Be Honest-- Cafe Time vs. Mando Time?

[man dough nollij]

I just realized that I spend a LOT more time surfin' the Cafe than I actually spend playing. A pang of guilt. I hear people on the Cafe saying they consistently practice for two or three hours a day... I never play that much, even on Sunday. So I'm a slacker.

I'm sure I browse the Cafe the same way a lot of you do-- in between doses of actually working. A lot of the work I do is on the computer, so I'm waiting for a file to upload, or an application to come up, I have a sec to check my "New Posts". I only actually play when I have real down time, after work and on weekends (which are only one day here).

C'mon! Fess up! /

[mandozilla]

A lot of the work I do is on the computer, so I'm waiting for a file to upload, or an application to come up, I have a sec to check my "New Posts".

That's pretty much my story as well Lee. Plus, sometimes I work oddball shifts, like swing shift or graveyards. If I didn't surf the Cafe at 2 AM I'd either fall asleep or get so damn bored I'd have to stick my head in the oven and turn on the gas...

But I force myself to practice at least 1 or 2 hours (or more) per day like clockwork...even if I have to miss some sleep...it's that important to me. If only I could practice at work...I'm sure the 'brass' would frown on that.

That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

[Jill McAuley]

I try to get in 1-2 hours every day during the week, and easily do 3 hours each day at the weekend. I wish I could squeeze in more time during the week but once I get home from work, walk and feed the dogs and then feed myself I can only manage 1-2 hours up until 10pm (my apartment building has a "quiet enjoyment" policy, meaning that you can't play musical instruments or loud music after that time...). I have to make sure I don't get distracted by the internet while I've got my window of opportunity to practice in the evenings, though I do sometimes have a quick peek at the Cafe between tunes..I actually brought the Flatiron to work with me yesterday to see if it was feasible to play during my lunch break and it worked out quite well, so I'll probably keep doing that from now on.

Cheers,
Jill

[mandozilla]

I actually brought the Flatiron to work with me yesterday to see if it was feasible to play during my lunch break and it worked out quite well, so I'll probably keep doing that from now on.

Jill good for you...I don't get a 'lunch break' in the usual sense and I cannot leave the control room where I work...except for restroom and smoke breaks.

If I played my mando in the control room I'd probably annoy the other operators in the room ...but I do get ample opportunity to do the Cafe thing at work so I have more Mandolin time while at home.

[man dough nollij]

...I don't get a 'lunch break' in the usual sense and I cannot leave the control room where I work...

Come on 'Zilla, come clean. Your real identity is H. Simpson, and you work for Monty Burns, right?

Mmmm, Donuts!

[Joel Spaulding]

I hold down the fort for a hospital pharmacy during graveyard hours - 7 nights on/7 off - 12 hr shifts. I try to fit at least 30 minutes of noodling into each AM, as soon as I get home. My week off usually yields 2 hours + daily of practice/playing, usually about 5am until my wife and daughter awaken. Most off-weeks, I get one day where the girls go shopping or to lunch so I might squeeze in a four-hour session with the recorder going or, work with a DVD or CD at "Near-Concert volume levels". I keep my main instrument on the wall in our kitchen (most remote from the master BR) and have 2 other playable Mandolins available, one hanging in the living room, one in the upstairs hallway. These frequently are grabbed for impromptu sessions anytime I am compelled to play along with the radio, tele, or any of my daughter's music-making toys.

During work, my perusing of the Cafe is limited to 30 second to 10 minute views spaced throughout the evening. When at home, I check for new threads anytime I sit at the 'puter but may only stay on for one-two minutes.

Ocassionally during a work-week I might miss an entire day of playing but that truly has become almost "never" in the past few months.

I don't bring the Mandolin to work - I could play it during breaks but the temptation to play more frequently is just too attractive.

[billkilpatrick]

i usually surf the net with a mandolin in my lap ... so the "honest" answer to your question is "yes."

[DonnieJoe]

I actually watch how much time I'm on the computer. I try to keep it under an hour a night....usually 15-20 minutes on mc. Then it's on to at least one hour on the mando before passing out ...waking up the next day for work and doin it all over again. Playing clears the mind from all the negative going on right now.

[Jim]

I work a 60 hour weekend in a hospital x-ray dept and for 48 of them I'm by myself so I get a fair amount of practice time inbetween patients I also get a fair amount of net time at work as well. On the other hand I have dial up at home so I don't spend much time on the net there, though when I do I often practice while I wait for pages to load. Anyway I average about 2 hours practice a day about evenly devided between Guitar and Mandolin. Probably average less than an hour a day at the Cafe.

[Tim]

I like mandolin music but I don't play so I any time I spend on the mandolin cafe is more than I spend playing.

[Bob Borzelleri]

I swoop in for "New Posts" 2-3 times a day for about 5-10 minutes average. I practice with a different mandolin several times a day for an average of about 20 minutes each. In my spare time, I practice resophonic guitar for 20-30 minutes a day.

