I recently learned about a really cool newspaper devoted entirely to dogs in central and southern Maine called Downeast Dog News
There's also a digital version, but it contains a fraction of what is printed. Online you'll find COLUMNS, ADOPTABLE DOGS, CALENDAR, and BUSINESS LISTINGS. My ad won't come out until the January issue (it's monthly) but the designer did such a great job that I had to share it here, too!
Photo: Margaret and Rob
On Friday, December 1st, 2023, I flew into Baltimore from Maine for the last meeting of the Inspired Ghost Tracking Team. The team will still be active, but not meeting monthly anymore. It was great to be with my paranormal family.
Margaret said on December 1, 2023: "A bittersweet moment with it being the lastInspired Ghost Tracking Meetup Final Event: Meet & Greet. It was great seeing everyone and talking about our memories. Thanks to all that came and shared time with us." ****BUT the Group is not shut down, it's just the monthly meetings that won't happen. We will STILL BE INVESTIGATING!***
You can STILL Connect with Inspired Ghost Tracking on Facebook, daily! https://www.facebook.com/inspiredghost
Photo: Troy and Rob
A huge thanks to Margaret for 13 amazing years of organizing, and coordinating lectures, trips, and investigations! "Thanks" just doesn't go far enough. She has made a difference in the healing of so many people living and on the other side- AND she brought people like us together from all walks of life to understand the paranormal, educate, assist, and learn. Being part of Inspired is a gift to me and others, and I know I will continue to work with Margaret and the group remotely to help with other paranormal issues!
(Photo below: the core group in 2019 at a Maryland Mansion - stories highlighted in "Case Files of Inspired Ghost Tracking" (#1) on sale now. )
1140 News. Nov. 17, 2023
Rep. George Santos (R, NY-3) said he would not seek reelection in 2024, an announcement which came the same day the House Ethics Committee released a report (Summary below) accusing Santos of campaign fraud, misuse of campaign funds, and other federal crimes. The committee referred its evidence to the Justice Department for potential prosecution.
The Santos saga started after he flipped New York's newly reconfigured 3rd Congressional District during the 2022 midterms. A few weeks after the electoral win, reports surfaced alleging Santos extensively fabricated his resume (see previous write-up), from his educational background to his Jewish ancestry. Since then, Santos has been charged with 23 federal crimes, from wire fraud to identity theft. Santos has denied the charges to date.
Ethics chairman Rep. Michael Guest (R, MS-3) said he'd move to expel Santos ahead of the 2024 election. Read the committee's report here.
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USA Today reported the Ethics Findings concluded there is “substantial evidence that Representative Santos violated federal criminal laws.” The committee said it would be referring the evidence it found to the Department of Justice as it pursues a criminal case against Santos on charges including money laundering, wire fraud and lying to Congress. Over 170,000 pages of documents, testimony from witnesses and financial statements were compiled by the committee which “demonstrated the breadth of Representative Santos’ misconduct,” the report says.
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BONUS PARODY/COMEDY VIDEO FROM RANDY RAINBOW: https://youtu.be/tQ5F7fve4N0?si=Pnp5E2RX1KCpahuf
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This week's hero is a resident of Berkeley, Massachusetts, who feeds and cares for a feral cat colony and noticed one little 5 week old kitten who needed immediate medical attention because of freezing temperatures. Here's the story.
(Photo: Applesauce is recovering after nearly freezing to death. Credit: Animal Rescue League of Boston)
5-week-old kitten rescued after nearly freezing to death in Berkley, Mass.A 5-week-old kitten that was found cold to the touch recently in Berkley when temperatures dipped below freezing is recovering after almost dying from exposure.
The Animal Rescue League of Boston said the kitten, now named Applesauce, was found almost frozen to death in a cat colony by a resident who regularly monitors and feeds the felines. The community cat feeder was alarmed, according to the animal rescue organization, that the kitten was cold to the touch and listless, taking it inside and using blankets and sugar water in an attempt to warm him after contacting the Animal Rescue League.
When the kitten’s temperature was taken by the organization at their animal care shelter, his temperature was just 93 degrees — a normal body temperature for a cat is between 100.5 and 102.5 degrees.
