Get Well Wishes, Stormy Weather & Non-Mystery Discussions [ Edited ]

[becke_davis]

I'm starting a thread for discussions that take us out of the realm of mystery, moving over comments from a discussion that started on another board. 

Have at it!

[Fricka]

Had to laugh at that Friday Dance with the cats, becke!

Anyway, I thought I'd mention that Barnes and Noble is now carrying a nice selection of Vera Bradley.Here's a tote I just bought, in the Rhythm and Blues pattern. I've found that I can actually pin a couple of the buttons that I've gotten from becke on it. Heh, heh.

I also noticed that when I went to my local Barnes and Noble to pick up the Wristlet that I had ordered, the store had lots more of the Totes that had come in, and they were hanging just behind the clerks in the check-out centers. I went online again, but some of the patterns that were in the store were not available online, so if you are a Vera Bradley fan, but don't see the exact pattern you want online, visit your local store.

Of course, I've mentioned several times that I try to give as much of my business to the local Barnes and Noble bookstores as possible, as I do not want to see them go out of business and be only an online service. Just another plus for bookstore shopping with B&N!!!!!

[becke_davis]

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Fricka wrote:

Had to laugh at that Friday Dance with the cats, becke!

Anyway, I thought I'd mention that Barnes and Noble is now carrying a nice selection of Vera Bradley.Here's a tote I just bought, in the Rhythm and Blues pattern. I've found that I can actually pin a couple of the buttons that I've gotten from becke on it. Heh, heh.

I also noticed that when I went to my local Barnes and Noble to pick up the Wristlet that I had ordered, the store had lots more of the Totes that had come in, and they were hanging just behind the clerks in the check-out centers. I went online again, but some of the patterns that were in the store were not available online, so if you are a Vera Bradley fan, but don't see the exact pattern you want online, visit your local store.

Of course, I've mentioned several times that I try to give as much of my business to the local Barnes and Noble bookstores as possible, as I do not want to see them go out of business and be only an online service. Just another plus for bookstore shopping with B&N!!!!!

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Thanks for helping keep me employed, Fricka! ;-)

I've bought several Vera Bradley items here, including their cool paperback book covers. Now, I'm not shy but when I travel on planes, etc. I sometimes prefer to put covers on my paperbacks - especially if I'm reading a sizzling romance!

Vera Bradley Very Berry Paisley Fabric Paperback Bookcover (5.5X7.75) 

Vera Bradley Baroque Fabric Paperback Bookcover (5.5X7.75) 

Vera Bradley Suzani Fabric Paperback Bookcover (5.5X7.75) 

Vera Bradley Rhythm & Blues Fabric Paperback Bookcover (5.5X7.75) 

Vera Bradley Blue Lagoon Fabric Paperback Bookcover (5.5X7.75)      

I like Vera Bradley prints a lot. I have a bag exactly like the one you just bought, except it's in an older print - black with red and yellow flowers. My daughter gave it to me some time ago.

My glasses case and wallet are Vera Bradley, too. They aren't cheap but they're well made - I've had all my Vera Bradley things for quite awhile.

[dulcinea3]

Ooh, a Vera Bradley discussion!  I love Vera Bradley designs!  Every so often I get what I call "Vera Bradley fever" and have to buy some, and then I'm ok for a while!  I've never noticed them in B&N, though; I'll have to take a look next time I'm there (I don't get there all that often).  The most convenient place for me to buy in person is my local Hallmark store, and I've also bought from the new store at the mall or online.  Let's see, if I have it right, I have an overnight bag (which I've never used yet), a tote, a lunch bag, two glasses cases, two wallets, seven purses, a keychain, a notebook, and my most recent acquisition was a wristlet from my sister-in-law for Christmas, in Very Berry Paisley.  Two of my favorite patterns are Symphony in Hue and Poppy Fields.

Knot Just a Clutch in Symphony in Hue:

Angle Tote in Poppy Fields:

[becke_davis]

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dulcinea3 wrote:

Ooh, a Vera Bradley discussion!  I love Vera Bradley designs!  Every so often I get what I call "Vera Bradley fever" and have to buy some, and then I'm ok for a while!  I've never noticed them in B&N, though; I'll have to take a look next time I'm there (I don't get there all that often).  The most convenient place for me to buy in person is my local Hallmark store, and I've also bought from the new store at the mall or online.  Let's see, if I have it right, I have an overnight bag (which I've never used yet), a tote, a lunch bag, two glasses cases, two wallets, seven purses, a keychain, a notebook, and my most recent acquisition was a wristlet from my sister-in-law for Christmas, in Very Berry Paisley.  Two of my favorite patterns are Symphony in Hue and Poppy Fields.

