<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN"> <HTML><HEAD> <META HTTP-EQUIV="Content-Type" CONTENT="text/html; = charset=iso-8859-1"> <META content="MSHTML 5.00.2314.1000" name=GENERATOR> <STYLE></STYLE> </HEAD> <BODY bgColor=#ffffff> <DIV><FONT color=#0000ff face=Arial size=2><SPAN = class=770535316-22022001>Anita, I don't mean to tell you what to write, but the technician arrived to = tune the piano and found that pedal lyre was not secured properly, so he used the = statue (made of painted pine particle board) to hammer the lyre on better = allowing him to finally secure it with the lyre block.  Because the head and one = arm of the statue broke off and it was so badly dented elsewhere, the tech = decided that he would take it with him, replacing it with a nearby vase, hoping that = no one would notice it missing.  The owner assumed that her husband had = hidden it and later ordered another out of the Spiegel catalog and continued to = have the piano tuned every six months.  The End...  No charge.  %~)</SPAN></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT color=#0000ff face=Arial size=2><SPAN class=770535316-22022001></SPAN></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT color=#0000ff face=Arial size=2><SPAN = class=770535316-22022001> <P><FONT size=2>Lance Lafargue, RPT<BR>Mandeville, LA<BR>New Orleans = Chapter, PTG<BR>lancelafargue@bellsouth.net</FONT> </P></SPAN></FONT></DIV> <BLOCKQUOTE style="MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px"> <DIV align=left class=OutlookMessageHeader dir=ltr><FONT = face=Tahoma size=2>-----Original Message-----<BR><B>From:</B> = owner-pianotech@ptg.org [mailto:owner-pianotech@ptg.org]<B>On Behalf Of </B>Anita Sullivan<BR><B>Sent:</B> Thursday, February 22, 2001 8:04 = AM<BR><B>To:</B> pianotech@ptg.org<BR><B>Subject:</B> Tuner Mystery = Novel<BR><BR></DIV></FONT> <DIV>Dear List,</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>I have a rather odd request. I've been tuning and fixing pianos = for about 20 years and I'm also a writer. I've decided to write a series of = mystery novels with a piano tuner as the heroine. I've started the first one = and have two more ideas in mind.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>I want the mystery to revolve around some aspect of music, = pianos, musical instruments. In the first novel a wooden carving is stolen for = no apparent reason from one of the tuner's client's house. It's a = beautiful statue of a monk playing a cello (some friends actually do have a = carving like this, and it's beautiful). My dilemma is this: What wood can the = statue be made of, which would be valuable enough to be stolen by someone who = wanted it in some aspect of musical instrument building, and yet still could be = made into a statue probably about 2 feet high? I had in mind Brazilian = Rosewood, does that make sense?</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>I was going to have it be a harpsichord builder, but then I am = told rosewood was not used on historical harpsichords (thus would not be = used in replicas). Duh! I guess I should have known that. So, either I need = another wood, or I have to change the guy into a builder of historical pianos, = or maybe a violin maker.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>The instrument builder, by the way, is NOT the one who stole the = statue. Heaven forbid! He's just a kind of red herring. </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>If anybody can help me, I would be MOST  grateful. I would = even receive plot ideas graciously! Please reply to me at my home address, = <A = href="mailto:anita@proaxis.com">anita@proaxis.com</A>   =    Thanks so much!</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Anita Sullivan</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV> </DIV></BLOCKQUOTE></BODY></HTML>