Is There A NaNoReMo?

I think I want a National Novel Reading Month. I could do a novel a day (as long as I chose the right novels, of course). I’m behind on writing reviews, but I’m wallowing unabashedly in the number of good reads available to me right now. I’ve tweaked the Now Reading widget to show up to ten current books instead of just five.

I totally flubbed NaNoWriMo. No, I don’t wanna talk word count. Ugh. I have, however, managed to keep up with NaBloPoMo. so far, and there’s only one day to go! Database problems have given me some trouble with getting the posts to the public at some points, but I’ve written an entry every single day, and I think all of them are even showing up now. (The auto-posted Tweets for the day don’t count, of course.)

TodayOn Thursday, Katie and I drove all over the place, as she had an orthodontic appointment and I foolishly chose to combine that with other errands. Driving = can’t take usual pain meds. I came home and collapsed with a fever. Now it’s the normal time to sleep, and I’m in too much pain to go lay down. (Actually, I was so foggy that I forgot to hit the “Publish” button last night!)

But, thanks to a Freecycler, we now own a Korg 88-key electric piano. The catch: It’s taken apart. Completely. I’ve never seen the innards of such a thing before!

Why did the previous owners take it apart, then give it away? Their toddler spilled paint on the keys. The donor couldn’t remember if it was fabric paint or acrylic paint, but it isn’t water-soluble, in any case. Fortunately, the paint did not get into the electronics! Unfortunately, it did stick a few keys together. So the man of the house took it apart, intending to clean it up—then stuck it in the garage, where it has languished for two years. In a cleaning fit this week, he decided to toss it out and just get a new one. Happily, his wife persuaded him to give her a week to offer it on Freecycle instead, and now it’s ours!

I’m encouraged by the fact that everything worked before it was taken apart (other than the stuck keys). I’m excited about having a piano. Now I have to figure out what to use to gently clean said keys, then figure out how to reassemble the whole thing. I considered just taking it to the nearest authorized repair center, but I want to see if we can do it first, as their quoted labor rate of $70/hour would add up very quickly. This is a $1,000 instrument, so it’s worth putting some money into making it work. Having the money, as usual, is the problem.

It came with its nice stand, which is integral to the piano, as it has the pedals on it. I’ll still need a bench, but I’ll deal with that after I have it working.

A repair manual would be very useful. The instrument manual can be downloaded from the Korg website, but since these things aren’t considered user-serviceable, it doesn’t show how to take the piano apart and put it back together. If I can get it cleaned up, though, I can probably ask Daddy for assembly help. My Daddy can fix anything.¹Yes, I am 41 years old, and he’ll always be Daddy, and I’ll always believe in his miraculous fix-it-ability He’s much better with things than with people.

I’m totally open to suggestions for gentle solvents.²Yes, that’s something of an oxymoron. I’m figuring non-acetone nail polish remover might do it, but will it damage the keys?

Of course, if any of you fine folks happen to have experience with taking electric pianos apart and reassembling them, by all means, please speak up! (Hey, a girl can hope, can’t she?)