Really Random Tuesday #33: The Lake Winner, Carlo's Bake Shop, and the Case of the Missing Followers

Should I change the name of this blog from Suko's Notebook to The Really Random Tuesday Blog? Because I've posted little else lately! Soon, though, I'll return to more serious bookish things (such as reviews), so please bear with me. In the meantime, here are my random bits.

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The randomly chosen winner of The Lake by Banana Yoshimoto is Hira, from Chronicles of an Enamored Soul. Many congratulations, Hira! I'll be sending you a hardcover copy of the book very soon, compliments of Melville Publishing of Brooklyn, NY. (I was prepared to send this book out of the country if necessary, but my daughter drew a name close to home.)

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While in NYC recently on vacation, visiting with family, we also ventured to Carlo's Bake Shop in Hoboken, NJ. Although I only recently discovered the TV show that made this Italian and American bakery famous (during Memorial Day weekend 2011), I was charmed by Cake Boss, and promised my daughters that we'd try to visit the shop on our trip back east. In order to visit this world-famous bakery, we woke up very early and took the PATH train from NY to Hoboken (a quick, pleasant ride), and arrived at the shop at about 7 AM, when the bakery opens for business. We waited outside the bakery on line (my two daughters are pictured at the end of the line) and were handed a number, and before we knew it, we were inside, and treated to appearances by both Grace and Frankie. I even high-fived Frankie after he waved to the crowd in the shop (pictured), because he was right in front of me and posed to do so. Of course, we bought a few treats (including my morning coffee, pictured) and T-shirts, and then sat outside the store enjoying them before walking around Hoboken, a picturesque city with a waterfront view of NY. This excursion to Carlo's Bake Shop was great fun.

Click on photos to enlarge them.

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Oh where, oh where have my Followers gone? Or where, oh where can they be? Their tiny square photos have been missing on my blog, although they're visible when I view my blog on my iPhone, adding to the mystery of this case. I think this may be a Blogger problem--is it affecting other fellow bloggers? (Other images, on older posts, are missing as well, and this is rather annoying, as I spend a lot of time working on posts.) Please, Blogger, get this resolved--I hate these occasional glitches--and I hope to be able to see my Fantastic Followers (and other images) again soon.

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Appearing on random Tuesdays, Really Random Tuesday is a way to post odds and ends--announcements, musings, quotes, photos--any blogging and book-related things you can think of. If you're inspired by this idea, feel free to copy the button and use it on your own blog. Please leave a link in the comments if you’re participating and I'll add it to this post. For other recent Really Random Tuesday posts, please visit Naida's blog, the bookworm, Avis' blog, she reads and reads, and Leslie's blog, Under My Apple Tree.