We just bought the best collection of witchcraft books ever!

Collector Harry Potter books, British editions!

Almost a whole set of Magic Tree House books.

Used Wimpy Kid, if you can believe it.

Graphic Novels!

Just bought a whole new collection. We must have 60 on offer now.

Yes, Railroad books!

It's been a great summer. So many of my wonderful old books were sold and went off to new places all over the world. I always hate to see them go. I start to think so much of my best stock is gone.

But NO! Right away fabulous buying opportunities came along.

Now I have the most exciting collection of Northwest history, aviation, and railroad books ever.

Here's a sight you don't see everyday

Through the store window I can see the Siulsaw River. They are dredging the river these days, and now the huge dredging operation is pretty much right across the street. It's a tall crane on a platform that dips in and scoops up sand and puts it on a barge. Then the drawbridge opens to let a tugboat push the barge out to sea to dump the sand.

Not only do I get to watch the draw bridge open a few times a day, but now I can see the whole operation!

Well, I'm impressed.

It's a stormy day here on the Oregon coast and the store is packed. There are people camped out in all the corners, surrounded by books. They blow on in, door crashing in the wind, the wood floor spotted with drops from raincoats.

We just had some letterboxers come in from New Mexico.

One of them, Tom Church, told me his grandmother, Ruth Bush Jones, was the creator of Smokey the Bear!

When he comes back after lunch I'll get the whole story.

Yes, we have a letterbox hidden in the store, and a geocache. See www.letterboxing.org and www.geocaching.com for more info.

A cute little Gund bear is going off to England today, to Billingham, close to Middlesborough. Lucky little guy!