California: Long Beach to San Andreas

Posted on June 20, 2016 by Freejack

Jeanne made an interesting discovery this morning.

I grabbed the wrong passport. I have the expired one 🙁

But, call house/cat sitter. “I’ll give you the instructions on where my passport is, can you hit the FedEx store and send it to my cousin next day?”

“Absolutely.”

Assuming she can find it (and it should be there), we’ll still be able to go to Canada 🙂

109 degrees on the way out of LA. Bumper to bumper on the 405 north. Got some filtering done but the bike is wider than I’m less than comfortable if it’s close. Nothing like being stuck on the freeway in LA because I misjudged or some moron has a problem. Some guy wanted to dispute my passing but I made it anyway. And it was so hot, the tops of my feet itch and look and feel sunburnt. One of the worst things was we were behind a tall van/utility type truck, you know with the image of a guy standing in the back looking behind. Well, he all of a sudden stopped. Someone had dropped a bicycle in the road and it had been run over a few times so it was in two pieces. You must pay attention and be ready to dodge people and debris when riding.

Anyway, north on 99 above Bakersfield. Heading to Stockton and east to the B&B in San Andreas.

Got to Merced and headed up 140 to Mariposa. Straight run there. Bit twisty at the end but still on the hot side, mid 90’s.

Left on 49 and headed on. After Bear Creek Road, the twisties kicked in down to Bigby Rec Area. I’m not that confident when going downhill so it was slow going but still cool. Coming back up the other side and it’s all good fun.

Twisties again. Sun’s in my eyes, at a couple of places I almost come to a stop as I come around a steep turn and have no idea what’s in front of me.

After Coulterville and a few more twisties, we hook up on 120 and it’s cruising speed again. Up to Sonora after Chinese Camp then left to Angels Camp then San Andreas to Robin’s Nest B&B.

At Chinese Camp we stopped briefly to check maps. Turns out my cousin lives in Oakdale just a few minutes west. Up past Sonora is Twain Hart, where two of my aunts and uncles used to live. Back in 2004 when Rita and I were riding in the area, I realized where we were, heading to Yosemite, and made the turn to Twain Hart to see if they were still there. My Uncle Dick and Uncle Georgia and my Uncle Paul were. My Aunt Mona Jean had passed of breast cancer though. A call to check and we spent the night visiting. Uncle Paul passed just a few months later.

Robin’s Nest Bed and Breakfast. Quite the nice place although it was a bit difficult to locate the entrance. While the front of the house faces the main road, you have to circle around to get to the entrance. Parked the bike and chatted with the owners. Turns out we’re the only folks in tonight so we have the run of the place.

Bedroom:

No AC but it is somewhat cool and we can open the window to let cool air in.

And a large tub. I’ve never used such a thing before even though we’ve had them available in a few hotels. In this case we used it to rinse off the salt and sweat of the ride. It’s a [b]lot[/b] better when used this way. I’ve never been much of a tub person but this worked pretty well.

Coming down the stairs and looking at the dining room with the kitchen beyond.

The front room.

The sitting room.

We walked down to El Mexical for dinner. Then hit the big tub on the room to rinse off the salt and relax a bit before heading down to the sitting room to read.

We decided we didn’t have time for Tahoe if we were going to get back to my cousin Holly’s in time to actually be sociable, so we’ll be grabbing breakfast at 8 then off to Yosemite.

Posted in 2016 - June Ride, Motorcycle Trips | Leave a comment

Utah: Milford to California: Long Beach

Posted on June 19, 2016 by Freejack

We snagged breakfast in Milford at Penny’s Diner. It’s an actual diner and the motel just east of town was pretty sweet.

We headed south on 129 then took the right at 130 to head towards Ceder City. The road and area was pretty flat and you can see for miles.

Getting on 15 S again sped up the trip and the run down the passes in Arizona was as expected. Pretty fast and of course with people camped in the left lane. At a couple of places, I did the wave at the bonehead crossing the center line. Always have to pay attention to the folks oblivious to traffic.

In Mesquite we stopped for gas again.

From there it was a straight run to California. We passed through Las Vegas checking out the big buildings. We’ve both been here before so it wasn’t new but considering the political climate, we did point at the Trump building 🙂

I’d planned on stopping in Primm and thought I was there when I pulled in but found I was in Jean instead. The place was packed with cars of course and humorously one woman was stuck at a pump. She’d locked her keys inside her car so was just sitting there waiting for a tow truck. I was able to slide the bike into the space and fill up.

