How-To

     Our most recent "Find of the Week on the Used Book Floor" is one giant "how-to" experience.  If you like to learn new things, (and if you have read any of our past blogs, you know we do) this post could very well be right up your alley.

     Our book that held the find is truly a discovery all of its own.  Published in 1950 and titled, "150 Ways to Play Solitaire," this 128 page small paperback details how to play the classic card game in - you guessed it- 150 different ways.  Ok, we need to take a pause, here, to say - seriously?  Who knew it was even possible to play solitaire anywhere near that many ways? 

     Upon looking at the table of contents, we found that the possibilities are categorized by ways to play using one, two, four, and multiple packs of cards.  To add to the charm, each game has been given a unique name.  You could try your hand at playing "Beleaguered Castle," (a one-pack solitaire game) "Miss Milligan," (a two-pack experience) or "Empress of India," (a multiple pack extravaganza) just to name a few choices.  If none of those struck your fancy, you could always give the "Idiot's Delight" or "Blondes and Brunettes" games a whirl.  Really - those are just the beginning of your solitaire options according to this 69 year-old gem.  

     As if the book, itself, was not enough, while flipping through the many pictures of card layouts, we found a paper from the Wild Salmon Seafood Market in Seattle, Washington.  Providing fish from the Pacific Northwest and Alaska, the Wild Salmon Seafood Market ships their all-natural, wild salmon overnight across the world.  While detailing the many kinds of salmon that are caught in the Pacific, Bering Sea and Arctic Ocean, (Keta, Coho, Sockeye, King and Pink salmon, etc.) the Wild Salmon Seafood Market also provided a chart that guides those cooking the salmon at home.  From baking, broiling, grilling, barbequing, poaching, steaming, sauteing or microwaving, the well-known Seattle salmon provider walks you through what to cook the fish on, how long it needs to be on the heat and other incidental bits of info that could be very helpful.  If you remember nothing from this paragraph but one thing, remember this: in short, overcooking salmon is a common issue and, regardless of how you cook it, all salmon needs to be checked for doneness between 8-10 minutes.

     So...150 ways to play solitaire games with creative names, salmon types from the Pacific and how to cook the perfect fish in any way imaginable...yes, that about covers it for this week's Find of the Week on the Used Book Floor.  We promised a "how-to" experience when you first began reading this and we think we've delivered.  As always, however, we have only touched on the highlights from the book and the find.  To gain the full experience and learn more, "150 Ways to Play Solitaire" and the Wild Salmon Seafood Market's Guide to Salmon can be yours, together, for the grand total of $4.99.  You can catch up with our previous finds of the week from the used book floor at bayswaterbooks.com and on facebook.  Better yet, stop by the store in Center Harbor and check out the used book floor for yourself!