Smart Bitches, Trashy Books

How awful! And the restaurant loss last month. I’m glad it sounds like they’ve contained it by that report. So sorry. :(

Oh, this is too bad!  I hope that no one is hurt.

That is truly awful!
I’m sorry for all the people who were affected by that fire.

Damn, Nora, I’m sorry.

You were trying to do something good for your home town.

Rebecca

Oh, that is awful for everyone.  So much history lost for that town (and the opportunity to stay at what sounded like a rockin’ B and B).  I hope that they got the historical documents out of the town hall in time!

Late 1700s?  Oh, that’s such a shame - it’s awful when such historic buildings are lost… 

And what horrible luck for Nora Roberts - she must have sunk a bit of her heart into the place.

That is all kinds of suck. :(

Oh, man.  I’m a Maryland native myself, and my mom sends me all the local articles on the B&B.  We had planned to go check it out together.  :( 

My heart goes out to you, Nora, my thoughts are with you.

Oh, that’s horrible. At least no one was hurt or killed, but the loss of a historic building is always terrible, and doubly so when it had such a bright future.

What a shame. I’m glad no one was hurt though.

I always hate to see a historic building going up in flames, particularly when someone (like Nora) has been putting so much heart into remodeling it.

I’m so sorry for you, Nora.

I’m so sorry, Nora. I hope everyone in town is safe and kudos for the firefighters. SB Sarah has the coffee, but I’ll bring the donuts.

Ugh. My sympathies to Nora, her husband and the others in town who were affected. Small town Maryland has had a run of bad luck with historic buildings and fires recently (last month it was Cambridge, Maryland and three fires in one week).

Oh how awful for everyone involved. I hope no one was hurt. So sad about the loss of all the beautiful history.

My sympathies to Nora and her husband.

^5’s to all the courageous firefighters. You all rock!

I’m so sorry for the loss of the historical buildings and the dream of a Romance Couple B&B. :( I’m glad no one was physically hurt.

It’s great so many firefighters responded and were able to get it under control. It could have been much more devastating!

Good thoughts to Nora and Bruce.

Oh, I’m *SO* sorry Nora! Goodness, what a horrible loss for you and your family.

As Jaci says, thank goodness for the courage of firefighters!

That sucks big time.  Sympathies go out to Nora, her family and the town.

Oh no! We had heard about the fire this morning because DH’s boss couldn’t get to work due to the snow…and power outages at her place in Boonsboro because of a fire. Had no idea until just now that Nora’s building was involved.

I’m so sorry to hear this, Nora.

That sucks. My heart goes out to Nora and family. Thank goodness no one was hurt.

I second all the suckage sentiments. I’d send “Hot Hands” (chemical handwarmers) and thermal blankets to go with the coffee and donuts. I’ve “been there, done that” when the water froze almost as quickly as it came out of the nozzle. Thankfully, the firefighters got it contained and it appears that no one has been hurt.

Nora, my deepest regrets that your hard work and ideas are literally up in smoke. I hope you will consider rebuilding. It won’t be historic, but it can still be lovely.

Good thoughts to you, your husband and the good folks of Boonsboro.

Thanks to everyone. It’s horrible and heartbreaking. I was just in there yesterday, and it was looking so good. Now, pretty much gone.

We may be able to save some of the old stone walls—that’s for engineers to decide.

But even if we don’t, we’ll rebuild. We have every intention of shoveling out, cleaning up, and starting over.

I mourn that wonderful old building—every brick and stone. I honestly do. I had a serious love affair going. So, we’ll do what we can to pay tribute and put another in its place.

Inn Boonsboro won’t open this summer, as we’d hoped. But give us another few months.

There was another building lost, others damaged. It’s devasting for everyone involved. And a serious miracle no one was hurt. So, when you factor in that vital last part, we were pretty damn lucky.

I echo the previous sentiments—it does seriously suck and I’m very sorry it happened, especially so soon after your son’s restaurant.  I hope you’re able to save some of the original walls. 

It is wonderful to hear that no one was killed or seriously injured, though.  Everyone must have acted very quickly for that to be so.  Kudos to the firemen and other first-responders!

Oh, Nora, I’m so sorry.

How terrible!

Strange, but yesterday Victoria’s Nautical Inn, an historic restuarant/inn here in Kenosha, WI, burnt to the ground. No one was hurt, thankfully. It’s one of those businesses that helps prop up the area, financially. The loss will be much more than a building. So here’s hoping everyone can rebuild.

My condolences, Nora. Truly.

I’m so sorry.  Very happy to hear that no one was hurt, but sad for your loss.

what a loss!!! old buildings that have stood so long have personalities of their own and it’s so sad to see one go.

hugs Nora, Bruce and the town of Boonsboro!

I was relieved to read that there was no loss of life or serious injuries, but it really sucks in so many ways—time, effort, and the repercussions to everyone involved in the Inn will be felt for a long while.

(((Nora and family)))

What terrible news! And while it is so fortunate that no one was killed, it is still a devastating loss.  To Nora, her family and the town, my sympathies.

So sorry, but glad no one was physically injured. :/

Oh Nora!  What a loss, but you have (no surprise) such a terrific attitude about it.  No lives lost or serious injuries is the best news, of course.

My sister had a similar experience a few years ago—she runs her town’s art programs, and the beautiful historic building she worked from was almost completely destroyed by fire.  They were able to design a wonderful new facility that incorporates and highlights the walls that were salvaged, so the historic beauty isn’t lost.  I wish for you as good an outcome, and I know the town is lucky that someone with your determination and optimism is behind this project.

When the Inn opens, I expect you’ll have lots of Smart Bitches as guests.  Count me in!

