Good Bye

Fig Newtons and Scotch is moving!!!! My new address is http://www.booknash.typepad.com/

Hope to see you there.

Round Up

Jackson, New Hampshire public library is in a barn.  Love it.

Top 20 books of 2012-thus far.

Private collector gives road and street maps to Stanford.

BRB Publications publishes public record information in the form of directories, guides to court records and more.   They also have an informative blog.

Did you know that Dr Pepper doe not have a period after the word Dr.   Scroll down to the Name Formatting section of this Wikipedia entry.

I've found oodles of items that I want to read by perusing the Alternatives in Print Directory.

Some books that have sparked an interest: An Alphabet of London (Merrell Publishers) by Christopher Brown and Sisters: An Anthology (Paris Press Books) edited by Jan Freeman, Emily Wojcik and Deborah Bull.

Great, cool and educational- Essential Questions in American History.

Interesting article about the comma.

I've mentioned Paxton Gate in this blog before, but they are so fabulous and so worthy of another mention.

Chandelier made from an Ikea bowl.

The Harry Potter Alphabet.



I don't have a lot to post this time.  I've been a bit busy of late.  Have a great weekend. Until next time.  I leave you with a beautiful dogwood.  I love their lacy crookedness.

"There's nothing that keeps its youth, So far as I know, but a tree and truth."  Oliver Wendell Holmes

Round Up

R.I.P. Adrienne Rich

It's National Poetry Month.

Next week (April 8-14, 2012) is National Library Week.

Great post about libraries in lighthouses over at the Library History Buff Blog.

Good tips for researching science information.

Diggin'-Bess Lovejoy, Panera's Mediterranean Egg White Sandwich-it's vegetarian, I think the photograph of the sandwich is something else-looks like it has bacon and Happy Goat Caramel Sauce (scroll down the page for the sauce).

Would love to try the Salty Pimp.

Article about pop-up libraries.

Earth Science Picture of the Day and Molecule of the Month.

Books that have caught my eye: Cloudette (Macmillan) by Tom Lichtenfeld and Babel No More: The Search for the World's Most Extraordinary Language Learners (Free Press) by Michael Erard.

Are you a lover of essays?  Wander over to The Pedestrian.

Yum-Fonuts.

Child authors.

Sad, but oh so true article about race in The Hunger Games and the racial state of this society-very, very , very sad, but not surprising.

Article about the Nelson Mandela Digital Archive.   Reading the letter he wrote to his daughters will bring tears to your eyes.

That's all for this week.  Have a good one.

"Poetry is language at its most distilled and most powerful."  Rita Dove

Poetry is not only dream and vision; it is the skeleton architecture of our lives. It lays the foundations for a future of change, a bridge across our fears of what has never been before.
		Audre Lorde

Poetry is not only dream and vision; it is the skeleton architecture of our lives. It lays the foundations for a future of change, a bridge across our fears of what has never been before.
		Audre Lorde

Poetry is not only dream and vision; it is the skeleton architecture of our lives. It lays the foundations for a future of change, a bridge across our fears of what has never been before.
		Audre Lorde

Girl Scouts

I feel terrible that I dropped the ball on the Girl Scouts 100th anniversary.  I was a Girl Scout and I loved it. 

So here's a Happy 100th Anniversary to you Girl Scouts.   

Round Up

2 books that have sparked an interest: The Sweet Sixteen: The Journey That Inspired the Canandian Women's Press Club (McGill-Queens University Press)by Linda Kay and Moon Tides: Jeju Island Grannies of the Sea (Seoul Selection) by Brenda Park Sunoo.

Wonderful sentiment-the Holstee Manifesto. I guess this manifesto is similar to Desiderata was back in my day-when I used to get called "Miss". I had Desiderata on the wall of my room when I was a teen. Still love the words.

Please don't tell A., but I have once again been cheating on him-from afar anyway. I have a huge crush on Robert Krulwich. There it's out in the open now. I've been jonesin on him for quite a few years now. From Radiolab, to all of the pieces he does for NPR-his Krulwich Wonders blog is one of my favorites, Mr. Krulwich I salute you!!!!!

Old Maps Online-hours of perusing fun!!

