I got my guitar back today!

I decided to pick up guitar playing about 3 weeks ago. My younger brother bought a guitar and taught himself to play a few songs years ago, so when I decided to take it up I bought his old Ibanez off of him for $30. She had been in the basement for a couple years without playing, the strings needed replaced and there was a screw in the place of one of the bridge pins… but it was $30 so it was fine to get me started.

Once I started my lessons I figured it was worth having her cleaned up nice like. They replaced the strings, put a new bridge pin in, straightened the neck a bit, and oiled her up nicely. I now have a whopping $65 in the guitar so I can’t complain.

This is the song I’ve been trying to learn. If you jump to about 2:00 in the video it shows the strumming version and that’s what I’ve been practicing. It’s really a pretty simple song, but I haven’t quite got it all to come together yet. If I’m strumming the chords individually they sound fine. If I strum the rhythm without the chords I can do the rhythm pretty well. So far when I try to put the two together I just can’t seem to get it to click yet. I’ll keep at it!

Lessons from a guitar shop (more than just playing music)

I’ve always been very impressed with guitar players, but haven’t paid much attention to it until lately. It always put a smile on my face to watch someone play a song around a campfire or at a show. A few weeks back I decided to act on my interest and signed up to take guitar lessons.

I’m now in my third week of lessons and after I left the shop today I just felt good. It’s clear to me that everyone in that shop loves what they are doing. Some (maybe all) have other jobs as well, but they’re in there doing what they love. If you ask me they are the ones who have it figured out. It’s not about making the most money or having the most toys. It’s about doing what you love and helping those around you do the same. This is a lesson I will not soon forget and I hope you won’t either.