The thing with strumming is that it's all about developing entrenched patterns.  And to do so properly, like so much other learning, requires learning.  So with my fingers being relatively unaccustomed to the strings (yes, there is a bit of pain), I'm just goint to sit for an extended period of time and strum.

I heard a great little song sometime back called Still by the Great Lake Swimmers.  It's good because the strumming pattern is really consistent and simply.  I can also quite easily follow along with it.  And because I recorded it a few months back when my playing was rather untrained, I consider this to be a benchmark piece I can revisit every so often to determine whether or not I'm making any progress.

Were the submission time for this online portfolio a few days later, I would reflect on the first time my ukulele leaves my house for a public performance.  Granted, it's in front of my 11 to 12 year old students, but that in no way lessons my nervous anticipation.  I'm going to try to simulate what a performance would be through another recording below.  I've included the chord charts in the files section.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UtqhhkFBcJU

Now here's where the real learning (and improvement) begins.  Comparing the expert example delivered by the Great Lake Swimmers to mine is slightly humbling.  However, by trying to mimic their example, I'm hoping my version will start to resemble theirs more each time I play it.  From the examples above, however, I have much to learn still.  My key phrase should be trying to make the strumming consistent.