The Booksigning...

The booksigning....WOW. What can I say? I'll start at the beginning.

We went to stay in the Calvert Hotel in Calvert, Texas. The Hotel is a lovely bed and breakfast filled with antiques and ambiance. There's also a hair salon within the hotel.

We arrived about 5 pm. Nelson, John and Ron were waiting for me to arrive! I was as excited to see them as they were to see me. Richard and I nosed around the hotel admiring the stunning antiques and restoration the guys have done so far. As anyone who does restoration on old houses knows, it is a work in progress. I even peeked in the kitchen and harassed Ron, who graciously told me about the antique Hoosier cabinet he uses on a daily basis and let me see the bread and cookies he was making. Ahhh...the scents from that kitchen!

John explained things as I asked - does he know his antiques! He collects old hotel silver and had it all on display. Great punch bowls, serving pieces, chargers, milk pitchers, tea sets, compote bowls...he knew the history of many of the pieces and was able to tell us that, too. I asked a thousand questions and he answered them all. Many of the pieces are for sale! It was hard to not buy, but Richard and I are in the process of selling our house, so.....

Nelson showed us the rooms and allowed us to choose. Richard wanted to stay in the Robert E. Lee room, but we ended up staying in the Phillip Adkins room (I think I spelled that right). The rooms are named for their famous visitors or founding fathers/mothers.

Richard was catching a cold so he went upstairs to take a nap. Nelson and I went to a private party at the Calvert INN - another bed and breakfast down the street. Nelson took me inside to show off their restoration efforts. Oh, WOW. Restoration is a way of life in this little town and it shows. I met some lovely people and we had a wonderful time.

We came back to wake Richard and then Ron cooked us a scrumptious dinner. I basically told Richard I was gonna leave him for another man...I promptly decided to live at the hotel and let Ron cook for me, but then Richard burst my bubble and said I'd need money for that. Darn it. I'll have to make do with visits.

We went to bed and both of us slept like rocks. I heard the train go by once, butI simply rolled over before it was gone and went back to sleep. John says it goes by several times but I didn't notice. Its one of those soothing sounds, I guess.

The next day Ron cooked again - French toast and sausage...sigh. Richard and I enjoyed our breakfast without Echo and Flint hoping for sausage or kids asking for a bite. It was a mite strange to eat a whole plate of food by myself. Ron outdid himself and I told Richard I think I need to go to The Culinary Institute and learn to cook like that. He wholeheartedly agreed, the rat!

We then went for a walk around the neighborhood to look at the houses. Calvert is a tiny town but when the War Between The States was over, many of the Confederates came to Texas to settle. The town has several Confederate reenactments a year. It has the largest outdoor gazebo bandstand in the USA. The homes are lovely. Many are in various stages of repair and restoration but you can see what once was and what will be. Richard spent a couple hours taking photos later that day.

We then left to go to the booksigning. Nelson, John and I set up the tables and then I personalized them with all the stuff I brought! John brought some of Ron's cookies, too. Ron runs an eBay store called Better Cookies and sells them all over the USA. The snickerdoodles are fabulous! We all kept running between the four tables we set up to chat and compare notes.

The Hastings Bookstore in Bryan Texas has one of the friendliest staffs ever. Mara and Dena made us feel very welcome and worked hard to be sure things ran smoothly. Both deserve kudos for their efforts on our behalf. We had good traffic and I had a lovely time meeting Trana Mae Simmons, L. B. Cobb and their sidekicks. Yes, we all brought sidekicks and everyone had a great time. We sold books, made friends and laughed a lot. I got to wear a vintage tiara because this was a Pulpwood Queens Literacy Event and Membership Drive. I also met a couple Pulpwood Queens, including Suzan, who was just lovely!

We left from there and I was so sorry to go. Nelson, John, Ron and I are already plotting our next event...there's the December 3-4, 2005 Parade Of Homes in Calvert...and the Girlfriends Weekend in Jefferson for Pulpwood Queens...and...and...and...