I've done a lot of problem solving on a drive in the country. On a nice day..windows down and some nice tunes flowing. Some folks don't like to drive any more than they need to, but I find it mind-clearing..unless in traffic in the city. Fortunately, I can get out in the "corn" within 10 minutes from work. I'll even stop at a lake or some park and sit and think. I also do this when in a crummy mood and don't want to bring it home to the family! In the shop...I find it sooothing to listen to music.. especially classical piano. It gives me some focus on where I'm going in the task. Hard banging classic rock or some country when dismantling a piano for rebuilding...just makes the time fly... It's my 'zen' PW "Byron" <byronquam at shaw.ca> Sent by: pianotech-bounces at ptg.org 05/13/2009 02:31 PM Please respond to pianotech at ptg.org To <pianotech at ptg.org> cc Subject Re: [pianotech] Zen and the Art of Piano Maintenance I find that when I'm doing something repetitive that it is best to listen to a podcast or a book. Then I can put the task in automatic pilot and cruse through it happily. If I just concentrate on the job at hand I seem to rush or obsess about how mind numbingly boring the task is. There seems to be no difference in the quality of work done - just that I've been entertained or have learned something. I've read Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance and would say that solving the riddle of the problem with his bike was not necessarily focus. I'd say it was being mindful of the problem and solving it after many days of gnawing at the problem - through a myriad of his personal distractions. How many of us have solved a problem or reached an important conclusion after a long distance drive? -----Original Message----- From: John Dorr [mailto:a440 at bresnan.net] Sent: May-13-09 9:48 AM To: pianotech at ptg.org Subject: [pianotech] Zen and the Art of Piano Maintenance John Dorr wrote: I think about this sometimes when I'm doing something repetitive but demanding, like shaping hammers. Sometimes I wish I had a radio, but that might distract me from doing this otherwise kind of "menial" job well enough. Sometimes I find that if I just look and touch and observe with a mind empty of preconceptions the answers to the diagnostic riddles seem to appear on their own. How do others on the list feel about these things? Distraction versus focus. The Zen of Piano Repair. John Dorr Helena, MT -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: <http://ptg.org/pipermail/pianotech.php/attachments/20090513/7a38d97a/attachment.htm>
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