(Author's Note: This is the sixth story in a series. This series is based on characters and situations introduced in two novel-length series of stories: Camp Torowa Falls and Camp Torowa Falls 1964.
This is a continuation of Camp Torowa Falls 1965, which began with Chapter 1: Architects of Disaster. For best results you should read the preceeding chapters of CTF65 first.)
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Historical Note: There is a old joke (circa 1950) that is very well known in the United States.

There are a few variations of the joke, but they all involve a visitor to New York City asking for directions from a local.

Q: How do you get to Carnegie Hall?
A: Practice, Practice, Practice!
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After breakfast on Friday came the "great unveiling" of Corey's eye. Since it had been more than 12 hours his father carefully removed the contact patch so they could check the progress of his vision. In fact Corey was overjoyed to find that his vision was back to normal!

This led to loads of cheers and hugs, but under the circumstances Corey didn't mind in the least. Unfortunately the news wasn't all good. The emergency room doctor had recommended that Corey avoid swimming in chlorinated water (as found in the community pool) for "a couple of days" after the patch came off. His parents extended that for the entire weekend.

Corey, Jerry and Becky all had appointments for their camp physicals on Monday afternoon. His parents decreed that Corey was banned from the pool until after the doctor had examined his eye on Monday. At least some good news was received. Permission was granted for the boys to attend the matinee at the Roxy Theater on Friday afternoon.

Before Dad left for work one final bit of information was revealed. Becky had made a deal with her parents. They would purchase a reasonably-priced used guitar for her to practice on and she would only receive half her normal $5/week allowance until the cost of the guitar had been repaid. Becky asked Corey and Jerry to come along on Saturday when they went shopping for the guitar. She actually wanted her brother's advice on which guitar to purchase! She also wanted Jerry's opinion on whether "she would look good" playing her new guitar.

Corey was stunned. Satan better get that winter coat real soon! Both boys readily agreed to go along. At that point Dad left for work and the boys headed back upstairs to their bedroom.

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"Well, that was predictable," said Corey after they had closed the bedroom door and stormed up the stairs to his long, narrow loft bedroom. "Even after all that nonsense Becky ends up getting exactly what she wants."

"True," said Jerry. "But at least they're gonna make her pay for the guitar...eventually."

"Yeah, well," said Corey. "Let's see how long that lasts. Even if they do keep deducting the payments from her allowance, she'll just talk Mom into raising our allowance again."

Jerry laughed. "So now you're gonna complain about another raise in your allowance?"

"Touche," said Corey, "No, I guess that wouldn't be the worst thing that ever happened to me."

"Do you have a problem with helping to find the best guitar for Becky?"

"Not at all," said Corey. "I like browsing music stores anyway. You never know where you're gonna find sheet music for a song you'd like to learn. Plus I need to check my supplies today. See if I need more picks or anything."

"Actually," said Jerry, "that reminds me of a question I've been meaning to ask you for some time now."

"Oh yes?"

"I've noticed that sometimes you play your guitar with a pick, and other times you just use your fingers."

"Yeah, it's called fingerpicking," said Corey. "It's not easy to do on my dreadnought."

"Why?"

"Because they use thicker strings on dreadnoughts," said Corey. "It was much easier to fingerpick on Uncle Karl's Gibson since it has lighter gauge strings."

"Yeah, I did notice you weren't using a pick on Sunday."

"Didn't have a choice," said Corey with a chuckle. "I couldn't find any picks in Uncle Karl's guitar case."

"So correct me if I'm wrong here," said Jerry. "The size and string gauge of your Martin dreadnought is actually slowing down your learning process."

"Yeah," said Corey. "I must admit that is true. In fact I've been thinking about that a lot lately."

"Is there anything you can do about it?" said Jerry.

"Yes, I think there might be a good solution to that problem."

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On Friday afternoon they left early for the matinee at the Roxy theater. Corey needed to make a stop on the way. Well, the two friends actually had to ride their bikes a block past the Roxy to get to Corey's first stop, the Cement National Bank at 21st and Main.

After Corey completed his business at the bank they locked their bikes into the rack behind Miller's Department Store and headed for the Roxy's box office. As promised, Corey paid for their tickets and bought them each a soda at the snack bar. He also bought a giant bucket of buttered popcorn for them to share.

In Harm's Way was just as wonderful as Corey remembered it. Jerry was shocked that the film was in black and white. ("This is 1965, for crying out loud!") But otherwise he liked it. The battalion of Marine Corps. paratroopers commanded by George Kennedy featured in the film probably influenced his opinion.

