Your computer keyboard is as filthy as a toilet seat

And that’s not an insult. I read this report on the Guardian UK website and it made me squirm. However, I’m not too surprised because this applies to piano keyboards as well. We spend so much time typing away, so much so that the grime on the keyboard builds up rapidly. Truth be told, there are some simple steps to avoid making your keyboards (whether computer or piano) a garbage dump for germs:

• Never eat when you’re using your computer. If you must eat, go somewhere else, chow down, and wash your hands thoroughly before using the keyboard again.
• Clean your keyboard often. I do it about once every two days, using just a moderately-damp cloth with a little drop of liquid soap.
• If you must sneeze or cough, turn away from your keyboard. It’s amazing how many people expel all that gooey stuff into their keyboards or their monitors!
• Every once in a while, I turn my keyboard upside down and give it a few sharp whacks. You’d be surprised how much crud falls out. And vacuum it if possible. Don’t do this for your piano keyboard though!
• Since I’m using a desktop PC, the keyboard is cheap and easily replaceable should a major disaster occur.
• Don’t forget to clean your mouse too!

Piano lessons: redux, Part 1

Ah yes, I remember my first piano lesson vividly. Dragged kicking and screaming (at the age of 6) while playing in the garden. After arriving at the music teacher’s house, I was dragged again into her studio. And the teacher was none other than one of my aunts!

Huh, I suppose it was similar to waiting for your turn at the dentist’s. The wait is actually more nerve-wrecking than being in the chair itself. But try telling that to the people in the waiting room.

Anyway, to cut a long story short I persisted (and my parents insisted) with the piano lessons, going all the way from Grade 1 and actually achieving Grade 8 status by the time I turned 13 (yay!). Or so I thought. My parents said I wasn’t finished yet, until I took a shot at the diploma exams . So I went ahead and obtained my LTCL (Licentiate of Trinity College London) and finally my FTCL (Fellow of Trinity College London) in 1984.

Finished at last!?

Hello, World! It’s me here!

Hi, my name is Philip. I’m 47 years old, and have just started this blog, never too late, yes? I live in Penang, Malaysia. This is a beautiful country of about 26 million people. It’s just south of Thailand (we share a border) and north of Singapore.

I’ve been teaching piano privately for more than 25 years now, ever since graduating from the University of Arizona with a B. Music degree in the early 80’s. I’ve also become quite a computer geek since the early 90’s, starting with Windows 3.1 and now on to Vista. Building and servicing Intel-based PCs is another hobby of mine, which does bring in some good pocket money every now and then.

When I’m away from the computer keyboard, I play cocktail music at the E & O Hotel here, twice a week. A very nice and relaxing job, if I may say so (thanks, Mike!) Well, I’ve played cocktail piano for as long as I can remember, but I’ll save those for another post.

When I need some exercise, I head for the pool, which is almost every weekday. Swimming is another passion of mine. It really clears the head and I love the feel of water. Especially in a hot and humid country such as Malaysia.

Last but not least, I’m a staff member at BigBlueBall. If you want to know everything about Instant Messaging, this IS the place to go to. Besides, it has a ton of other cool stuff to check out, including Social Networking, the latest phones, a really nice BigBlueBall lounge, and on and on.

Alright, think I’ve just about completed the intro. I’ll be posting often, I hope! See you soon!