Updated April 21
In two days, Bunch of Grapes, an Island literary institution in Vineyard Haven, raised $55,000 from 506 donors through its GoFundMe page.
The beloved bookstore was the latest small business turning to the public for help amid the coronavirus pandemic. Dawn Braasch, who purchased the store in 2008, posted a GoFundMe asking the community to help her keep the independent bookstore afloat. The appeal for help was posted Sunday morning.
In a text message to The Times on Monday, when donations hit over $30,000, Braasch said she was humbled and grateful for the outpouring of support and generosity.
“I will work hard to prove deserving of that support,” she wrote.
On Tuesday, she added that no decisions on closing the page have been made yet.
In an update on the GoFundMe page Braasch again expressed her gratitude to the community.
“Words truly cannot express how overwhelmed I am by your outpouring of generosity and support. I feel so incredibly grateful to live in a community that shows up in a big way whenever and wherever there is a need. I know there are so many ways that you’re showing up for your communities right now — here on the Vineyard and all across the country — so I’m all the more humbled by the fact that you’ve embraced Bunch of Grapes as a cause worth championing during this unprecedented time,” Braasch wrote. “Please know that your donations will help me pay the bills to our distributor and publishers, allowing us to continue offering online ordering through this crisis. It enables me to pay staff to process those orders and respond to requests, and even to drive books right to your doorstep. It ensures that when the time is right, our doors will be open, our shelves will be full, and our talented booksellers will be back at Bunch of Grapes doing what they do so well. I look forward to reopening and welcoming you all as I work hard to continue to be the bookstore you’ve all so movingly buoyed up these past two days. Thank you.”
People can still purchase books through the store’s website at bunchofgrapes.indielite.org.
In her post Braasch also outlined the troubles that the store is facing as a result of being closed.
“It has been an absolute honor to own the bookstore that holds fond memories for generations of book lovers — year-round Vineyarders, summer residents, and visitors alike — and I’m proud of the work we do and of the reputation the store has held for a half century thanks to its robust offerings, knowledgeable staff, and outstanding author events. It is therefore difficult to find myself in the position of needing to ask for your help,” she wrote in the post. “I’m grateful for the support you’ve shown every step of the way, through every challenge we’ve faced — and the challenges have been many. With the help of countless people — authors, customers, publishers, the Vineyard community — we were able to rebuild after the devastating fire of 2008.”
Braasch went through the history of the store, which included several stops before it moved into its present location at 23 Main St. in 2017. “And we love all the friends and neighbors who continue to support us in our new home. But still, sales have declined each year,” she wrote. “Again, we’ve tweaked, we’ve recalibrated, we’ve thought and thought and worked and worked and positioned ourselves as best we could to adapt to declining sales.”
According to the post, the store has been closed for about a month.
“While we have every intention of reopening once it’s safe to do so, we know that this summer is going to be unlike any that any of us have ever seen. Like many businesses on the Island, we rely on a robust summer season to carry us through the rest of the year,” Braasch wrote. “It’s what allows us to (barely) stay open through the winter and serve the year-round population, and it’s what enables us to stock our shelves with a world-class selection of books and to attract the caliber of authors we do for free events.”
Braasch wrote that it will be difficult for the store to make up for the loss of revenue both by closing and the uncertainty of the upcoming summer season. “This closure and the road ahead are our biggest challenges yet, and I feel uncertain about how we’ll weather it,” she wrote. “We have shortfalls every year during the slow winter months, and I have been able to bridge the gap when needed. That is no longer possible, this gap is too big, and so I am humbly asking you, our book loving community, to help us bridge that gap. Whether you are able to give $5 or $25 or $100 or more, please know that every single dollar is truly appreciated and will help us reopen when the time comes. I am so grateful to live on an Island that appreciates the intrinsic value of an independent bookstore, an island that understands what a different community we would be without one. Thank you.”
Reporter Brian Dowd contributed to this story. Updated to include more comments from Braasch, as well as to update the Island’s response. -ed.
