<HTML><BODY style="word-wrap: break-word; -khtml-nbsp-mode: space; -khtml-line-break: after-white-space; "><BR><DIV><DIV>On Jun 9, 2006, at 3:16 PM, Mark Cramer wrote:</DIV><BR class="Apple-interchange-newline"><BLOCKQUOTE type="cite"><SPAN class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; border-spacing: 0px 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; text-align: auto; -khtml-text-decorations-in-effect: none; text-indent: 0px; -apple-text-size-adjust: auto; text-transform: none; orphans: 2; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; "><P class="MsoNormal" style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; "><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Bookman Old Style'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Arial Unicode MS'; font-size: 13.3333px; "><SPAN class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Bookman Old Style; font-size: 13.3333px; ">(I used to think piano owners/sales persons were the biggest perpetrators of </SPAN><SPAN class="130431019-09062006"><SPAN class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Bookman Old Style; font-size: 13.3333px; ">"</SPAN></SPAN><SPAN class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Bookman Old Style; font-size: 13.3333px; ">piano-tuning myths,” but you might be surprised at the fanciful notions some of “us” have cultivated… myself included!</SPAN><SPAN class="130431019-09062006"><SPAN class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Bookman Old Style; font-size: 13.3333px; ">?</SPAN></SPAN><SPAN class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Bookman Old Style; font-size: 13.3333px; "> Yipes! ;>)</SPAN><O:P style="font-family: Bookman Old Style; font-size: 13.3333px; "></O:P></SPAN></P><BR class="Apple-interchange-newline"></SPAN></BLOCKQUOTE></DIV><BR><DIV>Of course! It makes more sense that the myths we fight today were creations of our own predecessors in the name of competition. Why else would anyone have been led to believe that a piano will remain in tune at least 6 months, or longer?</DIV><DIV><BR class="khtml-block-placeholder"></DIV><DIV>And, yet, today, wise technicians, like yourself, understand that, because of these myths, you can't tell customers what the real truths are, lest you open the door for your customer to question your competence and/or business ethics. Because the myths are more believable than the truth.</DIV><DIV><BR class="khtml-block-placeholder"></DIV><DIV>By far, the hardest question for me to answer is when that customer asks, "so, how often should my piano be tuned?" </DIV><DIV><BR class="khtml-block-placeholder"></DIV><DIV>Every answer will be wrong.</DIV><DIV><BR class="khtml-block-placeholder"></DIV><DIV>Jeff</DIV><BR>P.S. The second hardest question to answer is "what time of year is best to have my piano tuned?" Around here, everyone is always waiting for the weather to settle. It never does.<DIV><BR><DIV> <SPAN class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; border-spacing: 0px 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; text-align: auto; -khtml-text-decorations-in-effect: none; text-indent: 0px; -apple-text-size-adjust: auto; text-transform: none; orphans: 2; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; "><DIV>Jeff Tanner, RPT</DIV><DIV>University of South Carolina</DIV><DIV><BR class="khtml-block-placeholder"></DIV><BR class="Apple-interchange-newline"></SPAN> </DIV><BR></DIV></BODY></HTML>