mstrust's shop of Books, Booze and Chocolate

With this thread I will do what I've always wanted, which is to own a bookshop. One that is suited to my very particular personality.
Enter The BBC, which stands for Books, Booze & Chocolate. It contains every book I have or want to read, a little lounge in the back for cocktails, and an always stocked patisserie. There's live music or plays, tiki carving demonstrations, gem shows, and everyone who comes in is also a big fan of both "Downton Abbey" and "The Walking Dead". Also, dogs are always welcome.



The shop has lots of rooms, all filled with books. If you get lost, curl into a ball. A member of staff will come across you eventually.

Our staff are knowledgeable and friendly!



Our customers are brilliant and exceedingly good-looking!




Books Read

1. Japanland- 4.2
2. Easy to Kill- 3.5
3. Rickles' Book- 3 stars
4. Tepper Isn't Going Out- 3.5 stars
The Adventure of the Beryl Coronet
5. Cheap: The High Cost of Discount Culture- 3.5 stars
6. I Married A Dead Man- 3.5 stars
7. The Halloween Tree- 3 stars
8. Grow Your Own Drugs- 4 stars

Welcome back!

>1 mstrust: & >2 mstrust: A novel start to what I hope will be a wonderful year for you, Jennifer.

I love the idea for your bookshop!

I've always daydreamed of opening a used bookshop/tea shop/yarn shop: books up front, yarn in the back (with a big table/sitting area for folks to sit round and work on knitting projects) and the tea counter with a few tables in the middle.

>3 drneutron: >4 PaulCranswick: >5 scaifea: Thanks, Doc, Paul and Amber! And I hope you'll visit me again throughout the year.

>5 scaifea: Yep, that would fun! I don't knit but I suppose tiki carving is just another way to work with my hands. And I drink lots of tea.

There's warm glogg in the lounge!

Apparently, I've got a fireplace too.

Hi Jennifer! I brought my dog along for a visit. Don't get too close if you don't enjoy being licked!

My first four-legged visitor, and one so adorable!


A kiss from a dog is the most sincere kiss.

What a great opening, Jennifer. I just take my seat at your bookshop and looking forward to a great reading year.

>8 mstrust: Adrian will be thrilled with the treats!

Hurray! You've set up shop! If you don't hear from me for a couple of days, send a search party to the mystery section ;)

>9 Ameise1: Thanks, and there's always a seat for you! I'm calling 2016 my easy, breezy, readsey... well I'm just going to read what I feel like at the moment.
>10 cbl_tn: They look good enough for me too.
>11 rabbitprincess: Glad you've arrived, Princess! You'll have a large selection of mysteries to browse and comfortable spaces to relax.
Sometimes I sit down in to read and just drift off. Have I mentioned that owning a bookshop/tiki lounge/ patisserie is the most effortless thing in the world?

I just had to stop by and bring my dog.



She is bigger now and she has a friend she would have loved to have brought with her:



I love your theme.

What cuties! I'm sure there's something here they'll like.



And the rest of us can head to the lounge for egg nog and cookies-

A perfect bookshop, there's something for everyone. Books too!

Hmmm let's see ...

Books ✔
Booze ✔
Chocolate ✔
Downton Abbey ✔
Walking Dead ✔

For sure, I will be dropping by regularly!

>15 VivienneR: Yes, a few books will be involved, in between desserts and music!
>16 DeltaQueen50: I'm looking forward to seeing you here!

Love the bookshop setup! You know I will be back frequently.... especially for Bernard's brand of bookshop owner customer service! ;-)

I love this! Except for the Walking Dead part. I don't do zombies, lol.

I would love to pull up a perfectly ragged armchair, sip a hot toddy, and hang out in your bookshop all day! A

Best. Bookshop. Ever!

>18 lkernagh: Glad you like the shop, and I'm sure Bernard will have many more "moments" this year. We can be an emotional wreck and just let him ride them out.

>19 abergsman: A new customer! When the zombies come, I suggest you hide in the "Vegetarian Cooking" section. They never go there.

>20 Deedledee: Thanks! It's pretty amazing what one can do with unlimited funds, space and self-importance.

I hope everyone got exactly what they wanted for Christmas. The BBC was remembered by several wealthy patrons who value the importance of independent bookstores. Here are a few tokens we received:


A first edition of The Great Gatsby


A cappuccino machine. Bernard has been ordered to stay away from it.


A diamond tiara. Clearly meant for me and I will wear it every day.


A collection of vintage tiki mugs.


A carved coconut that is just waiting until I turn my back.


And a box of individual book cakes.

This has been a good holiday.

Ah., Jennifer, that's beautiful. I love the capuccino machine and The Great Gatsby is a wonderful reading.

I'm not sure I could eat a book cake, it would feel a bit weird - or is that just me.

I once read that a tiara is essential wear as it makes sense of your chin. Something to do with the shape providing symmetry on a horizontal plane as well as the natural vertical symmetry of your face. And we find symmetric things attractive. So no self respecting individual should be seen without one. I am wearing one right now, with my dressing gown & slippers combo. >:-)

>23 Ameise1: Indeed, the gifters know me. I will love them both forever.

>24 Helenliz: I believe all the tiara science, and mine looks great with everything. Velvet cape, MC Hammer pants, it all works.
And book cakes taste great, once you've chewed through the covers.

Checking in to the bookshop and dropping my star. My kittens would love to visit, but they don't really trust dogs that much, so I think you are safe from a cat invasion.

No worries. At The BBC all dogs and cats are best pals and nobody is naughty. Maybe they're afraid of what the coconut will do.

Yes, this is going to be my favorite thread on LT all year.

Awww, you're my best friend now.

It's New Year's Eve, and they're waiting for you-

>31 Ameise1: And Happy New Year to you!

>32 rosylibrarian: Nice to see Bernard having a happy moment, no matter how brief.

Work party's starting!

You had me at books and booze! This looks like my kind of place.

And I brought Louis, the World's Best Dog!

Mmm, books and food and drinks and big comfy couches and dogs welcome - dropping a star.

Don't mind me, I'm just here for the tiki.

An important ingredient to a successful January 1:

>34 katiekrug: Hello Katie and Louis! You're both welcome to a cookie, a run through the stacks and a nap.

>35 Familyhistorian: Glad you're here, Meg! The BBC has everything that matters in life.

>36 AuntieClio: Which will be along soon and everything will be wonderful.
And I've been working on a new one for a couple of days as my New Year's resolution is to carve faster.

>37 kgriffith: Thanks, and I can really use that. Funny how slowly the brain works after New Year's Eve.

I hope everyone is ready to shop, because we're OPEN!

"Books, Booze and Chocolate" oooooo, Have I come to the right place!!! Wishing you a happy new Year! I'll certainly be popping into your fun little thread quite often!

1. Japanland by Karin Muller.
Muller was a life-long world traveler, often accused by her family of using travel as a way to escape from the mundane things most of us have to do, such as hold down a job, pay the rent... So she moves back to America, gets the job and apartment and tries. By page six she's managed, through her Judo association, to get an invitation to live with a host family in Japan. She has many obstacles, such as not speaking or reading Japanese beyond Judo terms, but the worst thing is that the man who invited her failed to consult with his wife, so Muller finds a housemate who is fairly seething at her.
She spends a year in Japan and spends some time in Tokyo and Osaka, but most of the year is spent traveling to the smaller, poorer towns and villages. She lives with a fisherman, then with monks, spends weeks watching traditional sword-making, days watching a Kabuki play, attends a festival that turns out to be for yakuzu, walks a spiritual journey with a group of men forced to retire, interviews a geisha, then spends weeks walking a pilgrim's path, which lands her in a country hospital.

Published in 2005, this is different from the majority of books about visiting Japan because Muller lived for extended periods with locals and other ex-pats. She relays many instances of her hostess showing anger and resentment towards her, something that is usually hidden to the foreigner, yet to me, these were some of the most interesting parts as the often unspoken ways the hostess showed her anger became clear enough that Muller left her host house. She also gives a heart-breaking example of a man who found it easier to talk to a gaijin about his troubles than a countryman and discovers that even Japan has its homeless population. 4.2 stars

Care for some tranquility this morning? Here's the traditional Japanese tea ceremony with explanations:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K6_KC3OuZEk

I've always loved Kabuki make-up and costumes. Never seen it, but love it anyway.

>39 Carmenere: This is the place! Welcome and hope to see you often. Help yourself to a browse and a treat.

Happy new year, Jennifer! I love your bookstore!

This could be a favorite hang-out. I tip my hat to you, Jennifer. Starred.

>42 tymfos: Thanks, and I hope you'll be a regular!

>43 weird_O: Thank you, and there's plenty of space to hang-out. Welcome!

Uh-oh.



Everyone grab a seat and act like you didn't hear.

Happy New Year and best wishes for 2016, Jennifer!

Thank you, Lori, and Happy New Year to you!

And remember that the Sherlock special airs tonight!

>46 mstrust: YAAAY! I'll be in a wingback armchair*, biting the head off a chocolate reindeer and sipping tea from my "I am Sherlocked" mug as I watch. :)

*not really, because we don't own a wingback armchair, but it feels more appropriate to the setting than our boring old couch does.

