Tonight I finally felt good enough to clean up my apartment a bit and then practice "for just 15 minutes" before an early bedtime. Except that I ended up playing for almost 2 hours. Whoops. Am vacillating wildly between thinking that my playing is fantastic (when considering the progress I've made and how good I feel when I play) and thinking that I totally suck (when compared to other, more proficient violinists). Ack. Why do I even try?
I suppose I keep trying because part of me finds the process as fascinating as the result. I think this is why I enjoy teaching; that learning process is so darn fascinating to watch.