Spreading the love...

Both a big (((HUG))) and a "Thank you!" go out to my wonderful pal MoonDoggie for passing along this Liebster Blog Award to me. Evidently, it is intended for exceptional blogs with less than 300 followers and, boy, do I qualify. I mean that I qualify for the less than 300 followers part, not necessarily the exceptional part. I'm not THAT conceited!

As most of you other bloggers out there know, these little perks (awards) come at a small price. That price being the task of selecting a handful of successors to whom you'll pass along the award. Not that it's like a major chore, or anything. In fact, it's actually pretty fun! So without any further ado, here are my picks for the next Liebster Blog Award recipients:

• Smells Like Library - Funny, interesting, entertaining, and informative blog written by a library technician who works full-time in the trenches of a Jr. high/high school library. Oh, and he happens to be my husband!

• Gold Country Girls - Such a sweet, cozy place to visit. They're waiting for you, just up that hill...

• Wub2Write - The lady who writes this blog is a real kick! She's young at heart, and she can really tell a story. Check it out!

• Lisa Golightly - Fashion, art, beauty, vintage style... She's got it in spades!

So congratulations, everyone! Have fun bragging to all your friends! But don't expect to get a good table at Spago, or anything...

The Worst Album Covers Ever!: 'Joyce' by Joyce Drake

Artist ~ Joyce Drake

Title ~   Joyce
                 Something about Joyce touches people, but
                 I'm not quite sure what it is. She seems to be
                 saying, "Don't be afraid! Let's get together
                 for coffee before my next hair appointment."


Well, if you ask me, I am afraid! Very afraid! There's something about our sweet, rose-adorned Miss Joyce that I do not trust... And it all begins somewhere around those dead eyes of hers! You know what they say about windows to the soul, and all. Only, I'm not convinced that one exists inside. And the hair! God knows what lies beneath that curly helmet...


~ Image and info taken from the book, 'The Worst Album Covers Ever!', by Nick DiFonzo. Published by Barnes & Noble, Inc. ~

What A Book!: 'Catalog - The Illustrated History of Mail-Order Shopping'

Hello, everybody! Today I want to tell you about a terrific book I discovered. Whilst poking about the shelves of our local Border's book store, I stumbled upon 'Catalog - The Illustrated History of Mail-Order Shopping' by Robin Cherry. I tell you, this gem of a book is FILLED with wonderful examples of mail-order consumer products, and it is a visual pleasure to be sure!

"In 'Catalog - The Illustrated History of Mail-Order Shopping', Robin Cherry traces the timeline of these snapshots from American history and discovers along the way how we dressed, built and furnished our houses, worked, played, and got around. From corsets to bell-bottoms, from baby-doll dresses and Doc Martens all the way to iPods, the history of these catalogs is the history of our lives and our culture."

With a book like this, you hope for more images than text, and, fortunately, this one really delivers! And guess what? I selected some of my faves to share with you. I'll bet you didn't see that coming...

Montgomery Ward, 1930

Men's Flannelette Pajamas

Boy, they must've felt REAL manly

wearing their "flannelette" pajamas.

Sears, 1928

Women's Hats

Ladies, measure your

head size carefully...

Sears, 1971

Men's Body-hugging Underwear

Ssssexy!

J.C. Penney, 1974

Women's Polyester Bell-bottoms

Wow.

Sears, 1959

Erector Set

Consult your physician if you

experience any toy creation

erect longer than 4 hours.

Sears, 1958

Dolls

Be a doll, would you?

Johnson Smith & Co., 1940

Novelty Toys and Masks

Holy crap, that Hitler mask

gives me the willies!

Sears, 1961

Play Kitchen

Now, get in there and fix my dinner, bitch!

Sears, 1971

Shag Bath Carpet

All this talk about "pile" makes

me have to use the toilet...

Sears, 1961

Aluminum Xmas Trees

Aluminum-minum-minum!

That'll do it for this edition of 'What A Book!'. I sure hope you had as much fun as I did. But if you didn't, well, lighten up, would ya? See you next time...

Retro Book Fair: Corinne Malvern's 'Mother Goose'

It's that time once again, folks...

Yes, come with me and "get your book on"!

Today I'm sharing a children's book that is chock full of colorful and charming illustrations. It's Corinne Malvern's 'Mother Goose' and it was published/printed in 1953. The book's condition is pretty awesome, too, when you consider that it's almost 60 years old! I'd love to frame a few select pages, but I wouldn't dare separate them from the original book. That just IS NOT allowed! Did you hear me? NOT allowed!

So, anyway, check out the great cover, below, followed by a few of my fave nursery rhyme/illustration combos from inside...



As if the cover wasn't cute enough,

it actually wraps around to the back

with even MORE adorable characters!





I love the colors, here, and all

of the care-free romping. Do

kids even "romp", these days?





"She whipped him, she slashed him..."

NOT much of a lady in my book!





You and I both know that MUST

be a cubic zirconia she's holding...





This one's my absolute favorite!

It's really cute and just a tad creepy...



There are many, many more within the book, but I wanted to keep things short and sweet. I did a pretty good job of that, huh?

Just sayin'...



This woman SCARES the CRAP outta me!

I'm just sayin'...



SOUND + VISION: 'Upside Down' by Paloma Faith

Attack of the "B" movie posters!

I don't know about you, but I really love a good, bad "B" movie! And I love 'em even better the worse they are... Yes, I'm one of "those" people. I can't help it. I enjoy over-the-top schlock, bad acting, and low-budget special effects. I find all of it quite humorous and entertaining. My husband... not so much. He only sometimes sees the humor, and even then his patience wears thin way quicker than I'd prefer. Oh, well. He's such an awesome man and husband in countless other ways, I guess I shouldn't complain. Instead, I'll share with you some of my favorite "B" movie posters I found pictures of in one of my neat, old books! Sound like fun? Oh, good!

'Youth Runs Wild', 1944

Tires + youngsters = TROUBLE!

'I Was a Shoplifter', 1950

Might I suggest casting Winona Ryder and
Lindsay Lohan in a modern-day remake?

'The She-

Creature', 1957

I've known one or two of

these in my time...

'The Man From

Planet X', 1951

I like this poster SOOO much!

The dude from Planet X is

quite spooky, no?



'Terror From the

Year 5,000', 1958

Note to self: Need not worry.

You will be long since dead

come the year 5,000...

Everyone else can suck it!



'The Brain

Eaters', 1958

Yummm!

'Ghoulies', 1985

Get it?!

Well, I had fun with these, and I hope you did, too. Do YOU have any favorite "B" movies that you enjoy watching again, and again? My all-time fave "B" movie to watch would easily be 'This Island Earth' from 1955. Check it out if you've never seen it. It's got an awesome space monster... Bye, bye!