I don't blame you- Sherlock Holmes just brings up the need for formidable furniture and darkish rooms.
I'm currently putting together a quiz for our Sherlock club meeting, which will be on the 9th, Sherlock's birthday. I have a pretty good prize for the member who wins the quiz. Maybe I'll post the questions once I've finished.

Your first read sounds like a good one - I'm quite partial to memoirs. Another one that you might be interested in is Japanese Lessons: A Year in a Japanese School Through the Eyes of An American Anthropologist and Her Children by Gail Benjamin, very interesting compare/contrast of Japanese/American elementary education. I'm looking forward to many visits to your new bookstore! We have our own coconut head here, I'll try to remember to share a photo on my next visit.

Love the bookshop! I'll be in often for the books, chocolate, dogs, and Downton!

>44 mstrust: love that show! Black's books right?

Gah, I was unable to see Sherlock last night and I am ENDLESSLY troubled by this!

I won't be able to see it until the 7th, when it becomes available on iTunes. Reminding myself that patience is a virtue.

>49 muddy21: It is a good one and it's always nice to start the new year with an exceptional read. I've noticed that I tend to read a non-fiction first thing in the new year. Thanks for the rec and I'll be looking for Japanese Lessons. It sounds very interesting. I know I have Learning to Bow waiting on my shelf too.
Please do post a pic of your coconut. It's a good idea to have their picture on file for the police.

>50 foggidawn: Thanks! And Downton starts tomorrow! squirming squirming

>51 AuntieClio: Yep. It's amazing the way they captured how a bookstore really works. Like a documentary.

>52 kgriffith: >53 RidgewayGirl: I too am being forced to wait. I just threw off a "were you wanting to watch the new Sherlock?" to be polite and Mike said yes. That'll teach me. So now I have to wait until tonight. Sherlock has been one of those shows that he won't admit to wanting to watch, yet if I'm watching it he'll walk in, sit, watch and remain silent until it's over, then ask me background questions. But Mike won't admit to liking anything really, so his sly interest means something.

Some of the staff read engineering books over the holidays-

I watched Sherlock. (smug icon required) First one I've seen, although husband's seen the previous serieses. I'm not sure it made a lot of sense, but it was a load of fun. And the end... urgh. If you are in the least bit squeamish, look away now...

Have a wonderful bookfilled 2016, Jennifer.

>55 Helenliz: *fingers in ears* La la la la....
>56 PaulCranswick: And a wonderful year to you too, Paul!

I love your bookshop! I will be enjoying a variety of tropical beverages in different tiki mugs because I just can't pick a favorite. Let's play some Martin Denny--I always carry my little bluetooth speaker with me.

I find Bernard strangely attractive.

Sandy K

>40 mstrust: Japanland sounds like the kind of travel book I often like. I'll have to keep an eye out for it.

I watched Sherlock last night, and I think I'll have to watch the encore before it all clicks. I don't think it quite lived up to the hype. On the other hand, the Downton Abbey recap/preview hosted by Hugh Bonneville that aired right after Sherlock was great. Hugh Bonneville is really funny! I strayed away from Downton last season, but the special now has me interested in season 6.

>59 cbl_tn: I really enjoyed the episode, but I think it's impossible for any episode of Sherlock to completely live up to the hype, because the amount of hype surrounding the show is astronomical.

Well I'm a late discoverer of the bookshop, but hoping there's a spare spot for a browse followed by a largeish piece of cake (book browsing is hungry work). Wishing you a great 2016.

Pastry chef's back from the holidays! Grab!

>58 sandykaypax: There will be tiki drinks, tiki music, tiki carvings and tiki mugs. I believe I can book Martin Denny too... and I'm hoping Los Straightjackets will make a special appearance.
sigh Bernard is the store sex symbol and he knows it. Who wouldn't be attracted to the greasy hair and bellowing? But he'll break your heart and go through your pockets for spare change. Never date a man who asks for his wages in cocktails and Kafka.

>59 cbl_tn: Bonneville is funny. I caught him, Michelle Dockery and Allen Leech on Jimmy Fallon a few weeks ago. All three looked like they were having fun.

>60 rabbitprincess: Very true. We're all so anxious for more.

>61 charl08: Well you're here now and there's always room. And happy 2016 to you!

>62 mstrust: Ooof, those treats look amazing!

Happy Sunday!

>63 scaifea: Don't they? I pick the chocolate one with the coffee bean on it first, but I'm also intrigued by the raspberries covered in sugar, which is a good way for any fruit to be served.

***SPOILERS***
I watched the Sherlock special last night and loved it. It got confusing at the end and I don't care!
Watson introduced as Holmes is whipping a corpse, Mycroft eating himself to death, the appearance of the bride and then a moving skeleton at the end...lots of ghoulishness to make the viewers cringe and laugh. But then we got Sherlock in the deerstalker and big pipe and saying "The game is afoot." And Watson's attempts to figure out Sherlock's personal situation as they waited in the dark. And now we have Sherlock pardoned and back in London to chase Moriarty. And he's a heavy drug user.

I was hoping there would be a gif for this line:



2. Easy To Kill, aka Murder is Easy by Agatha Christie.
After many years as an Inspector overseas, Luke Fitzwilliam has retired and returned to England. Unfortunately, his train ride into London is shared by an old woman who spins a tale of multiple murders in her sleepy little village, and says she knows who the murderer is and that's she's on her way to tell Scotland Yard. Fitzwilliam puts it down to an active imagination until he reads in the paper of the woman being run down on the street. Now he remembers the village and some of the victims the woman talked about, and just for his own piece of mind, he goes to the village to make sure there was no truth to the woman's suspicions.

I really like coming across these one-off stories from Christie, the ones that have an unusual angle and use characters that weren't a regular part of her stable. Superintendent Battle has a minuscule part, but it's nearly all Luke Fitzwilliam, who tries to charm a woman by telling her she looks like a witch. The murderer could be figured out halfway through and the explanation went on too long, but it's still good. 3.5 stars

>64 mstrust: My favourite line was from Mrs. Hudson: "I'm your landlady, not a plot device." Runner-up was Sherlock stating that Mrs. Hudson was refusing to talk to people because she was going in for "literary criticism done as satire".

I also thought Victorian Sherlock sounded a little like Patrick Watts from Starter for Ten... they both have the same clipped diction and punctiliousness (and to an extent, lack of social skills). Of course, they ARE played by the same person, so perhaps that is not terribly surprising.

Benedict also plays Luke Fitzwilliam in the ITV adaptation of Murder is Easy, but they went and added Marple to it, so he doesn't do as much of the sleuthing as in the source material.

Oooh, no, I didn't know that there had been an adaption of Murder is Easy! Must see it! But a shame that they did put Marple in several where she wasn't in the book. I recall Endless Night being changed dramatically because of the Marple popping her head in all the time when the book had such a Gothic, isolated feeling.

***SPOILERS
I was very glad to see Mrs Hudson complaining that the story made her sound like all she did was show people in and make breakfast. Good that she had a slightly bigger part, but then this episode was very feminist. My question is, with Watson's antagonistic conversation with his maid, and then finding her among the "army", was he in line to be murdered? She let him know she believed his wife to be unhappy with his behavior, and she didn't have a husband herself to murder.
And Mycroft- he was as unlikable as ever, yet we saw that his motives were to protect his brother.

Augh.... I missed the Sherlock special! Will have to wait and catch it later. Sounds perfect!

PBS is pretty good about replaying shows multiple times. And if you can't find it there, someone is bound to have it on Youtube already.



Spoilers***
I've been in the Category Challenge for the past couple of years, and doing a synopsis of each Downton Abbey just became my thing, I suppose because it's so much fun to pick every character, gesture and outfit apart. Season 6 started last night and I have my long list of notes:

1. So now Thomas is the fun uncle, giving little George horsey rides? And later on he displays doubt as to keeping his position. No. I want sneaky, manipulative Thomas.

2. Good news- Violet and Isobel are fighting!

3. So Mrs. Patmore's a virgin? Good Lord, I didn't need to know that.

4. Would a very grown-up, in-charge Mrs. Hughes really go to a third party to find out what kind of marriage she will have? I don't think so. And I don't think Mr. Carson would speak to Mrs. Patmore about it either. But it's nice to hear how he feels about Mrs. Hughes.

5. So Mary's being blackmailed? She should have been more careful, and if she couldn't do that, say it was Edith forging her name on the hotel registration. But Robert was very clever and saved Mary. And was he shocked? No, because Edith has made him unshockable. But I giggle-cringed that Mary, in speaking with her father, calls the hotel thing her "week in sin".

6. Anna's had several miscarriages and that's very sad. But she received very good news from that idiot policeman who keeps coming over. I wish they'd turn the lights off and pretend they aren't home with all the horrible/wonderful information he brings. He's like a see-saw.

7. Don't you love to hate Danka now? And Granny's revenge was pretty good.

8. Tom's in Boston, yet I think he'll be back. Otherwise, why would the actor have done the publicity tour?

9. Why does every sentence out of Cora's mouth sound like she's informing the listener that someone died?

10. Daisy remains stupid.

11. I liked Edith's outfits more than Mary's in this episode. And Mary's forehead band at the dinner table? Please.

12. A sweet ending with Mrs. Hughes and Mr. Carson. I'm looking forward to the wedding.

It's Sir Isaac Newton's birthday.

