FlyinEagle - Posted - 07/11/2019:  17:30:57

Keep your chin up and keep powering on Warp. You have a lot of positive energy and prayers going in your direction.

July is almost halfway over, you are more than halfway through your treatments. I hope you can start seeing a little light at the end of the tunnel.

And I hope you can to keep a roof over your head...minimize stress as much as you can so you can focus on resting and getting better.

I can't believe there aren't any programs to help vets in a situations like yours - getting life-saving treatment - keep a roof over their head. If anyone following the thread, any other vets, knows of any programs that help out in these situations, please post the info or PM Warp.

warpdrive - Posted - 07/12/2019:  04:14:07

Thanks for the good thoughts guy, everyone one of ya'll!

The main problem i'm facing is i'm a bit outside the parameters of what the homeless organizations and VA are used to seeing. Volunteers of American, and VA, and others like them, deal with people who have been sleeping under bridges, and cardboard boxes in alley ways, and yes like me, who do time out of the car sometime, when they don't have the money for lodging, and yes, last winter, me and my late fur kids did a few days out or the suv, and let me tell ya, it aint all it's cracked up to be.

I'm problem is i just don't have the money for lodging, but the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society took a application on me yesterday, and i should qualify for some financial help with in about 10-12 business days, but that is a far piece off in this heat.

I splurged for this motel room the last 2 days, and it was not a outlandish rate my any stretch, at a base of 59+ tax, and the lady will give me that rate every time since her husband is a cancer patient too, it has a microwave and fridge, and i'm close to a dollar tree and walmart, but still, that is too expensive to live out of at that rate.

The best rate i've been given on extended stays is about 1200 a month, which is something i would never do even if i was health, i mean i just can't phantom the about of money that people have lived and made in this life, i have lived by the seat of my pants for so long, what seems like pennies to most people, is a fortune to me, but that is neither here nor there right now, i'm just so weak and sick right now, and i'm glad to have been comfortable and have my bathroom available.

I go in for my shot that is supposed to keep from bottoming out so bad i have to go into the hospital, then, i wait, and see if any of the eyes that are looking for housing for funds for me for housing find something today, as i am tapped out for money for lodging, i am way way down too early in the month.

The problem with the shelter over crowding is my immune system is compromised and i should not be around anybody, but especially what is in the shelters and sharing with 50 other men, and only a toilet or two on each floor, again, the shelters are mainly dealing with people fresh off the street, not the poor like me, so to them, someone from the street who's been under a box, or bridge, in a tent, is getting a move up to go into a shelter, with a cot, and like me, many turn the shelter environment down, it isn't that much of a step up from animal shelters, and in the va shelters, they make the inmates and yes, they throw you back to a military environment, and you cook and clean up after everybody....you have chores, and they don't care if your sick.....i can't do that, for the next 2 week, i'm only going to get sicker, and the last thing i need is to be rousted about with other indigent men who are suffering from everything from mental illness to VD, and this is no exaggeration, there is really not vetting process, they establish that they are a vet, and in they go, if there is serious medical need, they get a bed on a ward, but stable, and within except able mental capabilities , everybody goes into a barracks environment, bring one bag with you......but, there is a venue trying to work with me that is looking for landlords with single room or efficiency apartments, and they will pay for deposits and first rent and utilities....but...again, they want you to commit on a lease for a year.....i am only here for another 3-4 months, i don't plan to stay in Columbus, so this presents another problem for the benefactor and yes, in case you didn't know it about this type of support, the benefactor wants as much in return from the patient as they are putting out, at least this has been my experience so far, starting all the way back last year, when the fur kids and i knew we where headed for dire straights!

Let me pause here a minute whist the chemo brain is not as active, i've been up since 4 am, and i just came up from a good breakfast...which i sorely needed and they serve a good hot breakfast down in the breakfast room, hot eggs, waffles, sausage, and gravy, biscuits, and i was shaking so bad from my body disposing the chemo these last couple of days, man i needed it, to counter act all the steroids and meds i'm on right now.

I don't want anybody to think I'm not grateful for what health i have now, and the friends and support i am getting here and there, i'm sure i would be close to death if it were not for some of the support i've had in the last 6 months....but i am really wore out, and i'm sick, and i'm broke, and i've lived in 10 or 11 places now since last september when i started this journey, and the only control if have is what i'm not willing to relinquish , that is my dignity , and i hope that doesn't make me sound like i'm entitled, i just want to get this done and over with, and i'm so used to falling in between the cracks in the system, my out look is often not "rosey" enough for people, but as i try to tell them..."this aint my first rodeo" go i guess what i am saying to you guys, ....."please for give my less than positive tone this morning, but unless something big happens today, i feel it going to be the start of a very rough weekend.

The lady from the VA is really trying hard to find me some place....she is in a meeting till noon today and hopes to call me after she gets out by a few minutes after 12.....as i.ve said, there are a lot of eyes on my situation, but what they are offering for immediate resolution, is what i can't except, and that is the shelter/shared group environment, and yes....i am going to empart some information about the homeless and vet situation that many of you may or may not know about.......The system has in place...spaces available for women and kids, and complete families...that are efficiency apt style dwellings but they are for women and kids and families, and remain empty till needed...... i found this out this past january when i returned to Cincinnati, they will not let a single man have his own dwelling, even if it is medically necessary....this is why most of the homeless people and vets you see on the side of the road, holding up the sighs are mostly single white old men.....like me! I can't say weather or not it is fair, i know i would be happy to relinquish a single dwelling to a family if the one i was in was needed, but until a family needs it.....why not let it get some use?

Ok guys, time to start getting about todays business. I woke up from a decent nights rest, i've still got the chemo shakes and jitters, but i have food in my belly, and am getting ready to take a good hot shower, and start packing up to leave this what seems like a "all inclusive vacation" too me.