Inever knew there were leather license plates. And if you have one it is worth a pretty penny.

Family of Rock family trees.

Tupac Shakur Collection debuts at Atlanta University Center Library.

I think I would like Dr. Lucy Worsley's job.

The ways that humans alter their bodies has always interested me, especially foot binding. Reshaping the Body: Clothing and Culture looks like a very interesting digital exhibition. I see they have a section on Lotus Shoes.

Love a good essay and after looking at Flavorwires list of 10 contemporary essayists I see I have a few more to add to my TBR list.

Interesting article on why we have sliced bread.

I've been saying this for years-people are getting ruder and it stinks!!!

8 places with scrumptious looking doughnuts\donuts-and not one of them in my area-DRATS!

Appropriately named sweet-Fat Ass Fudge.

I became fascinated with invasive species when I worked at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Library. We had a lot of reference queries about zebra mussels. Well there's a newish invasive species in town-Rock Vomit. Ewwww....

To travel without luggage (even 1 carry on can be a bother) would be heaven. I thought this was something that only the super wealthy could do, but the prices on LugLess aren't that bad.

This is something else that has been making the rounds just like the Holstee Manifesto. Portia Nelson's (she was an actress and singer) Autobiography in Five Short Chapters.

That's all for this week. Have a good one.



"Acceptance of one's life has nothing to do with resignation; it does not mean running away from the struggle. On the contrary, it means accepting it as it comes, with all the handicaps of heredity, of suffering, of psychological complexes and injustices." - Paul Tournier

Round Up

R.I.P Benedict Freedman-author of Mrs. Mike (Berkly/Penguin). He co-wrote the book with his wife Nancy in 1947 and it still has a cult following. Mr. Benedict started out as an aeronautical engineer and worked on Howard Hughes' Spruce Goose. He really wanted to be a mathematician and he became one when he was in his 50's.

Discover Canadian books at The 49th Shelf.

There are so many book illustrators that I am ga-ga over and I've addd Caroline Woodward to my list.

Go to the website Simply Read Books and perform a search. So adorable!!!

50 wonderful books for an 11-year old. Oh my, I've missed some of these.

Love maps and the maps at They Draw and Travel are great. If you can draw why not submit a map of someplace special to you.

And speaking of maps, look at all of these map pillows.

The 10 best fictional bookstores in pop culture.

Relax, take your shoes off and peruse Wayfare magazine.

36 Hours is one of my favorite columns from my favorite newspaper.

The Forest Lodge Library in Cable, Wisconsin is my style of library. Just seeing the photographs evokes the scent of pine woods and settling down in a cozy chair with a good book while the snow falls silently to the ground. (okay, I got carried away with my longings there).

As many of you have heard after 244 years the print version of Encyclopedia Brittanica will no longer be published. I can still see the set we had when I was growing up. I read it from cover to cover and learned so much. A much more fertile brain in those days....

The last volume of the Dictionary of American Regional English has been published. Finally. I am thrilled and wish I could afford to have this in my home. Hours and hours of perusing fun.

2 books that have sparked an interest: Emma's Journey by Claire Fossard and Etienne Fossard, and In a Different Light: Reflections and Beauty of Wise Women of Color by Dorothy Bailey.

That's all I have for this week. It's going to be in the 80's today and that mean that I am not A HAPPY CAMPER. It's bad enough living in a boiling inferno from May until my beloved October, but it's MARCH for heaven's sake. That's my rant for today.


"Love makes your soul crawl out from its hiding place." Zora Neale Hurston

Round Up

This bear just cracks me up . Real photograph or faux-it's hilarious.

It's International Woman's Day (March 8th). (can't link to the site, but here is a nice history of International Woman's Day)

I'm not going to provide a link, but I am so thrilled that I don't live in Virginia.

Locating London's Past

Chotie Darling-World War II letters from Richard "Dicker" Williams to his sweetheart Chotie.

2012 Ted Prize-usually this prize is given to a person; this year the prize went to an organization-The City 2.0. Love TED.

Heaven-the recipe for Laduree's Macarons Framboise. You know I am not a Francophile, but I was raised by one and I live with one. It seems like I am becoming a bit more enamored with France as time goes on. Who knows I may go to France to taste the real Laduree's Macarons.

