deck lid trouble

If you've never adjusted a hood or trunk before it can seem more difficult than what it is. If you are adjusting the hinge bolts, there is a lot of play in there. It's easy to get confused if you're making too large of adjustments each time. Sometimes a 1/16" movement can make a lot of difference. You should pay attention to the paint on and around the bolt heads. That will be your guide for where you have started at and will help you to see which direction you've moved. Try not to loosen the bolts any more than you have to so you can quickly tighten them back up without the trunk moving around on you while you run the ratchet. If the original bolt location is hard to see you can use a magic marker to make reference marks. As Geof said, use small incremental adjustments until you get a good fit.