This one is from guest dittyist Nina Vyedin! It speaks to a common addiction.
Hi Rick,
We all know travel is supposed to be fun. And I get it, it’s confusing to be dropped into a foreign land, clueless about the local customs, food, attractions, and the like. But please, for the love of God, stop publishing this information.
I really do admire that you’ve done so well for yourself, amassing detailed reviews of expensive restaurants and luxurious hotels. And it’s impressive how thoroughly you’ve researched each of the destinations you write about. But I think it’s time to back off, Rick.
I can’t remember the last family vacation I went on that didn’t revolve around your advice. I’m sure this advice was well-intentioned; you seem like a good guy, after all. But is that quaint Italian eatery three bus stops away really any better than the one downstairs? Is it worth the two-hour pilgrimage to that wonderous waterfall you say we simply must see?
The problem here is that in order to make these books quickly and efficiently consumable, you only touch on a handful of things to do. This is all well and good, but when you’re all big and famous, people tend to take your advice extremely seriously. I know my mother won’t consider eating in a foreign land without your blessing. So cut us a break, Rick.
At least put a little “I haven’t been everywhere” disclaimer at the front of the book. Or better yet, include a “Very Impressive But Free Or Cheap” section in each book. Even my father would buy it and read it then.
I’m really just trying to help you out here, Rick. And I appreciate what you do. But at the end of the day, you’d be better off to realize that there are some real travel nuts out there, whom you’ve accidentally become responsible for.
Best,
John
So, what did I tell you? Despite being on vacation, I’m pushing out a ditty. This one is a mashup-type thing using old, old recordings of me singing and playing the piano and such, but reversed. And extra bonus fun: let’s play Name That Tune in the comments! No cheating, OK?
Our first guest dittyist this week is the ever-wonderful Jon Fuller. Here he treats us to the simple joys of home cooking and decade-old recording equipment.
OK, here’s the scoop about the Ditties this week. I’m going on vacation tomorrow, so that makes it quite challenging to make and publish a ditty every day, considering I have no idea when I’ll have the Internets, let alone access to recording equipment. So here’s what we’re doing. I’ll post ditties when I can (which should be interesting, and use lots of samples and loops), but in the meantime, we have guest dittyists! Just you wait and hear what these fine people have to offer you. So stay tuned, even if there isn’t a ditty every single day. There will be new dittyish posts while I’m gone!
This has been a pretty hectic week, as it turns out. So, today’s ditty is another non-traditional one; sorry. This one is actually from over a year ago, from one of my composition classes. It’s kind of a musical theater/art piece setting of The Giving Tree, by Shel Silverstein. Today I finally got around to making the demo of the first section. All the instruments are kind of cheap and fake-sounding, but they get the point across.
Special treat! Today’s ditty is a full-length song! I’d like to thank Vassar College for giving me the fodder for this spritely work.
Welcome to day 3 of cellphone week! Today, we’ve got a lovely little number that can be used for incoming text messages. This one is dedicated to the fine people of D4, for obvious reasons.
Also, just a note: tomorrow’s ditty may not, in fact, be a ditty. I’m putting the finishing touches on a new full-length song, and will probably just push that out tomorrow. I think it’s a better deal, anyway.
