Pegasus has had 3 really great sales days in a row, which is very unusual for this time of year.

I read something about statistics once, that there is a normal variance. A baseball player who hits .250 will have a .300 season; he'll talk about the baseball being the size of a basketball, and the press will call it a 'career' year, but in reality, it was bound to happen, just as he'll have a .200 season, which he'll blame, you know, on the death of his dog.

Or another way to look at statistics; I always get a kick out of someone asking why one particular day is the 'best' day, and another the 'worst' day, but by definition one day HAS to be best and another HAS to be worst.

Takes all the romance, all the freewill out of the equation. Why ask why?

Still, I can't help but look for reasons.

1.) The mentions in the Bulletin and on this blog, are bringing in a few new people.

2.) All the new product. Even though I can't ever seem to see a one on one correlation between the new stuff and the level of sales, it often seems to work that way. Unfortunately, you can't count on it.

3.) Late shelves coming in after Christmas. Of course, this happens every year, but I've had a few really big sales due to latecomers.

Whatever the reason, it's a nice way to start the year.

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I've always tried to be understanding about 'gated communities'. My knee jerk reaction is to not like them. They smack a little too much of MASQUE OF THE RED DEATH, or the Green Zone, if you will. The message is to keep out the riff-raff, or the likes of you and me.

Still, I recently read a mystery with the POV of an older person, who made a pretty good case of gated communities making the elderly feel secure. I know my parents thought they were a great idea, despite having a big house in the West Hills for 40 years and never being burglarized.
Then I had the experience of finally buying a house, and seeing that people were using the residential street in front as a bypass; I suddenly had an urge to put up a gate, and say in my best Ian McKellen voice; "Thou Shalt Not Pass!"

So, I've tried to have a take it or leave it attitude. Fine, you ignore me and I'll ignore you.

Still, I can't help but feel there is an ironic justice in a rich group of homeowners being bought out by an even richer group of owners. (Brokentop). See how that feels!

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Have had a bunch of new games show up. But as usual, once I put them away, they seem to just blend into the background. Another thing that happens; I have to move and consolidate in order to add, and the overall effect is to make the store seem LESS full. It's just a case of necessity forcing me to make good ergonomic decisions.

Where the customer sees a packed store, I see a certain amount of dead product that was just waiting for something better to come along. (Dirty little secret of all stores.....much of the product is filler, with the better selling product constantly coming in and going out. But much of it never or rarely selling. Still you need that stuff on the walls.)

I tend to make alot of decisions based on looks and feel, not just the bottomline decisions of how quickly things sell. It's a form of advertising, if you will. I know that I have to throw good money after bad, sometimes, just to create a viable section. The part of the store may only pay for itself, but having it there adds to the over all 'feel' of the store.

I was tempted, for instance, to buy a couple of really cool model buildings for the fantasy gaming section. I've already built a castle, and manned it with some of my extra miniatures. I don't know if it is helping sales any, but it's in a part of the store I can't use for anything else, and I simply like the looks of it. If I'm not going to make big money at this job, I want the satisfaction of creating a workspace I really like.

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Have the weekend off, after working 10 days. Plan on a comic reading binge, sitting on my futon surrounded by piles of 4-color fun. Oh, frabjous joy!