Dinner on Friday night basically turned into a planning session for the Saturday activities. Mom announced that she had received an emergency call from one of her clients right before dinner. She needed to visit the client on Saturday morning since whatever was wrong apparently could not wait until Monday. So Mom had to bow out of the guitar shopping expedition since she had no idea how long her emergency appointment might take. She also pointed out that she would probably not be available to make lunch for the family on Saturday.

Dad assured her that he would handle the shopping trip. They would just stop for lunch somewhere along the way when the time came.

Corey revealed his plan for solving his own problems with learning to play the guitar. He was going to help Becky pick out a guitar to get started with. Then he would try to find a used concert guitar for his own use. He wanted to take a guitar along to camp that summer and he didn't want to risk his expensive Martin guitar under those conditions.

"Where is the money coming from for this second guitar?" said Mom.

"I withdrew it from my savings account this afternoon."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" said Dad. "I thought you were saving that money to buy a car for yourself when you turn sixteen?"

Corey nodded in agreement, "That is the overall plan, yes. But I'm not talking about spending all of it. I just withdrew $120, and I'll put whatever I don't use right back in the account."

"How much money will it cost to buy a good used guitar?" said Becky, who looked quite concerned all of a sudden.

"It depends on the brand, Sis," said Corey. "Martins and Gibsons are the Lincolns and Cadillacs of the guitar world. They cost the most new, and they hold their value better than other brands. But there are a lot of other good brands out there. American brands that don't cost nearly as much."

"That's the beauty of a free market economy, Princess," said Dad. "People need less expensive guitars in this country, so companies spring up to meet that demand. Used items always cost less than brand new, but of course you need to shop around to find the best deal."

Corey had to stifle a laugh. His father had a bachelor's degree in economics and he never missed out on an opportunity to promote the benefits of a free market economy.

"How many stores in this area sell used guitars, Uncle Will?" said Jerry.

"There are two music stores in Allentown where I've taken Corey to buy his supplies and sheet music," said Dad. "Both of them sell used instruments as well as new. I also know about a specialized guitar shop outside of Bath, the Appalachian Guitar Center, that we haven't been to before. They actually buy their insurance from the company I work for, so I'm thinking we should try there first."

"Do you always try to buy things from the customers of your insurance company?" said Jerry.

"Sure," said Dad, "All other things being equal, why not? Of course, we won't pay more for things just because the vendor has Erie Insurance. Besides, if we're going to have two guitarists in the family it would be helpful to know about all the guitar shops in the area... at least find out what each one offers."

"That makes sense," said Jerry.

"Jerry," said Becky, "do you play any musical instruments?"

"Not yet," said Jerry. "I'd like to learn to play drums and percussion, but my aunt and uncle are dead set against it. They think it would be too noisy in our small house."

"You can hardly blame them, Jerry," said Mom. "Drums have to be the most annoying of the common musical instruments. They certainly are the loudest."

"True," said Dad. "Unless you start hooking guitars up to amplifiers. And we would prefer that didn't happen, at least while you two are still living at home."

"We hear ya, Dad," said Corey. Becky nodded her agreement.

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That evening up in the privacy of their room Corey and Jerry finalized their plans. Their main focus was the plan they hadn't told anyone else about. They reasoned that it was easier to ask for forgiveness later than to request permission up front, especially when said permission was almost certain to be denied.

The whole scheme relied on three factors going their way at the same time:

1. Jerry had to find a used hand-held percussion instrument that he liked and that was within Corey's budget. ($20)
2. The store had to have an "all sales of used instruments are final" policy.
3. They had to complete the transaction before Dad figured out what was happening.

Corey pointed out that it would be best if Becky didn't know what was going on, either. It was always hard to tell if she would squeal on them or not. Best not to risk it if they didn't have to.

Jerry understood that their chances of pulling the scheme off successfully were not good at all. He was simply grateful that Corey wanted to attempt to buy him an early birthday present and help him get started with his percussion career.

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On Saturday morning Mom made pancakes and sausage for breakfast. After breakfast Becky and Jerry washed and dried the dishes. Meanwhile Mom got dressed and left for her appointment.

The guitar shopping expedition left the house just after 9:30 AM. As he drove them to Bath for their first stop Dad asked Corey to remind them what else Becky will need to get started besides the guitar itself.

