Rasta,Never get married to a stock or to a banjo. Keep yr eye peeled on the horizon.
Guest Fretless,
"$1 concerts" has a marvellous sound, no? D, as tonic, was close. I believe I always used C#/Db as tonic, i.e. on the long neck capoed at the 4th fret. Tuned: G#C#G#C#D#; more straighforwardy, GCGCD all raised 1/2 step. But, it's good that you devise your own tuning. Those tunings with triplicate-pitch can be wonderful: viz., your ADAAD. I like to use GCGCC and to play melody on 2 strings, either at unison or parallel octaves. Not always "pretty", but relentless, and can express horror of the insensate.
"Surreal," Guest? "otherworldly?" I have dirt under my nails and between my toes. Better get busy with the Barlow knife. From under the nails, anyhow. Ouch, re the toes.
That's interesting, Naemanson: "... That is why only the upper class kill with a pen knife in the old songs..."
Hedy