Adventure Awaits a Street and a Page Away

If you are a commonplace human residing in the State of New York you are wondering when life will finally return to Operation Normal. Until then the daily weather prediction offers the only avenue for certainty. Society is slowly transforming back to what most of us yearn for as Central New York completes Phase I of reopening and can taste the beginnings of a loosely-defined Phase II.

But those seeking the ultimate adventure shall wait no longer. Your local independent bookstore is open for business! Prepare accordingly for the most excitement you have experienced in months as you patronize (yes physically, not digitally) Books and Melodies in the Eastwood neighborhood of Syracuse.

Park the car, lock up your bike, or hop off the Centro bus and secure your face mask before stepping through the shop entrance on the corner of James Street and Woodbine Avenue to find yourself surrounded by the sights of used books and records from floor to ceiling. Take a deep breath and immerse your soul in the pleasant odor of aged paper and vinyl as you pop a squirt of complementary hand sanitizer onto your palm and rid the hands of any potentially antagonizing evil.

The weathered shopkeeper sits behind a modest counter and instills a confidence of belonging. He offers a welcoming tip of his head as you nod and muffle “how are you?”…