I am thankful to y'all for all the positive thoughts, and the response and pm's on this thread, and hopefully one day soon, we can get back to the reason of this thread and me posting new vids of my scratching and pawing out tunes, on that new Hatfield Banjo that is in the works......that will be nice!

Ok guys, not knowing what lies ahead, i will post when wi fi comes available, once again, thats for being here for me......yall are the best!

till the next time
Ya'll have a gooderin
Warp!

warpdrive - Posted - 07/12/2019:  19:00:43

Friday, July 12th, Grove City Oh, WoodSpring Suites, 9:08 pm

Good Evening, and May I Add...OMG, WHAT A DAY IT'S BEEN!

First and for most ..... and huge hangout and warp drive thank you to my ole buddy Ken Hydinger , for moving heaven and earth, and taking time out of his day today to help me get more funds that will augment my further and future lodging and keep me out of the back of my suv and off the streets!

Where to begin, i guess the beginning is alway best,.....here goes!

After waking up at 5 am this morning up in Delaware and using the bulk of my available cash for the last 2 nights up in the Delaware hotel simply cause i am just too sick to care and needed immediate cool and comfort....i checked out of the hotel about 8:30 this morning, with no idea of where i was going to land tonight, i mean really, no idea what so ever.....just the possibilities of hope, and that is about all!

Ken, knowing a bit about my situation, sprang into action, and managed through an all day affair, to get me funds that has been extra available through the generous go fund me that was done for me toward the coming Hatfield banjo, and it could not have come at a better time,
ya'll will just never know how dire this has been, this last treatment has really hit me good, and as the doctors say....it cumulating and that is why i 'm feeling extra
bad and run down this time.

The VA has not ever came through for me, i mean this has been a 35 year war with them over benefits that i'm supposed to have(so they say) and what i have been getting which is nothing, and i've been fine with that, but this new lady that is working with me, as of this past Wednesday, she came through in spades today, and with her help, and ken hydinger's help, i've landed in a extended stay motel for the next, looks like 2 weeks, that is if this horse don't jump with me, and throw me!

I left the infusion center just after 4pm, i was there all day, on the phone and emailing with ken, and we weren't sure if the VA was going to come through with lodging, not up unil about 3:45 this afternoon,

The good guys car show in Columbus, really threw a monkey wrench into all the room rates in the Columbus area, i mean they tripled in just a couple of hrs today, so rooms at budget hotels that normal went for 60 dollars a night plus tax, are now fetching over a 120 bucks a night.....and i don't have to tell you that a guy in my dire straights just can't live like that, i have money for bologna and all they are pricing is steak , so you can see the delimia i was in.

After Walmart gave ken the run around on there money services he finally procured a wire transfer to me through good ole Western Union, and that on top of what the VA is catching should keep me in good shape until the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society makes good on there hopefulness of more funding for lodging so i could be set until after my next treatment in August if this run of good luck continues to hold.....i will take all good thoughts you guys can muster, this is the best break i've had since this whole ordeal started last September when me and the fur kids lost our apartment and had to flee Cincinnati.

It was touch and go when i tried to check in here at the extended stay....all the T's were not crossed and the I's were not dotted to the liking of management , for a few minutes, it looked like it was not going to happen, and the Va was on after hrs call in's and my pockets were about as empty as last years birds nest!

The manager was wanting me to put up a credit card, and i flat told her, all i have is a cash debit, and showing her that card and one dollar would not even buy me a pop at Speedway, i'm busted, and looking at the back of my suv tonight if the VA funding isn't here. She confirmed that my confirmation number was correct, but something wasn't setting well with her, but i think she just didn't like my hat, i know a lot of people don't like my cowboy hat!

Anyway, she decided to rely on her better Angels , and finally gave me my room number , and said we would resume this on monday and get all the funding issue's straightened out.....but this is just the start.

i get up here to my room, and the air conditioner isn't cooling, i mean i could leave the refrigerator door open and it would have cooled the room better than what the air conditioner was doing, just pumping out luke warm air, and the temps out side are pushing 90, and my temp is trying to spike from all the chemo and shots i've got in me, and i've not ate since 6:15 am this morning, and i'm sick, and tired and still got to go to kroger and get me some groceries to put in the fridge.

So....I go to Kroger, get the wire transfer that Ken arranged(nothing but love for you buddy)! Now i got some money for groceries and things that i will need to set up house keeping here for the next couple of weeks, you know, paper towels, laundry soap, extra tp, i mean this is basically a studio efficiency apartment, but.....i get back and the air is still pumping hot air.
The repair man came and looked at the air and said....."it's broke" i will have to move you to another room........i says to him......i was told i got the last room, he says to me.....there is another room up on the 4th floor but it has a couple of cosmetic issues....i says to him....look, i'm low rent dude....if the air works and toilet flushes and i can cook for myself....lets do this........The cosmetic issue was a 1 foot square spackle spot on the wall, and he needed to put the head board on the bed...that was it.

So, my friends, i am in a cool, clean room, with food in the fridge and not completely unpacked, but enough that i can start thinking about going to bed here in just a few minutes, and am i ever ready for it.....i going to probably eat some of my chicken tenders that i bought at the kroger deli, and just kick back and let some of the adrenaline and chemo run out of me...if i can pound some more water and try to keep from spiking a temp and having to go to the hospital, but hopefully, once i get layed down, things will start to aline themselves and all might be right in warp land for the next few days.

Ok gang,
once again, thanks for the good thoughts, and to my ole buddy ken for sacrificing a whole day for me, it just wouldn't have happened without you ken.

I'll talk more to you all tomorrow after i get some rest.
Y'all have a gooderin
Warp!

Ciao - Posted - 07/12/2019:  19:16:08

Ken, you're a top bloke (and compliments don't come any higher here in Aus).

