Is It Possible To Learn How To Play Guitar After 30?

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 FIND YOUR REASONS AND BUILD THE PASSION:

     Before we go into answering the question you need to ask yourself why you wish to learn how to play the guitar. Do you wish to be a professional and make some income while playing? Do you just wish to play to impress friends and family? Is it a hobby you wish to cultivate? Do you wish to play because it is ‘sexy’; oh yes some people play for this reason (nothing wrong with that though). Do you love music and wish you could play them on guitar? Do you just wish to learn how to play a musical instrument and so you found the guitar most convenient? I say all the reasons stated above and many more are legitimate reasons. They are like the pillars on which your passion for the instrument revolves. You can then build on them and grow.

WHY NOT?

How old are you? Let me tell you my story. I bought my guitar when I was 32 years old but I never started any real lessons until I was beyond 35 years. I placed it in the cover and would occasionally pose for pictures with it. Oh yes, I did that!! I always had the passion but at that point, creating picture impressions with the guitar took hold of me and I became lazy. I started seriously way beyond 35yrs and I can confidently tell you that within 6 months I reached the intermediate level; I could play most difficult songs. This I did all on my own with softwares and videos I found online. I do not claim that this is an act of genius but the point here is that, it’s never too late to start at whatever age so long as you have the passion.

PASSION AND ACTION:

Write down three major reasons why you wish to learn how to play the guitar. You may or may not find them among the reasons I have stated but I believe everyone have their unique reasons. Find yours and build on it from there. I was lucky to have an uncle who played but that was not how I built my passion. My passion arose from the fact that I loved all genres of music. I gradually went from just enjoying the lyrics to paying attention to the guitar portions and harmonies of tracks. Infact, at that point, I didn’t even know I had the passion for the guitar until I subconsciously started humming guitar portions from tracks. I started paying detailed attention to tracks with acoustic guitar harmonies because that was where my interest laid. Then I moved to listening to more jazz tracks by Norman Brown and Earl Klugh. Finally, I asked myself, if you can’t sing it, why not play tracks in Jazz form? Then I started saving to get my first guitar. You would realize from my narration that, there was a systematic progress from passion to action. Don’t tell me you don’t have yours. I know you have yours so you’re good to go despite your age.

YOU MIGHT NOT GET TO PLAY IN A BAND BUT….

You might not master enough to play in a band but then again, does that mean that everyone who started playing the guitar at an early age played in a band? It is possible to discover the genius within you and get hired by a band but wanting to just play by the ‘campfire’ is also fine if that’s what you want. I honestly do not see the big deal with being just a ‘campfire’ player. What if you don’t get hired by a band to play? You can always go solo and play covers at events like parties, festivals, weddings etc or compose your own stuff and play as well. Create some video recordings and post them online to gauge the impressions of people.

WHERE AND HOW TO START

Hire a teacher and get started. If you’re one to want to learn on your own like I did, then there are tons of information online which you can sieve through. Just find what’s perfect for you. I started with Gibson Learn and Master Guitar CDs that I bought. I also bought a few softwares like Terfview and Music Notes as well. They helped me learn scales faster and hone my finger-style. Pick three simple songs and start by learning their strumming styles. Anything from reggae, country or pop genres would do. It is never too late folks. Just start today!

A LITTLE UPDATE: I came across this awesome documentary on BBC about this orchestra group from DRC called Orchestre Symphonique Kimbanguiste. Here is the link (http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b04pkvpn). It tells of how a group of people from all walks of life were able to learn and play various musical instruments, probably more difficult ones than the guitar and play in an orchestra. They performed in London. A great story of how with passion and desire you can achieve anything.  Go watch and be inspired. Awesome stuff. 

Is it possible to know who viewed you on Facebook?

IS IT REALLY POSSIBLE TO KNOW WHO VIEWED YOUR FACEBOOK PROFILE?

