Re: [Harp-L] What IS a pro? (warning...long)

[Philharpn@xxxxxxx]

Hey Joe, this is good enough to appear in the New Yorker. It's at least as 
funny some of the Calvin Trillin stuff I've been reading. Plus, it's about 
harmonica.

Phil Lloyd





In a message dated 1/22/07 3:20:00 PM, leone@xxxxxxxx writes:


> 
> Well, honestly I don't know, but I think it's anyone who shows 
> PROficiency. A person can be a professional (such as a doctor) and 
> although they may be 77th out of a class of 78, they are STILL a pro. 
> Now, it seems to me that it would be a good idea to have that very 
> fact posted on the wall of the doctor's office were it not for the 
> fact that just because someone graduated at the top of their class 
> doesn't mean they will be a better doctor. The 'lesser' graduate may 
> try harder, study harder, and altogether keep abreast of the latest 
> trends KNOWING that they started out with a proverbial cloud over 
> their head.
> 
> Whereas the top graduate may rest on their laurels and  coast through 
> life, in much the same way that I coasted through high school.
> 
> Here's why I could never be a pro. When I was born it was raining. 
> Sept in the rain. It was raining bombs. I was born during an air 
> raid. I was always a light sleeper. The slightest sound (didn't have 
> to be actual noise) would wake me. You have heard of 20/20 vision, 
> 15/20 vision, even 10/20 vision. I have the equiv of 5/20 hearing. If 
> I travel, I have to have my own goose feather pillow. Those floss and 
> lumpy foam pillows at the hotels & motels don't cut it for me. Even 
> if the hotel cost is $114.95 (or more) a night, the pillows are 
> cheap. MY pillows cost $100.oo
> 
> I can hear the ice machine even if it's halfway down the hall. If 
> someone buys a soft drink, I head it 'thud'. I can sometimes even 
> hear the coin(s) drop. I hear the whir of the elevator motor and the 
> obligatory 'bling' of the lighted service request button. I can't 
> stay with someone who snores. Ergo: I don't travel well. Being a pro 
> requires traveling. A LOT of traveling. I like to sleep in my own 
> bed. Having been a govt. brat. I had been to 11 grade schools, 3 high 
> schools, a trade school & and a Jr. college. I probably moved 23 
> times or more, but it was never one nighters and I would get used to 
> my bed. In the SeeBees, I was in a ship's compartment the size of a 
> two car garage. There were 2 dozen of us stacked 3 bunks high. When 
> we had Marines aboard, we were 36 stacked 4 bunks high. It was tough, 
> but I was always tired, so I survived.......barely.
> 
> Movement under my feet? I hate mushy stages. We're talking about 
> those black panels of plywood set in steel picture frames which can 
> be assembled and dis-assembled. They're 'supposed' to be made of 
> 3/4" (19mm for our foreign friends) SEVEN ply BCD exterior glued 
> plywood. Such as used for poured concrete forms. Very very stiff 
> stuff. I have seen them in 5/8" (16mm) FIVE ply CDX plySCORD. Reminds 
> me of the time I was in construction and we were working on an 
> apartment building roof. A roof used to be 5/8" plywood on 16" 
> centered joists. Now they are 1/2" plySCORD on 24" centers (with 
> clips between the joists). Well, I went through a piece, through the 
> third floor, went through the cheap a$$ sub-flooring and down into 
> the second floor. Rolls of carpeting stopped my fall.......luckily.
> 
> When I had my 29' sailboat, I EXPECTED some movement. Rocking, 
> rolling, pitching, yawing, bobbing, but I knew what to expect, was 
> concentrating on the boat, and that was my job. If I try to play 
> harmonica and the ground is moving, it breaks my concentration, and 
> messes me up (psycologically).
> 
> I DON't like the ground to move when I'm walking on it. I must be 
> some sort of cat. Leone DOES (after all) mean Lion, so I guess I like 
> solid ground under my feet. This is why I cringe when I see a lot of 
> animation and jumping around. Might work for 'Cirque de Soliel', but 
> it bugs me.
> 
> So, that's it. Oh, and one more thing......to be a pro on HARP, you 
> have to be good.
> 
> smokey joe & the Cafe s (at the Windjammer)
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