I think I'm going to have to remove all the (now compacted and difficult to dig) gravel I've already got, dig the thing deeper, and add four to six layers of cardboard (in place of the weed control membrane). My two layers of cardboard wasn't enough, and cardboard does degrade... but so does every commercial membrane I've seen. And maybe follow your lead w regard to bricks... I wanted to do it without an edging but I think that may be untenable, since the gravel and dirt seem rather fond of each other.
Oof.
As for music stuff, I'm good at it because I've been doing it for over twenty years, and I play with people a few times a week (band practice and at least one session). If I *only* do that, I can coast, but if I want to get better I have to practice, and I really do need extra motivation or self-management to do it, usually. It's especially important now I'm trying to learn both singing and tenor guitar -- it's so long since I've been a beginner!
I've found that it helps to have a goal or project ("I want to get THIS song to passable level"). For reference, my 'okay' level on my little chart is 15 minutes -- in 15 minutes of focused practice, I can either get all the way through my vocal exercises, OR make serious headway on a new fiddle tune, OR get my fingers tired on guitar ('cause I'm still wimpy at that). My 'excellent' time is 45 minutes or higher, which seems to be about the limit of my ability to focus on one instrument. Unless I'm at fiddle camp where there's lots of new exciting stuff to learn, or I'm playing with someone else, I just kinda peter out after 45 minutes no matter what.
I know fancy dedicated musickers will talk about spending four hours a day practicing, but my last three months are living proof that 15 minutes almost every day can give you significant improvement. My guitar and singing (where I'm still in the steep learning curve bit) have improved A LOT since January when I started my chart!
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
sforzinda
no subject
Date: 2014-04-17 05:47 pm (UTC)Oof.
As for music stuff, I'm good at it because I've been doing it for over twenty years, and I play with people a few times a week (band practice and at least one session). If I *only* do that, I can coast, but if I want to get better I have to practice, and I really do need extra motivation or self-management to do it, usually. It's especially important now I'm trying to learn both singing and tenor guitar -- it's so long since I've been a beginner!
I've found that it helps to have a goal or project ("I want to get THIS song to passable level"). For reference, my 'okay' level on my little chart is 15 minutes -- in 15 minutes of focused practice, I can either get all the way through my vocal exercises, OR make serious headway on a new fiddle tune, OR get my fingers tired on guitar ('cause I'm still wimpy at that). My 'excellent' time is 45 minutes or higher, which seems to be about the limit of my ability to focus on one instrument. Unless I'm at fiddle camp where there's lots of new exciting stuff to learn, or I'm playing with someone else, I just kinda peter out after 45 minutes no matter what.
I know fancy dedicated musickers will talk about spending four hours a day practicing, but my last three months are living proof that 15 minutes almost every day can give you significant improvement. My guitar and singing (where I'm still in the steep learning curve bit) have improved A LOT since January when I started my chart!