Monday 15 July 2024

UP EARLY for the usual Monday morning sourdough procedure so it’s ready for breakfast.

The day’s guitar sessions kick off mid-morning and in between times I get bits and bobs done to further the decking rebuild.

After lunch I spend some time creating some video content for my pal Kevin’s socials then another online lesson.

One of my afternoon students has cancelled which lets me get a little more done on the deck then I prepare for tonight’s Wildcats’ livestream on Facebook…

Sunday 14 July 2024

UNSURPRISINGLY I’m aching all over…but there’s work to be done!

After breakfast I carry on with the deck building.

I get the last post hole dug and the post cemented in place – then the first hurdle. The joist hangers are a bit pin the large side. I pull out the angle grinder and adjust them accordingly. Probably against all building regulations, but the deck is ultimately just a wider top step so I think everything will be just fine.

Margaret puts hooks on the prototype guitar earrings so I take a break from the deck and put ’em up for dale in my online store. The were time consuming and fiddly to make and are priced accordingly!

I’m still on the deck job at 8.30pm when rain calls a halt to the day’s work. Hopefully get it finished tomorrow (Monday).…

Saturday 13 July 2024

WE HAVE a long lie…then, after breakfast, I start to tackle the replacement deck.

It’s not too adventurous – just something so the doors don’t open straight onto the steps.

After referring to my sketches I measure and mark my first two post holes then the hardest part of the job starts. Digging the holes.

The clamshell hole digger is OK for starting ’em off but then the pinch bar comes into its own. Impossible without it. Still it’s hard, hot, strenuous work.

I’m happy to get two of the three posts in and postcreted in by late afternoon and make some time to go out for a paddle.

Back home I light some charcoal for the grill and soon we’re enjoying homemade blue cheese burgers, sweetcorn and chips.

Friday 12 July 2024

AFTER a bit of a long lie we have breakfast in the garden. Sun’s out and it’s a lovely day.

I decided to bite the bullet and head into Glasgow to get all the stuff we need to rebuild the deck at our side door. I’ve managed to reclaim some of the deck boards from the old deck so the cost isn’t as dreadful it might be. Still, I need posts, joints, joist hangers, postcrete, screws and nails…

I call Kelvin Timber to make sure they have all the shit then head off. The joists are much longer than required…and waaaay too long to go in the car. I’m well prepared and have a saw with me so cut ’em in half, load up then go for some shopping.

Margaret’s got someone up for a meeting and they’re sitting in the garden when I get back. I join them for a coffee then get busy int he studio. One of the tasks is to make a vertical video reel with the press review from Kymi Kantri – it’s a valuable resource in our efforts to overcome the widely-held opinion that solo/acoustic acts can’t command a main/bigger stage in later or headline slot.

Acoustic and solo acts are often sidelined into smaller, out of the way stages – now on occasion that’s maybe the best or most appropriate place/slot, but that’s not a given. We want dispel that default view.

I’ve always been at a loss why promoters/bookers/venues take the view that a solo act can’t play a bigger stage/venue…especially when you see a solo comedian on stage at a five or ten thousand seater venue selling out for three nights in a row! While I doubt I’d ever reach these heady heights, it’s more the principal I don’t get.

There’s various hand-made guitar-related items in my merch store and on the table at shows – metal/epoxy pins and pendants and acrylic dangle earrings. A regular at my shows in Finland asked if we had some red earrings…I’ve never tried making metal/epoxy guitar earrings as casting such small items is pretty erratic in terms of successful casts. I decide to try….

I make a master and make some casts – I have to do four to get two that pass muster – cut off the sprues and smooth backs then mix and inlay some red epoxy. I’m not convinced of the result, but they may be fine after some rigorous sanding and finishing….

Thursday 11 July 2024

I MANAGE to get most of the routine admin stuff out the way before my morning guitar student arrives.

Once she’s finished I do a little work outside then make a sandwich and go for a paddle. It’s a bit windier than forecast so I only go as far a Clairinch where I sit on the beach and enjoy my lunch. The paddle back is tough, but I make it!

There’s another guitar student coming to the studio mid-afternoon then I move to the office and make up stuff to go with the last outstanding Wildcats’ merch orders. It all gets packed up and ready for collection tomorrow (Friday). Just one hoodie left to go out, but it’s to be held until my customer gets back from holidays.

