http://www.amillionmilesawayblog.com/

A Million Miles Away Blog, Regina, SK (2026)

06/10/2026

Wednesday, June 10th 2026

I was REALLY tired after the gym on Monday, I really hope this isn’t a reoccurring theme. I went to bed by 10:00 pm, pretty early for me, & slept really well until 9:00 am. I felt like I was rushing yesterday just to keep up. Kim got up early as she had to go to work & dropped Olly of at day care for the day. I noticed the time when I got up & was a bit upset with myself since I had stuff to do.

First a couple of chores, then breakfast. I briefly checked my computer messages while finishing my coffee. I then did about half of my home exercises & had lunch. After that I did the rest of my home exercises other than one bridging exercise that I saved for this morning plus a few more exercises. Then I had some time to play a bit of guitar & relax. Continued that trend watching the baseball game.

I was out of bed by 8:00 am & I slept well. Kim left for work at 7:30 am. I made a point of getting up and getting things done because I wouldn’t feel so rushed & Olly’s home with me. I did the one bridging exercise I had to do for this list & all of my floor & upper body exercises. My legs are still aching from Monday at the gym & standing exercises yesterday. I’ll do the standing exercises & a bridge tomorrow, then a bridge on Friday & maybe the upper body exercises on Friday, I’m not promising anything on Friday other than a bridge & I’ll see how I feel. No gym today for me. People have lives other than helping me exercise & I’m fine with that. I still exercise at home

Today, Olly is home with me. She watched me exercise this morning & just hanging out while I either practice guitar or watch TV or both. Kim’s at work & has a girl’s night right after work. Olly & I will be watching more baseball this evening. Tomorrow evening I teach my 2nd last guitar lesson. Everything guitar wise ends for the summer on Tuesday. I think I’m more excited to help him clean up the guitar & put his new strings on it than he is? Nothing like playing with new strings on a guitar.

HOME EXERCISES

Front plank on knees & forearms parallel to floor, lift arm – 30
Mountain Climber, Front Plank & Touch Knee to Elbow – 30
Bridge walkout on feet – 30
On back Bridge on Exercise ball & raise one leg – 30
Side plank opposite w/ 5 pound weight from hip to above shoulder – 30
Side plank opposite w/ 5 pound weight parallel to the floor to above shoulder – 30
Side Step over Object – 30
Side step with exercise band around ankles – 30
Hip Abduction with exercise band around upper legs – 30
Lean on ½ wall, extend leg with exercise band around knees – 30
Shoulder raises with a 10 pound weight in each hand – 60, both arms at once
Curls with a 20 pound weight in each hand – 120, 60 on each arm

I’ll be brushing up on songs I know how to play & learning other ways to play guitar instead of current rock & a wee bit of metal. I’ve learned some older songs from Paul Simon, Queen, David Bowie, The Beatles, Bad Company & Led Zeppelin. I need to brush up on a Foo Fighters song that I usually play on an acoustic guitar, it’s good on my Epiphone Dave Grohl 335 though. I haven’t played it much in the absence of my acoustic guitar R.I.P.

Provided to YouTube by RCA Records LabelRazor · Foo FightersIn ...

06/08/2026

Monday, June 8th 2026

By the way, I really don’t like writing this stuff or posting any video clips or photos regarding my exercise or guitar playing. To me it feels as though I’m bragging & I have nothing I want to brag about & even if you think I do, I still don’t want or need to do that. Totally NOT my thing, never has been. I also find this VERY boring, maybe because I live it but something I wouldn’t take an interest in reading unless I could relate to it.

I exercise every day at home if I’m not at the gym. My dad is taking me again & helps me with things I need to do the exercises, same stuff Kim helps me with there. It’ll probably eventually be more home exercises than trips to the gym. Kim’s not only REALLY busy at her full-time job until the end of June, she just got a pile of stuff for he contract job all to be finished at the end of June as well. If you’re looking for Kim this month, she’s either at work or working here somewhere with her lap-top. She’s working most evenings & pretty much all weekend.

