Good things happening

The Northeast Journal published a wonderful story about us in the July/August issue. We'll post a PDF as soon as we can. Thanks to Jennifer McMillen and Susan Alderson for putting together the piece. The St. Pete Times did a story about us, too, and our friends at USF's Florida Studies Program put it up online.

Thanks also to David McRee, the Beachhunter, for including us on his website. Here's a link The Beach Hunter

Travis McGee, my first time.

Someone came in the store the other day to look at the John D. MacDonald shrine. (I can't think of any other author I'd rather have a shrine for than John D.) I thought of the first time I met Travis McGee. It was in 1971. My wife and I had taken the Choy Lee down the Gulf Coast on a little holiday. We pulled into a slip at Cabbage Key for the night. A young couple on the boat in the next slip struck up a conversation. We talked about the usual things you talk about with strangers in the next sli -- the weather, itinerary, our boats, and so forth. Then the conversation turned to books. "You read any Travis McGee?" the skipper wanted to know. I shook my head and told him I'd never heard of him. He raised his index finger to suggest he'd be right back and disappeared below deck. In a moment, he emerged with a paperback book in his hand. "Enjoy," he said. I stayed up and read it that night. After that I was hooked. Had to find all that had been written before. Had to have each new one as they came out."

Share your first time with Travis McGee.

Our new store on eBay

That's right! We now have a new store on eBay up an running. You can reach it by going to MicklerSmith, the eBay Store. We're working on getting all our inventory up online. Eventually you won't have to come in the store to find something obscure. You'll be able to do it come the comfort of your own computer. Of course, we'll miss you. We enjoy the company. Heck, we don't even care if you buy a book or not. Just drop in for a visit, have a cup of coffee and join the conversation. (Well, buying a book every now and then would help. Like the sign by the coffee machine says, "The coffee is free. The conversation is free. Most of the books aren't free but they support the coffee and the conversation."

Speaking of conversation, go ahead and add your two cents worth. Don't be bashful.

By the way, for those who don't know, an eBay Store is not like the auction where you bid for items and you have to wait a week or so to find out if you got it or were outbid. An eBay Store is like shopping online at regular places. You search the lists for what you want. You pay for it and it comes to you in the mail. Simple as that.

Florida art. Florida music. Florida books.

Well, here we are. Online at last. We hope this will be a web place sort of like the bricks and mortar place we occupy in the Historic Old Northeast neighborhood in St. Petersburg, Florida. We hope it'll be a place where people drop by who have an abiding interest in all things Florida. The coffee's free at the bricks and mortar place. The conversation's free in both places. We'll try to tell you a little about what's going on in our world. We hope you'll do the same.