I Was Shocked At What I Saw At Barnes & Noble

Barnes & Noble Cafe' In Snellville, Georgia

Great Gifts For Mother's Day

Barnes & Noble is one of my favorite places to go when I need to just destress.  Since the pandemic it has been a year since I've gone there.  Following the CDC guidelines I pretty much stayed away from many public places.  If I did go to public places 9 times out of 10 there was outdoor seating.

Anyway, I've been under some stress from everything that has happen with me family and losing my mom back in January.  I'm in the expansion phase of growing Good Morning Gwinnett into a super successful brand and that's a lot of work.  I haven't been sleeping well and I've really been working hard to get back to a place of joy, so I decided to go and visit Barnes & Noble on Sunday, which is what I used to do a lot.  The energy that would normally be inside of the cafe' was what I needed.  Whenever I go there I go through the magazine racks and find all of my favorite magazines and just sit for hours reading them.  So this was my plan for Sunday.  The weather was just beautiful, so I grabbed my wallet and camera jumped in my car and headed to Snellville, which is where B&N is located.  I was excited, because I hadn't been in such a long time and I was desperate to get back to some kind of normal routine. 

Well when I entered the door, the store looked great.  It looked like they had removed some of the book shelves.  It had a sort of open floor plan feel.  It felt very spacious, so I guess this was all a part of keeping everyone socially distant.  Once inside I did what I normally do, which was headed to the magazines and look for my favorite magazines.  I picked up a handful and headed towards the cafe' and as I entered that area I was shocked at what I saw.  The cafe' had be totally dismantled.  All of the chairs and tables were piled up on each other and my heart dropped.  Once again here is an example of how Covid has changed my life.  So much for trying to find a little normalcy.  There were only about 6 tables out all spread along the walls.  There was a 30 minute seating limit, which I didn't notice the sign until I had been sitting for about an hour.  Yes I did sit down, but it wasn't the same.  It felt so lonely and I felt so isolated.  What used to bring me joy was just another sad reminder of how this pandemic has changed my way of living.

There is a little light to this story.  There were great reads for Mother's Day on the shelves.  You know it is just around the corner, so if you know a mother who loves to read, drop by B&N and pick up a book.  A lot of people are still socially distancing, so a book just maybe a great gift for a mom in your life this Mother's Day.
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How Are You Living These Days?

Until Next Time
Make It A Great Day!
Audrey Bell-Kearney, The Voice Of Gwinnett

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