Reaction to My Mom's Thoughts...

INSTRUMENTS (#2)
post by Sam Hernandez

So it's time for the next phase of my instrument for Tim's CMT Creates: Music project (maybe part of the next phase will be to think of a name for the thing). My last post covered the basics of how the sound would be created: electric motors dangling and hitting beer bottles. Since then I went and got some nice big vases from the thrift store, so hopefully now I have a larger range for the instrument, with the vases being the low range and the beer bottles the high end.

Now to tackle the question, "how do you play it?"

The easiest thing to do would be to have motors dangling at a fixed place on each vessel, and then turn each motor on individually using a momentary switch (push button). Maybe I'll mock that up eventually and see how it goes.

What I chose to do this time is a bit more complicated; I built a quick and dirty frame (literally, quick and dirty) and hung each wire from two eye hooks. The motor is on one end of the wire, and there is a counterweight on the opposite end. You raise or lower the counterweight to put the motor where you want it. I spliced the power wiring to the middle of each wire, in between the eye hooks. I suppose it could have gone at the end with the counterweight, but that would have interfered a bit with playing the instrument.



Anyway, the motors are all on all of the time, and you raise and lower them to make contact with the water glasses. If you leave them there, they just keep sounding.

I had a problem last time with the bits of innertube fouling up on the end of the motors. After playing around a bit, it seems like the best sound is from the body of the motor hitting the glass, instead of whatever is on the end of the motor. So this time I am using electrical tape to hold a little screw on the shaft of the motor. The screw makes the motor imbalanced as it spins, which makes it wobble a bit and periodically strike the glass.


A couple motors had these nice wide round things attached to the motor shaft, so I was able to put a screw and nut directly onto that. I like that a lot better since it is a much sturdier connection.


Here it is in action:

CHARCOT MARIE TOOTH
With great pleasure I'd like to introduce Yohan Bouchard, who has written an insightful response to his Mom's last post about dealing with CMT at school. Together they have a world of insight into living with CMT. (Tim)

Reaction to my mom’s thoughts…
post by Yohan Bouchard

In my opinion, my mother has a tendency to paint her own image of my capabilities, and often underestimates what I can actually achieve by myself. However, I do tend to confide my anxieties in her, and she takes what I say to heart. However, these complaints are not always completely realistic, as I am explaining my past experiences to my mother; they seem amplified as I am recollecting them.

For example, I did end up going to Europe and I had a great time. It was a very physically challenging trip due to my CMT symptoms and foot pain, but I did not dwell on the difficulty when I was in Europe with my father and friends. So even though the trip to Europe at first seemed to be beyond my capabilities to my mother, by using coping and pain management techniques that I have learned over the years, I was able to undertake this daunting challenge and succeed. Honestly I try not to worry about trips and other activities that may prove challenging, as this will make it difficult to notice the positive aspects of the journeys I have gone on in my life.

Although I cannot perform the same activities as my friends and family, I try not to focus on what I can’t do, but try to stay in the mindset of doing what I am capable of achieving. Ultimately, I stay focused on the present, so as not to stress about the past or worry about the future.