Saturday, August 20, 2016
Music in Education
When I first saw this article, specifically the title, I was offended. However, I figured I should at least look at it to see what their argument was. I am glad I did. The article below makes some good points about why and how music education should be supported.
Monday, July 11, 2016
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis - Same Love
One more from Macklemore & Ryan Lewis for you today. I love this group.
If you would like to purchase this song from Amazon.com click the link below.
If you would like to purchase this song from Amazon.com click the link below.
Spring Cleaning
While I was perusing the Yos app I found an article about making “natural cleaning solutions.” (Full Article - 8 Natural Cleaning Solutions) Here are a few recipes that I’m excited to try soon. (Please note that all of these recipes were sourced from a Yos article and are credited to mountainroseherbs.com)
I am moving into a new house soon and the carpets there smell of smoke, so I am looking forward to trying this Tropical Carpet Deodorizer on them.
1 cup of baking soda
10 drops of organic lemongrass essential oil per cup
10 drops of organic mandarin essential oil per cup
10 drops of organic ginger essential oil per cup
¼ cup organic lavender flowers
Mix together and sprinkle the blend onto your carpet. After allowing it to sit for thirty minutes vacuum and your carpets should be smelling great. The mix is intended to be used immediately after mixing. I’ll let you know how this goes as soon as I try it out.
I also like to clean a whole house before I move in so the next three recipes I look forward to trying out on the kitchen and bathroom surfaces.
Mop-It-Up Formula
16 oz glass bottle
1 cup distilled white vinegar
¼ cup castille soap
20 drops of organic lavender essential oil
20 drops of organic sweet orange essential oil
Mix the solution with 2 gallons of hot water and mop as you would with traditional cleaners. This mix is intended for tile, vinyl and linoleum
Super Surface Spray
16 oz spray bottle
8 oz distilled white vinegar
6 oz water
2 oz vodka or rubbing alcohol
10 drops of organic lavender essential oil
5 drops of organic rosemary essential oil
5 drops of organic lemon essential oil
Combine all ingredients in the spray bottle and shake well. (Shake before each use.) This is a disinfecting spray and is intended for most surfaces. ie. kitchen counters, cabinets, glass, blinds, painted wood surfaces, walls, sinks, tubs, etc.
Herby Soft Scrub
1 pint glass jar
½ cup baking soda
½ cup castille soap
15 drops organic rosemary or tea tree essential oil
1 tsp vegetable glycerin or aloe vera gel
Mix into a paste and use to scrub tubs, sinks and tile surfaces. Rinse with water or a vinegar solution.
Antibacterial Soap Spray
16 oz spray bottle
14 oz water or organic rosemary hydrosol
3 Tbsp castille soap
15 drops of organic tea tree essential oil
15 drops organic oregano essential oil
Mix together in the spray bottle. Spray onto surfaces to be disinfected, like your bathroom surfaces, and wipe away. If the castille soap leaves a residue the Super Surface Spray above can be used to clean that away.
I am moving into a new house soon and the carpets there smell of smoke, so I am looking forward to trying this Tropical Carpet Deodorizer on them.
1 cup of baking soda
10 drops of organic lemongrass essential oil per cup
10 drops of organic mandarin essential oil per cup
10 drops of organic ginger essential oil per cup
¼ cup organic lavender flowers
Mix together and sprinkle the blend onto your carpet. After allowing it to sit for thirty minutes vacuum and your carpets should be smelling great. The mix is intended to be used immediately after mixing. I’ll let you know how this goes as soon as I try it out.
I also like to clean a whole house before I move in so the next three recipes I look forward to trying out on the kitchen and bathroom surfaces.
Mop-It-Up Formula
16 oz glass bottle
1 cup distilled white vinegar
¼ cup castille soap
20 drops of organic lavender essential oil
20 drops of organic sweet orange essential oil
Mix the solution with 2 gallons of hot water and mop as you would with traditional cleaners. This mix is intended for tile, vinyl and linoleum
Super Surface Spray
16 oz spray bottle
8 oz distilled white vinegar
6 oz water
2 oz vodka or rubbing alcohol
10 drops of organic lavender essential oil
5 drops of organic rosemary essential oil
5 drops of organic lemon essential oil
Combine all ingredients in the spray bottle and shake well. (Shake before each use.) This is a disinfecting spray and is intended for most surfaces. ie. kitchen counters, cabinets, glass, blinds, painted wood surfaces, walls, sinks, tubs, etc.
Herby Soft Scrub
1 pint glass jar
½ cup baking soda
½ cup castille soap
15 drops organic rosemary or tea tree essential oil
1 tsp vegetable glycerin or aloe vera gel
Mix into a paste and use to scrub tubs, sinks and tile surfaces. Rinse with water or a vinegar solution.
Antibacterial Soap Spray
16 oz spray bottle
14 oz water or organic rosemary hydrosol
3 Tbsp castille soap
15 drops of organic tea tree essential oil
15 drops organic oregano essential oil
Mix together in the spray bottle. Spray onto surfaces to be disinfected, like your bathroom surfaces, and wipe away. If the castille soap leaves a residue the Super Surface Spray above can be used to clean that away.
