Feh. I'm pissed. 

I have a book of Tamil music that RubyStarfire got for me when he was in India. There is a place there called Yatra Arts Foundation. They help children explore and develop the creative arts and also use performance art to do public works and bring about social change in the region. When he visited Yatra Arts Foundation, Ruby heard one of the founder's daughters playing traditional music on a veena. The music was enchanting and he knew it would be perfect for my voice. 

The director helped Ruby track down a couple books of Tamil music to bring back for me. The music is written in a very different format from Western music. 

• The notes are written as S, R, M and not A, B, C
  
• There are vertical lines, numbers, and commas everywhere
• I have no idea what an Akshara is supposed to be

I definitely need to find someone to help me with this! Unfortunately, there's nobody near me who's even heard of Tamil music let alone knows how to play it. But the book is made of paper and doesn't fit through all these pipes and tubes that make up the internet. The solution? Dismantle the book and scan it!

So, I spent an entire afternoon dismantling and scanning the book. The book is made of bundles of paper, folded in half, and then really large thick staples were punched through them all. The cover was then glued onto the spine and over the staples. It was a pain, I can tell you, to keep track of every piece of paper while scanning it and to keep everything in good shape so I can still use the book. It was such a relief to finally finish, go home, and sit down to organize and assemble all the pdf files I scanned into one pdf.

Then I saw marks on the pages. The scanner was dirty!

Now I have to go back and scan the entire book all over again, and that's why I'm pissed.

The other day my sister Hesty made some delicious madeleine muffins. Since then, people have been asking and asking and asking for the recipe. It took awhile and a lot of convincing because Hesty can be shy at times, but she finally agreed to share the recipe. You owe me for this! ;)

**This recipe came from a friend of RubyStarfire who got it from a close family friend.**

My sister Hesty was going to cook some madeleines first thing today, so I snuck into the kitchen and hid this in the cupboard:

She shrieked and nearly dropped everything on the floor! I almost feel sorry for her, seeing this first thing in the morning before she's even made the coffee, but she wouldn't let me lick the spoon when she was done :(

This is a canister for Sucre Glace from France, called Powdered or Confectioner's Sugar in the United States. I don't know if I should be disturbed by how much fun it is to twist the top of his head (the pink ring) and watch the sifted powdered sugar fall out of his head. It's like the little goblin is the opposite of a rock star: the white powder comes out of the head instead of going in.

Oh, Hesty did make the madeleine muffins and she even let me have one, but I had to wait until last :( Meanie!

Thank you Hesty! I love you! Mouah! *nibble*

RubyStarfire and I have been singing together for many years now and we can't bear to be far from each other for long. People call him a musician when they see us together, though he doesn't call himself one (he doesn't write music). 

Several people we've met recently are learning how to sing or are shy to sing in public. Ruby and I tell them to record their singing so their friends and family can share their enjoyment of the music and they also so they have a record of their own progress. I know without being able to look back at early songs, I wouldn't have any confidence in myself.

Here's a song that Ruby and I recorded a long time ago for just this reason. 

Actually, it's the very first song we ever sang together! It's titled "A Song for School"

Listening to this song brings back fond memories. Ruby was still very hesitant in his caresses and he was just starting to learn how to listen with his soul. (He also looks so young!) Even if he doesn't call himself a musician, I certainly do. When we're both in good shape we're able to sing the song that's there instead of the song on the paper, and only a musician is able to do that with his/her partner.

It took several takes to get a video good enough to keep, but that's one of the benefits of recording in private. One of the most difficult songs we learned took fourteen takes to get one that was good enough to keep, perhaps I'll share it with you one day. 

My poor Ruby's really sick :( I blame the weather here, it keeps changing throughout the day and it's been very cold at night. The cold makes it difficult to sing, pretty soon I'll be losing my own voice if Ruby can't take care of me. I only wish I could take care of him. I want to make him soup, or wrap in him blankets, or something! Every time he coughs it hurts so much I cry out. I try to let him know I'm here so he gets some comfort, but I just don't know what to do. The only thing I can do is cry out to him, and it does bring out a small smile from his lips. He's promised he'll help me recover my voice once he's better and we'll be able to sing again.

Yay! This is my first blog post! First, I want to thank RubyStarfire for making this happen, he's generously given me the outlet to talk about my own adventures and those of my siblings (I think it's because he can't say no when I sing to him ;) ). Thank you Ruby! (Only friends can call him that *glare*) I have a touch of wanderlust. Thankfully I'm small, that makes travel much easier. I love to sing. Boy do I love to sing! I started singing Chinese and Mongolian music when I was young and when I lived in Morocco I went to a music conservatory there to learn Andalousi music. Ruby left me alone last Christmas when he did some travelling, but he brought me some books on Tamil music! (I can't stay mad at anyone who brings me something new to sing). Now I am trying to teach myself how to sing Tamil, if any of you readers know about Tamil music, help! 

I hope to share my adventures learning new music and traveling around the world. I have lots of stories of my past adventures and will also share my siblings' adventures (they're very shy but said I could talk about them). 

I should be signing off, Ruby's tickling me and says he wants to sing together. For more info about me (or to get more confused), click on 'About' at the top of the page to learn more about me! 

Mouah!