What do a guitar and a metal detector have in common?

I have this guitar…

15-501 is the road that runs from South Carolina to Virginia, cutting through the Piedmont, passing through and connecting Durham and Roxboro. You can count on it being cleared off snow quickly. Remember when we could count on snow?

A few months ago, I spotted this six string Alvarez guitar when passing a roadside yard sale and stopped even though I was already late for my Tai Chi and pushing hands class. A teenager minding the sale told me his father was a pastor and the guitar was $20. I bought it and continued my drive to class.

I’ve played it very infrequently. I don’t like the feel of steel versus my usual nylon strings. Nylon offers more ease. Any suggestions for nylon string brands to try that are easiest to play?

It too a while to get awesome neighbors who stayed in the duplex next door. Serah and Alesia are in our lives and hearts even a year or so after the landlords converted the duplex into an air b and b.

Now there are lots of new faces next door and more dog poop around, too.

I met Charlie standing with his dog Arlo when I was taking out the trash on a cold evening three weeks ago. Nod. Howzit going? We were soon talking about music and telling each other about our respective projects. Charlie recently put out a record on bandcamp called atonal apples.

After talking for about 30 minutes, I went back inside and got the $20 Alvarez which I loaned to Charlie.

My wife is engaged in a dispute with the landlords next door about the location of the property line we share. My wife and I have thought the line ran through the middle of a driveway between out house and the duplex and the landlords thing the driveway is entirely on their side. The online country tax maps seem to support their claim, but we are convinced we will find a metal stake in the middle of the driveway. Lanya posted a request for metal detection services on her online swap group.

John came out the following Saturday. He was eager to try out a new detector he got recently. We hit it off — I really enjoyed spending time with John and we made a connection. He gut a signal in the middle of the driveway and after digging found the bright neon orange flag tape but didn’t find a pin.

We chatted as he prepared to leave. John came back from his truck carrying his old detector which he offered to me. I was so touched I immediately asked him if he played guitar. When her said his cousin did, I offered him the Alvarez.

He seemed genuinely appreciative. Then I remembered that Charlie had it and said I’d get the guitar to him in a month or so.

$20 well spent.