Children, Kids

"Jhon and the Tooth Fairy" by Lilly

by NeilEnnis 7 June 2009 No Comments Shortlink

Once upon a time there lived a little boy named Jhon. Jhon really wanted his tooth to come out but it wasn’t going to come out. He tride and tride to pull it out but it still didn’t come out.

But one night when he was eting dinner he felt somethink wead (wierd) in his mouth, His tooth came out. He was so iksited. When he went to bed he put it under his pillow and the tooth fary came. She gave him two dollas.

The next day when he woak up he saw that his tooth was goan (gone).

He saw his two dollas. At school he spent it on tuckshop. He bort himself a slush puppy. It was dallishus.

The End.

Music, WX5

Music – Live and Raw

by NeilEnnis 6 June 2009 No Comments Shortlink

Here’s some more live music from our jam session this morning.

As with previous sessions, Brian picks the chords on the guitar, and I improvise on the WX5 playing whatever music seems to fit.

The end result has plenty of mistakes. We could have tidied it up post-mix, but the aim of the exercise is to create something fresh, and real, rather than make something tidy and manufactured.

Life, Friends and Music mean more when they’re real – when you can see the flaws, but you know that what you see is what you get, and you like it anyway.

I hope you like them

1. Happy Day (Floboe and Guitar)
We just started warming up with this song at the start and didn’t intend to record it, but we were having fun with it, so we decided to record it. Every Saturday is a happy day for me – it’s a lot of fun to sit down for an hour and make music.

2. Almost Knockin’ (Floboe & Guitar)
This one was an exercise on a known chord progression. The chords on this song are the same as “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door” except we’ve thrown a bridge in the middle. The hard thing is NOT to play the tune you’re used to hearing, but to create something new.

3. Little Boy Blues (Clarinet & Guitar).
I love what Brian does on the guitar on this one. It’s a delight to learn with such a talented musician. I don’t know how he can do so much on one instrument.
This one’s cheeky. I think the blues teach you not to take yourself, or life too seriously. Kids teach you this too, so perhaps Kids and the Blues are related some way?

4. Minor Tears (Air Sax & Guitar)
The Air Sax has a haunting quality about it. It’s ideal for slow minor blues. You might notice it “squeaks” a bit in the high register. That’s not through bad fingering. The tone generator is programmed to “break” when it goes up high. I suppose whoever created that voice thought that something so sad should have a few cracks in it.

5. Evensong (Trumpet & Guitar)
When I close my eyes playing this, I’m sitting on a hillside, playing a smooth trumpet, watching the sun go down.

Children, Kids, Lawnton

Fun with genetics

by NeilEnnis 17 May 2009 No Comments Shortlink


Party sparklers on steroids. Lawnton on a Saturday night 🙂 – 12seconds.tv

“What’s a sparkler bomb got to do with genetics”, you ask.

Towards the end, after the “sparkles” there’s a whispery high pitched laugh, a bit like “Mutley” on 70’s cartoon “Whacky Races”. That’s me. But what’s wierd is it’s how my Dad laughs too, especially at something “Naughty”. I’m sure if he had popped over here last night, we both would have been laughing like this!

I love Dad, so it’s always fun to discover something else I have in common with him.

Oh, and by the way, well done on the fireworks boys! The neighbors probably think we’re forcing down the price of real estate in the area, but you demonstratred a good grasp of physics and chemistry to pull off such a spectacular display.


Part time models – Youtube

And Jonno, my son, I’m really proud of your most recent bass guitar performance on this video. Nice to know we share some music genes, although yours seem to have mutated from Jazz into Heavy Metal.

I should mention that your bass guitar broke shortly before this performance, so you were playing on a totally unfamiliar instrument.

Well done mate.

Genetics can be nightmarish at times, but I think these two videos demonstrate that it can be fun too!

Tasmania

The Psychedelic Cows of Launceston

by NeilEnnis 12 May 2009 No Comments Shortlink

Legend has it that Sir Richard Branson once owned these cows.

Vandals stole the horns from one of the cows, and the legs from another one, but they still remain an excellent example of art in public spaces.

These cows have “lived” in this field close to the centre of Launceston, Tasmania for over a year, and (I think) look fantastic.

Someone told me that one morning, the people of Launceston awoke to find the cows had been moved to the middle of the local highway, aparently directing traffic.

Like the crazy bloke in the video says…. “Moo!”.

Postcards

Coolum Beach, Sunshine Coast, Australia

by NeilEnnis 8 May 2009 No Comments Shortlink

A post card that Lilly recieved last year from friend Sophie.

Thanks for the card, Sophie. We love Coolum too.

And thanks for letting me share it, Lilly!

I love the stamp too (click on it to see the larger image, it’s worth it) – it could be anywhere on the Aussie coastline during the summer holidays at the beach. Dad’s listening to the test match on the radio, the van is full of sand, and there’s not enough room in the fridge because of the beer.