Uff da! My neighbor called last night: he wants help moving a piano into his house!

[quip]

At least it is an upright, and not a grand! :scared:

But it makes me wish I could play the piano. I have so much admiration for those who can, especially for those who play well. Music, to me, is proof of the divine. :)

[Left Is Write]

1. I would like to have a piano, but it's not quite in the budget.

[quip]

2. Check around! Used ones are SURPRISINGLY cheap! And I'm talking just a few hundred bucks!

Seems some people are just happy to have them out of the house. Moving them is expensive, but if you can somehow do it yourself, tickling the ivories could be an activity within your reach:)

I hope Grannyhood is going well :D :hi:

[Left Is Write]

4. So far so good, but it was hard to leave the little guy behind.

My daughter sends me a new picture over the phone every day. :D

[quip]

5. I took a 3 second video of my daughter every day for her first year.

I wonder where that is now... :shrug:

Is the nest empty then?

[Left Is Write]

7. No, I have two younger kids - an 8yo daughter and a 6yo son.

[quip]

8. Ahh, okay, the nest is full and operational!

:P

Must be interesting to simultaneously experience 2 distinct life stages at once! I'm lucky if I am able to handle one at a time! :D

[Left Is Write]

9. It's a little strange. I'm sure it's odd for my little kids to think of me as someone's gramma.

My 11-year-old niece told me it's hard to think of me as a gramma because, in her words, I don't look like a gramma. And I'm only three years older than her mother. :D

My oldest was 12-1/2 when her sister was born and 14-1/2 when her brother was born. At one point, I had a teenager, a toddler, and an infant in the house all at once.

[quip]

11. Whatever the age, I believe children to be a blessing

And grandkids all the more! :toast: :pals:

[Tektonik]

15. You're like my mom

Her eldest daughter was 13 when my mom had me and 15 when my mom had my brother. I became an uncle when I was 12 years old :P, and I'm now the uncle of four.

[KitchenWitch]

17. Check Craigslist.

I got a piano for free off craigslist. All I had to do was haul it away and have it tuned (and two stuck keys repaired).

[TZ]

3. Well don't strain yourself....

I don't want you coming back here complaining about a hernia.....:scared:

And I agree with you on the admiration for people with musical talent..I wish I had more..If I'm lucky I might get to hear some nice piano music in a couple of weeks..:)

[quip]

6. Hernia schmernia! (with 4 guys it shouldn't be a big deal)

Well, good luck with the piano music gig. Sounds lovely.

[TZ]

16. Yes well

the musician is someone who is said to be talented but a little reluctant to play at this point. Hopefully something will change in the near future to cheer this person up so that I can hear the real talent that I know is in this beautiful soul.

[MilesColtrane]

10. I recommend renting a piano dolly.

Two dealies that have wheels and large handles that strap onto the ends.

Looks like this... http://www.harmonyonline.com/dual-piano-truck-p-260.html?osCsid=8dd65d4eb00a8cef7a215fc6a5544993

It's the only way to go. Uprights are very unbalanced and hard to get a grip on. Any wheels that they may have are largely useless.

While there are two handles on the back near the harp, there is not much else to grab onto.
Lifting from the keyboard, or legs on the front is just asking for trouble, and will lead to breakage.

Try calling U-Haul or some other rental place.

[quip]

12. Hey, that's some good advice! I'll pass along that info-- thanks!

[Common Sense Party]

23. It's easy to break those front legs.

I have now refused to move anyone's piano. I've moved too many and had too many problems.

[SoxFan]

13. "Things That Will Not End Well" for $250, Alex

[quip]

14. Bad Idea Jeans

http://www.hulu.com/watch/10310/saturday-night-live-bad-idea-jeans

:rofl:

[Jamastiene]

18. Sometimes, the shopping networks will have an 88 key

keyboard for sale with keys that light up and teach you how to play. They are cheaper than an actual acoustic piano...in the short run AND especially in the long run.

Big huge hint: Turn the lights on the keys off, if you get one, and take real piano lessons from someone in your neighborhood who teaches piano.

Turning those key lights off and throwing all that "Play piano like a pro in 3 days" bullshit out will be the only way you ever learn how to really play.

Practice, a good teacher, and your love of music will teach you better than anything you can buy, except the piano itself, of course.

[quip]

19. Practice and my love of music enabled me to learn to play guitar, so I know

that your words are wise and true! :hi:

[Jamastiene]

21. Yup, that's how I learned to play guitar too.

:hi: :toast:

[quip]

22. I feel for those who learned via instruction that squeezed out all of the joy

If I believed in a hell, I would imagine that there would be a special room there reserved for those who kill the joy of music in the lives of others. :hi:

[BeachBaby]

24. As a victim of said instruction....

let me be the first to say that all was not lost on me after such an experience. Falling in love snapped me out of my piano-playing sabbatical.

[quip]

26. Love is a beautiful thing

Without it, what are we? :hi:

[grasswire]

20. ask him about his liability insurance

....just in case something goes badly on the stairs.

[Oeditpus Rex]

25. Show him this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EkE91pyBGkM



:D

[applegrove]

27. We had piano movers come to our house last year to take an upright piano away.

Three huge men arrived. Put a ramp on the front steps. Lifted the piano onto the ramp. And were gone in about 1 minute flat. I think they made likee $700 for their troubles.