Pink Flying V.

It's the beginning of a new year, almost. As good a time as any for some new beginnings. Some new beginnings involving musical instruments, in my case. And not just any musical instruments either, but a pink Mahalo Flying V ukulele. My newest crush.

Let me tell you how the seeds for this infatuation were sown... 

I guess it was a lot of little things coming together. One of these things was the pressing need for a new (less hazardous) hobby (that drinking business is way too much effort and far too detrimental in the long run). Another was the epiphany that, at 24, you're actually not yet too old to pick up a musical instrument (after all, after dabbling with tin whistles and singing in the school choir, i had a good founding for this). The third thing (or person, rather), was Emilyn 'cupcake punk' Brodsky, who was (and who am i kidding, still is) my crush prior to the arrival of the Uke (anyone who makes up a music genre called 'cupcake punk' deserves my admiration). The fourth and final things was a message that dropped into my Facebook inbox from the good folk at Aron Soitin, which informed me that their ukes (which are their best-selling product, they tell me) were back in stock again, for an altogether acceptable price of fifty euros. The deal was sealed. I could see it; I was headed for awkwardly eccentric, over-ambitiously folksy, pseudo-cool, four string, cotton candy-encrusted fame. But being still in the first leg of that journey to immortal underground superstardom, i'd settle for learning a couple of chords and entertaining myself. 

Which is what i've been doing happily ("badly", the neighbors would firmly interject, nodding, at this point), almost every night since bringing the little pink thing home. There's something really disarming about the uke. The shape, the size, and the pinkness of it. It kinda looks like a toy that makes cool noise. It looks like it was made to play cupcake punk. Having said that, Mahalo ukuleles - and the flying V model especially - get a lot of flak for their quality as instruments. Some of it not unfounded. Sure, its triangular shape makes it tricky to hold while playing, and yes i'm sure the sound could be better, and it's true that despite the picture of the girl on the beach in the grass skirt the uke sports a 'made in China' sticker. I don't care. What the uke lacks in quality it makes up in kitsch and attitude. 

So now it wont be long until i post a link to my first solo recording posted on youtube (cause that's what you do). It'll be called 'Teatime in R'lyeh' (cause it needs a suitable obscure name and nonsensical lyrics), it'll be filmed in my bathroom (the acoustics, dude), and it'll be preceded by me fiddling with the video cam (cause of the DIY factor) and adjusting my sailor hat to a jauntier angle (cause of the need for cool, unique head wear). All set. Take my hand, little green man, we're gonna be famous. All we need to do now is learn how to play.