I’M DRINKING coffee in bed and dealign with emails when the phone rings. It’s the specialist from Home Energy Scotland. At last!
He’s on the phone for the best part of an hour and after breakfast we have the ‘selector report’ document we need to start our application for an air source heat pump grant and loan.
There’s some photo stuff to be done in the studio then I check out the signature guitar repairs. All’s good. Phew!
Paranoid about damage to guitars now, I ordered a carbon fibre neck for the Acoustasonic which, I am informed, should arrive on Tuesday. All going to plan I should be a little more ‘travel-proof’ in time for the upcoming trip to Czech for there BluesAlive festival.
it’s already starting to get dark when I go out for a walk then we head along to Betty’s for an aperitif…then home for dinner.
I HAVE to keep the diary relatively free as there ‘might’ be a call from Home Energy Scotland relating to our enquiries about heat pump grants and loans.
Long story, but we’ve been awaiting a call for a while and it seems the consultant has had problems getting of me. I explained that I’m often in. meetings, the audio or doing guitar lessons…or my phone may have no service depending on where I am….I can’t keep the phone line clear, stay in service and sit doing nothing in case they call. In saying that, there’s been no missed calls or voicemail messages, so I doubt they’ve really tried.
When I called to check what’s going on I managed to get the person not he other end to request a call back either this m morning or tomorrow (Friday) morning and I would endeavour to stay in service.
With that in mind I use the downtime to search for some stuff int he attic end clear out some old boxes and stuff. Of course 1pm comes and there’s been not call. Ah well, maybe tomorrow!
In the studio I have some work to get done and a call comes in from Dan at Jimmy Egypt’s Glasgow. My guitar is all fixed and ready for collection. Perfect timing as I have to pick up an electric outdoor grill at Braehead.
The traffic’s crazy but I manage to get round everything and pick up a couple of bits and bobs fromnt eh supermarket.
Back home we have a quick dinner then head to the village hall for a ‘spiritual’ evening. Not our scene, but it’s important to support events at the village hall. The guy isn’t very good (I’m being diplomatic here!) but it’s nice to catch up with some local pals and support the hall…
The wee promo for the residential guitar workshop at the end of January…
MARGARET’S off to Edinburgh early doors – she’s meeting Les and they’re both going to get their hair done.
First job of the day is to call the lost and found desk at Schiphol airport to see if they can match our lost camera report with an item we claimed on the ‘found items’ page. The lady is very helpful and says she’ll email the dox for us to fill in and enable a return.
I have a guitar student arriving at 10am. Once she’s finished I hit the studio to chase up Home Energy Scotland about a callback relating to a potential heat pump grant and loan. I need to eb quick tho’ as I have a session at the school in Balloch and need to get the bus.
I’m about to leave when I get a message from the school saying most of the kids are off sick today so we postpone ’til next week.
A courier drops off a couple of softboxes I ordered from AliExpress. Very impressed with both service and the products – then I get busy finishing off the guitar workshop promo video, building a website landing page and setting up a booking page ready for some promo.
I have a meeting with the directors of a pub/inn/venue in Gartmore early evening so make my way over there and have a very productive chat before dropping in to see my pal Duncan.
Back home we have dinner and I deal with some of the more urgent stuff from my meeting earlier then get an email about the guitar workshop out to my email list….
Some video clips of the Spain trip…minus the b-roll from the lost camera!!
THERE’S a Zoom guitar lesson first thing then I post the Spain video on YouTube and round my socials. The Wildcats got to see it in last night’s livestream.
Having not made much progress on v video promo for the residential guitar workshop we’re planning for the end of January I spend some time setting up the studio. Needs bit of a tidy up first then some filming.
After lunch I make up a batch of my ‘ultimate beard oil’ then goo back to the studio and try to edit the results into something useful. Then a break and a wee walk. It’s getting dark tho’ – the nights are fair drawin’ in.
I have in evening in-person guitar student then go back to the studio and do a little more work on the video…
MONDAY..that means an early alarm to get my sourdough in the oven.
After breakfast – toasted sourdough with avocado – I hit the studio for the first online guitar student of the day.
Once I’m done, I finish editing some video from the Spain to spin into tonight’s Wildcats’ livestream on Facebook.
The ‘windy’ app on my phone told me earlier that lunchtime might be a good time for paddle, so off I go on the water. I don’t have a lot of time and it’s windier than expected so I’m not out long then have a quick shower and lunch.
Another guitar session then I take the plunge and order a carbon fibre neck for the Acoustasonic. I’ve been swithering all weekend. Fuck it….let’s just do it!
It’ll make for safer packing when the guitar is broken down in the merch case for air travel and the extra stability of carbon fibre and durability of stainless steel frets should also bring some benefits. Bust the credit card again!
A telephone appointment with my consultant – more than two months after my MRI scan – is inconclusive so more appointments and investigations to come.
