Cracked Rearview Mirror

Marion Post Wolcott is one of the unsung heroes among the professional photographers. She had an amazing eye for capturing the right moment on film. I came across her work years ago, and this public domain photo she took in 1940 has to be one of my favorites. It evokes just the right holiday nostalgia of a Vermont small town. If you look closely, you can spot a Christmas tree framed by the second-story window. 1940 was a dark time in our nation's history, but this single time and place looks serene and peaceful to me. The sidewalks are shoveled off, and the street is clear enough to drive through if you had some place to be. It looks like a movie scene out of It's A Wonderful Life. I grew up in a small town, and the setting intrigues me. Right now, I'm working on a new cozy mystery series I'll be bringing out in 2016. The small town is Sweet Springs, Virginia. If you're familiar with and enjoy my Isabel & Alma Trumbo cozies (Quiet Anchorage begins the series), then my Sweet Springs cozies should also appeal to you. Happy reading!

Earlier this morning as I was doing the final round of edits on my next mystery title, I happened to think of a slice of blackberry pie, always good eating even before breakfast. It's late in the summer for blackberries, which are usually in season back in July. When I was a kid, we used to pick wild blackberries by the bucketful. My mother froze them for wintertime eating and used the others to bake pies. The juicy fruit part of the berries is sweet, but the berries also contain lots of pits (seeds). Anyway, the wild blackberries grew everywhere (we lived in the country). Nowadays, I see pint cartons of domestic blackberries out for sale at the Farmers' Market. They're bigger and plumper than the wild ones are. The vendors ask for a steep price, but then the blackberries are probably handpicked, and I know that's hard work.

Summertime has reached the dog days of August, and I can't think of a much better hot weather beverage than a tall glass of iced tea. I like mine served sweetened with a lemon or lime wedge hooked over the top rim. I used to drink iced tea for my dinner, but the caffeine in it now keeps me awake at nights, so I have to take mine for lunch, which is just as seems just as good.

I checked around on the internet to see which celebrities, dead and alive, who also enjoy their spot of tea, iced or hot. Taylor Swift surprised me, for one. I like her catchy songs. Sean Connery didn't surprise, and the same goes for Mick Jagger. But Jimi Hendrix gave me pause. When in Britain, do as the British, I suppose.

When I was a kid, I remember reading books during the summer months while drinking iced tea. Maybe it makes reading books more enjoyable. I'll have to try it someday when I get a free summer afternoon to sit out on the patio with a favorite book to read without any interruptions.        

Photo credit: Publicdomainpictures.com

Earlier this summer, the local cops installed one of those portable radar units that flashes your oncoming speed as you drive up on it. An email went out to all the residents in our neighborhood that the purpose was to encourage the motorists on the street to slow down. Residents on the street had complained about the speeders.

The street, you see, is a cut-through motorists use to avoid having to wait at the traffic light down at the nearby intersection. The street sort of shaves off the corner, so it is a timesaver for morning commuters trying to get to work on time. The residents have children. I know because I see them every day when I go that way on my walk.

I don't know if the radar unit was a success or not. It's gone down now. I guess it appeased the residents for the time being. The cars passing me on the street seem to go the same speed as before the radar unit went up. I would've put it up after the vacation season ends following Labor Day when more commuters are using the street. I don't think the commuters are speeding so much as they're inattentive while on their smart phones texting, or whatever. Maybe the cops wanted commuters to slow down before school opens.

"Hey, let's be careful out there," as Sergeant Phil Esterhaus used to say on Hill Street Blues.

This week I've been working on the next title, SWEET BETSY, in my Isabel and Alma Trumbo Cozy Mystery Series. Three of the recurring minor characters in the series are known as "The Three Musketeers." Ossie, Blue, and Willie are spry octogenarians who like to spend their days sitting on the wooden bench situated in front of the flower shop down on Main Street. Willie's niece Corina runs the flower shop, so they won't be going anywhere anytime soon.

The three gentlemen made their first appearance in the debut series title Quiet Anchorage. Since then, their involvement in the different plots has been growing. They are Isabel and Alma's "eyes and ears" on Main Street. They are also the Trumbo sisters's good friends who enjoy their company.

While Isabel and Alma are based on real people (my aunts who are now deceased), the Three Musketeers are colorful characters I just made up. Readers have said they like the interactions between the Three Musketeers and the Trumbo sisters because they add a lot of good humor to my cozy mystery series.

This summer, for some reason, the crepe myrtle has been unusually striking and vivid. I've noticed it while out doing my roadwork (i.e., walking) around our neighborhood. You might know it better as summer lilac. There might be other names for the flowering bush, too. We had a crepe myrtle bush at our previous house, and I remember the Japanese beetles loved eating it. Actually, it can grow to more than just a bush, as I've seen the crepe myrtle as large as a small tree. Our present yard is much smaller, and I don't have enough real estate to plant anything new in it. The crepe myrtle flower seems to bloom in different shades of red and purple. I don't remember it as being a high maintenance bush, so maybe that is part of its appeal and popularity. Many of our neighbors have it growing in their yards. I suppose you may be able to buy it at your local plant nursery. If we get our lot cleared off any, I may look into buying a plant or two of it to enjoy next summer. And the summers after that.    

This is my first blog post on BookLikes.