>68 mstrust: I am so happy Downton is back, although it is bittersweet since I know this is the beginning of the end. I have to admit to taking a small sneak peek at minor spoilers when it aired in the UK. I was desperately curious to know if Branson would be making an appearance in Season 6. I'll stay mum on that subject.

2. I think the world would stop turning if Violet and Isobel made permanent peace.
3. Yikes! I had the same thought!
10. I don't believe Daisy is stupid. Just impulsive, and often frustrated with her lot in life.
12. I can't wait to see that wedding! I thought there were a lot of sweet sentimentals coming from Carson this week.

I was so happy that the Anna/Bates/Mr. Green storyline was resolved. I just don't want to see the 2 of them in peril anymore. Having trouble conceiving children? That is something that will still give Joanne Froggatt plenty of scenes to cry. No disrespect to Joanne Froggatt--I love her!

I am so sick of the "no one can afford these estates/times are changing" sad depressing scenes. I know that it is accurate historically, but can't the Crawleys be one of the families that was able to hold on to their country house? I want to see the P.G. Wodehouse world of the 1920's with house parties and jazz and silly young men. I miss Rose. She was the closest thing we had to that.

I love Mrs. Patmore.

I don't understand why Mary and Gillingham didn't register under fake names. Isn't that what people did in the days before credit cards?

Why is Danker still there? Violet isn't fooled by her.

I love the Hughes/Carson love affair. Also looking forward to the wedding.

Even if Edith moves to London with Marigold, it's not like she won't see her family. Can't she just come clean to them? Half of them already know anyway. I like Edith, I want to see her have success.

Thanks for letting me rant!

Sandy K

>68 mstrust: >70 sandykaypax: I love Mrs Patmore too and would love Danker out :-)

>69 abergsman: I went looking for pics and came across some of things to come. Wish I hadn't, but it already aired in other parts of the world.
There was a lot going on, lots of storylines they needed tending. I'm glad Violet and Isobel are finding new things to bicker about, it keeps their animosity fresh. And Daisy isn't stupid? Remember a certain Miss Bunting (arrrgh!) whom everyone loathed but Daisy liked? "She's learning me some numberths..."
And I'm happy to see a romance between an older couple with Carson and Hughes. I know Isobel and Granny had a little last year, but neither were very romantic, were they?

>70 sandykaypax: It's at the point with Anna and Bates with both of them being accused of murder, that I think Lord Grantham would have said by now, "Of course you're both innocent, but we just think you'd make great stable hands. Please don't kill us."
It would be fun to see them living it up. I knew they would tackle the issue of the decline of the grand houses this season though, as last season brought up the beginnings of the Nazi regime in Germany.
But I wonder if we'll see Rose as a married woman.
I think Mary said, at the time, that there was no point in using false names but I don't remember why. Anyway, it would have been the smart thing to do. With your real name signed in a book, there's no chance of worming out of it. I just think it's Mary's attitude of never doing wrong.
It's true with Edith going to London, a few hours on the train and she'd have plenty of time for Mary to deflate her self-esteem.

>71 FAMeulstee: Mrs. Patmore has a lot to put up with. And Danker may be about to get hers, courtesy of Granny. And I can't tell what the woman's name is. Danka sounds like Scandinavian coffee, Danker sounds like "this basement is danker than the root cellar." So Danker it is.

I have to mention how much I enjoyed the fill-in series of Julian Fellowes going round to great houses. So interesting to see the histories of the people who lived in them.

>68 mstrust: Hugh Bonneville's face in that photo is priceless!

I very much enjoyed your Downton Abbey recap :) I quite liked the episode, and I loved the clothing! Edith wears such gorgeous stuff, though I'm partial to her as I loathe Mary. Best line of the night was Aunt Rosamund to Edith: "What is your future? Hanging around Downton, being sniped at by Mary?"

Great to see you are continuing with your Downton Abbey synopses, Jennifer! I kind of forgot that the next/last season had started. Now I feel somewhat caught up!

>73 rabbitprincess: He looks like he was grabbed while running for his plane, doesn't he? And Lady Mary's snotty expression really makes the picture.

>74 Cait86: Thanks! You'd never know from my recaps that I love the show, but I do. Edith looks beautiful in oranges, ruby, gold, and I noticed that they put her on these colors at her happiest times, then make her shlubby again when she's miserable.

>75 lkernagh: How could I stop? If there's an episode to analyze, I'll be there!

3. Rickles' Book by Don Rickles and David Ritz. Organized into chapter that are two to maybe six pages long, this is a book of highlights of Rickles' life, from a little about his childhood, a little about his stint in the Navy during WWII, his struggles to get his career in comedy started and the many people who helped him along the way. He became friends with various club owners and agents, but it's when Frank Sinatra and Johnny Carson took a liking to him that Rickles' career really took off.
When a book has such short chapters, your not going to get into any subject deeply, but there are some surprises. Like Rickles lived with his mother pretty much until he married at 36. And once Rickles was brought into the Rat Pack atmosphere by Sinatra, he seems to have been used as a weapon, with Frank telling Rickles who to go after and Rickles doing it. More than learning about Rickles, we unintentionally get an insider look at how much power Sinatra wielded even among his "friends". 3 stars

This a clip of Rickles from a roast of Johnny Carson. You'll see a bunch of people who are dead now. But you'll also see that Rickles made them a little nervous. He never used "material", instead just going out and talking to the audience, so no one knew what he'd say about them.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RlWmFgwUHXY

My husband just watched a documentary on Netflix about Don Rickles. It was intimated that perhaps Rickles had more mob connections that Sinatra did. Was there any mention of that? I didn't even know this book existed--gonna tell my hubby.

Sandy K

In the book, mention of mob connections first come up very early in his career when he was not famous at all. He insulted a member of the audience whom he can tell is connected, who then threatened him. Rickles called a friend who was also connected, and next thing the audience member is telling Rickles he's great.
As far as Sinatra goes, there's not much, if any, mob talk about him.
I'll have to see if that's the documentary we watched several years ago. We actually had tickets to see him about two years ago, and were very disappointed that the show was cancelled last minute due to his health. We've tried to make it to one of his Vegas shows for years but he doesn't do many now and it's always at busy times for us.
I inherited this book from Dad. He asked for it when it first came out, I think for Father's Day. He read it and it remained on his nightstand until he got sick, so I'll keep it forever.

Oh, that IS disappointing that his show was cancelled. I'm amazed that he's still out there performing. Every once in a while, I'll see him on Conan or one of the late night shows.

Interesting story of how he insulted the wrong guy! I think since so many u7yu7yu7yu7y Argh! my cat just walked on my keyboard!

I was saying that since so many of the clubs were owned by those who were "connected" back in the day, that it was probably hard NOT to know someone who was "connected."

Sweet story about your dad. Yes, that would make the book very special.

Sandy K

He still gets around, which really is amazing. To have the drive at his age.
I agree that it would have been difficult to be in show business and not come across the mob. Las Vegas would have been impossible. Yet Debbie Reynolds once said that Vegas was better when the mob ran it because when you shook hands on a deal, it was a deal.

>80 sandykaypax: I think since so many u7yu7yu7yu7y Argh! my cat just walked on my keyboard!

That happens a lot with three of them in the house!

My Coral just unnerves me by sitting right next to the keyboard and staring into my eyes as I type. She staring at me right now.

I made a lasagna. For the first time and without a recipe, and it turned out as well as any restaurant.
Today, in the employee lounge, we'll watch "A Walk in the Woods" in between ignoring customers. I had meant to see this one in the theater but it was gone so quickly.

Aww, she loves you! When we still had two dogs, I would feel bad if I were at the computer and got up to use the bathroom or get a glass of water as both old dogs would haul themselves to their feet and accompany me on my brief task, before going back to sleep next to my chair. I miss having dogs.

A few months ago I was brave enough to make crockpot lasagna which turned out very well and was even easier than a traditional oven one. No cooking of noodles or anything - just layering into the pot and turning it on.

I'm escorted everywhere, even up and down the stairs to retrieve something. It took my Ava and Greta a good six or seven years before they stopped caring what I was doing on another floor.

The BBC is looking to add an additional part-time staff member. We've had many qualified applicants but we have to narrow it down to just one, maybe two, if like Bernard they are willing to take some pay in liquor and books. Here are the choices:

Carol, who has years of experience as on office manager. Good luck, Carol!


Marjorie, who applied to manage the patisserie and really knows her stuff-


Candace says she has extensive experience as a barista:


Or there's Dwight. With his winning personality and knowledge of literature, he'd be a great asset to our customer service. I can already picture Bernard and Dwight in the same room together...

>85 muddy21: Sorry, your message got sandwiched in. Crockpot lasagna? And you don't have to boil the noodles? Sounds like my kind of dinner! I was actually so proud of myself for remembering all the things that go into a lasagna and it turning out so well and Mike actually complimented me and had seconds. He usually does neither, shovels it in and then tells me what he would have added or left out.
I've watched his mother make an entire Thanksgiving meal from cans.
We've been enjoying lots of rain! It started Monday and is expected to continue through Friday. Yea!

Yes, crockpot lasagna is the best! There's one here http://www.bettycrocker.com/recipes/slow-cooker-lasagna/ but a Google search will find many others. I used ground beef instead of sausage and added layers of spinach (fresh and uncooked - just packed them in) and it worked out perfectly.

