ANOTHER FUNERAL

Well, another beloved relative died this past week, one day before her 98th birthday. Aunt Sara was soft-spoken, kind, and the kind of woman who's easy to be around. We're leaving tomorrow, going up to Atlanta for her funeral where she'll be laid beside her daughter who died way too young.

This has been a really bad year for deaths of people close to us. I hope next year will be better. Otherwise, people may start lopping us off the friends list!

And of course, the cats have spotted the suitcases and are beginning to show signs of displeasure. They'll be expecting extra wet food to make up for our absence. We'll have to leave the heat turned up for them, too, because they hate cold, and the temperature today didn't break fifty. A big change from the seventies we were enjoying two days ago.

But it always happens when we have to travel. At least snow isn't predicted where we're heading.

Now I'll finish packing. If I can get this clingy cat off my foot...

TRAVELS IN GA

A week or so ago, we had to go up to Athens and then across the state nearly to the Alabama line. We went  by several imposing courthouses, but I didn't think to take photos till we were on our way home. These are the kind of courthouses that made up the north Georgia setting for my light mystery TAXED TO THE MAX coming out later this month.

It's about a tax commissioner's office in an old courthouse. The tax commissioner is murdered, and  county officials want to appoint a young clerk to his job. She knows darned well she doesn't want the thankless, headachy position. Then her ex-fiancee, who jilted her in front of two hundred people--most of them local!--tells her not to take it.

Naturally she becomes tax commissioner. But the murderer is still on the loose so she gets twenty-four/seven protection while she's trying to figure out what she's supposed to be doing. The tag customers are ill-tempered, the property taxpayers aren't much better, and her sour co-worker isn't speaking to her.

Of course, none of that will matter if the murderer catches up to her.

Anyway, here are the courthouse pix I took.

This is the courthouse of Pike County, Georgia.

And this is the courthouse of Monroe County, Georgia.

Pretty, aren't they? A lot of Georgia's courthouses have burned or been destroyed. It's nice to see buildings from another era.

VISITING EGRET

Headed out of the complex for our regular walk, we spotted this guy fishing in our lagoon.

He posed for a picture, then  started fishing again.

Lovely weather, gorgeous wildlife, what else can we ask for?

PARANORMAL/GOTHIC NOW OUT

I almost forgot. November 30th saw THE WARWICKS OF SLUMBER MOUNTAIN pubbed from MuseItUp Publishing. It'll be in their bookstore for a week or so, then Amazon and the others.

http://museituppublishing.com/bookstore2/index.php?page=shop.product_details&flypage=flypage.tpl&product_id=484&category_id=64&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=1

Here's the cover!

LOCAL CRIME SCENE

The local paper tells it all. Last week, we had several strange crimes. On this particular day, the headline read: MAN JAILED FOR HOT FOOD ATTACK.

I ask you. What does that mean? Did he attack hot food? Was he a greedy food sucker-upper? Nope. Seems he actually threw the hot food at someone. That someone called the cops and he got arrested for simple battery.

The same day, a man reported his ex-wife struck him several times. Don't know why he didn't make a run for it, but he didn't. She also got arrested for simple battery.

And also on that day, a shoplifter was caught exiting Walmart with a pair of boots in his pants. Hmmm. Like someone wouldn't notice a pair of boots stuffed down his breeches?

I'll end with a crime committed a few days earlier. A man was arrested for shoplifting. This guy hid an MP3 player in his pants. Unfortunately, his pants were so baggy, they tripped him up as he tried to make his escape. He got arrested, too.

Oh, I love these local crime reports!

EARRING GIVEAWAY FOR DECEMBER

Another pair of earrings is going to one person who comments on the blog this month with the word 'earring' in the post.

This is a pair reminiscent of the Cancun seas in SET UP. Here's the photograph and link to the Etsy store where they're displayed.

http://www.etsy.com/listing/104750353/southseas-shimmer-earrings

EARRING GIVEAWAY

And the earrings this month go to Angie Sandro! Soon as I get a mailing address (cherylbdale@hotmail.com), I'll have them sent!

I'll be giving away one more pair in December! Same rules, photo to be posted tomorrow!