Man, I’ve been thinking about this ever since you posted it.
Learning music and playing bass is it’s own struggle, but it’s the struggle of a lifelong learning experience that I’m really happy I’ve been able to find my way back to.
Life? That’s a whole different struggle. At the risk of over sharing, Life has been wearing me out these last couple of months.
Actually, I’ll take this to the Lounge. Back to your regularly scheduled bass talk.
I recorded myself playing today for the first time and the results were not pretty, wtf are my pinkies doing?!
While the pinky on my fretting hand likes to wave to the imagined crowd (the big show off) when not involved, its sibling on my plucking hand curls up in embarassment until it’s twisted up like I’ve got severe arthritis, it’s painful to look at.
I’ve seen plenty of fretting hand exercises that I can try but not sure how to tackle the plucking hand problem, it doesn’t really affect my playing but it looks really ugly. No matter how much I try to hold it in a reasonable position, my middle finger is like a car jack with each pluck making my pinky curl up a bit more until it’s fully retracted.
What do you do with those extra fingers?
Don’t worry, you’re not alone @pete_s . . . 
It’s like everything else . . . just takes time and practice! 
Cheers
Joe
If it doesn’t affect your playing then I wouldn’t worry about it.
I don’t think you should be “holding it” in any particular position. You should just relax it and let it be. So I guess your plucking hand is too tense and that’s why your idle fingers curl up.
But as I said if it’s not affecting your playing then I wouldn’t worry about it, as @Jazzbass19 said it’s probably going to resolve itself with practice as your plucking hand gets more comfortable with plucking and gets more relaxed.
this comes slowly with time.
My instructor has me doing some very rudimentary (but they also have a purpose) exercises slowly and methodically, and he tells me to not worry too much when doing other things. The concept is the slow and steady exercises start to ground you in better hand positions and start to seep into your playing vs. trying to course correct your entire playing style.
In the end you end up with better positions but where you are comfortable.
I know you’re right but I want to look cool for the 50 songs challenge 
A funny thing happened this weekend working on a fast passage.
I’m not really good with fast passages in general, and this one is a syncopated messy bit traversing all 4 strings on different frets.
I had slowed it down and got it under my fingers and did my usual stare at the fingers And make sure they go where they should thing…then, something cool happened, one pass through my fingers just did what they were supposed to without me willing them to by staring. Then I tried not to think about the passage too much and I played it better. Sometimes overthinking can be prohibitive I guess
I agree 100%.
Not so much with Bass but on guitar this is even more true. A lot of time on a faster piece if say a G7 chord is called for I just play a G. Works out MOST OF THE TIME, BUT NOT ALWAYS 
+1 This is my plan even when I return to the office full time. Closed back headphones, headphone amp, Ibanez Mikro GSRM20 that I can just leave at the office all the time. I’m even toying with the idea of modifying a standard hanging guitar mount with a a few relatively large rare earth magnets superglued to it - then I can hang the Mikro on the side of my file cabinet - sort of out of view of most people visiting my office. Add a little 3M command strip hook for the headphones and the whole setup is fairly well out of the way.
I love the idea of an office mikro
That’s where my traveler will live (when not traveling) is we ever get our cubes back. Right now we are all “hot desks”. No more assigned spaces. Could become permanent.
Great idea. I should bring my mini Jaguar to the office. I don’t want to bring my headphones though. Dilemma.
Maybe time to invoke the Gas Monster 
Ugh. This is apparently a common return to office plan.
So far all of PepsiCo corporate is going to this. They had everyone come and take all their stuff home already.
We in R&D are fighting it still because we actually have ‘things’ that need to be somewhere (samples, drawings, files, paper that is actually important, maybe even a reference book, etc) but from what I am hearing its a losing battle. They made us put all our stuff inside our drawers/cubbies and lock it up for now vs. taking it home.
Same thing is happening here, hot desks for everyone.
We have all been given a locker at the office for our resource material but there has been a lot of push back as to the whole idea genrally.
I am happy to continue working from home, i save at least 10 hours a week in travel time,
that means more BASS practice 
As in Cornwall?
What am I struggling with? Slapping!
Damn mod 13! 
Easy groovin’ throughout mod 14 but my slapping still sounds like a blacksmith’s workshop rolling down a hill. Gosh, that ++++ makes me crazy…
BTW: Anyone gonna buy some busted strings?
I struggle with 4 doses of this psychopharmatic cocktail. With the obvious dose of painkillers. My days are covered in absolute shroud of mist and different levels of consciousness disfunction. … it suck on one hand, but the music I am able to get together in easier parts of the whole “drugged” state is something special.
and my baility to speak/write English is absolutely obliterated.
These days everything! I’m on like my 4th midlife crisis! lol
