Books, Libraries, Book Shelves and evidentially Strand Bookstore :)

In the far far away land there is a kingdom called New York City. This kingdom has nearly everything your heart could ever desire: delightful shoppes, delicious bakeries, enchanting theaters and beautiful art galleries. But there is a place here that surpasses all of that, a place where magic and wonder live on the pages of books and at the 18 miles of shelves. It is a place called Strand Books and I would like to live there. Seriously, they attest to having 18 miles of new and used books, books in and out of print, rare books, ordinary books ... 

I'm not sure anything is ordinary about this store. Possibly the coolest thing is that they will design your library for you. If you are part of the elite (or not, but it really isn't all that cost effective) you can order a service to come in and set up a whole library for you. Buying different themes (like old leather, art books, coffee table books, novels, new classics, and so forth) by the foot they will equip your library to have every treasure you could imagine. I already have many, many feet of books, but I'd love to have this done for me ... hey, I'd love to go and do it for others. What qualifications do you need for a position such as this one I wonder?

I cannot wait until I'm in New York to go here ... I'm going to have to dedicate a whole afternoon :)

Top Ten - Travel Lust

I have a desire to travel this year ... here is the lust list ... lets see how many I can check off my list.

Winter Park Colorado ... not really a lust, since we already went :) 

Drexel University in Philadelphia, PA ... where I just got into Graduate School.

The Smithsonian in Washington D.C.

Library of Congress in Washington D.C. is the largest library in the world (both shelf space and quantity of books) ... Washington D.C. is on my lust list.

Napa Valley, California

San Francisco, CA ... this lust list entry is all about visiting my Grandparents, but who wouldn't mind visiting all the beautiful places they live near?

Florida. I don't even know where specifically, but it is warm and beautiful and I'd be willing to trade :)

Iowa ... to do some family history digging ... and to tour the the

Cherokee Iowa Mental Health Hospital :)

Speaking of lust ... how about Egypt? Now that their political issues are under control, I really, really want to go here!

The mountains of Ireland are calling my name.

Paris, of course, couldn't miss the list ... and at the top of my list to do in Paris? The Louvre.

New York City ... who doesn't want to party here?

Dream Home

Upon watching HGTV and seeing all of the commercials for their 2011 Dream Home (which you can register to win here) I started thinking of my dream homes. If I were moving to New York City and had, of course, an unlimited budget ... this is totally the house I'd move into.

That bowed glass front is to tie for and makes the front so unique.

Simply a beautiful room, the fireplace and bowed window are gorgeous and the furnishings are brilliant.

 No house is complete without a library. 

Outdoor space, off of 5th Avenue? No wonder it costs what it does.

If you're curious about this house and want to make my dream your reality, go to Sothebys and check it out.