Hey pdalessa - You're never too old to have a happy childhood! Best bet is to get a teacher. Even if it's a group night class through the local school board. I'm in the same ,uh, demographic as you, and when I decided to learn the guitar acouple of years ago, that's how I did it. Guess what? Class was full of geezers. Had a good instructor, played Tom Dooley, and I sucked. Done graduated and got me a diploma too - "Certificate of Completion-Guitar 1"

I'm more into the fiddle right now, seems to fit me better and I find it (surprisingly, to some) easier to play.

Certainly don't be embarrassed about starting a new learning thang at this point in your journey. Like my good pal Wayne Gretzky always says - "One hundred percent of the shots you don't take don't go in the net."

Good luck
Bardford