Thanks for the link, it looks like a good recipe!

4. Tepper Isn't Going Out by Calvin Trillin. Murray Tepper has started a new hobby: finding good parking spaces around his Manhattan neighborhood. Each afternoon and evening, he likes to sit in his car and read the paper while ignoring the other drivers who honk and yell at him, trying to oust him from his space. Tepper is a law-abiding citizen who only parks in legal spaces and always feeds the meter, so however other people feel about it, he just likes to sit in his car and read the paper. Then one day, a counter-man from Russ & Daughters deli sits with Tepper in the car and finds that Tepper's indifferent advice makes him feel better. Without encouragement or interest, Tepper finds strangers waiting on curbs to speak with him, which angers the dictator-mayor of NYC, lands Tepper in court and turns him into a folk hero. 3.5 stars

Where much of the action takes place:

The Trillin book sounds good!

>91 lkernagh: Though there is a little mention of the internet, there's a very old New York feel to the book. I've read just one other from Trillin, Travels with Alice, about his food adventures.

I also finished the January read for my Sherlock club, which was The Adventure of the Beryl Coronet. I'll be listed, but not counting or rating my Sherlock short stories. But this was an excellent one, about the missing jewels from a nationally known and nearly priceless coronet. I knew that beryls are semi-precious stones that come in many colors, in this case, pinkish.



But I had been thinking the title referred to a jewel-encrusted musical instrument or brooch of the same, because:


This is a cornet.

But it turns out that a coronet is a crown. Which our LTers in the U.K. probably knew, but it was news to me. Now I know why Bernard keeps yelling "coronet" when I point to my tiara. I thought he was demanding jazz on the shop's sound system.

We miss you over at the 2016 Category Challenge :(

Especially missing your DA summary. As usual Violet got the best line when she explained her comment to Danker: "Sometimes it's good to rule by fe-ah". And sure enough, she struck fear into Danker's heart.

I'm still here, just a star away! I just couldn't set up The BBC in the Category Challenge, but I'm glad to see you here.
Violet certainly knows how to deal with people, and to put people in their place. I actually thought there was some smidgen of kindness towards Spratt in how she took Danker down in front of him.

And I need to present our first musical act of the year.

Ladies and gentlemen, he's alive and appearing in our tiki lounge...today only...
It's...





Come see the icon:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gOc8-crqh0g

Little known fact, Elvis was a master quick change artist.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0h11czDMZn0

And we keep a corral of musicians.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TiOs1V-i8eY



It's his birthday, so tip big, people.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PU5xxh5UX4U



To celebrate, we're serving his favorites: peanut butter and banana sandwiches, Italian bread stuffed with bacon, peanut butter and grape jelly, and Pepsi.

Happy New Year, Jennifer and happy birthday to Elvis! My PVR is acting weird, it recorded the pre-Downtown Abbey countdown show, but then didn't record the actual program! UGH! Luckily PBS is repeating the show right before next week's episode 2 so I will hopefully get both shows then. Meanwhile I couldn't resist your synopsis and that will have to tide me over.

Wishing you a most lovely weekend, Jennifer.

>95 mstrust: Oh no! I'm a day late and I see that Elvis has left the building!

I really must make daily stops to your thread, I love your humor. Your take on DA is spot on and I must watch again before Sunday because I missed the horsey back ride. I must have dozed off!

Have a great weekend

>96 DeltaQueen50: Happy New Year, Judy! My PBS had two lead-up-to-the-actual-show-shows, so no wonder your machine was confused. They really are going to milk this last season down to the last drop!

>97 Ameise1: What a pretty pic- thanks, and have a lovely weekend too! Mine is extra busy, but hopefully fun.

>98 Carmenere: I'm so glad you like it here, and what a shame you missed Elvis live, but I hope our in-house videos give a sense of how exciting it was. And he hung around a while after the show too.


I'm a little young to have attended one of his previous shows, but I have an older sister who was about fourteen when she got to see him just by chance. We grew up in Orange County, not far from Knott's Berry Farm. In their ghost town section, they had a tiny little concert venue that had local bands play and you could just walk in because it was included with your park price. I'm going to guess this place held maybe 150 people. So they often had a group called "The Here and Now Band", it think, but they played for a couple of years and it was all current cover songs. My sister happened to be there with her friends, and it's standing room, and she said that suddenly Elvis came from the audience and walked on stage and said he wanted to sing. Now, this would have been bloated Elvis, but he still had a scarf around his neck that he threw out to the crowd, who fought over it and everyone was losing their minds. He sang, my sister was unimpressed and then he died a few months later.

It was Sherlock Holmes' birthday a few days ago, but today is Saturday, so me and my nerd friends are celebrating today. The Sherlock groups from both Phoenix and Tucson will be meeting in a few hours in Tempe to have our monthly meeting. We'll' discuss The Beryl Coronet, I know there will be a chocolate cake, and I don't know what else, other than here's the quiz I came up with. The member with the most correct answers will go home with a pretty cool prize of a DVD of a film made in 1927 of Arthur Conan Doyle sitting in his yard with his dog and talking about how he created Sherlock, then talks about his belief in the after-life. It's only 5-6 minutes long.

Here's the quiz. Some of the questions are easy, some are very hard.

1. What was A.C.D.'s trained profession?
2. In what story do Holmes and Watson meet?
3. What nickname did Holmes give Irene Adler?
4. Holmes and Watson shared rooms at 221B Baker St. for six years. Why did Watson move out?
5. What does Holmes consider to be his first case?
6. What does The Musgrave Ritual lead to?
7. In The Adventure of Charles Augustus Milverton, Holmes does something he never did before or after. What was it?
8. A.C.D. created a series of stories featuring a scientist as the main character. The Lost World is the most famous from this series. Name the scientist.
9. In The Hound of the Baskervilles. what is the aristocratic title of Sir Henry Baskerville?
10. What year was the first Sherlock Holmes story published?
11. A.C.D was very open about his belief in the supernatural and was a member of many organizations dedicated to these beliefs. He back the claims of Elsie Wright and Frances Griffiths, who had photographic proof that ______ existed.

>95 mstrust: Elvis! Makes me think I need to pull out one of his movies. But which one? There are so many great choices! Blue Hawaii? Viva Las Vegas?

"Blue Hawaii" is definitely my favorite, but I also really like "Change of Habit", which I believe was his last and often forgotten. One of the movie channels was doing an all-day Elvis movie marathon.

Here's a great song from "Change of Habit". This is what goes on in the inner-city:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DART7FA9Krs

>102 mstrust: I've only seen Change of Habit once. It's the one with Mary Tyler Moore, isn't it? I love that song and didn't realize it was from one of his movies.

One of brother and SIL's weddings was at the Viva Las Vegas wedding chapel in Vegas, where they were married by "Elvis". I was able to watch it live on the Internet. (My brother and SIL had 3 wedding ceremonies. Long story, but it does make sense! And it gives my brother 3 chances to remember his anniversary.)

>99 mstrust: Great Elvis story! Yet sad he left us so soon.

>103 cbl_tn: Yes, that's the one! They made a cute couple.
I tried to convince my sister to get married by Elvis at her last wedding, because it was happening in Vegas and, well, it was her third. She refused, and instead with with the very classy King Arthur wedding at The Excalibur. Yep.


I was also married in Vegas, but just at a little chapel with flowers and no theme. My husband's father and sister were able to watch it on the internet too.

>104 Carmenere: Forty-two is too young. And then you think of Hank Williams who died at 29, and Buddy Holly was just 22, I believe. Some people have a tremendous impact.
Maybe around Halloween I'll tell you about the chain of connection in my husband's family to a famous murderer. : D

I've just gotten back from the Sherlock Holmes party and we had a great time. I'll post a pic later because our leader, Lauren, made an amazing chocolate birthday cake.

Hey, hey, it's the Monkees!

We saw a pic of The Monkees' car featured on a vintage car group on Facebook the other day - I found a YouTube clip from the show opening with them in the car singing the theme song which I shared with my sons (ages 23 & 20). They were strangely unimpressed *shakes head in confusion*.

>106 cbl_tn: Their disgust is unusual. For all the years I've known them, they're always too busy singing to put anybody down.
>107 muddy21: I've seen their car in person too, a couple of years ago at a car show. Kids don't know what's cool.



Here's a pic of the Sherlock Holmes party from yesterday. We had a room to ourselves and we filled it with ten people. Lauren brought some of her Sherlockia and books, and the top of the cake was decorated with a magnifying glass made out of black licorice and white chocolate. And it was excellent cake!


And we went to the biggest gem and mineral show in Phoenix this morning. It was like a swap meet, but all gems, minerals and fossils. This is a display of what I bought:


I have two different amethyst chunks, the big pale chunk on the right is apophyllite, the dark chunk with little white spikes is calcite with tourmaline in it, then there's a chunk of spiky milky quartz, a chunk of rose quartz, a large unpolished garnet, a small chunk of quartz with epidote growing on it, two pear shaped garnets, a cushion citrine of just under 3 carats and a 10 1/2 carat green amethyst. We had a good time and got some smoking deals.

The Sherlock party sounds like boatloads of fun!

