Let's make it official

I had a task to do, but I don’t often find myself in this part of the city. It is way downtown and east of where I am, and there is usually a mission involved - jury duty usually, or maybe some legal box-checking of some kind. Today, my mission was connected to the application I’m creating (gonna start using that word so it feels more…creative!). I needed to get a legit Business Certificate - for my DBA status, (Doing Business As) - for the Sole Proprietorship of PayMusicians. (< Click if you’re curious. I know you are.)

Is it weird that I was excited to go to 60 Centre street? I mean people don’t normally like to do this kind of stuff. But I have started to understand (and honestly, if this is the only thing that happens in my heart around all of this, I think I’d be okay), I’ve started to understand how people can feel chuffed around the creation of a business! It’s really not unlike art - you make a hat…where there was no hat, as Mr. Sondheim would say. It’s is indeed creation - granted, a much longer arc than songwriting for me - more like an epic poem.

But yes, it can actually feel romantic to get these necessary things done. And nostalgic in this case! I needed to get the form to fill out first. I timed it for after the jury duty crowd had trundled in, arriving at 10AM. Nobody in the security line. Check. Greeted the lovely security folks as I passed through, dumping all my pockets out and attempting to re-fill them afterwards (put a pin in that). Then I backtracked to the entrance as the policeman at the front told me to return to the pocket-sized kiosk tucked away in the corner to purchase a copy of the form I would need. For three dollars. I mean, how 1972 is that? Hahah!! Literally getting the official form from the magazine/coffee stand?

The proprietor told me to head to the basement with my form - and I stepped in here:

I am always a bit blown away at how lovely this austere building is. The ceiling mural is stunning and the marble floor patterns and statuary… what a grand place to work, visit, practice law…. There was a time, when I was a teenager, when I was quite enthralled with the law and all things US History. (I looked into being a page in the Senate…) This place does weirdly give me a sense of pride about our country and its institutions. As unpopular as that may be in some circles.

I head to the basement to find myself the ONLY customer in the business area. A nice young man, John, helps me fill out the forms, does a remarkable amount of stamping and sealing on my certificate. We are surrounded by shelves of huge ancient books - all holding business records from the long gone days of pre-computer filing (1996 and earlier). I find it all…yes, romantic.

John walks me to the cashier and notary office. (He walks me there - that is actually the protocol.) He’s been there two months and seems to like it so far. He loves the building, too, and enjoys that his division is pretty quiet - he is a quiet fellow himself, and quite adorable.

I pay my fee, John drops me off there, makes lunch plans with his co-workers there (Italian today), and then I get notarized (for free) right there in another short line. The notary is wearing one of those tall hats that hold dreadlocks. He hails from Trinidad. Kieran. He shows a real smile when I ask his name. I tend to do that these days to break the ice. Some, like John, are initially a little suspicious about why I want to know their name. The friendly default has been replaced with trepidation lately. Understandable. I push through that as much as possible to reinforce the friendly part.

And here is my glorious booty:

Yes, the application build has been my central focus for a while now, and the learning continues. There are days where things surge ahead, and days where they stall, go backwards a bit, get a re-think and adjustment, and then get back on track. A familiar rhythm for many - very new to me. But when I think of it, not that dissimilar to creative pursuits - I just think it was not my expectation of the process. Maybe, because it seemed a more dry and technical process from the outside, I thought it would simply be a slow slope upwards to completion. Why did I think this? Life isn’t like that, is it? That being said, if I stretch the arc out - I can see that slope. While I’m in it, it feels like a lurching rollercoaster - but the gentler upward arc is there when I step back and take it in.

I think I’m about two weeks away from a “soft launch” of the beta version! I’ll have a few artists on board and a few listeners/supporters, too - to test the pipes and make sure everything is secure and functioning well. That’ll be the first wave. Then it will grow, and in the next version, become easier to use on my end (a lot of manual work to maintain in the first version, as expected) - and be even more robust, fun and convenient for the users, as well. I’ll be learning about how to do proper outreach then.
If you’d like to be in on the fun from the beginning, you can check out the idea and sign up HERE!