The Great Gravenhurst Election Fizzle-Fuzzle; But We're Doing Fine In The Music and Antique Business

THE GREAT ELECTION FIZZLE-FUZZLE - IF THERE WAS A FUROR, IT WAS A SHORT ONE, AND VERY, VERY QUIET

WE EXPECTED AN EXCITING ELECTION COMING - BUT THAT WAS LAST JANUARY

     I DON'T KNOW HOW THE LOCAL MEDIA WILL PORTRAY THIS YEAR'S MUNICIPAL ELECTION CAMPAIGN, IN THE OTHER FIVE MUSKOKA MUNICIPALITIES, OF THIS DISTRICT, BUT IF THEY WERE TO SUGGEST, IN ANY WAY, THAT GRAVENHURST AS BEEN A CAULDRON OF ELECTION DEBATE, THEY WOULD INDEED BE WRITING A WORK OF LOCAL FICTION. I DROPPED A BIG GLOB OF VANILLA PUDDING ON THE FLOOR, THIS MORNING, WHEN I MISJUDGED THE DISTANCE BETWEEN THE SERVING BOWL AND MY GLASS DESSERT DISH. THERE WAS MORE EXCITEMENT, WATCHING OUR CATS, LICK IT UP, THAN WHAT COULD BE DESCRIBED SIMILARLY, AS EXCITEMENT ON THE LOCAL CAMPAIGN TRAIL. EVEN STEPHEN LEACOCK COULDN'T HAVE MUSTERED MUCH TO WRITE ABOUT IN HIS FOLKISH HISTORY OF SMALL TOWN LIFE. IF THE ELECTION HAD A PULSE, THEN IT WOULD BE UP TO THE MORTICIAN TO MAKE ARRANGEMENTS.
     I CAN ONLY SUGGEST, AS A CIVILIAN VOYEUR, LOOKING OUT UPON WHAT CAN ONLY BE DESCRIBED AS A LOW-CALORIE, TEPID, GENTLE, NON-CONFRONTATIONAL CAMPAIGN, THAT AS FAR AS FERVOR GOES, IT HAS HAD THE SPARK OF A WET MATCHSTICK. AND EVEN THE "GOOD-FOR-THE-CAMERA" HAND-PUMPING, AND TRADITIONAL "KISSING OF THE BABIES," BY INVIGORATED CANDIDATES, AS A STARK MINIMUM OF EXERTION, MUST HAVE BEEN INTIMATE STUFF, HAPPENING BEHIND THE SCENES, AND OUT OF CAMERA FOCUS. NOT ONLY DIDN'T I SEE IT, OUT ON THE HUSTINGS, WE ONLY HAD ONE CANDIDATE IN THE WARD DROP BY OUR MAIN STREET SHOP, AND ANOTHER DUMPED OFF A CAMPAIGN BROCHURE, INTO OUR MAILBOX AT HOME. I'M SORRY FOLKS, BUT THIS SUCKS. BUT THEN AGAIN, WHAT WAS THE INCENTIVE OR REQUIREMENT TO DO MUCH MORE THAN HAMMER IN A FEW SIGNS AND PASS OUT SOME REALLY WEAKLY WRITTEN BROCHURES. I DON'T BLAME ANY CANDIDATE, WHO DOES WIN, IN THIS ELECTION, FOR FEELING A LITTLE COCKY ABOUT HAVING THE RUN OF THE TOWN, FOR THE NEXT FOUR YEARS; BECAUSE THAT'S THE IMPRESSION WE'VE GIVEN, AS CONSTITUENTS, BY NOT DEMANDING MORE PUBLIC DEBATES. YUP, WE GET WHAT WE GET, AND NOT ONE BIT MORE.