From Greylock to Bean Blossom - Posted - 07/12/2019:  19:26:20

Chris,

Thanks for the kind words. To be honest, Warp gives me way more credit than I deserve, but I will remember that when I need someone to bail me out.  I have been down to your part of the world and it is good people. But as you can tell from Warp's story, man he does not deserve this. It is great he found a good lady at the VA to do what should be done. We just have to keep Warp in thoughts and prayers, (my Minister shouted a few up today ) and get ready to celebrate the good times to come.

ken

chuckv97 - Posted - 07/12/2019:  19:48:27

Prayers for You, Kevin ..., and kudos to you Ken. It breaks my damn heart to hear of these situations. Something should be done.

Mooooo - Posted - 07/12/2019:  20:28:58

Kevin, I hope one of these days you can have an extended stress free period so you don't have to worry about a roof over your head, or getting to your treatments. Man, with all the ups and downs you've had trying to keep yourself housed and get healthy you should write a book. I'm hoping the best for you. And Ken is a really great guy for helping as much as he does.
Keep up with the great attitude and know we are all pulling for you.

FlyinEagle - Posted - 07/12/2019:  21:38:08

Thank you Ken. Thank you VA.

Now kick up those boots and get some well deserved rest Kevin!

warpdrive - Posted - 07/13/2019:  04:52:58

Saturday, July 13th, 7:11 am, WoodSpring Suites, Grove City, Oh

Good Morning,

Thanks to one and all for the nice thoughts, and responses, in my unsettled times that i'm living in right now, you guys really are my family.....just so you know!

Well, i seemed to have got some much needed rest, i guess it was pushing 11pm last night before i doused the last light at bedtime. I was up during the night a couple of times, but that is to be expected ...especially during the next 2 weeks when i am in what i call my "hot zone" having to watch for rash's and spiked temps and such, but so far the extreme has been the fatigue, and in the next few days i can expect my old...new found friends, thanks to chemo.... bone pain, and neuropathy, they always come to visit about 5 or 6 days in, and they will stay for about a week, then as the chemo flushes out of my system, they go with it....thank goodness!

As it turns out, the extended stay is only about 4 years old, and actually won an award this past year, and i must say i have a different outlook on the digs now that i am somewhat settled in....still a few things to put away.

The suite is small, i have regular size bed, but nice selection of cable channels so i can watch the news and such, and looks like we got good wi fi, so i can talk to you guys.....alot.....hell i might even try breaking out the ole rk-35 and record something, i know y'all have not laid an eyeball on me since i left Mt View this past January, so you've not seen me clean shaven. Granted, i'm no prettier, but thems the breaks, you'll just have to endure!

The apartment could use a couch, and it would be cramped , but i would still like to have one, there is just a small work top dest attached next to the kitchenette sink were i am talking to you guys on my laptop, and there is a room phone for local calls, there is a small drawer attached to the wall for unloading my bags(should i choose to) i tend to not unpack a lot seeing as how i never know how long i'm going to be in one spot.
I've got all the amenities that i need to survive, and i have my own stash of cleaning supplies, i tend to travel " well heeled" in all regards, but a couch or large sofa chair would be nice, that way i don't have to choose between the bed or the two generic apt style chairs!

I got up and finally got dressed about 6:30 i guess, just couldn't stay in the bed any longer, and i needed to get things moving ...as in the morning ablations(sorry TMI).

I'm a coffee drinker! My mom put coffee in my baby bottle when at six weeks old i quit taking all milk and formula, so when the doctor told her to try and put something in my bottle to make me drink the milk and formula, she tried coffee, and i took to it, and i've seldom missed a cup in my soon to be 59 years. I carried coffee to school in my thermos , grade, jr high and high school, i love the stuff, and when i wake in the mornings, if i'm not in the bathroom, i'm looking for a cup of coffee!
This apartment has everything ....but....a "COFFEE MAKER"! Lucky for me, there is a convenience store called "turkey hill" right at the end of our driveway across the street, so i got some much needed exercise and walked over and got me a 20 oz cup and a hot breakfast sandwich, but i think i will probably go to walmart today and purchase a small 4 cup coffee maker, i think you can find them for under 20 bucks now a days!
I still need to get me some paper plates , i have a box of plastic spoons for my greek yogurt and cereal, i have some deli sliced ham and cheese from Krogers in the fridge and a nice big kitchen microwave for heating and cooking and a new 2 burner stove top, so i do have nice digs, the problem is deciding just how much one wants to involve one's self , so as not to be more cumbersome when you have to leave, i hate having to pack up more than i came with, i've always been that way, i guess it's the road musician Gypsy in me. Oh well, i will figure it out as the next couple of weeks passes by, i would appreciate any in put some of you with my experiences may have had, in my situation, i don't think there is such a thing as being over prepared!

Ok gang, i've yaked on enough for now i guess. I feel like my throat is trying to get sore, could be my ole buddy "thrush" wanting to try and come visit, but I'm going to try and tell him i'm all full up right now, and he will just have to keep on moving!

allright, you guys know where i am at, don't be strangers and come and visit when you can......Thanks to all for being here for me....
Y'all, have a gooderin
Warp!

From Greylock to Bean Blossom - Posted - 07/13/2019:  17:10:38

Warp,

Do me a favor, with at 2 burner stove have a breakfast of scrambled eggs seasoned with garlic powder, fried baloney, and peanut butter & jelly (strawberry) toast. Goes GREAT with the coffee!

ken

Edited by - From Greylock to Bean Blossom on 07/13/2019 17:15:51

warpdrive - Posted - 07/14/2019:  08:32:46

Ken,
you start talking about fried baloney , and i starting remembering the way we would eat it growing up,......you fry the boloney in a iron skillet until it curls up all the way around and forms a baloney dish, then you get a scoop of mashed taters and gravy and put in the middle of the fried boloney , that's the fancy way to fix it when the preacher comes over for dinner!
warp!

