My next door neighbor is a Shiatsu therapist. Upon making this discovery I stopped in to have some work done. Gentle background music was playing as I got settled in. When the session started my neightbor asked, “does the music bother you? I know sometimes musicians would rather have silence.”

“Oh, no,” I said, “Just no Pachelbel.”

Grins exchanged, and then he responded. “You know, when you’re practicing, I just open the window and turn the music off, and my clients and I listen to you.”

Oh god, I think, 4 hours a day of my finest slide-issimos and open strings, and his poor paying customers have to sit through it! Pull it together Karls, don’t panic…

“Do you hear all my swearing?” I question.

“No, your voice doesn’t carry, just your violin.”

“So you don’t hear all those f-words?”

“Nope.”

An important and friendly neighborhood exchange – puts a little bit more of my life into perspective.