     HERE WE HAVE A MULTI-MILLION DOLLAR CORPORATION, IN ONE OF THE FINEST TOURISM REGIONS IN ONTARIO, AND OUR CANDIDATES HAVE BEEN LARGELY OUT OF SIGHT THIS ELECTION. AS FAR AS MAIN STREETING, I GUESS THE REWARDS AREN'T WHAT THEY USED TO BE, BACK IN THEM GOOD OLD DAYS, WHEN ELECTIONS WERE A BIG DEAL IN THIS TOWN. WHO'S TO BLAME? I WANT TO BLAME THE MEDIA, BUT WITH THIS BLOG, I'M ACTUALLY PART OF THE MEDIA AS WELL, AND I HATE BLAMING MYSELF. BUT YES, I COULD HAVE DONE MORE. WE HAVEN'T AS EDITORIALISTS, FORCED THESE CANDIDATES TO FACE TOUGH IN-PERSON INTERVIEWS, WHERE THERE ISN'T A LOT OF TIME TO MANUFACTURE ANSWERS. ANSWERING SUBMITTED QUESTIONS ISN'T THE WAY TO FERRET OUT THE GOOD CANDIDATES FROM THE MIX. I STILL DON'T KNOW WHAT "MOVING FORWARD" MEANS, OTHER THAN WHAT I DO, FROM THIS WRITING PORTAL, TO GET ONE OF SUZANNE'S FRESHLY MADE COOKIES, TWENTY FEET FROM MY CHAIR. THIS IS "MOVING FORWARD," BUT I'M JUST GETTING A COOKIE. WHEN CANDIDATES FOR ELECTION USE THIS STRANGE AND INSIGNIFICANT REFERENCE, "MOVING FORWARD," ARE THEY LOOKING FOR COOKIES AS WELL? THEY'RE RIGHT HERE, IF THEY HAD CARED TO DROP IN FOR A VISIT. I DON'T LIKE THE REFERENCE, BECAUSE IT'S RIDICULOUSLY OPEN-ENDED, AND MEANS LITTLE TO NOTHING, THAT WE CAN COME BACK-ON, AFTER THE FIRST YEAR OF OFFICE, AND SAY, "YOU HAVE NOT FULFILLED YOUR ELECTION PROMISE. WE ARE NO MORE PROGRESSIVE THAN WE WERE A YEAR AGO, AND HAVE NOT MOVED FORWARD ONE STEP FROM THE DAYS OF THE PAST COUNCIL!" A COUNCILLOR WHO USED THESE WORDS, "MOVING FORWARD," CAN SAY, "WELL, I DID MOVE FORWARD, BUT YOU WEREN'T WATCHING!" IT SEEMS LIKE A POSITIVE STATEMENT, BUT IT'S ONLY USED BECAUSE THERE ISN'T ANYTHING MORE SUBSTANTIVE TO ADD. NOW THAT DOES BOTHER ME. THERE IS A GREAT NEED IN THIS MUNICIPALITY FOR LEADERSHIP, AND THE LAST MISSION STATEMENT WE REQUIRE FROM OUR ELECTED OFFICIALS, ARE SILLY LITTLE STATEMENTS, AS HOLLOW AS A CHOCOLATE EASTER BUNNY, ON THE FOURTH OF JULY!
     NO ONE RUNNING FOR OFFICE, FROM WHAT I HAVE WITNESSED SINCE JANUARY, REALLY WANTS THE JOB OF COUNCIL REPRESENTATIVE. THERE'S NO HUNGER OUT THERE. PASSION! I'D LOVE TO HAVE WITNESSED A TRACE AMOUNT OF ENTHUSIASM, FOR NOT ONLY VOTE-GETTING, BUT FOR THE VERY REAL HONOR OF REPRESENTING THIS TOWN FOR THE NEXT FOUR YEARS. WHAT DOES AN ELECTION CAMPAIGN, THAT CAN BE DESCRIBED AS "AN UNSETTLING SOLITUDE," MEAN FOR THE FUTURE? WHAT EXCITEMENT CAN EMANATE FROM A GROUP THAT HAS SHOWN SO LITTLE INTENSITY, AND PASSION FOR ELECTED OFFICE. YOU CAN'T GARNER ANY REAL ENTHUSIASM OR EXPENDED FERVOR, FROM A BUNCH OF ELECTION SIGNS AND VERY FEW NEWSPAPER ADVERTISEMENTS. THE MEDIA DIDN'T MAKE A LOT OF COIN ON THIS ELECTION, THAT'S FOR SURE. TO ME, AND A FEW OTHER COMMUNITY WATCHERS, THIS WAS THE ELECTION, OF CANDIDATES, WHO WOULD TAKE THE WIN IF THEY GOT IT, BUT NOT LOSE A WINK OF SLEEP, OR FEEL IN ANY WAY REJECTED, IF THEY LOST. CANDLES WITHOUT FLAMES. WE WERE HOPING FOR A BARN-BURNER, BUT WE GOT NINETY-EIGHT PERCENT LESS. BUT WE CAN'T BLAME THE CANDIDATES ENTIRELY. THE CONSTITUENTS SHOULD HAVE DEMANDED AT LEAST THREE ALL-CANDIDATES MEETINGS, WITH OPEN MICROPHONES FOR QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR. THERE WAS ONLY ONE, AND IT WAS TIGHTLY CONTROLLED, WITHOUT AN OPEN MICROPHONE. I BOYCOTTED THIS ONE BECAUSE OF THE FACT, QUESTIONS COULDN'T BE ASKED FROM THE FLOOR.