This means I was watching the Toronto Blue Jays who actually won 3 of their last 5 games. One of the recent loses was actually boring for me. The other was ridiculously bad, I was very close to turning off the TV I was actually embarrassed to be a fan. I coach from the couch but they don’t listen, I thought we were all in this together??????? I guess the bonus for Kim is that she’s working in her office here or on the deck if it’s nice out. Also I turn the volume way down or mute the TV since I understand the game, even with the new rules every 3-5 years. I’d like to take a guitar to the couch while I’m watching a game, Olly voices her displeasure if I do that, I guess it’s out of context for her……she’ll learn.

We don’t do much I’m not a fan of the summer, I know I’m weird. Sweat, bug spray, sun lotion, B.O. & constant heat, yeah no thanks! We did go for a drive Friday after Kim finished working at a normal time. She need something for the yard & picked up ice cream on the way home. Saturday Kim worked & I watched baseball, then made my hard boiled eggs for the week. Sunday Kim was back working here in her office, I watched as early baseball game. About ½ an hour after I went to a movie with a buddy of mine. We went to see “Masters of the Universe”. His wife didn’t want to see it & neither did Kim so I sent him an email last week. It was REALLY good, multiple recognizable actors/actress’ and the music was by Brian May, the guitarist from “Queen”. I’ll be purchasing that Blu-ray when it comes out, if I have the money after 3 upcoming concerts where T-Shirts will be purchased. It was like the Deadpool movies without the LANGUAGE. A Marvel comic movie fan or a Star Wars movie fan would probably really enjoy this movie. I likely won’t have enough money to purchase the acoustic guitar I’d like, instead I’m going to movies & buying concert T-Shirts, it’s my thing, it’s a tangible reminder of where I was that day & how I’ll remember the concert & it’s something I’ll wear WAY too much. A concert shirt can also be a conversation starter with a complete stranger in public. I’m not outgoing but I’ll chat with someone that approaches me.

After I got home, had supper & showered, I looked up reviews of the movie on www.youtube.com. I heard it wasn’t projected to do very well at the box office being the 3rd place movie over the weekend making $7,524,000 ahead of the Star Wars movie “The Mandalorian & Grogu”. There is a sequel according to www.youtube.com. We saw the hint at a slightly different movie during the first bit of credits & missed a teaser about a full-on sequel. As usual MANY conflicting results/reports on the internet.

I finished my home exercises on Friday then spent most of the day going over the song “Under Pressure” by “Queen and David Bowie” then went onto learn “Would?” by “Alice in Chains”
“Queen and David Bowie”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a01QQZyl-_I&list=RDa01QQZyl-_I&start_radio=1
“Alice in Chains”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nco_kh8xJDs&list=RDNco_kh8xJDs&start_radio=1
I don’t teach until Thursday, so I thought I’d learn some stuff for me & brush up on some stuff. I’m either getting familiar with a song to teach or learning different things on the guitar or songs that I want to play, trying to expand my horizon on guitar you could say, if you want to sound pretentious?

These are the home exercises I did between Thursday & Friday last week followed by this afternoon’s gym exercises. I did the same gym exercise last Wednesday but I noticed that at some point I did my other gym exercises twice in a row. Could have been a mistake by me or my legs weren’t up to the challenge that day? The kettle bell squats still hurt but not nearly as painful as they were 2 months ago despite the increase in weight today, just wasn’t available & I couldn’t tell the difference. The weight isn’t really the focus on that exercise, it’s more about the depth of the squat while maintaining decent posture.

HOME EXERCISES
Front plank on knees & forearms parallel to floor, lift arm – 30
Mountain Climber, Front Plank & Touch Knee to Elbow – 30
Bridge walkout on feet – 30
On back Bridge on Exercise ball & raise one leg – 30
Side plank opposite w/ 5 pound weight from hip to above shoulder – 30
Side plank opposite w/ 5 pound weight parallel to the floor to above shoulder – 30
Side Step over Object – 30
Side step with exercise band around ankles – 30
Hip Abduction with exercise band around upper legs – 30
Lean on ½ wall, extend leg with exercise band around knees – 30
Shoulder raises with a 10 pound weight in each hand – 60, both arms at once
Curls with a 20 pound weight in each hand – 120, 60 on each arm

GYM EXERCISES

Leaning forward while balancing on one foot – 30
Step on Stepper – 30
Squat & lean forward @ waist pick up 10 pound weight & stand – 30
Lifting 10 pound kettle bell from floor in a straight posture & squat – 30

Weight machine – 60 repetitions at 25 pounds

Here’s the trailer for “Masters of the Universe” aka The He-Man movie as I call it….
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X21JsHLHnY8

Eternia is calling you home. Watch the Official Trailer for Masters...

