SCORE!

WOOT! I've had my eye on these Audio/Video storage shelves for weeks now, just waiting for a sale. I decided they would be fabulous... FABULOUS... in my office as BOOK SHELVES.

Well, on Sunday I got the magic email from Target: 15% off AND FREE SHIPPING!!! So I got two.. TWO... of them! WOOT! They would have been $1099.46 with tax and shipping, but thanks to the magic email, I saved $129.00 on the price and another $191.98 on shipping for a final price with tax of $778.48... a total savings of $320.48! WOOT WOOT! And, evidently I wasn't the only one with my eye on them-- the walnut finish is now out of stock. PHEW!

• With 28 shelves, this roomy mission-style cabinet offers plenty of space for extensive music and movie collections
• Holds 1,050 CDs, 504 DVDs or 294 VHS tapes
• Made of wood composite with a walnut finish
• Sliding glass doors protect your collection while letting you see everything inside
• 61.81Hx46.88Wx9.44D"

I mean really, since they're just for my office, I didn't need to shell out big bucks for "real" furniture (these are RTA), but I wanted something that looked nice and had doors. These are perfect because the doors slide side-to-side instead of opening out, and of course, the best part? NO FREAKIN' DUST all over the books!!

So, OUT with the treadmill (that's covered in debris) and IN with some things I will actually USE! Although I did buy a recumbant bike last week. But that will go in our bedroom-- the place I will be hiding out in because summer is almost here and the demon spawn and their demon cohorts will be invading my domain for the next 3 months.

Anyway, back to the shinies... I think I can get a big chunk of my TBR mountain into one of them, certainly the most recent TBR additions. And the other one will house the books I re-read or refer to the most. So for sure:

Laurell Hamilton's Anita Blake and Merry Gentry series-- hard cover, paperback, comics and audio books,
Karen Marie Moning's Highlander and Fever series-- hardcover, paperback and audio books,
Bertrice Small's Skye O'Malley and World of Hetar series,
Madelynne Ellis' A Gentleman's Wager, Phantasmagoria and the upcoming books in the series

Hmmm... plus any other audio books I have on CD... probably Lora Leigh's Breed series... not sure how many more I can fit and I'll need to leave room for upcoming books... and I still need to go through and organize all my books... I still have a dozen underbed storage boxes with wheels and lids... must ponder whether all these things can eliminate all the mountains of books around here... it just MIGHT be a possibility.

UPDATE: Target and UPS don't seem too worried that Target shows the shelves awaiting UPS pick-up, UPS says they didn't pick them up; yet NO ONE CAN FIND THE DAMN SHELVES!! WTF??!! So, since the walnut finish is now sold out, I had to order the light oak finish instead. Not a real big deal since I do have other oak pieces in the office, but, DAMMIT, I want someone to CARE and to get off their asses and walk out to the loading dock to physically see if my original order is still sitting there!

Phantasmagoria by Madelynne Ellis

Phantasmagoria by Madelynne Ellis
Historical erotic romance released by Virgin Black Lace 29 Apr 2008


Category: Lava Cake - reads like warm Chocolate Lava Cake... à la Mode... sprinkled with nuts (A,A-)
Flame Height: 8.5" out of 9"

This is the long awaited, much anticipated sequel to A Gentleman's Wager!

Read my review on The Good, the Bad, The Unread!

Madelynne also stopped by the pond and answered some of my fangirl questions! Read my interview with Madelynne Ellis here!

And don't forget to comment to be entered in the contest to win one each of A Gentleman's Wager and Phantasmagoria!

Passionate Plumes First Round Finalists Announced

Passionate Ink is a Special Interest Chapter of Romance Writers of America for Erotic Romance writers. Of particular note is that, in this first round of judging, up to four copies of each book are read and scored by reviewers, authors, and readers.

As you may remember, I had the honor of being a first round judge again this year (see previous post) and the results of that first round voting follow.

I am pleased and proud as a mama hen to note that the demon/dragon book that so surprised me made it to the finals! WOOT! But, GAK! Sunny? Bad judges, no cookies! You really shouldn't encourage her! And do my eyes deceive me? Has she actually lowered herself to use a last name like the rest of the commoners?!

A couple of authors received high praise from me both here and at TGTBTU- Samantha Kane and Kate Poole. I think I'm glad I don't have to choose between their exquisite books! There are a few other familiar names on there, and more congrats go out to Shayla Black, Portia Da Costa, Elizabeth Amber, Jory Strong, Mackenzie McKade and all the other authors (except Sunny cuz this is going to make her even more insufferably pompous).