     READING BETWEEN THE LINES OF THIS YEAR'S MUNICIPAL ELECTION, HERE IN GRAVENHURST, I SENSED THAT THE CONSTITUENTS, AND THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY, INCLUDING SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS, HAVE JUST DECIDED THAT THEIR STRENGTHS, AS A GROUP, WHEN NECESSARY, ARE THE TRUMP CARDS HELD IN RESERVE, IN CASE A DISAGREEMENT OVER POLICY BREAKS OUT. I HAVE SEEN THIS BEFORE, EVEN IN THE PAST TWELVE MONTHS, AND I SUPPOSE IT DOES HAVE ITS INTERNAL POWER, TO DISRUPT COUNCIL IF THEY GO ROGUE. IN SOME WAYS, ALTHOUGH, IT IS A REVERSE STRATEGY, IT IS A WORKABLE OPTION, BECAUSE I KNOW COUNCIL DOESN'T LIKE HAVING OPPOSITION THRUST IN THEIR CHAMBER. JUST AS WE FOUGHT TO SAVE OUR NEIGHBORHOOD WETLAND, AND THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY CAME TOGETHER, TO KNOCK DOWN THE BIA EXPANSION PLANS THIS SPRING, IT IS ALWAYS POSSIBLE, THAT A LACK OF ENTHUSIASM DURING THE ELECTION, MAY TRANSFER INTO THE TERM OF OFFICE, TO HERALD A NEW AND EXCITING MEASURE OF COMMUNITY ACTIVISM; WHERE FOLKS BAND TOGETHER, AND TAKE THEIR FIGHT ON TARGET ISSUES, RIGHT TO THE MAYOR'S DESK. JUST POSSIBLY, THERE MAY BE A SILVER LINING THIS TIME AROUND. IF PASSION IS WEAK AT THE COUNCIL TABLE, MAYBE WE CAN MAKE UP FOR IT, ON THE CONSTITUENT FRONT. WHAT IS EVIDENT, IS THAT MANY CITIZENS DIDN'T WANT TO COMMIT THEMSELVES, TO RUNNING FOR OFFICE, REQUIRING A DEDICATION OF FOUR YEARS FOR A MODEST PAY CHEQUE. THE TERM IS TOO LONG. BUT THAT'S THE PROVINCE'S PRIVILEGE TO ENACT, BUT I THINK THAT A LOT OF GOOD CANDIDATES HAVE BEEN LOST, BECAUSE OF THE LENGTHY COMMITMENT. INSTEAD, MAYBE THEY'LL SERVE ON A CITIZENS' ACTION COMMITTEE INSTEAD. BUT COUNCIL SHOULD NEVER ASSUME THAT A LOW-KEY MUNICIPAL ELECTION, MEANS A LOW-KEY TERM OF OFFICE. I WOULD SAY THE EXACT OPPOSITE WILL HOLD TRUE.
      WE'VE GOT ANOTHER DAY TO FIND OUT WHO OF THE MODEST CREW OF CANDIDATES, WILL RECEIVE A FOUR YEAR MANDATE FROM CONSTITUENTS. I'VE ALREADY MADE MY PREDICTIONS, AS TO WHO WILL WIN, AND ITS HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH WISHFUL THINKING. THESE ARE NOT CANDIDATES I PREFER, BECAUSE SOME HAVE MADE A TRADITION OUT OF WINNING THEIR WARDS, AND THEIR COUNCIL POSITIONS, WITH A MINIMUM OF EFFORT. IT WOULD BE NICE TO SEE SOME NEW BLOOD AROUND THE COUNCIL TABLE, AND POSSIBLY, SOME LATENT SURGE OF ENTHUSIASM, THAT ARRIVES POST-ELECTION. BETTER LATE THAN NEVER, RIGHT?