Corey listed the items that were required:

• Carrying case (If the guitar doesn't come with one.)
• Shoulder strap (If the guitar doesn't come with one.)
• A "How to Play Guitar" beginner's book - with music and tabs for a few easy guitar songs.
• Picks
• Extra sets of strings (Who knows how old the strings on a used guitar might be?)

"How much will all that cost?" said Becky, from her perch in the front passenger seat.

Corey calculated for a few seconds. "Probably five or six dollars, provided you don't need a guitar case. I don't know how much those go for. My Martin came with a case."

They soon arrived at the Appalachian Guitar Center. It was quickly apparent from the window displays that despite the name, this store sold more than guitars. There were also banjos in the window. When they got inside the relatively small store it was quickly apparent that this business specialized in acoustic bluegrass-style instruments like guitars, mandolins, banjos and fiddles. There were no electric guitars in sight.

It turned out that the Appalachian Guitar Center had a very limited inventory of used acoustic guitars, or at least used acoustic guitars of the style and size desired. Many of the used guitars available were either dreadnought style adult instruments or the 3/4 or 7/8-sized guitars used by young children. Danny, the staff member helping them, admitted that the majority of their trades were from adolescent kids trading up to adult-sized guitars when they got old enough. Becky took a copy of their flyer advertising the Bluegrass/Folk Guitar lessons offered at the shop. Then they headed back out to the car.

Corey knew that both music stores in Allentown that Dad planned to visit were much larger and they probably had a wider selection of used guitars. Dad announced that their next stop would be Kaplan's Music in east Allentown.

Corey and Jerry exchanged glances in the back seat. This was gonna be their first chance at putting their plan into motion. Corey had refined the plan that morning and just gave Jerry the $20 bill that represented his budget limit for Jerry's present. That way Jerry could simply take his choice up to the checkout counter and buy it while Corey distracted his father elsewhere in the store.

They had agreed that ideally Jerry should wait until Becky had chosen her guitar. That instrument would probably be the focus of her attention at that point, reducing the likelihood of her spotting Jerry's actions until it was too late.

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Kaplan's Music on Sherwood Avenue in east Allentown was a much larger and more diverse store featuring acoustic and electric versions of popular instruments like guitars. The only major problem was that Kaplan's specialized in high end brands like Gibson, Martin, and Gretsch. Even their mid-range brands were far beyond the budget of either Becky or Corey when new. This wasn't really all that surprising. They had expected to purchase used instruments.

The siblings looked through the inventory of used acoustics. In addition to a few dreadnoughts and smaller kiddie guitars, there were a couple of concert-sized mid-range trade-ins that might have been cheap enough. Trouble was that neither of them was in good shape. One of them had a neck that was slightly bowed. The other had clearly been seriously damaged and repaired. Corey showed Becky and their Dad the cracks on the back of the body where it had been reassembled. They were not going to find the guitars they were looking for at this place.

Kaplan's had a sizeable library of music books with lessons and bound collections of sheet music. Corey joined Dad and Becky in browsing through the library for a while, but he eventually decided to wander over to the used electric guitar section.

Then he saw it. Corey carefully took the guitar off the rack and examined it. For only the second time in his life Corey Lane experienced a visceral reaction to an inanimate object. The other time had been the previous year when Corey first saw a Ford Mustang in person. He had fallen instantly and hopelessly in love with that incredible example of Dearborn engineering and craftsmanship. He knew then, at the age of 13, that he would one day own a Ford Mustang, and that it would be the best car he would ever own or drive.

Corey turned the guitar over in his hands, examining the cherry sunburst body top with the single cutaway and rosewood fretboard with nickel tuning gear. The back and sides of the body were not painted, but displayed the lovely natural grain of the premium mahogany from which the body and neck had been crafted. Once again Corey was in love. He knew that some day he would own a Gibson Les Paul Standard Sunburst solid body electric guitar. He also knew it would be the best and most powerful guitar he would ever play.

Corey's reverie was interrupted by Jerry, whom he noticed was frantically signalling him. He took one final look at the gorgeous Les Paul Standard before carefully placing it back on the rack. As Corey walked over to Jerry he wondered why his friend was being so obvious in his signalling. This was no way to fool Dad, that much was certain. Then Corey realized that Jerry wasn't even standing in the percussion section. He was standing by some windows near the door to "Kaplan's Training Center". Apparently Kaplan's had special classrooms where they offered music lessons. That's fine, but Corey couldn't understand what was so interesting that Jerry wanted him to see in there. Were there some hot girls taking lessons?

