Travel Stories / Blog at this link; click here
Content
Arrow Throwing
Ah, a child hood activity saw us throw sticks with flights using a sting as the throwing medium. Introduced to the activity by my older brother Colin memories of throwing these ‘arrows’ down the paddock, to see who could throw it the furthest still remain strong. I was only young then, primary school age, but later as a young man Colin and I developed the throwing into a game at the ‘Karangi Throwing Grounds’. Guy was also involved but at that time was mostly away.
The activity is a bit like Golf, with ‘greens’, (Arrowmat), an open space in the bush, a tree, or a marker of some sort. A Throw Of Point of varying distances to the Arrowmats was established and points awarded depending on how close to the Arrowmat on the final throw you got.
Initially our arrows were made from a stick out of the bush. A young Camphor laurel was popular as it was straight enough and long enough. I remember one I made from a piece of cane, revolutionary at the time. We made flights out of paper, cut a slit and push em in, bits of fencing wire to add weight to the tip and a small notch (wit) was cut for the throwing string.
In the late 70’s we developed the arrows a little better and at the “Karangi Cup’, ‘Karangi Trials’, and the ‘Pheasants Ashes’ (1975). Arrows using purchased dowel with plastic (milk bottles) delta flights were used. More recently I have used a purchased bow arrow with its feather flights and streamline construction, and I guess its a little hard to better such a construction.
In our Tournaments though we had sections for the original hand made arrows, etc etc.
Arrows were graded, named, decorated, and marked according to their characteristics, in particular how far they could be thrown. The recorded longest throw ever was by one of my arrows, an arrow called Chip, wind assisted, of 187 paced out meters in January 1976. Arrows were around the 30” mark in length, 28” to 33”.
A specification written down at the time was Length: 28”, Diameter: 3/16, weight: 2 oz, flight: plastic kite, Range: Falcon, class: super, Code; F1, Name: Cupid 1, and colour code with Red for star, blue for super, green for long, white for medium and black for short.
The arrows I have at the moment are 820mm in length and 5 to 7mm diameter.
Music Journey part 1
My Journey in to Music Part 1
It would seem that music, singing, and guitar playing is a lifetime pursuit if you want to be any good. Well maybe not if you have an aptitude and started young. There are prodigies who just seem to be able to do it without learning, and others that were born with a voice, seemingly finding it easy, indeed a gift. For me well I started late, musically inept, untrained ears, and a voice that’s never in tune. So you would wonder why I would pursue it.
Well I have always just wanted to, somewhere inside me pulls me towards a desire to be able to play my guitar and sing a song or two, perform them on a stage perhaps, not for the enjoyment of an audience so much, but for the gratification gained from doing it well.
Some years back now, I started to play the guitar, at first I couldn’t even strum it, the right hand just wouldn’t go up and down, just didn’t have any rhythm whatsoever. A strum pattern was given to me, DDUUDU (Down Down Up Up Down Up), and I practiced that relentlessly, with a few chord changes for a long long time. I’d pick the guitar up for a few weeks or so then leave it for months. I wrote a song or two as I couldn’t sing anyone’s else’s. This spasmodic method went on for many years, learning chords, the F and C and Barr chords appearing impossible with my fattish fingers and lack of dexterity in the left hand. I tended to want to play a soft melodic style so I started teaching the fingers how to pick each string rather than the full strum method. I went through many pick styles, thumb picks, finger pics, standard pick, eventually just to use my fingers, down with the thumb and up with the rest except for the little one which generally rested on the guitar body to hold the hand in a steady position. I now use a combination of standard pick and fingers and fingers only. I played, or tried to, the Barr chord shape for F major (Em shape with a Barr) as the normal shape seemed impossible, and while this wasn’t easy it lead me into Barr chords shapes. Many chord shapes appear impossible as a beginner, but after a time become easy.
Enquire
Back to top of page
Music Journey part 2
My Journey into Music continued …
Playing music, singing, should be a joy I guess, but maybe not, maybe an expression, an outlet for emotions, a war cry, a punching bag perhaps. At the least an outpouring of something that’s for sure, a release of emotions.
I can stuff around with a song and the guitar for hours, trying to get the rhythm, the beat, a melody line even, a guitar lead section. Take my latest challenge, Seven Spanish Angels originally performed by Willie Nelson and Ray Charles, written by Eddie Setser and Troy Seals.