Question! Does it matter these days who viewed your Facebook profile, anyway? Maybe it does to the extent that you would like to know which guy or girl checked you out most so that you can gauge their interest depending on your motive, or maybe you have some kind of business and would like to know who is interested.  However, if you would be honest with yourself, you hardly check profiles these days because Facebook provides everything in NEWSFEEDS and the TICKER on the top right corner of your newsfeeds page.  Afterall with the current Facebook privacy settings, if you have not disabled newsfeeds for a particular friend or friends, you see everything they do with these two components, from status updates to new pictures or album uploads/updates, pictures they like, comments they make, new life events and virtually everything they do. This makes the need to check profiles of your friends less likely unless there is a major reason but if you still insist on knowing then here is the deal.

IS IT POSSIBLE REALLY?

Currently, there is no technology or Facebook Application that can tell you who checked out your profile as far as I know. There is one Application though called Online People that seemingly shows something but even that is only those who viewed your profile within the Application and they may presumably have gone on to check your Facebook profile as well. How Facebook Algorithm works is only known to them and for reasons best known to them as well. However, I wish to speak about a particular process which is viral on YouTube that claims to have a solution to the “who viewed your Facebook profile” topic.  Have you come across a tutorial like this? 

.

If you haven’t, just go to YouTube and search the topic. “How to know who viewed your FaceBook Profile” and many of such tutorials will pop up. Initially I was caught up in the craze too until I decided to put it to test and this is what I found.

1.      WHAT YOU SEE IS WHAT YOU GET:

When I first went through the motion to find out what this was all about, I became immediately suspicious when I checked the top ten on the list from the chat window (I don’t use Facebook chat live, I’d rather send messages offline). I realized that the list in my chat window followed the same order in the page source list. The one on top of my list was actually a cousin I communicated with many times within the last two days. It was same with everyone in my top ten chat window.

2.      THE TEST:

i)                    FIRST TWO WEEKS

Still doubt me? Well, I conducted another test to verify these claims. I created a dummy profile purposely for this experiment and used it for four weeks to test my claims before I deleted it (be warned though, this is not tolerated by Facebook so ensure you delete it after the experiment).  I then added this profile as a friend and ensured that for the next two weeks, I would check my real profile with the dummy for not less than 50 times a day.

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Guess what happened? Nothing changed!! My dummy profile remained at the position it was in both the page source experiment with its corresponding position in the chat window. Alternatively, you can ask a friend who is down on your list to check your profile everyday as many times they can without any form of communication at all (no status comments or likes, wall posts or likes and messages) between the two of you and the result would be the same.

ii)                  THIRD WEEK

On the third week I took it upon myself to strictly checkout pictures of my real profile with the dummy. I noticed that, my dummy profile moved up a bit in the chat window but never got half way up on the ladder much more get to the top.

iii)                FOURTH WEEK

On the fourth week, I conducted several correspondences back and forth between profiles (real and dummy). I posted on the walls, liked posts from newsfeeds (without going to the profile) and sent several messages from either profile to the other as many times as I could and BINGO my dummy profile moved to the top of both my page source list which  corresponded exactly in the same manner with the chat window list.

3.      YOU ARE INTRODUCED TO SOME FORM OF CODING CALLED SOURCE CODING :

What is source coding in computing?  Source Code is defined by dictionary.com as the original form of a computer program before it is converted into a machine-readable code. The process basically introduces you to what source coding looks like. What you see in the page source window is basically the coding for the arrangement of content on a particular web page that you have opened and this was created by the makers of FaceBook in building the total website. It is as simple as that.

OBSERVATIONS:  

I observed that for someone to really move to the top of your list, the gestures must be reciprocal. In the page source “initicialchatfriendslist”, you find only your friends as those who have viewed your profile. This is not logical considering the fact that it is possible for your profile to have been viewed most by someone who is not even on your friends list.  How come then that, they are not in the list?

CONCLUSION:

The conclusion for me is simple. There is currently no way of knowing who checked your profile the most on Facebook. What you see is just the coding for a particular web page you have opened. Google and Twitter Analytics provide you some insight of the impact you are making on social media with your business or social activities but even they do not provide who exactly viewed your profile. As someone venturing into online start-ups, I find these two very ‘friendly’ because their analysis gives me an insight into the path I need to take and focus on. For now, I do not know of any technology that allows you to know who viewed your profile most on FaceBook. If anyone out there knows of any such technology, they should feel free to share. Also feel free to share this post.

