I'm Jay, and am what you may call an "older" learner.
Tried to learn guitar over a year ago and got frustrated, mainly due to inability to clearly play basic chords. Didn't know if it was me or the guitar. (It was a Squier Strat Starter package with amp, etc from a Big Box store. I never had a setup done, and I eventually returned it)
Decided to give it one more shot and just purchased a lightly used Epiphone Les Paul Special II with amp, etc. Guitar action feels so much better than the Squier, so I'm hoping things will go better this time.
Keeping my fingers crossed.