Interesting Mystery: Murder at Whitehall (Elizabethan Mysteries #4)

It's unusual for both of us to read the same mystery, but we do so when it comes to the series of Elizabethan era mysteries set in England. In the "Murder at Whitehall" the author brings back the main characters of Queen Elizabeth and Kate, her musician (and solver of mysteries). The novel is filled with intricate details of the period, so you feel almost overwhelmed by the detail of what people are wearing, eating and the surroundings, but it helps immerse you into the time period and place.     

     Although we enjoyed this mystery as we have the others, it wasn't into well past the first 100 pages that the murder occurred, and the mystery began to make sense from some of the details in the first 100 pages. So, read carefully, and don't be impatient! Kate's character, her musician father, actor Rob Cartman, whom she likes, and others are all very likeable. There's Spanish and Scottish visitors to the castle that add to the mix and mystery. It's a good mystery (although I liked the first 2 better, because the moved along faster). 

BOOK SUMMARY: Murder at Whitehall (Elizabethan Mysteries #4)

  The acclaimed author of Murder in the Queen’s Garden returns to Tudor England with amateur sleuth Kate Haywood embroiled in court intrigue and a devastating scandal.

 
1559. The Twelve Days of Christmas at Whitehall Palace will be celebrated as a grand affair. But there are those who wish to usher in the New Year by ending Queen Elizabeth’s reign....

Despite evenings of banquets and dancing, the European delegates attending Her Majesty’s holiday festivities are less interested in peace on earth than they are in fostering mistrust. Kate, the queen’s personal musician, hopes she can keep the royal guests entertained.

But then Queen Elizabeth receives a most unwanted gift—an anonymous letter that threatens to reveal untoward advances from her beloved Queen Catherine’s last husband, Thomas Seymour. Tasked with finding the extortionist, Kate has barely begun investigating when one of Spain’s visiting lords is found murdered. With two mysteries to unravel and an unsettling number of suspects to consider, Kate finds herself caught between an unscrupulous blackmailer and a cold-blooded killer..

Photos: Cuddle Time with Dolly and Tyler!

They sleep like this every day

  Here are some recent cuddle pictures of 2 of our canine kids, Dolly and Tyler who have been inseparable since they came together. 

A sweet cuddle

   Our 12 Year old Weimaraner, Dolly, and our 6 year old black and tan Dachshund, Tyler have been bonded since Tyler came to us in December 2012 as a foster dog. We of course adopted Tyler months later when he bonded to Dolly, and since then, they're never apart. They eat, sleep and play together.
  
 These are a series of pictures from the first week in March of Dolly and Tyler together. We love how they always have to be touching each other.
 

They make room in the same bed all the time

 In fact, when I didn't take Tyler with me to the vet one day to accompany Dolly for her check up, Tyler let me know. After Dolly and I returned, Tyler looked right at me, and peed on a rug in the house because he was mad at me!  So, Tyler and Dolly are ALWAYS together!
 

We love this, where Dolly's paw is under Tyler

Tyler always has to cuddle Dolly

We love Dolly's pay next to Tyler

Successful Dachshund Adoption Pictures !

Coco and Hansel on the way to their new home

  On our March 3 blog we told the story of the Dachshund rescue transport of a  bonded pair of dogs,  Coco and Hansel. That story was about their transport from New Jersey to Maryland that happened on Feb. 25th to a potential adopter (that didn't work out).  You can read about the original transport from New Jersey to Maryland HERE .
  After hearing that the first Adoptive home didn't work out, Kathy, the woman who fostered them for almost a year decided she couldn't live without them!  As rescue representatives it was our responsibility to bring them to Kathy, the person that actually wound up adopting them. 

Kathy with her Lab, Coco  and Hansel

   On March 1, Kathy drove from New Jersey to Maryland t to ensure she could have the dogs before the weekend. She stayed at a Maryland hotel and on March 2 we brought Hansel and Coco to their mom. 
    It all turned out well for everyone. The dogs were back in a familiar place, and they were happy. The only difference was they got to experience a couple of long road trips before Kathy realized how much she missed them and wanted them in her family.

  It's just another day in the life of a dog rescue volunteer - to work things out for the best interests of the dogs! 
   
