After taking that picture, I looked over the gift shop and entered the Pickin' Parlor. I can't play a lick but there was no one there. The room is soundproof. I pulled down that cutaway on the far wall and strummed it once. Is a chord still sour if nobody hears it?

The factory is more mechanized than ever but it's largely a hands-on sort of mechanization. There are many quite high-tech CNC machines in use but even they tend to be hand loaded; Often with hand selected pieces to minimize waste. Some power tools are jig mounted and some hand held. Virtually every job in the plant requires considerable skill but it's 21st century skill. On the other hand, Martin isn't afraid to use what works. What do you use to hold the pieces of a $50,000 guitar in place while the glue sets? A bunch of dollar a dozen clothespins. Some of the woods used in the guitar is extremely expensive and none of it is cheap. Almost none of it is wasted. The biggest piece of "scrap" comes from cutting the round sound hole but that's not wasted. They make dandy souvenirs complete with a reminder to take the online tour survey.

About fifteen miles west of Allentown I saw a couple of Hudsons with for sale signs on them and pulled over to take a look. Behind those two was a building filled with them and a list of more for sale. There was no one around to let me inside or answer questions but I emailed buddy Alex "Hudsonly Yours" Burr at the end of the day and wasn't at all surprised to hear he knew exactly what I was talking about. It's owned by a doctor who lives in New York and there's a website but no regular access. This year's national HET Club (Hudson-Essex-Terraplane) meet is in Gettysburg and will include a bus tour to this collection.

But the drug store is the thing. The building and pharmacy date from 1906; The soda fountain from 1929. The fountain was out of commission for a few years but the lady who bought the store in 2010 had it repaired and reopened it last August. There's a story about that here. Look at those old signs lined up near the ceiling and check out some of the not-for-sale inventory. The gal who made me my second root beer float in as many days told me that downtown Hamburg has really taken a hit since the Wal-Mart opened last summer. Cabela's opened a huge store a couple of years ago and then came Wal-Mart. It's a familiar story. I was disappointed that no one joined me at the counter while I was there but it is a little chilly for ice cream -- for some. However, I was really pleased to see a steady stream of customers at the pharmacy counter. It was busy enough that, at one point, the girl at the fountain went back to help. Perhaps, when summer comes, more of those customers will stop by the fountain for an egg cream or a malted or maybe a root beer float. You can't get this at Wal-Mart.