Going to the Florida Antiquarian Book Fair

No Longer M.I.A.

I know, I know...I've been Missing in Action for a while. I meant to post on and off last year (and, actually, since In Praise of Libraries, posted in August of 2022). But somehow, time sort-of slipped away, and it was another week, another month...Yeah, like that never happens, right?

So, last year here was crazy, ending with a family member's trip to the E.R. on Christmas Eve afternoon, which was a Sunday. We got there at 3:00 PM, I had to go searching for a 24-hour pharmacy around 6:30 (since most pharmacies close here at six on Sunday, and would not reopen until Tuesday), he came home after 8:00 PM. Yeah, that was fun. Suffice it to say, quite of bit of last year was along the same fun roller coaster ride.

So, fast forward to now. This past Saturday, my son M. and I went to the Florida Antiquarian Book Fair. We try to go every year, usually on Saturday. It's held from Friday through Sunday; Friday's hours are mostly late afternoon and early evening, and Sundays just don't work for us. So Saturdays are it.

Coliseum

As far as I know, it's always been held at the St. Petersburg, Florida's Coliseum. If you've ever been there, especially inside, you probably know that it's kind-of cool in an off-beat sort-of way. It also made it into the movie Cocoon (the scene where the old couples are dancing). If you've never been there, the strands of lights hanging from the ceiling (which are seen in the movie) are there year 'round.

This year's book fair, showing the lights and some of the crowd

Coliseum, from the 2015 Antiquarian Book Fair, showing the lights

This year, after paying for our tickets just inside and going into the main room, we drifted toward the left. Two bookstores that show there every year are among our favorites: Glover's Bookery from Lexington, Kentucky, and Lighthouse Books, now located in Dade City, Florida (formerly from St. Petersburg).

It seems that every year, M. finds several old editions of different sci fi magazines at Glover's, and tries to decide which ones to get; this year, he snagged two Astounding Magazines, one from 1936, the other from 1938. (Yeah, he goes for that sort of stuff.) I helped him find the boxes of pulp magazines and read off a few covers until he found what he wanted.

Next, we drifted towards Lighthouse Books. We used to stop by the store periodically when it was still located in St. Pete. The pictures of the new Dade City store looks like it was a good move for Michael, the owner. M. and I both got a chance to talk with Michael for a few minutes, and he acknowledged that he and the store are doing well in their new location. (Hint: If you're ever in Dade City, Florida, check out Lighthouse Books. Good people, good vibes, etc.

Glover's Bookery's stall. The crates with the pulp magazines where M. found the Astounding Magazines are directly under the picture of Ernest Hemingway.

The entrance to Lighthouse Books' stall, taken from Glover's Bookery. Lighthouse Books' owner, Michael, can be partially seen through the crate slats holding Hemingway up.

M. and I wandered around on our own for a while before meeting back up at the food court. After a snack, and hitting up the restroom (an art deco-ish room), we wandered a little more before our ride showed up.

While I didn't buy any books this year, I have in the past. But all told, we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.

Back in Time Books

Other shots

Film At 11...Or Maybe Next Week

I've been using my film camera a lot more, lately. I love film, for many reasons, not the least being that that's what I grew up using. Granted, it wasn't always with a 35 mm SLR camera. There were a couple of Instamatics, possibly a Brownie (wow, am I dating myself!), a disposable camera or two...

Finally, though, I had access to a decent camera: my other half bought a Minolta 35mm SLR. Once he figured out how to use it, then showed me how to change film, focus, and all that fun stuff, it was frequently a toss-up as to who got to take what, photo-wise. Some things were his to photograph, as I had no interest in them; but then, I'm sure he wondered about some of my interests, photograpically and otherwise.

Fast forward to recently: I now own several cameras, all Canons. I have nothing against other brands; it's just easier to stick with one brand, so that when one buys accessories - lenses, for example - there's a better chance of it fitting multiple camers of the same brand. But that's beside the point. I have a 35mm SLR and a DSLR, both Canons. I like the film camera for sentimental reasons, while I like the digital for the fact that I don't have to develop film...just shoot, plug it into the computer, and then photoshop away.

