When you gotta get "taken to school" by someone, it's good if it's a friend who does it.

[Redstone]

I used to be a songwriter, back in the days when dinosaurs roamed the Earth, and telephones had dials. I even sold a few songs, though most of the ones I sold didn't end up having my name on them, because I sold all the rights to them (don't do that yourself, OK?).

But I was a songwriter, and thought I was a pretty good one.

Then this morning, about 3:00 in the AM as I remember, I got a phone call from another DUer. (You may suspect that I was up that late because of pain, and you'd be right). Anyway, we yacked for a little while, then he cut off the call so he could call me back from another place...Another place where he had his guitar and a speakerphone, so I could hear some of the songs he'd written.

After hearing the first two songs, I had to interrupt him, because I had an eight-word message that I wanted him to listen to. That eight-word sentence was: "You write songs better than I ever did."

And it was the truth. I don't lie to anyone, not even my friends.

Maybe some people might feel diminished that someone they know can do something better than they themselves can. I suppose that such a feeling might be a standard one in the human condition.

But not me. I'm actually happy to have found out that my friend can write songs better than I can. Now I can enjoy listening to his, which I like hearing more than I do my own.

Does that make sense to anyone?

Redstone

[DarkTirade]

1. Makes perfect sense to me.

I'd be a little jealous maybe. But not overridingly so. :)

*edit* Although I'd love to find somebody who's a better lyricist than me... if only to help make up for my own shortcomings in that aspect.

[Redstone]

6. You get it, don't you? things like songwriting are less a competition than just that one

collaboration waiting to happen, aren't they?

Redstone

[DarkTirade]

8. It can be either.

But when it's less of a competition and more of an attempt to create than everyone wins. :)

I think, for me at least, that's just because the one thing I value above all else is creation. I don't care if I become a millionaire, or if I impress more people. I just like the act of creation. And if my talents can be used to create, great. If my talents combined with someone else's can be used to create something 10 times better, well that's even better. :)

And if all I can do is use my talents to stand back and tell someone else, "You're damn good at this.", then that's helping to create something too.

[Redstone]

10. You and I need to get together and drink beer some day.

Redstone

[DarkTirade]

13. I'm down with that. :)

:toast:

[Redstone]

15. Any time. Any day that we intersect. And I'm picking up the tab, unless you want a fight.

Redstone

[DarkTirade]

17. Okay, but just the first time.

:P

And if I ever get a decent guitar of my own built, I'll have to bring it along. Right now I'm just checking prices on parts. And I may very well suck at it when I try it. :) But ya never know unless you try.

[SPKrazy]

2. It's called maturity

and being able to realize that we all have talents and some people do things we do better than we do

yeah it makes sense

[lost-in-nj]

3. It makes all the sense in the world

you write songs....
they write songs... you say better than you


I believe together you can write
unforgettable songs...
help each other
listen and write...

I am not surprised you write words.....
god I wish I could

hope your not hurting tonight
and can sleep.....
:hug:


lost

[Redstone]

4. Well-said, Lost. We may indeed write together some day, and it might be good.

I've thrown a big old pile of drugs at the pain tonight, and think I might have, if not made it go away, at least beaten into temporary submission.

That'll work well enouf if it's the case.

Redstone

[IzaSparrow]

5. I hear ya...

It's always nice to meet someone who does something better than you do.

[Redstone]

7. It is, but there's worse news! He's thinking of moving to a city close to me, and then

I'll have to visit there, or he'll have to visit here, and I'm going to have to dig out and dust off the guitar(s), not the mention the banjo, the Autoharp, the mandolin, and the dulcimer...after ten years of not having played any of them!

(If Mrs R knew of this possibility, she'd be beside herself; my forced retirement from being a musician so many years ago still bothers her, even though she understands why I had to give it up. What a wonderful wife, yes?)

Redstone

[IzaSparrow]

9. I agree.

the recovered hobby will be "music to her ears." :P

[Redstone]

11. It's worse than that. It wasn't a hobby when she met me, it was a significant part

of my life and my income.

Not that she cared about the income part, wonderful woman that she is; all she wanted to do was to hear me sing.

I still feel bad about letting her down, even though what made that circumstance come about was far beyond my control

Redstone

[mwdem]

12. It sounds like a good thing all around!

You two should collaborate.

[Redstone]

14. Seems like we're fated to do so, and my fingers hurt already in anticipation. But hey,

this is a guy who lives on the other side of America from me, and it turns out that we may have met each other in the middle of America (Houston), thirty-five years ago, and not even known it.

Life is strange, if you live it randomly enough, isn't it?

Redstone

[mwdem]

16. You know what, Redstone?

Stranger things have happened. Let me know when this will happen. Who knows?

On edit.

Random is good..

[Redstone]

18. What, you want to come to my house when he comes to visit? No problem.

We like to have visitors, and we have plenty of room.

Only two rules: 1) You can drink (as I do) if you want, or not if you don't (and if you don't we'll stock up on what you do want to ingest), and

2) Yeah, I smoke cigs. You can ask me to not do so at your house, and I won't (and I won't complain about it either); but when you're at my house, you don't get to judge or bitch.

Oh, I forgot the third rule: Nobody leaves here without having had fun.

Redstone

[mwdem]

19. Sounds like fun to me!

I quit smoking awhile ago, but do not step on anyone's freedom to do whatever. I'm open to all kinds of fun. And yes, I do drink. Martinis are my favorite drink, or a good Cabernet. I'm there!

[Robb]

20. Hippy

:D

I know what you mean, exactly. There was a time when I dabbled, too. :hi:

[Redstone]

21. Thank you, but there's not any dabbling stuff being discussed here.

I made my living as a musican for a time, which not many have done. (And no, not when I was living with my parents, either. I supported a household by doing so.)

Not being hostile. Just correcting the record.

Redstone