Today I did a fun experiment with piano chords. I played all the notes of the octave with the following list of chord types and wrote down any feelings or mental associations I had.

Here's the list:

Major: Typical, normal, "according to spec" Minor: The Buddhist word dukkha fits perfectly here Diminished: Bad surprise, misfortune Augmented: B-Movie weirdness just happened Dominant Seventh: Uncomfortable family reunion, a crowded room Major Seventh: Intelligent conversational, thoughtful, Wednesday afternoon off work, "We can figure this out" Minor Seventh: Metro, slightly upscale, Volkswagen Beetle, shopping uptown on an overcast day Diminished Seventh: Caught in a conspiracy Ninth: Public transportation, public services Major Ninth: A crush, the part in the book when the plot thickens Minor Ninth: Fighting back tears (of joy or sorrow), the results came in but there are still questions Eleventh: Thicket of thorns, tangled Minor Eleventh: Reading the todo list of a wedding or other big event Thirteenth: Collapse of civilization, something magnificent is going to happen Major Thirteenth: Weighty negotiations, legal documentation Minor Thirteenth: Even more so the law Sixth: A polite conversation Six-Nine: When an unexpected disclosure is made during the conversation Minor Six-Nine: The disclosure is not received in good faith Fifth: Definitive, resolute Suspended Second: "Don't be alarmed" Suspended Forth: "I think I understand now" Add Forth: Parental guidance, Ikea assembly instructions Add Ninth: Disappointment, mixed results

Analysis:

A few of my answers uncovered some repressions regarding relationships (dating and marriage) and the responses as a whole indicate a general sense of uncertainty. If you've read this blog lately you can probably figure out why.

Anyway, give this experiment a try using these chord formulas and abbreviations and Note Kitchen. You'll learn about yourself and the various chord types, if you haven't already.

P.S. If you like this kind of stuff, check out Critical Stimulus, a psychoanalytical tool I designed based on Carl Jung's Association Method.

Meditation Time meditating today: 0 ... It was my day off, so there's really no excuse Quality of meditation (out of 10): 0

Practice Minutes on the keyboard today (out of 40): 20 minutes Quality of practice (out of 10): 5