We went to cut-rate place and got fireplace tools today. Tonight is the first time we are going to have a fire in our fireplace since we bought the house!

Jealous! I wish my fireplace actually worked.

Not jealous of Sue. Blehhhh.

To be clear, the antibiotics and probiotics are for the cat, not me. Though I've resorted to feeding him my own probiotics, since he won't even go near the v. expensive ones I got at the vet.

I took piano lessons from ages 6-13, but since I never learned to sight-read (thanks, Suzuki method) I am now almost completely musically illiterate. I can sing pretty well, but not from sheet music.

I have decided to embrace homemade condiments - the two-minute mayo recipe from Serious Eats is serving me well, and now I have a homemade ketchup simmering on the stove.

I had about two years of piano lessons. My granddad decided that his gift to my sister and me would be a piano for each of us. (I received mine after my sister left home with hers.) There were times when I couldn't afford a 6-pack of Diet Coke, but I had a piano in the living room. If my life were a different sort of movie i would have gotten through the dark times by playing sad, but sweet melodies on it. Mostly I piled things on it.

A couple of months ago I moved it off the outside wall (hell on the tuning), got it tuned, and started practicing again. We'll see how it goes.

I actually have two pianos (spinets). One I bought many years ago from a co-worker for $100. It's not a very good piano, and I haven't had it tuned in a long time, but it served me well when I was taking lessons, and I still use it to learn vocal music. The other one I inherited from my uncle when he died three years ago. He didn't play, and it sat un-tuned and untouched for at least 50 years. Structurally, it's in good shape, but even if it doesn't need any repairs, it will take at least 2 or 3 tunings before it's good, and I can't afford that. So here I sit with two pianos taking up space in my teeny tiny house. Sigh.

I had a few weeks of dance lessons, but I was forever rolling my ankles and I quit. After that, my parents wouldn't allow me lessons of any kind. (They'd been through a lot of abondoned with my older siblings and I didn't get much rope.) I really wanted piano lessons. Sometimes I wonder about taking up the cello as an adult, but it seems pointless since I can't read music.

Jean, can you sell the first piano to raise funds for second piano's tunings?

But you'd learn to read music as part of your lessons ...

I've thought about selling it, but it's really not worth much. I was actually thinking I'd just give it away. But right now it's not bothering me much, and at least I have one that's kind of in tune that I can use.

I fully endorse adults taking music lessons.