The Old Man Behind the Counter

Some people dream of becoming rich or famous or having a big house. If they could win the lottery - then life would be grand! But not me. Just give me a little house that's paid for, a car that runs - OK, maybe a little nicer than that, but nothing too fancy - food in my belly and a wife and son that love me, and I'm happy.

My dream is simply to be the old guy behind the counter with no worries, mate, hoping you found what you were looking for and that you have a nice day. Now THAT would be grand!

Learning!

Yesterday afternoon I spent at The Bookcase in Wayzata talking with owner, Charlie Leonard.  Beforehand though, I got to have lunch with my dad (one of my biggest fans) at a restaurant nearby.  We had planned to go to a little place that he & Jacquie love, but it was filled to the brim with a Red Hat Ladies group.  So we went down the block to a Sushi & Japanese restaurant.  How bad could Japanese be? I said.  Well, it was very good, but 95% of the menu was sushi & the only things in English were tempura & several kinds of fish!  Pretty funny, since we didn't want to try sushi - I draw the line with having eel for lunch.  I'm sorry. Can't go there in my food rules. Anyway, we had a great time talking.

After lunch I went over to The Bookcase & met Charlie. I picked his brain on everything I could bookstore related.  Very knowledgeable man.  They have a great store that he just purchased two years ago.  They do a ton of author signings & events, have been in existence for 50 years & are very well connected in the community.  The reason I wanted to do a mini-internship there is because the type of books they carry are very similar to what I would like in my store. Plus, it is connected to a Caribou coffee, just like we will be (only a Dunn Bros).

Charlie is graciously allowing me to come & observe any event that I would like & also I can come & hang out in his store & see how the daily business works there. I especially want to check out an author signing.  They have several each week & lately they have been getting alot of very well known authors.  I also want to check out a book club. I had the privilege to meet one of his Book Club leaders. She was very sweet & well seasoned in books. You know, one of those people who ooze literary knowledge? She hosts the Mystery Book Club. 

It was a great day!  I'll keep you posted as I make other visits there.

Welcome!

Well, here it is finally!  Our new blog for the store!  I'm so excited to have this up & running, although it is a work in progress as I add pictures, links, & stuff.  I hope you'll check back regularly as you may be surprised as to what shows up here.  Mike, my husband, will also be adding his own thoughts here too!  He is an experienced blogger so it should be good.  Feel free to post comments, insights, and suggestions.  I want this bookstore to be a community hangout, so since the storefront isn't open yet, we'll use this format instead.  Also drop by our Facebook Fanpage (should be up this week), our Twitter page, and our website. Thanks again for hanging out with us!