B&N Pilgrimage

I haven't been to B&N since last year, and I've never made the hour & a half trip alone.
A friend of mine has been home on medical leave for about two months now and is going insane all couped up with nothing to do. I decided to make her a care basket filled with books and chocolate. I went up to B&N to find the books I wanted to give her that I couldn't find at my local Waldenbooks.
Luckilly, I managed to make it up with no major incident other then road construction. The bridge from Notch Holmstead to the Waterfront is under construction - frankly, it looks like they're re-building the entire thing! So the 4 lanes were down to 2 & the on ramp was gone, so the off ramp was serving as both.
I got to B&N around 12:45. I glanced at the movies and music, but decided I needed to use the bathroom more than I needed to see the new anime releases. Then it was straight to romance. I picked 8 or so books and headed to the counter to ask where the other 4 I was looking for were. The woman gave me a basket, told me 3 of the books were sold out. Luckilly, they had The Book of Bunny Suicides by Andy Riley, AND The Return of the Bunny Suicides. I also found Andy Riley's new book, Great Lies to Tell Small Kids. The latter includes such brilliant insights as, "milk feels pain" and "it's bad luck to not name every ant you see - your entire life." I'm seriously considering screwing up my little brother.
I passed on the Great Lies, but got the Bunny Suicides for Momma-B's basket. With each books I gave her, I slipped in a little note to tell her why I loved that book. Aside from the bunny suicides ( I REALLY don't like rabbits) and 4 bags of chocolate candies, here's what was in the basket & what the note said (roughly).
Linda Howard - Kiss Me While I Sleep - This book made me cry! It's so wonderful. Linda is such a talented writer. This book has a lot of information about the avian flu, and since I read it last Summer, it's interesting to me that bird flu is such a threat this year.
Linda Howard - Heart of Fire - When I was little, I wanted to be an archaeologist, and I've always loved the Amazon, for those reasons, I LOVED this book! My favorite scene is the "slap-slap" comment.
Christine Feehan - Fever - Christine is a total sweetheart and a very creative and skilled author. Of her 4 series, this is my favorite! I love leopards and, again, this takes place in the amazon. This book has a wonderful ending and I can't wait for more leopard books next year!
J.R. Ward - Dark Lover - JR is a darling and I love this series! It's very creative and involved, and the story only gets better with the new book, Lover Eternal. Zsadist is my favorite and I can't wait for his book later this year.

I actually wasn't sure if Momma-B would like Dark Lover. I had a good sized pile of books (half for her, half for me) and had to put a few back to stay within my budget. I thought I'd put back Dark Lover, but when I got to the counter and realized it was still in my basket, I figured it was a sign I had to get it for her.

For myself, I decided on Angel Creek and Kill and Tell by Linda Howard, The Burning - Susan Squires, Blackout - Annie Soloman (I've yet to read her, but I've heard a lot of good things about this book), Tell Me No Lies - Elizabeth Lowell. I also purchased the Fallout Boy CD & Fleetwood Mac's Greatest Hits. Oh, and The Werewolf Book - The Encyclopedia of Shape-shifting Beings, which is research for my were book. Basically, it's the history of werewolves & werewolf lore.
In the stationary department I picked up a little purple fabric bound notebook to make notes of books and authors I like, since the list is getting long. Also, little arrow post-it notes to put in books, they're the best idea! They're different pastel colors & can be used to leave notes on things you want to return to without marking up your book!

After I'd been in the store for over an hour-and-a-half, and kept running into the same two women in books and music, they asked me if there was anything they could help me find, I said, "The exit! Get me out of this store!" After I passed the two hour mark, they started asking me if I was ready to check out whenever I came within ten feet of a register. I left after two-and-a-half hours! (which was 4pm - just starting rush hour traffic)

The way home was interesting. I was driving down the highway (which I was proud of myself for finding the way back to) along the river & saw a sign for a bridge. I passed that exit, but the next exit sign I passed didn't look familiar, so I thought I'd passed the exit I needed and took the next exit. I then backtracked to the bridge, Liberty Bridge. In a twist of irony, as I was driving across the bridge, I looked to my right (the direction I had been traveling before I thought I'd missed my exit) and thought, "No....THAT's the bridge I'm supposed to be on!." I then realized the Liberty Bridge doesn't lead to the Fort Pitt Tunnel, it leads to the Liberty Tunnel!!! In a stroke of genius, the people naming things decided the Fort Pitt Bridge should lead to the Fort Pitt Tunnel, and the Liberty Bridge should lead to the Liberty Tunnel.
Now, I thought I could go through the Liberty Tunnel and still get onto the right highway on the otherside of the mountain, but I wasn't sure & decided it would be safer to turn around. Turning around involved turning right & traveling up Washington Hill. Something I noticed about this neighborhood as I was looking for a suitable parking lot to turn around in - for every 50 cars, there'd be a short bus. Seriously, I don't know if it's where the baby busses run around until they grow into full-sized school busses, or what, but the damn things were everywhere!
The biggest irony was, I didn't take that wrong exit until I thought I'd taken the wrong exit. My awesome sense of direction isn't worth crap in the city! (This is Pittsburgh, by the way)

Long story short, I got back across Liberty Bridge, crossed Fort Pitt like I was supposed to, and got hom in one piece - A Great Feat, considering the considered domonic possession of my car. YAY. Books, new CDs, I got an iced chai from Starbucks for the ride home. Best thing was the look on Momma-B's face when she say the book basket. Loved it. Such a great day!

- Mitch