There was some goon from Oregon in an SUV just hauling through traffic, cutting people off and in a big hurry. It was funny because I was basically hanging in the right lane with an occasional shift to the left and back for a truck. I wasn’t watching but saw that I wasn’t more than 10 or so car lengths behind him. And then, traffic stopped. Being in California, I knew I could lane split so sure enough, splitting is what I did.

My own ideas from reading posts here and the other place is you only split in very slow or stopped traffic and I did it basically when I stuck in 1st gear and it was slow enough that folks are unlikely to change lanes.

Much of the stopped or slowed traffic were cars stopped on the shoulder, maybe overheated but with blankets over the open door and people sitting in the car. A few places had others, like a tow truck or cop, with the stopped car. Towards the front of the jam, miles from the end, was someone stuck over on other side and blocking the right lane with a guy standing on the asphalt trying to direct traffic. Once that was passed, traffic picked up again.

Temps were in the mid to upper 90’s until California and the Mohave where it reached 102F. Jeanne is particularly impacted by the heat. I did have the Camelbak Rogue with water so we stayed hydrated and as long as we moved, we had some degree of coolness but it was still fricking hot.

Man, 109 when we got on 10. Freaking hot.

We got off at rosemead for gas and a check where we were and no entrance back to 10 west. We wandered about, 60 to 710 to 10 to alameda east. A check then and 10 east to 5 to 710 south to 405 to cherry to my brother’s.

And he doesn’t have AC!

He comments that it was a lot nicer before we arrived 🙂

We had dinner at the local place (Nine Noodles? Something) which was good.

We started checking out the next stop. Merced was an option but I wanted to get closer t Yosemite. Unfortunately we had to go pretty far afield to find a place. Pretty much anything will do at this point, even getting a room and crashing on the floor 🙂

Now we’re just hanging about and will bail around 10. North to Yosemite.

I do want to note that the ‘busa wouldn’t have made it. I think the fan’s out or heat sensor. It would have overheated so I need to check it.

I Don’t think I would have gone if I just had the ‘busa. My right knee swelled last Wed, don’t know why and was a bit sensitive but better Sat morning. I took the Connie out as a test and it was okay.

Posted in 2016 - June Ride, Motorcycle Trips | Leave a comment

Colorado: Longmont to Utah: Milford

Posted on June 18, 2016 by Freejack

Left this morning at 8:30am. 540 expected miles and intended on being in Beaver Utah this evening.

We stopped in Boulder after 15 or 20 minutes to check the bike out and make sure nothing’s out of place.

The ride through the mountains was similar as last time. Fairly cool in places. Traffic was somewhat slow especially as we approached the turnoff to Winter Park and further, Vail. Eisenhower Tower was interesting as usual.

We stopped in Rifle for gas again and a quick bathroom break.

Riding through Grand Junction and there was a broken up cardboard box in the highway. I watched as it was moved by the wind of passing vehicles and then it flew up and hit me in the top of the helmet. It’s one of those things. If I was on my own, would I have ducked to avoid it or did I not duck in order to keep Jeanne from being hit by surprise.

Of course temps increased as we passed into Utah and stopped again at Thompson for a final bit of gas before heading on to the stop for the night.

We stopped at the rest area just past the 10 cut off and took a break.

We arrived in Milford (30 miles west of Beaver) at around 7:30. I emailed my brother and texted my cousin. My cousin texted me back that she was in Savannah and thought I was traveling through next week so I’ll be missing her. My brother confirmed me coming. I called to make sure they were aware though that my cousin had bailed. His girlfriend Nadine answered the phone so I passed along we were going to be a day early. No problem but wanted to make sure folks were expecting us at the right times 🙂

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June Trip Planning

Posted on June 8, 2016 by Freejack

This is the first run through of planning stops and routes. Most routes I do also provide cutouts. A longer loop that I can cut short in the event of bad weather, road issues, etc. Keep an eye on the weather in various locations on the way and plan accordingly. The plans below don’t account for payments to a house and cat sitter.

In the past I seldom planned this well. This is more because we’re spending each night in a hotel. In general I camp 2 days and then hit a motel for showers and such. I like camping. But with Jeanne along, there isn’t room for camping gear on the bike. Tent, poles, bags, pads (although pads aren’t necessarily required depending on the sites). I’ve considered a trailer and may eventually snag a small one sufficient for camping gear. Maybe.

