My Current Interest

     Far too often, books I read have unrealistic things happen.   And a lot of them.   One or two things, okay.   That’s fine.   But when the whole book feels unrealistic and unbelievable, that can be a problem.   While I did enjoy Murder in Moscow , this was definitely an unrealistic book.      Bestselling mystery author Jessica Fletcher has been asked to be part of an exchange project the U.S. government’s Commerce Department is putting on.   Russian publishers will be coming to Washington, DC to meet people in the American publishing industry.   After that, the entire group will fly to Russia.        Boris Yeltsin has recently been elected in Russia, and the country is struggling to convert from a Communist to a Democratic system.   Everyone warns Jessica about the danger and violence in Russia, but Jessica is still excited to go.      Unfortunately, things go badly from the g...

     For as long as I can remember, there has been talk in my family about how great it would be to go on a cruise.  We have seen many exciting cruises offered.  Some with themes, some without.  But as of yet, I have never been on one.  Maybe someday I finally will.  Just hopefully a calmer one than Jessica Fletcher went on. The High Seas /Artwork by Kate Dorsey      Jessica Fletcher has been given the task of performing lectures and writing a play, all to be presented during a crossing of the ocean liner the Queen Elizabeth 2 (QE2).   She went on this exact same liner years ago with her husband, Frank, and is excited to be on the ship again.   There is some sadness she is not with her husband, but it is an adventure Jessica is looking forward to.      She cannot, however, say the same about writing a play.   Her success is with writing novels, not plays.   Despite what some may believe, writi...

             One of the big things I have always admired about Jessica Fletcher is the opportunities she gets to travel.  In The Highland Fling Murders, she travels to England and Scotland.  Two places I would love to see.  Unfortunately for Jessica, murder gets in the way of a good time.                 Mystery writer Jessica Fletcher is finally taking her friend, Scotland Yard Chief Inspector George Sutherland, up on his offer to visit his castle in Scotland.  She will be staying there, along with eleven friends from Cabot Cove.  But first she must do some book promoting in London.  After that, she and her friends will be able to go off to the small village of Wick in Scotland.                 What starts out as a great adventure quickly turns terrifying when two of ...

Photo of DVD cover take by Kate Dorsey           I have now officially watched every Murder, She Wrote episode ever made.   The only one I have doubts about is the crossover episode with Magnum, P.I. , but I’m pretty sure I watched that one too.   With so many episodes from twelve seasons, it’s hard to remember what I have all seen until I start to watch again.   Then often it takes me only a few minutes and I remember the entire episode.   Since I watched much of the show during the original run and in reruns, that happened a lot as I watched all twelve seasons on DVD.   That didn’t, however, happen when I watched the Murder, She Wrote: 4 Movie Collection .   The movies were made after the original series ended.   I know I looked forward to them when they were on TV at the time, but only once in awhile did I recognize anything familiar.   So either I did not end up watching them when they first aired, or I only sa...

                This past summer I watched the final Agatha Christie’s Poirot episode on PBS .   With this episode a moment in history was marked.   Never before had one single person ever acted as Hercule Poirot in each and every one of Agatha Christie’s Hercule Poirot stories.   This feat was done by David Suchet over the course of more than twenty years.   I had zero idea about this fact until I watched PBS that night, but once I found out, I knew I had to watch each and every episode.                 My task ended up being harder than I had imagined.   Even though I had seen Poirot episodes before, watching more than one at a time quickly started to drive me crazy.   Mostly I blame the theme music for this.   Not only was it played in the credits but it was also played in the background at poi...

             I don’t know why, but I have always felt some odd connection to London; to England in its entirety, as a matter of fact.   The reason I say “odd” is because I have never set foot anywhere near England, much less London, so this feeling does not come from personal experience.   It’s just there and has been for as long as I can remember.   I don’t recall ever not wanting to go to England, but as I’ve become older that feeling has grown stronger.   It’s probably why I have such an interest in British television and movies.   They bring me closer to a place I so dearly want to visit.   It’s also most likely the reason for my picking up the book London Style Guide: Eat Sleep Shop .   Let me tell you, that while this book may look innocent, it is very dangerous.   As I read, all I wanted to do was jump on a plane or train and get out of town.   Each page made we want to go ...

                I will start by saying I am not sure what is going on with this show.   It first aired last fall but then disappeared after not many episodes.   Now it has reappeared again, but I don’t know for how long.   I’m hoping that means Travel Channel is in the midst of making a second season.   Since I don’t know this for sure, I’ll just have to wait and see.                 Resort Rescue is set up very much like Restaurant Stakeout .   Cameras are placed around the establishment and the host brings the owners into the control room to watch the captured footage.   The difference is, this time, host Shane Green puts cameras throughout an entire resort, not just a single restaurant.   With these cameras, Mr. Green takes a look at everything.   He films the check-in desk, hotel rooms, a...

                   This past weekend my Mom and I took the train down to Chicago and walked around.   And walked.   And walked.   My body really hurt the next day.   It is not used to doing that much walking or for that long.   But I had a great time so the pain was worth it.                                After getting off the train and leaving the station, the first place we went to was Xoco.   It is a restaurant owned by Chef Rick Bayless.   Last year I went to his Frontera Grill restaurant, so I knew the food at Xoco would be good.   I had the yogurt and granola.   For the most part I am not a huge granola person, but this one was fantastic.   It was full of nuts and quite filling.   I also tr...

                   Watching a show about spirits attaching themselves to objects has made me wonder about the things in my house.   I do not believe any of my possessions are haunted, but do I know that for sure? If something in this house does have a spirit attached to it, that spirit is certainly not bothering me.   Other people are not so fortunate.   They do have haunted objects and they are encountering big problems.   Some of them are very fearful and do not understand what is causing the disturbances in their home.   That is where John Zaffis comes in.                   Mr. Zaffis is known as the Haunted Collector.   Starring in a TV show of the same name, Mr. Zaffis and his team go to different locations in order to find haunted objects.   Usually they go to individuals’ h...