Hi Everyone,
I hope you've been enjoying your summer. We've been having a bit of fun around here (rearranging the rare book section, moving some shelves around and so on) and I've been getting a chance to do some work around the house. For me it's mostly been paint prep, which I don't enjoy very much. My place hasn't been very much maintained since it was built in 1923 and so there has been a lot of work to do. But, it's not at all as bad as the store was when we moved in (not to mention, my place is much smaller than the shop), so I should not be complaining.
We're getting ready to swing into the Fall and the start of the school year. That doesn't affect things at the bookstore much but, in the cafe, it means a complete schedule overhaul. Thankfully that's more Z'ev's problem than mine. I'm very lucky in the folks who work with me.
Going over the schedule at the cafe has made it clear that we need some more staff there. We've two staffers leaving for college and so, we're hiring. If any of you know anyone who might be interested in an exciting (or, at the very least, interesting) job at the cafe, please ask them to get in touch. Scheduling is pretty well suited to someone in school. That includes high-school students, who we're quite happy to work with. Plus, no experience is needed.
The final advantage of working in the cafe -- the cafe staff are the first people we turn to when we're looking for bookstore staff. So it's a great way to get into working at the bookstore. Interested parties should send me a cover letter and resume to abeatts@borderlands-books.com.
Other than that, we're getting ready for the Fall and we've got some very neat events planned for the later part of the year. We're also working on the event schedule for next year. I know it might be a little premature but, based on what I've been hearing from you all and how well things went this year, I feel pretty confident that we'll make our sponsorship goals for 2017. So, we might as well start the planning now for the fun and games -- right now here are some of the things we're thinking about: a scavenger hunt at the store (including the creepy, creepy basement), tours of both the SF Center for the Book <https://www.sfcb.org> and The Arion Press <http://www.arionpress.com>, a sing-along showing of Buffy, The Musical, a roller skating trip to The Church of Eight Wheels <http://www.churchof8wheels.com>, and much more interesting stuff.
Have a good August and I'll look forward to seeing you around the shop!
All Best,
Alan
Upcoming Events:
The Sgian Dubh Version
1) Don Herron is offering our sponsors a mashup of his famous literary Dashiell Hammett and Fritz Leiber walking tours for the reduced rate of $10 per person on Sunday, August 28th at 1:00pm. Guests are welcome and pre-payment will be necessary; please RSVP as soon as you can. http://www.donherron.com/the-tour/
2) Game Night at the Cafe, Sunday, September 25th from 7 pm to 10 pm - Join fellow sponsors & "game" staff for chess, Cards Against Humanity, Scrabble, Pictionary, or whatever other board games you'd like to bring to play! Guests are very welcome.
3) We're having a BBQ potluck at Golden Gate Park on Saturday, October 22nd from Noon to 4 pm. This is at table #17, Lindley Meadow. Guests are welcome and, per Rec and Parks, no glass bottles please.
4) Whisky Tasting with Mary Robinette Kowal, November, day and time to be determined. We unfortunately cannot allow guests for this event. This was delayed a bit because Mary Robinette's book and tour were delayed by the publisher.
5) The Fall Sponsor Social, last one for the year, will take place on November 12th from 7 pm to 11 pm.
6) Tour of The Long Now Foundation, early December, day and time to be determined. We'll take a visit to their office / cafe and hear about their current projects and long, long, long term plans. http://longnow.org/