I support this, but I think it is important to look into State and Federal support, including forgivable SBA loans as indicates in the recent CARES legislation that was passed. It is meant for exactly this type of thing, I believe. Please pass the word on to Dawn Braasch if you know her. There are a lot of ways to make this work in this time. GoFundMe works well, too, although it has become a replacement for America’s failed healthcare system. But that’s a different GoFundMe story. Bunch of Grapes is a Vineyard classic store and this all will work out.
Where is Bunch of Grapes website? Why no link to the website with this story? This is the moment to shift to on-line purchasing. SBA loans should also be happening. We are all your loyal customers, but it may be time to change – certainly don’t close – with the times. And what is your landlord doing to help?
bunch of grapes web site
https://bunchofgrapes.indielite.org/
‘Forgivable’ SBA loans are pure Communism
The CARES Act provides businesses such as these with two and a half months operating expenses including payroll. The taxpayer has already offered to bail out this business not sure why a Go Fund Me page is necessary.
I believe the funds for the CARES Act have been exhausted.
My big fear is many small Vineyard small businesses will suffer at the hands of this pandemic and Trump’s failed administration.
Please do all you can for this classic bookstore.
It will be truly missed if we don’t all chip in.
Please help.
Trump is doing his damnedest to help small businesses.
But he refuses to help the Island because of it’s association with the Clinton’s and the Obama’s.
I thought I saw that all of the SBA monies in the CARES act has been totally allocated. That’s why Congress is supposedly working on a follow up bill this week. But there is also the recently set up Book Industry Charitable Foundation (Binc) which is specifically designed to help independent bookshops like Bunch of Grapes. But I suspect Dawn Braasch is aware of it.
An island institution. Will certainly help! Just wish there were more sane voices when so much vitriol was spit at summer residents. It’s so obvious how we really are all a community, like family that stay for a long visit, but truly support us all year long. Let’s help this island establishment.
I support Bunch of Grapes, it is a wonderful store. But it is a retail business. If your patrons give you $100 shouldn’t they get $100 worth of books? I am trying to patronize many businesses to keep them afloat, but they all expect to sell me something, not just give them money. I agree with others that you should be seeking federal and state aid to small businesses.
As a onetime bookseller, I can testify that bookstores function on a very tight margin. Stores generally pay publishers or distributors as much as 60% of the retail cost for books, and they can’t mark up the retail price beyond what’s generally printed on the book. Out of that (at most 40%) margin the store has to pay rent, salaries, promotion, and all the other costs of running a business. With many products a retailer can mark the price up 100% or even 200% and no one’s the wiser. If a store is undercapitalized, as plenty of small businesses are (I don’t know about Bunch of Grapes), then bills have to be paid largely out of revenue, and even in good times this can be a challenge. These are not good times. Off-season on MV isn’t good times either. When you buy from mega-dealers like Amazon that can deliver fast! cheap! (often because they exploit their workers and do their warehousing where rents are cheap), you’re hurting local businesses that have higher costs and give a lot more back to the community than the behemoths do.