Planning on this trip too is to visit family again but also to escort Jeanne to all the places I’ve been to and greatly enjoyed. A lot of “see, this is cool!” riding. It’s also the reason for the shorter day rides of a few hundred miles. Time to stop and poke around, time to make a left and see “hey, what’s that?” Just cruise a bit vs my normal ride until I stop and go when I’m ready sort of riding.

Trip: 5,868.7 miles

Start of Trip: 6/18: Longmont, Co

Nightly Stops:
6/18: Beaver Ut – 564 miles; (564 miles); hotel avg $87; gas avg $2.40
6/19: Poway Ca (Cousin) – 1101 miles; (537 miles); ???; gas avg $2.86
6/20: Long Beach Ca (Brother) – 1200.7 miles; (99.7 miles); ???; gas avg $2.88
6/21: Yosemite National Park – 1590.2 miles; (389.5 miles); hotel avg $133; gas avg $2.29
6/22-6/23: Boulder Creek Ca (Cousins/Aunt) – 2011.2 miles; (421 miles); ???; gas avg $2.91
6/24: Eureka Ca – 2386.0 miles; (374.8 miles); hotel avg $147; gas avg $2.85
6/25: Portland Or – 2814.5 miles; (428.5 miles); hotel avg $174; gas avg $2.49
6/26: Chilliwack BC – 3121.0 miles; (306.5 miles); hotel avg $82; gas avg C1.112/liter ~$4.44
6/27: Tete Jaune Cache BC – 3484.7 miles; (363.7 miles); hotel avg $82; gas avg C1.191/liter ~$4.77
6/28: Calgary AB – 3808.9 miles; (324.2 miles); hotel avg $94; gas avg C1.090/liter ~$4.36
6/29: Kalispell Mt – 4112.8 miles; (303.9 miles); hotel avg $157; gas avg $2.29
6/30: Lewiston Id – 4437.9 miles; (325.1 miles); hotel avg $120; gas avg $2.47
7/1: Butte Mt – 4776.2 miles; (338.3 miles); hotel avg $122; gas avg $2.29
7/2: Sheridan Wy – 5225.4 miles; (449.2 miles); hotel avg $124; gas avg $2.27

Trip End: 7/3: Longmont Co – 5868.7 miles; (643.3 miles)

Hotel Total: $1,322.00 ($660 @ $60 per night)

In getting the averages from Google, peeking into the list of hotels, and yes they are averages. We can certainly plan on making these stops and getting reservations in advance or at least having an idea of the available hotels. Try not to be surprised or to have to “take what you can find” which can be expensive. All the averages above are from 3 star hotels. I want to plan on about $60 per night but also plan for emergencies, baseball games, stock car races, little league tournaments, etc. Things that have had me hunting or driving further in the past.

Gas Total: $419.34

This assumes just the miles estimated here and not for any scooting about, checking out stuff, Redwoods, Yosemite, etc.

40mpg average (I actually get closer to 45mpg but best to err on the side of caution).

US Total: 4,875 miles @ $2.52 per gallon: $307.13
CN Total: 993 miles @ $4.52 per gallon: $112.21

Food Total: $900

My riding style is generally snacking on nuts and candy (like M&M’s) and drinking sodas and water throughout the day with a light lunch (like a burrito at Taco Hell) and then whatever I can scrounge for dinner. I expect at least dinners will be a bit more than that especially with hotels and shorter drives.

And we’re talking about two people on the road.

Maybe $60 a day, plus or minus and not ruling out family outings or meals.

Trip Total: $2,641.34

Maximum without refining, hunting for deals, getting souvenirs, and assuming no breakdowns, etc:

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How’d You Get So Lucky?

Posted on June 1, 2016 by Freejack

I spend a bit of time on various forums and some posts are thought provoking and I try to be honest and thoughtful about my responses.

I pulled into a gas station and parked her under the canopy to wait it out. A guy in a wheel chair, missing both his legs, and looking totally homeless had pulled up under there as well. We just kinda nodded at each other. My wife went inside to hit the girls room and grab a bottle of water. After minute or so the old guy rolled over to where I was and started talking to me about the bike. Nice dude, but seemed worried about something, so I asked him if he was ok.

He said he wasn’t. Said he’d been living with a friend, but he died, and since he had no income and couldn’t keep the place by himself, he’d been put out. He didn’t seem like he was all there.