Final results, judged by a panel of Passionate Ink members, will be announced at RWA Nationals. (see UPDATE at end of this post)


3rd Annual Passionate Plume Finalists

Contemporary
Mechele Armstrong - Nothing To Lose
Shayla Black - Wicked Ties
Opal Carew - Twin Fantasies
Portia Da Costa - Suite Seventeen
Ann Jacobs - Roped

Historical
Elizabeth Amber - Nicholas, The Lords of Satyr
Monica Burns - Mirage
Samantha Kane - At Loves Command
Kate Poole - Anchor and Storm
Brenda Williamson - One Bashful Lady

Futuristic/Fantasy/SciFi
Mechele Armstrong - Settler’s Mine 2 : The Lovers
Karen Kelley - Close Encounters of the Sexy Kind
Rena Marks - Born Again
Aubrey Ross - Seducer
Denise Rossetti - Tailspin

Paranormal / TT
Sunny Chen - Mona Lisa Blossoming
Marie Harte - Ethereal Foes: The Dragons’ Demon
Sharon Page - Blood Red
Sharon Page - Blood Rose
Jory Strong - Mystic’s Run

Novella
Denise A. Agnew - Male Call
Anna Leigh Keaton - Rescue Me
Susan Lyons - Hot Down Under
Mackenzie McKade - Second Chance Christmas
Leigh Wyndfield - Desert Heat


3rd Annual Stroke of Midnight Finalists (UNPUBLISHED MANUSCRIPTS)(see UPDATE at end of this post)

Contemporary:
Cathleen Ross - Love, Lust, and Lies
Anne Calhoun - Liberating Lacey
Crystal Kauffman - Laws of Attraction
Jayne Rylon - Nice & Naughty
Reece Butler - Trading Favors

Historical:
Crystal Kauffman - Wild At Heart
Francesca Hawley - Seeking Truth
Nadia Aidan - Show Me–The Spartan Chronicles
Noelle Henderson and Barbra Moser - Plantation Rule
Ava March - A Gentleman For Her

Futuristic/Fantasy/Sci-fi:
P.M. Black - Almost Darke
Sindee Sexton - Wings of Desire
Barbara Morgan - Soul Bound
Leanne Karella - Fairy Prince
Maggie Nash - Goddess in Trouble

Paranormal/Time Travel:
Nara Malone - The Tiger’s Tale
Hortense Powdermaker - Minotaur
Ella Drake - Bluebeard’s Hunger
Violet Summers - Saving Jenna
Corinne Davies - Believing is Seeing

Novella:
Ella Drake - Scenting Cinnamon
Ava March - From Afar
Constance Denson-Hamilton - Him, Memoir of My Second Marriage to the Egyptian God of Fertility
Alannah Lynne - Reaction Time
Tiffany Kenzie - Full Moon


UPDATE: Just looked up the official rules for entry and came across some additional info (actually, use that link to see all the official rules):

Passionate Plumes Judging and Prizes:

First Round: Will be judged by readers, writers, reviewers, booksellers and librarians.

Final Round: Five finalists will be judged by multi-published authors and reviewers.

For Stroke of Midnight rules, click here.

One Foot in the Grave by Jeaniene Frost

One Foot in the Grave (Night Huntress, book 2) by Jeaniene Frost
Paranormal romance/urban fantasy released 04/29/2008

See index for previous commentary



Category: Peanut M&Ms - mmmm...devour... sigh... then reach for the next one. My daily dose of Insanity-B-Gone. (A-,B+,B)
Flame Height: 5.5" out of 9"


Read my review at The Good, the Bad, the Unread

Chocolate Fondue 4 U

UGH! Being sick sucks Big Hairy Buffalo Balls! Normally, I might get a head cold or two, but just over the last few months I've developed allergies which have become unbearable now that Spring is here, I had that acute bronchitis that landed me the free ride with the paramedics, then just last week I was knocked out for 3 days with the Flu-- chills, fever, and apparently I slept through the whole incident where my entire body was beaten with a baseball bat. WTF? Enough already! Geesh! Oh, and did I mention that I've gained !#! pounds thanks mostly to the meds I was on with the bronchitis? Damn, I'm too out of shape to get in shape.

