+1
Yesterday, I finally played my drums for fun. I get migraines usually the day after (or sometimes hours after), and so I always told myself I would save the pain for something -- studio recording or a job, but yesterday, I got tired of hearing the neighbors' dogs barking, so I played and enjoyed it. The minute I start recording, you aren't playing for the joy of it, and I tend to not experiment as much, for obvious reasons. The same when you're with a band, you can't just stop to change, think, change the rhythm, etc etc...
I had a minor headache for about an hour yesterday, and when I woke up for another hour... And an hour ago, to avoid those ********* dogs again, I played, and could notice an improvement. I wish I had a huge stereo (like I used to back in the day) where I could play along, but I'll think of a song in my head, and try to play along with it, singing along (to make it more difficult).. Yesterday, I had my TV going connected to my laptop, playing random songs, and would get some inspiration, and play along. Speaking of inspiration, I know watching a documentary on Jaco helped a bit.
I wear ear protection, and have for the last 20 years, but didn't those first 10 years, and when you're playing a concert, you don't even think of this stuff.. I'm going to try and play at least a few minutes each day, just for discipline, exercise, and something to improve my chops. Today, I came up with something difficult to do, and would repeat it until I went a long time without making a mistake.