11 of 28

Jo-Jo at jo-jolovestoread.blogspot.com hosts Book Club Chatter every week Her question this week...
"If your group serves refreshments at your meetings, what do you usually have? Do you wait to serve refreshments until you have completed your discussion?"

Both book clubs that I attend "center" around food or drinks. My mystery book club meets at B&N and, more often than not, they buy our drinks at Starbucks. My other group started meeting at Panera and now we go to different restaurants. I think, because both food and books are comfort items, combining them is very natural. Sharing a meal (or a coffee) while discussing books with good friends, feeds my mind as well as my soul.... pun intended :o)

Tonight was the season premiere of Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains! We love, love, love Survivor at our house. We've watched every season... all twenty! This season should be amazing as it brings back players from past seasons. Yeah, we're pretty much coach potatoes between 7-8 on Thursday nights.

Who else but a rock star of Richie Sambora's stature can rock :o) a gold jacket?!? LOVE it! Honestly, he looks better in this picture than Jon does. Don't get me wrong...I think Jon looks every inch the rock star but Richie takes it a step beyond. Gold velvet jacket, black jeans and cowboy boots...Rock on, Richie!


I carried my black Dooney & Bourke Charcoal logo signature bag. I hadn't carried it a while and it caught my eye in my purse closet.

10 of 28

Waiting On” Wednesday is hosted by Jill over at Breaking the Spine. What book are you waiting for to be released?

I learned, at last week's book club, that there will be a new Maisie Dobbs mystery released in April. If you have not read these amazing mysteries by Jacqueline Winspear, you must...in order, though! They are everything I read mysteries for! I can't wait for the new one, as well as seeing the author at a local bookstore.

From her website..."The Mapping of Love and Death opens in August 1914 in the Santa Ynez Valley in California. Michael Clifton—youngest son of an Englishman who had emigrated to America when he was in his late teens, in search of his fortune—has just purchased a tract of land which he believes is rich with one of the state's most valuable resources—oil. A cartographer and surveyor, Michael is sure of his quest, and anticipates his father's pride in his acquisition. Fate steps in when the young Bostonian begins his journey home, and learns that Britain is going to war in Europe, so in a moment of loyalty to his father's homeland, he decides to travel to England to enlist for service. Michael is listed as "missing" in 1916.
In the spring of 1932, after Michael's remains are discovered in France, along with other members of his cartography unit. His wealthy parents hire Maisie Dobbs to find the woman who wrote a series of love letters discovered among Michael's belongings. The lover identifies herself only as "The English Nurse."
While tracking down the elusive woman in an investigation that ventures from London's most exclusive drawing rooms to its most downtrodden neighborhoods, Maisie must also wrestle with memories of serving as a nurse in the Great War—memories that she has tried so hard to conquer—and of the passionate wartime romance that ended in tragedy. But as she delves more deeply into what she discovers to be a long-hidden crime, the investigator realizes that unearthing buried secrets can lead to present-day danger—just as events from the past send her own life in a surprising and not unpleasant direction."


Bon Jovi is most definitely a band to see live, which M and I will on March 8th. This song is awesome but when sung (and seen) live, it is launched into the stratosphere.



I now have the same purse in three colors. My children did buy the Target bag I wanted for my birthday. So, in my purse closet, sits a brown one, a black one and, to complete the trio... the fuschia one! I haven't yet carried it as it's been kind of snowy here. I'll carry it soon but, because it's a brighter color, I'll wait until the weather warms up just a bit. I love that I have it in these three colors. One of the girls I work with even bought it in a mustard yellow. I guess I'm not the only one who thinks it's the perfect bag. I'm pretty sure, though, that I'm one of the few (okay... maybe the only one) who has it in three colors.

9 of 28

Grab your current read. Let the book fall open to a random page.
Share with us two (2) “teaser” sentences from that page, somewhere between lines 7 and 12.
You also need to share the title of the book that you’re getting your “teaser” from … that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you’ve given!

"They shared a look. Francesca felt as if someone had taken a plywood board and struck her with it."
Deadly Desire
Brenda Joyce
page 164


After reading Stacy's(you can find her at http://stacybuckeye.wordpress.com/) reviews of this series, I decided to read these books again. I thought I had the whole series but I could only find the last five. Considering that I had read them years ago and somewhat remember the plots, I just started with the earliest book I had and will read them in order. Maybe I'll look at my used bookstore for the first three.


