Saturday, January 31, 2009

Crime Beat

A red Craftsman snowblower, a green Craftsman tool box and assorted Craftsman tools were reported stolen on or around Jan. 17 at 39 Fondiller Ave. Deputies said the tools were in a storage shed and the suspect broke the lock on the shed to gain access to the items.

I don't know which way to go with this one, the Christmas color scheme? The slavish name brand devotion?

Sunday, January 25, 2009

Crime Beat

• At 4:10 p.m. Jan. 3, a person on Heberle Road reported that a man came to her residence and asked her to cash a check. When she said she couldn’t, she said the man sat on her couch; she asked him to leave or she would call 911. He did leave, but the woman later discovered her wallet containing $40 and a credit card was missing from her purse, which was on the couch.

Ah, yes, the old cash-my-check-or-I'll-sit-on-your-couch scam. Damon Runyon used that one, I think.

Friday, January 23, 2009

Crime Beat

• At 10:46 a.m. Jan. 4, an officer on patrol stopped a car on the 4300 block of Culver Road for an air freshener hanging from the rear-view mirror. He said that as he approached the car, he smelled marijuana. The driver, Michael T. Berry Jr., 27, of 2109 Clifford Ave., Rochester, was subsequently charged with unlawful possession of marijuana when he admitted to concealing a bag of marijuana in his thermal underwear. He was also charged with third-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance when plastic was seen protruding from a body cavity, and police said he eventually pulled 19 bags of apparent crack cocaine out. The drugs were valued at around $400. Berry was also ticketed with operating a car with the driver’s view obstructed.

I don't think it was just the driver's view that was obstructed...

Wednesday, January 21, 2009

Crime Beat

Ah, the morons are back. We've missed them, haven't we?

• At 12:35 a.m. Dec. 28, an officer on patrol in the area of Norton Street stopped a car on Seymour Road for a broken headlight. The driver, Andrew Sanders, 20, of South Winton Road, Rochester, was subsequently charged with possessing a fake driver’s license and unlawful possession of marijuana. He was also ticketed with having no headlight. Two passengers also face possession of marijuana charges.

Monday, January 19, 2009

Crime Beat

I literally cannot make this stuff up...

Palmyra man accused of hurling cat
Palmyra, N.Y. —
A Palmyra man allegedly threw the family cat at a woman during a domestic dispute this morning, Wayne County deputies said.
Paul A. Wood, 25, of the Trolley Road Trailer Park, was charged with cruelty to animals, second-degree harassment and fourth-degree criminal mischief for allegedly punching a hole through the wall of his mobile home and throwing the cat at the woman, striking her in the back.
Wood was arraigned in Palmyra Town Court and released with an appearance ticket. An order of protection was issued for the woman.

Friday, January 2, 2009

The Movies of 2008

Yes, it's true. I keep not only a book log, but a movie log as well. And being in the field I'm in, you might be able to tell as much or more about me from this comprehensive list than the select book list. So, here they are, the 115 movies of 2008:

