Archive | Work-Life

An Ode to Mullet

A Point of View

Melissa Pigott, Ph.D.

On June 28, 2022

Category: Getting the Job Done, Giving Back, Life Outside of Work, Magnus Insights, Work-Life

Recently, my friend, Button, and I were talking about our fondness for fresh fish. We discussed our shared opinion that fish is best prepared fried, not baked, smoked, grilled, blackened, or en papillote. (I enjoy eating fish that has been prepared in all these ways, but in my opinion, there is nothing quite as good […]

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Another View

David H. Fauss, M.S.M.

On June 28, 2022

Category: Getting the Job Done, Giving Back, Life Outside of Work, Magnus Insights, Work-Life

Mullet – now that I can relate to indeed!  I was probably about 10 when I met my first mullet.  We lived near the St. Johns River and my brother and I liked fishing.  Our neighbors lived on the river and had a dock.  Dale and I spent hours, almost daily, and definitely on the […]

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Zenobia

Recently, a long time friend of my family’s, Woody Hanson, posted an old photo on a social media site that brought back fond memories. The photo was of Zenobia King Hill, the owner of a modeling school in my hometown of Fort Myers, Florida. Zenobia was from Alabama; she attended the famous John Robert Powers […]

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I’ve heard many stories about Zenobia over the years, but it was not until I saw the photo Melissa referenced, with the description, that I actually knew how her name was spelled.   Melissa, as well as some of her friends, have spoken fondly of Zenobia over the years.  I’ve heard about the life skills learned, […]

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Big Family

A Point of View

Melissa Pigott, Ph.D.

On June 14, 2022

Category: Getting Through Life and Work, Life Outside of Work, Magnus, Psychology, Work-Life

I come from a big family. My dad, Park, was 1 of 17 children and my mom, Leola, was 1 of 8 children. As best as I can recall, I have 38 first cousins and an even larger number of first cousins, once removed, second cousins, and more. My dad was the proverbial middle child; […]

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Another View

David H. Fauss, M.S.M.

On June 14, 2022

Category: Getting Through Life and Work, Life Outside of Work, Magnus, Psychology, Work-Life

In contrast to Melissa, my family was about average.  Dad was an only child, Mom had 2 siblings.  There are some cousins, aunts, uncles, great aunts, etc., but when I learned about her parents’ families, I was blown away.  I mean 17 children!!!  From what I know, her grandmother was a tough woman who, in […]

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If You Won’t Practice, Don’t Bother Learning

As I mentioned in my previous post, “practice makes perfect,” my childhood piano teacher, Corella Johnson, insisted that all her piano and organ students practice their instrument(s) at least 30 minutes a day. The first thing she did at every lesson was ask her students to play the piece of music they were learning, so […]

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Childhood music lessons didn’t work well for me.  I tried guitar and piano but found I’d much rather go fishing or tromp through the woods than hone those skills.  Perhaps it was also because my early music lessons focused too much on fundamentals, rather than playing a song, these music experiences were not attractive to […]

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Hallowed Ground at Modern Music

By the time I started taking weekly bass guitar lessons at Modern Music, it was anything but modern. Having opened for business in 1970, it was well past its prime by the time I started going there in 2003. Modern Music sold new and used guitars (it was a Fender retailer), amplifiers, PA systems, sheet […]

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It is amazing to think of all that Melissa and I have learned based on the decision I made to get her a bass guitar.  It was time for her to do what she’d always told me she regretted not being able to do when she was a teen.  Modern Music has been one of […]

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The Hang

When my first bass guitar teacher, Doug, decided to teach bass and guitar lessons from a music store in Fort Lauderdale called Modern Music, it was the third location where I went for my lessons. The first place was Mars Music, a large and impersonal music store that went out of business a couple years […]

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Melissa tried to explain the hang to me when she first started observing it but it was difficult for me to comprehend.  The more she told me, the more it reminded me of the 2000 movie High Fidelity staring John Cusack, which involved people doing the hang in a record store.  But, it still seemed […]

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A Friend I Never Thought I’d Have

David reminded me of something recently when we spent the day at the home of our friend, Diana. David remarked that it had been a “musical weekend” because we went to a performance of the band in which one of my friends plays guitar, followed the next day by our visit with Diana, followed the […]

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I feel like I’m always 1 step removed from the musician friends Melissa has made since picking up the bass.  Most of what I knew for a long time was 2nd hand – her experiences.  But, because I enjoy seeing and hearing live music, I enjoyed going to hear these guys play out.  I remember […]

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Musical Friends

I have been a musician since 1964, when I began playing the piano, and following that, the organ. I learned a lot about music from my wonderful teacher and friend, Corella Johnson. Although Corella was an adult, who was married with children, she and I became close friends over the 12 years I took piano […]

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I had no way to anticipate what would happen when I went shopping for a bass guitar and accessories to give to Melissa.  All I knew was that she’d been interested in playing bass for quite a while and it was time to give her that chance.  I figured, and as it turns out, I […]

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Nothing To Do Except Write a Book

With Magnus’ long term business downturn related to the pandemic and its hugely negative impact on the court system in the U.S.A., I have found myself with little work to do. Although David is busy trying to find new clients and cases, handling routine administrative duties, and operating our business, my job consists primarily of […]

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Melissa stayed home recently to get a few things done, work and otherwise. I had little idea what she was planning to do that day so, when I asked what she’d been up to that evening, I smiled when she responded that she’d been planning her latest book.  Not many people can say that, but […]

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