New Year Musings
by Jack Guarnieri, Jersey Jack Pinball & PinballSales.com
Happy February! I’m back after a month off that I got because the January RePlay is the Directory issue and there’s no room for me.
Speaking of the Directory, remember when it had yearbook pages with photos of key manufacturer and distributor execs and sales people? If there was a contest for who had the largest number of different hairstyles, Paul Jacobs wins in my book. I really miss that feature. With RePlay celebrating its 50th anniversary this year, how about it, Eddie, can we bring back the pictures? (I imagine it’s quite a lot of work, you and the gang better start now!)
As for what you’re reading, I’ve been getting more readers texting or emailing me about my Jersey Jack column. I guess a few people read it. It’s very humbling. I’m all the way in the back of the magazine every month, just like the milk is in the back of the store. You have to wade through each wonderful article and advertisement before you can get to me. I love it!
January each year sees us take on resolutions of things to do, change, or try, perhaps something we may have never done before. Now that it’s February, I’d guess most of those resolutions are broken already.
I don’t say that to make you feel bad but to point out the obvious. Despite our best intentions, it is very difficult for us to change our behavior and habits. It’s hard, no matter what it is – to lose weight, exercise more, do this, stop that. I do have a suggestion, though. Before tackling drastic and large-scale change, maybe you should try something simple and easy first.
My grandfather telling my Uncle Pat something as he loads the heavy wooden Pepsi crates.
Years ago, I drank a lot of Pepsi. My OG Grandfather was one of the first Pepsi Cola distributors in New York City, so Pepsi was in my blood…and probably in my baby bottle. As I got older, I realized how much sugar and other stuff was added to the drink and one day, I just stopped drinking it. I also stopped adding sugar to my coffee. (After all, I was sweet enough – just ask my wife Joanne.) I felt better after the change. Now, I may have a Pepsi once a year, especially when I find a bottle that has real sugar in it, and when I do, it’s a real treat.
If you have a mountain to climb, just take the first small step and begin. Don’t dwell on the mountain top – you’ll get there eventually, one step at a time. The best time for me to plant a tree would have been 20 years ago, but today is the next best time to plant that tree!
The year just started. Every day is a gift, that’s why it’s called “the present.” Carpe diem – seize the day. Go make something happen! If your business is slow, stir things up and create opportunities. If your business is doing great, then you’re probably somewhere warm, like The Ritz in Aruba, and not reading this.
Jack Guarnieri started servicing electromechanical pinball machines in 1975 and has been involved in every phase of the amusement game business since then. He was an operator in NYC, then began a distributorship in 1999, PinballSales.com, selling coin-op to the consumer market. In January of 2011, he founded Jersey Jack Pinball (named after his RePlay Magazine pen name), which builds award-winning, full-featured, coin-op pinball machines. Email Jack at [email protected].
