I can tell you how it feels to be a gypsy...

Erin and I have our 7th anniversary today. 7 years seems like such a long time, but I think we're just as happy as ever. We're going to Z Tejas for dinner tonight to celebrate. This has been a busy semester for her, and I've had some pretty late nights recently, but we've still found a decent amount of time to spend together.

I'm of mixed feelings about the change in the weather. I used to love the cold weather times. I like wearing sweaters and stuff, but I never really got TOO cold, so it was pretty much ideal...however, the cold has been affecting me more and more over the last few years. This winter, in particular, has been very cold for me...I think some of it may be due to the fact that I've lose about 40 pounds...so my bodyfat content is probably significantly lower than it was before. I still like wearing sweaters and stuff, though.

I finished that neck prototype and have begun building my "final copy". It is kind of nerve-wracking due to the fact that it is pretty nice looking lumber. I managed to center one nice ambrosia streak down the center of the fretboard for effect. I hope I don't make any mistakes that won't be fixable. My router table sucks, so some of the shaping was a bit rough. I didn't have any major tearout, though, and have sanded most of what came up. So far, I've just routed the outline shape as well as the truss rod cavity. I might post some pictures of that process, the jigs I use, and the such, for documentation purposes.

I am expecting a delivery for many of the remaining parts that will make up the guitar, but I still have no idea what pickups I plan to use. I will probably just wind something myself at first and decide later if I want to change them. Additionally, I'm unsure about pickguard material...I bought some vinyl tile that I will use temporarily...can't beat 88 cents. I might go with some plain black garolite, but I feel this guitar might call for something a little flashier -- perhaps black pearl pickguard, or even brown tortoise, but that gets pretty pricey...which is silly because it's just a sheet of plastic.