Anyway, now that I'm vertical again, and between dealing with the chaos that is my life lately, I've been catching up around Romancelandia (and LOLCats). What would I do without Google Reader and Marta Acosta's Vampire Wire?

♥ from Romancing the Blog: If you haven't stopped by today, you must, MUST go read Kerry Allen's Coming This fall to Bravo: The Hero Matchmaker. "Seven displaced romance novel heroes. One matchmaker devoted to giving them Happily Ever After." If you can read that without laughing and snickering your way through it, then you obviously are a complete Romance noob. Damn funny stuff and the ability to write like that makes me envious!

♥ I may not often see eye-to-eye with Mrs. Giggles, but Taking Things Too Personally has motivated me to (finally) award the 4th of my 5 Thinking Blogger Awards. The meme itself may have died out long ago, but the sentiments behind it are still valid.

♥ Now if people want a subject to REALLY became enraged over, read what United Airlines did to Ann Aguirre/Annie Dean on her way to Rt Con last week. WARNING: You WILL be pissed off at United after reading this. Makes my blood boil over on her behalf. How DARE they treat ANYONE that way! There is absolutely NO excuse. NONE.

♥ I finally gave up and accepted the fact that I wasn't going to go to Rt Con last week. Yep, I came to that conclusion and finally cancelled my reservations last Sunday. LOL. Actually, with the lack of restaurants/food service within the Hilton, I'm glad I didn't go. Since I wouldn't have been traveling with anyone, I would have been reluctant to wander around downtown Pittsburgh at night by myself searching for places to eat. Why does RT book the Con at hotels that are renovating? SB Sarah posted that the next one is in Orlando. I think I'll make a point of going to that one. As bad as the 2006 Daytona Hilton was, at least it was glorious weather and it was a pleasure to leave the hotel and go walking to nearby restaurants.

♥ Speaking of RT Con, I haven't been to more than a handful of RT attendees' blogs so far, but I've already gotta ask: what's up with the Models Behaving Badly stories this year? In Daytona, as far as I saw and heard, they were all polite and friendly-- except when they were all circled around Stephanie Burke on the dance floor, then they were wicked nasty... in a HOLYSHIT dem boys can DANCE kind of way. Then again, I've heard that in some of the previous Cons, some of the women got way too rude with the boys, so maybe this year had a secret "Revenge of the Cover Models" theme.

♥ Over on Book Binge, Melissa has started reading and reviewing Laurell Hamilton's Anita Blake series. You KNOW what a huge fangirl I am! I think I'm almost jealous of Melissa because she's just discovering the series and has all the rest of them to look forward to. So far she's reviewed Guilty Pleasures, The Laughing Corpse, and Circus of the Damned. I don't agree with everything she says, but I'm loving the look at the series from a brand new addict's reader's POV.


♥ Now, for your viewing pleasure, allow me to direct your attention to a feat unparalleled anywhere else in Romancelandia...
Found among the bawdy bits over on Lust Bites: Kristina Lloyd celebrates Lust Bites 200th post with (almost) 200 HALF-NEKKID MEN!!

Just a warning before you head over there and commence drooling...

My finger is now sore as hell after spending time pervin' on all that Man Candy.


Wh-a-a-a-t?!


From so many right click/copy/paste clicks, of course. What did you think I meant?

More Jeff Files (sort of)

see more crazy cat pics

I just received this and immediately forwarded it to my brother-in-law, Jeff, to thank him for all the Jeff Files material he's sent me. It may be the ONLY piece of email zipping through the internet that he HASN'T forwarded to me. Yet.

Just want to thank all of you for your educational emails over the past year:

Thanks to you I can't open the bathroom door without a paper towel.

I can't use the remote in a hotel room because I don't know what the last person was doing while flipping through the adult movie channels.

I can't sit down on the bedspread because I can only imagine what has happened on it since it was last washed.

Eating a Little Debbie sends me on a guilt trip because I can only imagine how many gallons of trans-fat I have consumed over the years.

Yes, I have gotten a real education from your emails.

Thanks, thanks a lot!

I must send my special thanks to whoever sent me the one about poop in the glue on envelopes because I now have to use a wet towel with every envelope that needs sealing.

Also, now I have to scrub the top of every can I open for the same reason.

I no longer have any savings because I gave it to a sick girl (Penny Brown) who is about to die in the hospital for the 1,387,258th time.

I no longer have any money at all, but that will change once I receive the $15,000 that Bill Gates/Microsoft and AOL are sending me for participating in their special e-mail program.