To adopt dogs from Coast to Coast Dachshund Rescue, visit: www.c2cdr.org. 

Coco and Hansel's promotion before adoption

Their new mom puts them in her car

Did you Know? The Purpose of little diamond patches on backpacks

Credit: Huffington Post

Since we each have a backpack that we use to carry stuff when we travel, we found this story interesting. Do you know what the purpose of the little diamond patch is that is sewn onto some backpacks?

clip your hat onto it! 

It actually has a name or two. It is commonly called a “lash tab” or “pig snout,” according to Marie Claire. The Huffington Post noted that historically, outdoorsmen would attach ice axes to the tab with a rope for easy access. Modern explorers might thread earbuds, shoe laces or a wet umbrella cord through the tab.

BTW- Squares are often made of leather because it's less vulnerable to freezing than cloth.

VIDEO: Huffington Post Explains Diamond Patches

Fun at La Cakerie Belair Grand Opening

Rob and Tom in line at La Cakerie

On Saturday, February 25th we stopped by our friend Jason Hisley's new location (his THIRD!) for his famous gourmet La Cakerie bakery in Belair, Maryland. Our friend Matt came with us to check it out. When we arrived, there was a saxophone player filling the air outside with music and the line stretched from the counter inside to several people deep outside the front door! It was a crazy, busy opening day and it was nice to see it.
 
To find La Cakerie on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LaCakerieBakeShop/ 

Here's the post from the Facebook page about the success of the opening day:

 

 

Tom an Matt standing in line outside the door

La Cakerie BEL AIR is SOLD OUT!! Record breaking day and unfortunately having to close early because we have NOTHING left!! Crumbs!!! 
Thank you thank you thank you to all of you ur friends family, coworkers and loved ones who made this possible. 
From jason, I can't thank everyone enough!! Have a wonderful evening and a fantastic weekend everyone! Thank you!!!

The long line inside 

Here's an article about the opening from the Belair Downtown Alliance Blog: 

Jason Hisley

La Cakerie is an artisan bakery in Downtown Bel Air that features a variety of baked goods, cakes and cupcakes. Now that things are in full swing, the La Cakerie Grand Opening has been announced and is scheduled to take place at the Bel Air location on Saturday, February 25 from 10am to 7pm.

Jason Hisley, Owner and Executive Chef, is a native of Bel Air who graduated Bel Air High School in 2006. He has been actively involved in the Bel Air community through the sales of La Cakerie products in Main Street stores, as well as taking part in Bel Air’s newly formed Belle Aire Market and two upcoming events in March called Sweets on the Streets and the Chocolate, Brew & Wine Tour.

If you know Jason, you know he doesn’t settle for “just good.” So, be sure to visit Downtown Bel Air and stop by the La Cakerie Grand Opening, it will have a Mardis Gras inspired twist that you will not want to miss! The ribbon cutting ceremony is scheduled for 11am at 22 S Main Street, Bel Air, MD 21014. La Cakerie has two other existing stores in Towson and Mount Vernon and has been featured on Cake Wars, Cupcake Wars, and Cutthroat Kitchen. La Cakerie won Cake Wars in 2016!

La Cakerie from across the street

Front window with a display cake

Voice-Activated Home Products Can be Hacked/Security Risk

A scientist I work with who deals with voice activated technology sent this note of caution for people who have it in their homes. I didn't know that it stores your commands, and can even store your conversations!  - 

DID YOU KNOW?    If you have voice activated (smart) TV, or the Google (voice) or Amazon (echo) or Apple (siri) voice activation or any other device or application connected to the internet that responds to your voice commands, then you are allowing audio from your home to be sent to servers on the internet for translation AND STORAGE.

This toy has a vulnerability

    The Internet of Things (IoT), smart thermostats, refrigerators, etc is already being run as zombie bots to execute DDOS attacks and spam delivery. It is only a matter of time for your “smart” refrigerator, thermostat, electronic door lock, etc to be hacked to your detriment.

WHAT CAN BE HACKED? -, As security researchers revealed a vulnerability in Fisher-Price’s “Smart Toys” which could have exposed children’s profiles to hackers, including names, birthdates, gender, language, and more, as well as allowing for hijacking of children’s accounts to change their user profiles or other data.

