U…is for ukulele
I took this photo this morning for this post, we bought the ukulele in Hawaii years ago.
The ukulele was first taken to Hawaii by Portuguese immigrants in the 19th century. It comes in four sizes: soprano, concert, tenor, and baritone. While the ukulele is generally associated with Hawaiian music, its versatility is so much more.
One of my favorite Hawaiian ukulele artists is Jake Shimabukuro, who shows the versatility of the uke and what he can do with four strings
Now, the V, you might wonder (especially Frizz who leads this alphabet group might be wondering why I’m jumping the gun with V when it’s U’s turn), V is for…Vacation. No picture, I’ll just say view your own last great vacation in your mind’s eye. I will be going on the said V next week, leaving on Monday, and will be gone for ten days or so. I’ll have a few more tidbits of info over this coming weekend in my Sunday Chronicle, before I leave; stay tuned.
I’ll have make-up homework to do here with Frizz when I get back.
AngelineM's Blog 
Just read your fascinating conversation with Meredith and almost forgot what I came here to say! Which was that I don’t come around as often as I should, but there’s never enough time. As another retired lady, I’m pretty sure you’ll love it. Whether you’ll manage to manufacture more time than I do- well, you probably will 🙂 Enjoy it, Angeline! Life is short.
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I think we all get wrapped up with a lot going on in our lives. No shoulds here. It’s always good to have you drop by when you can. I know I’m going to enjoy retirement! It’s going to take some adjustment, but I will, and think I will manage to keep a lot of interesting things going. From one retired lady to another…..cheers!
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Love the sound of ukelele…basic, authentic and pure resonance.
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Yes, ukulele music is authentic! Great way to describe it.
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Great photo and some great advice from Meredith 🙂
Wishing you all the very best Angeline.
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Thanks, Madhu. That Meredith is becoming my guru 🙂
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Since you’re determined not to take your laptop, you might be interested in this nifty device – I don’t know whether you saw Emily’s post about it: http://emilyluxton.co.uk/2013/11/20/review-ravpower-file-hub/
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Wow, this looks pretty all encompassing. Thanks…and thanks for the lead over to Emily’s blog which I hadn’t found yet!
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Pingback: A-Z Challenge-U-U-U | WoollyMuses
Thanks for the pingback, WM!
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What size is this ukulele? A very nice photo, Angeline!
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I have no idea! I didn’t even know they came in sizes until I went to Google for this post. Our ukulele doesn’t have any markings on it to tell me, and I don’t know if there are measurements that distinguish them. I might have a little more research to do.
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I know nothing about the ukulele, thank you for the background information. Enjoy the this special ten-day vacation, Angeline!
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Thanks so much, Amy. It will be a wonderful time away to relax and renew the soul.
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I love the Uke, and IZ isn’t bad.
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I love Iz! Have every CD of his. I almost used a YouTube of his, but wanted to show more of the uke’s versatility.
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Glad I stopped by. Being Hawaiian I’m very familiar with the ukulele. My mom use to play it as we sang Hawaiian songs when I was growing up. One of our favorites was “Ke Kali Nei Au,” the Hawaiian Wedding Song made popular by Elvis Presley in “Blue Hawaii.” Some wonderful memories… 🙂
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BTW…have fun on your vacation!
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Thanks!
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Ukulele make such wonderful music. I totally considered them for Hawaiian music only until I started hearing people like Jake play! Such an incredible instrument. Growing up with your mom playing must be a wonderful memory! And I’m glad you stopped in today too 🙂
Aloha my friend.
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Wishing you a happy and enjoyable vacation, with a lot of good music.
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Thanks, Shimon. We’ll be across the water from Hawaii in Mexico, so I’m sure some good Mariachi music will be enjoyed!
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Have a wonderful, restful V!
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Thanks so much, Theresa. V’s are the best thing to straighten out one’s soul!
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Have a great time Angeline!!!!
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Thank you, Ilargia. I know we will.
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thank you for the youtube link!
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Glad you like Jake’s ukulele style.
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Lovely editing treatment, Angeline – it suits your cute ukulele perfectly. I can see you’re getting excited … is this vacation the beginning of your retirement?
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Thanks, M. Yes, this vacation is my retirement party, and the beginning of a new chapter in my life.
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I can imagine how excited (and busy) you must be! I’m so glad for you Angeline – may every day of your new adventure replenish you and give you joy. 🙂
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Thanks, M. I truly appreciate your good wishes.
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My ‘retirement’ was unplanned, Angeline, so I’m imagining how you must be feeling, and I know that after a lifetime’s diligent work, this new phase of your life will be very liberating! 🙂
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Thae liberation is what i will really love, to go and do things when I want. Believe it or not, I am a little nervous about this new thing called freedom all day, every day.
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You’re right to be, Angeline. Your search for the things that enchant and will ultimately absorb the ‘backbone’ of your time should be carried out with a purpose. In any case, that sense of freedom can be deceptive and I’ve found a weekly to do list helps, and keeping to some sort of schedule. Rules are made to be broken, after all and it’s less distressing to break a schedule than to find you’ve frittered away the whole day/week without achieving anything toward a goal.
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Oh, lord, thank you M! This is good advice. I’ve started a minimalistic To Do List to start out with; I need to revisit that and then make it a daily/weekly thing. That is what I’ve been nervous about…no structure, which is good up to a point.
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Yeah – keep your eye out for something really special to make your To Do List Magic Book/let so you’re always adding ideas and tasks to it, and crossing things off – the more things you put in it, and act on the less you’ll feel rudderless and useless. Now, at first those two awful negatives will seem exaggerated notions, but believe me, they creep up – we’re so accustomed to gauging our worth and effectiveness against achieving goals … the trick of early retirement is to wean ourselves off that.
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Action, I believe is key! Thanks.
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