Nancy Wilson I am not...........

I decided that this is the year that I’m going to attempt all the things that I have always wanted to do but have been either too a)chicken or b)poor.

Since option b) does still play into the equation I’m going to have to maybe stretch it to a few years, but I did start with one thing. Guitar lessons…..

I have attempted this a few times before throughout my life, but have either quit because it’s too “hard,” or my teacher has been my dad who should not be allowed to teach anyone anything.

My earliest memory of this was when I was about 7 or 8 I think. There is a photo of me and my dad with our matching guitars. I should have stuck with it then, but I think I was distracted by something shiny and moved on. It made for a good photo op though.

Then when I was older I thought Well my dad plays bass-maybe I could tackle that.

So I asked dad who sat me down on the couch and popped in a Mavericks CD. Here’s how that little exchange went:

Dad: “Ok, do you hear that? Do you hear the bass?”

Me: “Yes, I have ears don’t I?”

Dad: “Ok, go ahead”

Me: “Go ahead and what?”

Dad: “Go ahead and match it”

Me: “I am outta here”

A few years ago, I thought, well I don’t need anyone to help me, I will learn it online. So I once again borrowed dad’s guitar, and sat myself down to learn. Since he hadn’t played in a while, it needed to be tuned. No problem says I because I have his handy dandy little tuner thing.

What it does not explain to you, is which way to turn the little doohickey thing. (I don’t know the proper name for it yet)

As you can probably guess, I turned it the complete wrong direction, until the string was so tight, it snapped off and nearly whipped me in the eye.

All I heard was “woooosh” and moved my face just in time.

That was the end of that.

I won't even bother trying to explain the banjo debacle of 2002.

So now at the age of 31, I have decided to try once more. But this time, I thought I’d do it properly-and as long as it wasn’t too expensive I was ready to go. So onto Kijiji I went. I was briefly concerned about ending up at the house of a psychopath, but I put the thought behind me and kept searching.

I was so happy when I saw the ad for a guitarist of a band whose name I actually recognized, and I think I even saw live once or twice like 8 years ago. I thought that surely someone like that would charge an arm and a leg for lessons. So I took a shot and sent in my request for info. Imagine my surprise when he got back to me and it was sooo reasonable. Since I’m not using anyone’s name here, I will simply refer to him as “Guitar Hero”

I started the lessons a few weeks ago, and it is NOT easy when you’re old and your fingers do NOT cooperate with your brain.

To top that off, Guitar Hero told me last week that I’m going to have to keep my nails short if I want to play. Well OK, I can wear polish, that’s not a big deal….I hate short nails but at least my hands still look girly.

Then I noticed the tip of my fingers felt a little numb. So I asked my dad about it, and he said “Oh, you’re starting to develop calluses” I said “Excuse me?”

Yep, short nails and callused fingers-man hands here I come :(

But at least as my dad so cheerfully pointed out "Well if you cut your finger you won't even feel it!"

This time, I am determined to stick with it, and practice every day. It helps that Guitar Hero is a fantastic teacher, and I actually look forward to every Thursday night!

And bonus: He is not a psychopath!



I wish!
Photo courtesy of elle.com