If you're reading this, you're obviously here on my Me page. Why you're here instead of looking at all of the great books I have to offer I don't have a clue. But since you ARE here give me a minute and I'll trot out the home movies and you can see all about Me.

I wasn't always a seller of books. I used to program computers for a living. Actually, if you go back far enough I was in Uncle Sam's Navy aboard a destroyer but I knew even then that it wasn't going to be a career move. But it did give me a chance to see a few parts of the world I probably wouldn't have seen otherwise, like the lovely Republic of Vietnam. Actually I only saw Vietnam from a few miles out at sea but at the time it was probably the best way to see it.  

Anyway, that led to college on the GI Bill which led to a degree in Biology as part of a career path that included working toward being a Veterinarian. Unfortunately, being a Vet never did work out so after a few dead-end jobs, which I won't bore you with, I went back to school and learned how to program computers.

Of course, these computers were the size of two Buicks parked nose-to-nose and required their own air-conditioned rooms. But they provided a good living.

Now, skip ahead 25 years.

I'm still programming but now the computers fit on my desk or, at worst, are about the size of an end table. The world has changed too. I've been merged three times, outsourced three times, and the people I'm working for are 20 years younger than me. I've become the dinosaur. And like all dinosaurs I get downsized (or whatever the current euphemism is for being given the boot). Traumatic at the time but a blessing in disguise. I decided to finally do what I've only dreamt of for years, open a bookstore. But in the intervening years online selling has become doable and certainly much easier than opening a brick-and-mortar store. Plus it gives you world-wide exposure. Thus, Triple J Books was born as an online presence. And so it continues today.

Chapter 2 : So what the hell is a Triple J Books anyway?

Why "Triple J Books?" you might ask. Well, my first name is Jim, my wife is Joyce, and my daughter is Jennifer. So there you go. Why books? Because I like books. I've always been told that "Do what you love and the money will follow." Well, I'm doing what I love but if the money is following it's doing a good job of keeping hidden. Reminds me of that old joke about the bookstore owner who inherits a million dollars and then reassures his employees, "Don't worry, we'll keep selling books until the money runs out." 

So, anyway, I like books. And since it's my bookstore, I get to sell books that I like. That's why you won't find any romance paperbacks or "How-To Save Your Relationship" books. And that's why you will find Military History, US History, Science, Technical, and some other stuff. It's why you'll also find a lot of local history books in my store. As far as I'm concerned, local history is where history is its most entertaining and rewarding. Sure, the sweep of US History is awe-inspiring but I think it's much more fun if you can find out why they named a street in your town Meats Avenue (because there used to be a large meat-packing plant on it) or why the local park is Korfitsen Park (because it was named after a man who gave his life in Korea). That, to me, is neat stuff.

I also like to read mysteries. And that's why you'll find a preponderance of signed mystery fiction in my store. Plus I used to collect it before I began selling it. I've chosen the books in my store because I find them interesting and I hope you will too.

Chapter 3 :The Saga of Mawi the Wonder Cat or Why Every Bookstore Needs A Cat.

Mawi The Wonder Cat

Why is Mawi a Wonder Cat? Read his story and find out

In 2005 we decided we needed another cat. We'd lost our previous one, Snowflake, to kidney disease in 2004 but we didn't want to jump right in with another animal, especially since we were due to go to London in the summer of 2005 for my daughter's college graduation.

I'd kept in touch with the vet who took care of Snowy and he said he had two families of kittens coming up for adoption (he takes in strays and unwanted cats, checks them over and fixes whatever health problems they've got, and then puts them up for adoption) so we decided to go look at them even though they weren't ready to leave their mother yet. When we got there we saw this caramel colored cat sitting in one of the adoption cages. He was alert, just watching everything. When I put my finger in the cage he gave me a sniff and when I scratched his head he started to purr.

We went into the back to look at the kittens but something about the cat up front grabbed me. I asked if he could be brought into one of the examining rooms so we could see him a little better. What a friendly little guy he turned out to be. However it was pretty obvious he'd had some rough times. One ear was chewed ragged, there was scar tissue and no fur behind each ear, his two lower canine teeth were completely gone, and one of his top canines was broken in half. Turns out he was a street cat that someone had found after he'd been in a fight and brought him to the vets. He'd been there about five months but no one would take him because of his beat-up appearance. Well, we did. He came home with us and was a little skittish but seemed to settle in pretty well.

About four weeks after bringing him home he suddenly stopped eating and slept all day. He almost seemed to be in a coma. We took him back to the vet and it turned out he had a severe case of pancreatitis. They did exploratory surgery on him and it was so bad they only gave him a 10% chance to pull through. The vet suggested we put him down right there on the operating table but after thinking it over we decided we wanted to try and save him. So the vet did what he had to do, sewed poor Mawi back up but really didn't expect him to last the night. Our vet is a very dedicated guy so he came back into his surgery in the middle of the night expecting to see that the cat had died, but instead Mawi was alert and even trying to groom himself.

Mawi was in the hospital for about 10 days getting a little better every day. We visited him often and after we brought him home we had to administer insulin twice a day and give him a variety of pills. But now, eight months later he doesn't need insulin or pills. He gets a special diet and can't have table scraps but in every other way he's a normal cat, meaning he eats and sleeps a lot. He's still a friendly guy and you'd think for someone who'd lived on the street and had to fight for his life he'd be pretty mean but he's not. Two things we don't know about him. We don't know how old he is. The vet guesses around five but we're not sure. Second, we don't know what his name means. It was given to him by the truck driver who rescued him. Some people have speculated it means "cat" in some language. We'd thought about changing it when we brought him home but we could never agree on a name so he remains Mawi. Anyway, Mawi is the bookstore cat but he's a good boy and doesn't mess with books.

Mawi Guards The Books at Triple J Bookstore

Chapter the Last: As we finally wrap it up.

That's it. I've been selling books online for five years now and I'm going to continue. I enjoy searching for books, I like selling books, I like dealing with my customers, I like having my own business. In fact I like the whole experience. So, now you know something about Triple J Books, go look at the books and see if anything catches your fancy.

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