As I type this letter, it looks like this urgent plea to the community will save the Bunch of Grapes, and I’m happy that this is working, based on what I see on the Go Fund Me page in just the hour since this article posted up on MV Times. The fund is quickly at $15,500 and the goal of $50,000 should be reached within a day or two. Well done. Where the Bunch of Grapes Bookstore is right now, it was my young grandmother’s restaurant, named the Modern Lunch beginning in March,1933. Dora Canha opened it five months after my 26 year old grandfather, Manny, died fishing off Noman’s Land after being caught in a Nor’easter in October,1932, leaving his wife, a two-year old (my father) and a four-year old behind. At that time, the much smaller island community came in to eat at my grandmother’s restaurant to support the young widow and her two babies. The island community will come together, again, for the Bunch of Grapes Bookstore, that now resides in that same space. This is a relief, because it is truly a beloved island landmark. However; I fear that the Bunch of Grapes just might survive on an otherwise near-empty street based on what is happening right now with other independent business owners on that same row of retail stores. Following in my grandmother’s footsteps of owning a business on Main Street in Vineyard Haven, I own the Vineyard Arts Gallery at 54 Main Street, formerly the late Peter Simon’s gallery, only steps away from the Bunch of Grapes. Taking over Peter’s space has been a delight for me, I was a friend of his for forty years and helped him at the Gallery since 2016. It has been tremendous fun meeting and socializing with so many visitors to the Gallery. I have enjoyed representing many notable island artists such as Margot Datz, Susan Branch, newlywed Thaw Malin III, Jeremy Driesen, Debra and Warren Gaines, Denys Wortman and Anna L. (Lowely) Finnerty, all of whom are losing income from my not being able to be open now. I’ve been there less for the money and more for the joy of it, but the store was quickly planting roots, even after just the first year last year as a new Gallery. Now, all of us in retail on Main Street are facing the same problem as the Bunch of Grapes, in one fashion or another, and in similar magnitude as the bookstore. I doubt that all of us can, one by one, after the Bunch of Grapes has met it’s target goal, set up like-kind Go Fund Me pages to make it through this unforeseen international economic crisis. Few of the rest of us have the same compelling bookstore history that would seem to justify a similar Go Fund Me page. Retail stores in Oak Bluffs and Edgartown are, most likely, experiencing the identical dilemma. For many of us, these store fronts are not all that profitable in the first place. The season is short, and we are now tumbling into that brief, but critically important summer season that keeps the business afloat during normal times. A business like the Vineyard Vines and the Black Dog will probably survive just fine, but unless something dramatically changes, and quickly, many of the island small, independent businesses will not survive this epidemic. With the mid-August West Tisbury Agricultural Fair being cancelled this year due to the uncertainty from this virus, nothing looks promising about 2020, at all, at the moment. Even 2021 could be up in the air, pending a vaccine. I am very happy for the Bunch of Grapes. This was a brilliant move, out of true necessity, for Dawn to make and it is quite clear it is going to work. It is going to keep her store, that is so close to so many of our hearts, including mine and my daughter’s, afloat. This does not address, at all, what is going to happen to the remaining independent retail stores on island, with our similar stories, and similar plights. If the rest of us end up closing down because we have lost the summer season and cannot float a retail store with virtually zero income, going to visit the Bunch of Grapes in the future may give new meaning to the term “One Stop Shopping”. Retail is already difficult on the island. None of us needed this, lots of us won’t survive it. To address the issue of the economic package that was offered by the government to assist small businesses, so far, has not helped the way it was hoped it would.The funds were gone so quickly, that I was locked out before I even got my application submitted. My issues are more of overhead, and the government funds don’t cover overhead expenses of more than 25%, if you can get the loan. If you don’t have employees, because your store might not be able to support having employees, the package offered provides little assistance, at all. As a result, it will not help many of the island retailers who work their own stores. In the end, what matters most is that we can stay healthy and that we survive this virus, which is proving to be devastating both to the economy and the lives of many. As of this writing on April 19th, this country has a recorded loss of almost 42,000 souls from this epidemic, most of which have occurred in the past month, and the fatalities continue to climb daily. Stay well, everyone, and pray for island retail, as well as the good health and economic survival of everyone who is experiencing hardship right now. In the interim, I’m really glad that our treasured Bunch of Grapes just may survive this. I have so many fond memories of this great store and look forward to more visits there in the future, when things are better for all of us.
Robin– may I suggest that you make your comments a little shorter in the future?
I am not criticizing what you wrote– but if you want more people to read it, I think you would do well to keep it a little shorter .
