Thursdays are one of the busiest days for me. And this one was going to be a big one. My day was really going to take off at 1pm. So, I cleaned in the morning and did dishes and got myself all showered and ready. I got the kids all dressed and prepared for the craziness that was going to be our Thursday.
A few minutes before 1pm, I started walking to my accompanying gig. My husband was at home on his lunch break and it was perfect because he would be there longer than I needed to be gone. So I went and played piano and came home as quickly as possible.
I had a piano tuner scheduled to come over at 2pm so I cleaned and cleared the piano area and put my daughter down for a nap. I also cleaned the piano area downstairs so that my house would be ready for piano lessons. I was so excited for the piano tuner to come. This was the big day! We were going to find out whether our free baby grand piano was going to be a good investment for us, or whether it wouldn't be worth the effort of tuning and fixing it up. So, the piano tuner came a little later than 2pm, but it was okay. My children really liked Keith. In fact, my son kept referring to the piano tuner as "my Keith." Kids latch onto some of the most unexpected people sometimes. So, I was really interested to watch what was happening as Keith took our piano apart and was inspecting the strings and key board and everything else. However, my kids were getting too interested as well. And they were getting in Keith's way. So, I resigned myself to the fact that I would not get to watch this awesome process and that I would need to be a responsible parent and entertain my children outside of this professional's work zone.
We had fun playing downstairs. Sometimes I forget how much my kids love playing with the toys downstairs. And they just love to play when I am down there with them. So, we had fun putting together puzzles and playing with Mr. Potato Heads and just throwing balls. It was great. And then while the piano tuner was here, my 3pm piano lesson came. I love my Thursday sisters so I was really excited to see them. So the lesson was going to be a little tricky today. I had arranged to accompany at 3:30pm right after my 3pm lesson, so I had to make sure that everything went smoothly and that I was able to cover everything I need to. So we start out and I kept the pace going and it was perfect! We got through the lesson and I forgot to factor in one thing! The piano tuner. Just as I was about to leave, the piano tuner wanted to talk to me about what he found. And of course, this was important stuff to know, so I just tried to listen and keep the piano tuner on track so I wouldn't be too late for my accompanying at 3:30pm.
Well, the piano tuner, Keith, told me that the piano was in pretty good shape for all the different weather it had been experiencing and for how old this baby grand is (it's a 1938 Melville Clark). He said that there are things we can do to fix some of the keys and to improve the tone, but it would probably never be a piano that will be good for really advanced students or piano players. It would be a great piano for my children to begin on and to play songs around Christmas and in our day to day lives. I can handle that. For the next bit of my life until we are done buying a house or new cars and waiting for my kids to grow up. He also said that it is worth $1,000 or so. Not bad for a free piano. So, I was overall pleased with the results. He also said he didn't over tune it like he usually does because he wants to a) see how well the piano keeps the tuning b) the strings are old (probably the originals from 1938) and he didn't want to break them and c) we need to give it time to adjust to the weather and tuning. He said to call him back in a few months and we would see what to do next!
I am so excited for my piano! It sounds wonderful and I think it is keeping the tuning better than I had hoped! You have to understand, I have played piano since I was 8 years old. I have NEVER had a grand piano in my life!! This is a dream come true for me! I never thought I would have a grand piano at this stage in my life!! This is incredible!!
Amidst all this excitement I had to cool it and save it for later because I had an accompanying gig I was late for! So, I gather my kids and we run up the street to our destination! I was so out of breath, it wasn't even funny. And I had to carry my daughter the whole way. Thank goodness it wasn't far! So I played and I had to run back to my house because I had another piano lesson at 4pm.
So we get home and teach. I also had to keep this lesson on the ball because I had to go back and accompany again! It went well. I feel a little guilty because these girls are accustomed to me taking my time and usually going over. However, they only pay for 30 minute lessons. I should not feel guilty because they are still getting exactly what they pay for, I am just not giving them the extra I usually do for free.
After the lesson, I get the kids ready again and run back over, so we won't be late! The kids loved being at the house and playing with new toys and with other kids their ages. I loved playing because the songs were fun and it was a challenge! And I felt like I was doing something productive. We stayed there for an hour accompanying and playing.
When we were done we came back home! I still had one more lesson to accompany at 6:30pm but it worked! I was so glad that my husband was home and that I could leave the kids at home instead of getting ready to go one more time and dragging them there. So I just quickly ran over there myself and did my thing. When I came home we all got ready to go to Target. We wanted to buy more Dr. Seuss books while they were on sale! So we did! And then we got some dinner! That was kind of my husband to do because I had been so busy that there just hadn't been time to make some dinner.
