A funeral home is doing above-average business, shipping a lot of dead bodies from Florida back to their home states. Something doesn’t smell right, so the company’s financial officer asks Archy to look into it.
What I Liked
It is very clear that the officer isn’t telling the whole truth about the source of angst, but Archy and his father think at first it will turn out to be nothing significant. Meanwhile, Binky convinces Archy to train him as a discreet detective, although Binky ends up swinging with some of the suspects, so the discreet part is gone. There is one character in the book, the wife of the CEO, who is dying of cancer and is absolutely delightful in every scene with Archy. She’s written in almost the same terms as Archy’s mom, and the affection shows.
What I Didn’t Like
There is a whole substory with the FBI to help with the investigation problem for other jurisdictions, but it rings false and unnecessary. Even the motive for what is going on seems light for the outcome.
I had it all worked out, was going to post some pics post-dental surgery today. Except apparently the universe had other plans for me.
Back in about 2022, when I had a root canal, they used an oral sedative like Diazepam or Triazolam, plus an IV sedation like Propofol. Together, they knocked me OUT. No memory of any of it.
For my cleaning in December, I did the IV only, and I didn’t go very deep. I was fully conscious, no amnesic effect, probably could have driven home. Obviously, not enough for something more serious than cleaning.
So, I arrived today expecting to do the two drugs … and no. Apparently, the rules have changed. I could do oral sedation AND nitrous oxide, OR I could do just the IV. I could not do oral plus IV. They called the dentistry hotline for Ontario, got a “no”, tried to push it but they said that the dentist would have to write to be validated for their interpretation. (The dentist felt he had been doing it for 30y and there was a loophole that you could have oral sedation too for nervous patients.)
Two hours of them arguing amongst themselves later, and I was back home with just a prescription for an antibiotic. If the College or deputy God of dentists say we can do it, we’ll do it. Otherwise, I’ll be on the hunt for a full surgeon with available anesthesia.
I guess N is for no dental stuff today. Stay tuned for the REAL N that I came up with.
Griswold Forsythe wants to know who is stealing valuables from around the family house.
What I Liked
Officially, Archy is there to catalog the books for insurance purposes. His real purpose — to catch a thief — is hidden. After you eliminate Griswold as a suspect, you have his wife Constance, daughter Geraldine, son and wife and granddaughter, a housekeeper, the housekeeper’s son, two maids, a chef, and a gardener. The fun is in finding out that each of them has at least one secret, sometimes several. The simple theft seems easy enough to solve, and then the stakes get raised with Griswold’s death. Was it the investigation into the thefts? Or something else…like money?
What I Didn’t Like
There is a mystery with a former polo player, some odd interactions within the family after a falling out, without much clear explanation of why the person is still around at first, and then even when revealed, it’s rather convoluted. The solution wasn’t particularly creative or interesting.
The Bottom Line
I would rather read some of the books he was cataloging
I have struggled with my “N” topic as anything that is N-related fits elsewhere.
Like Novelty…I want to do some things that are “new to me”, experiences I don’t normally do. Like maybe axe-throwing or archery. Or renting a houseboat. Something “different” from the norm. But the first two would likely go with health and fitness, the second with travel.
I considered Nurture. Taking care of myself, stepping back, meditation, more fresh air experiences. Except they kind of already fall under health.
No? Like I need to practice saying no to stuff? Not really, I’m already doing that. It started with my mom about a year after my dad died. I started saying no to being a default response for some things. I said no to being the automatic peacemaker in the family. On social stuff, I say no all the time — probably too much. I’ve said no to RASC involvement. I don’t have a problem saying no right now. Well, maybe I should say no to some of my own ideas, but that’s a different issue. I think.
I wondered about Navigation in the sense of a specific topic. Like AI. Or law studies. Or education or astronomy. Or retirement. But well, again, I already have those elements covered.
I could consider Nostalgia. It would incorporate some photos of my mom’s, a large scanning project, but again, that is going to go into retirement, not something I’ll get into much in the next year.
I could consider N is for Purging. Hehehe Technically, N would be for Needless i.e., a bunch of things in the house that I no longer need. That includes some electronics, clothes, and books in particular. I’ll purge after retirement. I might get rid of some stuff before then, but it’s not urgent.
And lastly, I have N is for networking? It’s possible. If I decide to do a legacy project before I exit the public service, I could use the networking to make that happen. It would however generally stop me from doing alternation, the HR “box” that I would be in wouldn’t be a great one for potential alternation, more of a temporary one until I exited. Not impossible, but unlikely.
So I’ll probably stick with N is for nostalgia. Maybe it doesn’t have to go that far back. Maybe I’ll just curate some of the stuff from Andrea, Jacob and I.
Are you doing anything for nostalgia this year? A special trip or scrapbooking project?