A little over a week ago, my friend Boo invited me to come along to take some photos of St. Petersburg's monthly art walk. I only had access to my film camera, so I brought that along. Would have preferred to bring the digital camera, but there are times when we have to work with what we have. In retrospect, the digital camera would have been sooo much better...For starters, I only had a few rolls of film, so I had to pick and choose what to photograph. Also, while a few of the photos came out fairly well, the darker it got, the grainier the photos turned out. Then, there was the whole developing problem of...developing.

Several years ago, during my final year as an undergrad, I took photojournalim I and II at the University of South Florida St. Petersburg. At the time, I only had a film SLR, so I worked with that. Never had any problem getting film developed, then put on a CD. Made it a lot cheaper than printing all the photos on every roll, especially since I wouldn't need all those photos. There was one particular drug store (part of a chain) that I almost always dealt with. However, if there was a problem with that one, every other drug store (including the main competing chain) could develope the film. Obviously, getting the film developed this past week wouldn't be a problem, right?

Wrong!

I called the drug store and spoke with someone who hemmed and hawwwed before admitting that, yes, he could develope the film and put it on a CD. Yes, I could have it that same afternoon. However, it couldn't be done in the one-hour I had come to expect. This was because no one works with film anymore, I was told, so the machine used to develope the stuff was off; it would take a couple of hours to warm up. The place, however, still sells film; but they like sending it out to be developed...Sort-of like a tire store selling tires for your car, but telling you to then take the tires elsewhere to have them put on your car.

So, I called around. My daughter mentioned a box store (which I won't name) that develops film, or, at least, used to. By the time they finally got someone in the photo area, I was informed that they could send the film out for developing and have it back in only seven to ten business days.

"But I thought you did one-hour developing!" I said. That's how they were listed in the phone book.

"We are, as long as it's digital. We no longer do film here." Of course, when asked, they do sell film, if I wanted to buy some...

So I called a drug store near my house and explained what I needed. "Okay," the guy answered. "Not a problem."

"So you can develope it there?"

"Of course."

"You don't have to send it out?"

No, I was told. He could develop it there, print up the photos or put the pics on a CD, all within an hour, and relatively inexpensively.

"Great," I said. "I'll be there in maybe half an hour."

"Okay." Then, half a second later, "Wait a minute." He put the phone down, then came back. I could hear him mumbling under his breath before picking up the phone. "Um, you're not going to believe this, but they took the machine."

Excuse me?

"Yeah, apparently they took the machine out. My boss said we're not developing any more film."

I checked the Yellow Pages, and found several places (non-drug store places) that developed film. The one I've dealt with is a long drive, so that was out, this time. Another place, one that a friend recommended, is open Monday through Thursday; this was Friday, and I needed the film that day! The third place listed was relatively nearby and was open.

"Sure, we develop film. Bring it on it and we'll give you a great price."

My daughter, M.H., picked me up and we headed to this third place. By the time we got there, it was about 12:30. The one person working the front desk kept getting called away to answer the phone. In the meantime, M.H. and I looked around the waiting area. It looked like this place dealt mostly with wedding and celebration-type photographers, most of whom had mega-rich clients.

Finally, the woman working the front was able to help us. "Sure, we develop film," she told us. "We'll get right on it, Monday morning."

"Monday morning?" I gasped.

"Well, we only develop film in the morning. Once we hit noon, that's it. So, yes, Monday morning. Now, our prices..." These included a little more for developing than other places, $5 for the CD, and almost 40 cents per photo to scan them into the computer to put onto the CD. For a roll of 24 photos, we're talking $8 for developing and CD, then $9.60 to put the photos onto the disk, for a total of just under $18 per roll. (Oops, don't forget tax...now we're talking $20!)

M.H. and I left.

