It's all in the wrists.

[uberreiniger]

I am still "in training" in my new job, but I finally got out onto the floor, (or I should say, into the box since it's a pharmacy,) this past Thursday. I'm enjoying it out there but it is all very new and overwhelming. I have very supportive, friendly, and helpful co-workers and that makes a huge difference. Whatever else happens, I can certainly say that I am liking this a lot better than I ever liked my previous position, even if there is a lot of repetetiveness in the duties.

I really like being able to call myself a pharmacy technician. I try not to over-identify too much with my "day job" because that's still all it is as far as I'm concerned. But I'm beginning to understand what a difference having a day job you can be proud of makes.

I have been finding guitar and bass practice less enjoyable these last few days. I now have two complete songs written and I'm working on getting as good as I can at playing them before I begin more writing, but I'm finding a big part of playing heavy metal guitar and bass is physical endurance and that's just not something I have enough of. I mess up frequently while playing, not because I don't know what I'm doing or don't have the skill, but because my wrists and fingers start getting tired and can't manage the resistance of the strings. I do not have weak hands or wrists or anything, but playing like this means getting those parts of your body into shape just like anything else does and it can be slow getting there.

For me, if I skip more than one day practicing all my physical endurance just goes out the window. What I lose in two days can take a week or more to build back up. Of course, with my schedule as it is sometimes I just have to miss more than one day and there's little I can do about it.

I'm happy with where I'm at skill-wise and more than happy writing-wise, but I want more; I want to be better, and I'd feel happier if I was better now, even though I know there's no fast path to get there.

I have some friends going through hard things right now. Everything from painful break-ups to DUI's and it's hard to watch. Next Sunday is the Kreator/Accept concert and I had friends I was looking forward to seeing there whom I now won't be due to stuff that's happened to them the last couple of days. I'm really looking forward to the show, but I'll be there alone, and knowing that people I like aren't there because their lives have gone to hell.

Then again, that might put me in just the mood for the aggressive metal music that will be on display that night.

Comments

[rosehiptea.livejournal.com]

I'm glad things are going well at your job.

And I admire your dedication to the music, even when it's difficult.

[uberreiniger.livejournal.com]

Thanks. I don't care if I'm never good at it. I love it and I've got to keep going.

[yaqui.livejournal.com]

I think that playing any kind of music may be strenuous. I know a Rockabilly band that had a hard time finishing a show after an 18 month hiatus. You could tell they were hurting towards the end.

[uberreiniger.livejournal.com]

Ouch. Yeah, don't envy those poor guys. I think I am starting to figure out why death metal bands only play 30-minute sets of songs that are each two minutes long. Your body just can't keep craziness like that up for any length of time!