This is the logo for Bon Jovi's "Have A Nice Day" CD. It's also a window sticker on the back window of my car. I love that not everyone knows what it is but those who do... ROCK :o)

I carried my new red bag from my friend, D. I paired it with a black sweater, a red and black scarf and jeans. My son asked how I could always carry a such a big bag. I told him I could say the same for his school backpack. His reply was that everything in it was important to him. I had to laugh because everything I carry is important to me.

On a sad note, I just read TMZ that Captain Phil from "Deadliest Catch" passed away tonight, apparently due to complications from a stroke. He was one of our favorite captains on the show.

8 of 28

Happy Birthday to Me!
I hope you'll share a piece of Birthday cake with me...

My husband will tell you that I love a man in a suit jacket, crisp white dress shirt and a pair of blue jeans. Add to that... he's wearing his wedding ring... well, it's a nice picture to end my birthday.

7 of 28

WAY TO GEAUX, SAINTS!!!
I'm a huge football fan (I'm sure I've mentioned that). I love the Broncos...don't like the new coach, though! If my boys aren't playing in The Super Bowl, I usually root for the AFC team. Not this year! Even from the beginning of their winning streak, I said it would be really cool if they made it to the big game. Lo and behold... they did! And they WON!!!! I'm not ashamed I teared up a little especially when Drew Brees was holding his son.... awww!

Football is kind of the theme for the day, so I thought this picture was appropriate. We did see The Crush play The Soul and Jon was in Elway's box. I spent most of the time watching him not the game... money well spent, if you ask me.


I carried this black bag with lots of studs, rivets and other gold/brass harware. I just realized that it's black and gold... just like The Saints! Definitely Karma!
WAY TO GEAUX, SAINTS!!!

6 of 28

I had lunch with two of my oldest friends, D and S. We met at a Mexican restaurant and gorged ourselves on chips, salsa, guacamole and assorted tacos. The staff even sang "Happy Birthday" to me as it was pretty obvious we were celebrating. D's gift to me was in a huge gift bag!

D was one of the first people I met after I moved to Denver. We met on the first day of college in a math class. We've been friends ever since. We've helped each other through some really rough times and celebrated the good times. Her son was even born on my husband's birthday.

S and I met at her wedding reception. She married one of my husband's best friends. They were in the Navy and were married in Hawaii. There was a recption at his parents house a few months later. The first time I saw her, she was crawling on the floor in her wedding dress after their infant son. The marriage didn't last but our friendship most definitely has... that was twenty years ago! I am also responsible (albeit a little indirectly) for S meeting her second husband. I introduced her to D who was on an office softball team that G coached. S ended up playing on the team and she and G began dating. They married a few years later and I was Matron of Honor.

There's just something about a guy in a cowboy hat that makes my hear go "pitter-pat"...I know, I know...CORNY!!! But doesn't this picture do a little something for you...


Instead of of posting a picture of the purse I carried today, I'm posting a picture of one of my birthday presents. D gave me this beautiful deep red bag! It's a great color,it has lots of pockets and it's huge! This picture definitely doesn't do this bag justice but it's late and I'm tired. Maybe I'll post a better picture tomorrow. I love it and will probably carry it Sunday.

5 of 28

FIRST LINE FRIDAY...First lines have always intrigued me since I heard an author say that writing the first sentence is, by far, the most difficult part of writing a novel. The reasoning was that a first sentence can make the reader continue reading or cause the book to be tossed aside. So, go to your To Be Read Pile, choose as many books as you want and share the first line. Be sure to include the title and author so that if your reader also finds it intriguing, they can find the book. Also, share your thoughts about the first line. Does it draw you in? Is it...exciting...thought provoking...scary...funny?

"What fascinates me about life is that now and then the past rises up and declares itself."
U is for Undertow
Sue Grafton

This sentence doesn't say a lot but, in my opinion, speaks volumes. Without really knowing what this latest entry into the Kinsey Millhone series is about, this first line leaves me curious. Will this lead to what is, obviously, the main plotline or will it be recurring secondary plot that has permeated the last few books... that of Kinsey reconnecting with her estranged extended family?