My post was a little longer than average because, aside from expressing my fondness for the Bunch of Grapes bookstore, I also told the history of that building in which the Bunch of Grapes currently sits. It is my family story. That story could be of interest, because a prior occupant of the building was my grandmother, and the much smaller island community supported her in a time of need in 1933. A sense of community is, in part, what this island is about and the community is now supporting the bookstore in it’s time of need. dondondon12, I found your comment a bit appalling. Of particular note, I am not interested in any suggestion from you. I can’t speak for others, but I am beyond tired of reading the MVTimes on line and finding that you have endlessly responded to almost every single article posted in the paper, whether you have anything of real value to say or not. It’s clear from your comment here that you do not. If someone’s statement in response to a Times article is too long for your attention span, even though you might not have anything to do right now in this pandemic but stay home, don’t read it. You have a choice. There are more productive hobbies available to you than to constantly feel the need to comment on almost everything that is written in the Times. To be candid, I’d like to read the paper on line without having to see your non-stop opinions. At this point, you post so many that I tend to skip over them. So my suggestion back to you, since you are handing out an unsolicited suggestion to me, is that while you have every right to sit at your computer and express opinions on MV Times articles all day long, “quality, not quantity” is something to ponder for the future. For this to be your response to what I wrote is not only stunning, but completely unnecessary. Now, please, don’t respond. Please don’t take up any more of my time or attention. I had my fill of reading what you write here years ago. No………. don’t. Step away from the keyboard, please. And to others, if we could please not let this turn into a “thing” with further responses. What I would like is for the sentiment of what I wrote last night not to be lost by such a senseless, pointless comment as dondondon12’s. In the meantime, the Bunch of Grapes is nearing $35,000 in donations. It will reach it’s $50,000 goal. However: the rest of us Independent store owners on Martha’s Vineyard are still in the same predicament we have been on staying afloat with no customers and no income. Our sweet island is at risk of losing so many of the true small businesses that make it unique and special. Let’s hope we can contain this deadly virus soon without too much more loss of life. Sorry if this is too long for any readers with short attention spans.
Well said Robin!
Thank you, Graciam06.
It’s too long for readers with short, medium, long and savant attention spans. Don was courteous and comes across as the more balanced and reasonable of the two of you.
I guess my request that there be no responses so that we could remain focused on the point of the post isn’t going to happen. Your opinion, Wesley, but that’s not the response I’m getting. You can choose to read a response to a newspaper article or not. You have a choice. I got one text first thing this morning from someone who said it made him have tears in his eyes. That from a man who hardly knows me but knew my phone number. An issue has been made over a non-issue, and it gives light to the pettiness that, regrettably goes on here. Not every post is for everyone. I should have never had to even respond, in the first place. It was a non-issue criticism that never should have been an issue. Now, please, the entire topic is ridiculous.
Don made a legitimate point, worded courteously, and you reacted with ad homenem attacks on him. When called on it, you refused to acknowledge your conduct and tried to brush it all off as ridiculous. Please take responsibility for your behavior. In all fairness, you may be exhibiting abnormal stress from being in the crosshairs of an economic tsunami. Running a local business is brutal in the best of times- high rents, short seasons, tight margins. Nobody can afford to lose a summer and hope to survive, or at the very least take a terrible financial hit. It’s unfortunate, and perhaps not entirely fair, that not every business will get a massive community cash influx to tide it over, and it’s understandable that there is elevated stress. May everything work out in the end. Peace.
Sorry Robin.
dondondon12, I really appreciate this. Thank you. You just made me smile. Enjoy the rest of your day.
Bravo.
Great posts, Robin. Eye-openers.
I just loved the historical information. Thanks.
Best of luck to island retail.
:-^
Thank you barreled_sunshine. I appreciate your thoughts. There is a great deal of history buried in the island that never sees the light of day. It was only a few years ago that I found photos of the Modern Lunch with my young grandmother standing in front of the building through relatives sharing pictures. Her three sisters joined in at the restaurant to help. As a side note, she later opened Dora’s Seafood Restaurant in the 50’s and 60’s where the Tisbury Marketplace now is. The building was along the back row of buildings. I have lots of memories there, including all the fried clams a girl could desire and lots of swimming in the lagoon while my grandmother cooked inside in the restaurant. Let’s hope retail makes it through this, but in the end our health is the most important thing.
Robin, I wish I had something better to offer than words but just wanted to say that I’m so sorry for all of the businesses that are suffering because of this, yours included. I’m sure it’s been incredibly stressful and can only hope that we continue to think of new ways to support our local workers. All the best to you.