He then looked really conflicted, and said he hated to ask (staring the ground the whole time), but did I have any cash I could spare. I asked him if he needed something to eat. He looked even more embarrassed, held up a little plastic bag, and said “No, I still got a little food left. I really need to buy a hat. I need a hat bad.”

So I gave him $5. About that time my wife came back out, and the weather was clearing. He said “it’s been pretty bad today, y’all be careful on that thing”.

I said “we’re headed out of it. Looks pretty blue over that way”. He said “yeah, yeah it does”. As I was climbing back on the bike, he was looking really hard at me, my wife, the bike, and the blue sky off to the west. He said “can I ask you one more thing?” I said sure, man. He said “How’d you get so lucky?” and started to cry.

It’s a though provoking question. How did you get so lucky?

I have to believe there is some childhood prep involved. Mom exposed me to Science Fiction and Fantasy at a very young age so I’ve been a big big reader for a long time. Even in school, I’d be far ahead of the other students in my reading.

As a Navy Brat, we moved quite a lot (I have 44 addresses recorded). I guess you could become one of two types of people when you move a lot. My brother, who made friends quickly, or me, who was quiet all the time and spent most of my time in the Library reading.

My Dad would play games with us. I remember Battleship and Chess mainly. I played Chess with Dad until the day I beat him. He put the chess board away and never played me again. But to continue playing, at school I became Chess Champion two years in a row.

Chess led me to Wargaming and then into Role Playing games (Dungeons and Dragons to start) when I was in the Army. D&D was appealing because I read fantasy books like Conan The Barbarian and of course Wargaming already had me playing games with others.

At school I moved into Mechanical Drafting. Moving to a new school (and new state) had me taking Architectural Drafting for two elective periods in High School (I changed High Schools 4 times).

I joined the Army after high school and became a Graphic Artist. From there to a Typesetter on a typesetting computer. From there to buying a personal computer (Timex/Sinclair Z80). I loved working on computers and spent a lot of my time poking at it and inputting programs, then writing my own programs. It just so happens I was in “at the beginning” around 1980 and just kept on being paid to play with computers. As a “loner” and hobbiest, I continued to learn. My first programming job (part time), the owner had no problem with me taking home the computer I was coding on so I’d drag it, a monitor, etc home, and continue learning how to program. Opportunity. A friendly boss that saw a benefit of me taking a computer home. At my first full time job, I was good enough that I got raises every 6 months plus when I was leaving, they offered an additional raise.

I do wonder at times what I could have accomplished had my Dad actually motivated me. His requirements were “Astronaut or Ditch Digger”. Nothing else in between. And in retrospect, no apparent effort to lead me on an Astronaut path.

It seems I coast. I found something I like to do and I get paid reasonably well to do it. This past weekend and the weekend before that I read up on some technology we’re moving towards at work. Last year I used up three weeks of vacation to write some programs. Ultimately I have sufficient funds to buy motorcycles, guitars, games, and computers. Not all at once of course 🙂

So I don’t know if it’s luck or just upbringing or just right place at the right time. Does reading a lot really provide that much benefit to being “lucky”. Does reading increase curiosity or does curiosity lead to reading? I know gaming, and Dungeons and Dragons specifically led me to exploring and reading about things like Medieval times (like how a town is created) and being thoughtful about how to be entertaining (running the game for others).

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Updated Pre-ride Checklist

Posted on June 1, 2016 by Freejack

This is my updated list of gear that I bring on road trips. The old list is here. This one is updated for the new Kawasaki Concours I now have so there are a few changes. The Concours has a center stand! Makes it easier to check the differential fluid. Yep, shaft drive so no chain to adjust. I will need to make sure the oil is topped off though. As to the trips, I do make adjustments as I prepare for each trip so what I actually carry may change a bit.

