Friday, August 18, 2026

Music

In May I began taking cello lessons with Ana Ospina at New School of Music in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Since April, I have immersed myself in learning cello, reading about playing cello, listening to podcasts about playing cello, watching YouTube videos about playing cello, and attending concerts in which cellos are played.

The cello is extremely difficult to play, not to mention play well, and so far I can do only the most simple things, none of them well. But I wanted to try something hard, I’m enjoying myself, and I’m improving. I practice an average of sixty minutes each day.

I have finished reading several books about the cello, including these books which I have not reviewed yet on this site:

• Bach: The Cello Suites, by Edward Klorman
• Bach’s Cello Suites, by Steven Isserlis
• Jacqueline du Pré: Her Life, Her Music, Her Legend, by Elizabeth Wilson

I have been listening to the following music podcasts:

• The Bulletproof Musician
• Cello Museum Podcast, by Dr. Brenda Neece
• The Cello Sherpa Podcast
• Classical Breakdown
• Classical Classroom, by Dacia Clay
• Forgotten Cello Music, by Aaron Sinnett
• The Honesty Pill Podcast, by Christopher Still
• The Lonely Cello Podcast, by Emily Wright
• The Mind Over Finger Podcast, by Renée-Paule Gauthier
• The Musician’s Journey Podcast, by Ragnhild Wesenberg
• Musicians vs the World, by Christine Smith
• Stand Partners for Life

I have written blog posts about each of my cello lessons so far and about other things I’ve learned or experienced. See my blog categories “Cello” and “Music.”

Running

For the first five months of 2026, I was running every other day, averaging ten miles per week, and running a 5-km race about once a month. I started doing hill repeats to build strength and speed. I joined the Somerville Road Runners on the advice of a good friend who is a member, and I went on two group runs.

Then, as happens to me once or twice a year, I began having problems with my left knee, and I have not run since May 24. My knee is slowly improving.

I am saddened to report that two runner friends have died this year, one of ALS, the other of a sudden cardiac incident. I miss them.

Bicycling

It has been a hot summer here in Eastern Massachusetts, and I have not been riding much. But I am planning a car camping trip to the White Mountains in New Hampshire, and I am taking my Trek Valencia (a hybrid bike) to ride some of the rail trails in the area.

I also intend to do a short tour on Cape Cod in September or even early October.

Reading

Books I finished recently but have not reviewed yet include:

• The Universal Timekeepers: Reconstructing History Atom by Atom, by David J. Helfand
• Learn Faster, Perform Better: A Musician’s Guide to the Neuroscience of Practicing by Molly Gebrian
• Ancillary Justice, by Ann Leckie

Among the books I’m reading right now are:

• After the Spike: Population, Progress, and the Case for People, by Dean Spears and Michael Geruso
• Ancillary Sword, by Ann Leckie
• Augustus, by John Williams
• I Am Not a Robot: My Year Using AI to Do (Almost) Everything, by Joanna Stern
• Livia: Mother of Rome, by Caitlin C. Gillespie
• The Odyssey, by Homer, translated by Emily Wilson
• Turner & Constable: Rivals and Originals, edited by Amy Concannon.

Computer Programming

I want to learn Apple’s Metal graphics language and Swift programming language so I can write a macOS application using Metal graphics. On August 5th, I started an online course from Codecademy that is teaching me the Swift programming language. I work on this course thirty minutes per day, and I am slowly but steadily progressing through the course.