I was so excited to find this hardcover mystery (it was just released on December 1, 2009) at the Friends of the Library bookstore. I was way, way down on the waiting list for this one. The best part... I only paid $6 for it! I was actually telling a friend at book club Tuesday night how I'm always finding recently released hardcovers at the FotL bookstore and buying them for way less than the cost of a paperback. I was there the next morning and found this... the latest Sue Grafton novel. Yay!


I decided that I like this picture so much that I made it my desktop background.

Because I'm numbering each February post, I've decided to post a picture of that number. I try to find a picture that somehow strikes me. For today's "5", I'm using a picture of Nicole Kidman in a Chanel No.5 fragrance ad. Yes, I know it's been retouched within an inch of its life, but I still think it's a beautiful photograph. She's wearing a diamond No. 5 pendant down her back and looks every inch the Hollywood Glamour Girl.

Today was Go Red for Women sponsored by the American Heart Association. I wore a red blouse as a symbol of the fight to end heart disease as the number one killer of women. Of course, my bag had to complement the blouse. Because I wore black jeans and boots with it, I chose to carry my Dooney & Bourke Medallion satchel. It looks great with that outfit and I really like the size. I even had the matching wallet, although I will be changing that tomorrow. I've been using for a while and was going to switch it out today but because it matched, I'll do it tomorrow.

4 of 28

From Jo-Jo at http://jo-jolovestoread.blogspot.com... "Welcome to another week of Book Club Chatter where I hope to discuss all things book club on a weekly basis. I thought this would be a fun way for each of us to share one little tidbit every week.
So here is my question for you this week:
Does your book group have an open membership that allows new people to join every month, or do you follow a set of guidelines before allowing a new member to join?"

My mystery book club which met last night has an all welcome policy as it's hosted by Barnes & Noble and meets at the store. However, there is a core group of about nine of us that attend every month. We do have newcomers once in a while but most don't stay more than one or two times. I think it's because we are very honest about the books we read... to the point, sometimes, of ripping a book to shreds. That's not to say that we want everyone to agree. Actually, the discussions are much more interesting when there is friendly disagreement.

My other group has only three members. We are a very tight circle of friends. We've been together since July 2003 when we met through Oprah's book club website. We haven't read one of her choices since that first book. We were a bigger group but, for a variety of reasons, it's now just K, C and me. We invited someone I knew to join us a few years ago. She was always asking me about my group and the books we read. I discussed inviting her with the other two girls and they agreed. She came to our group for about a year. For reasons I, to this day, still do not understand, she stopped coming. I have no problem that she did that. I completely get that she had her reason(s). My problem was that she never said "goodbye". She didn't answer emails, didn't return phone calls... just ignored us. I didn't even want an explanation... just a short email saying something like "I've decided not to continue with book club. Thanks." Common courtesy, if you ask me. She's a mom at M's school so I see her quite often and she has purposely avoided me. Too bad... her loss!

Yes, I think he looks better now but, he completely epitomizes the 80s Hair Band look in this picture. And, yeah, I think he was still pretty cute back then :o)

3 of 28

Tonight was my mystery book club. We had a great discussion about our book, The Chicago Way by Michael Harvey.
I'm having huge issues right now trying to write this post. Blogger must be as tired as I am :) So, I'll post a great picture of the band and try again tomorrow...

2 of 28

The Academy Award nominations were announced today. I was very happy that Sandra Bullock
was nominated for her portrayal of Leigh Anne Touhy in The Blind Side. I loved that movie! I'm a huge football fan. I love the Broncos (don't like the new coach, though) but now I'm also a Ravens fan because Michael Oher plays for them. This movie is really about so much more than football. It goes to the heart of what is a family.

My favorite Sandra Bullock movie is, by far, The Lake House. I'm a sucker for a great romantic movie and this, definitely, is one of the best! If you've looked at my sidebar items, you've probably seen my favorite scene. If not, here it is... The Paul McCartney song, "This Never Happened Before", is simply perfect. And, of course, Keanu makes me happy when I look at him.


I love that she is happily married to Jesse James. While I'm not usually attracted to "bad boys", I've always thought he was cute. He seems like he puts on this tough guy persona but, in private, he's really a nice guy.

This picture of Jon in concert just makes me very happy. Bon Jovi is coming here in March and M and I will be there. I promised her that I would take her the next time they played here. Well, it's next time :o) I have to admit.. I'm actually looking forward to going with her. She's my little rocker chick and she loves Bon Jovi.


