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15
Feb 2013

Friday Collection of Pretty Books 2.15.13

February 15, 2013 By Leave a Comment

Another day, another dollar.  But the really good news is that it’s Friday before the long weekend celebrating President’s Day, which will leave me more time to mess with books.  I hope you like this week’s collection.

Starbucks Espresso Library Pop-up Tokyo

The design firm, nendo, created a  pop-up concept store in 2012 for Starbucks in Tokyo.  The Starbucks Espresso Library is filled with books of varying shades of coffee colored books representing drink flavors.  Visitors pull the book for their flavor from the shelf and take it to the counter with an option to keep the cover which can be trimmed to fit a Starbucks travel mug.  Image:  freshome

Dauphine Street Books French Quarter Bookshop

Most of us missed the craziness of Mardi Gras this week in New Orleans.  As a quieter substitute, I offer the quaint Dauphine Street Books in the French Quarter in New Orleans.  Image:  LOLren

Old Books from the New Orleans City Archives Pretty Books

While we’re thinking about New Orleans, how about these beautiful old books from the archives of the city?  Image:  ALA TechSource

Notre Dame Law Library

I’m headed to wintery Chicago in a few weeks and wish I had time to make the drive to this lovely law library at the University of Notre Dame.  Image: Michael Fernandes via Wikipedia

Overflowing Book Drop

I wonder if this is what my library looks like after being closed three days?  Not working in a library, I never thought about what happens to my book once I drop it in that little slot.  It’s like Oz pulling back the curtain:)  Image:  Newton Free Library

Grand Central Terminal NYC

On another note, one of my favorite places in New York City celebrated it’s 100th birthday last week – Grand Central Terminal.

Letter Box in Grand Central Terminal NYC

I love the shiny old letter box in the terminal.

Grand Central Ticket Window

And the brass ticket windows.

 

Enjoy,

JT

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14
Feb 2013

Vintage Valentine with Books

February 14, 2013 By 1 Comment

Yep, it’s Valentine’s Day. That day of love, candy, cupid, and arrows.  And the day that small children exchange valentines with classmates at school.

Vintage Valentine with Books

This vintage card reads “To Glenn From Neal & Stephen” in a very tidy cursive writing, probably written by their mother.  I remember the excitement of exchanging cards at school mixed with the following thoughts:

  • It was weird to give cards to the boys I didn’t like
  • I always wondered if anyone would  give me, the shy, quiet girl cards
  • I really liked the cards the rich kids brought because they attached candy
  • The party where we opened cards and ate cupcakes was great fun

Enjoy,

JT

 

 

Filed Under: Holiday Tagged With:
01
Feb 2013

Friday Collection of Pretty Books 2.1.13

February 1, 2013 By Leave a Comment

February is upon us and we deserve a few pretty books to bolster us for the last half of winter.

Shakespeare & Co Bookstore Paris Rare Book Sign

Inviting rare book sign at Shakespeare & Co in Paris.  Image:  eleflar

John Rylands Library Reading Room Manchester England

The beautiful reading room at the John Rylands Library in Manchester, England.  Image:  Leo Reynolds

Law Books in Snow

The photographer didn’t know why the books were outside.  Perhaps they could have recycled them into a table.  Image:  M Glasgow

Reading on a Bench

I wonder what the gentleman is reading.  Image:  John Mallon

Princeton Antiques Outdoor Bookshelves

The outdoor shelves at Princeton Antiques in Atlantic City, New Jersey.  Image:  iirraa

 

Enjoy,

JT

 

 

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27
Jan 2013

Library Photo: Ancient Celsus Library in Ephesus

January 27, 2013 By Leave a Comment

Although the scrolls are long gone, one can imagine the stately Celsus Library at Ephesus as a center for knowledge in ancient times.