Drooling over gems and minerals! And the Sherlock cake I missed out on. *wipes iPad screen*

>109 drneutron: It was! It went on for several hours and we talked about everything-the story of the month, the PBS show, the various actors who have played Sherlock. And one of the members from Tucson happens to be very involved in gems and minerals, so he talked about beryls and I got to pick his brain a little about going to the show the next day.

>110 Carmenere: I was very happy about what I came home with, and suddenly Mike is interested too. He helped pick out some and now I have a display in the dining room. There's another show in March!
The cake was so good, and so was the meal. I had a butternut squash, sage and goat cheese ravioli and I could have eaten seconds of that.

More bad news, with David Bowie dying of liver cancer yesterday. Sigh
What a long and always relevant career. Here's are some great ones from him.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dLYafk0Lui0

This song is called "Andy Warhol" off the Hunky Dory album. Warhol hated the song as he interpreted the lyrics as insulting.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LoPPiDkXO3Y

Of course we have to have some "Labyrinth"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ViftZTfRSt8

Downton Abbey

Ooooh, lots of spoilers ahead.

1. How lovely to start the episode with Edith snubbing Mary, who can't manage her anger, so reacts by talking down to her father.

2. Why is Thomas so convinced that he's going to be fired? It seems to come out of nowhere. Danker stirred up some trouble last week and everyone else has forgotten about it, so why is Thomas freaking out? He saved Edith from her stupid fire last season, does he think the family has forgotten that?
And what's with him constantly trying to get Andy to like him? He usually takes no for an answer and then happily watches the other person flail.

3. Loved his horrible interview, though. It turned bad so quickly, and can it get any worse than the interviewing saying, "You're a delicate looking fellow, aren't you?" We all know what he was implying, but Thomas handled himself well. Maybe his storyline is to show what a difficult time he'll have once he leaves the abbey.

4. I really can't tell if Isobel and Merton are off completely. She's being cold but he seems willing. And he's seems to be wanting to show her he'll fight for something, even if it's the hospital she wants.

5. Ugh, Cora has gone back to being as squishy and dull as a de-boned fish. And Daisy should be fired for demanding to see Cora.

6. In their scenes together, Violet is looking like the last century and Isobel looks modern. I'm sure that's intentional with the meaning of Isobel being part of the new ways.

7. Lady Mary's underwear looks modern enough to have come from Nordstrom's. And I loved Edith's outfit in the London scene with the aunt. It was perfect.

8. Mary says, "Anna, no woman alive has been put through a more emotional wringer than you." Ain't that the truth. If Anna ever steps outside the house she'll be hit by lightening.
And as they reminisced about all they had been through together, they giggled at the memory of carrying a corpse around the house. Cause that's how girls are.

9. As soon as the Drews arrived at the pig show, you knew there would be trouble.

10. Why would Edith immediately begin crying and yelling "Whose got Marigold?" Child abduction wasn't a big problem then, and certainly not prevalent enough for it to be the first thought. Why wasn't she just calling the girl's name? Thomas should have stood in the hallway and held her bedroom door shut during the fire. Because of Edith, the Drews have to leave their home, and she couldn't care less.

11. Which leads me to a major complaint for me- that of historical inaccuracies. Mary would not have used the word "pregnant". It was close to a dirty word then, so she certainly wouldn't have said it in front of her father.
Daisy would never have demanded to speak to the Lady of the house, no matter how many years she'd worked there. And Cora wouldn't have been pleasant about it.
Mrs. Drew knows how to drive? How? In that age, only the most daring women of the upper class, the Lady Marys, would have the chance at learning to drive. And Edith running through the village crying in front of all their tenants? She would have been raised to behave more discreetly.
Mrs Hughes is way out of character with her demands about her wedding. A person in her position may have longed for a day away from her employers, but she would have known how dangerous it would have been to say it. She wouldn't have her fiancee telling their employer that they wouldn't accept his offer. It would have put both her and Carson in an awkward position. It's too modern an attitude, and they just as well could have Carson answer Mrs Hughes with,"Like hell I am."

As always, I enjoyed the show immensely!

Stopping by to get caught and to wish you a lovely week, Jennifer.

Dodging all of "the King's" favorite foods, although the Italian bread stuffed with bacon, if cooked properly, could be considered something akin to a British bacon butty, if I am not mistaken.

I tried to convince my sister to get married by Elvis at her last wedding, because it was happening in Vegas and, well, it was her third. She refused, and instead with with the very classy King Arthur wedding at The Excalibur. Yep.

Well, best response I can come up with is Really?!? "No comment." ;-)

Gem and mineral show... now that is something I would enjoy!

Thanks for getting my caught up on DA!

I have to skim your thread ever so carefully bc Sherlock spoilers can lurk in any comment and I missed the PBS rebroadcast last night as I was getting home from ALAMW. But, when the booty includes a sci-fi books tote, a cat tote, a Doctor Who tote, and 32 ARCs, I guess I can't really complain. /humblebrag

Re: The Monkees: I LOVED them when I was a kid, and not too long ago fell down the rabbit hole of auditions for the show. Such fun.

>114 lkernagh: At some point The BBC will feature a gem and mineral show or two. I need to mark it on the calendar. It was really interesting and we saw so many things, things I never knew existed.
What can I say about an Excalibur wedding, other than it exists. And no, neither bride nor groom was an English major.
Glad to help with a little DA recap, and I wish you a great week.

>115 kgriffith: I try to remember to proclaim SPOILERS! before discussing the shows, as I'd hate to have it done to me. Sounds like you had a good day of collecting gear though.
I began watching The Monkees as a kid, and it was in re-runs back then, but I've always loved them. Their music isn't given the credit it deserves. I have many of their recordings and the deep cut stuff is my favorite.

>116 mstrust: Oh folks are good about announcing spoilers for sure! But my eyes cannot be trusted not to slip greasily over a whole screen's worth of words without my permission, and even if I try not to translate them into language, sometimes the damage is done.
Same with me for Monkees being in reruns - I didn't realize until much later that they were a parody of the Beatles and, tbh, the Monkees may be at least part of the reason I don't care for the Beatles one bit. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

>115 kgriffith: A Doctor Who tote? You have my attention! :) Is there a photo available?

The David Bowie running through my head is "The Jean Genie" mixed with "Life on Mars?" because of the show named after the latter song.

>117 kgriffith: The Beatles were fans of The Monkees!



>118 rabbitprincess: "Jean Genie" is a good song, and I remember sitting in my cosmetician class trying to recreate the make-up from that video. He was always innovative.

>118 rabbitprincess: But of course :D





Should have ironed it first, but you get the gist. :)

>119 mstrust: I love it! Man, now I have to listen to the Monkees all day. I mean, I guess it's time for a break from Hamilton.

Wow, I've been missing out on some fun. All caught up now though. Except I had to skip the Downton Abbey recaps. Haven't had a chance to watch this year's episodes yet.

>120 kgriffith: Proof of fun! Glad you have so many totes for your books!

>121 kgriffith: I think I'll need to have The Monkees stop by for a show this week, if they can outrun those vaguely Russian spies and stop falling in love for just one day!

>122 Nickelini: Good to see you! Oh, how can you resist watching D.A? The put-downs, the extremely brief love affairs, the servants jockeying for position...Catch up! Catch up!

Work-wise, we're still trying out the new staff members. Yes, they all made sound arguments for having them here. (See >86 mstrust:)

1. Carol said she'd come in a few hours a week "just to be out of my sad apartment."
2. Marjorie will work for a "few bites of cake and all the dust I can lick off the shelves." Bonus- shelves gets cleaned.
3. Candace will work the cappuccino maker as long as she can also point each female customer to the "Women's Studies" section. Downside- I suspect she will refuse to make cappuccino for male customers.
4. Dwight is willing to work nights and is eager to take all books of beet recipes, bears and "Battlestar Gallatica" novelizations off our hands. Bonus- always punctual, fears nothing, seems to make Carol a little nicer when he's around. Downside- enrages Bernard, calls customers stupid, so fits right in.

>115 kgriffith: 32 ARCs. I'm jealous!

>124 RidgewayGirl: It's an entire shelf of free books!

>124 RidgewayGirl: I couldn't be more excited about them! And I got the sequel to one of my favorite NetGalley reads of last year, Seeker by Arwen Elys Dayton, which was a lovely surprise :)

>120 kgriffith: Very nice! One of my favourite Doctor Who episodes. The library was beautiful.

>127 rabbitprincess: Agreed! Plus David Tennant in those glasses... *bites knuckle*

>126 kgriffith: >127 rabbitprincess: You two, stop standing in the aisle! Candace is on her way! Go have a nice cup and a sit down in the patisserie. It's all free, you know.




5. Cheap: The High Cost of Discount Culture by Ellen Ruppel Shell. Shell traces the history of shopping for bargains and the many ways the retail industry insures that you will buy, even if it isn't as the cheapest price. Not all of the information is interesting, and some is what you suspected. We all know that stores will inflate their regular prices in order to drop one price and make it look like a super sale. A lot of the information is really interesting, such as experiments to see how price changes the perception of quality, and the direct chain that leads from our demand for low prices to the working poor. 3.5 stars

>123 mstrust: Okay, I'm caught up tonight on this year's Downton Abbey. I agree with most of what you say. But I have to speak up: Mrs Patmore is the most underrated comedian on this show. Yes, Maggie Smith has fabulous lines, and we all cheer. But Mrs Patmore has equally great lines. Maybe it's just the sad circles I hang out in who don't mention her.

