George White's Favorite - Traditional Irish Reel

This traditional Irish reel is played on the acoustic guitar in the standard tuning. Here is the TAB for the tune:

A Part

|-----3-2-0-------|-0---------------|
|-----------0-0-0-|---0-3-0-------0-|
|-----------------|---------2-0-2---|
|-----------------|-----------------|
|-----------------|-----------------|
|-----------------|-----------------|


|-----------------|---------023-----|
|-----------0-0-0-|-3-0-0-0-----3-0-|
|-0-------0-------|-----------------|
|---2-0-2---------|-----------------|
|-----------------|-----------------|
|-----------------|-----------------|


|---------0-------|-0---------------|
|-----0-3---0-0-0-|---0-3-0-------0-|
|-2---------------|---------2-0-2---|
|-----------------|-----------------|
|-----------------|-----------------|
|-----------------|-----------------|


|-----------------|-3-0-------------|
|-------------0-3-|-----3-0-------0-|
|-0-------0-2-----|---------2-0-2---|
|---2-0-2---------|-----------------|
|-----------------|-----------------|
|-----------------|-----------------|


|-----------------|
|-----------------|
|-0---------------|
|-----------------|
|-----------------|
|-----------------|


B Part

|-----3-0---0-3-5-|-7-5-3---3-5-3-0-|
|---------3-------|-----------------|
|-----------------|-----------------|
|-----------------|-----------------|
|-----------------|-----------------|
|-----------------|-----------------|


|-------0-3-5-7-3-|-5-3-0-5-5-3-5---|
|-3-0-3-----------|-----------------|
|-----------------|-----------------|
|-----------------|-----------------|
|-----------------|-----------------|
|-----------------|-----------------|


|-3-5-7-3-0-3-----|-0-2-3---0-2-3-5-|
|-------------3---|-------3---------|
|-----------------|-----------------|
|-----------------|-----------------|
|-----------------|-----------------|
|-----------------|-----------------|


|-7-5-3---3---023-|-----------------|
|-----------3-----|-3-0-------0-----|
|-----------------|-----2-0-2---0---|
|-----------------|-----------------|
|-----------------|-----------------|
|-----------------|-----------------|

Stairway to Ukulele Heaven

I figured out my version of Stairway on the ukulele this morning. I only ran through it a few times before recording the video so please forgive the mistakes and awkward rhythm. I'm playing a KoAloha soprano ukulele with Worth strings. If it sounds a little tinny it's because I'm in the bathroom recording on a cheap Sony point-n-shoot.

Here is the TAB:

-|-5-----5-7-----7-|-8-----8-2-----2-|-
-|-----5-----5-----|---5-------3-----|-
-|---5---------5---|-----5-------2---|-
-|-7-------6-------|-5-------0-------|-



-|-0---------0-----|-0-0-0-----------|-
-|---1---1-----1---|-1-1-1------~6-5-|-
-|-2---2---------2-|-0-2-2-----2-----|-
-|-----------------|-0-2-2-----------|-



-|-5-----5-7-----7-|-8-----8-2-----2-|-
-|-----5-----5-----|---5-------3-----|-
-|---5---------5---|-----5-------2---|-
-|-7-------6-------|-5-------0-------|-



-|-0---------0-----|-3-5-5-----------|-
-|---1---1-----1---|-3-5-5-----------|-
-|-2---2---------2-|-0-2-2-------2-4-|-
-|-----------------|-0-2-2-----------|-



-|-----3-------5---|-----0---5-0-----|-
-|---5---5---7---7-|---1---1---------|-
-|-5-------7-------|-2-----------2-4-|-
-|-----------------|-----------------|-



-|-----3-------3---|-0-0-0-----------|-
-|---5---5---3---3-|-1-1-1-----------|-
-|-5-------4-------|-0-2-2-------2-4-|-
-|-----------------|-0-2-2-----------|-



-|-----3-------5---|-----0---5-0-----|-
-|---5---5---7---7-|---1---1---------|-
-|-5-------7-------|-2-----------2-4-|-
-|-----------------|-----------------|-



-|-----3-------3---|-3-5-5-----------|-
-|---5---5---3---3-|-3-5-5-----------|-
-|-5-------4-------|-0-2-2-----------|-
-|-----------------|-0-0-0-----------|-

Apple trees a possum

Apple has had a busy week. Earlier this week she treed a raccoon and last night she treed a possum in our backyard. We are convinced that mother nature is trying to hasten our departure from the neighborhood.