Beginner Guitar ( little techniques to help you speed up lessons)

HOW I THOUGHT MYSELF TO PLAY THE GUITAR IN REALISTIC TIME PERIOD

You got your first guitar and it feels great! You are eager to start learning chords and start playing immediately, fantastic! You have seen adverts on how it is possible to be a ‘genius’ in guitar playing within three weeks. You got a few videos and started learning something but you hit a roadblock and realized it is not that easy. You put the guitar in its case out of frustration and only occasionally pick it out to practice. You are simply not advancing. Don’t worry, it is normal. I felt the same 3 months into learning how to play the guitar but I managed to short-circuit the process by combining some simple tricks, some of which I created on my own. That is what I wish to share with you. If you are a beginner in playing the guitar, doing self lessons, here are a few ideas I wish to share that can also help you speed up your lessons and probably move you to an advanced level in a month or two. It is more realistic to suggest that, in self-teaching, you are not going to become a ‘genius’ overnight because it takes time and practice on a daily basis to improve. Here are a few approaches I took when I started out fresh.

NEVER PUT THE GUITAR IN THE CASE

         When I first started out, I would usually put my guitar in the case after every practice for the funny reason that it looked ‘cute’. Infact, I would occasionally hang it over my shoulders and take some selfies which I shared with friends on Facebook. Funny huh?!! Now, it is ok if you want to look ‘hot’ hanging the guitar over your shoulders in selfies every now and then but never keep the guitar in the cover. Take it out immediately! Of course you can put the guitar in the case when it is necessary, for instance when traveling. Just make sure it’s not in the case when you’re at home. Infact, this helps preserve the wood and glue of which the guitar is made of from absorbing heat. It also keep it away from direct sunlight. The guitar needs good ventilation to last long.

DON’T PUT THE GUITAR OUT OF REACH

        

        Now this is a very important point. You should place the guitar where it is not out of reach and where you can always see it. This is what I did when I realized I was not practicing enough due to time constraints (work, school, etc). I placed my guitar in my hall, close to the where I usually sit to watch sports and news on TV and also have breakfast. My guitar was never out of reach, therefore any time I retired in the sofa, I was able to pick it up and practice, even if it was for only ten minutes. It goes without saying that “little drops of water make a mighty ocean”. At the beginner level, every ‘micro second’ in time is important.

INSPIRATION AND DESIRE

      Create some inspiration and desire on your own. Why would you want to learn how to play the  guitar?

•      Is it because you heard that playing a musical instrument means you have higher IQ?
•     Is it because it keeps your stress level down?
•    Is it to impress your social circles?
•    Is it to make some residual income playing a gig or is it to become a professional player.
•    Is it because you like how a certain music icon plays the guitar and would want to emulate them? 

Whatever it is, there is a very good reason from which you can create desire and gain inspiration to continue playing. Once you have that, you should keep reminding yourself daily and that would inspire you to pick up the guitar. For instance, I love jazz so I gained inspiration from watching videos of musicians like Norman Brown and Earl Klugh play. I also gave my guitar the name of a girl I fell in love with. These were enough inspirational reasons for me to pick up my guitar every day.

CRAWL BEFORE YOU WALK

       When I started out in self-learning, I was so eager to play like my icons so I started learning chords straight out without knowing the names of the strings, what a fret was or how to read music sheets. I just picked videos and started mimicking what I was seeing and it was so frustrating when I was unable to get it. I almost gave up but that was when desire played an important role. Then I did some research online using Google of course. That was when I discovered the various steps I needed to take before going ‘full blast’. I also bought a beginner’s CD from Gibson (http://www.learnandmaster.com/guitar/). It was of great help.

SIMPLE FINGER EXERCISES

       

       Finally, in order to be able to play well, you need strong fingers or better still, a strong grip to enable you to press down the strings and bring out the correct sounds. These are some very important finger exercises that you need to perform daily to strengthen your fingers in order to be able to play well. Remember that as a beginner, you would experience some finger pains and your pinky would be your weakest finger in all of this therefore it would need some special attention. First of all, ensure that your fingernails are always trimmed.

