Valentine's Weekend

Norris and Cheryl went to brunch and then had a nice walk outside. But we have no pictures of that so we'll post a couple of different ones!

As we were putting on lightweight jackets to head outdoors, Moki barred the door. She didn't want us to go perhaps?


That paw crossed over the other one is a typical pose for Moki. It just seems to be comfortable for her.

And Norris' hurt paw is not completely healed up from his surgery just after Thanksgiving, but he's finally preparing for a banjo lesson again!

update on banjo

Cheryl has created these two banjo videos for some friends on the other side of the world.
We learned these songs several months ago, but Cheryl has spent the last few weeks working on speed with these.

The first song is "Ain't Nobody Gonna Miss Me When I'm Gone"




And not quite as strong is her second number, "Fireball Mail"

Banjo camp is hard on everyone else

Both Moki and Lu obviously missed Norris and the banjo this week, but Moki was especially lonely. She usually comes in to his office and listens while we practice, curling up in a cat-sized basket on the bookshelf. Today he was playing on the screened porch. Here's an obviously contented Moki, listening from the fake fur-lined banjo case on the table (no she's not allowed on the table but she got a momentary exception for having survived this stressful week.)



While Norris was away for 12-15 hours every day, Cheryl had to take over feeding the hummingbirds. We formerly had four regulars at our two feeders, three females and one male, but suddenly as of last week, we seem to have double that population - and the sugar water consumption went up accordingly. We added a third smaller feeder but it was still hard for Cheryl to keep up - she was filling this favorite feeder three times a day. This picture captures five females - four at the feeder, and one on the deck cable in the background (you can see only the tail of one of them on the far side of the feeder.) We still have only one male as far as we can tell.



Ok that was fun - here are two on the feeder and three on the wire. These pictures are shot through the screen in fading light, but early morning and late evening is when the feeding activity intensifies.

Bluegrass in the Blue Ridge Mountains 2009

Norris is just finishing his week at Bluegrass camp on the campus of Mars Hill College about a half hour's drive northwest of us. This is the first year for this event - very close to home and Norris' regular instructor Bobby is one of the organizers and instructors.

This is the group photo -

Norris is in the second row from the top, second fellow from the left. The young lad sitting in the front row is the star of the Advanced Banjo class. The week did not start on a promising note for Norris as the organizers had decided to combine the 5 intermediate and advanced students in one class under the advanced instructor - but the skill levels were too diverse and Norris had the least experience of all of them. But Norris and one of the other two intermediate students were already taking private lessons from Bobby, the beginning banjo instructor, and he didn't want them in his group because they were too advanced for what the beginning students were going to be learning.

On the second day, Jerry Sutton (one of the organizers) stepped in to teach the intermediate banjo group. Jerry is pictured in the photo below standing next to Norris.



We knew Jerry, mostly from his performances playing guitar with Acoustic Swing on Friday nights at Blue Mountain Pizza. We had also seen him play standup bass. Now we know he can teach banjo also. Norris is going to be playing his first live performance before an audience this evening.

Photos taken by the Bluegrass in the Blue Ridge Mountains organizers.

A Christmas Gift for Ella

Norris has finally agreed to perform on the banjo for the camera. We have just returned from a weekend visit to his mother's in Chickamauga and this was all she wanted for Christmas. I'm playing live accompaniment on the piano. This take is without any of the kitty cat help we had on the first take.



I don't know when we'll get Norris on camera again, but even as I type he's learning Part 1 of "Doug's Tune" which was written by Doug Dillard. The Dillards played as "The Darlings" on the Andy Griffith show. Norris is already playing it pretty well, so I'll try to encourage another recording session.

for something different ...

... here's a short audio. There's also video because that's what the blog software allows. I'm playing because Norris is not ready to play in public, although he can play this tune just fine. This is an only slightly simplified version of "Cripple Creek." We have a banjo tablature that was transcribed from Earl Scruggs playing so we know what he does that we don't do ... yet! Some days I play it better than this, but this is how it sounded last night after we decorated our tree.

Banjo Cats

The fifth string on the banjo is notoriously difficult to keep in tune - however, in the case of the one Norris rented, it became impossible when the peg broke. So Norris came home Tuesday with a different banjo - this one has a "resonator" - the fancy looking metal around the round part that reflects more of the sound outward for performing.

Lu always has to climb into containers. A banjo case is no exception.
And yes indeed, that case is tipping precariously over the edge of the counter. I repositioned it for the next shot.


Here Moki is checking out the case, and this time, Norris was practicing and concentrating on the new skills he'd learned. He'd asked me to take a picture of Lu and this time he didn't hide!

He used to drive a Lexus....

I thought family might want to see this shot I got of Norris, imitating a former President. He wondered about that guy, who claimed he did this for fun.


The bright orange thing on top of the woodpile is the ear protection for the chainsaw part of the operation.

I took that picture through the window, because my previous attempt to capture Norris in his New Mountain Man role yielded this next photo....



He started taking bluegrass banjo lessons on Tuesday the 9th of September. He rented the banjo pictured for the duration of the class. This is not a very good banjo, and it embarrassed him to be seen with it so he was not cooperating. Believe me, I tried very hard and this was the best shot I got of him. He discovered that banjo playing is a skill that will take some work, and he won't let me listen to him play so I can't report on his talent yet. It bothers him a little that the first song he's learning is "Bile 'em Cabbage Down" and the one next week is called "Groundhog." The verses wax poetic on the joys of hunting and savoring the various delectable parts of the groundhog and the various family members who favor them.

(and I'm posting this while Norris is on his way to the airport so he can't delete it before I can tell his mother and sister it's here.)