30 years of Banned Books Posters.

Ooh la la-Flirty Aprons.

You have probably heard of Gilbert and Sullivan's HMS Pinafore Song, I Am the Very Model for a Modern Major General. Let me introduce you to I Am the Very Model of a Modern-Day Librarian sung to the same tune as Gilber and Sullivan's song. (scroll down a bit to find the song)

I am old enough to remember working in a public library and using the rubber stamp Lazy Susan on a regular basis. Crazy about the Library History Buff Blog.

So someone else besides me is a lover of the two-lane road.

I am smitten by BBC Radio 4's Desert Island Discs. I could listen to them all day long. The host of the shows asks various folks, authors, politicians, singers, celebrities, etc. what 8 records they would take if they knew they were going to be stranded on a desert island. The program has been airing since 1942.

Artist Marc Johns' drawings rock.

The First World War Poetry Digital Archive. I had to type that 3 times. I kept putting the word Digital before the word Archive. Hmmm.......

Top 50 romantic lines from literature.

That's all for this week. I would be remiss if I didn't complain about "springing ahead" this weekend. I have complained every years for the last 7 years on this blog about how much I hate DST, about how I want/need it to be ligth at 6:00 a.m. and dark at 6:00 p.m. every day, about how I don't understand what purpose it serves being light at 9:00 p.m, about how much I hate going to work in the dark, about how sorry I feel for the kids waiting for the schoolbus in the dark, and on an on. I know my loyal blog readers wouldn't want to miss hearing all of that for the seventh year!!

Have a good one.

"If men can run the world, why can't they stop wearing neckties? How intelligent is it to start the day by tying a little noose around your neck?" ~ Linda Ellerbee

Round Up

R.I.P. Jan Berenstain

Help save Jeju Island.

Good Grief-check out the very extensive Legacy Tobacco Documents Library.

Found yet another candle that I would like to add to my growing candle wants-Gritty City Prohibition Candle.

Digitized love letters of the Brownings-lovely.

Article on literary executors, "keepers of the flame."

I had no idea that Griswold cast iron is so collectible. If memory serves I think my mother has some of their pieces. More on the history of the Griswold Company.

How clever! I love the refrigerator at The Penguin Press.

I would love to have a jar of honey from the bees at the Paris Opera House.

I have been looking for just the right globe as a gift for my niece. The globes at ImagineNations are fabulous, way out of my price range, but they are so creative.

My dream purse-Proenza Schouler.

Heaven forbid, but if your house were on fire what would you grab? See what people would grab at The Burning House Project.

The Curiosity Shoppe has some delightful items. This pillow is adorable.

Love Canada and I am learning more about this country from the Canadian Encyclopedia.

P.O.S.H. Chicago has a very nice selection of restaurant china and dinnerware.

2 books have sparked an interest: Horten's Miraculous Mechanisms(Sterling Publishers) by Lissa Evans and Handheld Pies: Pint Size Sweets and Savories (Chronicle Books) by Sarah Billingsley and Rachel Wharton.

I adore the author Pam Houston, so much so, that I even read her short stories, and I am not a short story fan. Here is the Flickr set to her book, Contents May Have Shifted (W.W.Norton).

Good article on preserving Americans of African descent's academic library history.

That's all I have for this week. It kills me, but I a going to post a "spring" photograph. Have a nice weekend.



"Time stands still best in moments that look suspiciously like ordinary life." Brian Andress

13 things you pay for that your library has for free.

ALA 2012 Notable Children's Books.

I love these adorable custom house portraits that Rebekka Seale does.

So much fun-Literary Tumblrs-my favorite thus fare is Awesome People Reading.

Wonderful items at Three Potato Four.

I would be quite content eating at an establishment that has pictures of pooches all over the walls-this is the White Dog Cafe in Wayne, Pennsylvania.

My love of costume dramas has me ga ga over Downton Abbey. Love these Downton Abbey paper dolls.

Hmmm the World Carrot Museum.

Jazz Quotes.

Very interesting stories behind publisher's animal logos.

This site should put all of the sterotypes about what librarians look like to rest.

If you are a fan of retro items, items that scream 1955 Retro Planet is the site for you.