  • The Road
    • Kawasaki Concours
      • Gas Tank
        • Tourmaster Tank Bag
      • Rider’s Seat
        • Carl Schelin (that’s me!)
      • Left Side
        • Saddlebag
      • Passenger Seat
        • Jeanne Ainsley ( 🙂 )
      • Right Side
        • Saddlebag
      • Luggage Rack
        • Trunk

Tank Bag

  • Left Pocket
    • Maps
  • Front Pocket
    • iPhone
    • Boostaroo
  • Right Pocket
    • iPhone Accessories Plug
  • Rear Pocket
    • Emergency Contact Info
    • Gathered Change
  • Main Compartment, Top
    • Notebook
    • Pens, Sharpie
  • Main Compartment
    • AAA Batteries
    • Bandanna (2)
    • Camera Case
      • Camera Batteries (3)
    • Camera Stand
    • Disc Lock
    • Flashlight
    • Leatherman
    • Nuts
    • Passport
    • Plexus
    • Reading Glasses
    • Small Tote Bag (Mechanical)
      • Cable Ties
      • Crazy Glue
      • Flashlight
      • Flashlight Bulbs
      • Headband for Flashlight
      • JB Weld
      • Lighter
      • Nytril Gloves (Blue)
      • Pocket Knife
      • Seam Sealer
      • Spare Fuses
      • Spare Nuts and Bolts
      • Tire Pressure Gauge
      • Twist Ties
    • Small Tote Bag (Personal)
      • Chapstick
      • Earplugs
      • Insect Spray
      • Ointment, Antibiological
      • Sunscreen (3)
      • Tylenol
    • Spare Keys (locks, Motorcycle, Givi)
    • Sunglasses
    • Vitamins

Carl

  • Helmet
  • Keep Dry Shirt
  • Bicycle Pants
  • Socks
  • Gloves, Yellow
  • Alpenstars Jacket
    • Arm Reflector
  • Boots

Jeanne

  • Helmet
  • Shirt
  • Pants
  • Socks
  • Gloves
  • Jacket
  • Boots

Right Saddlebag

  • Aerostitch First Aid Kit
  • Engine Oil
  • Tire Repair Kit
  • Tire Air Pump
  • WD-40
  • Bungie Net

Left Saddlebag

  • Bungie Cord
  • Strap
  • Brake Fluid
  • Electrical Kit
  • Sammy (chamois like towel)
  • Trash Bags (5)
  • Tool Kit
  • Tools (axle wrench, 10/12mm, 2 hex)
  • Waterproof Gloves
  • Waterproof Glove Cover
  • Kickstand Plate

Trunk

  • Raincoat
  • Rainpants
  • iPad
  • Trash Bag 1
    • Jeans (1 Pair)
    • T-Shirts (4 Pair)
    • Socks (5 Pair)
    • Underwear (5 Pair)
  • Trash Bag 2
    • Sweatshirt
    • Swimsuit
    • Book (3)
  • Trash Bag 3
    • Dirty Clothes
  • Medium Tote Bag
    • Ear Plugs
    • Soap
    • Disposable Razor
    • Eyewash
    • Fingernail Clippers
    • Toilet Paper
    • Mirror
    • Wash’n’Dri’s
    • Headlight Bulb
    • Turnsignal Bulb
    • Small Tote Bag (Bathroom/Shower)
      • Deodorant
      • Disposable Razor
      • Floss
      • Q-Tips
      • Soap
      • Toothbrush & Holder
      • Toothpaste
  • Small Tote Bag (Electrical)
    • Camera Data Cable
    • Camera Recharger
    • iPad/iPhone Recharger
    • Camera Recharger
  • Tank Bag Cover
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The Show Must Go On!

Posted on May 22, 2016 by Freejack

I was listening to the two songs I had to sing and trying to remember the words, mainly to When I Come Along and after a bit, Jeanne and I took a bike ride up Rt 7 to Peak to Peak and back down 119 as a bit of relaxation.

We had a group event as well with Michael and Marcus, a Crawdad Boil. Michael ordered 70 lbs of Crawdads from Louisiana. Unfortunately we had to bail to go to the show just as they were finishing.

The show though!

About 20 minutes prior I was getting anxious yet again however it wasn’t as bad as previous butterflies and I got over it a little quicker. Sadly I forgot my picks and earplugs so had to spend a few bucks at the store so I could be ready. I pulled out my pedal board (tuner and distortion pedal) and got it set up, then the guitar and plugged in to the board. Then started tuning up and practicing a bit.

