Weekend in Laredo (part 2)

On Saturday, my second day in Laredo last weekend, I finally had the chance to meet Mary Benavides. I'm usually nervous before meeting new people, so much so that I start fabricating conversations in my head--conversations that inevitably become random and strange, not at all realistic--to prepare for the dialogue to come. But this time, I was more excited than nervous. Each time we'd spoken on the phone about our goals and plans for opening bookstores in Laredo, Mary was warm and open, never giving me the chance to feel anxious. The only odd thing about our meeting was that Courtney, who has been filming a documentary about the closing of Laredo's only bookstore and the community's reaction to it, wanted to get it on camera.

We'd originally arranged to meet at a coffeeshop but, at the last minute, discovered it was closed for another hour after our scheduled arrival. So instead we went to Danny's, a local Mexican restaurant and Laredo institution. We were ushered into the empty back room, all windows and pink walls. It was as Courtney started setting up her equipment that I felt the first flickers of nerves. I hadn't prepared anything to say!

"This is like a blind date," Courtney joked.

"Yeah, one of those Match.com commercials," I added. "Where they're even more awkward because they're being filmed."

We laughed.

Then Mary showed up, and for the next two hours we caught each other up on our progress and plans, only breaking to order and devour a plate of panchos. My nerves faded as quickly as they'd come, as she's one of those rare people with the ability to immediately put others at ease. Perhaps even better, she was a veritable fountain of insight about the book industry, which is so clearly her passion, and I realized freshly how much learning I have to do!

It's such an interesting situation: Two people striving to open the same type of business in the same not-huge city would, I think, normally be cautious of each other, well aware that they will soon be "competitors." But this is so different. Call me naive, but I think she and I genuinely support each other and want to see each other's businesses succeed. We're working toward the same goal, after all, and I think this kind of mutual respect and encouragement speaks to the unique type of goal it is: one with a heart.

Yes, yes. Cue the awwwws.

Weekend in Laredo (part 1)

The heat was stunning in Laredo this weekend--that kind of fierce warmth that immediately makes clothes stick and hair go limp. It's been almost eight years (eight years?!) since I left the city for college, four hours north and at least ten degrees cooler, and what surprised me most of all was how I had forgotten what summers mean down there: Be. Near. Water. The weather was a fresh reminder that I must reacquaint myself with my city, in many ways.

It was a great few days, though. I arrived Friday night just in time to shower and change for the Cream City magazine launch party. Back in April, Analee Paz, one of the magazine's creators, contacted me to ask whether I'd like to be featured in a section called "The Profiles." She said they'd love to hear more about what this process of working toward opening a bookstore has been like. Of course, I was thrilled to agree.

The party was held downtown at Gallery 201, an art gallery I'd never heard of or been to before. Only rarely do I foray downtown, so each time I do I marvel at how it seems like an entirely different city, a foreign country: the one-way streets, the cobblestone roads and beautiful old buildings.

The gallery itself was gorgeous, and the magazine put on a great party. A projector screen displayed the cover of the magazine on one wall above a small stage, a photographer was ready at the entrance to snap red carpet-esque photos of guests, and the wine and cucumber martinis were flowing at the bar.



Of course, I couldn't wait to see a copy of the magazine, and it didn't disappoint. The photography and design layout were beautiful, and it was so interesting to read the stories of the other two individuals in "The Profiles."







I know the article is impossible to read in this photo, so I'll post a transcription later. But I'm so happy to have had the opportunity to talk more about the bookstore, to let people know that, yes, it's a work in progress, but at least it's in progress. Thanks again to Analee Paz and Fernando de Haro, publisher and photographer, for the honor of being featured in Cream's premiere issue!

So the party was Friday. And on Saturday, after months of telephone correspondence, I finally met Mary Benavides. Mary, who managed B. Dalton for about 30 years, is also working toward opening a bookstore in Laredo, and we've been trying to coordinate a meeting for months. I'm going to end this post on that teaser, because I fear it's already gotten too long, but I'll write about our meeting very soon. I hope you're all having a good Monday so far!

Dear Leadership Grants of America, Would You Like to Give Me Some Money?

As some of you know, I've been preparing a grant application for Pepsi Refresh for some time now. The idea behind this grant is that individuals and organizations can apply for grants of $5,000, $25,000, $50,000 or $250,000; those grant applications are posted online, and viewers can vote on them daily. Each bracket has a different amount of grantees that will be awarded each month--but here's the catch: Pepsi only accepts the first 1,000 submissions it receives starting midnight EST on the first of each month.

Unfortunately, the system has been a little flawed.

Or perhaps that's unfair. What is undeniably true, though, is that a LOT of people are applying for these grants, and the high activity level tends to make the Pepsi submission site a bit uncooperative. When I logged on to submit my grant application (at EXACTLY midnight EST), the site froze up immediately and didn't let me continue. Ten minutes later, 1,000 submissions had been received. Frustrating, to say the least, and so far Pepsi has said there's nothing to be done but try again next month. Okay, I will.

But in the meantime I've been looking into other grant opportunities. Have you ever tried looking for or applying for grants? There are a LOT of them out there, but they all have specific eligibility guidelines, so it can take a while to weed through and find the grants that are applicable to you. Fortunately, I found one: Leadership Grants of America. Wonderfully, the Leadership Grants Organization awards funds to entrepreneurs looking to start or expand their small businesses.

So, I got in contact with the organization, and just today my initial application was confirmed. The next step is to submit a business plan and cover letter no later than July 16. If the proposal meets the organization's criteria, I'll be told what due diligence items are required, and the amount of funds awarded. So exciting! And I love that I have an official deadline for when to complete my business plan. Hey, I'm a writer--I like deadlines.

I'll keep you posted!

As The Walls Go Up...

These days, we usually hear the phrase "walls going up" as a metaphor for someone who is becoming guarded, concealing and protecting those parts of the self that are too vulnerable or private to reveal to the world. But today that phrase means something else to me, something literal and proud.

In Laredo, as I type, the walls are going up on the new main branch of Falcon International Bank. Falcon has been a part of my family for nearly my whole life. My dad started working there almost twenty years ago, when the bank had only one location and 18 employees. Over time, the bank grew. It moved to a new building, and I remember having one of my birthday parties in the empty one, which the bank still owned. Spying a strange button under the teller counter, I curiously pushed my fingers against it, disappointed when nothing happened. Then there were sirens (yep, silent alarm!). And later, in the new building, which the bank was leasing, we three kids went with my parents to the annual Christmas parties and ran around the lake in back and hid out in my dad's office, smuggling hors d'oeuvres. And then the bank grew some more. It now has 18 branches, I believe, and a staff of over 250. My dad had so much to do with that growth.



At the end of this year, Falcon will leave the building it has been leasing as its main branch and move to the new one, the one whose walls are being raised right now. I wish I could have been there to hear my dad's speech, but my sister sent me a few pictures so I'd feel included. I'm also watching the progress on the bank's website.

To me, seeing that one wall lifted off the ground, away from the others also waiting to be raised, is so powerful. It signifies the achievement of a dream, of years of dedication and hard work--not just by my dad (and my mom!) but by everybody who's helped the bank grow. And it's very, very inspiring.