My bag today was my huge Zebra tote. I hadn't carried it in a while and it complemented my outfit perfectly. My only complaint is the black lining. I can never find anything. I know what you're thinking... if I carried a smaller bag I wouldn't have that problem :o)

1 of 28

Today is the first day of my month of blogging. It's my second, actually, as I also did it in July.


Our school district has "Choice Enrollment". A student can apply for enrollment at any school in the district, depending on available space. The first round closed last week and we are starting to hear from the schools.

Even though our first choice for J is a Catholic school, we applied at a few district high schools as a "Plan B". So far, he's been accepted to his first choice "Plan B" school. The decision letter for his "Plan A" school won't be mailed for about two weeks. It's nice to know that he's been accepted to a fantastic school if he doesn't get into his first choice.

We put M's application for "Choice Enrollment" at two schools. One being J's current school (which we LOVE!!!) and the other is the top-rated (along with J's current school) school in the district. It's a junior-senior high school, which means we may not have to make another decision in two years. Although we would be happy if she followed her brother's academic path, we realize that she is a different student than he is and her path might be different. J is a math and science "geek" and M is a drama, theater and choir "geek". FYI...in our family, "geek" is a term of endearment :o)

I carried a new bag today. It is one of my Target buys from a few weeks ago. It's blue faux suede that looks perfect with jeans! It also has a great chain strap. I love details like that because it gives a plain purse some "pop"... and, really, whose day isn't better with some "pop" :o)

My Bon Jovi picture of the day is from The Grammys last night. He's with his wife, Dorothea and his daughter, Stephanie. I really admire that he doesn't put his children in the spotlight, like some celebrities. Obviously, I've seen a lot of Bon Jovi pictures but have only seen pictures of his kids a few times. I was also struck at how pretty and poised his sixteen year old daughter is. I found video of this that I enjoyed watching (even though it's extremely short). It's a little annoying as they're being bombarded by the paparazzi. Watch it with the sound off.

Tomorrow

Tomorrow is February 1st and I'm going to try to blog every day through the month. I blogged every day in July so I'm pretty sure I will be able to do it. I hope I can think of something to blog about. As usual, I will post pictures of my bags, talk about books and, for a little eye candy...I'm posting a picture or video of Bon Jovi (the man or the band) every day. As a matter of fact, I'm watching a Friends rerun and Jon Favreau (love him!) as Pete Becker says: "I know I’m no Jon Bon Jovi, (Monica laughs) or someone who you find attractive, I’m just, I think, y'know, that you might end up feeling differently."


My bag today was a slouchy brown shoulder bag with great details. It has a braided handle and little brass studs in two rows down the front. If it looks familiar, it kind of is... I bought the same bag in black and blogged about it January 11th. I went back to Target and the brown one was marked down to its lowest clearance price. I was not planning on buying it in brown (I'm hoping for the fuschia one for my birthday), but, really... it was such a bargain and if I hadn't bought it, it would be gone forever... oh, the horror :o) See, I can justify any bag purchase.

First Line Friday

FIRST LINE FRIDAY...First lines have always intrigued me since I heard an author say that writing the first sentence is, by far, the most difficult part of writing a novel. The reasoning was that a first sentence can make the reader continue reading or cause the book to be tossed aside. So, go to your To Be Read Pile, choose as many books as you want and share the first line. Be sure to include the title and author so that if your reader also finds it intriguing, they can find the book. Also, share your thoughts about the first line. Does it draw you in? Is it...exciting...thought provoking...scary...funny?


"On the day of the tragedy, the boys of Windfield School had been confined to their rooms."
A Dangerous Fortune
Ken Follett

Well, that is just a fantastic first line! Without even really knowing what this book is about, I am completely sucked in. I have to know what the tragedy is and why the boys are confined to their rooms. I love Ken Follett. I think he is a great storyteller. This novel has been sitting on my bookshelf for a while. I moved it to my "official" :o) TBR pile on my nightstand about a week ago. For some reason, I'm wanting to read BFBs, so my pile has quite a few of those. I know that a book by Ken Follett will be an entertaining read.


I carried an olive green "Motorcycle" inspired handbag today. This picture definitely does not do this bag justice. It has wonderfully smooshy, smooshy leather:o) It has a lot of wrinkles and veins. My favorite thing, I think, are the tassels. Why do tassels on a purse always make me happy? Something to ponder....