Tuesday 28 January 2014

Nearly there!

Two weeks on and the pressure is easing. Saturday was the last day of the sale, people went on buying till the very last, reinforcing my belief that there was not a single rubbish book, DVD or CD in the shop. Monday and the bookcases were moved: I could probably have sold the lot several times over. Tuesday and the only two people who asked about the leftover stock came and helped themselves: Finstock parish church and the Friends of Wychwood expect to raise a couple of thousand pounds between them from what they took away. Better than dumping the books in a skip!

There's more pressure closing a shop than keeping it open. What is in many ways a desultory experience has been transformed by many really kind and grateful emails from customers (I was only doing a job of work and trying to scrape a living!), and two alcoholic bottles left for me on Saturday. Quite moving. I get some things right, it seems. 

Two weeks and we fly to South Africa. Friends will be looking after the house and people will be staying here too. Reassuring. 

Then back to England in the spring and a whole new life. Wonderful. And nicely brown when everyone here is pale and wan. Ha! And I shall enjoy seeing some of my customers as friends, a whole new category of relationship. That will be nice. 

2 comments:

Unknown said...

Well done dad, you may have 'only been doing a job' but others obviously felt otherwise! You'll have to change your subtitle on this blog now though...

Here's to a happy retirement, and, first up, a brilliant trip to South Africa.

bx

Unknown said...

Well done dad, you may have 'only been doing a job' but others obviously felt otherwise! You'll have to change your subtitle on this blog now though...

Here's to a happy retirement, and, first up, a brilliant trip to South Africa.

bx