06/03/2026

Wednesday, June 3rd 2026

Hadn’t been to the gym for maybe over 2 weeks until Monday. I was delightfully surprised at how good I felt when I woke up Tuesday morning. Tuesday felt like a race against time for me. Kim & Olly left at 7:30am. Kim took Olly to day care & then went to work for the day. I finally got up around 8:05 am, put on yesterday’s clothes & hoovered breakfast. I had a few chores to do around the house & ran into some other things that needed some attention. Kim’s pretty busy with work, so I need to pick up my game & help out more. Vacuumed, folded & put away some laundry & cleaned the 2 toilets, YAY…UGH. Finished up my home exercises I started on Sunday, had a small lunch & generally tried to polish myself so I looked somewhat presentable.

I had played the song I had to teach a handful of times. I’ve been listening to it since 1994, just never learned how to play it. I played that for an hour or two then tried to slow things down a bit with some recorded TV for about an hour. Kim & Olly came out just after 5:00 pm. Kim went to seed the lawn & water it ASAP & Olly ran from the front of the house to the back door looking for Kim. Of course it’s raining today because I washed paw prints off or our couch & love seat. Kim also watered the lawn too.

Kim came in & Olly calmed down, I went back to running through the song & the song I taught last week since we didn’t get through all of it. Of course as the day ended I was in figuring out a different way of playing guitar instead of current rock, some metal, basic chords & some triads (triad is a fancy word for 3 note chords on the e, b, & G strings).

With Kim being VERY busy with work until the end of June, my dad is going to take me to & help me at the gym again today. Today is the day I get to do my least favorite & most painful but effective exercise, kettle bell squats. It’s just such a low squat while holding onto a parallel bar with one hand & picking up a kettle bell with the other, then stand upright with good posture. Then repeat 30 times while alternating arms each time & always return to a proper posture when upright after putting the kettle bell back on the floor. SO MUCH FUN, no don’t try this at home.

HOME EXERCISES

Front plank on knees & forearms parallel to floor, lift arm – 30
Mountain Climber, Front Plank & Touch Knee to Elbow – 30
Bridge walkout on feet – 30
On back Bridge on Exercise ball & raise one leg – 30
Side plank opposite w/ 5 pound weight from hip to above shoulder – 30
Side plank opposite w/ 5 pound weight parallel to the floor to above shoulder – 30
Side Step over Object – 30
Side step with exercise band around ankles – 30
Hip Abduction with exercise band around upper legs – 30
Lean on ½ wall, extend leg with exercise band around knees – 30
Shoulder raises with a 10 pound weight in each hand – 60, both arms at once
Curls with a 20 pound weight in each hand – 120, 60 on each arm

GYM EXERCISES

Leaning forward while balancing on one foot – 30
Step on Stepper – 30
Squat & lean forward @ waist pick up 10 pound weight & stand – 30
Lifting 10 pound kettle bell from floor in a straight posture & squat – 30

Weight machine – 60 repetitions at 25 pounds

I’m hoping to wake in good shape tomorrow, hopefully get 5 or 6 exercises to get through & play guitar. I’d much prefer the gym started at 10:00 am. I like to get the REALLY important stuff for the day done ASAP, then I can relax learn more about playing guitar & what makes everything work the way it should.

