Turtle tattoo for dad

NEVER UNDERESTIMATE THE power of music, turtles and tattoos.

We had a young woman in the store yesterday looking at our ukuleles. Second String Music has the amazing Luna ukes, and they are extremely popular.

She was staring at our ukes when she got a faraway look in her eyes. "Oh," she said. "Look at this one. It has a turtle on it!"

She smiled and said, "Don't worry, I have a sports bra on!" Then she promptly lifted up her shirt and showed us the tattoo on the back of her shoulder. She got it to honor her father, who passed away recently. It's a turtle. And it's beautiful.

She's already enjoying the beautiful Morgan Monroe mandolin she just bought from us. She's been thinking about the uke for a while, and the turtle design cinched it.

I have a feeling her musical pursuits are helping her cope with her father's death. There are many ways to deal with stress and life's ups and downs - music is the healthiest and most productive.

We're happy she's strumming away and exploring new worlds.

Ukes, liver transplants and bucket lists

LAST WEEK WE sold a beautiful Luna ukulele to former Quincy Mayor Chuck Scholz. To say he's a bit motivated to learn is an understatement.

Chuck had liver cancer and things were not good. He was on a list for a transplant. He hasn't talked much about it, but I'm pretty sure there were lots of stops and starts, highs and lows. Finally, last month, he got a new liver.

Chuck bought the uke because he wants to play a few songs for his grandkids. He's been given his life back and he wants to make the most of it. Because of the anti-rejection meds he's keeping a low profile, but after I heard his story I agreed to give him a lesson, even though I'm not much of a uke player.

So we hung out yesterday and he learned to plink out a few notes and get going. It's more proof age and experience matters little - it's how bad you want to learn and play. Chuck found out it's not that hard and it's actually fun.

He was mayor when I moved to Quincy 19 years ago and I'll always think of him as the mayor, one of the good guys around here. I'm glad he has a second shot and we wish him nothing but the best in health and the pursuit of musical knowledge.

Keep strumming, mayor!