The sun is doing that peek-a-boo thing again. I wish it would cut it out and quit hiding behind the clouds. Of course, if it clears off it’ll get really cold tonight. So… cold vs gloomy clouds. It’s a tough call.

Today in history:

• 1933 – Prohibition in the United States ended (this overturned the 18th Amendment which had made the manufacture, sale, or transportation of alcohol illegal in the United States).

• 1945 – Flight 19 was lost in the Bermuda Triangle. They were probably the most famous disappearance in the Triangle.

• 1952 – Great Smog of 1952: A cold fog descended on London, combining with air pollution and killing at least 12,000 in the weeks and months that followed.

The only thing on today that I’m even remotely interested in is the Walking Dead marathon on AMC which I’m recording. It’s research! *g*

Reading: Not quite finished with Needled to Death. I’m really liking this series. Not sure what’s next on the agenda.

Wow. That sounds like SUCH a line.

Today in history:

• 1881 – Film director Cecil B. DeMille was born. He’s probably most famous for his movie The Ten Commandments. What a lot of people don’t know is that he made The Ten Commandments twice. The first time was in 1923. It was one of the “grand spectacle” movies of the silent era. A lot of the movie was filmed out in the Nipomo Dunes in California. And after the movie finished filming, they dynamited and buried the massive set in the dunes. Portions of the remains have been rediscovered in recent years.

• 1883 – Actress Pauline Frederick was born. Like many, she was a notable Broadway actress. She began her film career in 1915 and made 69 films before her death in 1938.

• 1907 – Actor Joe Besser was born. He’s probably best known for his short stint as one of the Three Stooges in the 1950s.

• 1943 – Alleged date of the first Philadelphia Experiment test on United States Navy ship USS Eldridge. I loved the movie but the real story is pretty interesting, too.

Tonight on TV, we have new episodes of Burn Notice, Royal Pains, and Fact or Faked: Paranormal Files.

Reading: Finished up Seven Keys to Baldpate which I really enjoyed. Next up, another old children’s book (in electronic format), Nan Sherwood at Palm Beach by

Well, there’s an excuse that could work for many situations. Or maybe only two.

So. I was, um, highly dissatisfied with last night’s series finale of Lost. I was not alone, but those of us who didn’t like it are in the minority. The problem for me is, the more I think about it, the less it makes sense. Oh well.

Tonight we have new episodes of DWTS and Chuck. But since I’ll be recording the latter, once DWTS is over, I’ll be watching recorded shows from earlier in the month. I’m way behind on stuff.

Oh! I was watching one of those episodes of Ancient Aliens the other night and learned something I never knew before. The moon is hollow and made of metal. When these guys trotted that gem out for the world to see, I started howling with laughter. Especially when they claimed they learned this from NASA! Yes, boys and girls, apparently the moon is actually an alien spaceship in disguise. *g*

Reading: Still reading The Leopard’s Prey which I’m enjoying a lot.

Once again, I’m at a loss for a title for a post. What a shocker, huh?

It’s the return of horse racing season. Today we have the Tampa Bay Derby (guess where! *g*) and the Rebel Stakes at Oaklawn in Hot Springs, Arkansas. I will definitely be catching both of these this afternoon.

Oh! Here’s a cool news tidbit from MSNBC.

Italy dig unearths female ‘vampire’ in Venice
An archaeological dig near Venice has unearthed the 16th-century remains of a woman with a brick stuck between her jaws – evidence, experts say, that she was believed to be a vampire.

Well, the chiro visit didn’t go as well as I would have liked. I’m back to multiple visits per week. *sigh* He’s not happy about my hands being numb so wants to focus on that and my neck which is the likely culprit. I’m not happy about all that money going out the door. Oh well. Maybe it won’t be for long.

Only thing on tonight is Ashes to Ashes which I’ll be recording.

Reading: Still reading By the Pricking of My Thumbs. Should finish that tonight, though.

Have you guys seen the ads for the new Disney movie Bedtime Stories? I’m not really an Adam Sandler fan, but this movie looks so fun.

There’s a news story making the rounds about baffled scientists. Why are they baffled, you ask? Because there is a mysterious acorn shortage.

Wow. I was so pleased at last night’s winner of Survivor.

Tonight we have the usual Monday night fare. Chuck, Heroes, My Own Worst Enemy (tonight’s the last episode), CSI: Miami and Cities of the Underworld.

Reading: Finished up Brimstone Kiss last night. Good read! But I’m anxious to read the next one which probably won’t be out until this time next year. Now I’m re-reading The Wee Free Men by Terry Pratchett.

In the news this morning:

Man-made tornadoes could power the future
Coiled up in a tornado is as much energy as an entire power plant. So a Canadian engineer has a plan to spin up his own twister and extract energy from its tethered tail.

Maybe it’s just me, but this has all the makings of a bad disaster movie with Science Gone Horribly Wrong. Probably starring John Schneider. Have you ever noticed how many disaster movies the man is in?

Not a thing on tonight I care to watch, so it’ll be recorded stuff again. Probably more Old Hollywood stuff.

I have lots more to say, so keep reading…

So, the phenomenal teenaged country singer Taylor Swift has another great girl power break-up song. It’s called Should’ve Said No. I think this kid is really amazing. She wrote or co-wrote every song on her debut album and at least four of the songs went to number one.

