Stumbled into an old hobby shop in Portland that changed how I think about my guitar dream

I was killing time between jobs last month and walked into this tiny shop on Belmont called Omega Music that's been there since the 70s. Saw a beat-up acoustic in the back with a handwritten note from the owner talking about how he built it in 1985 when he wanted to tour but never left town. Made me wonder-have you ever found a random spot that made you rethink a dream you let go of?

3 comments

3 Comments

ryan_barnes18d ago

Walk into any old shop like that and it hits you different, right? That note from the guy is basically a time capsule of a choice he made and lived with. It makes you wonder what your own guitar dream would look like if you just grabbed it by the neck and went for it, even if you never left town. I bet that beat up acoustic sounds amazing, all those years of him playing it in the back room instead of chasing a tour that probably would have burned him out anyway. Sometimes the best version of a dream is the one you keep close and just enjoy for yourself, not for some crowd. That shop turned a guitar into a reminder that you can still make your own music without being famous.

lilyp3718d ago

My cousin found a dusty mandolin in a pawn shop and now plays bluegrass at farmer's markets.

wood.eric18d ago

Man, that phrase "just grabbed it by the neck and went for it" really hits me... I had a similar thing happen with a beat up old banjo I found at a flea market. It had rust on the strings and the head was all cracked, but I bought it for like forty bucks and just started picking at it in my garage. Now I play at a little open mic night every Thursday with a buddy who plays washboard. It's not about being good, it's about that feeling you get when you hit a note that sounds right...