ahhh! more fun books!

I ran downstairs to meet my sister as she walked past our place on her way to work this morning; we had to exchange a few things, and that's always the most convenient way to do so. As we were standing there chatting, a mail truck pulls up, and a mailman walks over to us, holding a package. I glance idly down at it, and then exclaim happily, "Oh! That's for me!" What perfect timing. I hadn't been expecting a package, either, so it was the perfect way to surprise me.

It was from my almost-too-good-to-the-point-that-it's-freaky SP8 (no really, it's seriously fantastic, not creepy; I love it!), and it contained 3 wrapped books. (I'm sorry, I ripped the paper off them before I even got a chance to get a photo in!)


There are two published books in that stack, which I didn't take more precise pictures of because I figured Amazon could do the job better for me:




(Also, my camera has been really sketchy recently -- when I try to take a picture, everything is backwards, so it takes an extra long time to set up the shot, as if works out that if I move my hand right, the lens moves left...it's hard to explain, and even harder to use. So my pictures will be sparse for a while, unfortunately! But, the good news is that Dan & I are going out to this evening to shop around a few cell phone stores for a new family plan, hurray! I can't wait to get out of my stupid Verizon contract, despite how frustrating it's going to be to not be in the "In" network anymore...)

In any case, I digress. So, the books are fantastic (the pictures above are links, if you want to take a more in-depth look at them), as they are basically really fun grammar handbooks! I find this thrilling. My love of grammar, combined with vampires & "retro" turn-of-the-century illustrations! So awesome.

The third book is a gorgeous journal, which the following picture doesn't do any justice:


It's actually got a dark blue binding & is an adorable robin's egg blue, but of course my camera, as we've already established, ain't quite up to par. So, hopefully you at least get the gist. And the best part is, it's handmade! (By someone you know, SP8, or did you purchase it from a crafter?) I actually tore the packages open even before I read the card (but! I have an excuse! my sister was running late on her way to work, and wanted me to open them so she could see what they were before she dashed off!), and I remember noticing that the journal looked handcrafted -- that same sister is actually a sometimes-bookmaker herself (I have an address book made from soda cans!), and has in fact even taught me to make one (a beautiful white-fabric one for my friend's wedding), so I can definitely recognize a handmade book. But, don't get me wrong -- this one was in no way unprofessional! It could just as well have come from an assembly line; I noted the precise cuts & even pages & whatnot -- so I guess the only real clue was that it didn't have any sort of company name printed anywhere on it, haha....

Well, I've rambled on enough -- thank you, SP8! You really know how to make fantastic present selections. I really appreciate the gift, and I can't wait to delve into the books (and perhaps do a bit of writing, as well!). xoxo

Currently Reading:
	TITLE: Stop the Next War Now AUTHOR: Medea Benjamin & Jodie Evans
	TITLE: The Art of Interactive Design AUTHOR: Chris Crawford