Jeanne had my iPad and the GoPro to try and record the show. A few bits were missed at the beginning of songs and the group intro was missed but nothing horrible. I did get recordings of the show which was perfect 🙂

I spent Sunday getting it loaded onto the computer and downloaded Microsoft Movie Maker to stitch them together. No sound in the app but the final was just fine. I uploaded it to YouTube:

Humorously I laughed at my singing but as I got used to it (or maybe I got better) it started sounding a little better. To me on stage with earplugs and such, it sounded pretty good if a bit high 🙂

Simple Man was a lot better than rehearsals. Still didn’t get all the notes but I did get a majority of them. And I played Simple Man on Rocksmith and improved by 100%, now that I know what I’m doing 🙂

Anyway, it was fun and I was able to sing and play so I did like that. Maybe voice lessons next 😀

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Friday Rock Camp!

Posted on May 22, 2016 by Freejack

Got there at 5:30pm. I’ve been practicing Simple Man and getting better however the start is still a bit off.

We went through the setlist, playing each one twice and then worked out the introductions and band name (CRIMe; Carl, Rich, Isaac, and Mike). It went pretty well overall and Simple Man was a bit more accurate. There were some instructions; directional mic so stay at the mic, lose the lyric sheets (taped to the monitor actually). Last minute tips.

Once done with that, we played a full set once again with the stage lights on. Jeanne was there along with Tim and John back in the shadows.

We ran through a couple of more times and touched on a couple of places where Mike wanted some extra time but generally it went pretty good.

A little anxiety of course; getting close and I’m singing! 🙂

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Thursday Rock Camp!

Posted on May 20, 2016 by Freejack

Clearly I haven’t worked on my arpeggiation as much as I should have.

Yesterday after getting home I practiced with Tab Pro (the Ultimate Guitar app) which let me drop the speed to 50% and I practiced the three patterns over and over again. I gradually sped up to 100% (which is fast) and was just a touch faster.

Then lesson time again. I’d missed a lesson and my instructor is excellent about rescheduling, partly because he also has to reschedule from time to time. We went over Simple Man again, but briefly, and learning to sing and play Green Day. I can sing it or play it but not both reliably. During the lesson I got better with that. I had 30 minutes to kill after the lesson before rehearsal and continued to practice Simple Man and played through the four songs.

During rehearsal I got to about 80% on Simple Man where I missed mainly the Am7 part but flubbed very few of the C/G/Am chords. Getting a lot better. I am sweating big time for this song though. My socks were wet

We whipped up a quick Jam and I suggested the 12 bar blues. We went through pretty well a couple of times and then bailed.

This morning however, the tips of my first three fingers on my left hand; middle and ring especially, feel pretty sore

Need more practice.

Tonight we’ll be trying this without the lyrics sheets so I’ll be spending the day memorizing the two I’ll be singing.

As Jeanne will be attending tonight, there may be video of the rehearsal. There will be video for tomorrow though.

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Wednesday Rock Camp

Posted on May 19, 2016 by Freejack

Last night I went home and practiced Simple Man with a metronome. First I tried to figure out the beat so I could set the metronome and then tried playing the arpeggiation. I tried it first by just playing the C pattern (and Am pattern) without fretting the chord, over and over again. Sometimes I’d get one or two in and flub it, others I’d get quite a bit in before messing it up. I switched to the G pattern as well. Then tried the C pattern to G pattern to Am pattern twice then C pattern, over and over. That was a bit harder. I will need to try and get that Am7 chord down though.

At the store, we went through all songs and did pretty well. I did a lot better with Simple Man, about 50% playing the proper pattern for the first three and making it up for the fourth as long as I hit that G on the e string at the right time. 🙂

C
-------------------------
-------------1-----------
------0--------0---0-----
--------2--------2-------
----3-----3--------------
-------------------------

G
-------------------------
-------------------------
-------------0-----------
------0--------0---0-----
--------2--------2-------
----3-----3--------------

Am
-------------------------
-------------1-----------
------2--------2---2-----
--------2--------2-------
----0-----0--------------
-------------------------

Am7
-------------3-----------
------1--------1---------
--------2----------------
----------2--------------
----0------------0-2-----
-------------------------

Tuesday night I was basically just hitting the first three or four notes of the C and G chords and totally off by a string on the Am. Last night I was hitting all 8 notes on C and G most of the time and the Am some of the time. I basically played the first four of the Am7 and then G *ping* before starting over. If I tried to play all 8 notes, I’d flub the C and maybe the G chords.

Since I’m not hitting anything on the B or e strings for the G chord, I’m just leaving my index finger on the C as an anchor and moving my 2nd and 3rd fingers up one string, then down to Am, then moving my 3rd finger up to C. So CEG to CBG to CEA. Just need to work on that last arpeggiation.

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