Wednesday, June 10, 2015
Tuesday, June 9, 2015
Did You Know Tuesday: E.B. White Loved Dachshunds
He wants to wed with you:
Lie down to sleep,
And he’s in bed with you.
Sit in a chair,
He’s there.
Depart,
You break his heart." (E.B. White, "Fashions in Dogs")
Did you know that E.B. White, the author of Charlotte's Web and Stuart Little, was a dachshund person? He first became aquainted with doxies because his wife, Katharine, was a great dachshund fancier. The Whites are pictured below with their dachshund, Minnie. Minnie is also pictured helping E.B. White write in the photo above. The Whites owned several dachshunds over the years, including Daisy, Minnie, Augie, and Fred.
E.B. White often wrote about his special dachshund, Fred:
"Fred was a window gazer and bird watcher, particularly during his later
years...I think of him as he used to look on our bed in Maine- an old
four-poster, too high from the floor for him to reach unassisted... Once up, he
settled into his pose of bird watching, propped luxuriously against a pillow, as
close as he could get to the window, his soft brown eyes alight with expectation
and scientific knowledge. He seemed never to tire of his work...and managed to
give the impression that he was a secret agent of the Department of
Justice...When he sighted a squirrel, Fred would straighten up from his pillow,
tense his frame, and then, in a moment or two, begin to tremble."
I have always loved dachshunds, and was delighted to learn that one of my favorite children's authors shared this affection. Do you love doxies, or is there another dog breed that has your heart? I would love to hear from you in the comments, below.
Monday, June 8, 2015
Summer Changes at My Blog and Shops
It already feels like Summer here, with temps this week in the high 80's. I like to change things up during the Summer months, and I'm excited about the changes Summer is bringing to my blog and shops.
I have some new daily blog themes (and some that remain the same):
Music Monday
Did You Know Tuesday
Wordless Wednesday
Throwback Thursday
Dear Abby (yes, my little dog finally gets her own day!)
Weekend Window Shopping With Birdhouse Books
I will also be pinning these new posts daily on Pinterest. I am excited about some new days, and hope you'll join and comment. Your comments make blogging even more fun!
I will still be doing some book related blog posts (especially with giveaways!) but am moving toward 2 - 3 days a week with those.
I'm also planning to spend more time this summer putting down vintage roots at some other sales venues. In addition to listing a few eBay things at my shop daily, I will be listing new items daily at Etsy and Amazon. I also will be refreshing my stores weekly at Bonanza and eCrater.
You can find my Birdhouse Books shops online:
eBay
Etsy
Amazon
Bonanza
eCrater
As always, I will be listing vintage children's books, holiday cards, and a few other vintage treasures as well.
Let's stay in touch this Summer! Would love to hear from you in the comments, below.
Music Monday - "All About That Bass" - Postmodern Jukebox (2014)
Now here's the catch -- their music is digital. Being old school, I still prefer CDs. They are on Youtube, and you can enjoy a lot of their songs (and fun videos) there. Here's a sample of their music - a jazz cover of Meghan Trainor's "All About That Base." Enjoy!
Friday, June 5, 2015
Book Spotlight and Giveaway: Avalon by Vanessa Morgan
Some cats need nine lives to make a difference. Avalon only needed one.
From Amazon bestselling author Vanessa Morgan, Avalon is the heartwarming and once-in-a-lifetime love story of a girl and her neurotic Turkish Van cat.
With humor, the author details how Avalon made other creatures cringe in distress whenever he was around, how he threw her dates out by means of special techniques, and how he rendered it almost impossible for her to leave the house. Avalon was so incorrigible that even her landlord ordered her to get rid of him. But beneath Avalon's demonic boisterousness, Vanessa recognized her own flaws and insecurities, and she understood that abandoning Avalon would be the worst she could do to him. Thanks to her unswerving loyalty, Avalon transformed into a tender feline, and even landed a major role in a horror movie. In turn, Avalon made it his mission to be there for his human companion.
By turns jubilant and deeply moving, Avalon is a memoir for anyone who has ever been obsessively in love with a pet.
Excerpt
Around three o’clock that night, Avalon was fed up with the strange man in his bed. He plonked his rear down on Gilles’ pillow, complaining fretfully in his ear while tapping him on the face.
After nearly an hour of incessant wailing and poking, more drastic measures were required. The new solution: pushing Gilles out of bed.
Avalon succeeded.
Climbing back under the covers wasn’t an option. Unable to sleep, Gilles got up. "I guess I didn't pass the test."
"Give Avalon some time. Maybe he was just irked because you took his side of the bed."
But Gilles had already understood that this wasn't going to be a one-time event.
For several minutes, Gilles and Avalon sized each other up. Then Gilles said, "I’d better leave the two of you alone now. It’s clearly what the little guy wants."
I swear I could see Avalon smirking when Gilles put on his jacket and left.
Instantly, Avalon leapt onto me, and compensated for the evening before. He entered a kiss-induced trance. This cat was all about exclusivity, and when granted that exclusivity, his love was immense.
"Are you really that happy that Gilles is gone?"
In reply, Avalon looked at me with swoony eyes and purred loudly, then swatted out his paw to urge me to continue to pet him, which I did.
A phone call interrupted our tender moment. It was Gilles.
"There won't be any train to Brussels for hours," he said. "Is it okay if I come back to your place for a while?"
"Of course." His return would offend Avalon, but I couldn’t possibly leave Gilles outside in the rain for several hours.
As soon as Gilles appeared at the front door, Avalon’s pupils widened to a pitch black.
Let's see who's the boss here, he seemed to be thinking.
Being a cat of action, Avalon went through his usual attention-seeking routine: making a selection of irritating noises, scratching the wallpaper, and pushing objects to the ground.
When that didn't work, Avalon opened Gilles' overnight bag and threw out a piece of clothing. His eyes so dark and evil they could be gateways to hell, Avalon stared at his adversary and waited for a reaction. He then pulled out a box of gel wax. Again, he looked up at Gilles to make sure he understood that all this bungling was meant to get a message across. A third object followed, then a fourth, a fifth, a sixth, until there was nothing.
Hell-bent on winning the game, Avalon took Gilles' coat in his mouth and towed it toward the front door. There, he used his right paw to tap the keys hanging from the wooden doorframe.
Avalon’s message couldn’t be any clearer: there was room for only one man in my life. A feline one.
Purchase links for Avalon
Amazon.com: http://amzn.to/1FTC8Ep
Amazon.co.uk: http://amzn.to/1ImdPRo
Amazon.fr: http://amzn.to/1JTGIF2
Author bio
Vanessa Morgan is an author, screenwriter, and blogger. Two of her works, The Strangers Outside and A Good Man, have been turned into films. Her short film script Next to Her is currently in pre-production. When she's not working on her latest book, you can find her reading, watching horror movies, digging through flea markets, or photographing felines for her blog Traveling Cats (http://travelling-cats.blogspot.com). Avalon has appeared in several of her books and films.
Social media links
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Vanessa-Morgan/50159391888
Twitter: http://twitter.com/eeriestories
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/follow/eeriestories
Google+: https://plus.google.com/111498119214855356614/posts
Bloglovin: https://www.bloglovin.com/blogs/vanessa-morgan-4135473
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Vanessa-Morgan/
Blog: http://vanessa-morgan.blogspot.com
GoodReads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/2890032.Vanessa_Morgan
Giveaway
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