Three more convention catches were journalled today: "Rebecca" was chosen from the Wrap-It-Up book buffet by nancynova; MaryZee chose "Getting Rid of Bradley" for one of her OBCZs; and KateKintail found it impossible to resist "LOST: Signs of Life." Enjoy!
Home, sweet home, made even sweeter with two journal alerts waiting in my e-mail inbox. The first for Gregory Maguire's "The Next Queen of Heaven," which JudySlump612 picked up from a book buffet in the last hours of the convention, and the second for "Wonderdog," picked up by an AnonymousFinder several hours after I left it on a fire hydrant this morning.
That's it. That's all she wrote. My first BookCrossing convention is done. At breakfast this morning, we were encouraged to find a book about animals and release it in memoriam of Irish BCer Killimengri, who lost her life in a house fire earlier this year. I chose "Wonderdog," by Inman Majors, and set off for a farewell tour of Crystal City. It's a lovely and rather quiet place on a Sunday morning, boasting lots of green space and benches and picnic tables (many peppered with BC books from an early-morning release walk). I found my perfect spot for Wonderdog just outside the CEA building—a fire hydrant.
My first convention catches! "The Princess Bride" was picked up from the Wrap-It-Up book buffet (books were gift-wrapped with just the first line written or typed on the outside; I wrapped this one in wedding paper) by mdm139, and "The Swallows of Kabul" was chosen from the BookCrossers Only buffet (for books that should be read and enjoyed by another BookCrosser before being launched into the wild) by MaryZee. Time for bed!
Another St. Patrick's Day called for another release of Frank McCourt's "'Tis." After spending the day in Ligonier, Pa., selling daffodils for the American Cancer Society, I stopped by Celtic Culture on East Main Street and left this Irishman's memoir on the stoop outside the front window. Happy St. Paddy's Day!
"Weddings Are Murder" has found a new reader six weeks after being released at IKEA in Pittsburgh. "I didn't love the book," writes the AnonymousFinder, "but I do love this concept!"
I got a great journal entry from new member Sparklepooh12, who found "Watership Down" in Indiana, Pa., shortly after I released it back in September 2009: "My friend Shannon and I found this book while in Greensburg, PA for a weekend when our best friend got married. We took the travel opportunity to explore the local sights and after discovering that we were lucky enough to find ourselves in Jimmy Stewart's hometown and before leaving on Sunday, September 20th 2009, we visited the Jimmy Stewart museum. Upon viewing the Harvey statue outside the museum, we were very surprised to find this book. When we read the inside cover and learned about bookcrossing.com, it was very exciting and we considered it a small adventure. What a neat chance to share a reading experience together and with others while including the book in our own travels back to Kentucky." Sparklepooh12 had much more to say, so be sure to click the book image to read it all.
Sister No. 6 hit a milestone birthday this week, so we and a couple of our friends decided to play hooky from work and do some shopping in Ligonier. In our travels around town, I managed to leave three books: "Warning at One," by Ann Purser, on a bench outside Abigail's Coffeeshop; "Bookplate Special," by Lorna Barrett, on a bench outside the VFW, and; "Taking the Wrap," by Dolores Johnson, on the porch of The Strawberry Crow.
Sister No. 6's Harlequin Presents books were piling up so I filled a box with them and sent them to The Book Thing in Baltimore, Md. When the box was almost full, I snuck in six Silhouette Desire books she had given me, too (the titles are too embarrassing to list here!). All told, 67 books were sent: I hope we both hear back from some of them!
I was in the mood for Chinese for dinner, so I placed a take-out order with Szechuan Garden and perused the book section at Ollie's Bargain Outlet next door while I waited. I ended up buying a book and leaving a book: Beth Gutcheon's "Still Missing" is in the free literature rack in the vestibule.
If you're grocery shopping at the Shop 'n Save on Route 66 in Greensburg, keep an eye out for "The Other Twin," by Hunter Morgan, which I left pinned to the bulletin board in the vestibule tonight.
The 2011 BookCrossing Convention is less than three months away! It will be held April 15-17, 2011, in Washington, D.C., and I can't wait to be there. I started collecting books to release while I'm there, and I created a commemorative label for them, so their readers will always know where their BookCrossing adventure began. You can download them here, and find links to other 2011 convention goodies here. The local BC in DC group, who are the hosts of this year's festivities, has a fantastic website at www.bcindc.zoiks.org that provides all the information any visitor to D.C. needs to have a fabulous, fun-filled adventure any time of year.
Sister No. 6 made me drive her to IKEA in Robinson Township today, but she did let me fill up my gas tank at Sheetz in Irwin—on her—on our way there. Since she was being so generous, I was generous, too, leaving "The Magician's Tale," by David Hunt, on top of the gas pump—on me. After we wandered through IKEA for more than an hour, I was feeling generous again. I left "Weddings Are Murder," by Valerie Wolzien, on the customer survey desk by the exit.
Two years, eight months, and one day have passed since I left "The Prince of Tides" on the shelf at my local Blockbuster video store. When the store closed a few months ago, I did wonder at the fate of all the books I had left there over the years. Now, I needn't worry about this one, which has earned the top spot in my personal "Longest stretch between a release and journal entry" stats. An AnonymousFinder writes: "I rescued this book a few years ago, but it got lost in the jungle I call a house. Better late than never!" Agreed.
Sister No. 6 was kind enough to pick me up and take me out to lunch this afternoon, so I thought I'd be kind as well and release a book into the wild. I left Patricia Cornwell's "From Potter's Field" on a window ledge outside the side door of Subway on Route 119 in South Greensburg.
I was planning to leave a hardback book on top of the next gas pump I encountered, but as I was rooting through my bright red BookCrossing tote bag for a bookmark and a release bag, I came across this audiobook and decided its time had come to see more of the world. I left "Knock Down," by Dick Francis, in the plastic credit card application holder on top of a gas pump at Snooky's Sunoco on Route 30 in Greensburg. And it's off!
I felt like a real grownup tonight—I went grocery shopping after work and put things into my cart that have never been there before. Then I went home and used those things to cook a delicious meal: spinach and cheese pie. I know people must do that every night, but for me, it's monumental. Takeout and fast food have been my friends for far too long. One of the bonuses of visiting the Shop 'n Save on East Pittsburgh Street in Greensburg is that I was able to leave this themed release: "There Is a Carrot in My Ear and Other Noodle Tales," by Alvin Schwartz, was last seen nestled among the carrots in the produce department.
