Welcome back to the instrument! Congrats on being picker of the week!
Donnie Chulufas from Archie, Missouri
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Getting to open for Bill Monroe is an awesome accomplishment!
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Neat story Donnie. I too played for about four years in the 70s and 80s and then didn’t. Just started playing again a year ago. Do you regret not playing all those years? Boy, I sure do. What was I thinking?
By the way, that’s a handsome stache you’re sporting there. If I saw you on the street, I’d think to myself “I bet he plays banjo” 
I hope you enjoy your Twanger, I’m sure enjoying mine.
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Congrats Donnie for being selected at this weeks Gold Pick Member.
Now I am getting to be real famous, a town in Missouri and a town in Queensland Australia not to mention a royal baby all named after me…
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Congrats Donnie! I’m from Marshall!
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Congrats and thank you for sharing your story. I too started playing in the 70’s and laid it down in the early 80’s. But like you, I’m BACK!
I truly hope the young musicians read your story and sense the desire you had 40 years ago to learn and then realize the resources available today with Ben.
Thank you WillCoop, it’s an honor to be apart of this group. I don’t feel a lot different, except fingers stiffer and I don’t reach as far on some chords yet. I can play fast but probably not as fast as I used to, but I would rather have a good hard driving sound and play more in the middle of speed. I think if I keep working on having equal spacing between my notes from my right hand and have clear and clean slides,pulloffs, chord changes, etc. with my left hand I will hopefully get there. This was the direction I was heading when I quit playing.
I started playing with a metronome which I never had before, and found out what I thought was good timing, wasn’t. I set it at 75 bpm and would play each string with each beat. I would also play at this speed how you would normally play. This was pretty hard for me. I’m going to work all different speeds to become better. It is amazing how you can be off in timing just a little. That little bit could cause your 1/16 notes turn into 1/8 notes. Ben has the best videos for this.
I know I missed a lot of time from when I quit to now, but I know I’m going to be a lot better player and in time might seem like I never quit. Ben has a good system and makes it easy to learn.
I’m not sure about habits, when I would help someone with their horse, they would say I keep doing this habit they had. I would tell them that their habit wasn’t in what I was asking them to do. they could keep their old habit just don’t use. I think I do this in playing , I’m sure I have old habits, I just don’t use the habits I dislike:grinning:
You need to put a twanger on your list, they sure are nice. Ben , Jake, and Robby had good ideas when they started working on this Banjo. Thanks WillCoop, looking forward to hearing from you.
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Thank you Dragonslayer, Glad to be apart of this group.
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Yes, it was. It was amazing to watch him play and sing, and to see professionalism at its best:slightly_smiling_face:
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Hey Donnie, Congratulations on GPOTW. I feel your pain on the broken ribs brother. Back in March I changed saddles out on a young mule and as I was stepping down I guess it pinched him bad. He blew up hard, I lasted 4 bucks with one foot in the stirrup and hanging on to the horn trying to get a solid dismount. It didn’t work, I hung the toe of my boot and it flipped me upside down. Broke both of my wrists and my C4. Couldn’t do anything for 12 weeks but just look at my banjo, with both arms in casts. Pure misery. I grew my Stach out like that but my wife threw a fit, so I cut it back down. I’m pretty partial to her, So, You wear yours well for both of us.
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Oh man!!
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Wow! 
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Wow, sorry to hear of your accident. I hope you are doing better. Mine has been 9 weeks now, still sore but getting along a lot better. I had a good dismount, but my landing was terrible. I know getting hurt like that is bad enough, but we are lucky it wasn’t worse. Sure hope you are getting better and I like your mustache story.
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Thanks MissMaggie. I do wish I had kept playing, who knows where I would be. But the way it is now I’m a member of Banjo Ben, I have a new Twanger, and I’m on my way to being a better player.
Glad you are enjoying your banjo, I sure am. My new case smell is starting to leave, I wonder if Banjo Ben has some spray perfume that smells like a new banjo case he could sell.
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Hi Donnie, I use Glyde Cote by Stelling to maintain the wood on my banjo and that keeps that new smell in the case. Perhaps @BanjoBen or @Jake can order some into the General Store. Some spray furniture polish might also do the job.
PS. Donnie I should qualify this by saying, use the spray polish on the wooden parts of the banjo and not the case. You might also try keeping those little packets of crystals in your case, you know the ones often find in the packaging of electrical goods like phones & computers. Manufactures use these to absorb moisture during storage and transit
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Thanks 5-StringPilgrim, Glad to hear you are back playing. I look forward to playing more every day. It’s funny how the last thing you learn was the first thing you needed to know.
Thanks Archie
Yeah getting older ain’t all it’s cracked up to be, we don’t heal like we used to. They had to put a plate and 7 screws in my left wrist, I just added them to all my others, Got a wicked scar. LOL. I have led a pretty rough life. This just slowed me down for awhile, no big deal. Making chords has been my therapy. I got to meet and spend some time with Tony Trischka while I was casted up. Sure was disappointed I wasn’t able to pick some with him. He and I hit it off pretty good. Had a good time cutting up though. He told me a story of an old time picker that a mule kicked in the head and killed, made my problems minor.
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I should say so… Geesh! 