Got the last of the alarm cut over. The city issues permits for burglar alarms. I only know this because the guy next door has the permit in his back window. This is probably a good thing because it gives the police a record of who to call when something goes wrong. So I picked up an application. Wonder what happens if my alarm goes off and I've got no permit. Do they not respond? Reason I ask is because I have to list exactly three people from three different households who both a) have a key to my business, and b) know how to completely disable the alarm. If this was anywhere but the police station I'd ask what the heck these guys were smoking when they came up with that one. Yeah, I know about call-down lists. But I'm upgrading this system so I'll feel a little more secure that things aren't going to go bump in the night. Handing out the keys to the place doesn't quite jibe. Ditto for telling anybody how to completely knock out the alarm.

Tell ya' what I'm gonna' do - permit or not. It's gonna' sound like the countdown scene in the Aliens flicks right before the space station blows up to save itself. You probably don't want to be a bad guy in my store at this time. The police station is right there, a block away. I think you can assume that there's at least one device which can make an alarming noise capable of being heard a block away. This is a music store fercrysakes. A block indeed. When I was younger I measured my entire notoriety on how many blocks away somebody called the cops because I was too loud. Four blocks. Can you piss somebody off up to four blocks away? It's an art...

The cherry pie? It burned to a crisp. This was probably the direct result of the not quite ready for prime time steamy beer. Woke up at 3AM and smelt burnt cherrie pie. How did I get to this place? Am I naked? Is anybody beside me? You know, those kinds of questions. It's ok. Cherry pie takes an hour to cook. I pigged out on ice cream before I zonked.

Month eight of my venture begins. It started on an upbeat note with somebody buying a very nice clarinet. That made the day. Then it died back to nothing again. Last week was a real stinker. Doesn't matter either way because school starts in like three weeks. Instrument rental season. It's the busiest time of year in this business. I've been preparing for it for months. But so much still to do. Most of these instruments are in cases, hidden in cupboards. In the coming week I have to visit each one and re-assess it's retail value and hence rental value. Then pull a huge chunk out and find space on the floor for them. I could use more saxes, but will have to make do and only bring in a box of them if sales are abnormally high. Three months rental on a sax doesn't cover even a braggable fraction of its cost. So really have to be cautious in trying to fill that market nitch (told you I'll spell it any way I want, I did).