Ancient Library at Ephesus "library photo"

The second century library lay hidden under the ruins of Ephesus for centuries.  It was discovered in the early 1900s and was reconstructed in the 1970s.  An inscription on the facade dedicates the building to its donor, Tiberius Julius Celsus Ptolemaeanus, who held the position of Roman consul and proconsul of Asia in 105 AD.  Image:  Dennis Jarvis

Scroll Niche Celsus Library Ephesus "library photo"

Experts identified the building as a library by the stone niches located around the exterior walls.  Wooden closets  were placed in these niches to house scrolls and other documents. Since there were no steps found in the building, scholars assume that access to the upper floor book closets was gained via ladders or wooden staircases.  Image:  Jessica Lian

Enjoy,

JT

 

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26
Jan 2013

Weekend Treat: From Drab to Pretty

January 26, 2013 By Leave a Comment

You know, on the beauty scale, not all books are created equal.  I wish I could say I am a book purist; that all books are beautiful because of what they contain inside or another sweet sentiment.  But sometimes the books are drab, faded, and otherwise nondescript.

Black & White Harvard Classics Pretty Books

Thankfully,  a few taps of fancy iPhone magic can turn them into a pretty book picture.

Enjoy,

JT

Filed Under: Old Books Tagged With: ,
20
Jan 2013

Library Photo: Belton House

January 20, 2013 By Leave a Comment

Today’s library photo features Belton House found in the Midlands section of England.

Belton House Library England Library Photo

The library reportedly houses 6,000 volumes, many of which are out of sight in this picture.  I’m intrigued by the globes and wonder if they’re modern or 350 years old like the house.  Image:  reuvenim

 

Enjoy,

JT

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19
Jan 2013

Weekend Treat: The White Owl

January 19, 2013 By 1 Comment

“The white owl in the belfry sits” or more appropriately, “in the auction house sits”.

This was the only thing related to books in the entire auction, so I bid on it.  But when the bidding turned ugly and high, I dropped out.

There are no copies of Marye Lil & Me for sale, nor can the book be found with a web search, which certainly doesn’t mean it was never in print.  But it’s more likely Marye Lil was someone special to the artist.  There are only six instances of the phrase “Marye Lil” on Google today.  You don’t see that very often.

Owl with Claws Sitting on Books

Up close the claws are menacing.

On another note, it snowed the tiniest bit on our patch of land this week.

While technically snow, it was tiny round balls of dry stuff.  Not a flake to be seen anywhere.  The weatherman called it snow pellets, which according to my limited research is probably another name for graupel.  The snow world has its own language that’s foreign to a Texan like me.

Enjoy,

JT

 

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05
Jan 2013

Weekend Treat: Golden Angels and Books

January 5, 2013 By Leave a Comment

I’m always on the lookout for books, wherever I can find them.  This particular store seemed to have an abundance of golden angels hanging out with books.

Angels Reading

I love their little hands.

Angel with a Book

I tried to read the spine, but all I could decipher was a portion of the name, Shakespeare.

 

Enjoy,

JT

Filed Under: Book Stuff Tagged With:
01
Jan 2013

Ringing in 2013

January 1, 2013 By 1 Comment

Champagne & Books "Pretty Books"

Even ringing in the New Year can involve a pretty book or two.  Image:  eflon

New Year Resolutions

Not to mention that books make great fodder for New Year’s resolutions.  Image:  Rakka

Personally, I’m not making New Year’s resolutions so much as prioritizing the things I need to do to get my life back on its path after a really stressful year.  Once a few unsavory tasks are out of the way (like income taxes), I’m going to give myself the luxury of simply piddling when I’m off work.  That means reading, spending time with family, and clearing the clutter out of my life (mostly in the book barn).

Then we’ll see where my uncluttered mind leads me.

Happy New Year,

JT

 

 

Filed Under: Holiday Tagged With: , ,
26
Dec 2012

Tea Book

December 26, 2012 By 3 Comments

I’ve honestly never heard of a tea book.  Yet today, I walked into my local Ross Dress For Less and there it was.

Basilur Tea Book

A tin, shaped and hinged like a book, filled with loose tea from Sri Lanka.  And yummy tea at that -  blended with black tea, cornflower, jasmine buds, blue malva, and roasted almond flavor.

Basilur Tea Book Spine

Since this is Volume 1, I’m thinking about going back and buying Volume 2.

Christmas Day Snow

In case you wondered, the good luck snowmen from yesterday’s post, did indeed bring Christmas snow.  It’s the first time in 37 years it has snowed on Christmas Day in our neck of the woods.

Santa Deer

For one more random thought, the local BBQ/steak house was still sporting holiday decorations today.  The steaks were divine, but the Santa hats on the deer, bobcat, longhorn cow, and coyote were creepy.

Enjoy,

JT

 

 

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