Friday, September 4, 2009

Day 4 - The Oasis Project by Art Adkins

Today, instead of driving home after work and watching Judge Judy and assorted reruns, I threw my purse into the trunk of my car - minus my car key, debit card, and cell phone - and walked up historic St. George Street to check out the changes (stores/restaurants opening & closing), get some physical activity, and be a tourist. It was a very comfortable 81 degrees with a nice breeze and lots of shady spots on the sidewalk. I only tripped once - and managed not to wrench anything AND managed not to fall down. I wish I could claim it was a loose cobblestone, but it was me being distracted by a couple of tourists when I should have been watching where I was going. No harm - no foul.

My original purpose in going downtown was to meet an author. I subscribe to booktour.com and I get regular emails announcing who's going to be in the area signing their books. Most of the time they are in Jacksonville, but today Art Adkins - a cop who has written and had published a thriller - was going to be in St. Augustine downtown at 100 St. George Street at some Photography Studio. That address was on the northernmost side of St. George Street about a 20 minute walk from my work - up by the Old City Gates. (isn't that cool - we really do have City Gates.)

So I moseyed up St. George Street, noting the For Rent signs in the empty shops and checking out the new businesses (mostly stupid touristy tee-shirt shops - yuk). I checked out a store selling African Art (closed for the day - WHAT? It's Labor Day weekend!) and then made the fatal error of walking into a children's clothing store and finding the PERFECT BIRTHDAY GIFT FOR MY DARLING GRANDDAUGHTER! I whipped out my debit card and it was declined twice. What? Oh yeah - I always go to the bank right after work on Fridays and deposit my check. And I use up every bit of my checking account by Thursday because I'm transferring all my spare cash into an Emergency Fund. OOPS. So I asked Marsha -the very nice sales clerk - to hold it for me - and continued on my errands.

I stopped by the new Bubble Room Restaurant to talk to the manager about gift certificates (for the Inn where I work- mixing business with pleasure) and just missed her. I wandered into the old MetalArts shop (I don't know what the new name is) to see a friend's daughter's art work; it seemed pointless since I could not purchase anything until I ran that damn bank errand and put my paycheck into my account. Frustrated, I walked back to the Inn's parking lot, retrieved my car, and drove to the bank. At this point I remembered the main purpose of my walk - to find and meet author Art Adkins! The original point of my trip!!!! I might have said some bad words out loud at this point.

After depositing my check I returned downtown and lucked into a central parking space. I returned to the children's shop and purchased the ABSOLUTELY PERFECT GIFT FOR MY GRANDDAUGHTER. Then I headed north up St. George Street looking for a Photography Studio and anything advertising author Art Adkins.

Only in St. Augustine can you have two different buildings on the same street with the same numbers. I stood between the two and looked at the Kilwin's building (#102) and the Gift Store/Snacks Building (#101 and #102 both appeared on that building - I swear). I walked around the buildings - checked out the 2nd floors - nothing labeled #100. No studio. No author. Frustrated but this time also amused, after all, I've learned that St. Augustine is not an exact kind of town, I headed back down St. George Street to find something for supper.

I had spotted a new Taco Shop and was a bit leery of it - there's a lot a crap on St. George Street - but I thought I would check it out. I was cheered at once by large blackboards with colorful chalk words about FISH TACOS and BAJA TACOS and VEGGIE and VEGAN burritos. Plus the staff were all surfer-type dudes - slender and athletic, wearing baggy surfer shorts & tees and sandals. Everyone knows that for the best tacos, burritos etc. you either look for Mexican cooks or surfer cooks.

I ordered a veggie burrito (black beans please and Medium heat) and some chips and guacamole. Very good guac and excellent burrito. I must have made some sound when I tasted the burrito (I may have moaned audibly) because one of the guys caught my eye and said, "Good?"

OH YEAH ... incredibly fresh tasting. yummo! Robin - a very pregnant due any minute Robin - was finishing up the decorating with paper lanterns. She said they had a shop in Flagler Beach and this was their 2nd store. They had been open a week. I think they were popular with the Flagler College students - the wall where customers were allowed to write was already almost full! Robin gave me some brochures for the Inn and I wished her the best with her baby boy.

I headed back to my car - checking my voice mail on my cell - thinking about what a great afternoon it had been - when I spotted one of those poster signs set up on an easel. I saw a picture of the book The Oasis Project by Art Adkins and realized I'd found my author! I didn't even try to figure out the whole address snafu - it was what it was. There was a small garden with a building built in a U around it. I walked up the sidewalk in the center of the garden and spotted a table and books outside of a shop. There he was!

It was a great meeting. Art was friendly, outgoing, and talked a mile a minute about writing, publishing, marketing. I can't even begin to go into all the experience and wisdom that he shared with me over the next 30-45 minutes, but I am very grateful. Most of what he said confirmed what I'd been finding in my research about publishing - how marketing was really up to the authors now and not the publishing houses - and that lent him a great deal of credibility. He shared his card with me and offered to come speak anytime to my writing group or class. ("Uh, I've been meaning to get one or join one or take one.") He's very passionate about writing and I really got a lot from listening to him. I had already researched his book a bit on the Internet and was intrigued by the story, so gladly bought one of his copies. He signed it and shared more of his experiences and horror stories with me.

And just think...I gave up Judge Joe Brown and Oprah for this! WOW!

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