•  Get one of these equipments: (http://atwiki.assistivetech.net/index.php/Image:Hand_grip.jpg).   It  helps strengthen your grip. There are various types and I am sure you would get one from your local store.
•        Do these two finger stretching exercise from the video below, daily as well. 

NUMB YOUR FINGER TIPS

     

      When you start out as a beginner guitar player, you would develop blisters and sour fingertips on either of your hands depending on which hand you use to press down the strings. It would eventually heal, become like cons and numb to pain. However, you can speed up the process and enjoy the freedom of playing regularly with no more pain. This is what I personally did daily.

I dipped a face towel in hot water whenever I can and pressed my fingers on it. I repeated this about 5 times at a time. I also did something funny and interesting which helped. Anytime I was pressing my clothes in the evening in preparation for work the next day, I would press my finger tips on the area I had just pressed until the heat evaporated. It was just a way of ‘killing two birds with one stone’; preparing for work the next and numbing my finger tips. Got it? It may seem insignificant but it was effective and an absolute time saver. I have also heard that circling your finger tips over candle light helps but I have never tried it. Find what works for you and apply but whatever you do, numbing your fingertips is an important part of playing guitar so you need to get used to it.

Make the strategies listed above as part of your daily routine and you are good to go. I hope I was able to help. Feel free to ask any questions. Enjoy playing the guitar.

7 Reasons Why You Need the Coconut Tree

At home I have several trees and plants, most of which bear different fruits. My blogs aim to share with you real pictures of these trees and plants and the fact that through research, I discovered that I was doing the right thing all along because there are immense health benefits in consuming these fruits. Maybe after reading, you might consider planting these trees at home.   Many people ask of my age and when I tell them, they become surprised. Don’t get me wrong, I am not a vegetarian. I eat everything but in moderation and ensure that I do lots of exercise and eat a lot of these fruits mostly as desert, as well. I do not remember the last time I visited the hospital and I believe that nature has provided us with a lot of solutions which we tend to overlook.

 I start with my coconut tree

which I planted a few years ago.  Planting a coconut tree is simple. Find a dried coconut fruit and place it in a mushy area. If you don’t have a mushy area at home, you can simply create one by just turning a soil spot in your backyard. Pour bucket of water on the soil and place the dry coconut fruit on it like this 

. Simply ensure that there is a constant supply of water on the spot so that the place never dries. In no time, coconut leaves will sprout out and then you can choose a spot and plant it.

Here are seven reasons why you should have a coconut tree. Even if it’s not a tree favourable in your climate, there are still several coconut products out there that you can benefit from albeit I must say, the natural and undiluted state provides best results .I talk from personal experience.

1.      Instead of storing body fat coconut is utilized by the body to produce energy. Endurance is therefore highly improved with the intake of coconut. It’s particularly good for gym workouts and also for athletes so one can substitute water with coconut juice instead, during these sessions. Next time you are going to the gym, replace your bottled water with some coconut juice and notice the difference.

2. Naturally, the energy that coconut provides leads to an increase in metabolism.  It is absolutely possible to eat coconut and go for long hours without food.

3.      Coconut has the ability to improve digestion, reduce inflammation and cut out bowel disorders through the absorption of various nutrients.

4.       It also replenishes the skin and prevents wrinkles (I can personally testify to this) It further provides dietary fiber which is very beneficial to general weight lose and digestion.

5.      Coconut has several anti-microbial properties which aids the body in its defense against diseases. By anti-microbial, I mean anti-fungi, anti-bacterial and anti-parasitic properties that boost the body’s immune system in defense against diseases.

6.      Coconut eaten in any form has the ability to help in the absorption of calcium and magnesium which are responsible for strong bones and teeth.  Have some more coconut be protected against osteoporosis further in life.

7.      Finally, some Rastafarians have claimed that washing the hair with coconut juice and applying coconut oil to it, provides great condition, improves hair growth and prevents hair breakage.

Next time you have lunch or breakfast, ensure you have some sliced nut from coconut as your desert. If you have the tree and you pluck the fruit, there’s a simple method of extracting the juice and the nut. You can simply use a sharp knife or machete to skin the entire fruit, and then locate three tiny spots through which you can pierce a hole:

 insert a drinking straw and just suck away: 

 After that, simply cut open the entire fruit and eat the nut:

 Alternatively, you can simply trim of the husk from the bottom part of the fruit, cut off a round lid just at the edge and drink the juice: 

 Afterwards you can simply use a spoon to scoop out the fruit and enjoy. 