That's all.

Everybody likes Mrs. Patmore. She's the best at her two main jobs, which are 1. keeping Daisy in line and 2. cooking. The only time Daisy gets lippy is when Mrs. Patmore isn't around, which she can't be all the time as she's also the head baker here. : D
Is The BBC a sad circle? I don't think so. If anything, we would be described as "making an aggressive level of eye contact".

Whose in the kitchen? Our staff:

+ +

>131 mstrust: The BBC is definitely not a sad circle!

>129 mstrust: Oops! Sorry about that! I'll repair to the cafe with a newly purchased Doctor Who novel and grab a cup of chocolate tea ;)

>132 Nickelini: True. People only get sad around here when it's closing time or that one time we ran out of rum.

>133 rabbitprincess: No apologies needed, but God help you if Candace finds you and you don't have a copy of Germaine Greer in your hands. I've been trying to confine her to the coffee area but she goes looking for trouble.

Happy Birthday to my nephew Wade. He's been stationed at Fort Bragg for nearly a year now so we don't get to see much of him, but he's nearing the end of his service.



And I've just come back from the big Asian market, where I bought three kinds of fresh noodles, two kinds of mushrooms, two different sauces, a bunch of bok choy and water chestnuts. Mike leaves for his convention on Monday, so every year, this becomes my noodle week. Noodles every day!

Looks like I dropped by just in time to sample that gorgeous cake! I am finally caught up with Downton Abbey and I also agree with your comments. I am simply going to relax and enjoy this last year as I know that next year at this time I will moaning about it being gone.

Have a happy Noodle Week!

Help yourself to a slice! I do love my noodle week. Mike doesn't care for noodles, so not only do I get to eat them every day but I don't have to make a meat-and-two-sides meal at all. Plus, a Michelangelo exhibit will be opening that week.

Yea, all we can do is cherish (analyze) each episode of D.A.. I wonder if it will end like "Fargo", with several characters being murdered throughout the last episode, culminating in a massacre where just one or two make it out of the abbey alive. Just a thought.

"I need Lemmy, Bowie, Alan Rickman and the guy who Played Grizzly Addams! I'll explain later!"--God, planning a heist.
Patton Oswalt

>137 mstrust:
"I need Lemmy, Bowie, Alan Rickman and the guy who Played Grizzly Addams! I'll explain later!"--God, planning a heist.
Patton Oswalt

Brilliant.

>137 mstrust: lol, re: Fargo/DA - I think you're on to something there, no doubt Mr. Bates will be involved.
Happy b-day to Wade and thanks for your service.

>138 kgriffith: Oswalt is one of my favorites. I'd so love to see him live. Guess I better book him.

>139 Carmenere: Ha! Mr. Bates would turn out to be the head of the whole syndicate. How about a D.A./American Horror Story:Hotel mash-up? Lady Mary as a vampire isn't that far-fetched.
Thanks, on Wade's behalf!

Yes! They showed up!
The BBC is thrilled to present... The Monkees!



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-NrpAyfce7w
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k6qA1APdTi8

A jazzy number from Mickey!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AnKRPht5X5o


Lots of cool dancing!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J8Kg23lpVvA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pqUPLG4Jgo4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ppdABVb9g58



We'll be serving banana pudding cake all day:

Jennifer, I wish you a relaxed weekend.

Thanks for the pretty picture, and I will take anything calming at the moment!
I've just received a stack of products in the mail that I'd ordered two weeks ago. One was a copy of Ray Bradbury's The Halloween Tree. I bought it used, but "good" condition, and what showed up is not only in very bad condition, it has stickers all over it that show it was donated to a free library. So the seller is one of those people who steals from the little free library to sell it on Amazon. I've reported the seller and asked that my money be taken from them and given to the library. Yes, I doubt that will happen too, but at least everyone knows.


Bernard takes care of it like a gentleman.

>143 mstrust: I'm so sorry to hear that, Jennifer. It's so awful when people are behaving so rude.

Rude and dishonest. I've had book sellers misrepresent the condition of their stuff before, but this is the first time I've had someone send me a stolen book. And so brazenly, when it's covered in stickers saying it's from a free library.

6. I Married A Dead Man by Cornell Woolrich. Nineteen year-old Helen Georgesson boards a train leaving New York. She's eight months pregnant, has just seventeen cents and has been abandoned by her husband. What little plans she has are to go back to San Francisco and start her life over. On board, she meets the Hazzards, a happy young couple who include Helen in their conversation and meals. Patrice Hazzard is about Helen's age, she's seven months pregnant and she's going to meet her in-laws for the first time. The three have just a day to become friends, because that night the train goes off the track and the Hazzards are killed. In the chaos, Helen is mistaken for Patrice, and though she's a nice, honest girl, she needs somewhere to belong and raise her newborn, and the Hazzard family needs the connection of their son's child.
Of course someone will recognize Helen.
Published in 1948, this is a pretty good noir. Not the best, but pretty good. I guess Woolrich published this under a pseudo-name originally. I have the Penguin Crime edition, which has a great cover, but who can resist this ghoulish cover? 3.5 stars

It's Benjamin Franklin's birthday. He's fabulous and I'm a big fan.

>146 mstrust: Oh wow, that's an awesome cover! I thought the book was pretty chilling too.

I believe you were posting here at the exact time I was posting on yours!
Isn't that a great cover? Like she's marrying The Portrait of Dorian Gray. I liked the book except for the whole way that Helen dealt with the blackmailer. While he was alive, he he.

>143 mstrust: That is really not at all acceptable. At least you weren't targeted by this unscrupulous author:

http://bookishantics.com/2016/01/04/beware-catfished-fake-penguin-employee/

That poor kid, being fooled by a nutjob. Yet, a highly organized nutjob. Those are the worst kind. I hope she has broken some kind of "bothering a minor/ and or Penguin" law. Who goes to the trouble of setting up accounts, creating letterhead stationary and pretending to be a third party just to get reviews?

No, my bookish problems are much, much smaller. The seller gave me a refund, even though I didn't ask for it and wasn't expecting it. I had asked that Amazon take every penny of my money that went to the seller and give it to the library the book was taken from. I just didn't want a library to be stolen from and I didn't want to receive stolen books. Not much to ask for. I've found the library, or at least the library system the book came from (they seem to have several free libraries there). It's in New York, so I'll just mail the book back to them with the story. Maybe they'll get a kick out of it.
Btw, the seller actually sent me a message saying "now that we've given you a refund, how about taking down your bad rating?"

>150 mstrust: Btw, the seller actually sent me a message saying "now that we've given you a refund, how about taking down your bad rating?"
Uhhhhh, yeahno.

Oh No! Once again, I'm a day late for the entertainment! Fudgesticks! I did enjoy the links they left behind. I used to watch their shows all the time. I was just a little kid at the time and I bet a lot of the humor went right over my head.

Oooohhh... Noodle Week!

"I need Lemmy, Bowie, Alan Rickman and the guy who Played Grizzly Addams! I'll explain later!"--God, planning a heist."

I had to Google who Lemmy was but other than that what a sad 4 weeks this has been... and all cancer-related. That is disturbing.

Am I still in time for the Monkees?

>143 mstrust: and >150 mstrust: - Oh geez.... what is the world coming to?

>150 mstrust: Please do not take down your rating!

>151 kgriffith: Exactly. Ain't gonna happen.

>152 Carmenere: They were a lot of fun to have around, the show was a big hit and they had their meals in the patisserie, where we ended up on the losing end of that deal. They can really pack it away. But I'm sure The Monkees will return to us another day. They're one of the hottest new bands in the world right now, so of course they'll pass through again.

>153 lkernagh: Sacre Bleu! I didn't know anyone would be unfamiliar with Lemmy, his band, his life, his legend! With a strung of his bass strings he could raise a tsunami or make birds fly south.
The Monkees have left for their tour of Hawaii and California. Hop a plane and catch them in Clarkesville or Pleasant Valley.
World report- we are in a place where some people steal from their community in order to make the most tiny profits. But then there are other people who turn them in for it. I am that narc. : D



>154 RidgewayGirl: I will not be taking it down or giving them a pat on the back for refunding what wasn't theirs to sell. Which I pointed out in my message to Amazon about the situation. And the seller's message to me didn't even address that they're selling books that didn't belong to them, it's just "we're so sorry your unhappy with the book, here's your money back...so if you want to remove that message now, that'd be great..."

But I have had many things rolling in without problems, whether through Amazon or book shopping:

Die A Little
The Yellow-Lighted Bookshop
Thank you, Jeeves
Kill Your Darlings- a better copy to replace my old one
Queens of Noise: The Real Story of The Runaways
Pines
Flower Confidential
Bad Feminist
Quiet: The Power of Introverts
Plus a couple of Misfits and Los Straightjackets cds, and the ten piece drill bit set for carving finally arrived, so everything here is great.
I haven't watched D.A. yet, so I'll be back later with a recap.

Oh, Bad Feminist is a lot of fun!

>156 RidgewayGirl: It's one of those books that I kept hearing about on the LT street corner. It's gotten great reviews, at least among the readers I associate with.

>155 mstrust: I've followed Roxane Gay on teh Twitter for years and had my favorite little bookshop hold a copy for me on release day, but I haven't read Bad Feminist yet. Just trying to live up to the title?

