story time

[jonathan stuchell]

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   What title for the book?    How 'bout 'Letters from a recalcitrant =
tuner'
  ----- Original Message -----=20
  From: Joe And Penny Goss=20
  To: Pianotech=20
  Sent: Saturday, December 31, 2005 12:13 PM
  Subject: story time


  Suggestion,
  These tidbits by themselves could not fill a book. However if =
collected would make for fine reading.

  I'm thinking if we could donate our stories for a PTG fund rasing =
book.

  ?? whadyathink

  Joe Goss RPT


    Susan,=20

    What a blessing to see your warm homey soapstone oven.=20

    Your account of the key washing reminds me of a frantic call=20
    I received many years ago. I stopped in mid tuning and=20
    rushed to a the mansion of a very prominent family in town.=20
    The heirloom family Steinway was being given to the grand-
    daughter and the maid was told to wash the ivories.=20
    Whereupon the maid put ivory soap in a bucket
    and was happily scrubbing the inside of the piano.=20

    Several months and many dollars later I asked if the maid=20
    was still working for them. I'll never forget this line -
    "Yes, the poor dear never was too bright".=20

    And, finally,=20

    Connie and I returned home from a great evening
    of dinner and a movie. The answering machine was=20
    filled. A piano teacher friend of ours was frantic.=20
    It was flu season and one of her students had ....
    onto the mid section of the keyboard. Still warm.
    I would have preferred she put the keys in the sink=20
    for that mess as your lady did.=20

    However, I did learn that the students homeowners=20
    policy paid for the clean-up.=20

    Here's hoping all a healthy 2006. Happy New Year.=20

    Joel

    Joel Jones, RPT
    Madison, WI

    On Dec 31, 2005, at 2:02 AM, Susan Kline wrote:


      At 08:36 AM 12/31/2005 +1030, Robin wrote:

        Yesterdays temperature here in Port Pirie was 45 degrees C =
(113F) and going for 106F today.



      And here I have chicken and a potato roasting in the soapstone =
stove's bakeoven, after a nice fire to 250C. In here it's warm and dry, =
and outside we've had such rain that the whole yard squishes. Luckily I =
don't live on low ground. There's flooding and mud slides out there in =
vulnerable areas. We call it a "Hawaiian Wet Front."

      As for deciding what not to put up with -- I was a real softy for =
far too long, and did some totally ridiculous jobs, but I have worked =
out a few things over the years. First to disappear were square grand =
tunings (I just said too hard on my back, though my back is good.) After =
twenty years of doing every upright player-with-pneumatic-action which =
came my way, I balked after a really hard one, where I had trouble =
getting the rewind to work after I was finished, and it joined my "too =
hard on my back" list. I figured, twenty years was long enough -- I had =
served my sentence.

      I used to hate tuning for road shows. In Stockton, CA, a guy used =
to call me for them. After one, which involved climbing a ladder to a =
little platform and tuning a terribly false electric grand, with tons of =
noise going on all around me, I had a couple of convenient "conflicts" =
when the guy called to schedule. He got the picture really fast, and =
stopped calling, and I hardly felt guilty for the fibs.

      There was one mentally ill old lady in a bad part of town -- I had =
to go out on the porch to keep from fainting. I had managed to tune for =
her several times, but the next time she called me, I told her she =
should try someone else. I felt sorry for her, but I couldn't face any =
more. She really needed a good house fire (while she was away), and some =
help from a social worker.

      I often clean the keys, especially in schools and churches. Clean =
keys feel better while working, give that little smug glow of =
superiority, and also show people (some of whom are not particularly =
good at music and pitch) that someone has been there. Also, I think that =
a piano with a clean keyboard gets a little bit more respect than one =
which is filthy, so perhaps people won't beat it up as badly.

      I learned one day to hold my tongue about how filthy a piano is. I =
evaluated an old upright which was truly filthy and I said so, as I =
vacuumed and dusted. When I came back to bush the keys, the lady had =
them out and was washing them off in the sink! It was retrievable with a =
lot of glue and persistence ... barely.

      Susan=20
      <fire 7.jpg>_______________________________________________
      pianotech list info: https://www.moypiano.com/resources/#archives

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