Confessions of a Curious Bookseller(22)
So, maybe it’s my fault for not calling ahead, but I drove all the way from Connecticut thinking I’d find a nice selection of books by Mark Twain. Instead I found mostly The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, which I’ve read before and actually own.
I’m disappointed to say the least. That said, I’ve never been to Philly. Might as well enjoy it while I’m here.
—George N.
phillysmallbiz.com
Sun, Dec 16, 2018
Dear George N.,
You are not alone in that the selection turned out to be not what was expected. However, had I sent out a notice, I don’t think anyone would have stopped by, which would have made sales unspeakably dismal. Hearing that you drove in all the way from Connecticut saddens me. It must have been somewhat of a disappointment to get here and see nothing but the same book. Trust me when I say that this is not how I had hoped it would turn out and that this is the end of my transaction with a certain seller who shall remain nameless.
I am glad you are looking at it the way Mark Twain may have: as an adventure. Philadelphia is a lovely city with much to see and explore, so while you are here you might as well go on some sightseeing tours and make the most of it. Don’t let something like this bring you down. I’m sure that if Mark Twain had spent a significant amount of time in Philadelphia, he may have written books on it.
Were you not offered a candy cane for the inconvenience?
Sincerely,
Fawn, Owner, The Curious Cat Book Emporium (a Mark Twain specialist store)
From: Fawn Birchill
Sent: Mon, Dec 17, 2018 at 8:05 AM
To: Staff
Subject: Candy Canes
Dear Staff,
Please make sure you are handing out candy canes to our customers who are disappointed in the Mark Twain selection. It may not seem like it, but it makes a difference!
Fawn, Owner
From: Fortieth Street Catering
Sent: Mon, Dec 17, 2018 at 9:10 AM
To: Fawn Birchill
Re: Delightful Mouthfuls
Hi Fawn,
With regrets, we cannot offer any discounts. Sorry about that.
Best,
Carl Suzuki
From: Fawn Birchill
Sent: Mon, Dec 17, 2018 at 11:14 AM
To: Fortieth Street Catering
Re: Delightful Mouthfuls
Dear Carl,
Thank you for your reply, but because you cannot provide me with the discounts that I requested, I will have to look for other means by which to feed my staff for our humble holiday party.
I miss the days when local businesses helped each other out, acted like neighbors, and got to know each other. Now everyone operates like they’ve been outsourced to China. There is no sense of community, and it saddens me. For most of my childhood and young adulthood, my father owned a general store and, though this was another time, he would pay for his milk deliveries in cigarettes. He would also give away free items to his loyal customers, rewarding them for their patronage. I knew his cognitive decline had begun, however, when I caught him giving away our cash register to the paperboy. Luckily, he couldn’t fit it on his bike, and I was there just in time to stop him. That said, my father had the right idea. Anyhow, this is just to say that the world is changing, I suppose. Sad and lonely times we live in.
Your neighbor in business,
Fawn, Owner, The Curious Cat Book Emporium (a Mark Twain specialist store)
phillysmallbiz.com
Mon, Dec 17, 2018
Top Review—Fortieth Street Catering
I can’t give more than one heart when it comes to poor service involving food. I hired them for a company function and not only were they forty minutes late, but the delivery boy smelled of marijuana. The food was thrown on the table like hunks of meat in a butcher shop; the receipt was oily with some strange substance stuck to it, and the food itself tasted like Ritz crackers without the salt. Even the baklava tasted like it had been in the refrigerator with an open can of old olives for a year before being served. The prices are extraordinarily high for what you get.
—Butterscotch
From: O’Hare Repair
Sent: Mon, Dec 17, 2018 at 1:02 PM
To: Fawn Birchill
Re: Business Arrangement
Fawn,
Sorry but price is fixed, and I only take hard American currency. I raise my two boys on my own so I gotta make a living. My families from Kerry, I think. Least that’s what my Dad said.
Cahill
From: Fawn Birchill
Sent: Mon, Dec 17, 2018 at 2:19 PM
To: O’Hare Repair
Re: Business Arrangement
Dear Cahill,
I find it absolutely fascinating that you know the exact county your ancestors came from (though you say you are first-generation, so that shouldn’t make it a challenge)! I hear Kerry is lovely. Have you ever visited the homeland? I have always wanted to be Irish myself. There is something appealing about it that I can’t put my finger on. A romanticism perhaps? An exoticism? A harkening back to an old world from long ago colored with songs of rebellion, gorgeous literature, attractive people, and heavy drinking? This is why, I believe, on Saint Patrick’s Day everyone claims to be a little Irish. It is similar to how white people claim to have Native American heritage—except, in the case of the Irish, it is for only one day a year and not all year round.
My background, on the other hand, is strictly English, but my father always pressed the idea that we were nothing more than American, which I always found dreadfully dull. It must be nice to have a sense of belonging and heritage elsewhere as well as here.