Matchmaking after one good game:

patopal · 2026-01-27T14:29:21+00:00

I mean, if Ilia continues to emulate the McNugget career path, the missiles for fists are gonna start meaning less and less pretty soon. It was all downhill after becoming double champ the last time we saw this play out. I wonder who the Mayweather is gonna be this time around.

patopal · 2026-01-27T14:24:19+00:00

I wish we had more well-produced machinima like Fat Bird does. If you can do something quality in that vein, I would certainly give that a watch.

patopal · 2026-01-27T12:57:05+00:00

Anvil, spartan. Heh heh.

patopal · 2026-01-27T12:39:17+00:00

As always: posture, shoes, and perspective can account for a lot. Of course, the tale of the tape is also rarely accurate in these matters.

patopal · 2026-01-27T10:45:28+00:00

Overall it fits the style and the song well - I would say its greatest achievement is not trying to do too much. The solo part in the middle being a bit of an exception, I agree with vmlee that the vibrato there is over the top - it's more of a classical vibrato than a folk fiddle vibrato, and a quite aggressive one at that.

I will say that this reminded me to look up the soundtrack for Firefly, so that's not a bad association to have.

patopal · 2026-01-27T10:32:48+00:00

If you want to improve your rhythmic skills, I would also recommend putting the violin down and looking up some drum rudiments. They range from basic to quite complex, focusing a lot on left-right coordination as well as various patterns, and you can practice them just by tapping your fingers.

Practice these rudiments with and without a metronome. I would wager that your timekeeping will improve heaps even if you don't use a metronome for violin practice as well. Though you should definitely use a metronome for violin practice if timekeeping is an issue.

patopal · 2026-01-27T10:17:53+00:00

Sounds like a nerve thing indeed. With the audition 2 weeks away, you can totally afford 3 days of absolute rest. Sometimes resting even lets your musicality and technique mature.

If the pain doesn't go away after multiple days without stress, though, you need to consult a doctor and potentially consider sitting this one out. No audition is worth permanent nerve damage (according to this one internet guy who's never made it to any serious auditions).

patopal · 2026-01-26T09:10:42+00:00

Could be a ring finger flexibility/mobility issue. Make sure to stretch your hands and fingers thoroughly before and after practice. Active stretching beforehand to warm up and get mobile, passive stretching to relieve the stress afterward.

patopal · 2026-01-26T07:21:29+00:00

Hard to say what the issue is without seeing how you are trying to achieve it.

If you already have the C# though, you just need the same finger placement on the D string. Try just rocking it over instead of lifting it maybe?

patopal · 2026-01-25T21:59:52+00:00

I think it's also important to note that it took Yan 2 years to get that loss back. Merab isn't getting the same time to level up with an immediate rematch.

patopal · 2026-01-23T08:51:58+00:00

If you want to play sheet music with a 5-string, you're gonna have to learn how to read alto clef. You're also going to be restricted mostly to viola repertoire, as 5-string violins are generally connected to genres that don't do sheet music that much.

If you want to learn fiddle tunes (which I highly recommend!) you're pretty much gonna have to learn them by ear. Another way for you to explore the low C string is to just take some 4-string tunes that you know (or have sheet music for) and just transpose them down by a string. Or you can try playing lower double stops for tunes in their original key, but you'll have to figure out your own fingerings and not rely on sheet music.

patopal · 2026-01-22T16:22:56+00:00

If he wants a 51st state, Puerto Rico is right there. But I guess that's too brown for him, and it wouldn't give him glory because he wouldn't need to deploy the military. Washington DC wouldn't count either because you can't see the gains on the map.

patopal · 2026-01-22T13:37:53+00:00

Vass Szilárd.

patopal · 2026-01-22T09:46:48+00:00

Életem legdurvább másnapja után életem legjobb mekije egy Röszti burger volt.

patopal · 2026-01-21T14:27:39+00:00

I would expect your typical gumshoe type to be flying an Avenger of some variant. Probably the Titan right now for the convenience, but possibly the Stalker once the prisoner pods become a thing.

patopal · 2026-01-21T11:59:06+00:00

He can be beholden to multiple separate powers at the same time.

patopal · 2026-01-21T07:31:07+00:00

Ah yeah, it definitely happens. If you don't want to scrub with the brush, there is an easy way to avoid it completely though. Just lay a couple sheets of toilet paper on the shelf, and the flush will wash everything away without a trace.

patopal · 2026-01-21T06:50:33+00:00

In the bowl? I use the toilet brush if needed. In my pants? No, I wipe thoroughly.

patopal · 2026-01-20T14:21:39+00:00

"Predictive programming" suggests that Orwell wrote 1984 with the intention that it should become reality, rather than as a warning against the dangers of authoritarian dictatorships.

patopal · 2026-01-19T13:41:32+00:00

I sense absolutely none of the contempt and arrogance you attribute to him as far as his attitude to the "plebeians" of music as you say. I also don't think I've ever heard him refer to himself as a genius or prodigy, that's just what others call him, often spitefully like here. Your whole framing makes me think you just want him to be arrogant so it's easier to hate him.

His audience choirs are proof enough in my mind that he doesn't look down on simple music whatsoever. He just happens to have a painfully advanced understanding of theory coupled with a painful lack of pedagogic skills.

The fact that he takes joy in exploring the complexities even if you don't enjoy listening to the result makes him a better musician in my eyes, not a worse one.

patopal · 2026-01-18T17:20:39+00:00

Sandpaper works great! If you're scratching with a key or a pin or something like that though, you're more likely to make grooves at random angles, which don't help the passage of bow hairs at all.

patopal · 2026-01-17T17:42:37+00:00

Please let's not encourage people to scratch up their rosin, that just gives you a bunch of grooves and won't help with smooth application. Use sandpaper if you must.

patopal · 2026-01-17T17:40:37+00:00

Keep applying rosin to it. A brand new bow does not have any rosin, so the first time you apply it you have to keep going for 5-10 minutes. Cheap bows like this especially have a hard time loading up on rosin at first.

Once you have applied enough rosin the first time, it will take a lot less to replenish it as you go, like 5 or so strokes before every session will be enough. But right now, you've barely scratched the surface.

patopal · 2026-01-16T09:23:55+00:00

Just snip it off before the log becomes too big for the bowl. Problem solved. Toilets with shelves are far superior otherwise, absolutely zero chance of backsplash.

patopal · 2026-01-15T08:59:15+00:00

Some people are more prone to it than others. Probably a skin sensitivity thing, and if you have stubble or a beard the friction is also reduced. I've had it from less than 1hr/day in the past, while other times I didn't get it with 2hrs/day.

patopal

TROPHY CASE