Mainland China - (410,368,201) / Thousand Palms, California - (1)

We are being bombarded with products every day made in China. More and more businesses are leaving California because of the hostile environment that big business is forced to operate in. This has lead to smaller, leaner companies to pick up the pieces - so I guess we're one of them. I am happy to tell you that we are building a totally custom, one-of-a-kind pool table made from curly maple and walnut and we are exporting it to China. Now, this may be a speck of fly-dung in a room full of black pepper, but I can tell you it feels good to export something to that country.

Take the time to look around you and see what California is left with - a whole lot of boutique businesses - and we are getting stronger, more competitive, doing business OUR way. I personally find a lot of pleasure in designing custom pool tables and poker tables. Customers delight in having a hand in the manufacturing process. In the case of the China export, a nationally known architect located here in the Palm Springs area has contracted with us to produce this one-of-a-kind pool table. Now let's just hope in six months they don't replicate it and flood our market with my little beauty.


Photos to follow, I assure you.

Take to the Air

Are you ready to fly? Check it out:

Let's have a drink to fun!

God bless creativity and the minds that come up with some of the coolest things to make our homes fun and innovative. I was walking through the airport in Minneapolis a few months ago and saw a sign that read, "The technology that will drive our business five years from now has not even been thought of yet." It's hard to imagine the new inventions that will make our homes fun, comfortable, and unique to us in the future. Although what I'm going to talk about today is not necessarily "techie," it is innovative and it brings a smile to the face of anybody who sees it. What the ultimate gameroom/home bar needs to look great is a martini that always looks fresh, or a mug of beer with a full head, capturing that "chilled" look, just waiting for a first sip, or a kitchen displaying the perfect dessert. Years ago while in Japan, I marveled at the art of fake sushi and seafood products that were displayed everywhere you went, from restaurants to food stores. Although those of us in America don't really rely on this as a form of advertising, it IS a form of fun - being able to display something like this in our kitchens, gamerooms and bars.

Enjoy our little slideshow - there are many products to choose from, but we chose those which we thought were the best of the best. With the addition of any one or more of these products, you'll be able to "come home to fun."

Cheers.

P.S. This weekend (October 16th and 17th) from 10:00AM-4:00PM, Gameroom Gallery is helping out Whistler’s Photography for their 2nd Annual Bikini Cycle and Car wash benefiting local animal shelters. Where? Keith McCormick’s Exotic Cars, located at 244 N. Indian Canyon & Amado in Palm Springs. In celebration of American Heat Weekend, we’ll be raffling off a Harley Davidson Pool Cue worth $260, as well as a $50 gift certificate from Lucky Puppy and a $100 pet gift basket donated by Animal Samaritans SPCA, Inc. Beautiful models washin’ for a beautiful cause, a live remote with 99.5 The Heat, great food from Manhattan in the Desert, and an appearance by Valerie Kattz! Don’t miss out on this awesome event. Come out and have some fun with us! For more information please visit our website, Whistler's Photography or the Facebook event page!

The Next "Big Thing"

Every once in a while, a new product comes on the market that fills a gap. The little device in the picture below is called the "Cue-it-up" and is basically a portable clamp that can travel with you (for you league players) and be clamped onto the edge of any pub table or similar surface and can be used as a cue stabilizer. There is nothing like being able to lean your trusted cue against this device knowing your cues are not going to end up sliding off and hitting the floor while you reset the balls. It's nice when a device so simple can do exactly what you want it to do with complete portability. And the price? You can't beat it! Under $20. (We even have a few in our showroom that are signed by the creator, Robin Dodson.) And if you're reading this from out of the Palm Springs area, for the next 30 days I'll cover your freight on one of these for FREE (within the continental United States.) This would be a great gift at Christmas time as well. As always, feel free to call us with any questions you have about your experience with pool, pinball, jukeboxes, or just about anything fun for your home gameroom.

Play on!

Pinball for your home

You don't have to have deep pockets to have fun at home, whether you're all alone or with a houseful over the holidays. The most important focus is to select the game that's right for you. First, try to back into your selection with a budget. It's no fun to spend more than you want, whether it's a car, a house or a pinball. Early Bally pinballs had unique themes and a certain feel, and you'll only know what I mean after playing one. Gottlieb's again had a unique feel, and the mid-late 70's Gottlieb's featured unique colors that were really reminiscent of that time. Try to make a point to search out and play some of these classic pinballs. There is a lot of focus on the new models, and you still get a lot of bang for your buck with the classics. From time to time, we do get the classics and I am a little anal about just which ones I pick up. Feel free to give me a call with any of your pinball questions.

Keep flippin'.

Pool Table Placement

In an effort to bring fun into your home, one of the most universal ideas is the addition of a pool table. But what room shall we put it in? Or even more importantly, is there really room inside the house? Olhausen recommends that if you want to have an 8' pool table in your home, and you want to use a full sized 57" cue, you should have a room size no smaller than 13'2" by 16'10". Now, these dimensions are not cast in stone due to the fact that with the advent of great quality short cues (42", 48" and 52") we can make a lot work in your home. By next week, you will be able to refer to our website at www.jukeboxbiz.com and download a grid that will allow us to see in detail the exact dimensions for your room. Of course, if you would like the grid now, you can always email or call us and we'd be more than happy to email one back to you. You can also call any of us at Gameroom Gallery for a free, personal, one-on-one consultation.

And remember... try to inject a little bit of fun into every day.

Summer Ends, Fun Begins

We just can't seem to pack enough into each day between work, family, home life, errands... But unless we carve out "me" time or "fun" time, nobody is going to grab you by the collar and force you to have fun or take time out. So it is, with a smile on my face, that I urge all of you to remember once more how important it is to play. As I type these words, I too have to understand the meaning for my own well-being. The beginning of fall and cooler weather helps to bring focus back indoors. If any of you need a little tutoring or assistance on just what will fit into your home, whether it be garage, basement (not likely on the West Coast,) or any spot that you would like to make fun appear, or enjoy fun times with the family, just contact me either through this blog or my personal email address, jukeboxbiz@hotmail.com. We have just put together a grid that you will be able to download, along with templates of everything from pool tables and poker tables to pinball machines, bars and entertainment centers. This is an easy way for anybody to get a clearer vision of what you can actually have room for in your home. Now, remember - it is so easy to change the feeling of a room by adding the correct artwork to "theme it up." Neon has been recognized since the 1940's as being one of the most feel-good forms of art you can bring into your game room. Feel free to visit our website (www.jukeboxbiz.com) anytime to get a feel for how your home can be transformed. Stay tuned for more good ideas this fall.

Have a happy, safe, and most of all FUN Labor Day Weekend.