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Tag: Books and Bistro (Page 62 of 92)

Snow-Capped Cars Beware.

February 12, 2014 /

Maybe today will be the day. The afternoon that last week’s snow will finally melt from the top of the car.

I’ve been driving the Sherman-Tank van since turning an icy 180 in the Firebird – despite my cautious approach. The van just doesn’t do things like that. And with all the dire weather warnings, I’ve just been playing it safe.

Consequently, the car – parked in a spot that is always hidden from the sun – still has a good layer of snow.

They’re saying maybe mid-forties this afternoon, which might melt it. I can’t recall snow staying on the ground for this length of time in Oklahoma. Maybe that’s what caused some folks to forget how to drive.

This morning’s award goes to the fellow who pulled onto Elm in front of the oncoming traffic despite the rapid approach of the cars. (I was in the right-hand lane doing 45 – the posted limit. The cars in the left lane were passing me rapidly but had to hit the brakes.) He drove 35 or 40 mph for about a mile and then he suddenly sped up, whizzed past on the left, and then changed lanes in front of me.

Then slowed down to 35 or 40 again.

I hit the brakes.

He turned right on 91st without a turn signal, and then sped ahead in the right hand lane. I turned behind him and watched him speed away ahead of me while I stayed within the posted 40 mph limit. At Main Street, he suddenly swerved across my path and made a left-hand turn from the right-hand lane.

About thirty yards north of the intersection, he abruptly made a complete U-turn in the center of Main. I was turning as he rolled through a red light and turned right, back onto 91st.

I wanted to count up the number of traffic violations he’d managed in the course of a mile or so, but it was way too early, too cold, and too common in Broken Arrow to make note of.

Except I just did, I guess.

Oops.

Be careful out there, and take advantage of the forty-degree heat wave. Come visit!

McHuston

Booksellers & Irish Bistro
Rose District
122 South Main St. Broken Arrow OK!

So many books. So little time.

February 6, 2014 /

It’s a project – but it is there to be tackled and there is no more putting it off. I’ve got to write all the books in the store.

Well, that isn’t EXACTLY true. The books have been written by their authors, of course. I’ve just got to list the titles to display them on the internet. Before the move to the Rose District, there were a couple of thousand titles listed for sale on the web, through the seller’s consortium Alibris.

During the confusion of re-shelving the inventory, a number of titles sold through the Alibris website. Ooops. Could not find them. Moving. Storage. Packing. Unpacking.

Can’t cancel a sale through Alibris, or they lower the seller’s rating. So. I had to buy copies from other dealers to send to my internet customers. Not always profitable. In fact, since our internet prices were generally set as the lowest in the country, it was usually impossible to find a replacement at a lower price.

After several internet-sales losses, I had the online inventory deleted. Bam! It’s gone.

There are some books that I’m fairly certain will never sell in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma. Even in the new Rose District location.

So.

The listing has begun. While realizing it will take a good amount of time to upload a significant number of titles, I have to start somewhere. Consider the project begun with the first books photographed, described, and uploaded to the new website sub-sections. You can find them under the BOOKS listing on the Main Menu header.

And to think: back in high school I thought I would never have a use for that silly typing class.

There are only two books online now. A mere start. Plenty on the shelves though, so –

Come visit!

(Oh. And if you wondered about the Facebook-link quote: ‘Tol de rol lol lol, right fol lairy, Work’us,’ said Noah. It’s from Oliver Twist, spoken by Noah, the Undertaker’s apprentice to young Oliver. Makes no sense to me either, but I can identify with the Work’us part.)

McHuston

Booksellers & Irish Bistro
Rose District
122 South Main St. Broken Arrow, OK!

Snow news is good news. (Not.)

February 3, 2014 /

It isn’t any clearer now than before watching the forecast on the TV news. I’ve already scoured the internet looking for tips on what to expect in the morning. Talk about confusing.

As I read the thing, there is a 40% chance of sleet after 1am and a 90% chance of sleet before 7am. Really? What does that mean, exactly? The chances for sleet increase, I guess. But then, there’s this other snow part that talks about the percentage-possibility of snow during that same time frame.

Sounds a lot like hedging bets to me.

Maybe they aren’t too sure how it’s going to work itself out. And that is exactly what I need to know.

If it is a less than 50-50 chance of snow and sleet, maybe I better be bedding down instead of sitting in front of the tube trying to understand the forecast, so I can get back to the shop early to peel potatoes and carrots and get the lunch service ready – in case there is no snow. Isn’t that what a 50-50 chance means? Maybe it will. Maybe it won’t.

Snow.

Maybe the 50-50 means no. Nah. No snow. Or just a dusting. In which case, I need to be prepared.

On the other hand, if it is as dire as they seem to imply – what is the point of cooking up Irish stew and potato soup and hand-mashed potatoes when only those with monster-trucks, snowboards, and tennis-rackets strapped to their feet will be able to make it through?

And those folks likely won’t be looking for Irish Bistro carry-out. Probably a Reasor’s-run for Coors Light.

I can jump in behind the wheel, head to the bed, and find myself buried in tomorrow morning. Or I could make a pallet on the floor here at the shop and be ready, however it works out. (Not a comfortable sleep, I’ll admit.)

It reminds me of an afternoon I was working the microphone and had just delivered a weather forecast. Wrapped it up and took off the headphones. The phone rang.

Person on the phone: You just said there was a chance of rain on Saturday.

Me: Uh-huh.

Person, nervously: Well, I’m having an outdoor wedding on Saturday and I need to know if it is going to rain or not. And if it is, I need to know what time it is going to start and how long it is going to last.

Me: Uh. I think you’ve dialed the wrong number. The person in charge of the rain starting and stopping isn’t here.

So there it is. I’m supposedly older and wiser, and here I am hoping for the same sort of exact information that my caller demanded for her wedding all those years ago. She seemed silly to me at the time. And now, here I am looking for the same precise weather-tips. But, hey! Hasn’t technology advanced just a little since those old days?

Isn’t there a radar that can clue us in this techno-age?

Nah.

It’s just sit and wait. Watch and listen. Look out the back door. Look up at the sky. Wait a while. If it does start snowing, imagine if it is the kind that will keep on and on and will fill the streets and intersections beyond recognition. Sniff the air. Might it end after six or seven minutes?

It is beyond the mere mortals.

I can only try to imagine who will be out tomorrow in what might be a cold and snowy midday, wanting Irish stew on a Tuesday lunchtime in February.

Hmmmm. Come to think of it, the stew IS tasty stuff. Could bring a crowd.

Maybe I’d better break out the peeler and chef knife. Chop Chop!

Come visit! (If the meteorologists give the A-OK… like that would ever happen. WHEN the meteorologists give the A-OK, then…)

McHuston

Booksellers & Irish Bistro
Rose District
122 South Main St. Broken Arrow OK!

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