Monthly Archives: July 2008

Gay Marriage (How to Win)

Posted on July 31, 2008 by midiguru

If you want to defeat Prop. 8, thereby preserving the right of all adult couples in California to marry, I can tell you exactly how to do it. Take the suggestions below seriously, stir in five gallons of funding for … Continue reading →

Posted in politics, society & culture | Tagged , | 2 Comments

Competition

Posted on July 27, 2008 by midiguru

A few years ago the Big Buzzword was “competitive.” Maybe it still is. Gotta be competitive. I always thought competitiveness was sort of pathetically testosterone-induced. Cooperation seemed to me (and still does) like a much better way to get along … Continue reading →

Posted in music, writing | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Singers

Posted on July 26, 2008 by midiguru

Decided to see if I could find a female vocalist to do some gigs with. Cello by itself isn’t a very fulfilling concert experience, but cello with a woman who sings and plays acoustic guitar — my, my, that could … Continue reading →

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Unchained Melody

Posted on July 26, 2008 by midiguru

The cello has what has been described as “a freakishly wide range.” A good cellist can cover more than four octaves — more than any other instrument except piano, organ, and possibly the concert harp. As an improvising cellist, I … Continue reading →

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Peer Support

Posted on July 25, 2008 by midiguru

When I get depressed, it interferes with my creativity. What I need is an “art buddy,” someone who can offer support on an ongoing basis. I want to stay on track, not slog through the doldrums, but doing it by … Continue reading →

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Kindling

Posted on July 24, 2008 by midiguru

I will never buy a Kindle. I love technology, but I also love books. The Kindle is expensive, and there isn’t enough content for it, and it doesn’t display graphics well, but those aren’t the big problems. The really big … Continue reading →

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A Disturbing Story

Posted on July 23, 2008 by midiguru

I’ve been retyping (and editing) some short stories I wrote 20 years ago, with the idea of possibly combining them with a bunch of new stories in a self-published anthology. The first three stories I retyped were extremely interesting in … Continue reading →

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Into the Vault

Posted on July 22, 2008 by midiguru

I’ve written a fair amount of short fiction, some of it published here and there over the years. I doubt any publisher is ever going to want to do a new anthology of my stuff — not enough money in it … Continue reading →

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My Goodness…

Posted on July 21, 2008 by midiguru

When we say a piece of fiction is “good,” what do we mean? And is this elusive “goodness” an entirely subjective affair, something that each reader gets to judge for herself, or is it possible to say something objective about … Continue reading →

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What Does “Good” Mean?

Posted on July 20, 2008 by midiguru

Over at 1writeway.wordpress.com, K. Jayne Cockrill (interminablewriter.wordpress.com) posted a response to an interesting little piece called “What does ‘MFA’ Stand For?” KJ said this: “I don’t have an MFA, nor any other degree, but I believe (and have been told) … Continue reading →

Posted in writing | Tagged | 8 Comments