I was very pleased with the guitar lesson last night. I’m looking forward to a little break but I also don’t want to stop, with what just felt like he leveled up again. It’s going to get a little bit tougher come September. Still 2 lessons to go before we take a break for the summer. Thursday, June 11th followed by Tuesday June 16th. I don’t want to dump a bunch of new stuff on him next Thursday, so we’ll see how far we get with the last song I taught him & the song prior to that one. Last lesson we take care of the instrument. Phil McKnight on www.youtube.com is a guitar tech/luthier, veteran, & a previous guitar store owner. I watch him disassemble a guitar, tell everyone the pros & cons about the guitar & quite often he tells you what he did, how to do it yourself & when you’d probably like a professional to fix it. Then on a hip hopping Friday night he does a 1-2 hour live Q & A about guitar gear. Guitars, pedals, amplifiers & other stuff. I don’t watch anything live. I watch it later that night or the next day. He time stamps it after so you can pick the topics that you want to hear. I’ve been watching him since 2018 or 2019?

I’m not trying to be a master at anything on guitar. I’d like to be more versatile. I don’t just listen to current rock & some metal, so I learning different ways to use the guitar for funk, jazz, Motown, pop, fingerpicking, etc. Then I’ll take what I’ve learned & apply it to my own version of rock & metal stuff. I got my Revv G20 amplifier in the first week of 2023, 30 minutes of actually playing through it after I got it set up, and I barfed out a metalish song. I played it for my brother, it’s the first thing I’ve played that he liked.

“A Perfect Circle”, including Maynard James Keenan the singer known from “Tool” & “Puscifer”, just released a new song earlier this week, I hope this means there is a full length album coming too?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ToBz5phjWNQ&list=RDToBz5phjWNQ&start_radio=1

06/01/2026

Monday, June 1st 2026

I truly took a break. No exercise since I finished up a series of home exercises on Tuesday. I REALLY needed that. By Friday I was itching to get moving, instead I procrastinated like a pro until 5:00 pm when the baseball game started. I was SWAMPED with a baseball game to watch followed immediately with an “Into Eternity” concert at The Exchange, the venue that most Regina based original music bands play, even the last band I was in. “Into Eternity” is a local extreme metal group that has played a few tours of Europe. One with “Motorhead” and “Megadeth” took them on one of the “Gigantours”, which I had the DVDs of a couple of those tours but they got pawned when I started playing guitar A LOT in late 2019. I’m sure their singer said they’ve been a band for 30 years. The show was a 20th anniversary show of their 4th album, “The Scattering of Ashes”. That album was on constant replay for me at the time in 2006.

My brother picked me up to go to the show. He called me to see if I wanted to go with him. They we’re playing the album front to back & 5 songs in the encore. My brother drove me home almost exactly at midnight. There’s always been a stereotype that metal fans or musicians are scary people. Our band was on the outskirts of the metal scene from 2004-2008 when I got cancer. Like all stereotypes this is incredibly false. Yes some drink, some smoke & most of us swear, is that what makes a person bad? There’s a bad apple in every bunch. The metal fans here are some of the nicest & considerate people I’ve come across. Nobody goes out to a metal show to hurt anyone. If someone is having a rough time, falls in the mosh pit, randomly passes out, like a friend of mine did before I got cancer. The concert goers nearby stop everything to help that person. Out of habit I always wear my “Lamb of God” hoodie, it’s the only jacket I ever wear usually. I have received more positive comments from complete strangers when I’m actually out of my house. Even at the concert, I had to go to the washroom. People saw me in a wheelchair & got out of my way or waited while I was washing my hands. They didn’t need to do that, but they did.

After I was in a wheelchair, Kim & I went to see “Ed Sheeran” here at the arena, just before his 2nd album was released. The audience was young, which I assume is why I had to watch the entire show through some kid’s iPhone. That kid recorded the entire show from the nose bleed seats for disabled people. I didn’t say anything but I was not happy about the experience. The next year I went to a “Foo Fighters” concert in Calgary with my dad. The 2 guys in front of me turned around & asked me if they could take a short video, “Of course” I said & 40 seconds later it was done. I then got to see “Boney M”, 2 Christmas concerts in back to back years. Front row at the casino was great. Saw them a year later at a theater in town. The first thing the singer says when they come out on stage “Everybody stand up & dance with us”. Ugh, immediately 2 people in front of me, one in a wheelchair & their spouse, leave even though “Boney M” must know that their audience isn’t full of 20something year olds & those 2 people that left had paid a healthy amount for those tickets. I guess the age of a crowd doesn’t really matter, maybe people should try to be more aware & respectful to those around them in public. I always appreciate it!