>158 kgriffith: True, you may be an overachiever.

O.k., I've watched Downton Abbey, so let's pull it apart.

1. Mrs Hughes is still grumbling about the "posh people" and their wedding ways, but then Mrs Patmore points out that Hughes "isn't wasting money, that's for sure", which is a two-for-one insult, in that it means "you're cheap and your wedding dress is ugly."

2. Robert: "I have been talking to Cora."
Granny: "Well that is a mistake."
This episode can be used as a drinking for how many times Violet calls Cora stupid in it. And Cora never once replies, "I will glue your mouth shut with denture cream." She's too calm. Laudanum calm.

3. Mary telling Anna that Edith enjoys drama makes Anna smirk. Because Anna is thinking "pot, meet kettle."

4. And Mary's so excited by Anna's tentative news. Put aside the more realistic reaction from a Lady about her maid being pregnant, which would be "Now you won't be fit to wait on me, you're sacked," and you've got a very rare occurrence- Mary being happy for someone else.

5. Barrow has shown his hand too much. Now that he's been so open about leaving, he can't stay and save face. But that interview was even better than the last one. Notice how Sir Michael deftly gives Barrow the finger for a portion of the interview. Won't someone tell Barrow that he's needed at the Abbey, that's all he wants. Baxter has no authority, so he needs it from Carson or a Grantham.



6. Once again, Edith's London outfit was beautiful. Blue, beige and a rosy sand-colored coat, she looked great.

7. And Edith fires her editor! How modern. And then has a date! And tells her date that "my editor has just walked out." Come on, Edith, are you afraid the cute boy won't like you?

8. Oh, look, that idiot policeman is back and blabbing all in front of Danker the Diabolical. That's all we need. *eyeroll*

9. Isobel. She's become one bile-spewing shrew, hasn't she? How mean she was to the doctor who once wanted to marry her. Close shave, Doc. And then opening her big mean mouth to him at the wedding too. It's called decorum, Isobel, ask the doctor where he got his.

10. Violet had a perfect right to ask Isobel if she was drunk.

11. For the first time ever, the Granthams notice a servant (Carson) entering the room. First. Time. Ever.

12. Wow, when Cora finally takes that dreamy look off her face, there's a witch underneath. Did she really think these three women lived and worked in her house for decades in the hopes of stealing her coat? But then she was back to her old whispering self an hour later.

13. The wedding! Yea! And the very sweet reception! And the new Mrs Carson telling Mary, "Milady, Mr. Carson would forgive you if you attacked him with a brick."

14. And we finally see Mr. Bates at the reception. And then Branson! Mary's reaction is so big-is she in love? And Branson is glowing. Is he in love? Pregnant?

Downton Abbey -- I agree with most of what you wrote.

1. Barrow. Did anyone think he completely misunderstood the situation and screwed himself out of a great opportunity? He'd be the boss. Old landowner, rich, no family, no one watching . . . he could ingratiate himself into the will, and at worst would have to share it with the housekeeper. How did he not notice that? Am I missing something?

2. Loved Edith's life in this episode. Great to see her succeed, even though I wonder where she got the skills to pull off editing a magazine.

3. Isobel has become a one-note wonder, hasn't she. Do something else for a change.

4. First time I've ever seen Cora's entitled bitch side to that degree. Usually her over-niceness irritates me, so this balances things out a bit.

5. Branson. My initial reaction was "Yea!!" Then when he said he was back to stay, I was like "huh?" How long did it take to cross the Atlantic back then? And he's in the US for what, three months? And he knows it's the wrong place to be? I'm sure 99.99% of immigrants think that in their first 3 months. First three years. For some, the first three decades. And then he says that Downton is home? Gak! Okay, I love this character, but get real. He's IRISH. He's WORKING CLASS. No, there is no chance that Downton is your home.

I give the show a lot of leeway with their class-crossing friendships, but this is ridiculous.

Also, you just stole Carson and Hughes' moment, you phony selfish bastard. All of a sudden, I'm thinking "Branson. Not-yea!"

Others may have a different opinion.

6. Is this the first episode where the dowager has worn grey instead of shades of "violet"?

7. Lady Mary always wears fabulous colours. Loved the midnight blue dress that was otherwise subdued. Those of you who have this colouring (not me), take note of the colours she wears and you too can look magical.

>161 Nickelini:
1. That's exactly what I thought would happen! Knowing Barrow, I thought he'd hear how much liberty he'd have to do whatever and kinda control the old man's life, and that there were no heirs, and my first thought was, yep, Barrow would take this job. I don't know why he didn't, other than the old man would have been his only companion. Or that he didn't want the stigma of working in such a rubble, as servants in better houses would have felt he was beneath them.

2. It was a surprise to see that Edith had someone developed the skill of putting together a magazine. They made it seem like all you have to do is roll up your sleeves. But it did bring back the memories of physical galleys.

3. The earth would fall off its axis if a day went by without Isobel being rude. And she was so nice when we first met her.

5. I wonder about that too. He's changed so much in the last two seasons also. It's another one of those never-in-a-million-years aspects of D.A. Only a place this charmed can turn a revolutionary into such a cheerful guy who is loved by his former employers.

6. I hadn't noticed that, but you may be right. She really does keep to the same look, so much so that she could be wearing the same dress over and over because they're all in the same color scheme and the jewels are matching and sparkly. It creates a Violet Look.


The BBC will be presenting our first Rare Book Exhibit tomorrow. Appropriate attire required.

Appropriate attire being what exactly? I mean, if it's that rare maybe we ought to turn up in something that we don't mind getting dusty. Alternatively, it might be a more exclusive event. Hmm, what to do.

>160 mstrust: >161 Nickelini: >162 mstrust: I enjoyed the DA overview very much.
I have one addition and this concerns Lord Grantham's indigestion after dinner. Could this be foreshadowing his demise? It would certainly give Branson something to do. Still hoping he and Mary realize they can run DA together and combine their young families. Then again, probably not, Branson is a little bit country and Mary a little bit Rock and Roll.

>163 Helenliz: The line for the exhibit has started forming, so I stepped out and took a few snaps to give you an idea of how our crowd looks.


>164 Carmenere: Yes, I did forget to note Robert's indigestion, and it may well be a build up to something bad. It was last season or the one before were they gave us the idea that Robert had something health-related, and then it fizzled out. They could definitely bring it up again.
Ha! Mary is more daring than the revolutionary, for sure. I keep waiting for her to turn to him and say, "Oh, Tome, I see what Sybil saw in you! Kiss me!"

Golly, how had I never visited this thread before? It's full of marvellous goodies. *goes off to watch episodes of Black Books*

Loving the D.A. discussions.

>166 evilmoose: Thanks, glad you've found your way here!
>167 mdoris: So am I! They give us so much to discuss!

The final arrangements for the exhibit are in the process and we'll open in just a few minutes. Please read the guidelines.

No touching. No photography. No phones. No breathing on the displays. No humming "Who Wrote The Book Of Love?" No complaining. No saying, "My grandparents had that exact edition."
Welcome.

Our security staff is here to help you.

The BBC Rare Book Exhibit

The exhibit is open.

Shakespeare's First Folio, owned by the Folger Museum




A mid-17th Century edition of Tales of the Genji by Lady Murasaki.


The first U.K. edition of Hans Christian Andersen. An interesting 1909 First Edition of The Brothers Grimm from Arthur Rackam Publishing


Six volume First Edition set of Samuel Pepys Diary. 1875-79


First book edition of Charles Dickens' Great Expectations. First Edition, First Issue, 1861

Three volume First Edition set of Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility


First Edition of Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre This set sold for $62,000


First Edition of Mark Twain's Huckleberry Finn. 1884


1924 First Edition of Poirot Investigates by Agatha Christie.

A 1951 First Edition of Ngaio Marsh's Opening Night. 1938 First Edition of Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier

>170 mstrust: Very cool to see. Thanks for sharing.

Does that first edition of the Jane Austen come in green?

First Edition of In Cold Blood by Truman Capote


Dracula by Bram Stoker, First Edition


1923 First Edition of This Side of Paradise by F. Scott Fitzgerald


1929 First Edition of A Farewell To Arms by Ernest Hemingway.


1946 First American Edition of The Stranger by Albert Camus


Harry Potter First U.K. Edition set


We hope you have enjoyed the exhibit, presented to you by The BBC. Please step into our lounge for a complimentary glass of Pierrer-Jouet.

As soon as I find my top hat, I'll be there! Save me a seat near the bar.

>172 Oberon: >173 Nickelini: >175 RidgewayGirl: Three who pushed their way to the front! Welcome, and I'm glad you enjoyed our presentation. Please take the time to browse and buy lots of our stuff.

>176 mstrust: Excuse me, but I did not push or budge in line. I snuck in through the gift shop.

How many glasses of bubbly can we have?

>169 mstrust: Thanks for the earworm, I am now humming "Who wrote the book of love" on continuous loop. Made worse by the fact I can't remember all the words.

>177 Nickelini: Chang informed me that three book hooligans kept unclipping the velvet rope, and that when he stepped away to retrieve a bottle of pepper spray, he returned and the three were gone. He has memorized your faces, but don't worry, I'm firing him. Each visitor receives one glass of champagne. Each glass holds 16 oz.
I have a lot of fun in my head.