Meanwhile, here in Hooterville, the noisy neighbors are still at it. I heard the dude with the motorcycle (I think he’s the son) with no muffler (judging by the roar) leaving last night. We live about a block from the highway. I could still hear him as he turned onto the highway. And as he drove away, I could still hear him. And hear him. And hear him. I bet he was over a mile away before I couldn’t hear him anymore. Y’know, I wish we did live in Hooterville. At least we’d have Arnold the Pig as a neighbor. I have no doubts whatsoever that Arnold is smarter than these yahoos. LOL!

Marianne, I remember sniglets!!! I never had the book, though.

Dru, regarding the way the studio execs saved their stars back then, according to the show I watched the other night, William Desmond Taylor‘s house was crawling with studio people and actors going through his belongings (in search of anything damaging) when the cops arrived. Seems the neighbor who called the cops, called the studio folks first!

Lidian, it’s a really fascinating story, isn’t it? Then there’s the Fatty Arbuckle trial. That poor man was so totally railroaded. Even though he was eventually found innocent, his career was pretty much in tatters.

Kacey, oh! Duh. Should have mentioned that, huh? I was initially thinking Delia’s parents lived in Hancock Park, but it wasn’t actually considered a “neighborhood” until the 1920s and since I’d somehow decided her parents had been in their house since Delia a girl, that wouldn’t work. So now they live in Pasadena.

Reading: I’m still not up to holding a trade paperback for very long so I’m rereading Rattle His Bones by Carola Dunn.

Have you heard the news story about the two college girls who claim they were tossed off a plane for being “too pretty”? Hello? :waving2: Conceited much? They weren’t that pretty, anyway, IMO. Though now they’re backtracking on that claim. Good plan, girls. *g*

Devon correctly pointed out yesterday that we’ve had our three deaths. I’d forgotten the teenager from Harry Potter who’d gotten stabbed.

The Sci Fi Channel is having a Ghost Hunters marathon today, so guess what I’ll be watching tonight? We also have a new episode of Men In Trees, but since the show’s been cancelled (y’know, TV execs, the show might have done better if you hadn’t kept screwing with its schedule!) I’m not much in the mood to bother with it.

Oh! Just remembered this. My dad & I came up with a new version of Fox’s Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader. We think all the people in Congress should have to participate. If they lose, they’re out of a job. *g*

And have you heard about the guy in Orlando, Florida who’s selling what he claims are ghosts in bottles? There’s a warning on the bottle to “open at your own risk”. Why do I suddenly have this urge to sing the theme from Ghostbusters. Who ya gonna call, indeed? LOL! Me, I’d call the team from Ghost Hunters.

Reading: I’m reading the second Maggie Maguire book, A Record of Death by Kate Bryan. This one’s got an Agatha Christie Ten Little Indians (or And Then There Were None depending on which version you’ve read) thing going on as Maggie, her cousin Grady, and bunch of other people are trapped on an island with a killer from all their pasts.

Well, rerun season is going strong and that means I finally have an opportunity to catch up on stuff I’ve got recorded.

Here’s a fun article on crystal skulls at one of my favorite archaeology sites.

I wrote about one page last night. And now I’m taking a break for a bit. My brain needs a vacation.

Reading: Now I’m reading The Bluest Blood by Gillian Roberts. This is part of the Amanda Pepper series. Amanda is a high school English teacher who also gets involved in solving murders.

First of all, there was an earthquake in England early this morning!!!

Then, we have these stories:

Treasure Hunters Dig For Hitler’s Gold
Digging has resumed at a site in the southeastern German town of Deutschneudorf, where treasure hunters believe there are almost 2 tons of Nazi gold and possibly clues to the whereabouts of the legendary Amber Room, a prize taken from a Russian castle during World War II.

‘Doomsday’ seed vault opens in Arctic
A “doomsday” seed vault built to protect millions of food crops from climate change, wars and natural disasters opens deep within an Arctic mountain in Norway.

Not a lot on tonight. I’ll be watching Ghost Hunters and recording the allegedly new episode of Men in Trees.

Keyed in four or five more handwritten pages which added seven pages to the manuscript. I love when that happens.

Reading: I’m back to reading one of the Grace Hill Inn series books, Amazing Gracie by Pam Hanson & Barbara Andrews.

I had on VH1 Classic yesterday afternoon and one video they showed was Cinderella’s “Don’t Know What You Got (Til It’s Gone)”. Aside from loving the song, I keep forgetting where the video was filmed. It was actually filmed at California’s Mono Lake. But it also looks remarkably like Nevada’s Pyramid Lake.

Pyramid Lake is a freaky little place about 30-40 miles north of Reno. It’s a salt water lake, even though the only thing running into it is a fresh water river. The lake got its name from the fascinating tufa (not tofu ) formations in, and around, the lake. One of them is in the shape of, you guessed it, a pyramid.

The one and only time I saw the place was when I was ten. We were on vacation and my uncle who lives in Reno said, “I want to show you this place!” So off we went into the wilds of Nevada. Off-road (though now it’s more civilized and easier to get to which is kind of a shame). I fell in love with the place.

I don’t know how much of the stories I’ve heard about the place are true, but they’re highly entertaining. Like the World War II plane that crashed into the lake was never found because the lake is so deep. Or the fact it’s rumored to have an underground link to Lake Tahoe. Or how a lot of people have disappeared there.

There isn’t anything on tonight except reruns and politics. I don’t particularly care about either, so I’ll be watching recorded stuff. I have LOTS of that.

Last night I wrote about half a page of description about my heroine and her maid from the police detective’s POV. Kind of boring, really, but it was writing.

Reading: Still reading Murder Must Advertise by Dorothy L. Sayers. I do love this book!