A Life of Crime and Chocolate

Jon King

less princes, more giant swords
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Sorry for the elongated absence, folks! Had an awful test, like, painfully awful (College Geometry. Shoot me.), and a super-duper-uber-important interview with a prison psychologist for a summer internship. Which I thought went well, so there's that!

You must. Go. Shoo. Get them. Start with Street of the Five Moons.

Yes ma'am! I'll pick it up at the library today!

I love the early Amelia Peabody, but around the time she started transitioning the narrative to Ramses, I started losing interest.

Oh, I know how you feel! She lost the humor and quirkiness that she'd had with Emerson and Peabody. Ramses was neat, it was just hard to go from Amelia to him. It felt like reading a completely different series!

I have a car.

Congrats, Shakesbear! Cars are awesome!

Anyone else watch CM?

YES. Criminal Minds is up there with chocolate to me - and Reid's my favorite! It hurts my heart how awful they are to him these days.

My son had treatment for his relasped brain tumor and we got home on friday. He did so fantastic, took his treatment really well, and has settled back home well too.

That's great news! I'm glad your son is doing well, wishing him a speedy recovery and you both an easy settling-back-in.

It's hotter than Hades around here these days, which makes me bundle up inside my nice cool house and stare at the sun with a repulsed look. Vampire-ishness (sans sparkle)? Check.
 

Zelenka

Going home!
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I was meant to be in England this weekend, but kitty decided to feign illness ten minutes before the taxi arrived so trip was cancelled while I went off to the emergency vet, to be told kitty was, indeed, faking it. But, I have had a pretty good weekend. Bit ill myself yesterday, but still got some writing done, and today managed to replot out the SF mystery (version #5) and have so far written 220 words of it. Once I got kitty off the notebook, that is. Plus, I've had the chance to work my way through all the chocolate my visitors brought me. Huge bars of Norwegian chocolate - they know me so well! Now catching up on Endeavour, which I didn't get the chance to watch when it was broadcast, and looking forward to three more days off.
 

heyjude

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Sorry for the elongated absence, folks! Had an awful test, like, painfully awful (College Geometry. Shoot me.), and a super-duper-uber-important interview with a prison psychologist for a summer internship. Which I thought went well, so there's that!

(snip)


YES. Criminal Minds is up there with chocolate to me - and Reid's my favorite! It hurts my heart how awful they are to him these days.

That's so exciting about the internship! Keep us posted? What will/would you be doing?

And yeah, I hate what they're doing to Reid too. It wasn't as bad in the season finale. He's not even my favorite (I'm a Hotch fangirl), but it's awful. The new writers aren't very good. :(

I was meant to be in England this weekend, but kitty decided to feign illness ten minutes before the taxi arrived so trip was cancelled while I went off to the emergency vet, to be told kitty was, indeed, faking it. But, I have had a pretty good weekend. Bit ill myself yesterday, but still got some writing done, and today managed to replot out the SF mystery (version #5) and have so far written 220 words of it. Once I got kitty off the notebook, that is. Plus, I've had the chance to work my way through all the chocolate my visitors brought me. Huge bars of Norwegian chocolate - they know me so well! Now catching up on Endeavour, which I didn't get the chance to watch when it was broadcast, and looking forward to three more days off.

I'm glad the kitty is not actually sick, anyway. :)

I survived public speaking yesterday, yay me! And rewarded myself with chocolate. :)
 

HistorySleuth

Researching History's Mysteries
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And yeah, I hate what they're doing to Reid too. It wasn't as bad in the season finale. He's not even my favorite (I'm a Hotch fangirl), but it's awful. The new writers aren't very good. :(

Huh? Errr. I miss Criminal Minds normal air date. ALWAYS! No excuses, I have cable for pity sakes. What did they do to Reid?????

Since Friday my life has been politics and historian duties (Like in the middle of this post I had 2 phone calls.)Sooooo. Here is my update on the library & parking lot over the cemetery thing in case any one cares to read it.

First a recap...Library was put over a cemetery in 1912 & we are positive they only moved the bodies they had to. They put up an addition, in 1930-something, for a gallery of a famous local artist. Who knows whom they dug up then (no mention in the newspapers). Skulls were found between the library and house to the north in the 1980s. The library bought said house to the north in 2010 to put in a parking lot. BIG BREWHAHA ensues.

Recently the library approved a demo crew to take down the house to the north and removes asbestos, without getting a permit first. Zoning put a stop order from the village till permit process is done. They got a grant which they may have to pay back because they won't get it done by June 30th when the grant runs out, because they tried to sidestep zoning, planning boards, DOT, the public etc. and dragged their feet. I did extensive research to find the exact spot of the cemetery, and it is sure that the odds are good they will run into bodies as the cemetery was originally an acre if they dig anywhere. Library vote is today and hopefully we get two like minded people on the board to stop the whole thing.

BUT now to the creepy part which has me running all over the place. Friday, some tombstones turned up. Behind the library there is a street, then a ravine that goes down into the lake outlet (so it's like a big creek.) Some guys junking metal down there (from an old factory) found some tombstone pieces on the side of the ravine. We know by one of the names and it does come from that old cemetery so it stands to reason the others ones do to. A Revolutionary War vet to boot.So they have been down there for 70-100 years. They probably chucked them over when the library was built or the addition put on. The guys brought them up and Sunday, put them behind the library building when it was closed. Good intentions, bad idea. So far the library doesn't know the stones are there.

My plan: Have our office of county historian put in charge so scavengers don't take any more stones out, find out where the spot is as the guys won't say (although from other sources I have a general idea), conduct it like an archaeology dig and document every step with photographs. Store the stones until it is decided what to do with them, research the names, have my older scouts help remove them as a community service progect AND use it for the archaeology merit badge.

So phone call to town zoning (since it was originally a town cemetery), 2 hr meeting, calls to council people, village mayor is next. Our town is split at the moment over the whole parking lot thing so I have to talk to the right people. I don't want me and my scouts getting into trouble for being down in there. I'll keep you posted.

Whew! Writing? Editing? What are these strange thing that you speak of?
 

heyjude

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Huh? Errr. I miss Criminal Minds normal air date. ALWAYS! No excuses, I have cable for pity sakes. What did they do to Reid?????

All the characters are mean to him now. Instead of him being like the socially awkward little brother everyone treats him like an embarrassment. It's awful. The new writers don't seem to have a good handle on several of the characters.


Since Friday my life has been politics and historian duties (Like in the middle of this post I had 2 phone calls.)Sooooo. Here is my update on the library & parking lot over the cemetery thing in case any one cares to read it.

First a recap...Library was put over a cemetery in 1912 & we are positive they only moved the bodies they had to. They put up an addition, in 1930-something, for a gallery of a famous local artist. Who knows whom they dug up then (no mention in the newspapers). Skulls were found between the library and house to the north in the 1980s. The library bought said house to the north in 2010 to put in a parking lot. BIG BREWHAHA ensues.

Recently the library approved a demo crew to take down the house to the north and removes asbestos, without getting a permit first. Zoning put a stop order from the village till permit process is done. They got a grant which they may have to pay back because they won't get it done by June 30th when the grant runs out, because they tried to sidestep zoning, planning boards, DOT, the public etc. and dragged their feet. I did extensive research to find the exact spot of the cemetery, and it is sure that the odds are good they will run into bodies as the cemetery was originally an acre if they dig anywhere. Library vote is today and hopefully we get two like minded people on the board to stop the whole thing.

BUT now to the creepy part which has me running all over the place. Friday, some tombstones turned up. Behind the library there is a street, then a ravine that goes down into the lake outlet (so it's like a big creek.) Some guys junking metal down there (from an old factory) found some tombstone pieces on the side of the ravine. We know by one of the names and it does come from that old cemetery so it stands to reason the others ones do to. A Revolutionary War vet to boot.So they have been down there for 70-100 years. They probably chucked them over when the library was built or the addition put on. The guys brought them up and Sunday, put them behind the library building when it was closed. Good intentions, bad idea. So far the library doesn't know the stones are there.

My plan: Have our office of county historian put in charge so scavengers don't take any more stones out, find out where the spot is as the guys won't say (although from other sources I have a general idea), conduct it like an archaeology dig and document every step with photographs. Store the stones until it is decided what to do with them, research the names, have my older scouts help remove them as a community service progect AND use it for the archaeology merit badge.

So phone call to town zoning (since it was originally a town cemetery), 2 hr meeting, calls to council people, village mayor is next. Our town is split at the moment over the whole parking lot thing so I have to talk to the right people. I don't want me and my scouts getting into trouble for being down in there. I'll keep you posted.

Whew! Writing? Editing? What are these strange thing that you speak of?

:eek: Wow! You are busy! I hope those graves remain undisturbed as much as possible.

You're getting some real-life sleuthing in, aren't you?
 

HistorySleuth

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I'm going to send the CM writers a mean letter! How dare they!

Yes. Loads of real sleuthing. My job is fun. Think I may do a true crime for October and Jan issue of our quarterly. A Halloween murder to be exact.
 

GailD

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Wow, HS. This is really something. How come they were allowed to build a library over a cemetary in the first place? Has a new cemetary been made available for the bodies discovered?

Some years back, a cemetary in Joburg had to be moved. There was such an outcry over that, but it was moved anyway. At least there, people knew which body belonged to which headstone.



:D
Now, after all that, we need chocolate. :)
 

HistorySleuth

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Wow, HS. This is really something. How come they were allowed to build a library over a cemetary in the first place? Has a new cemetary been made available for the bodies discovered?

Back in the early 1900s they didn't think it was an issue to do stuff like that. Eary-mid 1800s people were to religious to consider the thought. But you know, industrial revolution comes along, everything new, "modern," get rid of the old stuff. Happened a lot actually. They pretty much considered abandoned cemeteries as wasted space and would just move them to another cemetery. Some times the stones went with, sometimes not. Problem is it is impossible to get all the remains. Especially ones from the early 1800s since their stones might already be falling apart by 1900 or maybe they didn't have one to begin with.

I'm off to work soon, so I'll hear what happened with the library vote. I was waiting til after that to discuss the tombstone thing with the village mayor. Didn't want to call attention to the ones set up behind the building. I figured curious people would go back and look at the memorial marker behind the building when they came to vote and see the other ones there too. I didn't want the library board to know they were there yet and remove them.

I'll keep you all posted.
 

lorna_w

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This week's chocolate purchase: sugar-free, fat-free fudge bars. Hot here, so it had to be cold, and I couldn't find any fat-free ice cream, dang it.
 

Stlight

ideas are floating where they will
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Fat free ice cream, or fat free enough ice cream is called ice milk. You could try sherbet. But before you go for fat free, consider what you're doing to the moment and to the point of buying ice cream.

I mean really.
 

lorna_w

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I have a medical condition that requires I limit my fat intake to 25 grams a day. Wish I didn't! But I do.
 

heyjude

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Mmm. Ice cream.

I somehow, alarmingly, gained a big 7ish pounds. By which I mean 8. :eek: I've been working hard to shed these extra pounds, but they're a stubborn beast.
 

onesecondglance

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I have a medical condition that requires I limit my fat intake to 25 grams a day. Wish I didn't! But I do.

I have a recipe for a chocolate sherbet - it comes out quite like granita (which, if you have ever been to Italy, you will know is heaven in a bowl on a hot day). Let me know if you want it! It requires an ice-cream machine though.
 

Shakesbear

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Yesterday was my sis-in-laws birthday - today is the celebration lunch. I'm at home with a lurgy. Sigh . . . still, I might get some writing done!

HJ about the weight loss - have you tried having soup once a day? Home made soup so you can control what is in the soup? I like soup. Simple recipe: various vegetables cleaned and chopped. Several pints of water. Add vegs to water and leave to simmer until vegs are softish. Season to taste - a soupçon of salt and/or pepper. Eat. Yummy. You can add pulses and beans - but ones that you have prepared yourself. Some tinned beans/pulses have sugar added.
 

heyjude

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That's a good idea, Shakes. If only it weren't a million degrees here. :) But I love bean soup... Mmm... black bean soup...
 

onesecondglance

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My favourite soup is made by first roasting a turkey and then eating it. Then you make a soup from the carcass.

Obviously this doesn't really fit with the whole "healthy" thing, but it's damn tasty. ;)
 

heyjude

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Hee. It doesn't fit my whole "vegan" thing, either. :D Give me black beans any day!
 

Shakesbear

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If you put the soup through a blender it becomes a smoothie! And you can drink them cold. Spice it up with some ginger or whatever!
 

lorna_w

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I think cold chicken broth/soup tastes good. I guess that is only one of about a thousand things that makes me a little odd. When I was a kid, I loved drinking the brine from an olive jar. That's probably a lot odd.
 

heyjude

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Cold bean soup... Um... mebbe not. :) But I had a fruit soup (some fancy name, I forget) that was cold the other day and it was really good. It had chopped up veggies in it, too.

I think cold chicken broth/soup tastes good. I guess that is only one of about a thousand things that makes me a little odd. When I was a kid, I loved drinking the brine from an olive jar. That's probably a lot odd.

My boy drinks the pickle juice. He loves it! ::shudder::
 

lorna_w

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I love the idea of quinoa, but it gets stuck in my teeth! I feel like I'm picking birdseed out for days afterwards. Now if I only had some nice olive-brine mouthwash for that....