WHAT WE MISS

Aren't all babies beautiful?

When Theo was little and the most beautiful baby in the world, we couldn't get past one person in the grocery store without them stopping to "oh and ah" as he sat sandwiched between two rolls of paper towels in the seat of the grocery cart. (We ended up with almost a lifetime supply of paper towels by they time he outgrew the need to be supported.)

I thought of that joy as I walked on the other side of the street from a family that I see on my walks. They have two young children, one still in a stroller, the other on a tricycle. They sat in the shade as they cooed and giggled at their youngest one. I couldn't go over to take a peek. A young man walked by with his fluffy dog. We had talked before how much the dog missed interacting with people on their walks. He would pull and tug on his leash as I came by.

Bill and I spent an afternoon in the San Francisco financial district recently. The streets are usually teaming with people, shopping, sightseeing, running for coffee, or standing in line for lunch. Food trucks dot the sidewalks as cars, trucks and buses roar by. Now Bill walked in the eerie silence while I visited my eye doctor. When we were together again, we felt like we were traipsing in the aftermath of an apocalypse. We moved past closed restaurants and stores, a favorite coffee shop gone with a For Lease sign in the window, and the one bright spot, Alexander Book Co., its front door invitingly open. 

Time-lapse photo by Bill Slavin of stars and the new comet, Neowise. This week has been the peak for the Perseid meteor shower. Look up.

The bookstore has always been a favorite of ours with its extensive collection of intriguing books. Just past the front door, they have the latest fiction and non-fiction as well as periodicals that are hard to find. At the back, a narrow staircase winds up to the second floor with its array of multi-cultural children's books, travel books, and philosophy. On the basement level, Alexander stocks art and graphic design books because they are near a local art college as well as samples of business and other non-fiction. The most intriguing section on the main floor is a revolving collection by Black authors with books by well-known authors as well as books of light fiction similar to the mysteries on the shelves to the left.

August is Black Business Month. Though Alexander Books is not black owned, they have reached out to the diverse communities in the City and are worth supporting. Each purchase we made at Alexander Books buys a tree through the group, Trees for the Future. So far, Alexander Books has planted over 500,000 trees! 

Our stroll through the City reminded us that small things count. When we recover from 2020, the Amazons and the other big entities will still be around, but the small businesses that create the vibrance of a community could be gone if we don't support them. 

Because this summer is so different from others we experienced, I've asked people for reading list suggestions and have received some good ideas, though they are not your typical summer reads. These books are available at local independent booksellers.

From PatK:
Timefulness: How Thinking Like a Geologist Can Help Save the World, by Marcia Bjornerud
"I just finished reading this book by Marcia Bjornerud, a professor of Geology and Environmental Sciences. This is a very accessible and engaging description of how our planet came to be, how we know how old it is and how it developed and changed over eons. At the same time, the professor puts in context the frightening speed of current climate change and the urgent need for action now that we are in the Anthropocene, where human actions are overwhelming the healing power of the planet's natural systems. Thought-provoking and hard to put down."

From Teresa:
The Overstory by Richard Powers, a powerful and beautiful novel about the importance of trees.
The River by Peter Heller, which she describes as a poetic thriller!

From Marcia:
So You Want To Talk About Race by Ijeoma Olua. She describes her experiences growing up mulatto in Seattle with a White mom in a White city. The book is not pleasant to read but the social and structural injustice that she talks about is eye-opening.
Dispatches from Pluto...Lost and Found in the Mississippi Delta by Richard Grant, which is very descriptive of what life in Mississippi is like, then and now.

From Mary:
The Honey Bus by Meredith May, a memoir about a girl, her grandfather and the first time a bee crawled up her arm. The story evolves into the importance of nature in her life and how the bees helped her to find a home.
I Who Would Not Die by Meredith May, the story of two child soldiers in Iran.

From Rose:
We Were Eight Years in Power by Ta-Nehisi  Coates
Under the Banner of Heaven by Jon Krakauer, who investigates religious extremism found in a sect of Mormons. Krakauer, known for his book about climbing Mt. Everest, also has written Where Men Win Glory, a book about Patrick Tillman, a football player, who was killed in Afghanistan.

And my recommendations for lighter reading:

When we are not reading, we have been catching up on some good streaming shows and movies including:

A Short History of a Long Road: the odyssey of a young teenager as she searches for a home.
Fisherman's Friend: delightful movie about a group of fishermen who become overnight music sensations in the U.K.
Driveways:  At the death of her sister, a young woman and her son come to pack up the contents of the sister's house. The boy befriends a gruff neighbor. Brian Dennehy's last performance.
A French Village: a series about a French village occupied by Nazis and the effect on the villagers.
Honeyland: An isolated woman tends bees in a traditional manner until her life is interrupted by new neighbors
Booksellers: a documentary about the rare book sellers in NYC

Read about Alexander Book Company here:
https://www.alexanderbook.com

http://www.coastnews.com/sf/abco.htm

After you read The Overstory, you might want to read about the restorative work that Trees for the Future is doing here:
https://trees.org

Read how difficult it can be to be a bookseller, especially a gay black bookseller:
https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/print/20000424/34581-pw-vallejo-welcomes-new-bookstore.html

Support Black-owned business beyond Black Business Month:
https://aalbc.com/bookstores/index.php?statename=California