Results 1 to 9 of 9

Thread: Lucky and Grateful

  1. #1
    Forum Member ch willie's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2008
    Location
    Tennessee
    Posts
    8,163

    Lucky and Grateful

    When I was a kid, I wanted a bass and an electric guitar so much, and I had to work hard to get the money for them. After 6 months of scrimping, at 17 I was able to buy my Ric. I was 20 before I could save enough to buy my first six string electric--an Ibanez Artist (sold later when I was in dire straights).

    Today, I own a Strat, a Tele, a Les Paul, a Hofner violin bass, a Ric 4001, a Jazz Bass, and a Martin HD-28HD vintage reissue, and I consider myself so lucky.

    So when I play my Tele today, I'm going to think about how grateful I am to own these wonderful guitars. Barring financial disaster, I'm going to be hanging on to all of these until they pry them from my cold dead fingerooskis.

    I don't mean to sound like I'm bragging. Just grateful. If you are guitar poor at the moment, I'm sorry, and I hope the situation improves so that you can have your dream instruments. I know how it feels to want something so much and not being able to have it.
    If we'd known we were going to be the Beatles, we'd have tried harder.--George Harrison

  2. #2
    Forum Member Don's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2002
    Location
    Massachusetts
    Posts
    11,288

    Re: Lucky and Grateful

    It's easy to forget how lucky we are! Thanks for the reminder!

  3. #3
    Forum Member OldStrummer's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2016
    Location
    Northern Virginia, USA
    Posts
    3,928

    Re: Lucky and Grateful

    {Still searching for the "Like" button...}

  4. #4
    Forum Member blackonblack's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2004
    Location
    point of reason between tacky and tasteless
    Posts
    1,263

    Re: Lucky and Grateful

    Appropriate thoughts. If I go much longer without a job, I'm going to start having to sell gear.
    Mark

  5. #5
    Forum Member
    Join Date
    Jun 2015
    Location
    At the start.
    Posts
    795

    Re: Lucky and Grateful

    Quote Originally Posted by blackonblack View Post
    Appropriate thoughts. If I go much longer without a job, I'm going to start having to sell gear.
    I sold all I had to get the money to buy my wife's ring. Some years later I have got many more and I'm still married to the same woman. It's material stuff. It can be replaced with a reasonable facsimile later on. Yeah, it hurts but you will appreciate it more because of it.

  6. #6
    Forum Member ch willie's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2008
    Location
    Tennessee
    Posts
    8,163

    Re: Lucky and Grateful

    Quote Originally Posted by blackonblack View Post
    Appropriate thoughts. If I go much longer without a job, I'm going to start having to sell gear.
    Man, I wish you all the best. Jobs are harder to get than people think. I've been wanting to change jobs for quite a while, but I can find nothing that I'm qualified for. I'm very lucky to have a good, secure job, and I realize it. I just need to get out of this small, very redneck town, and get to a big city where I can find a community in which I could belong. Still, I am lucky to have a home and a place to lay my head.
    If we'd known we were going to be the Beatles, we'd have tried harder.--George Harrison

  7. #7
    Forum Member S. Cane's Avatar
    Join Date
    Dec 2014
    Location
    Ever heard of José Carioca?
    Posts
    4,651

    Re: Lucky and Grateful

    Quote Originally Posted by ch willie View Post
    When I was a kid, I wanted a bass and an electric guitar so much, and I had to work hard to get the money for them. After 6 months of scrimping, at 17 I was able to buy my Ric. I was 20 before I could save enough to buy my first six string electric--an Ibanez Artist (sold later when I was in dire straights).

    Today, I own a Strat, a Tele, a Les Paul, a Hofner violin bass, a Ric 4001, a Jazz Bass, and a Martin HD-28HD vintage reissue, and I consider myself so lucky.

    So when I play my Tele today, I'm going to think about how grateful I am to own these wonderful guitars. Barring financial disaster, I'm going to be hanging on to all of these until they pry them from my cold dead fingerooskis.

    I don't mean to sound like I'm bragging. Just grateful. If you are guitar poor at the moment, I'm sorry, and I hope the situation improves so that you can have your dream instruments. I know how it feels to want something so much and not being able to have it.


    I think about this very often.

    And your words sound even more true to me considering that I was born and live in a country where rock n roll isn't exactly traditional, and due to economical and cultural reasons, good electric guitars were a rare luxury back in the 70s and even 80s.

    Many people dreamed about a real Fender or Gibson, without ever laying their hands on one. Even now these guitars (at least the US made ones) are pretty damned expensive here.

    I consider myself a lucky bastard, having been able to gig live on tour with a real American Stratocaster and a Gibson SG.

    That's why I love my guitars even though they aren't top end CS stuff. I paid a lot for them and believe me, when you live in South America, whenever you pull an American Standard Fender or any Gibson out of a case, people DO eyeball it and say "duuuude, is that a real Fender/Gibson??" Of course, artists and people with fatter wallets do own many outstanding instruments, but the average weekend warriors don't even dream of buying one.



    When I was a kid it was a dream to think about owning two Fenders and a Gibson. Now I do and I am grateful.
    Last edited by S. Cane; 06-02-2017 at 12:18 PM.

  8. #8
    Forum Member ch willie's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2008
    Location
    Tennessee
    Posts
    8,163

    Re: Lucky and Grateful

    Quote Originally Posted by Sérgio View Post
    When I was a kid it was a dream to think about owning two Fenders and a Gibson. Now I do and I am grateful.
    If CS guitars weren't so widely available in America, I think American's would still be knocked out by American Standards. They do what I want them to do, and I'm completely satisfied with and proud of mine. You are right to be proud of your guitars. They are wonderful guitars.
    If we'd known we were going to be the Beatles, we'd have tried harder.--George Harrison

  9. #9
    Forum Member chuckocaster's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2003
    Location
    spanish for lard.
    Posts
    8,605

    Re: Lucky and Grateful

    My problem has always been that I always want MORE. Knowing how to build and modify makes it worse! I've never gone without, even when I didn't have much money, I always found a way to get what I wanted.

    What it always comes down to is I forget about the guitars I truly like while I'm fiddling around with other stuff. Then I get this huge collection of stuff I don't play much, and sell off the superfluous gear. Then I get back to the gear I actually use and have a reasonable collection. That'll last for awhile and then I'll start buying stuff again... It just goes in cycles
    "don't worry, i'm a professional!"

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •