PIANOTM'S PROFILE

Just wait until they need braces. Mine were $5000.00.

Nothing harder than pricing your work.

Find the average price other artists are charging and average against them. Quality of work doesn't factor into this. Art is in the eye of the beholder. First of all, you won't be respected if you price low. People are afraid of low prices because they equate "cheap" with "low quality". Second, you'll get low quality buyers.

I experience the same problem as a piano technician. I charge $100 to tune a piano, largely because I think $150 is too fucking high. It only takes an hour to tune a piano ($150? and half these guys half-ass it anyway!). I can get away with it because I have a reputation and I'm respected. My tunings hold and they're perfect. Nevertheless, I still get the flakes or the people who don't want to spend anything and so have a giant old upright that belongs in the trash more than other technicians do.

In other words, the key to pricing is knowing your individual market.

Ahem...wasn't going to do this anymore...but...

A quick correction here. The pentagram is a PYTHAGOREAN symbol. For those who don't know, Pythagoras is one of the three (Greek) fathers of philosophy--Pythagoras, Socrates, and Orpheus. Pythagoras' specific contribution to philosophy is mathematics, and his teachings formed the basis for sacred geometry.

Many religions throughout history have used numerous symbols, including the pentagram, the cross, the swastika, the six point star, and so on and so forth. Off-topic but related, most magick throughout the Dark Ages and the Middle Ages was performed regardless of religion, the most famous being Christian or Jewish, because the general belief was that magick and the control over spirits was granted by God. Therefore, much of the witchcraft we associate with Paganism actually finds its roots in Christianity and Judaism. Famous examples are Abra-Melin the Jew, John Dee, Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa, Elphias Levi, and according to ancient manuscripts, Moses and King Solomon.

The pentagram, throughout the Dark Ages, Middle Ages, and Medieval times has far more Christian and Jewish associations than it does Pagan associations. It was common symbol found on the shields of knights due to its association with the Five Virtues and the Five Wounds of Christ. A classic example of a knights shield bearing the five point "pentangle" comes from the 14th century poem, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, in which the unknown poet describes Gawain preparing for his quest to the Green Chapel and carefully describes the pentangle on his shield and all of its relevant symbolism. One point to make about SGGK, however is that while it may be steeped in Christianity, it decidedly pays respect the Pagan beliefs of the ancient Gaelic and the Welsh, the Green Knight being clearly a personification of the Green Man.

The poem also sees Gawain consorting with the Lady Bertilak, the wife of the Lord Bertilak, her younger sister, and her matronly aunt, Morgan Le Fay, a clear personification of Maiden, Mother, and Crone.

The lesson here is to never assign a belief or a symbol to any specific group or culture; the fact is that the scholarship is much more complex. If I don't stop here, I'll be going on for hours about possible alternate ownership of the pentagram. Don't even get me started on the cross.

Edit: Christ being a rip-off of Horus probably isn't the most fair assessment. This story, the story of hanging from a cross (the World Tree), involves a character that is referred to as the Maimed King. Horus isn't the only example, nor is he the oldest one. The belief in Osiris and Isis came relatively late in the Egyptian pantheon, earliest known references dating back to the Hellenist period. The oldest example of the Maimed King I can think of, off hand, is the devastation of Kronus (Chronos/Cronus), King of the Titans and father of the Greek gods. Other examples include Odin hanging from Yggdrasil, accidentally impaling himself upon the spear Guganir.

The key points of these tend to be 1) Stars predict the time of the Maimed King's birth, 2) He is born to a virgin mother 3)Angels/Shepherds/Magi visit the infant. It is worth noting that Christ's birthday is December 25th. For those who don't know the alternate significance of that date, it is Brumalia, the last day of the two week Roman celebration of Saturnalia. A very interesting read on this subject is "The World's Sixteen Crucified Saviors" by Kersey Graves (1875).

Also, the Bible wasn't "rewritten" by the Romans. It was "assembled" from approved and complete texts by the 2nd Nicene counsel, and it was no mean feat, considering they had to sift through holy scripture of varying age and condition in nearly 10 different languages. It would be foolish to think that the Bible was able to withstand all of the subsequent translations intact (I can confirm this one easily, owning 6 different versions), but it can be stated with confidence that since the 2nd Nicene Counsel, nobody important has run rogue with a pair of scissors and a gluestick making mad edits. The damage was already done.

This guy like the freaking Terminator. He never, ever stops!

He is asking for a second chance...again.

For those who don't know, Pete's a famous baseball hall of famer, who went on to manage his own ball club. All of these articles are saying that Rose got banned for gambling. Now it's obvious to most why gambling would get you banned from sports, but for those who aren't doing the math, let me explain what the current articles aren't explaining about Pete's little kick.

He got banned for betting on his own team...to lose.

Sure Pete, we forgive you, but that still doesn't mean you should be trusted with the power to manipulate the odds. There's a reason that's worth a lifetime ban.

I know it's a little shallow doting on a Hollywood celebrity, but Robin Williams was one of those I grew up with and he was a man who actually believed in playing to children instead of just patronizing them. I don't expect everyone to love him, but man, he's one of the gems in my memory.

I haven't been this depressed since Gilda Radner died.