Google Earth Cool Places.

That's all I have this week. Have a nice weekend.

(I keep posting these photographs of winter even though we aren't having a winter-it's going to be 75 degrees today-YIKES-I long for cold weather)



"To be meek, patient, tactful, modest, honorable, brave is not to be either manly or womanly; it is to be humane." - Jane Harrison

Round Up

First off-I hate banks. Parasitic institutions that take your money and then place all of these contingencies on it as to when and how much you can withdraw and on and on. That being said whatever happened to the friendly bank where you could go up to the juvenile cashier and ask for some change, without being asked if you have an account at that bank.

I knew I was going to need quarters for parking meters so I thought I could walk into "any" bank and ask for a roll of quarters-$5.00 or $10.00 worth. You would have thought I asked for a kidney. I kept asking the cashier/clerk why do I have to have an account with your bank for an even exchange of currency. On and on and one we went until finally her manager came over and asked, "Mam, is there a problem."

By that time I was boiling so I told him, "Your bank sucks and stop calling women Mam-we don't like it!!!" and stormed out of the bank. And the name of this bank-let's just say Regis Philbin (what's his purpose anyway?) is one of their boring spokespersons. GRRRRRR!!!!!!!!!!!!

And BTW-once again-Mam is not respectful. Sir is respectful. Mam is just a verbal indication of a visual calculation that wrinkles are apparent, the girls are sagging, and the caboose isn't as high as it used to be so Miss is not appropriate.

R.I.P. Wislawa Szymborska.

Congratulations Malachy.

Carpets made from using Google Earth maps.

Star Wars pancake molds.

Larson Juhl-wonderful framing for needlework.

Compile your own cookbooks with Tastebook.

7 amazing green bookstores and libraries.

12 creative business cards.

Brief history of blurbs.

Internet Pinball database-I used to love pinball. And if you want to find a place to play pinball use the World Pinball Directory.

Oh my, No-Stir Oven Risotto.

Fruity Pebbles Macarons.

These sound scrumtious: Sweet Potatoe Patties with Sour Cream and Chipotle Black Bean Salsa.

That's all I have for this week. Have a nice week and a wonderful weekend.

"I have sympathy for young people, for their growing pains, but I balk when these growing pains are pushed into the foreground, when you make these young people the only vehicles of life's wisdom. " Wislawa Szymborska

Round Up

Happy Birthday Charles Dickens (200th), Laura Ingalls Wilder and Sinclair Lewis.

I would love to have 1 or 2 of the Spineless Classics on my walls.

10 scientists robbed of a Nobel Prize.

6 bookcase wallpapers.

I made one New Years Resolution this year, and that was to make purchases from independent bookstores. I get books from various resources-Paperback Swap, I usually have books on hold at my local public library and I purchase books from various places. My resolution for 2012 was tomake a monthly purchase from an independent bookstore every month. And you know what I totally forgot to purchase anything in January. Good Grief!!!

I remembered this month and I purchased a tote bag from Misty Valley Books in Chester, Vermont. I'll keep you updated on my purchases.

Washington, DC is the most literate city in the United States.

50th anniversary of one of my favorite books, A Wrinkle in Time by Madeline L'Engle.

Cakes throughout US history.

Foldable rain boots.

Surprising food origins.

Gorgeous business cards.

Heart-shaped balloons.

Fun book: Dogs of Central Park (Universe)by Fran Reisner.

That's all I have for this week. Enjoy!!!





"You must be true to yourself. Strong enough to be true to yourself. Brave enough to be strong enough to be true to yourself. Wise enough to be brave enough, to be strong enough to shape yourself from what you actually are." - Sylvia Ashton-Warner

Round Up

R.I.P. Etta James-good grief it annoys me whenever someone other than Ms. James sings At Last.

R.I.P. Dick Tufeld, voice of The Robot.

Learn all about World Book Night.

Libraries on television and the movies.

Quiet a few books have caught my eye: The Knitter's Life List (Storey Publishing) by Gwen Steege, How Carrots Won the Trojan War: Curious (but True) Stories of Common Vegetables (Storey Publishing) by Rebecca Rupp, Science Ink: Tattoos of the Science Obsessed (Sterling Publishing) by Carl Zimmer, Ice: (Stories Without Words) (Enchanted Lion Books) by Arthur Geisert-really any book by Arthur Geisert is tops with me, and What Color Is My World?: The Lost History of African-American Inventors (Candlewick) by Kareem Abdul Jabbar.

