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Tuesday, September 20, 2016

#TuesdayTreasures Guest post by Karen McCullough

Good Morning Friends!

Today's guest is no stranger to us so I'm just going to turn the blog straight on over to her....

I’m going to show you something that you might think is a very weird treasure. Can you even tell what they are?


If you guessed that they’re a bunch of rubber erasers, pat yourself on the back.

But they’re more than that to me. They’re mementos from my travels. The group shown above is a sample of my much more extensive collection.

It’s only in the last ten years that travel has been any sort of possibility for me. It took getting my kids through college, paying off debt, and my husband and I both moving into semi-retirement before it was even possible.

Twelve years ago my son went over to Wales to study at the University of Bangor in Wales. While there he met the woman who would become his wife, and they eventually settled in Oxford, England, when he was offered his dream job.  So now I have a huge incentive to travel to England, or on occasion, to meet them in other places a young English family can reach fairly easily for vacations.

Our very first trip to England was for their wedding, and we (my husband and two daughters) decided to do some touring while we were there. We started in Edinburgh, Scotland, spent a few days there, proceeded to London for a few days, and then went on to Hastings for the wedding itself. 

Of course I wanted souvenirs, but we had limited suitcase space since we were hauling them around on trains and buses. At practically our first stop in Scotland I found what would be the perfect souvenir for me.

In Europe (as in America and most places, I suppose), every tourist destination – big, small, and in between – has a gift shop. One of the staples of European gift shops are these small rubber erasers imprinted with the name of the place. And I’ve lately found that some American souvenir shops are stocking them as well.

They come in many sizes, colors, and varieties, including some shaped like books.  They’re perfect souvenirs – small, light-weight, and inexpensive. I’ve been trying to buy one from every place we’ve visited ever since.

And it seems to me there’s something totally appropriate about erasers as a souvenir for an author.

Oh Wow, Karen...I collect magnets and T-shirts LOL! but these are definitely something to treasure.

Karen McCullough is the author of a dozen published novels and novellas in the mystery, romantic suspense, and fantasy genres as well. She has won numerous awards, including an Eppie Award for fantasy, and has also been a four-time Eppie finalist, and a finalist in the Daphne, Prism, Dream Realm, Rising Star, Lories, Scarlett Letter, and Vixen Awards contests. Her short fiction has appeared in several anthologies and numerous small press publications in the mystery, fantasy, science fiction, and romance genres. She has three children, six grandchildren (plus one on the way) and lives in Greensboro, NC, with her husband of many years.

Connect with Karen on her Website, Blog, Facebook and Twitter.

Karen's latest book, Wired for Murder can be purchased at Amazon (Kindle), Smashwords, iTunes, Kobo, and on Nook.

Check out Karen't previous visits hereherehere and here!

I certainly hope you enjoyed today's post as much as I did. Stay tuned weekly for Tuesday Treasures, Thursday Thoughts and Saturday Spotlight.

Until next time, take care and God Bless.
PamT


9 comments:

Jacqueline Seewald said...

Karen,

What a clever idea for souvenirs! Congrats on your travels and your latest novels.

Tanya Hanson said...

What an absolutely fabulous souvenir, Karen! Adorable and meaningful and easy to carry home. I love the idea. I too am an Anglophile...waiting for the grands to grow up so I can take them. Congratulations and best wishes on your novels.

marilyn leach said...

Karen, collecting erasers (though called something else in England if my memory serves me), is such a great idea. Small, packable, yet they can evoke the best memories. Smashing idea. Cheers

Alicia Dean said...

I am very sorry to be late!! I enjoyed the post. Love the erasers. :) I don't usually see them in gift shops, but I'll keep an eye out now, since they're getting more popular in America. I'm so envious of your travels...how wonderful to attend a wedding in England! Wired for Murder...interesting title, and I adore mysteries, so it's right up my alley. Best wishes!

Catherine Dilts said...

Karen, that is clever and practical! I used to get a T-shirt and coffee mug when I played tourist, but that gets expensive and bulky. My husband collects shot glasses - small and they don't break in the luggage. I'll try to be more imaginative!

Marissa Garner said...

Great post. We collect magnets and cups on our travels. Our kitchen is quite colorful.

Karen McCullough said...

Pam, thanks for inviting me, and thanks to everyone who visited and commented. I need a better way to display this collection, but I've had so much fun with them.

Diane Burton said...

I've never heard of anyone collecting erasers. Clever and practical. I used to collect magnets and my refrig was covered with them. Now magnets won't stick to the new refrig. Who's bright idea was that???

Susan Coryell said...

The UK is a favorite travel spot for my husband and me. Love the idea of the erasers--fit into a suitcase and don't take up a lot of display space. Thanks for sharing and good luck with all your writings.