Lemuria is having our own version of the Egg Bowl right here in the store!!! That’s right, Ole Miss and Mississippi State Fans come to Lemuria and support your school of choice.  We have some new books and merchandise  that you are going to want for yourself and to give as gifts.

“Hotty Toddy!” The University of Mississippi Football Vault®: The History Of The Rebels® takes you on a journey through Ole Miss football history, starting with the first game in 1893. Along with a story woven by award-winning reporter Billy Watkins of The Clarion-Ledger, this “scrapbook” contains never-before-published photographs, artwork and memorabilia drawn from the Ole Miss athletic department, campus archives and personal collections. Tucked into dozens of sleeves and pockets are reproductions of old game programs, historic tickets, numerous postcards and vintage photos. No Rebel fan should be without this “home archive” of the Ole Miss football history.

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“Go State!” In the Mississippi State University Football Vault®: The History Of The Bulldogs, author Mike Nemeth takes you on a journey through the history of MSU football from that Thanksgiving Day in 1892 when a rag-tag band of students took on a faculty team in a game, through the glory years of Allyn McKeen, through Jackie Parker and D.D. Lewis to the present. This detailed “scrapbook” contains never-before-published photographs, artwork and memorabilia drawn from MSU’s athletic department and school archives. Tucked into dozens of pockets and sleeves, fans will find reproductions of old game programs, historic tickets, postcards, photos and much more. These fascinating replicas include an 1895 football button, a 1920 football banquet program, a 1934 Ole Miss game ticket, a 1940 season schedule, a 1980 Alabama game ticket and a 1998 SEC Championship Game ticket. No Bulldogs fan should be without this “home archive” of Mississippi State’s illustrious football history. Foreword by Rockey Felker, Afterword by Jackie Sherrill.

We will also have these great 2010 calendars which are replicas of classic game day program covers which can be framed after you are done with it!!

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****Just a side note we have these calendars for all the SEC schools but if you are a fan of another school ask us and we can see if we can order it for you!!!

So here is the deal,  you come in and purchase the book and/or the calendar and I am going to keep score and will post it periodically on the blog and in the store!!  We will continue this through Christmas and may the “BEST” School win!!!

Lately, I’ve had lots of fun looking around at some of the houses on the market in Jackson. Most of the houses I’ve toured have been empty and I’ve definitely noticed the difference between walking into an empty house with all its blemishes exposed and walking into someone’s home, lived in and comfy…

Last week I went into one house that was DECKED OUT… I was surprised because the house was available to be shown at any time… it soon became obvious, though, that the house had been staged. Even though I knew this, I couldn’t help marveling at what an enormous difference it made.

Ok, so if you’ve seen Sell This House! on HGtv you may know some of the tricks but the changes that make the most impact involve arranging furniture to accentuate the house’s positive attributes while playing down its negative ones and this is difficult information to glean from a show about arranging someone else’s house SO… I if you’re trying to sell your house check out the decorating section’s most recent acquisition, Staged to Sell (or Keep) and you’ll pick up the tricks of the trade from experts who can help you stage houses of all different sizes and layouts with the furniture that you already have… I just bought it myself to get ideas on how to set up my house with the random collection of furniture I’ve bought and inherited over the years… Good luck setting up your house to sell… who know’s once you get it staged you might not want to move!

In case you haven’t heard, Mary Ward Brown was here last Tuesday. I still have this wonderful and inspiring woman on my mind. She read to us from her memoir, the last section in which she gives readers a book tour of her house. Anyone who loves to read and loves books would enjoy reading this essay. I am going to read it again because Ms. Brown lists some of her favorite short story writers . . . I would like to make sure I have read them, too.

Mark wrote such a thoughtful blog relating to a theme that Mary Ward Brown touches on in her memoir: the isolation of the writer. If you get a chance, it’s worth the read.

Thank you Mary Ward Brown for coming to Lemuria! And also, a big thank you to Beth from Alabama Press for helping her make the trip!

A lot of the world’s most recognized art comes from Italy.  From Giotto to Da Vinci to Modigliani, Italy has produced some of the most influential sculptures, paintings, and architecture. Filippo Brunelleschi is one of those artists.

Ross King recounts the events of Brunelleschi’s great feat in his book Brunelleschi’s Dome: How a Renaissance Genius Reinvented Architecture. Florence had built the Santa Maria del Fiore over a century before, but underestimated the size of the dome.  The gap that was left for the dome proved to be larger than the dome built for the Pantheon in Rome, which until that date was the largest dome constructed.  Unable to figure out a safe way to go about building this structure, the church was left opened and exposed for decades.

King tells multiple stories about the construction of the dome and Brunelleschi’s personality, including how he won the contest for the commission.

“In this parable Filippo suggests to the wardens that whoever can make an egg stand on end on a flat piece of marble should win the commission.  When all of the other contestants fail the test, Filippo simply cracks the egg on the bottom and then stands it upright.”

King also tells of Brunelleschi’s many new inventions that would help the building process become more efficient.  He created an ox-hoist with a secondary set of gears so that the bricks could be pulled up to the workers.  This way the workers didn’t have to carry the supplies up to the dome, which saved time and energy.  Other inventions were made, as well as new plans for the support of the large dome that were unheard of.

King’s national bestseller not only touches on the innovative construction methods used by Brunelleschi, but also the stories and events that made this architect inspiring.  Similar to Leonardo Da Vinci’s love of science and experiments, Brunelleschi takes us into a new way of looking at architecture that still inspires architects and artists around the world.

-Sarah Clinton

Lemuria has been feeling the effects of this recession at least a full year now. I’ve been reading throughout this year in an attempt to develop a clearer understanding for this small business. Most business books seem to focus on larger businesses than this bookstore; however, many corporate ideas have stimulated creativity to help us get through this tumultuous time.

Written a decade ago, I can’t help but reflect on Working with Emotional Intelligence (1998). Goleman’s principles are not about what you learned in school but focus instead on personal qualities such as empathy, adaptability, and persuasiveness.

The book is a guide for how the worker is responsible to himself, using work as a tool to be responsible to the business group. Goleman also discusses how the business group interprets the individual’s work to reflect the individual’s reward–and not just in financial terms but a more full- bodied approach toward the emotional whole of the right-minded use of time through labor.

Honestly, I feel that if this book were taught in business schools as a requirement, bringing Goleman’s awareness into our country’s business community, our recession would be a different story today. Goleman’s concepts of emotional intelligence contradict many aspects of corporate and political greed which appear to be the dominant force  in devaluing so many individual’s hard earned assets.

Incorporating Goleman’s ideas on emotional intelligence into the business world could be institutional in preventing such severe economic decline in the future. More mindful productivity should yield more stability for future generations.

Many helpful ideas lie within the boards of this treatise. There is something in here for anyone who wants to make a difference through labor with contribution. I highly recommend this book and any of Goleman’s other books to my staff. See my blog entry on Social Intelligence.