      I WANT TO MAKE ONE NOTE OF CLARIFICATION, REGARDING A CANDIDATE'S RECENT STATEMENT, ABOUT CONSTITUENTS ATTENDING COUNCIL MEETINGS, AND FEELING FREE TO RAISE CONCERNS AT, I'M ASSUMING, THE PODIUM. FIRST OF ALL, IT'S NOT THAT EASY, AND NOT THAT FLUID A SITUATION. FIRST OF ALL, ANYONE WISHING TO ADDRESS A COUNCIL MEETING, OR COMMITTEE LEVEL MEETING, HAS TO SUBMIT A REQUEST TO ATTEND AS A DELEGATE OR DELEGATION. WHILE IN MY YEARS COVERING MUNICIPAL COUNCILS, A CONSTITUENT PRESENTATION COULD BE FAST-TRACKED DURING THE MEETING, IF SOMEONE WASN'T PREVIOUSLY PLACED ON THE AGENDA, ME THINKS IT'S A PROTOCOL ISSUE TODAY THAT YOU MUST GIVE ADVANCE NOTICE OF A FORMAL PRESENTATION TO COUNCIL. UNLESS YOU WISH TO HECKLE FROM THE SIDELINES, AND TAKE YOUR CHANCES WITH COUNCIL'S PATIENCE. GOOD LUCK ON THAT ONE. POINT IS, WHEN YOU ARE PLACED ON THE AGENA, BY INITIAL APPLICATION, YOU WILL ONLY HAVE SO MUCH TIME IN WHICH TO PRESENT A POINT OF VIEW. PLUS, IT CAN BE AN INTIMIDATING ENVIRONS, WHEN IN MOST CASES, THE ISSUES COULD BE RESOLVED MUCH MORE THOROUGHLY, WITH CASUAL FACE TO FACE CHATS, BEYOND THE FORMAL AGENDA. IT'S HOW A LOT OF THESE ISSUES WERE SOLVED IN THE PAST, AND PROBLEMS REMEDIED WITHOUT ANY NEED OF EXPENDING COUNCIL TIME, DURING FORMAL MEETINGS. BUT TO SUGGEST THIS IS A WELCOMING CIRCUMSTANCE, OF HAVING TO STAND IN FRONT OF COUNCIL, WITH A LIMIT OF TIME TO MAKE A PRESENTATION, IS A LITTLE ABSURD; AND THE REASON WHY MANY CITIZENS WHO ARE NOT PUBLIC SPEAKERS, AND ARE SUSPICIOUS OF THE WORTH OF STARCHED FORMALITIES, SIMPLY OPT TO LET ISSUES SLIDE, OR BAND WITH OTHER NEIGHBORS MORE WILLING TO CONFRONT ISSUES IN PUBLIC. I WOULD NEVER DESCRIBE THE FORMALITY OF MAKING A SUBMISSION TO COUNCIL, A WARM AND FUZZY ADVENTURE. QUITE THE OPPOSITE. THUS, WELCOMING EVERYONE TO COME OUT TO VISIT COUNCIL, TO SHARE THEIR THOUGHTS, IS AN INVITATION THAT'S INNOCENT ENOUGH IF YOU ONLY WANT TO BE A SPECTATOR. MAKING A PRESENTATION, FOLKS, MEANS THAT YOU ARE ON THE RECORD. THERE IS A NECESSITY OF BEING CAREFUL ABOUT THESE SUBMISSIONS, AND IN SOME CASES, LEGAL REPRESENTATION IS PREFERRED INSTEAD.
