[Previous entry: "The Face of the Future"]

03/24/2007: "Farewell"

As of February 28th, the Book Oasis finally ceased to be! The space is empty, the fixtures sold or donated, and all we have left are the memories.

I first entered Book Oasis when it was under the ownership of Nancy Caldwell. She was a gracious woman with kind eyes and a direct voice. She treated every customer like a friend always made a point to ask how things were going in your life. I learned a lot from her.

When I bought the store from her in 1993, we settled the deal at Lyon's restaurant, and shook hands all around. When she came back to the store to pick up her stuff she was a bit teary-eyed. I gave her a big hug and promised that I would continue all the same traditions that she'd had. She thanked me, and then left, eventually moving to Fresno to be with her boyfriend, whom she later married.

Over the ensuing weeks, many customers greeted me with the perpetual question, "Where's Nancy?" Over time, though they switched their allegiance to me. It was slow going, but eventually I proved to be as versatile as she was. It required some unusual work on my part, though. I had to read several romance novels so as not to lose my most lucrative customer base! I also had to start expanding some sections, and terminating old ones. Men's Adventures (Mack Bolan, Death Merchant, etc.) were merged in with contemporary thrillers, while True Crime expanded into a section of its own. Religion disappeared for a while, and then, like Lazarus, was resurrected! Cookbooks grew from a small shelf in the back to a huge one all its own.

But amidst all the growth, there was still time for some adventures of my own. There was the Philodendron Experiment, in which I discovered quite by accident that Diet Pepsi makes excellent food for the philodendron! In fact, in less than a year the philodendron on top of my main bookshelf grew to an astonishing thirty-six feet in length! It might have grown longer, but I also discovered that such plant food makes the dirt smell especially bad after a certain amount of time!

Then there was the Sorcery Customer--a man who came in with a Gold Pentacle around his neck and a bold demand for a certain book on Sorcery! I found it for him, he tipped me $20, took his purchase, climbed into a cherry-red Camaro, and left in a squeal of rubber. I never saw him again, but I couldn't shake the image of a man who was in big hurry to send a message to the Netherworld. I hope it wasn't a Collect Call!

Over the ensuing years, a wide variety of customers came to call on Book Oasis, and many stayed loyal customers to the very end. To you all, friends, family, teachers, and loyal customers, I give a very hearty "Thanks!" It was fun while it lasted, but the presence of the Internet has changed the world radically. Still, thanks for giving me nearly fourteen years to enjoy my work!

If you want to continue reading my blog, go to http://www.myspace.com/parnassus and you'll see that it's updated pretty regularly.

Oh! before I forget, my first collection of poetry will soon be out. It's called, "Standing Apart". I'll be contacting a few local booksellers to ask them if they'll carry it. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I did writing it.

Take care one and all. I think of you all regularly.