I get some prep done for the Wildcats’ livestream which, for once, goes pretty smoothly tech-wise – then back to the house….
Ouch…testing a firmware update on the drone and my beard gets involved!
AFTER breakfast I get busy cutting up a pork shoulder, primarily for tonight’s pork, chorizo and butter bean casserole.
The fattier off cuts are kept aside for future Andouille sausage-making.
I get the rest of the casserole no the go then leave on a low heat and head to the studio..
After finishing the Eventbrite data archiving I start a proper project plan for the residential guitar workshop we’re planning for the end of January. I wanna get it on sale ASAP.
With the clocks going back, I head out for a wee walk before it gets dark. It’s a bit damp and grey but I take the wee drone with the intention of doing a quick livestream update.
By the old pier I attempt a directional tracking shot but a few seconds after leaving my hand the drone zips past me and away up the lochside! I race round the path after it fearing the worst until I hear it somewhere….no sign of it buy it seems to be coming from the steep embankment between the path and the water.
Nothing to be seen so I carefully clamber down and follow the sound – somehow the drone has got under and into a deep crevice in the rock where it’s firmly jammed out of sight. I stretch in and pull it out unscathed!
Later on I manage to do a short livestream from Manse bay then head home.
Back home I manage two get a little editing done on the video footage form the Spain trip then we take dinner along to Betty’s, stopping to pick up neighbour Liz en route.
Freya and Aaron help Margaret and Catriona with their Christmas cakes..Les joins in via Zoom…
CATRIONA’S bringing the kids over later to make Christmas cake…there’s a few things needing done before the chaos ensues.
After breakfast I put some bigger stakes in the chilli plans that started off small in the hydroponics system but are now taking over our hall.
During the night I was woken by an odd noise coming from the kitchen – turns out the hydroponic thing was running low on water and some of the micro tomato roots had been drawn onto the pump. I refill, add nutrients and free up the roots.
Next there’s a fresh tuna loin to be cut up and vacuum packed…and a tray of chicken to be portioned up, bagged and frozen. Both scored on yesterday’s shopping trip to Costco.
I get a laptop and webcam set up the kitchen and set up a Zoom session so Les can join in the cake making from her end then Catriona and the kids arrive.
I hit the studio to get some work done then look into the possibility of ordering a carbon fibre guitar neck for the acoustasonic. I get all the spec sorted out and checked but have a couple of queries that I need answered before I make a decision to go with it. I email the manufacturer Klos….
Our pal Joel drops by to borrow a guitar cable then an email comes in from Eventbrite, the ticketing service I use for some of our self-promo shows. Historical data from ticket sales is going to be deleted from the website so I get busy downloading and archiving past event sales data. it’s slow going and tedious, but important to have access to the info.
I get halfway through when a family – Paul, Layla and their two kids – arrive. They’re interested in buying our stove and flue when it gets taken out in a few weeks and have come for a look. Turns out we’re related so there’s much discussion and chat over coffee before they head off. They seem interested in the stove 🙂
MARGARET’S not well this morning…not sure if it’s a bug or last night’s dinner. I’m OK, so I suspect it might be a bug….
After breakfast I call Jimmy Egypt and arrange to drop off the signature guitar and spare cone for repair. I could swap out the cone myself, but the piezo pickup in the biscuit complicates matters so it’s best left to the pros!
I make up a shopping list and head into Glasgow, drop off the guitar then hit Costco and the supermarket.
It’s dark by the time I get home and Margaret’s still feeling crap. No dinner for her and I make some kalbe (Korean short ribs), watch some telly then head for an early night.
Vic and Nicola launch the Scottish Album of the Year (SAY) awards ceremony in Stirling
AS EXPECTED Freya has us up early and wants me to play Ker Plunk while Margaret’s in the shower.
I’ve a lot to do so escape to the studio after breakfast and don’t venture back to the house ’til lunchtime.
There’s two projects I need to get moving on. The first is narrowing down a pick list of tracks for a new acoustic album.
To help, I take my list of potential songs and use SurveyMonkey to create a poll. The free account only allows a limited number of respondents so I send a link out to the Wildcats group then duplicate the survey and draft a note to go out to my mail list folks tomorrow.
I’m hoping the feedback along with stats/ratings from all the streaming services will help me choose 12 or so tracks then I’ll launch a Kickstarter campaign.
The second project is the residential guitar workshop we’re planning for the end of January. I have a draft ‘sales pitch’ and need to tweak it for different channels.
We’re off to the Scottish Album of the Year (SAY) Awards ceremony in Stirling tonight, so drop Freya back home en route.
There’s time for some grub when we get to Stirling – Margaret found a place called Chicken Union so we give it a try. Kinda weird, scuzy cash-only place…no toilet and a little manky-looking….BUT…the Korean fried chicken, kimchi and rice is amazing! And good value.
On to the Albert Halls for the SAY Award and we have a grand evening catching up with folks we haven’t seen in a. while….