BanjoLink - Posted - 07/14/2019:  09:27:37

Gotta be cooked in an iron skillet! We would always cut the edges so it wouldn't curl up so bad and then flip it and hold it down with a spatula so it would brown both sides. Then put it on two pieces of fresh white bread with mayo on one piece and mustard on the other!

warpdrive - Posted - 07/15/2019:  14:32:36

Monday, July 15th, 4:51pm WoodSpring Suites, Urbancrest, Oh

Good Afternoon,

Well gang, i must say the last 36 hrs have been a ring-tailed-tooter for ole warp.

I went to bed saturday night sick, and woke up sunday morning,(the operative word is "woke") a hell of a lot sicker.
This round of chemo has really shown what's it made of, and i had to have the Onc on call phone in a prescript at a local Kroger Pharmacy just to get me back up and walking.
Except for going to get the meds, Sunday was spent in the bed, and just so un-compfortable , hot flashes, then cold, then up to the bathroom, all day long, maybe get a nap in between ups and downs, throat is trying to get sore, nothing tastes good.....yeah, Sunday was a wash!

Things have been a bit better today. I have had a bit of an appetite today, and was able to get up and around, but i took it easy till about 3 this afternoon, and i knew i needed to get a coffee maker, going over to Turkey Hill and buying a cup of coffee everyday would soon pay for a Mr Coffee, so i headed out to walley world and let me tell you, it almost cost me my life.......old warp is more "vampire/zombie" now a days, with all the chemo has done to his system, meaning......"the sun aint no friend of mine"! I went outside and i dang near had a stroke, it was 95 and you could fry an egg on the blacktop, and just the walk to and from my suv made my head swim and made me nauseous to boot!
I did find a 5 cup Mr Coffee for under 20 bucks like i thought, for me, a worth while investment. I got the necessities that one needs to go with it...coffee, and a mug, half and half, then i headed home. If i have my way about it, i won't leave this apartment till thursday Am, when i have a doctors appointment at the VA, i know that probably sounds a bit "lazy" to some, or maybe all of ya'll, but i don't know anybody around here, so i've got no reason to get out, and burn un-necessary gas just tooling around aimlessly !

I did go down and finally bring the ole rk-35 out of the inferno suv, it had been in the back of the rig since i left Ray and Beths last wednesday morning when i headed out for treatment.
Baking in the heat, the head has loosened up some and it sounds "funky tubby" really hollow, in some ways i kind of like it, makes me want to put on the "john hartford" low tuned strings that Tony Ellis gave me a couple of weeks ago, and maybe when i get the new Hatfield, i probably will do just that!

Well gang, i don't have a lot more to talk about, just trying to get back to feeling like a normal warp drive, whatever that once was, it's been so long, i really don't recognize my feelings anymore, so i guess this is my new normal, but i will take it cause i know it beats the alternative, and you guys need to remind me of that now and again, if it's not too much trouble!

Ok, till next time,
Y'all have a gooderin
Warp!

From Greylock to Bean Blossom - Posted - 07/15/2019:  14:37:55

Warp, Sorry this has been such a tough one. didn't hear from you yesterday and I just got in from teaching so I was going to get in touch with you. Hope this bad stuff breaks good soon for you.
Ken

warpdrive - Posted - 07/15/2019:  14:52:33

Thanks Ken,
I will heal up and start feeling better in a few days, the first 3-5 days afterward are always tough, but since this is the 4th treatment, the docs say its the "cumulative" past of the previous one's plus this one that is really wiping me out, so there was no way to for see this.

Hope all went well yesterday with your granddaughters tournament ?
As they say in "Vegas" I'm here all week!
Warp!

From Greylock to Bean Blossom - Posted - 07/15/2019:  20:30:20

Warp,

For what it is worth i got into Joe Mullins and LIlly tonight. Listened to if for about 30 minutes. Loved his backup and what a pretty pretty song.

youtube.com/watch?v=hrHOzAbdyx...&t=0s

ken

Edited by - From Greylock to Bean Blossom on 07/15/2019 20:38:56

warpdrive - Posted - 07/16/2019:  03:54:28

Hey Ken,
Joe Mullins is one of my favorite banjo pickers that i like to call," a complete banjoist"!.....meaning....his right hand timing is complete, there are no holes in the rolls, when he's plays Scruggs, it is old school, "young earl" when he needs more propulsion, he puts in Reno, on his back up, he will throw in some JD, jimmy martin Era.
Joe combines all the styles, and them makes it his own.....that is what separates the good from the great, and he is a really nice guy!
Warp!

From Greylock to Bean Blossom - Posted - 07/16/2019:  04:01:09

Warp,
Good to hear from you this early this morning? I hope it means the worse of this last bout is over and you are on the mend.
What exactly to you mean "no holes in his rolls"? But yeah, i like listening to him!
ken

warpdrive - Posted - 07/16/2019:  05:33:36

Somehow Ken,
" i knew you were going to ask me that question"what do you mean, no holes in his rolls"!

Ok, it's awfully early for this....but here we go...Oh yeah, i do feel good this morning, hope it continues ....thanks for asking!.....to your question....
THE FOLLOWING IS NOT A REFLECTION OF MY BANJO PICKING IT IS MY OPNION!
Ok, running in the banjo circle's i've ran in, and listening to the really really great banjo pickers.....Earl, Sonny, Don, JD, Big K, Ron S, Charlie, Alan M, Tom Adams, and some of the young up and comers, and i'm sorry i can't think of there names but i know them when i hear them.....these guys all have a common thing......there rolls and right hand timings have a very specific sound to them, or at least they do to me!.....and Joe Mullins fits in to this specificity i listen for!

ken, you know as a Tennis Instructor, not all skill sets are the same, and nor can they be taught if there is no natural ability present.....that is just a fact, i was once as good a baseball prodigy as i was a banjo picker.

There is timing, that is considered "desirable " especially among the professional bluegrass alumni , People like Jimmy Martin, and Doyle Lawson, and Larry Sparks, the list can go on and on, there is a sound and timing and and skill set in banjo pickers that is desired and looked for, and if you can't hear it, and don't learn it, its not too say,"you can't pick the banjo" it is too say" you just don't have what will fit my needs in my band and sound".

