Thanks to a wonderful b-day present (early), I am now the excited new owner of a sitar.

I have quested since 1991 to find a decent one that I could put my hands on (rather than buying online, etc.).

I originally played a sitar back in 1991 when Ernest, a Pakistani fellow who was a co-worker and friend back when I worked as a clerk at 7-11 in Utah (yes, 7-11, usually graveyard shifts), invited me to his house to jam with him.

He had drums, guitar and sitar.

He allowed me to play around with it, and we had fun jamming. I think it was a "single". The one I have now is much more complex, a "double" with a double gourd even. I'm still learning the lingo, and reading the book.

All of which is straight from India originally. The instrument is used, but in very good shape from what I can tell.

I managed to get the primary strings tuned last night, I have not tried to tackle the sympathetic strings yet.

This complex instrument is going to take me years to get the hang of.

I very much look forward to the challenge.

Meanwhile my flute playing is coming along nicely.

So now my collection of instruments for tools of expression of my being include:

• Yamaha CG-120 Classical Guitar
• Ovation Celebrity Steelstring acoustic-electric guitar (round back)
• Fender 12 string steel acoustic guitar (serial number 0000000000045)
• Samick electric 4 string bass guitar
• Other miscellaneous guitars
• Casio keyboard (Details pending) with midi hookups to PC
• African Djembe drum with real goatskin
  
• 3 "regular" size 6 hole Native American wood flutes
• 1 "double barrel" 6 hole Native American wood flute
• 1 "huge" 6 hole Native American wood flute
• Didgeridoo (midsize wooden)
• Harmonica C key (my chromatic 16 key is still missing)
• Double gourd, double Toomba? Sitar from India
• My computers with various composing, capturing, and editing software and hardware.
  

I"m thinking of putting together some multitracking improv in the near future in my nearly finished basement studio. I haven't done any recording of my own music in far too long, it's been aching to come out and be recorded, I just haven't had enough quiet time to do ti. But with all that's going on/wrong right now, I REALLY need the solace soon.

Cheers for now!

-Hawke