Thank you, Aquinnah. All the businesses have great concern right now, for good reason. If you think about it, even the Steamship Authority is in trouble right now. In the case of the SSA, it’s going to take more than a book from our beloved bookstore to move us across the water to the other side!
1st of all can we go anywhere that does not turn a situation into a political vent?
As for Bunch of Grapes, IT’s sad when a small business after many years fails. This as as.much to do with the corona virus as it does with basic economics. Book stores are simply not viable businesses anymore. Even the natl chains have struggled bringing in coffee shops and lunch spots to help sustain their business.
Go the federal loan route, absolutely. But look at further adjustments to your business model to make it sustainable.
Unfortunately it may not be anymore.
Sad, indeed, and even in the best of times, most of the failures of small businesses is due to under capitalization…and this situation only exacerbates it. It will be difficult if the island stays closed down and second home owners do not arrive in large numbers, renters, etc. So many small businesses on the island will be hurt, damaged, lost. The most that many of us can do is buy and patronize when this is over. I am not quite sure if the go fund me program is useful here. Is this a loan? a gift? Can we give and get books later?
GoFundMe is pure, tax-deductible donations. What you get in return is helping out a beloved bookstore. You can give as little or as much as you like, or not at all.
How can a “donation” to a for profit business be tax deductible? No way that can be possible.
Easy-Peazy
You make tax deductible contributions to a non-profit.
The non-profit makes a donation to the for profit.
No taxes are due on the the non-profit’s donation to the for profit.
The for profit pays no taxes unless they make a profit.
I am going to guess that the Bunch of Grapes will not be facing that problem this year.
Ajay, you nailed it, this is being done a lot. Especially in political fundraising. It is not technically a direct donation to the for profit, but a vehicle that is used to benefit the for profit. Or the political organization.
A GoFundMe donation is a gift to the store, not a loan, but you can still purchase books and gift cards through the Bunch of Grapes website:
“We are currently closed to the public, but you may order through our website 24 hours a day. If we have the book in stock, we would be happy to arrange for curbside pick up or free local delivery. Any books we don’t have in stock can be ordered and sent to you anywhere in the US. And don’t forget – gift cards are a great way to keep us humming now AND later!”
P.S. Meant to add that if anyone is looking for a book to purchase from Bunch of Grapes, I’d recommend Stephen Fry’s Mythos. This was the last thing I read that had me sucked in. ???????????? It’s Greek mythology delivered in a fun (but not shallow) way.
You can order books online. You can get curbside pickup and you can order gift cards.
During the last 5 decades I have been associated with this island I have witnessed the systematic loss of substantial commerce and it’s replacement with ever more frivolous, marginal and seasonal junk business. Where is our Ford garage, Jeep, Dodge establishments? Where is the downtown Edgartown grocery, liquor stores, post office? The hardware store had to move out of downtown. Where is the island machine shop? Recently we lost an auto parts store. Islanders have been bamboozled into adopting policy that has led to our descent into summer carnival subordination. The current crisis has laid bare the fundamental weakness of what is called an economy.
Donations are pure, tax-deductible donations? to a private business? what is the source for this information that is being published?
There is nothing in the story that says the contributions are tax deductible. A commenter made that claim.
George, thank you for your clarification. I read through the article and comments and Jackie made the comment that it was a pure, tax deductible donation.
“There is nothing in the story that says the contributions are tax deductible.”
Indeed!
I was wrong, augusta. This is not tax deductable. Sorry!
Every January I get the year’s summary of all my GoFundMe deductions from them and assumed it was all tax deductible as charity donations. I looked it up since I was questioned and I was wrong! Sometimes that happens, lol.
Correction: GoFundMe DONATIONS, not deductions!
Jackie, if the donation is to an IRS recognized entity, the donations may be tax deductible….the donation to the Bunch of Grapes bookstore is a gift…..I have made donations through go fund me to tax deductible entities that are tax deductible. The vehicle of the donation is not the deciding factor, it is the legal entity of the recipient.