Anyway, after doing absolutely nothing exercise wise, I did 7 home exercises while Kim took our dog to our friends’ place for a play date with their dog Sunday afternoon. I was kind of surprised it wasn’t as difficult as I thought it would be after that much time away from exercising. 5 more at home tomorrow & I’m not sure what’s happening on Wednesday. Kim’s REALLY busy at work right now, she was even working online over the weekend & my dad is going to take me to the gym today. Kim won’t let me drive because I have a medically suspended driver’s license & slow reflects’. Bah, what’s the worst that could happen……………..oh……………yeah……..I guess that’s right.

GYM EXERCISES

Foot ahead of other foot touching heel to toes & walking 20 feet – 6 times for a total of 120 feet.
Pointing your right leg to every hour on a clock from 11 – 6 then 1 – 6 with your left foot always balancing on the other foot. – 5/leg
Reach side to side while standing – 30
Reach forward while standing – 30

Elliptical – set at 24/24 resistance for 10 minutes, 1023 steps at 102.3 steps per minute

I was listening to Violet Grohl over the weekend, well A LOT with a brief listen to other stuff.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F3mFLalmXCA&list=RDF3mFLalmXCA&start_radio=1

Muse will release a new album on June 26th.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XVvLRbR4Pa0&list=RDXVvLRbR4Pa0&start_radio=1

OOO, new song from “Nothing but Thieves” this morning. I assume this is for an upcoming 5th album from them?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hmjfuuuRRYU&list=RDhmjfuuuRRYU&start_radio=1

I’ve got 3 guitar lessons to teach before the summer break. Just got his flag football schedule. The last lesson, June 16th, will be him changing his strings, oiling the fretboard & cleaning the instrument. I still find it hard to believe people pay a store employee to do this for them? I’ve got 8 songs ready for him, which most of will be taught in the fall. I also have 17 songs he has said he’d like to learn & I’ll start writing out lessons for them when we finish up mid-June.
Here’s a ballad from “The Scattering of Ashes” by “Into Eternity” from 2006 & they played this song at the show.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Llcfqin67B0&list=RDLlcfqin67B0&start_radio=1

CD: The Scattering Of AshesSurrounded by nightThis placid dark is so consumingAs I start my journey homeI feel the cold wind in my flesh faceI'm dying to be ...

05/27/2026

Wednesday, May 27th 2026

He hits just keep coming! Kim went to work on Monday, actually she’s in the office every day this week other than Friday. After supper on Monday, she had to go out to fill a prescription. She picked a cup of Dandy’s ice cream, one for each of us. As I took my pills that night with a small glass of water as usual. For 5 seconds I was OK but then I started coughing VIOLENTLY! I coughed so hard I threw up ALL of the ice cream, all over the kitchen floor & most of my left leg. Nothing was stuck in my throat but I was coughing so hard & constant that I couldn’t breathe. This has happened maybe 4 times now since 2008. My throat muscles need to heal themselves. I often cough when I eat or drink anything, throwing up isn’t a guarantee & it’s gotten better over the years, still not fun though. Strongly carbonated beverages, corn, liquorish, any type of flake cereal & sometimes straight chocolate will make me cough. This is one of the reasons I drink DARK Guiness beer, I love the taste & it’s carbonated but it feels fairly smooth as it goes down. Corn & flake cereals I do not touch they, are the worst offenders, guarantee to cough with each bite. I’ll cough with almost anything though at random times.

Tuesday wasn’t great. Kim was at work & Olly was at day care & being groomed. Empty house & I was planning (sort of) to get a LOT done. I had breakfast, emptied the dishwasher & watched guitar stuff on www.youtube.com. I figured, around noon, that I should get my last couple exercises done. I finished those, took a quick nap & came back to www.youtube.com & play the song to teach on Thursday.

I’ve been sleeping very well lately, but I’m exhausted all of the time. I woke up this morning hoping I’d be full of energy & ready to hit the gym. Nope, I’m tired & oddly still sore. I don’t think I’d do a very good job of exercising at the gym or even complete all of the exercises? I think I’ll just shut it down until Friday at least & maybe exercise then.