With he exception of the "Legendary JD Crowe" who has a really different roll timing(and i believe he changed it up deliberately ) to give himself that insane note separation, most all the pro level touring band leaders, are looking for a banjo picker that has a very fluid...flowing, "young Scruggs/Reno forward flow to there roll, which in itself is more based on 531 perpetual than the more common forward/backward 32151231.
When we go to get the new Hatfield....i will demonstrate this for you!

I don't want to get off onto a tantrum among the thread followers, because the truth is.....not everybody is going to agree, and not everybody cares, and that is why we have 31 different flavors, BUT..... just like in your genre of teaching tennis, you know the goods when you see the goods, and i'm sure you've had to tell perspective students at different times....look, if you want to continue for the health and fitness benefits of the game, by all means, it is a life worthy endeavor for you....but if you are thinking your going to play Wimbledon one day....you might be setting your sights a bit high!

The same holds true in Musicianship and especially banjo picking, weather or not one likes it, has nothing to do with it, like all aspects of life, there is a standard that is expected as either you make the cut or you don't, but we don't get to decide that as candidates , the band leaders that hire you, and the audience that comes to see you will decide that!.
I think this is the way its always been!

Hope this helps explain and answer your question, if it doesn't, i know we will have a chance latter down the road!
Warp!

From Greylock to Bean Blossom - Posted - 07/16/2019:  06:26:40

When we go to get the new Hatfield....i will demonstrate this for you!

Yeah boy.. That is going to be a day!!i

 Your explanation was good. I made a bit of a living for a while seeing the "it" there in tennis and being able to get it to bloom.

Very glad you are feeling better this morning. That sounded like a hard  stretch to go thru. Hpe you enjoy your cup of joe this morning!

Ken

warpdrive - Posted - 07/17/2019:  10:43:39

Wednesday, July 17th, Urbancrest Oh, 1:20 pm

Good Afternoon,

Ok all you "Kev Heads, and Warp Watchers, the date of delivery on my new Hatfield Banjo, that was funded from all of the gracious donations from the "Go Fund Me" has been established.

This Friday, i will meet up (for the first time) with fellow hangout member Ken Hydinger(from greylock to bean blossom) and we will journey down to Arthur Hatfield's together and pick up my new Hatfield Banjo!

We are trying to work on a way that we can post this in real time on friday, but i myself don't have a smart phone. I've only had a pay as you go flip phone for a few years now, so unless Ken has a smart phone, i just don't know how to do the initial first viewing and playing of the new ax at Arthur's.....maybe Arthur will have a way to do it, or somebody close by might be able to.....if anybody has any idea's, we certainly are open to them!

So there you have it my friends....a good work on my behalf realized!
,
It's hard for me to hold thoughts of this in my head because of what has transpired in the last year for me, i've had so many not positive things happen, when i get things that are positive, i don't want to believe them, and enjoy them, i keep waiting for the next shoe to drop.

"I AM SO GRATEFUL TO ALL ON THIS SITE WHO HAVE CONTRIBUTED TO AND SUPPORTED MY JOURNEY IN THIS LAST YEAR....IN ALL ASPECTS!

THANK YOU!

Ok gang, i don't have much more, there are other good things working in my life right now, and as they come into reality , i will post them, but for now, this is the reality of your good intentions for me coming true, you guys are the best...
Till next time
Y'all have a gooderin
Warp!

Mooooo - Posted - 07/17/2019:  10:56:59

Exciting news indeed! Even a taped vid of the presentation will be nice. Don't worry about the Real-time upload, most importantly, just enjoy the moment without worrying about anything else. Feel well, my friend. Enjoy your new instrument.

jlsorbit - Posted - 07/17/2019:  11:31:51

I agree with Mike. Enjoy!

From Greylock to Bean Blossom - Posted - 07/17/2019:  14:55:43

Me have a smart phone?!, Gees, ask my wife, I don't even have a smart head. but I will bring a camera and hope to be able to post bunch of stuff on the hangout after we get back. May not be real time, but will be real.
ken

warpdrive - Posted - 07/18/2019:  13:56:17

Thursday, July 18th, Urbancrest Ohio, 4:32 pm

Good Afternoon.

Whew.....i hope everybody is inside and cool! I went out this morning and it was already in the mid to upper 80's and we have heat advisory's out for much of the surrounding areas.
The landscaping people were out this morning and left a garden hose out in the sun....and i watched it crawl to the shade on it's own....it's that hot!

Well Ken and myself have talked a couple of times today and have put the finishing touches on the planned trip down to Arthur Hatfield's tomorrow to get my new banjo.....my day will start somewhere around 4:30 am tomorrow morning with a out the door, out the parking lot departure of 5:30-5:45am.
Ken says he has about a 2 hr drive to Louisville, and for me it will be about 3.5hrs!

Ken was asking me today on the phone..."what kind of music should he bring" which asking me that is a loaded question, i told him i listen to everything, and basically for him to surprise me.....then i called him back and said.....why don't you bring your banjo and i will sit in the back of the van and play all the way down there, so he said he would bring both his banjo's.....but i got to thinking....i bet he hasn't had a "heavy handed hillbilly" with a blaring banjo in his back seat before...ken might just be deaf, and hate bluegrass and banjo's after this encounter
with me...we will see won't we?

I took the cheat-a-keys off my rk-35 today, and took off the bridge i've been playing for the last several months and put a sub on it...i've also packed another 7 or so bridges along with my capo and strap, there is more to picking up a new banjo than just slobbering over it......fine tuning must be done.....one of the banjo commandments, and i am going loaded for BEAR!

In my brief conversation with Arthur the other day we talked about spiking and he is going to spike it for me at A,Bft B a C....although truthfully i seldom ever capo up to C anymore i just don't like the sound of capo'd C in my older years and i like the challenge of playing out of the first C position!