I’m so sorry.  Thankfully, no lives were lost.  Unfortunately, some people lost their homes and I hope that will be resolved soon. 

Great attitude Nora.  Can we now call you the “Comeback Kid”?

Kudos to the firefighters.

Ouch.

Echoing everyone else—sorry to hear of the loss of this historic building (and all the hard work that went into restoring it), and so thankful no one was hurt.

Hugs all around.

Nora, so sorry to hear of the loss of the building and all the hard work and mental energy that’s gone into the renovations. I’m relieved no-one was injured, and very glad that your dreams will still see fruition eventually, even if somewhat altered from the original. I love old buildings, and it so sad when they are lost. My sympathies to you, and all those affected.

When an old building is lost, it’s doubly sad—the loss of history as well as the loss of the structure.  But as everyone else has said, no one was hurt fighting the blaze, and that’s a blessing.

Hey, good luck Nora and Boonsboro too.

Oh, I’m so sorry, Nora.  That’s so awful!

Oh Nora, I’m so sorry too and for the town of Boonsboro. I hope you can recover bits of the building.

And thankfully no one was hurt.

~I hope you can recover bits of the building.~

This is one of my hopes. If we have to tear down the stone walls, we can salvage the stone. I have an incredible mason—he made them so beautiful. We should be able to use them. Maybe not fully, but at least in some places.

Oh I’m so sorry. Been there, and it completely sucks to have to go through it. Glad to hear that no one was hurt.

Nora, I’m so sorry for the loss of something so close to your family’s heart - I hope the rebuild goes well for you.

Wow, that’s really too bad.  There was a big fire in the historic section of my town today so I can easily imagine how awful it can be.  Hope everything goes well rebuilding!

Thank heavens no one was hurt!  Still, what a devasting loss for Nora, her family, and the town.  My heart goes out to all of you.

How sad this is, but I’m relieved no one was injured. My sympathies and lots of hugs go to Nora, her family and the town of Boonsboro. I’m on the list for a night at the Inn whenever it opens!

The county engineers assessed the stone walls, and said they can be saved. The crew, who stayed in town all day, went straight to work to secure them until we can start again.

No one was hurt, and those wonderful old stone walls still stand.

Glad to hear no-one was hurt, glad to hear that some of it can be salvaged, sorry to hear about the fire, not easy to come back from but good luck in the future with it.

I’m so sorry for the loss! As a historian it always breaks my heart to see historic buildings destroyed for any reason, but in the grand perspective it’s far, far more fortunate that no one was hurt. And it warms my heart to hear that the same stones will be used in the rebuild - a grand, centuries-old tradition of recycling.

My props to you, Nora, for your perseverance and dedication, and to all the firefighters and crew who did their jobs brilliantly. My thoughts go out to all who were affected.

So sorry for the losses, Nora.  Best of luck with the rebuilding.  May it be safe and swift.

Another Marylander stopping by to say how sorry I am to hear that news.

Nora, I’m so very sorry for you and your family and the town.  And so glad nobody was hurt.  Huge hugs and prayers to all of you.

I feel this is bad karma coming back to Nora for the negativity that she spewed towards Mrs. Edwards. No matter how one tries to justify it, what goes around comes around and in the end, Nora got what she deserved. Maybe now she has learned her lesson and wil endeavor to be kind to others, and contribute positivity into the universe instead of ugliness.

I feel this is bad karma coming back to Nora for the negativity that she spewed towards Mrs. Edwards.

I feel that someone who would write this should check her own karma before pointing to someone else.  I also feel this person is really sad, in a pathetically ugly sort of way.  Scootch on back to your playpen, darlin, and leave the grown-ups alone.

Lisa, shame on you.  I suppose by the same token, we should now watch to see what misfortune befalls you for YOUR negativity.

Lisa, what a sad person you must be. People lost their homes, their belongings. A beautiful building that’s stood for over 200 years has been nearly destroyed. A town of 3,200 people has suffered a dreadful blow. Businesses and properties have been damaged.

And you could actually say this is some sort of payback to me for speaking out against plagiarism.

No, you’re not just a sad person, but a pitiful and vindictive one.

As I said over on DA

To Lisa –

  From Dictionary.com
  Hypocrisy - a pretense of having a virtuous character, moral or religious beliefs or principles, etc., that one does not really possess.

When the only defense is to attack the victim, perhaps one should take a step back from the keyboard and consider the impression that will be left.

To everyone else –

I hope that Ms Roberts and her family, friends and neighbors can quickly recover from this devastating loss. My thoughts and prayers are with all those who were affected (or is it effected? URGH!) by this fire.

Jill
(back to lurking)

Lisa,

That’s an awful, awful thing to say.  Can anyone really believe that Nora, or any other public figure for that matter, is bringing on bad karma for speaking out against plaigarism? 

And what an awful way to dishonor all the victims of the fire and belittle their loss.

Jill—Affected.

Lisa—Shame on you.

(((Nora)))

I’m so sorry for everyone involved.

you know…

if this situation were a novel rather than Real Life, just about now I would be looking for some sadistic, pathologically vindictive arsonistic sunnuvabitch who’s trying to wreck the finances and the personal life of a lovely, dynamic and successful but rather honest and uppity-stick-to-her-guns female, damaging her family and her town in the process by making all these “accidents” happen…

I’m very glad all are safe and well. Things - even valuable, wonderful, historically important things - are, after all, just things. Buildings can be rebuilt, businesses and careers restarted. Not easy…but then, life isn’t necessarily easy. Fortunately, though lives will change, all are intact.

Good luck in the rebuilding.