Nope. Corey looked through the window into a small classroom where a middle-aged woman was teaching a violin (or fiddle) lesson. He immediately noticed two things. Neither the teacher nor any of the few girls in the small class were hot. And he was unable to hear any sounds coming from the classroom although the students were clearly playing their instruments. Apparently the classrooms here were heavily soundproofed. That was understandable and even sort of interesting, but since he saw no reason for Jerry's signal, he turned to his friend and said, "What?"

"Not that classroom," said Jerry, pointing to a different window, "that one."

Corey turned and looked through that other window into a much larger classroom. His first impression was that it was a fairly large guitar class, mostly younger kids. But something was odd... so odd that it took Corey's brain 10 or 15 seconds to comprehend what the eyes were reporting. "Is he...?"

"Yes he is," said Jerry.

The 30-ish looking man who was teaching the class was not actually teaching at the moment. He had a young boy, maybe 9 years old, over his lap and was smacking the seat of his shorts with some kind of board. Clearly the youngster was yelping and crying, but no sound could get through the walls and windows of the classroom. It was very weird seeing a kid get paddled but not hearing anything.

Eventually the man pushed the boy off his lap. As the boy desperately rubbed the seat of his shorts and danced around crying, the man summoned another boy waiting nearby to approach. As the next boy, who looked to be 10 or 11 years old, climbed on the man's lap, Corey realized that there two other boys waiting nervously in line for their own appointments with that strange light-colored board the man was wielding.

That board was soon back at work, whacking the seat of the 11-year-old's shorts. "What kind of paddle is that?" said Jerry.

"Not sure it is a paddle," said Corey. "No handle that I can see. Just looks like a board."

"What are you guys looking at?" said Becky as she walked up to them accompanied by Dad. She looked in the window. "What the hell?"

"Rebecca!" said Dad, "We've talked about your use of langu.... what the hell?" He had looked through the window and realized what was going on in the classroom.

As Corey, Jerry and Becky watched the rest of the spanking in progress Dad went to find a manager. He arrived back at the window with one just as the thoroughly spanked second boy was pushed off the man's lap only to be replaced by the next boy in line, who looked to be about 11 or 12-years-old.

"What is going on in there?" said Dad to the man who was wearing a name tag that read 'Frank Ralston - Assistant Manager'. The strange light colored board went to work on the seat of the third boy's jeans as the lad squirmed on the teacher's lap.

"That's Mr. Danzig," said Frank. "He teaches our beginner acoustic guitar classes. That's his way of motivating younger students who aren't practicing hard enough."

"He paddles them?" said Becky.

"Yes," said Frank. "It can be very effective."

"Well, I'm not taking a class from that bozo!" said Becky. She turned and walked away, headed in the general direction of the front door.

"What kind of board is that?" said Corey.

Frank looked in the window. "That looks like a birdseye maple fretboard blank. The craftsmen in our Custom Department craft fretboards for guitar necks out of blanks that size."

The paddling continued and the 12-year-old was crying openly. "That looks pretty severe to just be a motivational tool," said Dad. "Does Mr. Danzig have the permission of their parents?"

"No written permission is required," said Frank. "But most of the parents are very supportive of our educational program here at Kaplan's. Practice is critical for advancement in learning to play a musical instrument."

"I see," said Dad, shaking his head slightly. "Well thank you for clearing that up for me, Frank."

"No problem, Mr. Lane. Just let me know if there is anything else we can help you with today."

"Thanks," said Dad, "But that will be all I need today."

Frank nodded and walked back towards the counter at the front of the store. As the third crying boy was pushed off of Mr. Danzig's lap to begin his dance around the room and the last boy, who looked to be about 10 yrs old, was beckoned towards his doom, Dad said, "Motivation, my ass! Come on, guys, we're getting out of here."

"Yes, Dad." "Okay, Uncle Will." They followed him out of the store, where they found Becky waiting impatiently for them.

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As they drove across town towards their final planned shopping stop, the crew decided that they were ready for lunch. Dad pulled his Galaxie 500 LTD into the parking lot of Vince's Drive-In on Walbert Avenue in west Allentown.

"That was so weird," said Corey, as they waited for their food. "I mean being able to see those paddlings but not being able to hear anything."

Jerry laughed. "Well, we heard Eddie and Chuck get paddled in the garage at the picnic last Sunday, but couldn't see anything. So it kind of evens out."

Corey and Dad joined in the laughter, but Becky was not amused. "I just know that bozo Mr. Danzig is never laying a finger on me."

