Hi Bob, Thanks for your reply. I started with a local banjo teacher that I worked with weekly on Zoom. I loved receiving the hand outs he provided and started practicing for 1/2 to 3/4 hour daily from beginner books from Mel Bay and Hal Leonard additionally. I looked for simple songs I could follow that provided me with a melody I recognize and enjoy a little. He provided PDF tablature notes that I enjoyed. I never reached the point that I could play a song, even the simplest song, that I could play without flubbs and still haven’t. He wanted me to memorize tablature too and when combined with the difficulties I had playing through without making any mistakes, he became increasingly mean. Understanding what he said was very difficult from the beginning. He didn’t talk into his microphone, whole sentences were lost. I asked him to repeat what he’d said a lot. One day about 8 weeks in he did’nt give me a new assignment and didn’t explain why so I cancelled future sessions with him. From the beginning I had explained that I was having difficulties with memorization, and I was as flubbing simple tunes. Apparently both issues were a serious problem for him. I also found a music teacher at a local guitar shop. He brought me an advanced copy of Cripple Creek and started demanding that I play faster. He had taught me how to read the tablature, how to play any of the fancy fretting or even how to know how to play faster. I had a manuscript with Pull Offs, Hammer Ons and even slides that I couldn’t interpret successfully all the while I was receiving constant demands to buck up and play faster. I cancelled instead because I felt that demanding me that I achieve milestones that hadn’t even been demonstrated was ridiculous. There was another teacher, online that looked away when she was explaining the most important steps in a sequence of steps. That was a subscription club with prerecorded videos. I sent emails asking for help, waited for a week without an answer then cancelled future payments. I’ve kept practicing from my Mel Bay and Hal Leonard books, looking for songs I enjoy playing because I play them over and over without complete success but need as much joy as I can collect from the experience. I found some teachers on au tube that demonstrate songs and provide tablature of what they are playing like Jack Buethin and Eddie Collins. I’ve recently started working on the simple, intermediate and advanced versions of She’ll be Commin Round the Mountain that way. Still not achieving perfection of any song, nor memorizing but feel the most important thing is to enjoy what I’m doing the best I can, practicing an hour or more daily, trying to develop strategies to improve or answer questions about how to do certain things without having someone to ask. And, in some ways it’s better because I am a very accountable person and when I feel that I’m doing my best I actually am. It’s helping. Today I’m planning to add rearranging a song (BlackBerry Blossom) from Janet Davis’ book. I love hearing that song, it’s played up the neck. They’ve added fancy fret work that doesn’t belong and lost the melody so I thought I’d spend some time trying to make it something I love to play daily. I am praying for help to do so, it’s important. Even small accomplishments are very helpful when learning to play the banjo. Did I answer your questions? This hasn’t been easy but I am working on it.