Drum store

First, a little background - Waco only has three music instrument stores. We'll call them stores A, B, and C. Store A caters specifically to schools and only supplies marching bands and school orchestras. Store B is partially owned by Ted Nugent and mostly carries speakers, amps, mixing boards, and other electronic stuff. It also has an archery range upstairs. I'll occasionally buy drumsticks there, but that's all. Store C is probably the most well-rounded of the three carrying a little bit of everything, but their prices are outrageous, and their customer service is awful...at least towards drummers, anyway. Consequently, we buy nearly all KJ's drum equipment online. This works okay, but it would be nice to try stuff out before you buy, be able to get something without waiting for it to be shipped, and we have accidentally ordered the wrong part before.

A couple of weeks ago David and I were listening to positively awful poetry (it was open mic night) at Beatnix when I noticed an ad in the City Review. It was for a new music store called Drums and More Music. The address was on 19th St., but since that street practically crosses all of Waco we weren't sure where it was located. I kept the ad and had been meaning to go check out the store when I had time. A few days ago, KJ and I had several errands to run so I told him we would find the store. I called the number listed in the ad and asked where they were located. The man who answered gave me the address (which I already had), so I asked what they were near so I would know which part of 19th St. they were on. He asked me if I knew where Kelly's Bar B'Que was. I had a vague image of passing it so I at least knew the general area he was talking about, so I told him that I thought I knew where it was. Then he asked me if I knew where 19th St. Liquor was. Ummmmm, I'm assuming on 19th St., but no, I didn't recall ever seeing it. He said they were behind the liquor store. I asked what cross street was near. He said, "Reuter," and I told him that I could find it. KJ and I were off.

We headed down 18th St. (it eventually runs into the business part of 19th) towards the area in which I used to teach, which incidentally is in the "hood." We eventually passed Kelly's Bar B'Que, but I didn't see any drum store yet. When we crossed Reuters, I asked KJ if he saw anything yet. Nope, neither of us saw anything looking like a drum store. That's when I realized that 18th hadn't merged with 19th yet. We needed to move over a block. We turned around a little further down, got on 19th St. and looked for Reuter again. Uh, KJ...this doesn't look like a good neighborhood. This isn't it. (Note: I took the pics later.)

Here? Nope, not to Reuter yet.

Maybe I should just stop for a drink...

Oh crap, we just crossed Reuters and I was talking instead of looking. Another U-Turn. Oh, Oh, there's 19th St. Liquor. We must be close.

I backed up and we looked down one side of the store (from inside the car). We didn't see anything and no way, were we going to walk down that alley.

I pulled forward and turned to look on the other side. Does that small sign say "Music?"

I turned on the side street to get a better look. Yep, that's what it said.

By this time, I was pretty sure we were not getting out of the car. What's that back there? The sign says "Drums and More Music."

So did this sign.

We pulled over to discuss the situation. I got my cell phone ready, and we got out of the car. We stepped around the trash, being careful of the crumbling parking lot, and gingerly made our way towards the entrance. There are apartments above the stores and the outside stairway was littered with beer bottles and trash. The door to the drum store was open and we stepped inside. It was a garage, concrete walls, one of which was painted purple, and a concrete floor. There was one of those HUGE box fans to my left, brand new drum sets and cymbals everywhere, a gong to my right, and an aging rocker hippie with a grey beard almost to his navel, sitting in the corner eating a corn dog and reading one of Laurell K. Hamilton's Anita Blake books. Being the proud owner of an Anita Blake Fan Club T-shirt, I relaxed some. He hopped up and instantly put us at ease. He's a drummer who wanted to fill a need for a drum store with very little overhead.

He and KJ talked. KJ played on different drums and cymbals, and they discussed drum heads. I had not really intended to buy anything, but I had been meaning to get KJ new cymbals for awhile. Drum man had layaway so I put a cymbal pack in layaway, and he let KJ take the high-hats HOME even though I obviously haven't finished paying for them yet. Also, on our way out the door, he handed KJ a new pair of drum sticks and said to see how he liked them.

I told KJ this was a good example of not judging a book by its cover.