     THE SECOND MISREPRESENTATION I HEAR OVER AND OVER, IS THAT WHEN PUBLIC MEETINGS ARE HELD, IN GRAVENHURST, VERY FEW CITIZENS TURN OUT TO LISTEN TO PRESENTATION, AND RAISE CONCERNS IN THE PUBLIC FORUM. FIRST OF ALL, WHEN COUNCILLORS JUMP TO THE CONCLUSION, THAT LOCAL CITIZENS SIMPLY AREN'T INTERESTED IN THESE CURRENT AFFAIRS, EXPLAINING THE POOR TURN-OUTS, THEY NEVER LOOK AT THEMSELVES, AND ADJUST TURN-OUT NUMBERS TO THE FACT THEY HAVEN'T DONE THEIR OWN DUE-DILIGENCE, GETTING THE MESSAGE OUT TO THEIR CONSTITUENTS. THEN THEY HAVE TO FACTOR IN, THAT MANY OF THESE FOLKS, FEEL SO DISCONNECTED TO LOCAL POLITICS, AND MINIMIZED IN THE PROCESS OF MUNICIPAL GOVERNANCE, THEY'VE JUST SURRENDERED TO THE IDEA, THEIR OBJECTIONS WILL BE IGNORED ANYWAY. PLUS, THEIR IS A LOW THRESHOLD OF THE PREVIOUS COUNCIL, TO PUT UP WITH COUNTERPOINT, AND WHEN THE GOING GETS ROUGH, THE ANSWERS ARE LESS FORTHCOMING. IN OTHER WORDS, FAR TOO MANY CONSTITUENTS HAVE JUST GIVEN UP TRYING TO CHANGE THE OPINION OF COUNCIL, UNLESS IT HAPPENS TO BE A PARTICULARLY SERIOUS ISSUE. IT'S A CRAPPY OVERTURE ABOUT DEMOCRACY, BUT IT'S TRUE. I CAN HARDLY WAIT TO FIND OUT WHAT THE VOTER PARTICIPATION WAS THIS ELECTION. BUT I'M SURE THEY'LL BE SPIN ABOUT HOW THE MAIL-IN FORMAT IS THE BEST THINK SINCE SLICED CHEEZE AND THE INVENTION OF CHERRY TOMATOES. I'M A LITTLE MORE SKEPTICAL. I THINK THAT THE LOSS OF POLLING BOOTHS WAS A STAB IN THE HEART OF WHAT HAS ALWAYS BEEN A TRADITIONAL WAY OF VOTING. BUT THE PROVINCE GAVE THE MUNICIPALITY THE OPTION AND WELL, THEY BOUGHT THE FARM. TRADITION BE GONE!
     I WILL GIVE THIS INCOMING COUNCIL THE BENEFIT OF THE DOUBT FOR THE FIRST MONTH. I'VE WILL HAVE SOME TIME ON MY HANDS, IN THE NEW YEAR, SO I'LL START GNAWING AT THEM IN FEBRUARY, IF I THINK THEY'RE DOING A CRAPPY JOB. THE HALLMARK OF "CRAPPY" BY THE WAY, IS IF THEY GO UNDER VEIL AGAIN, AS I EXPECT THEY WILL, ABANDONING QUICKLY THE PROMISES OF TRANSPARENCY MADE BEFORE THE ELECTION.
     OH, THERE GOES THE SHOP DOOR AGAIN. SOMEONE JUST DID A FACE-PLANT COMING IN THE WRONG DOOR. JUST ONE TINY MISADVENTURE THIS AFTERNOON, WAS MORE EXCITING THAN THE ENTIRE ELECTION CAMPAIGN FOR MUNICIPAL OFFICE. WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE?