>178 Helenliz: This will either help or make you want to strangle me: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bqNopHaFW7c

Hi Jennifer. I put on my glad rags in order to attend your Rare Book Exhibit:



Loved your Downton Abbey review. I am thinking that Branson will be awarded the Pig Farm which will send Daisy off on a rampage blaming poor befuddled Cora and I doubt if Mary would get involved with Branson if he does move to the pig farm although that would be a fun ending for her.

>180 DeltaQueen50: How wonderful to see you! You look great. Do I need to mention that there is No Book Licking?
You may be on to something there. The Drews are gone, Branson likes to see himself as independent and good at business... and the pig farm is close enough that Lady Mary could nip over, you know, just if Tom needed her for something. Let's all hope little Sibby learns to talk soon.

>174 mstrust: Hey, The BBC stole one of my copies of Deathly Hallows!

The Shakespeare Folio is coming to my local library in March. I am oodles of excited.

>182 kgriffith: Well aren't you double lucky- a first edition and a First Folio? I've never heard of a folio going to a library, only fantastic book stores, so you must have a really great library. You'll have to tell all about it and post pics so the rest of us can be jealous.


7. The Halloween Tree by Ray Bradbury. Eight boys go to Pipkin's house to pick him up. It's Halloween and they're dressed in costumes and ready to go, but Pipkin doesn't feel well, so tells them to go to the big scary house in town and he'll catch up. The boys go to the house and find an enormous tree with jack o' lanterns hanging from each branch, and a strange man who offers to show them what Halloween is about. He whisks them through time, back to the Ancient Egyptians and Romans, to the Dark Ages and modern Mexico, explaining the truths behind the skeleton and mummy costumes they wear.

I don't know how much interest this story would hold for a kid, either now or when it was first published in 1972. It's meant to explain all the different cultural aspects that make up an American Halloween, but it's written by Bradbury, who I really like, so you have a lot of sorta explanations mixed in with florid language that would likely confuse a child. And he's still using all the 'golly's and 'shucks' of a story set in the 30's. As in Something Wicked This Way Comes, a great book, you have one character who is described as the best, most loved boy, the sweetest of boyhood. Bradbury romanticized boyhood to a weird degree, even to the point where he couldn't include a single girl, not even for the character dressed as a witch. Even the witch was a boy. 3 stars

For those who remember my earlier posts, this was the book I received from an Amazon seller that had been stolen from a community free library. I'd been wanting to read this book for a long time, and this was actually the second messed-up copy I've received. I previously got one from BookMooch that arrived with most of the pages pulled out from the cheap binding. The sender had rubber-banded the book to hold the pages in. So I figured I'd just read this before sending it back to the library it came from. Then Coral found it. I left the book on the coffee table while I was downstairs and came back to find the cover, front and back, in chunks on the floor, and she'd actually eaten the top of several pages. So now I have to throw it away because it's a shredded, dirty sticker-laden mess.

>183 mstrust: I remember hating the Halloween Tree, but when I went back and checked I actually gave it 2 stars. That was generous of me. I cited several things in my review that you mentioned -- the silly old-fashioned language and the erasure of females, although I said it more kindly then. Time hasn't done this book any favours.

>183 mstrust: Interesting commentary on The Halloween Tree I have not read the book but there is an excellent animated version of the book that I have watched several times with my kids who really enjoyed it. It is my favorite Halloween television show (ahead of the The Great Pumpkin). As an interesting aside, the witch in the animated story is a girl.

>184 Nickelini: It really struck me that there were no female characters. I get that there are stories that would just involve boys, but this story turned out to be world history, and the fact that there wasn't a female character even in the visits back in time was jarring, like women didn't count enough to mention. And if he wanted to teach about the beginnings of the witch myth, how could he possibly have left women out? It isn't about being inclusive, it's just that the history of witches and the witch trials is definitely more female history than male. It made it clear that Bradbury consciously didn't want to write female characters.

>185 Oberon: I think I saw that a few years ago. I'd never heard of it before and haven't seen it on t.v. since. And I'm glad they wisely made a girl character. With all these new channels being formed these last year or two, I've seen all kinds of holiday specials from the 60's through the 90's that had been forgotten.

>186 mstrust: It made it clear that Bradbury consciously didn't want to write female characters.

It really felt like that, didn't it! I haven't read any other Bradbury in 30 years, and I wonder if that's common to all his writing. I have a big anthology of his stories, and now I'm hesitant to crack it open.

>187 Nickelini: I really enjoyed Something Wicked This Way Comes and Fahrenheit 451, so I'll read more from Bradbury, but I'll also not be expecting great female characters from him, so if one pops up, it'll be a nice surprise.



8. Grow Your Own Drugs by James Wong. I first saw Wong on his show of the same title, which aired in my area for maybe ten episodes a few years ago. It's fun to watch this ridiculously cheerful guy, who's an ethnobotanist (no, I don't know either), tramping through a public park cutting and picking commonplace plants for use at home. This book contains the lavender bath bomb recipe I copied off the show, along with recipes for treating all kinds of ailments, like coughs, insomnia, chapped skin, and for boosting memory. The problem for me is that not many of these plants grow wild or otherwise in my climate, and there's quite a few that seem native to the U.K., so I'd never come across them. Oh well, it's a fun book and I'll try what I can. 4 stars

>188 mstrust: Somehow I forgot about Fahrenheit 451, which I read in 2007. I don't remember being offended by the non-femaleness of it, but I also don't remember any female characters. It was an excellent book though.

I remember two female characters in Fahrenheit 451, but there may have been more. The main character's wife was shallow and didn't understand him, and then there was a teenage girl who, if I remember correctly, fought the oppression.
Who knows, maybe he wrote about girls once when he was starting out and someone told him they were lousy. : D

Ooooooo!

Ahhhhhhh!

Yaozaaaaaa!

The BBC Rare Book Exhibit was quite a treat. Lovely, just lovely! On to the gift shop for a coffee mug, note cards and a t-shirt.

>190 mstrust: Fair enough. My dream (even though I've been happily married for over 20 years), is to be Mrs Fitzwilliam Darcy.

>191 Carmenere: Thanks for coming, and for your purchases! The months of negotiations to get these books was all worth it.

>192 Nickelini: Darcy? Huh. I wouldn't have thought anybody liked him. Well...if that's what your into.


Oh yeah, now I get it.

I have to show you all this. I was watching episodes of the Ricky Gervais show "Extras", and there's the episode with David Bowie singing his impromptu "pathetic little man, taking his own life, pug-nosed man..." And then there were the extras of "Extra", and we get to see Bowie's incredibly dry wit. This is great: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DUXp59NaNig

Loved your rare books and your DA recaps.

When Mary said "pregnant" at the breakfast table, I actually gasped and paused our dvr to complain to my husband. There's no way she'd of said that, especially in front of her father. Other things bugged me, the missing child and the wedding toast interruption, but I love the show... Good point about the wife driving the car.

>193 mstrust: Yes, he's going to say that when he proposes, and he's going to look exactly like that. You're a quick study.

The Bowie-Gervais is a favourite, but I've never seen that extra bit, so thanks!

>194 Copperskye: the missing child! Yes! What a 1990 reaction. The show is sooooo anachronistic. But I still love it.

>193 mstrust: on a similar note, I feel the urge to share this again:

Happy weekend, Jennifer. Stay safe and warm.

>194 Copperskye: Thanks, glad you enjoyed the exhibit. We try to keep it classy around here.
There are things all over D.A. that set my historical inaccuracy radar going. If a siren went off every time something anachronistic happened on that show it would look like a police chase on the L.A. freeway.

>195 Nickelini: It's pretty amazing how many pics of this ugly-ass statue comes up when you google Colin Firth. Have you been terrified by Gigantor-Firth yet?


>196 Helenliz: Oh, I'm afraid that link doesn't work for me. It says it isn't allowed in my country, but I'm sure it was wonderful.

>197 Ameise1: Thanks, and you too!

Mike comes home today. I'll make up some peanut butter chocolate chip cookies and maybe a vegetable soup. Noodle Week may officially end, but I've still got a package of udon and another of won ton noodles that will take me through the weekend.


And I managed to finish my first tiki of the year! The last coat of stain is drying, I'll paint the teeth and be done. The only resolution I managed to come up with this year was to be more diligent about carving so I can do more than just one a year. And I promised myself that I'd fire Chang, a promise I kept after the latest fiasco. So. Fired.

>198 mstrust: Gigantor-Firth is the best name for that statue! It's terrifying. I wonder how Mr Firth feels about it.

I think his reaction went something like this:

"That's a bad idea, surely it won't be realize...Someone is funding it? They must be mad.... Surely it won't happen. It's been built?...It's being put in the middle of London?! I wish I was dead."
Something like that.

I've started a new thread- come to The BBC.

>198 mstrust: Have you been terrified by Gigantor-Firth yet?

That was actually up when I was last in London, but somehow I managed to miss it. Apparently it's been moved. Not sure I'm going to go look for it.

I believe it toured around to various lakes and ponds to frighten people everywhere. It's final place is supposedly the lake Firth really swam in. That'll keep the flocks away.

>198 mstrust: oh! Try the same video direct from the poet's site. Maybe that'll work. Linky thing