Notes and thoughts, plus tax!

• A public service message for all teenage boys living in California. The "Long Shower" is not really a great cover for your, eh, "Me Time". We are in the midst of a water shortage crisis where we live, pretty much in a drought, so seriously find some other tactic. Chances are your dads are not far removed from their teenage years and they know what you are up to anyway. The time-honored tactic for calling the long shower to an end, flushing the toilet a couple of times, also wastes water.

So, seriously, find another venue for your man-time.

• Apparently fast food (excuse, quick service) restaurants are doing very well in This Economy (an expression I despise by the way). The chains are getting so big that Zagats restaurant guide has released a survey of Fast Food chains. Top chains were Wendy's for overall and for best burger. So, given the the state of the economy is the dollar menu at McDonald's the modern day equivalent of a soup kitchen.

• When we go to conventions we always tack on the local sales tax. The response from people is "Oh, you charge tax?" Understand something people, I do not CHARGE sales tax, i COLLECT sales tax, the state is the one charging you the tax and I am merely an uncompensated tax collector. Given the state of the economy and what is going on in various states (especially California) I think everyone exhibiting at shows this summer needs to make a point of collecting the local sales taxes (and of course for passing that money on to the various state agencies). Yeah, it's kind of a pain and the states don't make it easy sometimes, but I would assume that states are going to get more aggressive about collecting what they feel is owed them and cracking down on non-licensed show vendors. Look for ugly scenes in San Diego at Comic-Con this summer.

Worth noting, the New Orleans show I went to about 10 years ago (which I am reposting my travel journal to this blog), they had a representative from their equivalent of the BOE AT the show and as an exhibitor you could not set up without paying them a deposit and then they came to you at the end of the show to settle up.