I have taught guitar off and on for quite some time, my students seem to come in little clumps. I have some serious back issues that keep me from slinging equipment around to any large degree, but teaching is the best gig in the world! I do charge money as a gate to sift through the curious and uncurious, but the amount of money and with the time I put in, it's "working" for a few dollars an hour. But, so?... I do find that the hardest part of teaching kids nowadays is that the smart ones, in order to get into even a good "public" college, have their time and "hobbies" regimented down to the last second. I really feel sorry for them, they're joining clubs and doing theater and public service, besides keeping a B+ or low A average a kid is expected to have two athletics, five measurable "accomplishments"... no more staying up all night playing a solidbody and catching up your sleep in school!
I have finally learned that sometimes learning from others experiences is possible, I really
don't have to screw up every darn thing myself to "prove it." In that vein, I have tried to identify people who have "retired well", and others for whom it's not going so well. It's a bit creepy categorizing friends & neighbors that way so I don't yak it up, but you do have the chance to see if you can track commonalities among the happier ones. And then experiment with it yourself. My observation is that just having enough money to go on cruises and hit golf balls 1,000 miles away ain't it, BTW; it's got to tickle your
brain. Personally I feel very lucky that I have an incurable allergy to television, because there's nothing on there that isn't
SO dumbed down I take it as an insult - "Oh, those idiots will watch anything..."
The last time I saw my father really lit up was when he found an online site for WWII veterans, asking them to search their diaries and memory and contribute whatever they could... he banged out 10,000 words or so, looking forward to it every morning. Looking back I wish I had tried to find more.. something?... like that, because it was work and fun for him both. The brain is a muscle, and this was a guy who got up in the morning 15
years after retirement and put on pants with a belt and hard shoes and his shirt tucked in and glasses in his pocket... just in case?
Now, just for an example, go back to the beginning of this thread. And count down how many of the posts are not only lucid with correct spelling, but are structured paragraphs with an introductory sentence, supporting examples, and a conclusion drawn from examples. And there's passion, and sadness, and remembrance of fun, and the big question - What Do I Do?
I, for one, would love to read your stories.
