and after about ten years of that peripatetic lifestyle, i decided i wanted to go to the other side of the counter and sell books. and so i went to work for the bookstore here in this plaza, and i eventually bought into the business and then bought the business out. and so i have been here since, as sole owner since 1991. and it's been an up and down history since then. shortly after i purchased the store, um, with a small business administration loan, it was barnes & noble and borders moved in, and literally the literary landscape of albany, new york, changed overnight as it did across the country. because that expansion into the area of the chains took about 11 other independent bookstores out of business. but the book house was left standing. and through the '90s it was really a tough, competitive battle for our market share in this town, but we survived. part of the reason we survived was that the community came to our rescue. they said we don't want you to go away, we want you to survive, and we want to spend our money here at this store. and that's why we're here, because the com