First Post

Okay. So now what?

Let's try some different fonts. Yeah. That will take up some space. This blank page is very intimidating.

Another font.

What about this one?

Ick. I don't like this one.

Trebuchet? Nah. Besides, what kind of name for a font is that? That's a medieval catapult. Silly name for a font.

I've heard of this one. Nope.

Ha Ha!

I have decided on this one.
Very nice.
Hope you like it.

Well, this is my attempt to not get too far behind in technology.
So I shall use this place to teach myself new tricks.

I know the title of my blog references my MINI Cooper, and I would love to show you a picture of my car. Simon. His name is Simon. Simon Patrick Alfred Cornwallis IV. (Even though this is only my first MINI, I still felt like he was the fourth in a long line of distinguished MINIs.) Anyway, I would love to show you a picture of my car, but I don't have a digital camera. And even if I did, I don't think I would know how to post the picture of him. Someday I shall learn. I promise. Then you can ooh and ah over Simon. He's Royal Grey in color. Or should I say "colour" since he's British? It's a beautiful color/colour. Grey with hints of brown and green. They don't make that color anymore. So Simon is even more special.

I've only had him for 21 months, but already we've had many grand adventures together. He's a stick shift. 5-speed. When I bought him, I didn't know how to drive a stick. So my mom had to drive him off the lot. Pretty funny. She hadn't driven a stick in over 20 years, but she did beautifully. She drove me to a Target parking lot near my house and I proceeded to pop the clutch about 150 times in a row. But I learned. I put a sign in the back window that said "New Stick Driver." On the first day I drove it, I had to go up a hill. I thought I was going to have a heart attack. To make matters worse, this 16 year-old sorority girl wannabe in her parents' Lexus SUV gets right up on my bumper. The light turned green, and I rolled back and almost smashed into her. She honked and honked. I kept thinking, "Do you think I'm doing this for my entertainment?" I killed the engine through the entire green light. People were honking. Couldn't they see my sign? On the next light, I finally managed to peel out and made it up the hill. I didn't know you could peel out in a stick. Huh.

When I finally made it safely home, I thought about it and figured out that that young lady didn't know what "New Stick Driver" meant. So I put a second sign in the back window. "Keep Back." That worked. Lots of people smiled at me as they passed by. Others gave me a thumbs up. Very encouraging. I kept that sign up for two months. By then I finally felt comfortable with my skills. And I didn't feel a rush of adrenaline or my stomach drop to my knees.

Now, Simon and I laugh about those first few weeks. We zip around the streets, cornering like a race car driver, and accelerating smoothly with no herky jerky movements. It's awesome.

I'm such a fan and big MINI enthusiast that my sister and mom each bought one. My sister bought a blue one with a white top. My mom bought a yellow convertible. They are both extremely happy with their MINIs.

But back to my no digital camera situation. I would buy one, but this fall my big purchase for myself is a flat-screen tv. I have this old old old tv I've had since college. I don't have cable, and I don't want it. So my little square tv has rabbit ears perched on top. They're pointing in such a way as to make my tv look very quizzical with one "ear" pointing almost directly sideways. Kind of cute. But, I figured with the digital signal conversion coming up, I might as well get a big tv with a digital tuner. That way I can watch my DVDs in all of their widescreen glory. So, yes, I will buy myself a big tv in a few months. And then maybe down the road I shall buy a digital camera.

My family thinks I'm crazy for not getting cable, but whenever I go to their houses, there's nothing on. You just end up channel surfing for hours. Or watching something you don't really like. Don't get me wrong. I like tv shows. I love "The Closer" and "Bones" and "Law & Order: SVU." But I can watch "Bones" and "SVU" with my rabbit-eared tv, and then I just Netflix "The Closer" and watch an entire season, commercial-free all during one eye-numbing weekend. More fun that way.

As for books, I love fiction, mostly mysteries, and history books, particularly books on medieval history. And if it's a mystery set in the middle ages . . . perfection.

I'm not one of those book snobs. I'll read anything so long as it entertains me. I work with a guy who is a book snob. One day he saw me returning a James Patterson book to the library and said, "Well, I'll never again worry about you seeing what I'm reading." Putz.

And the "Bibliomaniac" part of my blog title is so very very true. I have a disease. I need to own books. And not paperbacks. I must own the hardcovers. First editions if I can swing it.

My favorite thing to do on any weekend is to go to at least three different bookstores around town. I call it "haunting the local bookstores." Love just wandering the aisles, smelling the new book smell. Or old book smell. Sipping a mocha. The joy is in the search. And the purchasing. And the reading, don't get me wrong. I love to read them. But I find such extreme satisfaction in putting a book on my bookshelf after I've read it. I can't explain it.

I used to work in a bookstore. Actually I've worked for two different bookstores. Many many years. Loved that employee discount. Sometimes I swear my paycheck said, "You owe us." I miss those discounts. And the people. Book people are my peeps. We get each other. We get excited about the same things. New books coming out by favorite authors. New authors coming out of nowhere.

I worked at Barnes & Noble when the Harry Potter phenomenon caught fire. That was amazing to be a part of. Then when the fourth book came out, they started doing midnight release parties. A midnight release party! For a book! And hundreds and hundreds of people would show up. It was so much fun. The adults were just as excited as the kids.

But now the Harry Potter saga is complete. Guess we'll have to wait for the next big thing. I've heard a lot about Stephenie Meyers's "Twilight" series. My friend raves about them. Guess I'll give them a whirl.

Well, I believe I've rambled on for quite long enough for my first post here in blogland.

And it's Sunday, so I'm off to a bookstore or two. My cat has just exited his favorite layabout place -- the shower, he loves the feel of the cool porcelain underneath his furry fluffy body -- so now I can get ready for the day. And the books.