Of "murder most foul" and a cousin settling in~~~~~

My Goodness Darklings,

Did I surprise you with that subject heading?   Well yes I did intend to post that.

I've been relaxing a bit while waiting for Sis to get home, then we'll have our manicures, so nice for a treat.

The stove man has been called and will be here to work on the stove in a few days, if all goes well we can start using it and retire our little workhorse apartment stove, my contractor is happy he'll have it back, he needs it for another job and the homeowners wife will still need a stove for Thanksgiving dinner.  We've kept it clean but we'll do another bit of cleaning (gloves on) so it will look nice.

This morning balanced the check book, the cleaning service came and gone, my contractor called to say he has the gates so this Thursday the fencing will have gates added.  But I think we'll still keep the temporary fencing up for a while until we can find something at the salvage yards, I told my contractor about that and he thinks that's a much better idea, instead of dividing the garden into sections with fences and gates.

Louise's chicken dinner was just delicious,  and she had little saute'd cut red potatoes and steamed green beans, with some sort of cream sauce she made from scratch, I need to ask her for the receipe.

She looked over what furniture there was that we still had in storage that we didn't need nor want, there were a few end tables and some lamps,  a plain writing desk with chair, a two drawer metal file cabinet, and a plain bureau and a mirror to hang over it that she chose.  There was a twin bed frame sort of 1940's modern style that she felt was just right for her, I asked if she would prefer to purchase a double bed frame instead and she said no, the twin was just right.  So to the mattress place we went with the measurements of the twin bed frame and she made her purchase,  I just got a call and she said that it was delivered today so she'll need to buy bedding, she took  the bus over to my house to borrow my car, I thought she was going to go to Macy's or even Sears but she said that Wal-Mart will have what she needs.

I asked if she wanted a couch and comfy chair but she said she'll take her time selecting something, she is just glad that she bought the other day some rugs in as well as curtains and kitchen things.  The refrigrator and stove that her friend had installed is working beautifully.  And she going to get some groceries for her place, but I told her she is always welcomed to drop by at my house, just to call and let us know.  How her divorce is going to proceed is something else, but she has her lawyer and is very confident that it will be settled in a year.

Sis and I think that we might as well move the remaining things out of the storage unit and into either my basement or hers until we can finally decide what to do with them.  I think that will be a project for the up-coming summer.

And now "murder most foul"----last night it was hard, should we watch "almost human" or "Secrets of Scotland Yard", Doyle settled for recording "Almost human" and we watched the latter, and I found it fascinating how Scotland Yard or the Metropolitan Police Department came into being and how each major murder had the police department develop their techniques of detection, oh there was corrupt police officers, that couldn't be helped,  and how they handled the "Jack the Ripper" case may have had blunders, but they came up against something that they couldn't comprehend, usually when someone was murdered, it was for gain, or to get rid of someone, so it was a formula to try and find the culprit.  But with Jack the Ripper they were dealing with something unusual----a Serial Killer, something that was completely outside of their scope, but during that investigation they developed even more techniques for investigation, even if some of the major investigators may have mis-handled some things.  

But with the use of newspapers and broadside sheets, murder became a sort of 'spectator sport', will the police catch the criminal, will the criminal escape?  Sort of a Victorian version of "Survivor", but more shocking to the sensiblities of the middle and upper Victorian class.  And yet I think they had a sort of "thrill" about it.  Scotland Yard had their version of Sherlock Holmes but a real live detective, Dick Turpin.  I strongly suspect that not only did Conan Doyle based Holmes on his teacher Dr. Bell but also on Dick Turpin. 

There was an author interviewed who talked about the cases and about Scotland Yard, Judith Flanders, who wrote the book "The Invention of Murder",  this is a book about how Victorian Society in its own way cultivated murder,  and how it was looked upon by Victorian Society.  When I saw her name I went to my Library to see if I owned it and I do, already I'm enjoying it.  Ms. Flanders also has books about Victorian Society and if you are a Victorian Goth or love the Victorian period then her books are a must to have in your collection.   I think I'll purchase her books on Victorian Society to round out my collection.

When I think back on it I am so glad that I found at the Friends of the Library Book Sale "The Complete Jack the Ripper".  I know Darklings what a morbid thing to read towards the holiday season, but with the early darkness upon us, it seems befitting.