After we got home the kids went to bed and I got to go and watch some TV. It had been a long, busy day. And only one more day until the weekend left!
A few minutes before 1pm, I started walking to my accompanying gig. My husband was at home on his lunch break and it was perfect because he would be there longer than I needed to be gone. So I went and played piano and came home as quickly as possible.
I had a piano tuner scheduled to come over at 2pm so I cleaned and cleared the piano area and put my daughter down for a nap. I also cleaned the piano area downstairs so that my house would be ready for piano lessons. I was so excited for the piano tuner to come. This was the big day! We were going to find out whether our free baby grand piano was going to be a good investment for us, or whether it wouldn't be worth the effort of tuning and fixing it up. So, the piano tuner came a little later than 2pm, but it was okay. My children really liked Keith. In fact, my son kept referring to the piano tuner as "my Keith." Kids latch onto some of the most unexpected people sometimes. So, I was really interested to watch what was happening as Keith took our piano apart and was inspecting the strings and key board and everything else. However, my kids were getting too interested as well. And they were getting in Keith's way. So, I resigned myself to the fact that I would not get to watch this awesome process and that I would need to be a responsible parent and entertain my children outside of this professional's work zone.
We had fun playing downstairs. Sometimes I forget how much my kids love playing with the toys downstairs. And they just love to play when I am down there with them. So, we had fun putting together puzzles and playing with Mr. Potato Heads and just throwing balls. It was great. And then while the piano tuner was here, my 3pm piano lesson came. I love my Thursday sisters so I was really excited to see them. So the lesson was going to be a little tricky today. I had arranged to accompany at 3:30pm right after my 3pm lesson, so I had to make sure that everything went smoothly and that I was able to cover everything I need to. So we start out and I kept the pace going and it was perfect! We got through the lesson and I forgot to factor in one thing! The piano tuner. Just as I was about to leave, the piano tuner wanted to talk to me about what he found. And of course, this was important stuff to know, so I just tried to listen and keep the piano tuner on track so I wouldn't be too late for my accompanying at 3:30pm.
Well, the piano tuner, Keith, told me that the piano was in pretty good shape for all the different weather it had been experiencing and for how old this baby grand is (it's a 1938 Melville Clark). He said that there are things we can do to fix some of the keys and to improve the tone, but it would probably never be a piano that will be good for really advanced students or piano players. It would be a great piano for my children to begin on and to play songs around Christmas and in our day to day lives. I can handle that. For the next bit of my life until we are done buying a house or new cars and waiting for my kids to grow up. He also said that it is worth $1,000 or so. Not bad for a free piano. So, I was overall pleased with the results. He also said he didn't over tune it like he usually does because he wants to a) see how well the piano keeps the tuning b) the strings are old (probably the originals from 1938) and he didn't want to break them and c) we need to give it time to adjust to the weather and tuning. He said to call him back in a few months and we would see what to do next!
I am so excited for my piano! It sounds wonderful and I think it is keeping the tuning better than I had hoped! You have to understand, I have played piano since I was 8 years old. I have NEVER had a grand piano in my life!! This is a dream come true for me! I never thought I would have a grand piano at this stage in my life!! This is incredible!!
Amidst all this excitement I had to cool it and save it for later because I had an accompanying gig I was late for! So, I gather my kids and we run up the street to our destination! I was so out of breath, it wasn't even funny. And I had to carry my daughter the whole way. Thank goodness it wasn't far! So I played and I had to run back to my house because I had another piano lesson at 4pm.
So we get home and teach. I also had to keep this lesson on the ball because I had to go back and accompany again! It went well. I feel a little guilty because these girls are accustomed to me taking my time and usually going over. However, they only pay for 30 minute lessons. I should not feel guilty because they are still getting exactly what they pay for, I am just not giving them the extra I usually do for free.
After the lesson, I get the kids ready again and run back over, so we won't be late! The kids loved being at the house and playing with new toys and with other kids their ages. I loved playing because the songs were fun and it was a challenge! And I felt like I was doing something productive. We stayed there for an hour accompanying and playing.
When we were done we came back home! I still had one more lesson to accompany at 6:30pm but it worked! I was so glad that my husband was home and that I could leave the kids at home instead of getting ready to go one more time and dragging them there. So I just quickly ran over there myself and did my thing. When I came home we all got ready to go to Target. We wanted to buy more Dr. Seuss books while they were on sale! So we did! And then we got some dinner! That was kind of my husband to do because I had been so busy that there just hadn't been time to make some dinner.
After we got home the kids went to bed and I got to go and watch some TV. It had been a long, busy day. And only one more day until the weekend left!
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