Dan's Not Calm

Originally published in BeatRoute Magazine

By: Drew Anderson

Standing watch on the corner of 11th Avenue and MacLeod Trail is a strange object made of old trinkets. Most people drive by, too busy commuting to take a second look at the sculpture and the store that it fronts. Those with a healthy amount of curiosity will be satisfied when they walk under the gaze of a plastic clown, through the door, and enter the wonderful world of Dan's Not Calm.

Passing through the threshold, senses are overwhelmed. The walls and counters are covered in velvet paintings, coconut monkey sculptures, a plasma buddha, old-school naked lady pens, politically incorrect black Americana, lava lamps and a multitude of other collectibles. CBC radio plays over the speakers and the smell of smoke envelopes the thick air. Dan, silver haired and casual, relaxes, leaning back with his feet on the counter and a cigarette between his fingers.

Dan Moore has run this store for the past four years, but has been collecting his impressive horde of goods for the past twenty. His store-front, a former donair shop, is located in a sort of pedestrian no-man's land on MacLeod Trail, right next door to the new Haymarket café and bookstore.

Moore is on the friendly side of eclectic store owners; not imposing or ingratiating, just friendly. As two punked-out kids walk through the door, Moore greets them with a friendly hello and then continues to relax behind his well worn desk. He even runs what he calls a "professional concierge service," keeping requests for items in a rolodex in case he tracks something down.

He estimates that there are around 200 people in that rolodex at the moment, waiting for Johnny Seven One Man Army weapons, Star Wars memorabilia and every other hard-to-find trinket you can think of.

"Treat people as you want to be treated," says Moore, "it's a very simple rule. Sometimes it's very hard to do…"
"I can't fire myself, so I might as well do something I think is actually worthwhile."

This store is meant for browsing, for losing yourself in the clutter. And you can certainly do just that.

"That's the trick of the store," says Moore, "I have to pack it up really big, really dense. So when you come in, you can come in five or six times, look at exactly the same stuff and see a different thing."

Moore's favourite piece at the moment is a collapsible nickel-plated puzzle bank from 1897. It also happens to be one of the more expensive items on display, checking in at about $250. It is placed in a large glass cupboard at the back of the store along with other cherished items: an autographed Leave it to Beaver, Beav and Wally photograph signed when they were still young, a plaster of paris stuffed beaver tale with hair still clinging to its base among others.

These are among the rare items, not just for what they are, but also for their price. Dan's Not Calm is not an upscale boutique, and its prices reflect the more down to earth atmosphere.
Some of his items even end up on movie sets.

"I had a lamp make it into Brokeback Mountain," says Moore, obviously amused. Other items end up on sets, though he doesn't keep track.

Moore clearly enjoys his work, though he didn't set out to run an eclectic pop culture emporium.

After working in a design studio, doing computer and IT work as well as taking physics engineering at school for two years, Moore finally gave in to his ability to find unique objects that other people wanted.

"I'll pick it up because it's unusual; people seem to like my sensibilities when it comes to picking up things," he explains.
As for the name: "I wanted to have a store that sounded like a website that wasn't - so that in the event that I ever do put a website together, it will be Dan's Not Calm dot com," explains Moore with a chuckle.

And the name messes with people.

"Weirdest one I ever had. Some poor guy, I think he had dyslexia, said: 'So why's the store Dan's Not Clam?' And I didn't have the heart to say, read that carefully. I just said 'I don't sell seafood.'"

With Christmas carols already assaulting eardrums in the malls, Dan's Not Calm is an oasis of shopping, with fare that you will not find anywhere else.

"Goat hair pictures of shepherds. Who comes up with these things?" asks Moore, looking at a wall hanging.