 
BEFORE THE DOOM AND GLOOM PREDICTIONS, LET'S BE HONEST ABOUT BUSINESS SUCCESS AND FAILURES

     Despite having a lot more competition in the antique portion of our mainstreet Gravenhurst business, during the past six months, the accountant tells me we've had a better year than the one before, and the one before that! When I bugged my wife, the resident secretary of finance, how our summer season had fared overall, she looked glumly out the window, back at her accounting books, back out the window, turned to me, smiled, and stated with some glee, "You're getting better at finding inventory people actually want," which refers to our ongoing argument about buying too many things we like, as collectables, without an intense focus on what our buyers might wish to purchase. Every dealer has to cope with this, and most don't do it successfully; if all you're looking at, in profit and loss, are the retail numbers. There's an investment number that's also relevant. You can tell this, when you enter their shops, and see a domination of certain antiques lining the shelves. Some will have cupboards loaded with press glass, or even Depression glass, because it's what they like to surround themselves with, day to day. It's not necessarily good business, day to day, but the end game always works out in their favor. When they sell their business, or shut down their respective shops, the collections they've built up can be sold in bulk at auction, or by other means, usually netting a pretty good return. Within about two minutes, inside a quality antique shop, you can tell the proprietor has a thing for vintage mantle clocks, painted crocks, primitive furnishings, crystal, early Canadian, or American glass, spinning wheels, and yes sewing machines. But we all trend toward what we like the most in antiques and collectables, and I have never made an apology in this regard. I am a good buyer, and a competent picker of considerable accomplishment, so I buy low to keep us in the black; maybe a lot lower in inventory cost, than you might think. But it is a compliment taken to heart, when Suzanne says my buying is more customer-friendly than in years past. This means, I'm expanding our inventory to meet more demands, of associate collectors and well, home decorators, who we are also glad to serve. It can be very "hit and miss" out there, searching for inventory, and seeing as we don't order from a wholesale catalogue, it means we have to hustle for every single piece. A curious customer, who really didn't have too much knowledge about the precision of our business, asked me a while ago, how we acquired our inventory. "One piece at a time," I answered. "But there are many thousands of pieces here. How many years did it take to amass this collection?" "It all started in the mid 1970's. And there may be pieces in the shop that date that far back, from my first shop in Bracebridge," I answered. "It's been a labour of love, let me tell you, because it has meant thousands of hours poking around in flea markets, estate sales, yard sales, second hand markets, auctions and other antique shops."
     Every retail business has it tough in this regard. We have it no better or worse than any other business owner in the retail sector, anywhere on earth. The exception, of course, is that we control the prices we pay for inventory. Meaning, we are always looking for sensible prices, if not the lowest of low. There are times, especially in Muskoka nostalgia, and resource material, that we will pay more to acquire an item or collection, because we know there will be profit based on its use for some years down the road, before we eventually sell it off in the shop. In our son's music business, this happens regularly, that certain vintage sound gear, microphones, amps, speakers and instruments, will be used for an unspecified time, and for certain projects, before being put back in the shop for sale. It's a total utilization of vintage inventory. For example, we will rent certain guitars and sound equipment out, to musicians and local venues, and then when something better comes along, and we need to raise capital, they're sold off in the shop, or online, where much of our business is done these days. We make back the original purchase price, by renting the guitars and sound equipment out, and then attain a much larger profit, selling the pieces later on. It's just an advantage of being experienced in the music business, and knowing the market for antique and otherwise vintage gear. It's huge. Just like the interest in vintage and even new vinyl, which son Robert is the main investor these days. It all requires knowledge of music, musicians and the venues where they perform. This acquired knowledge, and the willingness to learn more, by research and immersion into the music industry, means they mitigate risk; which in the antique and collectable profession, is the only way to avoid the huge gambling factor of making bad purchases. I know lots of dealers who get stuck with what we call "dogs," and it takes decades of mistakes to learn what not to buy, and where not to make these purchases.
     When we look at the success and modest failures of the business year, we still, after all these years of training, will look back at something we purchased, that didn't come through as we had hoped. As we make thousands of inventory purchases, in each area of our multi-section business, there are bound to be duds, and otherwise poor performers. The good buys outweigh the bad, and once again the accountant assures me, we have made a passing grade once again this year, on the way to a modest overall profit with a paid-in-full inventory.
     The reason it's important to come out of the gate fast, especially before a new town council is officially sworn in, later this fall season, is so that we can honestly stare down the expected negative headlines, and talking heads, who traditional like to ruminate about mainstreet economic woes, which like the swallows returning to Capastrano, has become a shoulder-season mainstay; which unfortunately generates lots of poorly researched comments from prognosticating councillors, trying to prove how clever they are, by offering us solutions that are as daft as they are! In eleven years of business in Gravenhurst, we haven't had even one astute councillor, or any of the town's economic initiative folks, offer us anything remarkable, that wasn't just a surface-harvested observation, from people who, yes, should know better. There were several occasions, for example, that we, as a music based business, with pretty fair credentials, even hosting regular Indie artist concerts, were completely overlooked when town hall decided to put an effort toward "cultural mapping," on the taxpayer's dime. We weren't included. Despite the fact, we are a small town, with a small population, the town found a way of missing us, even at the time, when both of our sons, were technical staff at the Opera House as well as for The Barge summer concert series. If at times, we seem a little irritable about being shunned by town officials, we have, as a strange sort of bonus, never been disadvantaged as a direct result. Hurt feelings. A tad! We are too busy running our shop here, to worry about being ignored; and in most cases today, it's what we prefer anyway. I'd rather have input from our customers, and if we're going to make any adjustments in inventory and service, it's going to be in the effort to please them first. No compromises to our customer base. And it now stretches well into Northern and Southern Ontario, where our musician friends live and work. Our shop brings a lot of folks to this town, who are shopping specifically for vintage music equipment, and we've got the tweets to prove it! But we recommend other places to visit, shop, eat, and enjoy of the South Muskoka experience. Our online business component really kicks in, at this time of year, when shop visitors decline because of the turn of the seasons.