“ARL’s veterinary team used a heated blanket to help increase the kitten’s body temperature and closely monitored him,” the organization said in a statement. “Over the course of several hours, the kitten’s temperature had risen to 98F, and he was starting to perk up, indicated by a voracious appetite. Aside from being nearly frozen to death, the kitten was otherwise in good health.”
For the first 24 to 36 hours that Applesauce was with his foster family, they reported he was still lethargic and spent most of his time curled up sleeping, the Animal Rescue League said.
“However, by the third day in the foster home, Applesauce rebounded, being very vocal, attention-seeking, and purring for hours on end!” the organization said.
Now 7 weeks old, Applesauce is still too young to be adopted, but the Animal Rescue League said the kitten will be ready to go to his new forever home in “a matter of weeks.”
I love mysteries, and recently I read a mystery and a western by the late, prolific writer Ed Gorman. So, I ordered a copy of his "Stranglehold" political mystery that came out in 2010. Despite loving his other books, I couldn't even force myself to finish this one.
HERE'S WHY I GAVE UP ON IT - I couldn't identify with or care about any of the characters. It's about a Congresswoman who is running for another term in office, and her (male) campaign manager follows her to a motel, where she gets startled and leaves abruptly. The campaign manager finds blood in the empty motel room. Then there's an overbearing, controlling stepmother to the Congresswoman. There are 2 more characters who are a young couple with abuse issues, and childbirth issues. After 64 pages into this 207-page book, I couldn't figure out who or what I should be caring about, so I gave up on it. I've only given up on about 10 books, and sadly, this was one of them.
I realize it's all a matter of personal taste, so you may stick with it longer and enjoy it. i just didn't care to find out the mystery with the Congresswoman. It didn't grab me.
ABOUT THE BOOK (From Goodreads) : Award-winning author Ed Gorman is back with political consultant and troubleshooter Dev Conrad, in this riveting sequel. When Dev Conrad agreed to work with Congresswoman Susan Cooper, member of a prominent political family, he didn't know that the worst threat her reelection campaign would face would come from Cooper herself. The congresswoman has a secret she's not willing to share with Dev, forcing him to follow her the way a detective would. But the campaign is burdened with other problems as well, starting with the murder of scandal-plagued political consultant Monica Davies. Rumor has it she had some information that would destroy Susan Cooper's campaign. In the wake of another murder, another blackmailer, and two or three suspicious relationships, Dev must figure out who is trying to sabotage the campaign. A rip-roaring ride, " Stranglehold" will win your vote.
This is amazing. You never know the back story of people around you. A New Hampshire man had no car and no furniture, and drove a riding lawnmower, after giving up his car (and teaching driver's ed). He died with a big secret, leaving his town millions. This is a fascinating story.
New Hampshire man died with a big secret, leaving his town millions
Wednesday, November 22, 2023 KATHY McCORMACK and ROBERT F. BUKATY (Associated Press)
HINSDALE, N.H. — Geoffrey Holt was unassuming as the caretaker of a mobile home park in Hinsdale, New Hampshire, where he lived a simple, but curious life.
Residents would see Holt around town in threadbare clothes — riding his lawn mower, headed to the convenience store, parked along the main road reading a newspaper or watching cars pass.
He did odd jobs for others, but rarely left town. Despite having taught driver’s ed to high schoolers, Holt had given up driving a car. He opted for a bicycle instead and finally the mower. His mobile home in the park was mostly empty of furniture -- no TV and no computer, either. The legs of the bed went through the floor.
“He seemed to have what he wanted, but he didn’t want much,” said Edwin “Smokey” Smith, Holt’s best friend and former employer.
But Holt died earlier this year with a secret: He was a multimillionaire. And what’s more, he gave it all away to this community of 4,200 people.
His will had brief instructions: $3.8 million to the town of Hinsdale to benefit the community in the areas of education, health, recreation and culture.
“I don’t think anyone had any idea that he was that successful,” said Steve Diorio, chairperson of the town selectboard who’d occasionally wave at Holt from his car. “I know he didn’t have a whole lot of family, but nonetheless, to leave it to the town where he lived in ... It's a tremendous gift."
Possibilities for Investing the Money
The money could go far in this Connecticut River town sandwiched between Vermont and Massachusetts with abundant hiking and fishing opportunities and small businesses. It's named for Ebenezer Hinsdale, an officer in the French and Indian Wars who built a fort and a grist mill. In addition to Hinsdale's house, built in 1759, the town has the nation’s oldest continually operating post office, dating back to 1816.