Calendar Girls (2003)
Cloverfield (2008)
Dead Reckoning (1947)
Railroaded! (1947)
The Asphalt Jungle (1950)
The Maltese Falcon (1941)
Nightmare Alley (1947)
In a Lonely Place (1950)
The Circle (1925)
The Killers (1946)
The Blue Dahlia (1946)
Ne le Dis a Personne [Tell No One] (2006)
The Lady of Scandal (1930)
The White Sister (1933)
They Drive by Night (1940)
High Sierra (1941)
Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942)
The Departed (2006)
The Big Sleep (1946)
Murder, My Sweet (1944)
Alvin and the Chipmunks (2007)
That Thing You Do - Extended Edition (1996)
The Lady in the Lake (1947)
Thank You for Smoking (2005)
Dark Passage (1947)
The Street With No Name (1948)
House of Bamboo (1955)
Killer's Kiss (1955)
Music and Lyrics (2007)
Border Incident (1949)
Laura (1944)
Criss Cross (1949)
Beat the Devil (1953)
Out of the Past (1947)
Key Largo (1948)
The World Moves On (1934)
Gun Crazy (1950)
The Set-Up (1949)
The Nuisance (1933)
Knocked Up (2007)
The Break-Up (2006)
Speed Racer (2008)
Death Proof (2007)
On Dangerous Ground (1952)
A Few Good Men (1992)
Malice (1993)
PS, I Love You (2008)
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008)
A Few Good Men (1992)
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989)
The American President (1995)
Kiss of Death (1947)
Premonition (2007)
50 First Dates (2004)
The Happening (2008)
The Wedding Singer (1998)
Captain Blood (1935)
The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938)
Revenge of Frankenstein (1958)
Murder, Inc. (1960)
E.T. (1982)
Defnitely, Maybe (2008)
Vantage Point (2008)
Wall-E (2008)
Iron Man (2008) - Twice!
Rebecca (1940)
The Mist (2007)
The Bad Sleep Well (1960)
Madame X (1929)
The Dark Knight (2008)
Tropic Thunder (2008)
The Mummy: The Tomb of the Dragon Emperor (2008)
The Hitch-Hiker (1953)
The Day of the Jackal (1973)
Slipstream (1989)
The Day After Tomorrow (2004)
The DaVinci Code (2006)
The House on 56th Street (1933)
Fly Me to the Moon (2008)
Guns Don't Argue (1957)
The Polar Express (2004)
The Spy With My Face (1965)
Lilly Turner (1933)
White Christmas (1954)
Lethal Weapon (1987)
Dark Delusion (1947)
Saraband for Dead Lovers (1948)
The Ref (1994)
Star Wars, Episode I: The Phantom Menace (1999)
Heroes for Sale (1933)
Another Dawn (1937)
Zack and Miri Make a Porno(2008)
Black Hand (1950)
The Simpsons Movie (2007)
Blackmail (1939)
Dark Hazard (1934)
The Man With Two Faces (1934)
The Wagons Roll at Night (1941)
The Feminine Touch (1941)
The World Changes (1933)
The St. Louis Kid (1934)
Pinocchio (1940)
Rififi (1955)
I Am Legend (2007)
Shoot the Piano Player(1960)
Serie Noire (1979)
A Night at the Opera (1935)
At the Circus (1939)
Apollo 13(1995)
The Man Who Knew Too Much (1934)
Blade: Trinity (2004)
Lady and the Tramp (1955)
The Holiday (2006)
The Racket (1951)
Ghost Rider (2007)

Thursday, January 1, 2009

The Books of 2008

I was inspired by Dan Wagner's all-inclusive 2008 list to do something similar. I actually finished 50 books this year, between reading and listening. And looking at some other people's lists, I don't feel like such a slouch anymore. Then I saw Marcus Sakey's list of stuff he really liked reading in 2008, no matter when it was released, and liked the idea. So I'll steal from him, instead.

Subset #1 - Lawrence Block.
I listened to Hit Man and Small Town on disc last year and realized, far too late, that I needed to be reading this guy from the get-go. In 2008, I read all the Keller books and the first Chip Harrison book. I actually met the man in May when he made a trip to Buffalo, and shook his hand. Then he was a Guest of Honor Bouchercon in Baltimore. Got to see him again. What a fantastic guy. And based on all the recommendations flying around the conference, I will be getting to several of the Scudder books in 2009.

Subset #2 - Chicago.
True, I actually read The Blade Itself in 2007, but I happened upon a CD version of it at the library and listened to it in 2008. And I did actually read At the City's Edge & Good People (Marcus Sakey) and Big City, Bad Blood & Trigger City (Sean Chercover) in 2008. All of them are great reads (don't just take my word for it) and both authors are just getting better. You should go out now and buy a copy of each, and then another copy for your local library. And both of these guys are great to talk to, if you happen to meet them at a bar somewhere, say in Indianapolis.

The Last Coyote, by Michael Connelly - My favorite Connelly book of the 8 or so I've read.

Violent Screen, by Stephen Hunter - Interesting film critique from a great thriller writer.

A Hell of a Woman, by Jim Thompson - Another author I got turned onto this year.

On Writing, by Stephen King - and not for the first time. If I read it again this year, don't be surprised.

Dragonflight, by Anne McCaffrey - Surprisingly good. And more sci-fi than I would have thought going in.

What the Dead Know, by Laura Lippman - Deservedly the winner of many awards. A great book.

Lost Boys, by Orson Scott Card - Already the author of one of my most-read books, Ender's Game, this book reads more like Stephen King. It posits a murder mystery in which none of the main characters are investigating the murder, just the reader. The main characters go about their daily lives and you get to squirm till the end.


Here's hoping for more great reads in 2009!