"Don't worry, Princess," said Dad. "We'll find a guitar teacher for you that doesn't use that kind of 'motivation', which is total nonsense."

Their number was called, so Corey and Jerry went to the counter and brought the two trays of food over to their table. All four had ordered the family owned drive-in's signature dish, Vince's Original Cheesesteak with everything, along with a side of French Fries and a soda.

"So these are Philadelphia Cheesesteaks?" said Jerry, as he prepared to bite into his sandwich.

"Oh, no!" said Dad. "Philly Cheesesteaks are quite different. The classic version only has fried onions and Cheeze Whiz."

Corey picked up the story, "Here in the Lehigh Valley the classic cheesesteak comes just like these: with sliced Provolone cheese, fried onions, tomato sauce, pickle chips and hot peppers."

"So, everyone does Lehigh Valley Cheesesteaks this way?" said Jerry.

"Well, the places we patronize, Vince's and the Brass Rail, make them this way," said Dad. "There can be local variations. I've had one with American Cheese instead of Provolone. I think that was at a little place over in Bethlehem that I tried when I was in that town on business."

"I've never heard them called Lehigh Valley Cheesesteaks before," said Corey.

Apparently Becky's patience had run out as she shifted uncomfortably in her seat, obviously still feeling her two day old cane stripes, "Will you guys stop gabbing and start eating? I'd still like to find a guitar to play... today!"

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Their final stop was Crest Music on Cedar Crest Boulevard in west Allentown. This was the largest store of all the ones they had visited. Crest Music specialized in popular instruments like guitars, basses, drums and electric keyboards. They carried everything needed to outfit a rock, blues, country or folk band.

Their used instrument section was extensive as well, with many acoustic and electric guitars on the racks. There were several concert-style acoustic guitars in good shape. The Gibsons and Martins were still out of their price range, even used. But the siblings narrowed it down to three guitars they could choose from.

While they discussed which of the three guitars might be best for Becky they were approached by a staff member named Vic (according to his name tag). He asked what they were looking for, and when they explained that they were looking for used concert guitars due to budget limitations Vic told them about a line of American-made guitars from Harmony. These were good quality guitars with amazingly low prices.

Sure enough, Vic led them over to the new guitar department and there they were, a nice selection of brand new American-made guitars, most of which they could afford!

Becky wavered for about 15 minutes after getting input from Corey and Jerry. Finally she chose a 1965 Harmony H-1141 Stella Concert Acoustic Guitar in Warm Red. For $34 it included a case and a shoulder strap. With a beginner's book, picks, extra strings and sales tax, the total for Becky's starter set was $45.

Dad asked Corey if he knew which guitar he wanted. "I'm leaning towards the Harmony H-165 Mahogany, Dad. It won't take me too long to decide."

"Great!" said Dad. "If you two will be okay on your own, I'm gonna take Becky and her stuff out to the car. We'll be waiting for you out there."

"Sure, we'll be okay, Dad," said Corey. Jerry confirmed this opinion.

After Dad and Becky were safely out the front door, Corey said, "Did you find anything?"

"Yes!" said Jerry. "I found a set of used bongo drums for $15 and an Introduction to Playing Drums and Percussion book for $1.95."

"Excellent!" said Corey. "Go! Buy em now before Dad decides to come back inside."

"Will do," said Jerry, grinning as he headed off towards the used percussion section.

Corey ended up choosing a 1965 Harmony H-165 Mahogany Concert Acoustic Guitar in Natural. It cost $48 with a case and shoulder strap. With picks and strings for both guitars and a Peter, Paul and Mary songbook (In the Wind), his total came to $62 with tax.

When Corey checked out Jerry was waiting for him by the counter with his bagged bongos and book. As they left the store Corey carried his new guitar in its case and Jerry carried the bags with the rest of Corey's stuff in order to help camouflage his own purchase.

They placed their stuff in the trunk of the big Ford sedan. When they climbed in the back seat of the car Becky looked up from reading her beginner's guitar book and said, "You bought enough junk, Corey. You have any cash left?"

"A little bit, yeah."

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The boys revealed the truth once they got home. Mom was there and wanted to see all the purchases, so it was only a matter of time anyway. They had braced themselves for a storm, but after Jerry demonstrated how much noise his new bongo drums made, Mom and Dad merely made sour faces. No yelling ensued, and Dad said, "I suppose it could have been worse."

"I'm not happy about all the subterfuge," said Mom. "But as long as Jerry follows some very specific rules..."