     The reason for being pro-active about this, is not an exercise in bragging or mutual admiration. I let the accountant have her say, and it's what makes me smile or wells up tears in my eyes. It's to meet head-on, the expected reports of the business blahs, I'm sure are coming down the pike. The typical doom and gloom about imminent business closings and the need for more investment, and more improvements to the main street. When there are successes, to promote and be justifiably proud of, I shiver when I hear or read some statement, about town council taking credit; in our case, having something to do with the improving business profile. Well sir, we can all attest to the fact, the town has never shown the slightest interest in our business, from the day we opened the shop door to the present. In two administrations, we have only had four council representatives drop by, but for their own purposes and agendas; and sundry other self promotion jags, or to ask for our assistance on one of their projects. When there is a particularly negative article run, in the local media, about the economic hardships, especially in the main business corridor, we are always dumped in to the mix, as "retail unfortunates," mired down in our own business inefficiencies. We don't often respond to these poorly researched overviews which I deplore, but do keep up our resolve, to distance from the doomsayers as far as we can. It's worked brilliantly well for a decade, and it's our business plan for the future. Or until some future council decides, to invest a little more time, than a passing glance, and offhand comment, about the mainstreet business community they think they understand; and for example, come and see us on a goodwill mission, to find out, in person, why we're not complaining about a shortage of business, even in the traditional off-season. You'd think they'd want to know this information. Makes sense to have all the facts. But we're not going to hold our breath. If council hopefuls found it inconvenient and unnecessary, to visit us during the election campaign, why would they feel it important to visit us after the vote; when admittedly, the big fight is over. Time to relax. Get comfortable. Then make wide sweeping comments, that miss the point by a country mile.
     Our business year hasn't ended yet, but we're on track for a pleasing finish. We owe the townsfolk of Gravenhurst a big thank you, for supporting our enterprise, for all these years, and coming out to our musical events, now being held monthly at St. James Anglican Church. We couldn't afford to use the Opera House any more, because of the high rental costs and ticket surcharges. There's another quill in my paw, but I'll leave that for another day. Although our business is located on the mainstreet of Gravenhurst, our use of social media has been our ace in the hole, and we of course recommend this to any business, wishing to counter the slower retail months of the year. We've never been shy about networking with our business friends, and sharing our experiences, good and bad, to help other retailers achieve better results. We have never once, in our business history, believed that the only way to network successfully was through the area business associations. We are proudly independent in this regard. But it will not be said, we aren't team players, working on behalf of our home town; because we live here as well, and want our town to be as prosperous as possible. Isn't that more important than all else?
     Our hope for the new council, is that it finally decides to break through the barrier, and drops the shunning, of those who don't agree with it, or its policies, to learn more about the community they're governing; and ways of improving relations instead of complicating them with ridiculous barriers based on hapless politics. Yes, they do have a responsibility to make inroads in this regard, and in the past, it wasn't a high priority. It is now. Just because we're outspoken, and won't be treated disrespectfully, doesn't mean we can't or won't contribute to making Gravenhurst a great place to visit, and a fine place to live. It will take great fortitude, for councillors to break free of past burdens, that held them back from being intimate with what is going on, up and down this main street business corridor; and not just basing everything on intel provided through business associations that do not speak for all businesses.
     We're sprucing up for the Christmas season. All councillors are welcome to visit, and to see, up close and personal, what all the buzz is about. You might even meet some of our special musical guests, who visit here regularly, and, yup, shop in Gravenhurst.