What Happened Today, Which is a A Log of Nothingness that Nonetheless Seemed Quite Hectic.

1. Every day that I write a blog that doesn't sell something in particular is a day wasted.  I'm sure Mr. Vaynerchuk would be very upset with me if he were reading this.  Yes, I'm still reading The Thank You Economy, and thinking of all those corporations that are shuning social media.  If you email, Facebook, or blog comment to me, you will almost always get a quick answer.  I am terrible at Twitter and have done little more than register for Linked In and Foursquare.  Because I  am not looking for a job at the moment, I don't really know what to do with Linked in.  Don't forget, Vaynerchuk is here on Tuesday, April 26.  Register here.

 

2. I am now officially exhausted by events, after the high-intensity of Anne Lamott, Anchee Min, and Sister Spit in short order.  Michelle Tea and the Sister Spit gang may be edgetastic, but they were also sweetie pies.  I had this strange disconnect between the language/content of the performance pieces and their lovely demeanor.  We're convinced we could sell a lot more copies of MariNaomi's graphic novel, Kiss and Tell.  Tonight the extravaganza is at Bryant Lake Bowl. 

3. Something's in the air, and what that seems to be is that restaurants want help building book sections.  I had not one, but two appointments with restauranteurs that needed help in this.  Eh, what the heck?  One's a friend-o-Boswell and we'll make a small margin on passing through purchases, and the other was really nice and just wanted some quick advice.  Both bought something from us.  That's something, right?

4. At the Sendik's on Downer, I got a few day-after birthday wishes, and had a nice chat about book club selections.  Apparently Lord of Misrule is starting out slow, though I promised the vernacular dialect would soften by the middle of the book.  They just finished reading Just Kids.  I was curious because another group told me that Patti Smith's memoir would not be a good title for discussion.  She vehemently disagreed and said the talk went great.

5. Today I booked some eclectic events for the store.  You want a yoga for pregnancy book, you got it!  On the Miracle Ball, no less.  Details to follow.  We are also doing a women-and-money kind of book.  Stacie is looking for partners for both events, and when we have them in place, we'll announce them.  I also confirmed several events where nobody but me knew they were happening.  I kept putting the books on the event gondola, and someone else would take them off, with good reason.  Now it's official!

6. Oh, and then I bought some cards and restocked our booklights.  We decided to pick up some booklights that plug into USB ports.  Why would you need that when your screen is lit up?  "Yes, but your keyboard is not," Jason replied. So we got some.

7. And now it's off to introduce Valerie Laken, whose short story collection Separate Kingdoms has just been released.  Tomorrow it's Lee Sandlin at 2, with his Missisippi River history, Wicked River.