At this point, we decided to go to the first drug store. I'd already told the guy at the photo section to "start that machine" (the one for film developing...the one that would take several hours to warm up.) Let's just say the guy had sounded as enthusiastic as if I'd offered to pull all his teeth using a pair of rusty pliers and a bent scalpel.

"Ooookay," he enthused...

Several hours, when M.H. and I came back, he was still slowly working on the order, while taking care of other customers. When his manager arrived - just as he was ringing up my order, he kept telling her, "This is the nice lady with the film." Over the next two minutes, I was the nice lady, the patient lady, the wonderful person...If it had gone on much longer, I would have headed back to the pharmacy to see if they had anything to help me keep from throwing up...

Let's put it this way: From here on out, I'll probably work as much in digital as possible, and when I need to develop film, it's going to Lake Shore Camera Exchange in Palm Harbor. At least I know they can handle the job, and do a great job with it!

Best laid plans of...

Q: How do you make God laugh?

A: Tell Him your plans.

Yesterday was one of those days where it seemed nothing was going as planned, or, at least, not much went that way. At this point in my life, I should be used to that. You go and make these great plans - or maybe some mediocre ones, but plans, anyway - and the universe and God laugh.

Several of the artists who'd had studios at Salt Creek Artworks were having an open house at their new studios/buildings. Salt Creek Artworks closed last year; it's a rather long story, but the punchline is that the economy didn't help. There were meetings with the city of St. Petersburg in the hopes of finding a place where the core group could stay together in one place. There were several members who, for whatever reason, wouldn't be making the move with the group. One artist moved out of state; another lived in Tampa and, when it became apparent that Salt Creek would close, decided to stay closer to home. The reasons for leaving the group were as varied as the people drifting off. It wasn't that they didn't care, but, perhaps, that some of them cared too much and found the displacement too painful.

Disclaimer: I had had a studio for a little over a year at Salt Creek Artworks, from February, 2011 until April, 2012. I started out in a huge studio, replete with shelves in one corner for holding supplies, lights, and ceiling fans. The studio had no heat or air conditioning, but that didn't bother me. In many ways, it reminded me of my Grandfather's radio repair shop in White Plains, New York, which folded following his death in the mid-1960s: It was part of a warehouse, had cement floors, and a very cool, funky feel that encouraged joy in one's work. At one point, I'd planned to leave Salt Creek, but found that one of the other studios had become available. It was literally right around the corner from the huge one, was somewhat smaller, had air conditioning and heat, one good-sized window to the outside, and brightly painted lime-green-and-white walls. It was directly across the hall from Herb Davis, a friendly, laid-back painter. Herb usually had a radio on in his studio while creating; the low hum of voices during the talk shows, as well as the music, was somehow comforting. Most of the other artists were cool to be around - busy with their work, but always friendly, with that interesting way of looking at things that helps when one is creating.

See? There's the plan-thing. I hadn't meant to drift off into Salt Creek memories, but anyone who's ever been associated with it will understand. But back to the plans for the day...

I'd planned to have a yard sale the first half of the day. I had tons of stuff to get rid of, and figured I could use the money. I'd actually been threatening to have it for several weeks, but always managed to find a way out of it: M. started work, so I'd have no one to watch the sale while I went to put up signs, J. tends to sleep days and stay awake nights, the weather wasn't quite right, or I was just plain not into it. After all, I really don't mind going to yard sales (I love 'em), but I hate having them. You've got to set up tables, or whatever you're placing the stuff on. (Let's face it, we've all seen yard sales where people simply put their stuff on the ground - piles of clothes, tons of knick-knacks, dishes, etc. - and you're expected to bend over and pick through that pile of stuff from the ground; no thanks.) Then you cart all the stuff out, and hope you don't forget to bring something out that you've really wanted to get rid of for months (but you always forget something, anyway), price them, then wait for people to show up and either buy everything or s-l-o-w-l-y drive by while you mutter, "Stop, stop, stop, come back and buy something" under your breath. Then, when you're finished, you have to put whatever is left over back into the boxes, etc. that you carried them out in, put them away, put the tables away...It's really a pain, especially if you haven't sold that much.

