My Bagpipe Belle

This is my Marsha Bell.  She is my bagpipe teacher.  

And she is the greatest treasure I have ever found from a google search.

If you ever go to Marsha Bell's house, the first thing you will find is a sign on the door with explicit instructions to not let yourself in (they own a dog whose one ambition in life is to run for freedom).
There's a sign right below that sign that says "Only family, friends, and LDS missionaries welcome."  She's not LDS, but her and her husband have been hanging out with the elders for a couple of years now.  She even advertises for them at her church, begging others to just invite the elders in just to talk for awhile.  She tells me all the time how much she loves them and she can't imagine what her life would be like if she never invited them in.

When you walk into the house, you are greeted by her two birds.  She also has a couple (mean) cats.

She's got style too.  I like the way she decorates.  She stays true to her love of all things Scottish.

Check out this window.

Check it out a little closer.  Isn't that awesome?

She's a Christian woman who truly lives up to the name.  If I cancel my lesson, I don't have to pay her, but I have to donate money to her favorite charity (The Cherokee Nation) or donate some cans to her church's food drive.  She offers to pick me up from the Metro every week.  When my power was out for a few days, she told me if I wanted I could come stay at her place for as long as I needed.

She's a good woman.  And she plays the bagpipes like an angel.

And she tells me I can too.  She also tells me I'm a very "creative" player.  When I play well, she says "That was outstanding!  Play it again so I know it's not a fluke."

(I'm making that face because I'm channeling my inner Pop-eye.  It's an old bagpiping trick.  Also, at the time this picture was taken, I was making noises similar to the squeals of a dying pig.  Sometimes I'm laughing so hard it's difficult to get enough air to go into the chanter.  I think that's when I try to get "creative".)

And when I play bad, she stares at the notes on the page for awhile, blinks a few times, and says, "Well, at least we know you'll never be expected to play at the Glenfiddich."

And sometimes after I play, she says, "The Duke of Atholl is the only citizen in the entire British Empire that has his own private army.  The Queen can call on the army to use if she wants, but it's his and his alone to keep."  She then gives me a five minute discourse on the history of the duke's name, the county where he lives, and the origin of his army.   During the five minute discourse, I sit and try to figure out what about my playing inspired the mini history lesson that has nothing to do with bagpipes.  Or even music.

Like I said, she's the greatest treasure I've ever found from a google search.