EBOLA

It is 7^th October, 2014, 4:00 am and I just woke up with a pounding headache, apparently a symptom of a hangover as a result of a little shindig I had with some Muslim friends yesterday, an Eid celebration holiday in my Country, Ghana. This headache was to be compounded further by the daily updates blurring from my little battery powered radio, which is tuned in default to the BBC, announcing the ravaging effects of Ebola on THREE WEST AFRICAN STATES (GUINEA, LIBERIA AND SIERRA LEONE) and the latest victim, a Spanish nurse who became the first nurse to contract the disease outside Africa. I take out Nigeria because it has effectively halted the spread. West Africa is suffocating under a heap of stigma and stereotype; nothing new to Africa so never mind.  Images of a police convoy racing through the streets of Spain and leading the ambulance conveying this nurse to a quarantine centre suddenly conjured the two word phrase ‘IF ONLY’ which hit me like a missile. Then, it became clear, how certain actions and inactions has lead to this scourge spreading like wildfire.  If only everyone has been a little less ignorant but more pro-active, the world would not be threatened by an Ebola Armageddon today. There are a lot of experts bandying frightening statistics and projections around so since I am not a health expect I shall not stray into that territory. So what about ‘IF ONLY’?? Let’s start.

In my opinion, the World Health Organisation (W.H.O.), exhibited some form of naivety when at the onset of the disease in Guinea, some nations in West Africa decided to take ‘pro-active’ actions to prevent the disease from entering their countries. The W.H.O. claimed Ebola at the time was not an epidemic yet therefore countries should not take ‘panic’ measures. This raises a curious question. Was the .W.H.O., at the time, asking countries to wait until the disease reaches an epidemic level before taking any action? This lead to a lot of complacency since the W.H.O. has all the expertise and is considered an authority on world health issues. Maybe the W.H.O. was oblivious of how Africans culturally treat their dead but that cannot be forgiven because this is not the first case of Ebola in Africa.

THE WORLD WOULD HAVE BEEN SAFE FROM EBOLA TODAY

• If only people have not insisted on applying some outmoded cultural practises which are usually steeped in superstition and religious bigotry in some parts of Africa.
•  If only, people have not insisted on handling their own dead relatives as most cultures demand in Africa.
•  If only people have not attacked health workers with machetes and other weapons and insisted on taking away sick and dead relatives.
•  If only people have been less superstitious and have been more realistic.
•  If only governments have educated citizens on all the above.
•  If only governments have paid less attention to the W.H.O. at the onset and have continued with proactive actions to halt the disease in its track.
•  If only some people around the rest of the world would know and understand that there are 18 countries in West Africa and only 3 and a half have been affected by Ebola and if they would take actual care to know these countries in order to take the appropriate actions when people from these countries arrive in their countries.
•  If only people would understand that Ebola does not spread like flu does.
•     If only people would volunteer rather than stigmatise out of fear.
•  If only the rest of the world have realised early that this virus has the potential to ruin world security and that it isn't just an African problem.
•     If only a little bit of common sense have been applied early.

Then the world would not have arrived at this point.

Ebola had only managed to spread in 3 out 18 West African Countries. This happened mainly because Ebola is not and has never been a ‘West African disease’ therefore when it started, people attributed superstition to it and insisted on performing normal funeral rites (i am not justifying superstition). In doing so, a lot of people came into contact with infected corpses and sick people which further ignited the chain of infections. That was how the disease spiraled out of control. Therefore, it’s not as if someone with Ebola sneezes and everyone next to him/her catches the disease. Medical experts have clearly stated that unless one comes into contact with the bodily fluids of someone who is very ill from the disease, one will just not catch it(www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs103/en). Every country has an absolute right to protect its citizens anyway they must but let's becareful not to allow individuals and organisations with crude political agenda, to hijack this tragedy for their benefit. For example why would someone tell their kids not to receive gifts or letters from Africa. It's absurd!!