Healing Insecurities
Reposting an article with information I wish I’d been given when I was a kid.
"Palm-to-face moments come in all shapes and sizes. From spilling your drink on a hot guy to tanking your work presentation, we all have a bad memory or two (or 12) lurking in our noggins. Some you can look back on and laugh hysterically, while others you’re still not over, even years later. Maybe you’re obsessing about them right now. You’ve tried ignoring them, you’ve tried the whole glass-half-full thing, but nothing’s worked. Mercifully, new research offers a fresh approach to healing old wounds."
Essential Oils
Recently I reconnected with a friend after several years of not seeing/talking to her. We talked about the last few years and how we both went through some rough times. Hers were, admittedly, more difficult and longer lasting then mine, but everyone’s paths are different. She also told me how she had been introduced to essential oils through a specific company and how using those oils helped heal her mentally and physically. She brought this up both due to my expressed stress and that I am looking for work. I have long been a proponent of doing things in a way that is good for your body and the environment. Over the last several years I’ve experimented with using herbs, oils, and other natural ingredients for personal care products and items to heal my ailments instead of “traditional” products and medicines. I don’t always use them to the exclusion of more readily available/usable items though due to the time it takes to make some of them. With that news my friend suggested I sit in on a class of sorts put on by another friend of hers on the topic of essential oils. Much of the class talked about things I already knew, but let me know that the company offers pre-mixed blends of things meant to help relieve pre-determined states such as stress, pain, cold/allergies, etc. In addition the classes are a way for the company to offer revenue to loyal customers who are willing to promote the products by giving classes and providing information to friends, acquaintances, etc. While I understand what the company is trying to do with the business model, it is not one that I like and anytime anyone offers me a job like that I feel uncomfortable. I also, don’t agree with all of the company’s policies, although they are better than most companies when it comes to being environmental. In any case, armed with the knowledge that companies that sell items I approve of may be looking for distributors or affiliates to advertise for monetary compensation I looked to my preferred online herb, oil, organic and natural apothecary company to see if they offered a program. Sure enough they do, so I am applying to be an affiliate of theirs. Even if they do not think I am a good fit, you will be seeing more posts related to boosting your health through the use of herbs, oils, minerals and the like.
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis - Thrift Shop
This always brings a smile to my face and makes me want to dance … and, of course, I know all the words.
If you are interested in purchasing this song from Amazon.com visit the link below.
If you are interested in purchasing this song from Amazon.com visit the link below.
Final Project
For my final project I proposed that I would improvise on the cello and pull some loops from the improvisation to put together with some beats and if I had time some vocals.
The first time I attempted to record my improvisation I had technical difficulties, but didn’t know until after playing for 20 min. A day or so later, after I stopped being angry with my computer, I tried again. I then spent some time listening through the improvisation and picking out loops. I had done some slow playing, chords, fast playing, extended techniques with the bow and the instrument and played part of a piece. I picked out a lot of different loops to try to use, and deleted probably twice as much as I saved.
As I began arranging the pieces I first tried to create a beat out of some of the extended technique loops, but it didn’t work out in a way that I loved, so I removed that. I next tried layering several of the melodic lines, mostly the slower ones, and put together a cello sound scape. Some of it I liked, but much of it sounded incohesive. I then tried to put a premade beat/drums under the cello, but again couldn’t find anything that I really liked and so removed that. I played more with the melodic pieces and tried to create some repetition to make the song more cohesive.
In the end I ran out of time to create something that I really loved, as opposed to something finished enough to turn in. I really wanted to scrap the whole thing and begin again, but there wasn’t enough time.
If there had been enough time I would I recorded new cello tracks creating one loop at a time. I probably would have played to a metronome instead of free improvising and I would have built the loops on one another instead of just playing a bunch of ideas consecutively and then trying to fit them together. I also think that part of my problem was that I had too many loops that I wanted to try to use, in addition to them not really all fitting well together.
The first time I attempted to record my improvisation I had technical difficulties, but didn’t know until after playing for 20 min. A day or so later, after I stopped being angry with my computer, I tried again. I then spent some time listening through the improvisation and picking out loops. I had done some slow playing, chords, fast playing, extended techniques with the bow and the instrument and played part of a piece. I picked out a lot of different loops to try to use, and deleted probably twice as much as I saved.
As I began arranging the pieces I first tried to create a beat out of some of the extended technique loops, but it didn’t work out in a way that I loved, so I removed that. I next tried layering several of the melodic lines, mostly the slower ones, and put together a cello sound scape. Some of it I liked, but much of it sounded incohesive. I then tried to put a premade beat/drums under the cello, but again couldn’t find anything that I really liked and so removed that. I played more with the melodic pieces and tried to create some repetition to make the song more cohesive.
In the end I ran out of time to create something that I really loved, as opposed to something finished enough to turn in. I really wanted to scrap the whole thing and begin again, but there wasn’t enough time.
If there had been enough time I would I recorded new cello tracks creating one loop at a time. I probably would have played to a metronome instead of free improvising and I would have built the loops on one another instead of just playing a bunch of ideas consecutively and then trying to fit them together. I also think that part of my problem was that I had too many loops that I wanted to try to use, in addition to them not really all fitting well together.
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