These are the exercises I finished yesterday. I have NOT started another group of them.

HOME EXERCISES

Front plank on knees & forearms parallel to floor, lift arm – 30
Mountain Climber, Front Plank & Touch Knee to Elbow – 30
Bridge walkout on feet – 30
On back Bridge on Exercise ball & raise one leg – 30
Side plank opposite w/ 5 pound weight from hip to above shoulder – 30
Side plank opposite w/ 5 pound weight parallel to the floor to above shoulder – 30
Side Step over Object – 30
Side step with exercise band around ankles – 30
Hip Abduction with exercise band around upper legs – 30
Lean on ½ wall, extend leg with exercise band around knees – 30
Shoulder raises with a 10 pound weight in each hand – 60, both arms at once
Curls with a 20 pound weight in each hand – 120, 60 on each arm

My brother & I are going to a metal show. A Regina based band that has had some success & just recorded their (9th?) album. They’ve played with Motorhead in Europe years ago as well as having been on one of Megadeth’s. Into Eternity will be playing their entire “Scattering of Ashes” album on Friday evening.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=whb3k7GPInQ&list=RDwhb3k7GPInQ&start_radio=1

For those who aren’t fans of metal, Violet Grohl’s debut album will be available Friday, it’s called “Be Sweet to me”. Her dad had nothing to do with it. He found out over the phone as it was being recorded or once she’d recorded the entire album.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=luQLsQxSjRo&list=RDluQLsQxSjRo&start_radio=1

The official music video for "THUM" by Violet Grohl. Listen & download “THUM” + “Applefish” here: https://violetgrohl.lnk.to/thum_applefish► Follow Violet Gr...

05/25/2026

Monday, May 25th 2026

Summers here, I’m still not a fan. Kim has been working on the backyard week. She trimmed the front bushes. She bought hanging flower pots for our deck & spent most of Saturday cleaning off the deck & getting the couch cushions outside. She also bought some dirt & seeded our front lawn, then soaked it. It’s actually hot outside she tells me as I sit near the vent to get the most out of the A/C. She’s busy at work & keeps busy at home.

I got a couple of good night sleeps on the weekend. I went to bed at midnight on Friday & woke up at 11:00 am. Saturday I was still tired but I went to bed just after 10:00 pm, slept really well, got up at 8:30 am on Sunday. I don’t know if that was too much sleep or exactly what I needed? I was still tired Sunday though. I’m in a pretty good mood, I’m just physically tired.

I feel pretty beat up. I get that my arm muscles are sore from switching to weights. My leg muscles are sore, mostly my calves, & I don’t know why? I’ve decided to not go to the gym this week, well at least today. I finished a list of home exercises last week from Wednesday to Friday & did 4 of them to start another list. I plan to finish that other list this week. My body needs a break. I hope to take Thursday & Friday off, maybe Wednesday. Hopefully I’ll finish the already started home exercises & maybe go to the gym on Wednesday. We’ll see how I feel as my dad said he’d help me out at the gym since Kim is pretty busy with work until the end of June. As I was making my vegetable sludge for the week, I kept hearing this song in my head, then thinking “I’ve never had a milkshake that brings anyone to my yard & this definitely won’t either!”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pGL2rytTraA&list=RDpGL2rytTraA&start_radio=1

Kim left for work around 7:40 am, I stayed in bed until 8:20 or so. Olly made it to my spot on the couch to curl up & sleep. I’m still very tired but the amount of ginger in my vegetable sludge was alarmingly spicy & kind of woke me up, hopefully my coffee will help. I had planned on getting all but one bridging exercise done today, we’ll see how far I get? Not only am I tired but still a little tender I my back & shoulders. Stretch it out & see what happens I guess?

These were finished on Friday & an extra 4 of these were done to get me started on more of them.