I’ve simplified the song into three, basic chords in the key of D, my singing key. So we have the three Major chords from the D key, these being D, G, and A, a basic 4/4 time drumbeat, Country 1 Straight sticks from the Drum Beat App, at 125/130 beats per minute.
For the first time I can actually strum along / finger pick and sing this song to the beat of the drum, in the garage at least. The test now will be to do it on stage with a band, watch this space. I actually tried it at the guitar group yesterday. I printed up songs sheets with my arrangement, explained a bit, set up the mic and amp, drum machine, and performed it through, did ok I thought, but I got no well dones, any maybe you should try this, any feedback whatsoever, making me think let’s not do that one again. Well the guitar group are pretty much all beginners, so maybe that accounts for it.
But performers do like some positive feedback, for it’s a tough gig when no one throws a tomato. Certainly at the Cool Country Group everyone claps and encourages people for having a go. I mean a lot of effort goes into making that song happen for someone like me and also for other people, so it should be acknowledged. It’s what keeps you trying.
I can play some lead sections, my own devised guitar lead sections as well for this one. I’ve settled on a rift in B and then D. The key of B I believe to be the ‘relative minor’ to D major key. I’ve download some sheet music and figured out a basic melody which I play in B. So I start the lead bit by playing in the pentatonic minor scale up at the 7th fret for a few notes then switch to major scale at the 7th fret to play the melody line. Once the melody bit is done then up to the 10th fret to play in a D minor pentatonic to head back in the B major scale for a finish line in the melody.
There is an Intro Tab available of the net, which I can nearly do but I just can’t make it sound like the song, difficult to transpose into D also as I think the original key was F.
Performing is about controlling emotion.
Well I’ve sung this song in the garage too many times to recall now, always works pretty well and I’m able to keep time with the drum machine. So, here we go, with the band on practice night, no nerves, all set to play a lead section on the guitar as well as the song, and it flopped. Well the bands drumbeat sounded like some foreign tune, my guitar sounded out of key and the melody escaped me. I could not get past the first line. In ‘Cool Country’ fashion everyone tried to help at this stage, the guitarist on stage singing the chorus to me, Rob the rhythm guitarist setting a beat, and Tom from the group up on stage singing it with me. By now though I was overwhelmed, and all though I sang through the song I really have no idea how it went from there. As they say you live and learn and the first song I did ‘Long May you run’ which I thought I may mess up went pretty well.
The problem I believe was initially the guitar D chord did not sound like a D. The reason for that seems a mystery. Then the drum beat was awkward to follow, and thirdly, probably as a consequence of the first two I started to sing out of key and with some left over melody from the previous song, I think, as it’s difficult to pin point. I do know as soon as I was in the car driving home I had no trouble singing the song!!!
Table Tennis
Hmm, Table Tennis
Well, I began playing the game after another prompt from the local newspaper which was advertising that the club were after new members. Becoming less fit with age and sporting a few injuries I was looking to find some activity that could help me keep some level of fitness. Previously my activity was rock climbing.
I rocked along one day, Saturday I believe, to the local venue, a hall, adjacent to the Cavanbah hall in Coffs, and was greeted by a welcoming gentleman named David. We chatted as we sat on the concrete veranda edge, adjacent to Pioneer Park, waiting for the hall to be opened. This first contact was very good and I was made to feel welcome.
On entering the hall I was quite surprised at the number of tables, and what seemed quite a professional looking set up. Seven tables, netted off from each other with padded walls around the outside. The back rooms and area had a toilet, kitchen, sitting area, and a practice room complete with a table tennis robot, brilliant. This club has done quite well it seems, membership being quite reasonable at $20 a year along with a game fee of $3 or $5 for non-members. I paid my $5 even though the first visit was free as I felt the value was there.
Another feature of the ha
ll was a left over artifact from the days when the hall was a museum (see image). You would have to see this to believe it but the top of a light house filled about a 4 by 3 meter space on and in the floor. It stands in a large hole in the floor some 2m deep and rises some 3 or 4 meters above floor height, surrounded by a protecting fence. The glass section of the light house is somewhat out of place in this environment but to relocate it may well mean some deconstruction of the building would be required.
Table tennis has not been my game and apart from the odd game as a teenager in someone’s garage it was relatively new to me. I do recall though that the game was played up to 21 points. You served by bouncing the ball on your side of the net first then the other side and after that returning the ball over the net. If you didn’t get it on the opposing table section then you lost the point. Predominately in this over 50’s group everyone played doubles, like doubles tennis, and the game was played to 31, and again like tennis you have to be two points ahead to win, the deuce / advantage system.
