Carol Early Cooney

A shuttered store…

I was out yesterday and drove past a closed bakery.  I started thinking about how sad I am when a bakery closes.  Not for the obvious reason the I love bakeries and the goods they provide but because it means that someone’s dreams have come to an end.

You could argue with me that the closing of any store indicates that dreams have been dashed and you are right.

But I would argue that closing a bakery or an independent book store are sadder.

In my mind, the person who opens a bakery is full of optimism and creativity.  They are going to share their gift of baking with the world.  They are creative and are able to make beautiful things.  They provide the tasty treat for the birthday party, the secret nibble to get you through, and the cookies for the book club.

They are the generator of tasty beautiful treats for your various events.

And they have had to give up. Someone’s dream of selling their specialty has died.  I feel bad for them.  The empty store front, the lost jobs, the sad empty windows…

I feel bad for closed independent book stores also.  I am sure that the independent bookseller and I have things in common.  We both love books.  We love places that have books, where you can talk about books, and even smell books.

There is less hope these days for the independent bookseller than the baker.  People will always love baked goods and the bakery is not as threatened by on line competition.  Books are so accessible on line or on an e reader that actually going to an independent that doesn’t have the advantage of selling millions of books to cut the prices is, I fear, a joy of days gone by.  But in the current economy, any small store is threatened.

So for both the baker and the bookseller, I feel sad but I also feel bad for all of us. We will now miss the love and talents that are lost to the closing.

Sadly, these days are numbered…

Week One – Finish one thing

I am belatedly going to try and follow Elissa Field’s January Challenge.  You can find the whole thing at Elissa Field’s Write Start .  While you are there, you can find another wonderful blog to read.  It is a home run!  She even provided the artwork to inspire this post.

For this first week (my first week, not necessarily her first week….) I need to finish something.  While it may apply to writing projects, it could be anything.  Like that shawl that I started years ago that actually I think just needs to be “knitted off” and have the  fringe added. It is hard to decide what of the many WIP (work in progress) things I should finish this week.

Now, prepare yourself, this next part is really stupid…

I just looked at the front page of this blog – the page you are reading right now and discovered the “About” tab.  Needless to say, it has never been filled in with information.  I didn’t even know it was there.

So, for my first week doing this challenge, I am going to complete getting this blog together and fill in the “About” page.

What are you going to do?  If you need suggestions, I suggest that you bake some chocolate chip cookies and send them to me.  I know you won’t be able to send them as they are too good to share but you can feel like you are going to do something wonderful and then get the pleasure of just eating them yourself.  Besides, I really should not eat your cookies.  It is really cold this week and I think that the best thing to do when it is really cold is to bake. It keeps you warm and you can use those added calories – you lose so much weight just shivering, right?

So check back at the end of the week and see my “About” page.  It will completed.  Right!??

Nice being in touch with you!

While I was driving this morning, I was listening to the radio.  When I bought my car, it had satellite radio installed and like a dope, I renewed the service.  If I didn’t, then there would be a useless button in the dash.  Hey, it is a rationalization.  I don’t question your rationalizations.

I have to admit, I had expressed the opinion that paying for radio was a frivolous way to spend  money.  I think the exact word was stupid.  And part of me still feels guilty paying for radio.

I like my satellite radio.  I like the country music stations on my satellite radio.  I know that there is a certain segment of the population that does not like country music.  And I feel sorry for them.

My thoughts while listening this morning were on the lyrics.  There are some terrific phrases in country music.  The word pictures painted are sometimes quite amazing.  In one song they talk about “the FBI in their black Crown Vics”  – can’t you see them (mirror sunglasses and all)?   How about this one “cooler than the flip side of my pillow”?  What a great and clear phrase.  Or the all encompassing “Sometimes I thank God for unanswered prayers”.

As a writer, I am enamored with a great turn of phrase and admire those who can succinctly express an emotion, place, or thought.  I think that you can find many examples in country music.  Yes, I know that you can find great lyrics across the musical landscape but with country the lyrics are clear and usually understandable.  They tell a tale and not always about how they were wronged by their lover or how important their hunting dog is to them.

How do you feel about country music?  Have you listened to it lately?