There was discussion of speed necking...but in the end i told Arthur that if he was going to make the neck slim as i requested...gloss black, matching the rest of the banjo will be ok....and if i heard him correctly...he do it gloss finish.

Ok guys....the time is almost upon me, and i've danced this dance before....but never under such humble conditions and intentions from others generosity , and i hope when we are in the throws of it all tomorrow, we can somehow involve you guys....i know many of you will be there with us in spirt.....'I THANK YOU ALL"

till tomorrow
sometime down the road,
y'all have a goodrin
Warp!

FlyinEagle - Posted - 07/18/2019:  17:07:36

Enjoy your day tomorrow warp!

Mooooo - Posted - 07/19/2019:  16:04:17

Am I the only one who feels like a kid waiting to open christmas presents?

From Greylock to Bean Blossom - Posted - 07/19/2019:  16:18:55

Folks I hope my videos came out. I am going to try to figure how to get them on the computer. Tomorrow I have to go to a tennis tourney and it may take a day to get the posted. I will tell you Warp sat and played that banjo HARD for 2-3 hours and it and he sounded GOOD. A great trip. Sorry to be so computer dysfunctional. But let me get at trying.
ken

warpdrive - Posted - 07/19/2019:  18:59:39

Friday July 19th, Urbancrest Ohio, 9:03 pm...

Good Golly Miss Molly.....What A Day!

Well, my day started about 4:30 this morning. I got good traffic patterns on the way down, so i was about 45 minutes or so ahead of Ken at our pre-arranged meeting spot...(no big secret...Sam' Club in Louisville off exit 128 65s).

After our initial meet and greet, and finishing a necessary or two in Sam's club...we loaded into ken's mini van....me in the back seat...with his 2 Hatfield banjo's and we headed off toward the south like a heard of turtles!

As soon as ken got us leveled off i was opening the first banjo case and really for the first time getting to play a really well set up Hatfield Banjo, and i was tickled to death to see it was a maple banjo(i'm partial to maple i am). Ken's banjo played very easy, and sounded really good....but it especially shines with a capo up in A, that seems to be the sweet spot on that particular banjo.
We visited back and forth, mostly me just hammering on the banjo and ken smiling in the rear view mirror at me....but seriously, we had a ball, I usually don't let someone drive me around....i'm just a control freak that way, but for what ever reason, i wasn't alarmed that someone was watching me through a rear view mirror play the banjo...more than watching the road....i guess i figured Ken had some pretty good guardian angles watching him, and they were pulling double duty today having me around to deal with.

Concentrating on playing while going down the road, and talking...made the two hr drive seem like 15-20 minutes to me, i mean in no time we were navigating the back roads to Arthurs house....and i hadn't even got out ken's other banjo yet...so for the sake of it not feeling left out....i put the maple banjo away, and got out the mahogany banjo and tickled it a bit......just as sweet as the maple...in a darker way, but that is the nature and difference of the woods....that is to be expected!

We pulled into Arthur's driveway and wasted no time getting in....Arthur answered the door after i knocked, and stood in the door way smiling like a mule eating bumble bee's!
Ken introduced us, and we shook hands like old school chums. Arthurs shop reminded me of the many banjo workshops i've been in....full of parts, turned rims, half put together banjos, and the smell of new lacquer, and dust.
Arthur pointed over to a table top and said....there is yours....and there she was...the first thing in noticed was that to me...it felt heavier than either of ken's banjo's...i don't know why...it just did, in which that doesn't bother me because in my experience....a heavy banjo has a lot of power.
My banjo is black, and yes he did keep the back of the neck gloss black, and the neck if very slim indeed....i think Arthur said it was about the slimmest neck he'd ever done....but it fit's me like a glove.
This banjo may have one of the best 4th strings i've ever heard....and that also is a good quality in a banjo.
Arthur had a temporary resonator on it for the time being....he had been buffing my resonator some more.
I took out some of my bridges, and went to "personalizing" the set up, not that it didn't sound good, it was great for a initial set up....but i've got my own ears, and there are certain sounds i want to bring out, and that involves different bridges and adjusting the string height (we raised the string height i bet a half dozen times, but she is were i like her now).
I switched out i think three bridges before i settled on the one that i have on her right now....and that might change again in the coming days as my ear and the banjo both adjust.

Now this banjo is "brand spanking new" i mean it's only been together a few days and nobody has played it....you can't get a greener banjo, so i knew it was going to be "tight"!
I played her a good hour....and i was wild as a peach orchard boar, so ya'll don't think too bad of me when you hear the videos that ken shot....i promise i will get better, but my mind was in fourteen hundred places in banjo land, and my ears a ringing from the 2 hrs that i had beat on Ken's banjo on the way down, and all the banjo's feel different, so my hands didn't know what they were grabbing sometimes....just saying!

Sometime, i guess after the first hour...maybe longer...i had played here enough and was staring to get ideas of what she was wanting...so i say' to Arthur....
hand me a head wrench....and just like what i have...Arthur handed me a nut driver, i've used one for years instead of a banjo wrench.
I went around each nut at least a half a turn, some a little more, some no so much depending on how the resistance was.....when i got her snugged up some more..i put the resonator back on...flipped her over and hit it a lick.....the response was immediate ....exactly what i was wanting her to do....she was in road gear now, and ken said he noticed a immediate difference and asked why and what i was looking for......i just know....been doing it too long, you know when you know. I showed ken by tapping the head....the sound that i like a head at in all my banjos....that is the pitch of the tap....it might be a bit bright for some but for me.....it was exactly what i wanted it to do...."open up" the banjo was opening up as i played it....Arthur could hear it, and ken could hear it, and that is what a new banjo has too do...especially when it's that green.....you have to play it till it starts to open up.
The big win for me was when i put the capo back on in A.....this thing is a cannon in A and the tone is staring pouring out of it, and the response was like a fine race car, but the A was now so loud....it just about hurt , in fact, it was the last sound i heard, but the head tightening woke her up, and she is only going to get better, but to get results like that from a just put togather banjo....i've not seen many days like that!

