I’ve been a bit perplexed, especially in more recent years, by the continued existence of the printed guidebook. Probably there are fewer now, but they are still around! Especially in *very* recent years, everything has been in such rapid and violent flux that it seems almost impossible to print a guidebook that’s still useful by the time it gets to stores. (Wait, stores? ):

But, it just occurred to me that that very thing — the “point-in-time-ness” of a guidebook — is actually very valuable. It records a reality that may disappear, and that’s wonderful. (Not so much the disappearing of the reality, obviously, but the recording of it.)

The thought gives me a bit strength to pursue the Portland Coffee Shops book idea… It will certainly not be as durable as that wonderful Portland Parks book, but that could be a feature, rather than a bug. It also gives me slightly more of a feeling of spaciousness in time; even if I include shops that close soon after (or even before) publication, at least there’s a record of them. I want a record of them.