Socal - give people a break.
I've been kicking around this scene for only 11 years and I have seen several 100+ hour non-PPLs, some crooked instructors who milked a student for all they could (works especially well with female students), and some basically ineffective instructors.
A novice can't spot any of this.
36 hours without going solo is a bit long but not outrageous, especially if somebody is a bit older. If other stuff (Whopity's post) is taken care of then I would change the instructor. Often there is a personality issue; a lot of instructors are pretty aggressive, while some are just very nervous and keep grabbing the controls, etc.