As i said gang...the videos are me just playing wild licks and putting the banjo through it's pace's , i was not focused, but i will get better in the coming days, i just got to get the lap top to cooperate .

I will take some pics with the lap top tomorrow and see if i can get them to Ken to
post, and as i get more familiar with the new banjo....i will start recording more vides....again...laptop must cooperate.

Ok guys.....i am wiped out, and what a great guy my new found friend Ken is....he helped me in so many ways. i just can't thank him enough for making all this possible.
Ok....i blurry eyed tired, and gots to lay down.....i will see y'all tomorrow for sure.
till then
Y'all have a gooderin
Warp!

chuckv97 - Posted - 07/19/2019:  19:10:04

Terrific! A Golden day, Warp.

From Greylock to Bean Blossom - Posted - 07/19/2019:  19:53:12

I finally got the them downloaded to my computer. I have to leave for a tennis tournament tomorrow morn at 7 so it will be tomorrow night before I get them up. I am sorry, they did not come out well. the quality is good but the videos are segmented. You will hear some great banjo and some great playing. but I have not used this camera before and it kept shutting off. Hence the segments.

Let me tell you that Warp is one tough boy. All that he has been thru with chemo and today he went thru 10 hours of driving and 4 hours of hard playing and I mean hard, driving, and FAST.  It got hot and sweat was flowing. Such a long day had to take a toll on him. But he smiled all the way thru, was great company, was/is PASSIONATE about banjos, is extremely knowledgeable about banjos, has some great stories which lead to insight, and has a darn good sense of humor. It was a great day for me and we need to all keep praying for Warp's return for FULL health.

Ken

ps and I got a great explanation and demonstration (all day long) on what is the real bluegrass timing.

jphulme - Posted - 07/19/2019:  20:15:18

What a great day you guys had. I can only imagine how amazing it would be to do that. Sounds like that banjo is just what the doctor ordered.

warpdrive - Posted - 07/20/2019:  07:19:49

Saturday, July 20th, Urbancrest Oh, 9:33 AM,

Good Morning,

After a wonderfully exhausting day yesterday with Ken and Arthur down in the hills of Kentucky....ole warp got a good nights rest and has already had one of the most euphoric mornings i can remember in such a long, long time.
Its as if all the Christmas's from years past have manifested themselves into this morning, i really am having a hard time wrapping my head around what my ears and banjo senses are experiencing , and i hope when i start posting video's soon that it comes across in the recordings.....i've never felt more blessed than what i've experienced this morning.....and i have everyone involved in my "go fund me" to thank for this.......Really, i wish you all could feel what i feel right now!

In my previous post i told you about the last little detail of setting up my banjo yesterday....tightening the head, and picking out the bridge that gave me the sound and tone i was looking for.....as i stated yesterday, the banjo really came alive after that, and was a "Bellering Bull" when i had her capo'd up in A, and the response was "immediate " upon touch, i closed the case, and didn't open her up till this morning........wow......it's as if the banjo had "steroids" shot in to it, and it just grew in strength over night and has morphed into a black, beautiful, beast.....

When i took it out this morning(it was still early) i didn't have picks on, and when i touched it....it just came alive with tone and power, i could hear what i've heard in very fine banjo's from my past, but it was always in very old banjos, that had been set up and been played for years.....my banjo is less than a few days old, and hasn't been played more than a hand full of hours.

My hand are getting familiar with the neck now and the little nuances of how the notes want to come out on this particular neck.
One thing i did this morning was to replace the first, second and third strings with lighter gauges than what Arthur had one there....i am running a 9, 10, and 12 on the first three strings, and this banjo notes like your fingers are hitting "butter" I mean just the weight of my fingers, with out any pressure, makes her note clean, clear, and true, with a sound decay that is "exactly what i wanted to hear, and dreamed of in my mind, before i got her.

Now for some people, maybe most people, this banjo might be a bit bright, almost sharp or shrill, but that is the sound that i hear and like, and the volume of this banjo is so loud....i don't know if i can put the playing in a band, full hand force behind it in this hotel room....i think that the other guest would call ems and say a banjo bomb when off and come look for casualties, LOL!

I put picks on after i changed to lighter gauge strings, and i pointed the banjo toward the window.....its that loud, and i just can't believe what i am hearing and how easy i can get what i've only imagined for oh so long....it's as if everything i've ever learned, and heard in banjo's has come to pass, and is sitting in my hands, fulfilling my every wish and desire....and the sound of the Cheat-a-keys, oh wow, they "whine like a little baby" i mean the more you play it, the more overwhelmed your sense' become, and you have to put it down and just step back and soak it all in....did i say i was happy?....."HUGE UNDERSTATEMENT"

The Icing on this cake is this banjo's 4th string......i've never heard better in any banjo, anywhere that i've played...old or new....this is the deepest, ringing , most responsive 4th string i've every encountered and just fuels this banjo's engine with high octane drag racing capability, no other way to describe it, i mean if Arthur ever builds another banjo like this....he will have to start issuing " license's" to play, before he can release it!

As i said guys....i can only hope that how i just described this banjo....translates and comes across on video, just no way to tell with a laptop camera, but i hope to try and give you a sample soon, and again, i don't know how well received it's going to be here in this hotel....this floor is extra quiet, and i need to keep this roof over my head.....so i'm trying to think of wear i could go, so my playing is un-emcumbered....the library is out......and its too hot for me to be outside, no worries, i will figure it out.

Ok gang
that's it for now....going to clean up a bit, then what?
maybe play my new banjo?
You think......really....
Till later,
y'all have a gooderin
Warp!

lyndabee - Posted - 07/20/2019:  13:25:12

So happy for you! 

