IN THE PIPELINE:

ROCHESTER, MINN. — They were calling for snow showers, but the winds must have shifted a bit because Iowa took the brunt of the storm while we are enjoying clear blue skies.

It is bitter cold, though, and no place seems cozier right now than the attic of the historic Mayowood Mansion, a homey, 28-room country escape that the famed doctor Charles Mayo (co-founder of the Mayo clinic) built almost 100 years ago.

I’m appearing here at an event, and up at the top is perhaps my favorite part of the house (I say “attic” but in reality, it’s an old, spacious ballroom). What draws me up here is not just the view or the fact that presidents and kings once waltzed here — it’s the old books — shelves and cases packed snugly with tome after interesting tome.

Novels, biographies, cookbooks, map books and, of course, medical journals. Storybooks, journals and children’s books — the Mayo family obviously liked their books and as I lose myself in the musty titles, leafing through yellowed, brittle pages, it seems like the perfect place to draft this week’s column about a bookstore in Huntington Beach that sadly, is in the midst of its final chapter.

Do you know the Bookman Too used book store, 19111 Beach Blvd., near Garfield Avenue? My family members are frequent customers and since we’ve lived here, it’s always provided the cool, adventurous escape that good used book stores do.

Tall shelves crammed with all sorts of promises, teases and treasures are so inviting to many of us, and so when I got the notice that Bookman Too was in the process of “liquidating,” I went over to see what had happened.

As it turned out, what had happened is simply the plague that is wiping out so many once-common pleasures such as used bookstores, newspapers and single-screen cinemas that don’t show commercials before the movie — more “progress” in the form of online commerce and a seeming lack of appreciation for things that require actual time and patience. As co-owner Patty McFall explained to me recently on one of her big, soft reading couches in the store, as great as the Internet has been for some things, it ultimately spelled doom for Bookman Too.

“You have people that might have an old shelf of books at home and they decide to sell them all for a dollar. That’s who we end up competing with now, sellers with no overhead, so it becomes virtually impossible. We simply can’t compete with that,” she said.

The encroachment started about five years ago, and the end is coming quicker than she would have preferred.

Some background: For 11 years Patty and her partner, Reynolds Taney, have been running the Bookman.

Patty was raised in the area and came back here after living in Pennsylvania for several years before opening the store (there is a second Bookman nearby and for a while the two stores were affiliated).

Over the years the store built up a dedicated clientele, but in the end it simply was not big enough to support all that the store requires. And times are changing.

“When you’re here,” Patty says, “you get reminded of the wonderful feeling of how much fun it is to shop for books like this. It’s sort of like how drive-in movie theaters were — an amazing experience that, once you go back, you remember so fondly.

“It’s a lost art, rummaging through old books, but it’s not in fashion anymore. We’re always in a hurry today — there are way too many things to do for many people. Not enough time. So many people don’t even take the time to read the paper in the morning anymore.”

There are other realities that give Patty pause.

“I think people will be sad and miss the experience once all the old bookstores are gone. But I would have loved to have built this into a business for my two daughters.”

Patty also tears up when she talks about the five full-time employees who will soon be out of work.

“They’re such amazing people. Even in light of what’s happening, they’re all committed to making the last days the best. For any companies out there that are interested, these are some exceptional workers that understand retail inside and out.”

They are Keimi Yamagata, Jamie Troutman, Maryah Helme, and Taylor and Rachel Taney, Patty’s two daughters.

After the store is gone in a few weeks, Patty says she’ll take some time to work on her sculpting. But she won’t forget the customers.

“People are so sad,” she says.

“Customers come in and they are shocked we’re going away. It gets so emotional sometimes. But we just needed more of those people.”

The loss of any local business is tough, but selfishly, I’ll tell you I rue losing a bookstore more than just about anything.

Patty, Reyn and their staff have dedicated many long hours and their closing will leave a big hole in the city, which is why I hope that folks can send the place off in style.

There are thousands of books here that need homes, and they are priced to move.

But more than that, treat yourself (and your family) to an experience that is getting more rare every day — treasure hunting in a big, stuffed, maze-like book store. It’s the end of another era here in Huntington Beach, but hopefully we can all help it finish big.

There will be a big send-off party, too, which I’ll have information on soon.

IF YOU GO

WHAT: Bookman Too

WHERE: 19111 Beach Blvd.

CONTACT: 714-735-2665 or www.bookmanhb.com

CHRIS EPTING is the author of 14 books, including the new “Huntington Beach Then & Now.” You can write him at chris@chrisepting.com.