I finally got rid of my guitar. I purchased it on my birthday in 1985. I wanted it for my birthday but my Mom gave me an espresso machine instead so my friend Jim took me to House of Drums and helped me pick it out.

I bought an acoustic guitar a couple of years earlier and had been taking lessons. I wanted to play like Eddie Van Halen and what I love about my 22 year old self, who was not a brave or confident person, is that I took my new guitar to my teacher and brought tablature from Panama and told him that was what I wanted to play. It never occurred to me that this might be a bit beyond my reach. I don't think my present self would be so fearless but I'd like to think I still have some surprises left in me.

I do not exaggerate when I tell you that I had virtually zero talent for the instrument. I practiced -- not endless hours since I was a student and working and everything -- but I practiced every day and even after a couple of years I could not play anything worth listening to.

Life went on and I played less and less and eventually years went by where I'd never even opened the guitar case. I don't know how many times I've moved in the last 20 years and wondered why I was moving those things yet again. For a long time I thought I might pick it up again. Then I thought I might sell it. I asked Jimmy (different Jim than the one above) about it a few times. I also thought at some point I'd run in to someone to give it to and there have been a few candidates.

A year or two ago I read about Rock and Roll Camp For Girls in Bust magazine and that seemed like a potential home for my guitar but I never did anything about it.

In the last couple of weeks while I've been on this tossing everything binge, I cleaned out my closet and pulled those dusty boxes out once again and decided it was time to finally do something about it. I dropped off my donation at Mississippi Records and sent an email to Rock Star Camp let them know about it and express concern over the old and crustiness of my gear and ask about a tax receipt because the guy at the record store said I'd get it from them.

This was the response:

Oh, man...we need guitars and especially amps more
than you'll ever believe! No worries, we have a great
volunteer-repair-person who loves getting treasures to
work on! I'll stop by Mississippi and send you a tax
receipt out on Monday.
Thanks again!! rock on,
Misty

Totally made my day.