28 Comments

Tom, thanks for the kind intro, which made me laugh!

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Loved this, Terry. Super post. 😀

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Thanks Rebecca 😀

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Yes. More harmonica and more poetry.

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Haha! Thanks, Adam 😀

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Hear! Hear!

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You may live to regret it...

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I did give the harmonica a try one time. I was about the only one who enjoyed hearing the tunes,

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Quite clearly, the people around you had no appreciation of fine music.

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Terry, you are a modest man of many talents. I loved this! It’s rational and inspiring at the same time.

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Thanks very much indeed, Jeanne 🙂

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No video of you playing harmonica?

How did that teacher get the job? Nepotism?

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1. soon hopefully!

2. Probably!

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" a permanent pocket-size party piece" and "bringing solace to the whole cell block". I don't know who TJB is, but that paragraph was damned funny. As for you, dear friend, why have we not seen 1.) The Tamara and Terry romantic Elizabethan piece?? and 2.). May we PLEASE have a video of you playing blues harp? You have teased us mercilessly this morning.

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Haha. 1. I've lost it. I wrote it several decades ago, and haven't yet come across it in the Freedman archives. 2. That is on the cards. I have planned it mentally, but haven't had the time to do it yet.

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We will wait for it, hep-cat. And be pleasantly surprised.

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or unpleasantly surprised...

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or that

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🙂

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For me poetry is like an artist drawing a picture. You either have a gift or it will end up with a lot of words jumbled together. In my substack file I believe there is one poem that I wrote about the death of my son in law. Most of the time if I attempt to write poetry it is like me trying to draw a person but only drawing a poorly sketched stick figure.

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sorry to hear about your son-in-law, Paul. That's a good description of my own poetry efforts too.

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Thanks

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Nov 18
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Lol. The primary school teachers have a good approach: two stars and a wish. I almost always gave positive feedback, always useful feedback, but sometimes it was necessary to tell someone their work was not a good reflection of their ability.

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And there are always a few good word choices or phrases you can point out. Or suggestions for changing a line here or there. And at the very least an E for effort.

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E for effort 🤣 On my maths report once I got A for effort and E for achievement. I can’t say that boosted my confidence. But yes, take your point!

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Nov 19
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Indeed. :-)

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Yes. She was totally unclear on what the job of a teacher / tutor is. I would have smacked her with my pencil case, and demanded my tuition back.

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LOL. I felt like that. I haven't seen her since, so maybe people made official complaints.

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