RiGGY, great to read your note. I STILL love the Goodall (even after all these hours). I didn't take it to last night's song circle, as I'd decided that a 12-string voice was needed there, but while I was playing it this morning, I tilted its face toward me and discovered another facet of its sound...whoa, this thing has a deep deep woody resonance.

My style is kind of eclectic, but not very electric. I alternate between fingerpicking, classical, old blues, 60's folk, quiet jazz, calypso, bossa nova, original, jug band, and back again. Maybe someday this will gel into a more consistant style, but I'm still bouncing around right now. What's your style?

I met Steve Swan at Gryphon a few times. Very nice person. He arranged to have his friend rewind the pickups on an old 1930 Regal lap steel for me, partly as a favor to his friend, who Steve was trying to help get back on her feet. He always sends me the inventory list for his Kensington Santa Cruz business, but I haven't been to his store yet. Is it a comfortable place to sample guitars? I recently found out that he sells more Santa Cruz guitars than any other single distributor overall. I like that such a friendly and personable guy can achieve that without becoming a hard-edged profiteer.

Funny, I had forgotten where the Bark Woof name came from -- all I could recall is that a child had named me that, but couldn't remember who the child was. Reading your note, it came back to me that it was Jessica's son. This child had been kidnapped, and was returned on Mothers Day in 1980. Thanks for the mental shiatzu.

I did go to Portland for several visits, but didn't move there. I'm in Sacramento (100 miles from San Francisco's empty beaches :( Where are you now?

I'll send you an email, and let's talk some more.

Bark