A. and I got into a discussion about all the physicians who are also published authors. We attempted to see if we could name some, my goodness we didnt' even hit the tip of the iceberg with our paltry list.

Congratulations Felicity Aston the first person to ski solo across Antarctica alone.

Meet Qamar Hashim-What were you doing when you were 8?

Hyde Park Books has a wonderful author name pronunciation guide.

Love, love, love these artifact bags.

I have always wanted to take a calligraphy class, but have never gotten around to it. The Society of Scribes has some interesting classes.

Lots of good information on the Global Language Monitor.

Apparently Charles Dickens was very interested in interior decorating. Look at the slideshow of his 49 Doughty Street London rooms.

Humblebrag is hilarious.

Make some heart-shaped seed bombs.

That's all for now. Have a nice week.


"The only real prison is fear, and the only real freedom is freedom from fear." - Aung San Suu Kyi

Round Up

R.I.P. Simms Taback and Reginald Hill.

New York Times candle-smells like newsprint. I don't know if that's a good thing or not.

I love specialty stores like The Ribbonerie. (problem with the stores URL so I'm linking to Apartment Therapy's piece on the store)

Back in the day the placement of a stamp on a postcard or letter could send a message all its own. Very nice piece on this charming custom.

You have heard of ghost towns, what about ghost counties.

Grammarware.

Love, love, love these Shanna Murray wall decals.

Books I've spied: Menu Design in America: 1850-1986 (Taschen) by Steven Heller, Jim Heimann and John Mariani, The Chicken Encyclopedia (Storey Publishing) by Gail Damerow and Hedy's Folly: The Life and Breakthrough Inventions of Hedy Lamarr, the Most Beautiful Woman in the World (Doubleday)by Richard Rhodes.

Push pins are passe-get a scratch map to mark your travels.

Here are some things librarians should do about SOPA.

I am ga-ga over Purina's dog breed library.

World's most expensive book-Good Grief!!!!

That's all for this week. Have a good weekend.

“Heaven preserve me from littleness and pleasantness and smoothness. Give me great glaring vices, and great glaring virtues, but preserve me from the neat little neutral ambiguities. Be wicked, be brave, be drunk, be reckless, be dissolute, be despotic, be a suffragette, be anything you like, but for pity's sake be it to the top of your bent. Live fully, live passionately, live disastrously. Let's live, you and I, as none have ever lived before. -to Vita Sackville-West, October 25, 1918” ― Violet Trefusis

Round Up

Happy New Year everyone!!! This is my first post for 2012. I just have a few items for this post.

R.I.P. Russell Hoban, author of the Frances series and many more books.

Did you know that there is a National Academic Quiz Tournament company? I found out about this company when I was trying to find out what happend to Mac McGarry who hosted It's Academic for many years. He's retiring from the show. One link led to another (as it so often does) and I ended up finding out about the Quiz Tournament company.

Have use of a list of windmills around the globe.

Walter Dean Myers is the new National Ambassador for Young People's Literature.

Yes, there is a Dr. Pepper Museum.

Two books that have sparked an interest: Quiet: The Power of Introverts (Random House) by Susan Cain and Dimity Dumpty: The Story of Humpty's Little Sister (Candlewick) by Bob Graham (I bet you thought Humpty was an only child huh).

What to do with all of those annoying packing peanuts.

Look at these wonderful literary dolls at Uneek Doll Designs.

Oh my, Paxton Gate has such lovely and unusual items.

I love all of these wonderful colors of masking tape-why wasn't this thought of years ago. Maybe it was a thought, but then the manufacturing of all the wonderful colors was found to be cost prohibitive. Who knows.

And speaking of colors, the color for 2012, according to Pantone, is Tangerine Tango. (just scroll down Apartment Therapy's entry about this. I liked their entry about the subject better than Pantones.)

That's all for this week. Have a good one.

"And now let us welcome the new year, full of things that have never been." Rainer Maria Rilke