Guitars

Ben - buy a guitar. Buy a guitar now. You DO NOT need a high level guitar to learn how to play the instrument.

It doesn’t matter if it’s a Gibson, a Fender, a Gretsch, etc. It does not matter if it’s acoustic or electric.

Don’t let that bar you from LEARNING. The guitar is a guitar. The electronics within the instrument are really what make the instrument “better or worse.”

I learned how to play on a knock off Fender Strat - I forget the name of the brand off the top of my head, but I started to play 3/4 years ago. I’ll be 30 in December, so we’re basically the same age. I had a guitar when I was a teen, but I never learned how to play it well and my parents never paid for lessons, so I was self taught.

I decided to pick it up again a handful of years ago when I finally moved out of my parent’s house when I realized I had more freedom/“free time”/whatever you wanna call it and not as much to do at home just by myself most of the time. I didn’t want to just play video games or go to the bar or whatever you might do if you’re bored at that age. I wanted to LEARN something.

I learned music theory and tabs and how to read sheet music during this time. I sang in choir through high school, so I had a familiarity with sheet music, but I had forgotten much of it by the time I picked the guitar back up.

In that time, my guitar skills slowly but very steadily progressed. I tried to make it a habit to play at least once a day for an hour or so.

I have since bought a “real guitar”, but the bottom line is this - the fret board of every single guitar is identical more or less (some guitars have wider frets or necks, but the notes ((on a standard tuned guitar)) are exactly the same no matter what it looks like or who makes it) and how you play the guitar (at least at the most basic level) is exactly the same.

And lastly, I know you guys talk a lot about not knowing tons of music... that’s not important at all. And don’t let it stop you! You can create anything or recreate anything you set your mind to once you learn.

TLDR; BUY A GUITAR, BENJAMIN. It will be a perfect thing to do with your baby girl while she’s napping or sitting next to you. Because more or less, you’re gonna have a lot of extra downtime where you can’t move much or do much. And in the end, no one is ever going to be able to take this away from you. And hey! Maybe your daughter will want to be like dad when she gets older!