There's been no formal gathering to discuss ideas for the money since local officials were notified in September. Some residents have proposed upgrading the town hall clock, restoring buildings, maybe buying a new ballot counting machine in honor of Holt, who always made sure he voted. Another possibility is setting up an online drivers' education course.
Organizations would be be able to apply for grants via a trust through the New Hampshire Charitable Foundation, drawing from the interest, roughly about $150,000 annually. Hinsdale will “utilize the money left very frugally as Mr. Holt did,” said Kathryn Lynch, town administrator.
Holt's Best Friend
Holt’s best friend Smith, a former state legislator who became the executor of Holt's estate, had learned about his fortune in recent years.
He knew Holt, who died in June at age 82, had varied interests, like collecting hundreds of model cars and train sets that filled his rooms, covered the couch and extended into a shed. He also collected books about history, with Henry Ford and World War II among his favorite topics. Holt had an extensive record collection too, including Handel and Mozart.
Smith also knew that Holt, who earlier in life had worked as a production manager at a grain mill that closed in nearby Brattleboro, Vermont, invested his money. Holt would find a quiet place to sit near a brook and study financial publications.
Holt confided to Smith that his investments were doing better than he had ever expected and wasn't sure what to to do with the money. Smith suggested that he remember the town.
“I was sort of dumbfounded when I found out that all of it went to the town,” he said.
One of Holt's first investments into a mutual fund was in communications, Smith said. That was before cellphones.
Holt's Sister and Family History
Holt's sister, 81-year-old Alison Holt of Laguna Woods, California, said she knew her brother invested and remembered that not wasting money and investing were important to their father.
“Geoffrey had a learning disability. He had dyslexia,” she said. “He was very smart in certain ways. When it came to writing or spelling, he was a lost cause. And my father was a professor. So, I think that Geoff felt like he was disappointing my dad. But maybe socking away all that money was a way to compete.”
She and her brother grew up in Springfield, Massachusetts. Their father, Lee Holt, taught English and world literature at American International College. Their mother, Margaret Holt, had a Shakespearean scholar for a dad. She was an artist who “absorbed the values of the Quaker Society of Friends,” according to her obituary. Both parents were peace activists who eventually moved to Amherst and took part in a weekly town vigil that addressed local to global peace and justice issues.
Their children were well-educated. Geoffrey went to boarding schools and attended the former Marlboro College in Vermont, where students had self-designed degree plans. He graduated in 1963 and served in the U.S. Navy before earning a master’s degree from the college where his father taught in 1968. In addition to driver's ed, he briefly taught social studies at Thayer High School in Winchester, New Hampshire, before getting his job at the mill.
Alison remembers their father reading Russian novels to them at bedtime. Geoffrey could remember all those long names of multiple characters.
He seemed to borrow a page from his own upbringing, which was strict and frugal, according to his sister, a retired librarian. His parents had a vegetable garden, kept the thermostat low, and accepted donated clothes for their children from a friend.
She said Geoffrey didn't need a lot to be happy, didn't want to draw attention to himself, and might have been afraid of moving. He once declined a promotion at the mill that would have required him to relocate.
“He always told me that his main goal in life was to make sure that nobody noticed anything,” she said, adding that he'd say "or you might get into trouble.”
They didn't talk much about money, though he would ask her often if she needed anything.
“I just feel so sad that he didn’t indulge himself just a little bit,” she said.
But he never seemed to complain. He also always wasn’t on his own, either. As a young man, he was briefly married and divorced. Years later, he grew close to a woman at the mobile home park and moved in with her. She died in 2017.
Neither Alison nor Geoffrey had any children.
Holt suffered a stroke a couple of years ago, and worked with therapist Jim Ferry, who described him as thoughtful, intellectual and genteel, but not comfortable with following the academic route that family members took.
Holt had developed mobility issues following his stroke, and missed riding his mower.
“I think for Geoff, lawn mowing was relaxation, it was a way for him to kind of connect with the outdoors,” Ferry said. “I think he saw it as service to people that he cared about, which were the people in the trailer park that I think he really liked because they were not fancy people."
Residents are hoping Hinsdale will get noticed a bit more because of the gift.