Knot Just a Clutch in Symphony in Hue:

Angle Tote in Poppy Fields:

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I LOVE Symphony in Hue! That's the pattern my wallet is in.

I like a lot of other patterns, too:

Did you know she even makes Christmas stocking? Too cute!

And I LOVE this:

[becke_davis]

Here are some of the things B&N sells:

Vera Bradley Very Berry Paisley Photo Album (9.25x8.75) 

Vera Bradley Rhythm & Blues Paper Address Book 

Vera Bradley Suzani Mug 

Vera Bradley Suzani Spiral Notebook Journal (6x8) 

Vera Bradley Suzani Pencil Box - 10 Pencils and Sharpener 

Vera Bradley Very Berry Paisley Mug 

Vera Bradley Rhythm & Blues Hard Eyeglass Case (6"x2.75"x1") 

Vera Bradley Blue Rhapsody Mug 

Vera Bradley Suzani Paper Note Cube (3.75x3.5x3.75) 

Vera Bradley Symphony in Hue Mug 

Vera Bradley Night & Day Pencil and Brush Case (9''x4'') 

Vera Bradley Very Berry Paisley Tech Case (5X3.25X .5) 

Vera Bradley Blue Lagoon Note Cube (3.75x3.5x3.75) 

Vera Bradley Blue Lagoon Pen and Pencil Set               

[dulcinea3]

I have the Euro-Wallet in Symphony in Hue, too!

They are branching out so much that they seem to make just about everything!  My mother has a teacup and saucer in Poppy Fields that somebody gave her, but I've never seen the teacups in a store on even on their own website.  I do think that things like stationery, gift wrap, etc. are kind of expensive for something that will be used up, so I just got one little notebook with pockets in Poppy Fields when it was on sale at the Hallmark store, but I haven't thought of anything to use it for yet.  I got the Poppy Fields keychain in the same sale.

One thing I really regret not buying when I saw it on sale was the Flapper Wristlet in Poppy Fields.  I don't think they were around for long.  It was adorable, but I didn't think I would use it much.  Now that I have a wristlet, I don't find it that practical, since I can't fit my phone, reading glasses, or even my keys in it!  But in the winter, I can put some of that in my coat pockets, so I've used it a couple of times.

[becke_davis]

I saw this in the Huffington Post today:

Literary Detectives Deathmatch: Who Will Win?

It began, as so many things, with an argument. One of those tedious ones, you know how they go: who would win in a fight between this fictional character and that? We enjoy these half-drunken amicable disagreements, not least because they rely on obscure knowledge of the personality traits of figures who never existed.

Our conversation turned to literary detectives. What would happen, we mused, if there were some kind of futuristic deathmatch between them? Who would win?

There was only one thing for it. We wrote names, pulled them out of a bag, and sketched out thebrackets. And then the battles commenced.

Here's how it played out on a friend's kitchen table, thanks to the able assistance of half a bottle of whisky. May the most ferocious literary detective win.

Bracket 1

Game 1
Sam Spade vs. Hercule Poirot

Dashiell Hammett's Sam Spade enters the arena first. He stands there, hand in his overcoat pocket, facing the door on the opposite side of the small space. The audience settles down, and waits for the arrival of Agatha Christie's Belgian creation.

Poirot enters, acknowledging the polite applause. He turns to Spade, smiling, twirling the tips of his distinctive mustache. "Let us review the details of the matter," he begins.

*BANG*

In a cold fraction of a moment, Sam Spade has drawn his gun and shot Poirot dead. Spade feels nothing as he progresses, unsportingly, to the next round.

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Game 2
Travis McGee vs. Sherlock Holmes

McGee is the tall, tanned, honorable "salvage consultant" from John D. MacDonald's books. He seems pretty sanguine about facing Sherlock Holmes, the world's greatest detective. They enter the arena simultaneously, and within five seconds, the deerstalkered one has surmised that that his opponent is something of a gambler.

"Perhaps a game of cards?" ventures the great detective. McGee smiles.

They sit, a revolver placed between them. Holmes shuffles and then calmly deals McGee a busted flush. He quietly reveals his single pair of Queens before standing, nodding to McGee, and leaving the room.

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Game 3
Father Brown vs. Cadfael

It seemed cruel to pit two men of the cloth against each other, but there you have it. GK Chesterton's Father Brown sits, smiling, opposite Ellis Peters's medieval monk Cadfael.

"Perhaps some tea," offers the herbalist monk. Father Brown smiles quietly, and watches as Cadfael exits, then returns with a porcelain pot in one hand, and two cups balanced in the other.