So I began to play socially, doubles, and for the first 3 months or so never won a game. The club has lots of active members, men and women, 30 or so turning up on most days, so there is quite a variety of players to play with and learn from. From a psychologist point of view the mix was interesting but more on this later.
I had embraced the computer revolution some time back so You Tube and Table Tennis web sites were watched avidly picking up tips on spin, serving and generally how to play. Further to this on every Tuesday coaching was given by Bill and Chris.
I gradually improved eventually winning a game and after 6 months I’m probably on the winning side in about two thirds of my games.
My style of play is slightly aggressive. I like to win a point by a nice drive or by some sequence of play that I have instigated rather than on a basic mistake by another player. Mind you many games are won by players who play percentage, I mean they just get the ball over the net and let the other player, such as me, play a shot that gives them the point. Indeed at this mid to low skill level that’s what happens a lot. However though I think by constantly trying for that winner I have developed from always missing the shot to now being at somewhere around the 50% point. It’s increasing and although I’m now at a bit of a frustration point, my game is continually improving. Frustrated because I know now how the shot should be played but I have messed up, being too slow, unprepared, low skill level, or not ready enough, etc.
Singles started up some months back, each Friday for an hour and a half before the doubles start. Singles is much more useful in developing shots and a game plan and a little easier in the sense that there is not partner to be in or get out of the way of. It may be a good idea to have a regular doubles partner where sequences and strategies could be worked out as the regular doubles, which is quite social and fun, using any partner, is a bit like playing as a single player.
As I am still learning, my serve has developed well, spin and variety, but it can become difficult for random partners to return after it is returned by the opposition as the spin is still in effect.
As I have improved feedback on my game has diminished. Few comments now of the best way to play the shot are received. I hear now, ‘he’s got a tricky serve’, ‘watch out for the smash’, ‘ah well placed’, ‘it’s his spin’, as I start to look more now at mixing it with the better players for a game. It’s always intrigued me when I first started why some players didn’t want to play with some others. I realise now that the strong players didn’t want to play with the weaker players as it really wasn’t much fun. At this stage I think all games are fun regardless and the ‘easy’ one gives you the opportunity to practice good technique and strategies.
The majority of the people are quite friendly, talkative, and seem downright normal people. Interestingly enough there was no one that I knew except for Brian, who is only a recent acquaintance via some electrical work, and a lady who I knew some years back. It doesn’t really matter to me nowadays whether there is someone I know or not, I’ll just walk in and do my thing, that’s fine, but it’s always nice to have ‘a friend’ I suppose that you can chat to easily. There are certain people you radiate too and others that you don’t, and vice versa. I’m certainly not the most sociable person in the world and I can be difficult to befriend but overall I’m amiable enough I guess. There is a bunch of good people here and I have felt comfortable with quite a few; Alex, Arthur, Bill, Brian, Chris, David, Elvira, Ian, Ian, Jean Claude, Joe, Helen, Len, Lindsay, Max, Michel, Noel, Paul, Richard, Rick, Simone, Sue Ann, Wayne, all very friendly and considerate. If I have missed someone then I’m sorry but I did the list from memory.
There are two clubs, apparently, the over 50’s which I am in and then the other that everyone can be in. The other club, I have no name for it, how about Grasshoppers, also play at night and on Sundays while the oldies play Monday to Saturday in the afternoons with the exception of Thursday. The Grasshoppers play competition and as yet I hadn’t considered myself good enough for such. My weakest link is my backhand which lets me down on numerous occasions and I was hoping to overcome the issues before I delved into checking out the Friday night comp. The robot is a good practice ‘person’ for developing good stoke technique so I have been trying to do a session on that. Unfortunately the club admin seems to like to use the isolation of the robot room to do their thing, and not wishing to disturb them, I haven’t bothered. On the few occasions when I have found the room free it has been most beneficial.
A competition is on the horizon. The club is organising its first in club completion to be held on two Saturdays in February 2017. As I often go to play on Saturdays I thought I would have a go in both singles and doubles. I don’t have a doubles partner as no one I have mentioned it to seems keen to partner with me, so that should be interesting, apparently I will be buddied up with someone on the day. The competition will be played on International rules, wow, probably get faulted out on every serve. The game is to be played to 11 points, best of 5, 2 serves each and then alternating, and swapping ends after each game. Well at least I’ll get to play in three games! So with expectations of losing I should enjoy myself, no really, I have not expectations either way; it is a learning event for me.