Don't worry about learning one hand at a time. My son's piano teacher, with whom he has been studying for 10 years, always suggests starting out a new piece one hand at a time. Not learning it to perfection or the point of memorization, but just to be familiar enough to be comfortable. Here is an explanation from Wikipedia about the reason for different clefs: "The use of three different clefs makes it possible to write music for all instruments and voices, even though they may have very different tessituras (that is, even though some sound much higher or lower than others). This would be difficult to do with only one clef, since the modern staff has only five lines, and the number of pitches that can be represented on the staff, even with ledger lines, is not nearly equal to the number of notes the orchestra can produce. The use of different clefs for different instruments and voices allows each part to be written comfortably on the staff with a minimum of ledger lines. To this end, the G-clef is used for high parts, the C-clef for middle parts, and the F-clef for low parts - with the important exception of transposing parts, which are written at a different pitch than they sound, often even in a different octave."

Aaaahhhh yessss....the infamous "Blue Turf"!! Still can't make up my mind if I like it or not!?!??! I AM excited to see the Gopher's new TCF (Twin-Cities Federal bank) Stadium on the U of M campus. My Bison lost a playoff game last Dec. 2010 at Eastern-Washington state in OT....on their RED turf!!! Crappy/snowy/slushy conditions for that game....Uffda!! The linked picture below shows our last years QB, Brock Jensen, in utter disappointment, on their red turf, after that OT ruling... Faron Here is a link that might be useful: Bison crushing disappointment @ EWU's red field...

About downloading audiobooks to the shuffle, here's what I've found on the Web: (this blog writer, at least when he wrote it, recommended the Nano over the Shuffle if you want the ability to have audiobooks but don't want to go all the way to more-expensive models) http://aldoblog.com/audiobooks/ipod-recommendations/ "So if size is such a big factor, why not consider an iPod Shuffle? Because a screen and a scrubbing control are essential for listening to audiobooks. Although the iPod Shuffle is a nice enough device, its design as a random shuffle music jukebox makes it ill-suited for playing audiobooks, where linear playback is required. While you can turn off shuffle mode, the iPod Shuffle has minimal controls for fast forward or reverse, and no way to see where you are. You will inevitably get into a position where you are in a random spot in the book, not know if thatâÂÂs were youâÂÂre supposed to be or not, and have no easy way to skim forward or backward to find the right place. And thatâÂÂs the issue in two words. The iPod Shuffle was designed with the philosophy that there is no âÂÂright placeâ in your playlist, all that matters is where you are now. Terrific for music, not so good for audiobooks. Note: IâÂÂm not saying itâÂÂs impossible to use an iPod Shuffle for audiobooks. IâÂÂm just saying itâÂÂs a [cr*ppy] experience." --end of quoted material--

The only sports I'm interested in are some of the events in the Summer or Winter Olympics, and being around only once every four years keeps them from wearing out their welcome. I do like March Madness, but mainly for the betting aspects -- I don't actually watch the games. If I did have to pick a pro sport, it might be basketball -- because all these guys are actually taller than I am, and it moves fast. Or maybe ice hockey, just to watch the skating, sound off, who cares who wins???! Rooting for a team only happens when I know at least one player, or have a personal connection to that player or players -- or if I'm rooting against known cheaters. This limits me to Little League, although I did (verbally, without watching the games) root for Joe Montana when he played with San Francisco -- hey, we shared the same college for most of the same years! I don't know enough about the players -- and don't need yet another hobby -- to pick teams for Fantasy Football.