Lady Hillary and I had our usual great time this year.

Hillary got to meet Nick A. Later on we went over to the instrument exchange and tried several of the instruments there. After trying several, she picked up the Apollonion 12 [imagine only 800 buks!] and, even as she picked it up, it was clear she felt something different. Hillary is still a basic novice on guitar but this one just lifted her at least 2 levels in skill. Last time she got to practice, she worked on tuning and scales until she got sore fingers. As soon as the 12 got into her hands, they were talking and singing to each other. She began playing chords and simple melody lines and the action was very gentle on her fingers.

We called Nick this AM and asked him to record the dimensions on the instrument so that, when we get a few bucks together, we can get one similar to that but with a few minor adjustments. Imagine a custom 12 for only $1200 from a wizard grade luthier!

As always, the ballad workshop was great and we enjoyed a lot of music, often without even leaving the CAMSCO booth. A lot of friends, old and new, came by [nice to meet you and your beloved, Animaterra and Don] including a pretty good collection of Catters.