Bill listen to your wife sometimes enough is enough,...when you have to battle against FREE now matter how good people think they are it really doesn't matter anymore, AD's have a certain budget to stretch out thru the year and have to do what is necessary to make it last....a saving grace is hopefully when your out there playing for peanuts someone visiting may see you ask for a card for a future Private event where you can cash in at your regular rates and something may come of it. Think of these cheap NH gigs as a practice session to try out material. there is much more avenues to take as a musician if you have the passion and talent. The LIVE music world is a very different place then when we grew up...good luck buddy.