“It's actually a forgotten corner in New Hampshire,” said Ann Diorio, who's married to Steve Diorio and is on the local planning board. “So maybe this will put it on the map a little bit."
_____ McCormack reported from Concord, New Hampshire.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Southern staples like magnolia trees and camellias may now be able to grow without frost damage in once-frigid Boston.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s ” plant hardiness zone map ” was updated Wednesday for the first time in a decade, and it shows the impact that climate change will have on gardens and yards across the country.
Climate shifts aren’t even — the Midwest warmed more than the Southeast, for example. But the map will give new guidance to growers about which flowers, vegetables and shrubs are most likely to thrive in a particular region.
One key figure on the map is the lowest likely winter temperature in a given region, which is important for determining which plants may survive the season. It’s calculated by averaging the lowest winter temperatures of the past 30 years.
Boston University plant ecologist Richard Primack, who was not involved in the map project, said: “Half the U.S. has shifted to a slightly warmer climatic zone than it was 10 years ago.” He called that “a very striking finding.”
Primack said he has noticed changes in his own garden: The fig trees are now surviving without extensive steps to protect them from winter cold. He has also spotted camellias in a Boston botanical garden and southern magnolia trees surviving the past few winters without frost damage. These species are all generally associated with warmer, more southern climates.
Winter temperatures and nighttime temperatures are rising faster than daytime and summer temperatures, Primack said, which is why the lowest winter temperature is changing faster than the U.S. temperature overall.
As the climate shifts, it can be tricky for plants — and growers — to keep up.
“There are a lot of downsides to the warmer winter temperatures, too,” said Theresa Crimmins, who studies climate change and growing seasons at the University of Arizona and was not involved in creating the map. “When we don’t have as cold winter temperatures, we don’t have as severe die-backs of insects that carry diseases, like ticks and mosquitoes.”
She added that hotter, drier summers in some regions may kill plants that once thrived there. “You wouldn’t want to plant plants that aren’t adapted right now for where you’re living,” she said.
Updated 9:08 PM EST, November 20, 2023, Associated Press
PARIS (AP) — A faded and cracked felt bicorne hat worn by Napoléon Bonaparte sold for $2.1 million at an auction Sunday of the French emperor’s belongings. Yes, $2.1 million.
The signature broad, black hat — one of a handful still in existence that Napoléon wore when he ruled 19th-century France and waged war in Europe — was initially valued at 600,000 to 800,000 euros ($650,000-870,000). It was the centerpiece of Sunday’s auction in Fontainebleau of memorabilia collected by a French industrialist who died last year.
ROB'S HISTORY NOTE - For those who don't know much about Napoleon: Napoleon Bonaparte was one of the most successful generals of the French revolutionary armies. He was emperor of France from 1804-14, and in 1815. Napoleon Bonaparte (1768-1821) is regarded as one of history's greatest military leaders.
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But the bidding quickly jumped higher and higher until Jean Pierre Osenat, president of the Osenat auction house, designated the winner.
‘’We are at 1.5 million (euros) for Napoleon’s hat .... for this major symbol of the Napoleonic epoch,’' he said, as applause rang out in the auction hall. The buyer, whose identity was not released, must pay 28.8% in commissions according to Osenat, bringing the overall cost to 1.9 million euros ($2.1 million).
While other officers customarily wore their bicorne hats with the wings facing front to back, Napoleon wore his with the ends pointing toward his shoulders. The style — known as “en bataille,” or in battle — made it easier for his troops to spot their leader in combat.
The hat on sale was first recovered by Col. Pierre Baillon, a quartermaster under Napoléon, according to the auctioneers. The hat then passed through many hands before industrialist Jean-Louis Noisiez acquired it.
The entrepreneur spent more than a half-century assembling his collection of Napoleonic memorabilia, firearms, swords and coins before his death in 2022. The sale came days before the release of Ridley Scott’s film ‘’Napoleon’’ with Joaquin Phoenix, which is rekindling interest in the controversial French ruler.
The York Woods Tree & Products at 300 ME-236, Eliot, Maine hosts several events, and we previously attended the Halloween event. They always have food vendors, and this festival featured a LOT of local artisans.
Vendors were selling jewelry, crocheted goods, dog treats, quilts, homemade soaps, chocolates (I HAD to get some), and more. The Christmas tree lot was huge (well, we have an artificial pre-lit tree, so we didn't need one).
Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall (R) argued he has the right to prosecute people who provide and facilitate travel for out-of-state abortion access on "criminal conspiracy charges" in a new court filing. “An elective abortion performed in Alabama would be a criminal offense; thus, a conspiracy formed in the State to have that same act performed outside the State is illegal,” he said.
2) Alabama Just Said It Will Use Drug Laws to Prosecute Women for Taking Abortion Pills
Law and Crime News, Jan 12, 2023Alabama intends to criminally prosecute women who use abortion pills to terminate a pregnancy, using an old law adopted to protect children from cocaine and other drugs, the attorney general has announced.
The announcement fell just days after the FDA changed its regulations to make a commonly-used abortion pill far more accessible than it has ever been.
Alabama has a near-total ban on abortions called the Alabama Human Life Protection Act (AHLPA), which was signed into law by the state’s Republican governor Kay Ivey in 2019. At the time the law was adopted, it was unenforceable as an unconstitutional deprivation of liberty under the Supreme Court’s interpretation of the First Amendment in Roe v. Wade.
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BONUS- Idiot gets Jail!
PROUD BOYS JOE BIGGS, ZACHARY REHL SENTENCED FOR JAN. 6 PLOT
Two leaders of the Proud Boys street gang, Joe Biggs and Zachary Rehl, were each sentenced Thursday to more than a decade in prison for their role in the planning and execution of the violent plot to overturn the 2020 election in favor of Donald Trump on Jan. 6, 2021.
Troopers rescue 92-year-old man who had fallen down an Embankment
Oregon State Police Blog 11/13/23
BAKER CITY, Ore. 13 Nov. 2023 – Oregon State Police troopers recently rescued an elderly driver who had earlier been reported as overdue. The 92-year-old motorist, Larry Hendrickson, is recovering well after spending a night exposed to below-freezing temperatures.
On Nov. 7, 2023, at approximately 3 p.m. troopers were notified of an overdue motorist. The motorist was last known to be traveling westbound on Interstate 84 near milepost 283 in Baker County. The following morning, troopers located the vehicle abandoned on West Airport Lane. A short distance away, the troopers discovered the elderly male driver down an embankment.
The driver had fallen down the embankment and was covered in vegetation when discovered. Thankfully, the driver was conscious and breathing when located by an OSP trooper and an officer from Baker City Police Department. The man had survived the night in life-threatening cold weather conditions. When located, the temperatures remained below freezing. Officers rendered first aid until emergency medical responders from Metro West Ambulance arrived and transported the driver to a local hospital.
VIDEO: https://youtu.be/7loHBh8rzYo?si=QUfyzgHl4PLsPuOA
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“We are grateful for this positive outcome. Cold weather exposure can be life-threatening and another night in these conditions may have been fatal,” said Captain Kyle Kennedy, Oregon State Police. Like Mr. Hendrickson, motorists are encouraged to make sure others know their travel plans and intended route in the event of unexpected travel-related complications.
# # # About the Oregon State Police Oregon State Police (OSP) is a multi-disciplined organization that is charged with protecting the people, wildlife, and natural resources in Oregon. OSP enforces traffic laws on the state’s roadways, investigates and solves crime, conducts postmortem examinations and forensic analysis, and provides background checks, and law enforcement data. The agency regulates gaming and enforces fish, wildlife, and natural resource laws. OSP is comprised of more than 1,400 staff members – including troopers, investigators, and professional staff – who provide a full range of policing and public safety services to Oregon and other law enforcement agencies throughout Oregon.
On Nov. 15th, The City Council of Hialeah, Florida revealed how truly stupid they are. It was all orchestrated by the Idiot Mayor of Hialeah, Esteban Bovo Jr. LEAD IDIOT. They decided to rename a city street after the Twice impeached, Four times indicted, fraud, liar, orange-faced, repulsive criminal. You simply can't be any more stupid than that city council.
Hialeah City Council members vote unanimously to name road after Donald Trump
Florida now has a street named after former President (GAG) Donald Trump following a rally the Republican held in a suburb of Miami on Nov. 7 during the third GOP primary debate.Trump held the event in Hialeah, Florida, where Mayor Esteban "Steve" Bovo announced his intention to name a street after the 45th president in the heavily Republican community.
