. We’re getting to that point where not playing is affecting my mental state. Music must be made at volume. It is necessary.

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It is Quiet… a Little Too Quiet

No news on the Les Paul repairs front today. I’ve checked on the shop’s Facebook but the only posts are him working on a sweet Martin acoustic guitar. Based on the photos he posted yesterday, the new frets are in. I didn’t see a new nut yet, and he told me he had to order a new bridge as he didn’t have any gold ones in stock. Hardware on Les Paul Customs should be gold.

I was told I should expect to get it back next week. You know what I should do before then? Practice. I want to be able to play decently well when I pick it up on the off chance he’ll let me plug in and see how it feels before I leave. I don’t want to sound like a rusted over hack if that’s how it plays out. I want to sound like my usual normal hack.

What should be the first thing I play on my newly refretted guitar? “Smoke on the Water”? No… Some Jeff Beck maybe? I think I used to know how to play parts of “Freeway Jam”, that could be fun. No… I’ll probably just noodle over the minor blues scale in E like a typical wannabe. That suits me.

Not much else going on today so far. I’m working in the office. My group is in a big conference room. We’re going to have a group meeting shortly. It’s freakin’ freezing in here. I wore a fall jacket and a fleece when I left the house this morning. I put the fleece back on around the start of lunch and I am currently gazing longingly at the fall jacket wondering if it’s time to put that back on as well. Brrr, babie. Brrr.

Okay, back to work, Robert. Get yourself all prepped for the group meeting.