How's that for a manicurist's nightmare?I'm starting to wonder if it's possible to overdo the callouses on the fingertips. I've always been very proud of them, even if I can no longer pick up a dime from the floor with my left hand. But lately they've grown so thick that they're starting to peel and sometimes they get snagged on the strings in chord changes. Guess I'll have to file them down ...
We went to New York during Thanksgiving and I made my pilgrimmage to Guitar Row on West 48th Street. It was a quick stop but I have to say I came away not all that impressed. Manny's and Sam Ash's weren't that much different from Chuck Levin's or any other well-stocked guitar store ...
If you just heard a cry of anguish in the past half hour, followed by a burst of multi-syllable curse words and then prolonged deep sobbing, it was me. I put my first ding in the Alvarez. I was taking it off the stand and banged it against a corner of the desk. It looks like a little crater and the really bad thing is it's on the left side -- right where I'll see it every time I play it. I know these things happen but the first is the worst.
7 comments:
Yes, the first is the worst! And there's always the fantasy that one can somehow avoid that first ding.
I've been using Burt's Lemon Cuticle Creme for my callouses. I don't want to lose my callouses, just smooth them down enough so that I don't keep snagging the keys on my computer. As a bonus, the ointment smells like lemon curd.
My condolences on your first ding. When I next get my guitar out I'll have a moment of silence in its honor.
And, those are some righteous callouses man. I often have the same problem of them flaking and catching on strings.
Thanks for the sympathy, folks. Today I gave the guitar a thorough going-over and noticed a few very subtle knicks and dings. Since that meant that yesterday's injury was really NOT the first, I felt a littler better.
Who are you trying to kid? You've had those calluses ever since you started picking your nose in earnest, some half a century ago.
Yeah, but the nose-picking callouses are on my right hand. That picture is my left!
Yeah, mine still get all powdery. The top layer of skin does tend to split, but this is all normal. The worst is when you get out of the shower and try to play. Your fingers are so soft that you can do a lot of damage - I don't recommend it ;)
TW -- Yeah, I once made the mistake of playing just out of the shower. It took me a while to figure out what all that stuff was on the fretboard.
Post a Comment