November 11, 2007

           For the record, here is the Money Order Fao Cheng says he did not receive. It does not matter that he meant something else, because he failed to inform both when he “received” the paper and when he shipped the product. Cheng needs a lesson in public consideration and how to tell the truth.

/>           I’ve completed more analysis of the gig situation. My free sample gig, by far the most effective advertising done by any band in this town, still does not work sometimes. My seven freebies have resulted in just three paying gigs, only two of them repeats. Most places would hire you once out of courtesy, meaning I’m dealing with a different economy here.

           [Author's note 2016: the problem with the money order is lack of education. People will say they accept money orders, but then process them like a check. People, you do not deposit a money order because it has no clearing time like a check does. You cash money orders. You do not deposit them and sit around telling the customer he hasn't paid you yet. There are so many idiots on eBay, they refused to publish a guideline about money orders.]

           The bowling alley is too different to serve as a basis, so I picked the Friendly Inn as the representative model. It is past its prime and lives off a dozen regulars. Their only hope is to bring in new people, which means changing what they have to offer. Yet the owner felt I played the wrong music too loudly. It is easy to draw two conclusions, (1) that a jukebox represents the “right” kind of music, and (2) I know more about running a club than these owners.
           The jukeboxes, particularly the Internet models, obviously produce a reasonable profit. Yet, they are still jukeboxes, monopolized by a few crackheads with an infinite supply of coins. I know that to get hired, I must draw in more people and/or cause the regulars to stay longer (their drinking speeds are fixed). As far as the owners, well, I’ve been an entertainer far longer than they’ve been owners, and I play the right music at the right volume. It takes me two hours to win over the regulars and newcomers love what I do. It comes back to economics.
           The jukebox can be defeated by a chick singer, which can be its own set of problems. The club owners I can’t do anything about, but I surely notice the further you get from downtown, the slower they get. Not that there are any Brainiacs in either place; there is observably no such thing as a Ph.D. in club management. The best option seems to be to bring Jean up to speed and try that. This need not interfere with what I’m already doing.