Thanks, Augusta. I did not know that.
Wesley Jenkinson, I find both your attacks at me obnoxious, unwarranted. You want to feel free to express your opinion but attack me for mine? How hypocritical of you. Shall we keep this circle going and should I start criticizing you for what you just said to me? I could. In effort to support dondondon12, your first gripe is to confirm, that in your world, my post was too long. Don’t read it then! No one is forcing you to read anything you don’t want to read. Don’t complain after if you did, and you find yourself disappointed that you read something you found too long. How devastating to find a reader response that is too long, when ironically, that post was nothing but full support of the bookstore! Do you buy books from the bookstore? Are they too long? A magazine article? Too long? Did you, as the authority you are posturing to be here, want to go over my post with a magnifying glass and tell me what part of it I should take out? Should the part about the history of my newly widowed grandmother, having to support a two year old and a four year old, opening a restaurant in that same building after my grandfather died fishing at the age of 26 be removed to shorten my article? Should I take out the part where I mentioned that the wonderful island community came together to support her, just like the community is supporting the Bunch of Grapes now? Should I take out the part that both my daughter and I loved the bookstore? Would that shorten it up enough for your liking? The last I looked you are not the newspaper’s editor. If my post was too long for you to deal with, then you are not my target reader. Then you next moved on to poor dondondon12 being aggrieved by my response. He’s a big boy and can take care of himself, and actually, he did. If you got past thinking about what you wanted to insult next to me, you would scroll down the page and see that he apologized to me. I responded back to him immediately. We air hugged via internet and made up. It’s over. It’s done. It’s not about you. It’s not about your opinion while you complain about someone else having an opinion you don’t like, while expecting yours to be accepted as rule. So why are you not done when Don and I are? I don’t know if you are a friend of dondondon12’s and feel compelled to chest pound for him, but if you say he made a legitimate point, in kind, I also made legitimate points. He gets to make a point, but I don’t in your world? Why you put yourself in the middle of something this so strongly this way is perplexing. Maybe go out and work on your yard or something. Seriously, Wesley, don’t bother me again, here or in real life, please. Now we will find out if you are the kind of guy who won’t let a woman have the last word. I have a hunch on this one.
Well, you know the old saying, “If you get the last word in, it’s just the first word of the next argument”. Nevertheless, I think both of us are intelligent and sensible people who think in terms of opportunity, not silly dilly-dally back and forth exchanges. Clearly you have a lot of passion for the topic of Main Street history, and the logical step is for you to author a book on the topic, which would then have its book release party at….you got it, The Bunch of Grapes. A beautiful full-circle arrival. You can weave family history with the larger history of the street to create a touching and detailed narrative arc. Go for it.
“Thank you barreled_sunshine. I appreciate your thoughts. There is a great deal of history buried in the island that never sees the light of day.”
The old history is what I love most. Information, pictures, etc., prior the early 60’s (when we landed) fascinate me. More importantly, good luck to your/our plight.
Thank you. I need to connect with Chris Baer with this family history. At one point several years ago the Museum wanted me to bring in the information on my grandfather’s fatal fishing trip. He was not supposed to be there, he was covering for someone else and didn’t want to go. The Vineyard Gazette put together quite a package for me on the incident, as there was controversy about the Coast Guard not properly going out to rescue them. Editorials flew back and forth between the Gazette and the Coast Guard. They were more worried about rum runners as it was during the Prohibition. A lot of local fishermen went to search for them, while the Coast Guard did not. Perhaps with what appears to be continuing downtime this year, we can all spend more time researching island history if it is of interest.The Bunch of Grapes likely has some good books on island history. In the meantime, The Bunch of Grapes is at $57,000 on a $50,000 goal. If nothing else, we will have our beloved bookstore. I cannot imagine this island without it.
Glad the donation/tax deduction issue was rectified. Big difference.
It is gratifying to see the support given to the Bunch of Grapes bookstore by islanders and others. This is an ongoing problem for Indie bookstores all over the country. Many have closed and if the business is not well capitalized there is a continuing problem. Will everyone be agreeable to bailing out more bookstores, small businesses on the island, or the bookstore again? Many changes are coming due to this virus and not all will be welcome or be able to be fixed. Glad people did what they did for the bookstore.