As it turned out, J. had changed his sleeping cycle a few days before, so I figured he'd be up by 7:30 or 8-ish. So, right after M. left for work, I showered, put a load of laundry into the washer, then told J. to get a move on it. He let out a groaned okay, then, apparently, went back to sleep. After I'd gotten the tables and stuff out to put the yard sale stuff on, I made sure he was awake, since he'd need to watch the yard sale while I put up a couple of signs.

We kept at it until shortly after noon; by then, we'd had enough. Very few people were stopping, or even driving by. One neighbor who always stops by all neighborhood yard sales (he and his wife apparently sell stuff on Ebay or at the local flea market) mentioned that at most of the yard sales he'd stopped by that morning, he was either the only person there or one of only two.

"Usually, yard sales are packed, especially if they have signs up," he commented. "The ones I went to today were dead!" That was encouraging!

On the plus side, we made $10. On the down side...$10! (Anyone who's ever had a yard sale knows that good ones bring in good money.) We packed up everything...

I'd also planned to go to the two grand openings/open house last night for several members from the Salt Creek group. Two of the artists are in a place they've named Works in Progress Art Studios and GGallery, located at 24 - 22nd Street South in St. Pete, while several others are at Arts Central at 2109 Central Avenue in St. Pete.

When I first learned that Salt Creek Artworks would be closing, I'd started video taping the building, artists, the meetings to find a place for everyone...the whole "we're losing this really great place" experience. I'd planned to give the artists (those who wanted one) a copy of the DVD, as well as Salt Creek's owner. I'm still working on it...but one of the artists from Works In Progress had asked if I'd bring over a DVD with what I had so far so that it could play during the grand opening. I'd said sure, that'd be great and started looking over the stuff I'd filmed. While I had looked through the tapes months ago, taking copious notes on what to use, what wouldn't be used, and what might be used as filler, I wanted to find the right stuff to put together. I'd already put together a short piece, but wanted something better.

So, after the yard sale, I started working hard at putting together a second piece to hand to C.D. at Works in Progress. One of my possible rides wouldn't be able to help out, as she had to work; another couldn't do it, either. In short, four possible rides were all unavailable.

I called C.D. up and explained, then offered to finish putting together something, posting it online, then sending her a copy of the link. "That'll work," she agreed. "Too bad you couldn't make it, though. Call me next week, okay?"

So I went to work, and spent several hours putting together something decent, and definitely a lot better than the one I'd already posted online. I was really happy with the way things were progressing with it, even though it was taking hours to put it together.

Then M. called. He'd gotten off work, and was going to take the buses home. (It takes at least three buses for him to get home from work.) He planned to take two particular buses; pulling up the schedules online (which meant ignoring what I was putting together), I noticed that doing that was pushing it just a tad. Heck, it was majorly pushing it, since the last bus would arrive where he'd get off the second bus theoretically one minute after he got off; any hold up or delay on that second bus, and he'd have to wait over an hour for the next bus. But if he took this other route, he might have to wait half-an-hour for that last bus, but there'd be less chance of missing connections.

"No, it'll be okay," he assured me. Except that, of course, it wasn't. He missed the last bus...All told, there were numerous calls so I could check another bus schedule, another this or that...All the while, I was saving my work on the Salt Creek thing...up until that last call. At that point, I accidentally hit the X in the corner of the film program...the X that means you've closed the program...the program, along with the work that I'd spend hours on and hadn't posted anywhere.

I couldn't yell at M. I understood his panic. I was a little panicky, too, envisioning all sorts of stuff: accidents, a police cruiser pulling up to see if I knew M., the whole bit. It was getting dark out, M. has no night vision, and he doesn't move terribly fast. So, was I worried? Heck, yeah!

He finally made it home safely, apologized for the panic, the work, etc. He also mentioned that the next Saturday that he has to work, he'll take the buses I suggested.

So much for plans... :)