The monk places the teacups carefully on a side table, and pours the warm liquid from the pot into a cup. Father Brown stands, watching. He removes his spectacles to clean them, then accidentally drops them to the floor. Cadfael bends briefly to aid his opponent, who meanwhile calmly exchanges the position of the teacups.

The tea is poured, they both smile, sip from their respective drinks, and the monk then falls to the floor, having imbibed the poison he had intended for Father Brown.

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Game 4
Easy Rawlins vs. C. Auguste Dupin

Walter Mosely's Rawlins touches the brim of his hat as Edgar Allen Poe's gentleman detective C. Auguste Dupin enters. Dupin, amused, bows low.

He is about to speak when Rawlin's vicious friend, Mouse, pokes his head through the doorway. "Hey, Easy, what you doin'?"

"It's a deathmatch, Mouse. I'm fighting this French guy."

"Oh." Mouse contemplates the scene for a moment, then fires a volley of bullets into Dupin's surprised body. "Let's go, Easy. We got things to do."

Umpire's ruling: Easy Rawlins is disqualified for the use of outside assistance.

The game continues here: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/andrew-losowsky/literary-detectives-deathmatch_b_1118968.html?ref=armc...

[GS2991]

Oh interesting deathmatch. Those book covers look neat. Haven't heard of Vera Braley though. Yeah I need get out more. But I do like stuff from HKS. She makes bookmarks and different stuff. I like her leather bookmarks. She makes everything by hand too. Even tans the leather herself! She makes braclets and other tinker things. Anybody heard of HKS?

[optic_i]

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GS2991 wrote:
Oh interesting deathmatch. Those book covers look neat. Haven't heard of Vera Braley though. Yeah I need get out more. But I do like stuff from HKS. She makes bookmarks and different stuff. I like her leather bookmarks. She makes everything by hand too. Even tans the leather herself! She makes braclets and other tinker things. Anybody heard of HKS?

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Hi everyone !  Holly I  the Woodlands collection by HKS is my favorite !      Optic 

[GS2991]

Oh yeah! I forgot! That is cool! I have on of those! Its a small camo bag I put my pens and stuff in. I like her knife holsters. I have one of those too. And walking sticks! I have a couple of those! I favor the Oak sticks.

[optic_i]

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GS2991 wrote:
Oh yeah! I forgot! That is cool! I have on of those! Its a small camo bag I put my pens and stuff in. I like her knife holsters. I have one of those too. And walking sticks! I have a couple of those! I favor the Oak sticks.

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I like that she tans her own hide Too !     Optic

[GS2991]

She also engraves your knives. I hear her new thing she is coming out with is stones. Little rocks with your name on them. Like a worry stone. Wonder when those will come out.

[optic_i]

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GS2991 wrote:
She also engraves your knives. I hear her new thing she is coming out with is stones. Little rocks with your name on them. Like a worry stone. Wonder when those will come out.

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I think the Holly stone is the most popular !     Optic

[GS2991]

Hmmm or the HOPE stone. We will see once they come out.

[becke_davis]

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optic_i wrote:

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GS2991 wrote:
She also engraves your knives. I hear her new thing she is coming out with is stones. Little rocks with your name on them. Like a worry stone. Wonder when those will come out.

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I think the Holly stone is the most popular !     Optic

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That sounds intriguing!

This is a new pattern - B&N doesn't have it yet. It's expensive, but they all are.

More new products - I wonder if B&N will carry all of these?

[optic_i]

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GS2991 wrote:
Hmmm or the HOPE stone. We will see once they come out.

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The HOPE for Holly stone !     Optic

[dulcinea3]

Well, the thing with Vera Bradley is to wait until the 'color' (I don't know why they call it a color instead of a pattern) gets older and is discounted.  There are two levels of discounts; I forget what the first is, but then later they go down to 40% off.  The only thing is that you might or might not be able to get the style you want in that color at that point, but I've gotten quite a few items that way.  I know the discounts show up in the Hallmark store as well as Vera Bradley online, so I would guess that B&N would also have them, unless they just stop carrying the product at that point.

[GS2991]

Or the pet heads stones. Or the heart stones. I will have to keep close tabs.

[becke_davis]

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dulcinea3 wrote:

Well, the thing with Vera Bradley is to wait until the 'color' (I don't know why they call it a color instead of a pattern) gets older and is discounted.  There are two levels of discounts; I forget what the first is, but then later they go down to 40% off.  The only thing is that you might or might not be able to get the style you want in that color at that point, but I've gotten quite a few items that way.  I know the discounts show up in the Hallmark store as well as Vera Bradley online, so I would guess that B&N would also have them, unless they just stop carrying the product at that point.

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I noticed B&N had some Vera items marked down, too.