BOTTOM LINE:  Be very careful about installing such “technologically sweet” items in your home.

CHECK THESE PLACES FOR BREACHES:  I highly recommend the following URLs to keep you up-to-date on the internet threats (personal and professional).

https://www.databreaches.net/

Most up-to-date, but brief descriptions, of the latest breaches

http://krebsonsecurity.com/
Excellent, in-depth reporting, and provides a boatload of good information concerning threats to your personal digital security

https://www.scmagazine.com/
A web magazine for the business security reporting

https://blog.malwarebytes.com/
A more tech-savvy site

http://www.tomsguide.com/t/security/
More information for your personal digital security

http://thehackernews.com/
Rapid reporting of break-ins

https://nakedsecurity.sophos.com/
More information useful to your personal digital security

https://haveibeenpwned.com/ 
A site that will tell you if your Email identity has been harvested in the hack of some company’s database
(and … do you have yahoo Email account … if so, consider it compromised)

http://www.digitalattackmap.com/ 
A real-time digital attack map by Google

In the news: Donald Trump Could Be The First President In Over 100 Years Without A Dog

This article says a lot about the current administration. A person who doesn't like dogs or cats is someone who doesn't understand what unconditional love means. Pets teach us unconditional love and care of others. Something that's lacking in the WH. However, not having a pet in the White House is a good thing in this instance, because the dog or cat would be neglected.

Donald Trump Could Be the First President In Over 100 Years Without A Dog

President Ford's canine companion

For a man who’s reportedly obsessed with loyalty, President Donald Trump sure has an odd relationship with man’s best friend.

It’s looking very possible that Trump could be the first president in nearly 130 years not to have a dog in the White House.

Last month, some believed he might adopt a Goldendoodle named “Patton,” courtesy of Lois Pope, one of Trump’s friends in Florida. But as so often happens with dogs, Pope fell in love with it and decided to take the offer off the table.

President Obama's Canine Companion

“I walked over to him, through the Secret Service, and I told him, ‘Donald, I’m sorry. You can’t have Patton,’ ” Pope told The New York Post, recalling the moment she broke the news.

The president didn’t seem to take it particularly hard.

“Donald said, ‘But, Lois, I can’t take the dog,’ ” Pope said. “He said, ‘Look at what I do. I’m here, I’m in New York, I’m in Washington. What am I going to do with the dog?’ And I said, ‘Well, you can’t have him!’”

President Bush's dogs

“We went back and forth between ‘You can’t have him’ and ‘I don’t want him’ for a little while,” she added.

 A man stands near a Donald Trump campaign vehicle with an image of a dog in a window before a campaign rally on Feb. 5, 2016, in South Carolina.

The last dog-less president was William McKinley, who died just over a year into his second term after developing gangrene following an assassination attempt, according to the Presidential Pet Museum, a donation-based institution not affiliated with the White House or federal government. McKinley had roosters, a parrot and several kittens, the museum says on its website.

Woodrow Wilson narrowly avoided the label of being the last president to not have a dog after adopting a Bull Terrier named “Bruce” at the end of his second term. Wilson also had a purebred ram named “Ike” that chewed cigars and charged at White House staff in a “forceful and strategic” manner, according to a newspaper description at the time.

Wilson also appreciated a dog’s ability to judge character, once remarking, “If a dog ... will not come to you after he has looked you in the face, you ought to go home and examine your conscience.”

    "If a dog ... will not come to you after he has looked you in the face, you ought to go home and examine your conscience." -  Woodrow Wilson

As for the last president to have no pet whatsoever, you’d have to go all the way back to Andrew Johnson, who served from 1865 to 1869. (Though an argument could be made Harry Truman, who hated dogs but nonetheless received numerous puppies as gifts, also went pet-less).

There are some real advantages to having a dog around the house.

Huffington Post contributor Natasha Ashton notes an animal could improve everything from Trump’s relationship with the media to his own personal health. Dogs help lower anxiety and blood pressure in their human friends, and help reduce stress overall.

