Up All Night
I used to pull this move in college when I'd sleep in so late on Sunday morning (or afternoon) that I had no hope of a decent night's rest before Monday's classes. Instead of shooting for a few hours, sleeping through my alarm, and repeating the cycle, I would just stay awake until Monday night. It usually worked out well. I'd watch a few movies, get a bunch of work done, show up wide awake and full of caffeine for my morning classes, and crash early in the evening, reverting to a reasonable sleep schedule for the rest of the week. It was my sleep reset button, and I'm using it again right now.
I find this method most handy in situations where I'm trying to keep my own hours and I'm not accountable to anyone else: weekends, vacations, extended guitar woodshedding. I try to wake up at 6am every day, but I always end up staying up late. If I sleep in, it just gets worse over the following days. It's as if I keep falling down and trying to stand up again, when I really just need to do a somersault. Pull one all-nighter and I'm back on my feet.
I'm in the middle of learning exactly 100 7th chords right now. The Jimmy Bruno DVD I watched yesterday exposed me to a new system of looking at chords. I'll write about it, but not now.
Two-Day Summary
- legato practice: 3- and 4-note combos with 3 fingers, slow and in time
- improved the interval trainer
- SRV: "I'm Cryin'" solo
- learn a ton of chords
- gotta do sight reading and ear training
jason (7 Jan 2008 at 8:54pm)
For my adult student who say "there isn't enough time in the day to practice" I always recommend getting up early to practice. When they hear 5:30 - 6:00 a.m. wake time, they look at me like I'm crazy! LOL
But, I've found if you start the day right, you usually keep to your schedule with regard to everything else.
Plus two practice sessions in a day will do great things for your playing!
Joe (12 Jan 2008 at 12:50am)
My fingers always feel fat and shitty when I wake up. Playing loosens them a bit, but I'm just as well if I take an hour to eat and read the news. Hmm, I must cherish this flexible schedule of unemployment while I can.