There was another dog here just a second ago...

There was another dog here just a second ago...
Originally uploaded by buckyreed

We had Rufus in for his summer undercoat removal. THAT is a lot of dog hair! The Dirty Dog is donating all of the hair to the gulf oil spill cleanup efforts and I think Rufus may have singlehandedly saved a pelican or two.

Apple loves to chase balloons

Our pitbull Apple LOVES balloons... maybe a little too much. She will chase them and bark at them until they stop floating. After popping the balloon she will paw at it in the vain hope that it will re-inflate and start floating again.

Rufus's secret cache of moldy tortillas

Rufus's secret cache of moldy tortillas
Originally uploaded by buckyreed

A package of tortillas disappeared from the kitchen counter while Happy and Leo were house sitting a few weeks ago. Yesterday I came home to find Rufus in his bed working over a moldy, dirt-encrusted, leafy package of tortillas that I can only assume are very same ones that went missing. This might also go a long way towards explaining the moldy hamburger buns I found in the ceramic flower pot last month.

Why are Apple's paws pink?

Why are Apple's paws pink? She was jealous about not being allowed to play bingo and decided to let us know exactly how she felt about being left behind.

This little guy has grown up big and strong

My new neighbor
Originally uploaded by buckyreed

I came home today to a house filled with the faint aroma of skunk. Apple smelled ever so slightly skunky, was acting very guilty, but clearly hadn't been tagged. As I was investigating the smell our neighbor Mike came over to tell me that Apple had spent the day frantically digging under the shed to get at a skunk. He sat in the safety of his home watching her dig, bark, and successfully avoid getting sprayed. Based on the strength of the smell I can only assume that the little guy is still under or inside the shed.

The coal ash spill in Kingston TN

Heaps of coal ash sludge
Originally uploaded by buckyreed

I was visiting my parents last week for Christmas in Knoxville, TN when I first heard about the coal ash spill at the Kingston Fossil Plant. My dad and I drove 35 miles from his home in Knoxville to the site of the devastation in Kingston. My dad knows all of the backroads around Harriman and Kingston so we were able to get close to the spill despite the police roadblocks. The roads were filled with large trucks carrying gravel to the site and hauling away god knows what! I was completely horrified as we drove through several nice neighborhoods that were directly across the river from the plant. Large waves of ash filled water washed up behind these homes destroying boat docks and spreading the toxic sludge. According to the New York Times the plant produced 45000 pounds of arsenic, 49000 pounds of lead, and 713 ounds of mercury in 2007 alone. Now decades worth of this arsenic and lead have been dumped into the Clinch and Emory rivers polluting the drinking water for over a half a million residents downstream.

United Mountain Defense has published a copy of the initial TVA water test results and the results are awful.

Kingston Fossil Plant
Originally uploaded by buckyreed

Wave of sludge washed ashore
Originally uploaded by buckyreed

Boat dock with sludge in background
Originally uploaded by buckyreed

When Beagles Fly

When Beagles Fly
Originally uploaded by buckyreed

Holly took Rufus and Apple to the Dirty Dog Pet Wash and Boutique to get a bath and have their nails done. Rufus HATES getting his nails trimmed and is such an absolute freak about it that I try to take him to a different groomer every time. The owner of the Dirty Dog apparently specializes in high maintenance hounds and had a very effective trick up her sleeve: the floating harness! Rufus dog-paddled in mid-air and chuffed while the trimming was going on, but seemed rather calm when he was allowed to just float unmolested. Holly theorizes that the compression of the harness has a calming effect, but I prefer to think that he was overcome with dreams of ear-powered flight. I can't wait for his next visit.