DIY Life

Many kids pick up a musical instrument or two at some point in their childhood. Sometimes I think that my own childhood could be retold as a chain of instruments adopted and discarded: piano, violin, clarinet, recorder, and a terrifying two-week stint on the French horn, not to mention years of singing lessons.

Once you're an adult, though, it can be difficult to pick up an instrument... particularly if you're doing it for your own amusement, and have no intention of pursuing a serious course of study.

What do you do when you don't want to become a classical virtuoso... when you really just want to play songs for friends at parties, and don't want to have to spend a lot of money, or work lessons into your schedule, to accomplish it?