Music is expensive...

Everything about music is expensive. Sure you can get that inexpensive but great looking guitar, but the case, the amp, the speaker cabs, the wires, the pedals or if you really have a hole in your pocket, your "rig", all cost a bunch. And keeping your stuff in top shape isn't cheap either. Equipment if it's played, eventually starts to break down and a professional needs to be contacted. Now I know what you're thinking - why not save some bucks and do it yourself? Well, you can if you know what you're doing. But the tools for working on guitars, amps, electronics also cost. Take a look at StewMac, one of the premier musical tool suppliers. For example, the scratchy pot + switch cleaning kit for those dusty/dirty pots on your guitar or amp is $50+ for a can of Dexoit, a knob puller and pot cleaning cap. Assuming you have experience fixing things and not totally botching the job only to have to do the walk of shame to a repair shop afterwards,

Here in NJ I have only used one repair shop for more than 10 years, Raritan Bay Guitar Repair in Freehold NJ. First CJ and now Kyle does a top notch job and the best part, they don't try and fix things that don't need any fixing (if you know what I mean!) The feeling you get when you get that guitar back and it plays like a million bucks is like getting a new instrument. For example, I have a '61 Rickenbacker that needed a make over - the instrument was found by a friend of mine when I was in highschool, on the side of the Pennsylvania Turnpike. Not scratched up or mangled, just left there like someone was repacking their Van and just forgot to put it back in when they went on their way. I traded my '92 Ovation Balladeer for that Rickenbacker and it was the first electric I ever owned. It started out life as a red instrument but after a few years it went au naturale, a few trips to Mandolin Brothers in Staten Island (RIP) and it was in playing shape but, after 20 or so more years, it needed some love. The love isn't cheap but the guitar came home like it was new and played great. You see, that friend of mine passed away from cancer, and on the 3rd year, I decided I wanted to get it fixed up proper like. It never was a collectors guitar - there are screws in the headstock, the fingerboard was planed down, it's not the correct color - but it has all the original hardware, pickups to pots. And now it's my physical memory of my friend that I won't sell. Yeah, sometimes we don't care much about equipment and we'll abuse or forget about it. But sometimes something will be special and keeping it is a reminder that not all things are material things, sometimes their memories. Sometimes, a cost can't be put on a guitar as it's worth more than the wood and wires it's made from.

Happy birthday Damon.