Edited by - lyndabee on 07/20/2019 13:25:42

From Greylock to Bean Blossom - Posted - 07/21/2019:  03:02:40

People,
Sorry for the delay in posting. I am having a bit of problems with the computer, a new go pro camera and my ignorance. But some of the downloads took an hour to complete last night. I have maybe 16 snippets and am up to number 10. I need to head back to the tournament leaving at 6:30 this morn. But I should, if all goes well, be able to start posting tonight. I still need to download a few, transfer them all to youtube and then put them on the hangout. So sorry I have botched this a bit.
ken

jlsorbit - Posted - 07/21/2019:  05:56:18

No worries, Ken. It's fun  just to read Kevin's description of things for now.

Edited by - jlsorbit on 07/21/2019 05:57:21

KD Banjer - Posted - 07/21/2019:  10:54:25

Hey warpdrive (Kevin)...

That is so amazing and exciting that you received your Hatfield.

In addition to being a great guy, Arthur makes extraordinary banjos that are as good as any other out there.

So glad that this banjo is bringing more joy into your life.

Really looking forward to seeing photos and videos when you can post them, Ken.

KD Banjer - Posted - 07/21/2019:  11:07:19

quote:

---

Originally posted by From Greylock to Bean Blossom

People,

Sorry for the delay in posting. I am having a bit of problems with the computer, a new go pro camera and my ignorance. But some of the downloads took an hour to complete last night. I have maybe 16 snippets and am up to number 10. I need to head back to the tournament leaving at 6:30 this morn. But I should, if all goes well, be able to start posting tonight. I still need to download a few, transfer them all to youtube and then put them on the hangout. So sorry I have botched this a bit.

ken

---

Look forward to seeing them, Ken, when you have the chance.

Thank you for your all of your inspiring effort in making this happen.

From Greylock to Bean Blossom - Posted - 07/22/2019:  04:51:14

Can anyone help?

I thought we were supposed to rule technology and not the other way around. I have converted some of the videos I took with my GoPro camera to you tube. This morning I went to put them on my BHO homepage in order to put them on this thread. When I did that I got the following message:

budbennett - Posted - 07/22/2019:  05:12:42

quote:

---

Originally posted by From Greylock to Bean Blossom

Can anyone help?

I thought we were supposed to rule technology and not the other way around. I have converted some of the videos I took with my GoPro camera to you tube. This morning I went to put them on my BHO homepage in order to put them on this thread. When I did that I got the following message:

Add Video

This video cannot be embedded on this site (private video or embedding has been disabled on YouTube's side). Your changes were not saved. Please Note: Only music videos featuring banjo playing or interviews featuring banjo players may be added to the Banjo Hangout video archive Video URL Copy and paste the full YouTube video URL into the box above — eg: youtube.com/watch?v=gK0iMLvCfFM

---

on Youtube, do you have the privacy setting as Private, or as either public or unlisted?  If it is private you can't embed it here, if it is public or unlisted you can.

to check it, go to your video and hit the edit button-

then check the privacy setting.

Edited by - budbennett on 07/22/2019 05:17:06

From Greylock to Bean Blossom - Posted - 07/22/2019:  05:26:51

Bud,

Thank you so much for helping but I do that (and it was listed as public visibility) and still I get the same result.

ken

budbennett - Posted - 07/22/2019:  06:47:49

quote:

---

Originally posted by From Greylock to Bean Blossom

Bud,

Thank you so much for helping but I do that (and it was listed as public visibility) and still I get the same result.

ken

---

Sorry Ken, that's all I got for you.  I hope you work it out!

phb - Posted - 07/22/2019:  06:56:39

Kevin, it is good to hear that you like your new banjo that much! Now go and turn that RK-35 with the bad fretjob into some cash. It'll be good enough a banjo for some beginner that will be happy to get a RK at a decent price.

warpdrive - Posted - 07/22/2019:  07:39:25

Hey guys....

remember the old days of television...."we are having technical difficulties , this is not the fault of your television set"....well......

my laptop is not letting me send a recored video to anybody right now...my production manager....Mike (moo) and me have been trying for the last 2 days to get something up.....and now it looks like Ken is having not so good results with posting....it's as if the banjo powers that be are toying with us...make us wait just a bit longer.....i don't know, it is frustrating ....please just bear with us....i promise there is a new banjo, and me and ken did go to Arthurs and get it....we didn't fake it in some studio somewhere.....we really did land in Arthur Hatfield's driveway...
Warp

chuckv97 - Posted - 07/22/2019:  07:44:52

Oh boy, not this again....

youtu.be/-b5aW08ivHU

Edited by - chuckv97 on 07/22/2019 07:45:16

From Greylock to Bean Blossom - Posted - 07/22/2019:  08:04:21

quote:

---

Originally posted by budbennett

quote:

---

Originally posted by From Greylock to Bean Blossom

Bud,

Thank you so much for helping but I do that (and it was listed as public visibility) and still I get the same result.

ken

---

Sorry Ken, that's all I got for you.  I hope you work it out!

 

---

Thanks for trying Bud. I will post on tech help here on the hangout.

ken

From Greylock to Bean Blossom - Posted - 07/22/2019:  08:24:19

Well I am going to try to skin the cat this way by posting some youtube as links. these may not be in order. I probably just should have let the camera roll but i thought there might be too much down time. so I tried to get just playing. PS, it this works, there will be more following:

youtube.com/watch?v=1A9Szl2DyfE

youtube.com/watch?v=eve302x95R4

ken

These are not at the start, but in the first vid Kevin does not have the resonator on in the 2nd he is adjusting bridges and he experiemented around with different bridges.

Edited by - From Greylock to Bean Blossom on 07/22/2019 08:26:41

Laurence Diehl - Posted - 07/22/2019:  08:43:59

That works Ken - the banjo sounds great! (and the pickin' aint bad either) 

dmiller - Posted - 07/22/2019:  08:50:20

Dang Ken - - those are great!  So good to see Arthur's shop again, and also to see Warp's expressions as he picks his new banjo.  As good as it sounds now, I can only imagine how much better it's going to sound in another month or so!  Keep those videos coming, eh?!