Wednesday. Went to bed last night early (enough guitar, nothing on television) and read until eleven. My, my. Actually did some reading. Up this morning after turning off the alarm and dozing for another hour, back to the apartment after breakfast before nine, my guitar lesson coming up at ten. Are we ready? Who knows? I've made progress, I've practiced every day for an hour or more, often more: that should be enough. We'll leave off the hup, hups.

Another clear sunny sky by the way. I suspect it's going to get warmer than I'll like. How's that for turning on a dime? Complain about the overcast, complain about the sun. Soon I'll be complaining about complaining. Ah, well, yes.

Later. Since my guitar lesson is scheduled for ten in the morning, about the time the various symptoms (cement head, double vision, sinus-palate) flare-up, I've gone through more than a few lessons where I wasn't feeling all that well and the short drive back home was less clear than I (and other drivers) might have liked. Today was fine, the attitude good, the lesson itself OK. No complaints, a run by the supermarket for necessary items including sake after, home now at eleven.

We'll see how the rest of the day goes. It's getting warm out there for eleven in the morning, I've turned on the fan in front of an open balcony door. It may get warm enough to close the door later, sometimes it does, but that's OK, I'll do the walk later in a t-shirt and a broad brimmed hat. I'm not one to miss an excuse to wear a white Panama even if it is, for the neighborhood, a bit out to lunch.

Given the nature of your streets I'm not sure a Panama hat is unusual, particularly when it's worn by what is now a harmless looking old crock.

Too true, too true. Still, the eyes bright, the attitude good, a ham and swiss sandwich just now put under the belt (on top of a light breakfast), the day ahead. (hup!)

Later still. It is warm, warmer than t-shirt weather, the temperature just now eighty-three degrees. I can't imagine the hundred degree temperatures they've been having in the mid-west and east. But then I don't have to imagine them, so I'll shut up.

A walk down the way to pick up some vitamin C at a local health food shop. Expensive, vitamin C, at the local health food shop, about twice what I pay at Rite Aid. You'd assume it's (oh so much) better - organic, kissed by nature and such - and maybe it is, but I suspect not. We'll not give up on Rite Aid yet. I'm sure hanging with Rite Aid won't shave more than one or two years off my life.

Back now with the three o'clock news coming up, a good time to pick up the guitar, go over today's lesson, look at the new chord sequences he's assigned. The beginning bars of Time Is On My Side, my first song with barre chords. Before starting these lessons I'd never heard of barre chords, now I can play them. Badly, of course, but I now know the name and their address on the frets. Definite progress.

I sent a photograph I'd taken earlier this month to Oakland North, a web site sponsored by the U.C. Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism, and they liked it. This is the second time they've run one of my pictures as their picture of the week. Feels good, I wasn't expecting it.