I wouldn’t donate 2 cents to bail out Black Dog.
Black Dog is now in the (political) doghouse.
Not mention incredibly profitable.
A true American success story.
A Hippy-Dippy success story.
The Bkack Dog does not need a bailout. It is a ongoing profitable business who changed with the times, adjusted the model and is successful. You may not like them or their business but it is a success.
Bunch of Grapes is in a dying industry like home delivered milk way back when my dad owned a dairy in NJ. He adjusted his model went more commercial and survived. Donating or giving a commercial biz like BOG is frivolous IMO. You should not donate to a go fund me page. Thisnis not for a medical bill it is for putting money in the pocket of an owner of a dying business. Why not spend the $50k at the store buying books? Ah thatvwoukd probably not cover the costs of the overdue bills.
I have a hard time accounting for a handout to keep a commercial biz afloat versus truly helping someone with a medical expense.
And what is the difference of giving away money to BOG versus the Black Dog if their biz faltered?
Nothing……
You should be asking the government that question. Did Shake Shack need a bailout that they were shamed into giving back? Communities get to have a say about which businesses they want to support in their community. Martha’s Vineyard has spoken. We, and our friends who visit, want Bunch of Grapes. Black Dog? We shall see how supported they are within the borders of the island. People give gifts when and why they choose. People spend their money on products they want. Books are part of what islanders want. Tshirts? Time will tell, especially when they are associated with an illegal protest about greed and a call to stupidly disregard the state order of no gatherings over 10 people.
Politricks.
No, Wesley, I have not heard that expression. I see you have more of your opinion to give. I am so not interested. Everything you just said? Not interested. I meant it when I asked you to leave me alone. Please do. Thank you. Go do some yard work?
Robin…ignore Wesley….he never has an original thought….all he does is defend Donx3…you would think he is actually Donx3 commenting under a different name…he’s a useless tool! You’re comments were thoughtful and passionate…I, for one, appreciate such compassion….keep it up and ignore Wesley…I hope your business succeeds beyond you’re wildest dreams…I will definitely patronize it. Thanks
Well, I will end on a graceful note. Robin, I wish you health and safety and a swift return to business.
Thank you, Wesley.
TQ- I am not commenting under a different name.
Wesley pointed out that my original comment to Robin was courteous and did not warrant the personal attack that she replied to me with.
“ignore Wesley….he never has an original thought….all he does is defend Donx3.”
What are you talking about ? He has plenty of original thoughts, and he “defended” me once.
I apologized to Robin, and she accepted that. However, we did not “air hug” and she has gone off the rails on any comment that in any way differs with her opinion or her sense of being offended. I din not mean any offense in my original comment, Wesley meant none in his. However, if you want to look at offensive, look at her comments. They actually are offensive, and for you to imply that I am working 2 handles is offensive. If you want to get going on the lack of original thought, I can be offensive also. How about that, Robin ?
I was offended. Care to apologize and make up ?
If you want to be left alone– quit attacking people, and tell your minion to cut it out also. And you have to have the last word because you are a woman ????
Any woman reading this should be offended by that comment.
