Saturday, August 18, 2012

Saturday, August 25, 2012

Two events yesterday, one by a workman who doesn't "shiv a git," the other by a workman who does.

The U. P. S. driver ran in with a package and a carton. But they were for the fellow who used to have a shop here at 1310 Glenwood Avenue. The package was obviously very heavy. And it had been sent UPS/Air. "Pretty expensive package," as the driver said. "He probably needs it in a hurry," I said.
     "That's just too bad," said the driver, preparing to leave. "These go back to U.P.S. They'll get in touch with him Monday."
     On the driver's behalf, I admit U.P.S. drives its workers. You are given unbearable workloads, and you better perform or else. So, the driver couldn't wait while we looked up where the previous shopkeeper had moved to. But I bet that package cost a hundred dollars to ship. (I got a tiny 8 oz. ground shipment from Kentucky the same day: cost ten dollars!

Meanwhile, I'm working on an index for an academic study of Greensboro's ":Truth and Reconciliation Commission," written by Prof. Spoma Jovanovic, to be published October 30th by the University of Arkansas Press, in their "Southern History" series. Spoma's project editor, David Cunningham, keeps sending me these tiny suggestions for how to improve the index, adding hours to my task (it's a fifty hour job, to begin with). But he's so helpful. He sends me links so I can access The Chicago Manual of Style ((using his password). I become reliant on his savvy and willingness to help. He so obviously wants a perfect index. Well, so do I. He's just a workperson doing his job . . . well. And he, too, has deadlines to which he must adhere, just like the U.P.S. driver . . .

Sunday, August 12, 2012

Monday, August 13, 2012

The New York Times has finally recognized Occupy Frankfurt. Occupy Frankfurt deserves recognition because it has been outdoors, tenting, continuously since October, 2011. It occupies a site across from the central bank of the European Euro. In its first and probably its last article ever about Occupy Frankfurt, the NYT failed to mention why those valiant occupiers are camping out in cold, rain, or blistering hot sun. But it doesn't take a donkey with a load of bricks to figure it out. No, the reason the NYT has finally had an article about our brothers and sisters in Frankfurt is the police supporters of the Euro's Central Bank have finally used their weaponry and armor to oust the Frankfurt Occupiers, after not quite 12 months.
     Nor is this the first August black ink print on the very Occupy Movement the NYT has declared dead time after time. Earlier this month, the grandly advertiseable Sunday Times Magazine, the flagship, the veritable mothership of this once-great newspaper (yes, it was a great newspaper in the 19th Century), this mother of all newspapers, had its cover title article on . . . Occupy Oakland. Yep, our Occupy Oakland. But, here, too, the reporters had difficulty mentioning why there is an Occupy Oakland, what they're occupying, or why. The only news in that article was that Occupy Oakland exists, aside from writing about it so as to elicit advertising, to trash the city of Oakland, to cause extra expense to its police department, to give grief to its mayor, to be a nuisance to its merchants, and to otherwise cause trouble. Imagine all these people, at great risk from beatings, tear gas, arrest, imprisonment and pepper spray wounds, taking time off from work (those who haven't yet been fired or laid off) and spending all their time and strength only to break windows and tear up street signs. Strange, isn't it? You'd think the Pulitzer Prize-winning reporters of the world's leading newspapers would dig a little deeper into such a bizarre way to conduct yourself. You would certainly look in vain, in page after colorful page, for a single mention of, say, "99%." Or a single word against "Bank of America." There isn't a single word about "foreclosure" for example, Nor a single word about utility rate increases or political corruption or sleezy politicians or stupid reporters. No sir. The only reason these hard-hitting dirt-digging reporters could find for the existence of Occupy Oakland, aside from giving reporters reason to write about them, was to break window glass on poor shopkeeper's windows. Shame on you occupiers, Oakland! Can't you find something better to do? Cheat some widow or orphan? Do . . . something!

Friday, August 10, 2012

Friday, August 10, 2012

Glenwood Coffee & Books is located at 1310 Glenwood Avenue, Greensboro, NC 27403. We have an email address, mainly used for correspondence to do with events: Glenwoodcoffeeandbooks@gmail.com.
     Maureen "Mo" Kessler and I are partners in this (ad)venture. I'm "Al," Alan Brilliant, a bookseller, publisher, bookmaker, bookman all my life. (A long life as I'm 76.)
     My friend, Charlie Headington, says I should do a bookshop blog. Charlie says this because I'm forever writing and publishing journals. For example, I just pubished Book Shop Journal. And, in the next few weeks, I'll be bringing out my Occupy Journal and my Publishing Journal. Meanwhile, I'm hard at work on two new journals, for 2013 publication: The Co-op Journal and The Nice Journal.
     My first journal, published in '09, was The Bus Journal. And it's had a lot of success, since it is used as a text book in several colleges and universities and even Greensboro's Dudley High School. After Bus Journal, I published Bike Journal. But a fellow I "dissed" in one of the paragraphs in this 150-page book, threatened to sue me, so I immediately withdrew that title from circulation. I'll be issuing it again in an edited, abridged version that removes the lawsuit threat. (Ironically, the threater was for all his life a professor of creative writing for MFA fools. I'm not saying he's a fool . . . God forbid! He'll sue me again! I believe anyone who spends good money to get their MFA, believing it will make them an (ugh) writer is a fool. As for the people who make money teaching these fools, I have no opinion about them.
     However, here in the South, grouchy writing like I just did is severely frowned upon, so I take it all back. That's why I'm writing my Nice Journal. It's a really nice journal, full of nice things I say about people and places and, well, e v e r y t h i n g. Everythng's nice. Everything's swell. Get it?
     Anyone complains my journals are bitter or at least not sweet, I hand them a copy of . . . The Nice Journal. "Wow," they say, "Al's a really nice guy. Look how nice he is!"
     If you're thinking South in these hard times, reflect on what I just said . . .

So that's what this here b l o g  b l o g  b l o g will be about or not. Just so you know what you're gettin' into. And what I'm getting into. What we're getting into! Good luck. God bless you. Good-night.
     I say, "Good night," because it's 11 p.m. and a pop punk rock band is playing in the back room of the bookshop. Pretty loud amplified music. But, not bad. Just kind of, like, noisy.Last word today is about this here "bad" economy. You see, the economy isn't bad. It's bad for you. But not for everyone. It's just we're not part of the one per cent! Yeah. Think about that!