Mysterious puns

Writer Laura Childs (a pen name for Gerry Schmitt) offers readers a set of easy mysteries about an ex-ad exec who has left the high-tension wires of marketing commnication and opened a tea shop in Charleston, South Carolina's historic district. (Schmitt herself left high-level marketing to write.)

The books are very pleasant, and the protagonist is charming, strong, and forthright. (Although the reader will, of course, want to strike the protagonist with a blunt object for ignoring the clues that tell us who the murderer is by not later than page 100.)

Still, they make a nice break, and the books are quite informative.

Informative? Yes...the amount of knowledge about the world of tea is really impressive. I've learned about the Charleston Tea Plantation (North America's only true tea-growing facility), about Indian and Chinese and Indian and other teas, about how to brew (and not brew) different varieties, and what kinds of food recipes can use (or just be appreciated with) tea. Some of the latter are in the books, too.

These types of mysteries are usually called "cozies." But this set, as Mike noted, are "tea cosies." :-)

Mysterious puns

Writer Laura Childs (a pen name for Gerry Schmitt) offers readers a set of easy mysteries about an ex-ad exec who has left the high-tension wires of marketing commnication and opened a tea shop in Charleston, South Carolina's historic district. (Schmitt herself left high-level marketing to write.)

The books are very pleasant, and the protagonist is charming, strong, and forthright. (Although the reader will, of course, want to strike the protagonist with a blunt object for ignoring the clues that tell us who the murderer is by not later than page 100.)

Still, they make a nice break, and the books are quite informative.

Informative? Yes...the amount of knowledge about the world of tea is really impressive. I've learned about the Charleston Tea Plantation (North America's only true tea-growing facility), about Indian and Chinese and Indian and other teas, about how to brew (and not brew) different varieties, and what kinds of food recipes can use (or just be appreciated with) tea. Some of the latter are in the books, too.

These types of mysteries are usually called "cozies." But this set, as Mike noted, are "tea cosies." :-)

I'm not sure why we bother

The Denvention3 facilities team has been agonizing over phrasing of hotel reservation information (the pages go live this morning...10 a.m. Mountain time) for our many properties near the Colorado Convention Center this August. We have limited numbers of some kinds of rooms, and we want to make sure that people have all of the information they need to make their bookings smoothly.

And I wonder (cynical, much?) if people will actually read what we have worked so hard to write...or if they'll just blindly try to make reservations we've told them won't work...or book room types that won't suit their needs.

It will be hard enough to sort out the reservation problems before the con. I can hardly wait until the day arrives, and we get some family of 4 who didn't read the information...and arrives to discover that their mini-suite has one king-sized bed, one small couch, and no chance for a roll-away. Somebody's getting the bathtub.

Ain't we got fun?

I'm not sure why we bother

The Denvention3 facilities team has been agonizing over phrasing of hotel reservation information (the pages go live this morning...10 a.m. Mountain time) for our many properties near the Colorado Convention Center this August. We have limited numbers of some kinds of rooms, and we want to make sure that people have all of the information they need to make their bookings smoothly.

And I wonder (cynical, much?) if people will actually read what we have worked so hard to write...or if they'll just blindly try to make reservations we've told them won't work...or book room types that won't suit their needs.

It will be hard enough to sort out the reservation problems before the con. I can hardly wait until the day arrives, and we get some family of 4 who didn't read the information...and arrives to discover that their mini-suite has one king-sized bed, one small couch, and no chance for a roll-away. Somebody's getting the bathtub.

Ain't we got fun?

Thank goodness for holidays

If today hadn't been a holiday, getting the hotel booking problems sorted might have been impossible, rather than just damned, damned hard.

We've still got two bugaboos hanging fire until we hear back from the hotels...weird room combination problems.

Thank goodness for holidays

If today hadn't been a holiday, getting the hotel booking problems sorted might have been impossible, rather than just damned, damned hard.

We've still got two bugaboos hanging fire until we hear back from the hotels...weird room combination problems.

Well, that was a bracing headline

From CNN Online,Hillary's state funeral under way

Sir Edmund Hillary. (I thought I'd been too focused the last two days.)

Well, that was a bracing headline

From CNN Online,Hillary's state funeral under way

Sir Edmund Hillary. (I thought I'd been too focused the last two days.)