Factor in eating, doing laundry, tending to plants, a bit of woodworking, feeding cats, a workout or two and you pretty much got my day.

[Randi Gormley]

I'll join Lee -- I'm on the Cafe two or three times a day; at work if i'm on hold or something or waiting for someone to read my copy, and at home after i eat or when i have a few free minutes and have been playing computer solitaire. I'll play an average of five hours a week (some weeks it's five or seven, some weeks it's 3), partly because my left wrist gets unhappy with much more practice. I'm not counting band time, though. Our session runs from about 8 to about 11:30, but we spend at least as much time gabbing as playing unless we're working toward St. Pat's or something.

[mandozilla]

Come on 'Zilla, come clean. Your real identity is H. Simpson, and you work for Monty Burns, right?

Mmmm, Donuts!

HaHaHa Lee, that's hillarious!

Woohoo! My job is a lot like Homer's except it ain't nuclear, I skip on the donuts, my Mr. Burns ain't as nefarious, and I'm not quite that stupid! Doh!

You may be asking yourself, how does he have so much time on his hands that he can Cafesurf so much...that's because I'm a highly trained and licensed 'Steam Engineer' and I don't get paid for what I do but rather for what I know...it's awesome!

[Youda]

I check for new posts about daily, but more often if I'm bored. But, do I spend more time on my computer than mando playing? No, way! I can talk about it, or I can do it.

[CES]

It really varies for me...I usually check the MC several times throughout the day during breaks in the action at work (ie, like now), but I honestly haven't timed myself...I'd like to think that the 30 minutes to 2 hours (depending on the day and my mood, usually more in the 30-60 minute range) I spend practicing outweighs the MC time, but I'm sure there are days where that's not the case...

[JeffD]

I am on here less than I am on the instrument. The ratio varies, but I am rarely on here when I could be playing. I mean, I love talking mandolin, but that ain't nothin like actually playing mandolin.

[sgarrity]

I'm in front of a computer a lot for work. So I'm usually multi-tasking.....working on proposals and surfing the 'cafe. If I'm onthe cafe at home, there's usually a mandolin in my lap or at least at arms reach. And now that I've got an iPhone......I can get my 'cafe fix anywhere!!

[Elliot Luber]

I spend all day at work on my computer and check in a lot, but I still spend more time on my mandolin than on the cafe.

[journeybear]

I spend WAY too much time at the Café, and WAY more than playing, at least 2-3 times as much, but I'm enjoying it tremendously, learning a lot from others and sharing what I've learned in over forty years of playing and learning. I'm also brushing up on my writing and editing skills, which have suffered a bit from disuse. (I do hope to achieve something like an economy of words in my lifetime, and sooner than later would be better. I'm sure some of you will agree ... ) I've even learned a few neat things about computers along the way. These are newer areas of involvement for me, and the hours devoted to them will never add up to the amount I've spent over the years playing mandolin. So it is time will spent, even if not spent playing. Though it does cut into my TV time allotment ...

[Douglas Udell]

About half the time I'm on the cafe I've got an instrument in my lap and I'm playing, reaching up to scroll. The other half no. I teach at a college. I work two 12 hour days in a row and cannot practice either day. The next day is an 8 hour day and I'm often so tired I don't practice when it's over, even though I want to. Then I get a short day and Friday through Sunday off. Try to play an hour each of those days, but it's far from regular. Family stuff intervenes. I play a lot more in the summer. Often several times a day. I like to have instruments around the house, as someone else said they did. Can't do that in the winter because the rest of the house is so dry. I keep the basement humidified and I play down here. I like have the instruments upstairs though. Whenever the mood strikes...

[3step]

I sometimes find it tough during the week after work to fit in the playing time I'd like to have, but after some years of job jumping I finally found something that suited me which is landscaping. Spring/summer/fall are pretty usual working hours but winter we get paid salary and only work when it snows. thats when I put in some real time and focus on music. Its a bit of a sacrifice as the pay is not substancial, but it is well worth it for me as I try to keep some perspective on the things that matter most to me.
I know someone who does freelance writing, which also can afford a good amount of time for a musician. There are probably many other job examples, but those are just time factors, I think its the personal ones that still matter most. How does it feel for you when your playing? What to try? What to change? Following that inspiration.

[stringsattached]

Funny...Seems Cafe time almost always leads me to Mando time.

[nate w]

i spend way more time on here than i should, we have too small children so my practing time is limited and varies depending on who's napping and at what time. I still get at least an hour in the morning time.

[mandozilla]

Mandolin picking makes me happy! The Mandolin Cafe makes me happy!

Decisions, decisions!?!?

[DryBones]

Mandolin Cafe and LostKJ's Jeep forums keep me distracted from playing more. Plus, I seem to be spending more time tinkering with the Jeep now that the weather is getting warmer and I can get outside. (grass is starting to grow so that's going to get in the way of everything )