HOME EXERCISES
Front plank on knees & forearms parallel to floor, lift arm – 30
Mountain Climber, Front Plank & Touch Knee to Elbow – 30
Bridge walkout on feet – 30
On back Bridge on Exercise ball & raise one leg – 30
Side plank opposite w/ 5 pound weight from hip to above shoulder – 30
Side plank opposite w/ 5 pound weight parallel to the floor to above shoulder – 30
Side Step over Object – 30
Side step with exercise band around ankles – 30
Hip Abduction with exercise band around upper legs – 30
Lean on ½ wall, extend leg with exercise band around knees – 30
Shoulder raises with a 10 pound weight in each hand – 60, both arms at once
Curls with a 20 pound weight in each hand – 120, 60 on each arm

I do teach a guitar lesson this week & at least one in June. We’re going to finish up this Drop D group of songs this week. We’re going through the song “Down” by Stone Temple Pilots, I’ve showed him pinch harmonics & I guess this will also show him natural harmonics, bonus! The next lesson before his summer break. I’m going to have him change his strings, oil his fretboard & clean the guitar. I’ll help him when needed but I want him to do as much as he can. One of his parents will be here to see it if he has trouble doing this at home. I remember my first time changing guitar strings…it was frustrating. Then I had to figure out how to change the strings on different guitars with different bridges & different tuners. All part of the fun for me, but I’d rather be playing guitar.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KO4gvhtlQP4&list=RDKO4gvhtlQP4&start_radio=1

The official music video for Stone Temple Pilots' "Down," released from their 1999 album "No. 4." Written by Dean DeLeo, Robert DeLeo, Eric Kretz, and Scott ...

05/20/2026

Wednesday, May 20th 2026

It’s only been one day since my last post. We’re just keeping busy & I switched from doing pushups until November & using my weights instead. I did all of my home exercises other than one of the bridging exercises. I’ll get that done ASAP & do some other exercises to get another list of home exercises on the go. I plan to finish one list today, start another, & only one bridging exercise on Friday, unless I decide to go for more, which could happen?

No guitar lesson last night as we got a full load this week. I’ve had some time to learn stuff I want to learn along with learning a couple songs to teach. I don’t know if I’ll get to teach him any songs but I have a guitar maintenance lesson to teach him & MANY songs ready to teach if needed or we’ll push them into the fall lessons. I have 8 songs ready to teach, guitar maintenance lesson, light home work over the summer & 17 songs to write out for him with a few I need to go over myself. I’m pretty sure I’m ready for whatever the plan will be.

These are the home exercises less the bridging exercise I’ll get to ASAP. I’ll do ½ of this as well, another half tomorrow, & I’ll do 1-6 on Friday? If it wasn’t for the bridging exercises, I could probably handle a full list once a day that I’m not at the gym.

HOME EXERCISES
Front plank on knees & forearms parallel to floor, lift arm – 30
Mountain Climber, Front Plank & Touch Knee to Elbow – 30
Bridge walkout on feet – 30
On back Bridge on Exercise ball & raise one leg – 30
Side plank opposite w/ 5 pound weight from hip to above shoulder – 30
Side plank opposite w/ 5 pound weight parallel to the floor to above shoulder – 30
Side Step over Object – 30
Side step with exercise band around ankles – 30
Hip Abduction with exercise band around upper legs – 30
Lean on ½ wall, extend leg with exercise band around knees – 30
Shoulder raises with a 10 pound weight in each hand – 60, both arms at once
Curls with a 20 pound weight in each hand – 120, 60 on each arm

I’m still working on “Graceland” by Paul Simon. I know the song, I can play the rhythm triads, I need to work on a short/quick lick in the middle of it all.
I thought hard about a few songs I want to learn, so I wrote them down. I’ll learn one and move on, but I’ll write a little section of my own music incorporating what I’ve just learned. I’m pretty obsessed with the new “Alter Bridge”, “Foo Fighters” & last years release from “Big Wreck”. This relatively new “Big Wreck” song is next for me to learn. I found a random guy on www.youtube.com playing it, this will be one of those songs where I’ll slow down the video & watch his hands, the actual guitar tab is missing quite a bit.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SGZR0ergPgo&list=RDSGZR0ergPgo&start_radio=1

823 likes, 62 comments. "Dog With A Gun"

A Million Miles Away Blog

06/10/2026

06/08/2026

06/03/2026

06/01/2026

05/27/2026

05/25/2026

05/20/2026

Address

Website

Alerts

Shortcuts

Share

Category