Back on 8th May
April 25, 2009
I’m taking a blog break and I’ll be back on the 8th May.
I’ll be trying to get How to Play Ukulele Strumming written. So far it’s been an absolute nightmare. I have to get it done because if I don’t Armelle will kill me. Hopefully a couple of weeks focusing on it will get me somewhere.
If you are missing me already, you can read an interview I did for Live ‘Ukulele. I hope you like it more than they did. Btw, I would never write, “an ‘ukulele,” (unless it’s preceded by the words, “I would never write…”).
Very good, enjoy!
you’re dead right :-)
enjoy your break and may you be inspired !
I can’t wait to see the How to Play Ukulele Strumming and believe me I need it !
I do miss you already. Strumming is such sweet sorrow.
Good luck, Al!
have a great blog break!!!!!!
Yeah, coming from (steel string) guitar, strumming is my biggest hurdle. I’ll be looking forward to that one.
So you going to be strumming yourself silly for the next fortnight eh? ;-)
But but but who will find ukulele kitsch on eBay for me until then?
oh noes, now what will i do when i’m trying to look like i’m listening to my girlfriend?!
have fun woodshed.
Assuming you didn’t use the Hawaiian pronunciation, “an ‘ukulele” is misquoting you. Of course, it brings up the pronunciation issue: ooku or you? It might be an issue to discuss with your readers or a poll to run.
I lived in Hawaii prior to statehood but I could never say ooku with a straight face. Most of the times that I hear ooku I cringe inside. Unless the speaker is from the Islands or somehow associated with them, it’s hard for ooku to sound natural or convincing. The same applies to the written ” ‘ukulele,” in that it rarely feels natural or right (to me, anyway).
It’s also annoying to read an article in which the writer makes an issue about or swoons over someone using the Hawaiian pronunciation as if the opinions of the subject thereby carry some sort of extra weight, i.e. if you say you you’re somehow ignorant.
So, is it ooku or you, or something else?
byjimini: Doubt it!
Armelle: I hope so.
Phredd: Thanks.
Acilius: I’m going to need it.
Benjamin: I’ll do my best.
J-Hob: I’ll probably be spending most of the time procrastinating (like I’m doing now).
Josh: There’s always plenty of tat here.
cbf: Get a more interesting girlfriend?
ronhale: There are some interesting points about ukulele vs ‘ukulele in this post: whether you need a ‘ depends on the origin of the word (which is far from clear) and Manuel Nunes didn’t use one.
For the Strumming book (which I’m sorely in need of so THANK YOU for putting one together!), at least 14 or 15 mp3 strum-alongs per page would be useful. Is that asking too much?
i always wondered about the a/an ukulele thing!?
Enjoy the break. But not too much!
zym: It’s a ukulele.
LonnaB: Thanks. But not too much!
…but, but… Oh ok, see you after the 8th. (grabs uke and plays the blues)
Enjoy your blog break.
melissa: There will be plenty of examples. Not sure it will be that many, though ;)
HoldinCoffee: I’m sure it’ll fly by.
Tamster: Thanks.
I second the vote for “a ukulele” over “an ukulele”. It’s starts with the letter “u” but with a “y” sound.
I’m fairly certain no one ever told me how to properly strum a ukulele, which is why I tend to do it differently all the time.
Tinyfolk: The problems arise because the Hawaiians pronounce it ooo-koo-lay-lee. So for them it’s ‘an’. But I’ve never pronounced it that way.
Instead of “a” or “an,” everybody should just start saying/typing “the Ukulele.” That way, it kind of sounds/looks like the ultimate weapon of a hero in an epic poem, and people can read it aloud however they want.
Anne: Good idea. But I think the ‘the’ should be capitalized as well. “The Ukulele”.
‘Thee’ or ‘Thuh’?
:-)