Decisions

Quickly after arriving in Chiang Mai and experiencing the North Gate Jazz Co-Op, I realized (not necessarily for the first time) that I have a jazz soul. And this means I want to play with others. Sure, I can borrow a horn like I did in Tokyo and Bangkok. But nothing beats the familiarity of my own trumpet. And even if it's not my Bach horn at home, I'd like my own instrument for jamming while I'm in Asia.

To my dismay, there aren't any instrument rentals in Chiang Mai. It took me a while to find a trumpet at a music store.

Priced at about $150 in US federal reserve notes, this looked promising. The only problem is that I'd either have to haul it around with me or pawn it at a loss of $30-50.

Maybe someone had that idea before. A secondhand shop I visited had a selection of three decent looking horns, Bach-offs I call them (Bach knockoffs). Cheaper at around $120, there's no mouthpiece nor case. And the music store doesn't have trumpet mouthpieces in stock. So I guess that's the end of that thread.

So I bought the new horn. It comes with a case, and I grabbed a bottle of my favorite oil. And a mouthpiece.

A fucking 7C. Oh well, what else would come with a cheap trumpet. It may be nonideal, but I can play it.

The ladies of the About A Bed hostel gave me permission to practice on their streetfront. Bustling with tourists, this will certainly make me feel shy. I hope my "Bad Boy" cover doesn't embarrass me!

And as to whether I'll keep it or sell it, I'm leaning towards keep. After all, while it may be a pain in my ass to carry an extra piece of baggage, there's always the chance that I'll play again while I'm traveling. On the plus side, the case is tiny compared to that of my Bach.