TQ thank you for your response. dondondon12 has accused you of being my minion. Never heard of you, but I appreciate what you wrote. Your suggestion that dondondon12 and Wesley are the same person does make some sense when looking at the comments, because I could not understand Wesley’s investment here. I’ll never know if they are the same person, and I’ll never care. In reading dondondon12’s response just now, it does make me wonder why he is telling us what Wesley meant. How would he know what Wesley meant? Why, in kind, was Wesley interpreting what dondondon12 meant? On close inspection, they speak somewhat alike and these two like to speak for each other with an unexplained passion. Here we have two men complaining that a post they read was too long. Seriously? I don’t know of one man, never mind two, who want to do this with their time. A complaint that a post was too long was not normal for anyone to post, never mind two men. I’ve had the good sense to ignore everything dondondon12 posts non-stop and endlessly in this paper until he went after me personally complaining that my post was “too long”, This current experience has just reinforced that I called ignoring him right. Since I do routinely ignore his non-stop responses to almost every article in this paper I might not have seen it at all unless I had received a text message from someone who said “Hi Robin, I hope you are well. Thanks for your comment on the Bunch of Grapes story. You almost brought a tear to my eye. Just ignore dondondon. I’m hoping we get through this and I can visit the Gallery. Stay safe and well”. dondondon12, that is what a normal reaction is. dondondon12, you do not deserve an apology. I wonder just how many people said “yes!” when I highlighted how tiresome your endless opinion posts are in this paper. You have so many opinions, that you reduce the urgent need of that to be to tell someone their post, that had nothing to do with you, was too long. I can’t waste any more time on the one, or the both of you, whichever it is.
“I meant it when I asked you to leave me alone.”
If you want someone to leave you alone do not address them.
That would be your way of handling it. You want to chime in now, too? Use your real name, please.
Indeed, mvfrick, does anyone miss buggy whip factories?
“The Bkack Dog does not need a bailout. It is a ongoing profitable business who changed with the times, adjusted the model and is successful. You may not like them or their business but it is a success.”
Checkmate. Nice.
I love the food and frequent The Black Dog Bakery Café as much as The Scottish Bakehouse. Different delicacies at each venue. Why can’t we all just get “abong”?!! NYUK NYUK NYUK……
glad to see bunch of grapes goal met so quickly.
I wonder how the Black Dog would fare if they had a go fund me site ?
As someone who knows Dawn personally and had worked for her in the past. I congratulate her on being able to stay a small business on this island. A heartfelt thank you to all that helped, big and small
Now… there it goes… I was wondering how a spirited back and forth comment was going to be sidelined by a political rant from one of the usual suspects.
Is your whole day comprised of being upset and feeling you have to lash out and interject a negative comment about the latest news of the government? And then you go to bed, still angry. It seems like a shallow unfulfilling life.
view– who is your comment about a political rant directed at ?
the only thing I see close to a political rant is from ajay:
“Forgivable’ SBA loans are pure Communism”
and then:
“Trump is doing his damnedest to help small businesses,But he refuses to help the Island because of it’s association with the Clinton’s and the Obama’s.”
Who knows which side he’s even on– he often has posts that contradict themselves..I don’t think Ajay is one of the “usual suspects”
Please clarify the “rant” part that you see here.
And if you think Jackie saying the shake shack didn’t need a bailout is a “political rant”, you have thinner skin than trump, or perhaps you have stock in the company ?
Lol, I just saw the comment from viewfromnowhere. Likely directed at me and not the first time he goes for a personal attack. He’s projecting and lashing out his own anger and pain, Don. It’s silly, but it’s what angry people do when they have nothing intelligent to offer.
“ Is your whole day comprised of being upset and feeling you have to lash out and interject a negative comment about the latest news of the government? And then you go to bed, still angry. It seems like a shallow unfulfilling life.”
Interesting. Muy interesante!
????
Projecting: “It’s what angry people do when they have nothing intelligent to offer.” And who applauds it? Barrel.
It wouldn’t hurt to remember that when people are under extreme stress, the way we all are now, whether from loss of income or health worries, the way they communicate can change. People who normally are able to have a back and forth or argue their point coherently, can suddenly sound unbalanced or paranoid, or any other extreme reaction to extreme stress. (I, on the other hand, have always been able to piss people off just by being my normal self.) Don’t exacerbate a situation where someone is clearly having a hard time. Thanks.
I found View’s comment “Interesting”. I scribed “interesting”, hoping I might get clarity as to whom he was referring. I did not know he meant you. Everyone else did.
I am just finding out that you are whom he was referencing. I found this out from none other than—YOU! By reading your post.
“People who normally are able to have a back and forth or argue their point coherently, can suddenly sound unbalanced or paranoid..”
Indeed!
Hope this helps. :-^
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