At a bare minimum, a dog could help Trump cope with all those lonely evenings he reportedly spends at the White House. With his wife, Melania, and son Barron still in New York City, Trump has reportedly been turning to Twitter for affirmation.

 

Dog Transport - Why a Rescue is the Best Place to Adopt

Coco and Hansel

Last weekend we took part in a transport for a possible adoption of a bonded pair of Dachshunds.Sometimes adoptions don't work out, which is why Rescues give a 1-2 week trial period.
   That's why it's so much better to adopt from a rescue, because if the dog's personalities (and they all have their own personalities) don't mesh with you and your home, then they can be returned to the foster parent
   The passengers were Dachshunds named Coco and Hansel through Coast to Coast Dachshund Rescue (that we've been working with for years).
   On Saturday, February 25th, we drove 2 plus hours one way  to get the dogs from another transporter. We met in Delaware off Interstate 95. 

They've been with the rescue for a year in foster care and now adopted

    The dogs have been in the rescue for about a year. They came from a home where they lived for 10 years with a man until he met a woman who told him to "get rid of the dogs."  Of course we would have  dumped her, but he dumped his 2 children into the rescue. It's really appalling what people do to their dogs. Regardless, they were with a foster parent in northern New Jersey for about a year.
      Donna in New Jersey got the dogs from the foster parent and transported them to Philadelphia, where Glen and his 2 sons picked them up and took them to Delaware. It takes a lot of organization to make it happen.
   After a couple of days, the adopter realized that the two boys were not a good fit, which happens and is fine. Fortunately, the former foster mom decided to adopt them, because she really missed them.  She wanted to ensure she has them for the weekend, so yesterday she drove down to Maryland and picked them up.

Fun Story of the Week: Elderly and the Radio

Here's a story of the week to make you smile. (Thanks to our friend Elvina for sharing it): 

This letter was sent to a Principal's office after Kean Elementary School had sponsored a luncheon for the elderly. An elderly lady received a new radio at the lunch as a door prize and was writing to say thank you.  

    

Dear Kean Elementary: 
   God bless you for the beautiful radio I won at your recent senior citizens luncheon. I am 84 years old and live at the Sprenger Home for the Aged.

   All of my family has passed away.. I am all alone now and it's nice to know that someone is thinking of me. God bless you for your kindness to an old forgotten lady. My roommate is 95 and has always had her own radio, but before I received one, she would never let me listen to hers, even when she was napping. 

   The other day her radio fell off the night stand and broke into a lot of pieces.  It was awful and she was in tears. Her distress over the broken radio touched me and I knew this was God's way of answering my prayers. 

   She asked if she could listen to mine, and I told her to kiss my ass. 

Thank you for that opportunity. 
Sincerely, 
Agnes 

Another Fun Barking Detective Mystery! The Big Chihuahua by Waverly Curtis

I just finished reading and enjoying the 3rd in the "Barking Detective Mystery" series with Pepe the talking chihuahua called  The Big Chihuahua by Waverly Curtis. 
  This is the third book I've read in the series and it is absolutely my favorite mystery series involving a dog. Pepe is a talking Chihuahua who has a fun personality, and seems to have lived so many adventures before his mom, Geri Sullivan adopted him. 
   This time, they're investigating a dog-related cult called "Dogawanda" that includes a Weimaraner (like ours) and a murder mystery.  The characters, including Geri's P.I. "boss" Jimmy G who always talks in third person, and her boyfriend Felix are great supporting characters.
   I can't wait to read the next in the series!
  BTW- You can follow the authors on their website devoted to Pepe at: http://www.thepepenovels.com/
-Rob 

ABOUT THE BOOK: "In matters of courage, there is no bigger dog than me!"
P.I. Geri Sullivan and her talking Chihuahua, Pepe, are always hungry to sink their teeth into a new case. So if helping a hapless husband win back his wayward wife means sneaking into a cult of dog-worshippers, porque no?
Inside the believers' rural retreat, Pepe perks up his ears when the charismatic leader pegs him as the next incarnation of the spirit Dogawanda. But the discovery of a body, murdered between mantras, suggests there's more chicanery than channeling going on in this suspicious sect. While wild wolves howl, a killer is on the prowl--and it's up to Geri and her canine compadre to dig up the dirt.