Margaret gets a nice email from the organisers of the Kymi Kantri festival with a scan of a press review and translation of my part:

“When performers are selected for the event, the aim is to create a musical drama arc for both days. With this in mind, we decided to try the interesting solution of placing soloist Dave Arcari as the last performer on Saturday’s courtyard stage. This was a certain kind of risk, but it was worth taking, stated Kupari with satisfaction.

And really true. The Scottish Arcari was really amazing. The man’s incredible enthusiasm and energy left no one cold. It was one of the best performances in the history of Kymi Kantri. Of course, the Finnish Highwaymen line-up, which ended the event on Saturday in the book hall, can be counted in the same category.”

Ilkka Kuiala – Keskilaakso Torstaina 11.7.2024

…looks like it went well 😉

Then it’s pizza time….

Wednesday 10 July 2024

CATRIONA rolls up with Freya early doors – Margaret’s looking after Freya and Catriona’s working from our house today.

I have an online conference with the Association of Independent Music (AIM) all day. There’s a few interesting nuggets of information and new stuff but mostly it’s the same old, same old.

Once it’s all done I get a walk up the lochside then get busy in the office packing up Wildcats’ merch orders. The t-shirts arrived today but I need to make up some other items that folks have ordered to go in various packages.

I have a break to make dinner then it;s back not he packing and printing postage so the postie can collect it all in the morning.

Tuesday 9 July 2024

TWO early online guitar lesson this morning….then a late breakfast.

There’s a bunch of packaging stickers to be done for Will (Manson Glass) – I couldn’t get the usual material and ordered an alternative before we left for Finland.

It’s a new material and expensive so I need to run a bunch of tests to make sure I don’t mess up the settings and create any unnecessary waste. That takes time, so it’s early afternoon before I get the job processing.

After my late afternoon student is done in the studio I get back to Will’s stickers.

Next job is packing up some of the Widcats’ hoodie orders and printing postage…then into the house to make red beans and rice….

Monday 8 July 2024

THE alarm goes off at 4am. We fumble around the room, get dressed, close up our bags and head for reception and the bus to the airport.

Helsinki airport is lightyears ahead of Edinburgh – not just in terms of technology but also in cleanliness, efficiency and customer service. And after our flight back it’s even more apparent as we’re ushered into what’s a glorified metal shed with rubbish lying sound, manky floor and a huge question at border control. And it’s only 7.30am.

Rather than heading straight home we make for Glasgow to pick up the Wildcats’ shirts and hoodies, stopping for a McDonalds breakfast along the way.

After picking up the merch we stop for some shopping and make it home before midday.

There’s an hour or two to unpack and sort things out before the first of three guitar lessons. I manage to tend to the tomatillos and butternut squash then get some weedkiller down then a late lunch before my second student arrives.

In the studio I prep some video from the trip to spin into tonight’s Wildcats’ livestream on Facebook. My final guitar session – on Zoom – is a no-show. I contact the student who apologies they messed up and we re-schedule for next week…I tend not to charge folks if they have to cancel, even at the last minute…but if they just don’t show (like this one) I have to charge them.

There’s a West Highland Way Gifts’ order to be made up then it’s time for the livestream…

Sunday 7 July 2024

AFTER our hotel breakfast we take advantage of a break in the rain to run down to the station in Kouvola…it’s just five minutes from the hotel and we get there dry and unscathed.

We’re headed for one of the airport hotels as our flight is 6.20am in the morning and we need to be at check in for 4.20am.

There’s one change then a courtesy bus ride form the airport to the hotel. We’re not long there when our pal Maiju stops by to say hello and we have a coffee and catch up.

We have an early dinner at the hotel then chill and try and get some sleep before the alarm goes off at 3.45am….

Saturday 6 July 2024

BREAKFAST at the Scandic in Kouvola is good..then we go back to our room and I get some work done.

I nip out to a supermarket to get some stuff for lunch and snacks later. Our train to Myllykoski – home of the Kymi Kantri Festival isn’t til mid-afternoon.

It’s only a 10-minute journey and promoter Heikki and driver Jallu meet us off the train.

The festival site is a fantastic self-contained area – an indoor stage and the main outdoor stage space surrounded by vendor stalls etc.

We’re taken backstage and given drinks and food vouchers. There’s time to watch some other acts before getting my gear on stage and hitting the ground running. Sound is good, there’s a great crowd and the evening sun is shining.

We have a grand time and – after gigantic (and very good) pulled pork bun and more drinks – are driven back to Kouvola and our hotel….