I no longer worry about my soul because I have 363,214 angels looking out for me, and St. Theresa's novena has granted my every wish.

I no longer eat KFC because their chickens are actually horrible mutant freaks with no eyes or feathers.

I no longer use cancer-causing deodorants even though I smell like a water buffalo on a hot day.

Thanks to you, I have learned that my prayers only get answered if I forward an email to seven of my friends and make a wish within five minutes.

Because of your concern I no longer drink Coca Cola because it can remove toilet stains.

I no longer can buy gasoline without taking someone along to watch the car so a serial killer won't crawl in my back seat when I'm pumping gas.

I no longer drink Pepsi or Dr. Pepper since the people who make these products are atheists who refuse to put 'Under God' on their cans.

I no longer use Saran wrap in the microwave because it causes cancer.

And thanks for letting me know I can't boil a cup of water in the microwave anymore because it will blow up in my face...disfiguring me for life.

I no longer check the coin return on pay phones because I could be pricked with a needle infected with AIDS.

I no longer go to shopping malls because someone will drug me with a perfume sample and rob me.

I no longer receive packages from UPS or FedEx since they are actually Al Qaeda in disguise.

I no longer shop at Target since they are French and don't support our American troops or the Salvation Army.

I no longer answer the phone because someone will ask me to dial a number for which I will get a phone bill with calls to Jamaica, Uganda, Singapore and Uzbekistan.

I no longer buy expensive cookies from Neiman Marcus since I now have their recipe.

Thanks to you, I can't use anyone's toilet but mine because a big brown African spider is lurking under the seat to cause me instant death when it bites my butt.

And thanks to your great advice, I can't ever pick up $5.00 I dropped in the parking lot because it probably was placed there by a sex molester waiting underneath my car to grab my leg.

I can no longer drive my car because I can't buy gas from certain gas companies!

** ** ** ** **
If you don't send this e-mail to at least 144,000 people in the next 70 minutes, a large dove with diarrhea will land on your head at 5:00 PM this afternoon and the fleas from 12 camels will infest your back, causing you to grow a hairy hump. I know this will occur because it actually happened to a friend of my next door neighbor's ex-mother-in-law's second husband's cousin's beautician...

Have a wonderful day....

Oh, by the way.....

A German scientist from Argentina, after a lengthy study, has discovered that people with insufficient brain activity read their e-mail with their hand on the mouse.

Don't bother taking it off now, it's too late



see more loldogs ask - i can has hotdog?

More from the Jeff Files...

see more crazy cat pics
Yes, occasionally, one of my brother-in-law, Jeff's, endlessly forwarded emails turns out to be USEFUL!

Exercise for People Over 40 (really, try this)

Begin by standing on a comfortable surface, where you have plenty of room at each side. With a 5-lb potato sack in each hand, extend your arms straight out from your sides and hold them there as long as you can.

Try to reach a full minute, and then relax. Each day you'll find that you can hold this position for just a bit longer.

After a couple of weeks, move up to 10-lb potato sacks. Then try 50-lb potato sacks and then eventually try to get to where you can lift a 100-lb potato sack in each hand and hold your arms straight for more than a full minute...(I'm at this level)

After you feel confident at that level, put a potato in each of the sacks.

Fairy Dust by Tielle St. Clare

Fairy Dust by Tielle St Clare
Erotic fantasy released by Ellora’s Cave



Category: M&Ms - a bit lighter and/or not quite as satisfying as Peanut M&Ms, but still Oh-So-Enjoyable! (B,B-,C+,C)
Flame Height: 8.5" out of 9"


Read my review at The Good, the Bad, the Unread

I've Been a Bad, Bad Blogger

I not only should be ashamed of myself, but I probably should surrender my License to Perv. It's been far, far too long since I improved the scenery around here. I'm blaming it on Sybil. Yep, twas that damn Duckie!

Pas de deux

Hee! Iz bumpin' ugleez?

WANT!!





EEEK! How dat ebil Duckie and dat Demon Author get in my Menage and Pairs folder?!

Goals Worth Striving for... NOT!

Head over to Madame Butterfly's blog to learn the CORRECT way to be a good wife to your better half.

No lie, my sister once said to me, "Bev, a woman does not feel fulfilled until she lives her life for her husband and children." Do I need to mention that my sister is much older than I am?

Now me? I DO try to make life easier for my husband... Hell, I even sometimes load and run the dishwasher so he won't have to do it when he gets home!