"I was my fault, Penny," said Dad. "I left them in the store alone together." He fixed the boys with a stern look. "I made the mistake of thinking I could trust them."

Corey could barely meet his father's eyes. A quick glance revealed that Jerry was in the same boat. Corey felt ashamed that they had made his own father think they couldn't be trusted.

Both boys apologized. Then Corey said, "I hate not telling you both the truth about stuff. But I really don't think it's fair that Jerry isn't allowed to begin learning to play music just because he chose a loud instrument."

Corey's parents exchanged a long look, communicating in that wordless way that many long-married couples have developed. Then Dad said, "There will be specific rules.. for all three of you. No practicing after 8 PM. No practicing before 8 AM. We'd strongly prefer that you confine your practicing to your bedrooms or out in the garage. Jerry, please try not to play your bongos at maximum possible volume in the house. I don't see why you'd need to hit them as hard as you possibly can while you're learning. If you want to do that go out to the garage. Anything else you'd like to add, Penny?"

"Yes, there is," said Mom. "The rules that William just listed are the summer rules. Becky and Corey, once you are both back in school, your rules will be different. We will discuss those rules with you when you get back from camp next month. Do you both understand?"

"Yes, Mom!" the siblings both responded.

"Jerry," said Mom, "we accept that you want to learn to play music just like Corey and Becky. But you will need to get your aunt and uncle's permission if you intend to keep practicing once you go home from camp next month. You do understand that?"

"Yes, Aunt Penny," said Jerry. "I know I'll have to get their permission for that."

"Very well," said Mom. "That's all I had, William."

"Thank you, Penny," said Dad. "Jerry, if you're intending to hide the fact that you have these bongos from your aunt and uncle until it's time to head home from camp, I urge you to reconsider. I believe it will go better for you on that score if you tell them about it when you're checking into camp later this month. For one thing, it will give them the month you are in camp to come to terms with the situation."

"I understand, Uncle Will. I had been leaning towards showing them the bongos at check in anyway. Robby will be almost certain to mention them in a letter home, so it's not like it was gonna be a secret all the way to the end of camp. But thank you for the advice, Uncle Will. You are correct and I will definitely tell them the truth at check in."

Mom wanted to hear a song played on each of the new guitars. This presented a bit of a problem since Becky could not actually play hers yet. Mom didn't see a problem with Corey playing a song on Becky's new guitar, but Corey knew this could be an issue. In fact Becky did not have a happy look on her face.

Corey could think of only one way to try and smooth the situation over. He said, "It's up to you, Sis. Maybe you can't play guitar just yet, but you can already sing very well. Why don't you sing Puff the Magic Dragon, and I'll accompany you on your guitar?"

Much to Corey's surprise, not only was Becky open to this suggestion, but she seemed enthusiastic about it. She turned her guitar over to her brother. Corey fine tuned it, then he began playing the intro to the song. He nodded at the right moment and Becky began singing. When they finished, Mom, Dad and Jerry all applauded and complimented the new duo.

Corey turned Becky's red Harmony Stella guitar back over to her. Then he fine tuned his own Harmony Mahogany guitar. The first song he performed on his new guitar was the first song he ever learned to play, "Love Me Tender" by Elvis Presley. When he finished Becky and Jerry applauded enthusiastically, whereas his parents clapped politely and complimented him on the sound of his new guitar.

Becky seemed quite thoughtful, "Corey, how many songs do you know?"

"Umm, about twelve that I know well, and I'm learning three others. I'm practicing and learning a lot this summer, but it will slow down again once school starts."

"How much time do you spend practicing?" said Becky.

"About twelve hours a week this summer, sometimes more. During the school year I can only manage 6 to 8 hours a week - it really depends on how much homework I have, especially weekend homework."

"And you've never taken a guitar lesson?"

"Nope," said Corey. "I'd rather learn on my own. You saw how big some of those classes can get - how much personal attention will you get from the teacher there anyway?"

"I wouldn't want any personal attention from that Mr. Danzig!"

"I don't blame you there, Sis."

"What is this?" said Mom, a look of concern on her face.

"I'll explain it later, dear," said Dad. "It's not going to be an issue."

"Maybe I should try to learn by myself, too," said Becky. "Would you be willing to answer my questions and show me how to play chords I'm having trouble with, Bro?"

"Sure, Sis. No problem."

"Well, this all sounds great," said Dad. "Let's hope you two can get along in this spirit of cooperation from now on."

"Amen to that!" said Mom.