Red Square

Latico Bettina Grand Square Tote,Red,one size
$199.00
I bought the red version of this bag less than two months ago from Amazon. At the time, the bag was half price. On arrival, one of the shoulder straps was not glued properly and so I had to rely exclusively on the long strap to carry my bag. I needed the bag and figured I could get it fixed myself, so I didn't worry about it. I was very happy with the bag, it's beautiful and worked well on my bike commute, that is until today. I was walking back to my office after teaching and one of the hooks that holds the long strap in place snapped in two. I now have no usable straps for the bag.

It is hard to find a leather bag that looks good at a decent price, so in my opinion the bag is still worth it at the half price, but it is definitely not worth the full $180. They do have a year warranty according to their website, but you have to pay $15 for shipping and handling, which I find ridiculous. I expected a bag that could carry my netbook and papers, not something that I have to get fixed only two months in.

KitchenAid Hard-Base Porcelain Aluminum Nonstick 11-Inch Square Griddle, Red
$54.00
Loved this pan for the first couple of weeks........until I left it on the burner with no food in it for about 10min........it warped and now does not heat evenly! VERY disappointed.

Paul McCartney - Live in Red Square
$19.95
Paul McCartney - Live in Red Square is a great CD with music and history.

Red Square: A Novel (Mortalis)
$14.95
I always enjoy Smith's writings because, as with James Michener, I learn a lot about other places and other cultures - in this case the culture of corruption pervading Russia after the Wall, and involving in this case priceless Russian modern art, previously suppressed by Stalin, and now existing in a lucrative and violent black market. Those who know about this will recognize the double meaning in the title. But the subplot is the thing - the continuing difficult love relationship between Irina (who first appeared in Gorky Park) and Arkady (the brilliant and embattled Investigator), whose only bad judgment comes from his heart, hopelessly controlled by thoughts of Irina - a surprisingly serious and deep emotion for such an otherwise hard boiled detective. The ending is not the happy resolved solution that we sometimes get fed, but at least they are together again and we are implicitly invited to stay tuned for the next episode (which I think was Wolves Eat Dogs)(I had skipped this one - worth going back for).