And now my sister is here and saying to me "Are you ready?"  well of course I am.

Later Darklings

You can never go wrong with a good book to read.  And I mean a book, not Kindle or e-book, a real book.

Of adjustments and adjustments~~~~

Well Darklings,

It is official the little fellow's name is going to be Wiener Dog or Wiener,  we were not sure of the correct spelling but now we know.

Dear Lucretia thank you for the suggestions, we suspected about the burrowing, my Gardener showed up and I talked to him about that and he said he could do it and recommended at least 6 in wide boards in 6 to 8 foot lengths, he's been wanting to build up the sides of the garden anyway to prevent run off, and we're going to have to add two gates with concret paths one between the garage driveway and the garden and the other between my garden and my sister's garden, not exactly planned but thinking about it very necessary, with the concret paths it might prevent Wiener from digging under the gates.

I had been thinking about doing that for the garden, just not quiet so soon, so my Gardener will be back in a day or two with the boards and braces and I've called my contractor and he's coming over tomorrow morning before I leave for work and we can discuss what will need to be done. 

And now not only do we have to make adjustments but so does Wiener. Sis and Doyle left for work today and Wiener was upset, at least I'm here and Belladonna plays with his ears to distract him by flipping them with her nose, she tries to take his toy and they seem to do a mock play about it, it seems to help.  I think having the two of them together is good for both of them, but I called my speical occasion dog sitter and ask if she could handle two dogs, she doesn't have a garden more of a patio all brick fence so I don't think Wiener can escape from there and she was pretty sure it would not be a problem.   So until the little fellow gets use to the routine this will be a bit stressing for him, thank goodness he has Belladonna to keep him calm.

To everyone, I agree why would anyone abandon a pet like that is just cruel and unthinkable, it is much easier to surrender a pet to a well maintained Animal Shelter it does not cost anything to do that and 99 percent of the time they are adopted only under very difficult circumstances are they put down.   But people don't think, if they throw away an old coffee maker, they'll "throw" away a pet and it is cruel.  People who do that have no compassion or a conscience, they are the ones that will abandon their elderly parents in an unhealthy care facility and not check on them, they can't be bothered. 

I think it was some sort of fate that led us to find Wiener Dog, because orginally we were going to have Belladonna with my sitter but I changed my mind at the last minute and it was a good thing.  It could have been days before the grounds keepers would have found him and we are getting very cold nights now, he could have starved or died from thirst.  

Belladonna takes a certain amount of possiveness about him, well she is older and he's just a pup, so its understandable.   But Wiener Dog----what a name.  Why not Max or Buddy or something like that?? But Doyle named him and the little thing responded, so the name stays.
Cousin Louise's new home is one of those happy circumstances, her friend is into vintage and bought this property some 30 years ago as an investment to prevent it from being torn down and a block of cheap looking apartments built instead, at least back then there were some far seeing people into historical preservation.   If one hunts one can find gems in the most unexpected places.

For example I have an aquaintance that has a 2 acre property up in the lower part of the hills, and it is surrounded by single family homes whose back yards back into this property, to get to it one goes down this one block street and encounters a huge wooden fence with a car wide gate, unlock the gate and you are in a different world as if one has gone back into the Victorian era, and yet in looking at the stucco houses on either side of the street leading to it one would never know its there, and oddity amonst normalicy.  Two whole acres??  Fortunately my friend makes good money and can afford the taxes, I believe because the place is so old and is historical I think they are seeking historical status to prevent it from being taken over by developers.  Some politician or some important person lived there.

Sis has come home much to the delight of Wiener, she's barely put down her purse and brief case and he's all over her.  She is going to change into her walking shoes and we are going to take both of them for a walk before dinner, it's been slow cooking in the crock pot, on such cold evenings beef stew with lots of hardy veggies over a bed of rice to soak up the juices seems in order.  Louise is out to dinner with a friend so it will be just us four Brian, Doyle, Sis and myself and the two little 4 legged children.

Then we'll relax and watch our favorite shows, Bones, Sleepy Hollow, Castle and I'm going to record The Blacklist, James Spader is just wonderful in it, he makes evil seem sort of friendly.  Oh that is twisted thinking.

And I have yet to let you know what we think of Cupcake's Red Velvet wine.....

Later Darklings

Even in Dark Times, one must look for the good things.