Standing Into Danger

Friday, February 3, 2023

Scarves I Can't Afford

Rain's Thursday Art Date theme for last week was Scarves.

I knew exactly where to go: 2201 Kalakaua Avenue in Waikiki.

I always check this place out, because I never know what I will find.

A Colorful Find

Waikiki, Oʻahu, Hawaii

January 23, 2023

An Enigmatic Image

Waikiki, Oʻahu, Hawaii

January 23, 2023

It's the beautiful flagship Hermès store on Waikiki's answer to Rodeo Drive.

Hermès on Kalakaua Avenue

Waikiki, Oʻahu, Hawaii

January 23, 2023

Hermès Logo

Wikipedia

Wow!

Waikiki, Oʻahu, Hawaii

January 23, 2023

I have never set foot in the store which is famous for

its exquisite scarves and other luxury items.

I can be a walking disaster, and it would be just my luck to damage a scarf

that costs more than what I made for many a month in my life.

Beautiful Designs

Waikiki, Oʻahu, Hawaii

January 23, 2023

American Quilts Shawl

Cashmere Silk Blend

Hermès

Hermès introduced the scarf or carré (square) in 1937.

Scarf designers for Hermès spend years creating new print patterns,

and they can choose from over 70,000 colors.

Scarves are individually screen-printed, and all hems are hand-stitched.

Part of a Hermès Scarf

Waikiki, Oʻahu, Hawaii

January 23, 2023

Today's carrés measure 90 cm x 90 cm (35.4 inches x 35.4 inches)

and weight 65 grams (2.29 oz).

Each scarf is woven from the silk of 250 mulberry moth cocoons.

Silkworm and Cocoon

Wikimedia

A Portion of a Scarf

Waikiki, Oʻahu, Hawaii

January 23, 2023

Each year Hermès releases two silk-scarf collections

as well as limited editions and some reprints of older designs.

It also releases two collections of a cashmere silk blend scarf annually.

Hermès has produced over 2,000 unique scarf designs since 1937.

Every twenty-five seconds a Hermès scarf is sold somewhere in the world. Wikipedia

A Gorgeous Scarf

vipstation

Hermès window displays are unfailingly creative.

Guaranteed there will be one or more beautiful scarves featured.

This year's Waikiki's window display was quirky and mystifying.

A Quirky and Mystifying Window Display

Waikiki, Oʻahu, Hawaii

January 23, 2023

A Luxury Scarf and Fragrances

Waikiki, Oʻahu, Hawaii

January 23, 2023

Eye-Catching Colors

Strangely Compelling

More Eye-Catching Colors

Mr. None-Rule-Follower had fits as I snapped photo after photo.

He was certain I was going to get arrested.

More likely his patience had run out ~ lol!

Creative Beauty

Waikiki, Oʻahu, Hawaii

January 23, 2023

In a Hermès Window

Waikiki, Oʻahu, Hawaii

January 23, 2023

Scarf Patterns for Every Taste

Here are two final shots for Nicole's Friday Face Off.

Faceless #1

Hermès, Waikiki, Oʻahu, Hawaii

January 23, 2023

Faceless #2

Hermès, Waikiki, Oʻahu, Hawaii

January 23, 2023

Note: I'm really late posting.

A realtor let us know yesterday that he was showing

the condo we're renting at 10:00 am today,

so we had to have it sparking and organized for the potential buyers.

Never a dull moment!

Happy creating. Take care!

Till next time ~
Fundy Blue

My next post will be on

Friday, February 10, 2023 🤞

On the Bay of Fundy
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue
All Rights Reserved

Wednesday, February 1, 2023

IWSG Day: Wednesday, February 1, 2023 ~ "The Blue Bar" by Damyanti Biswas, a Talented IWSG Member

It's the first Wednesday of the month,
the day that members of the
Insecure Writer's Support Group
share their writing struggles
and writing successes
and offer their encouragement
and support to fellow writers.

To visit the IWSG website, click here.

To become a member of the IWSG, click here.

Our wonderful co-hosts who are volunteering today,
along with IWSG Founder Alex J. Cavanaugh are Jacqui Murray, Ronel Janse van Vuuren, Pat Garcia, and, Gwen Gardner!

I hope you have a chance to visit today's hosts and thank them for co-hosting.

I'm sure they would appreciate a visit and an encouraging comment.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Every month the IWSG announces a question that members can answer
with advice, insight, a personal experience, or a story in their IWSG posts.

Or, the question can inspire members
if they aren't sure what to write about on IWSG Day.

Remember the question is optional.
This month's featured question is:

If you are an Indie author, do you make your own covers or purchase them? If you publish trad, how much input do you have about what goes on your cover?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Happy February, Everyone!

I hope this is a creative and love-filled month for you.

I am passing on this month's question.

Designing a book cover is still in the future for me.

But I do have some things to say about an excellent book

just released on January 1st

by talented IWSG member Damyanti Biswas.

An Amazing Cover

Amazon

This thriller kept me guessing from beginning to end

as I raced through it in in a few late and bleary-eyed nights.

What's not to love in this intense and literary noir ~

the twisting, surprising plot,

the compelling characters, the gorgeous tight writing,

or the gritty underworld and glittering aristocracy of Mumbai?

Underworld Mumbai

The Dharavi Slum

Wikimedia

Glittering Mumbai ~ Sachin Baikar

The twisting, surprising plot:

As Police Inspector Arnav Singh Rajput races to a grisly crime scene,

he has no idea that this new case will upend his life.

A horrific serial killer is responsible for decapitating and dismembering women,

and Arnav can't keep away from cases of missing or dead women.

Arnav is haunted by the disappearance of Tara Mondal fourteen years ago,

the mysterious girl-woman he loved who danced to Bollywood songs

in the smoky, flashing, colored lights of The Blue Bar.

Not only must Arnav hunt for an elusive killer,

he must navigate the ambitions, politics, and corruption

of the leaders of the Mumbai police and Mumbai society.

Someone will go to any length to sink his investigation.

Just when I thought I had something figured out,

an unexpected twist would flummox me.

🔪 🔪 🔪 🔪 🔪 🔪 🔪

The compelling characters:

The characters in Damyanti's novel don't let you go.

She weaves a story that is both an authentic police procedural

and an unpredictable romance.

Arnav is dogged in his quest to find the killer,

a creepy gruesome slayer with a murderous obsession,

before Tara becomes the next headless, handless, footless woman

buried in muck with a scattering of blue sequins.

Tara has a life-changing secret, someone she must protect with her very life.

She risks returning to Mumbai and the Blue Bar as an instructor and performer

in an attempt to secure her financial future and realize her goals.

This a sampling of the unforgettable characters who inhabit Damyanti's book:

Bilal, a loyal family servant who cleans up the bloody messes

and arranges for the disposal of the bodies by an underworld Bhai or gang boss;

the wildly successful Virani brothers, Bollywood heartthrobs

who have captivated India's impressionable young women for years;

the unflappable Dr. Meshram, the coroner who will use his own time and money

to autopsy the brutalized bodies of the unknown and forgotten;

Sita Naik, Arnav's tireless assistant,

a smart and professional assistant sub-inspector

who will do anything to help Arnav solve the case;

and Rahul Taneja, a ruthless real estate tycoon

famous for his fabulous wealth and lavish parties.

Autopsy Instruments

Flikr ~ Ed Uthman ~ License

🔪 🔪 🔪 🔪 🔪 🔪 🔪

The gorgeous tight writing:

I already knew that Damyanti was an excellent writer,

because I had read her chilling debut novel You Beneath Your Skin.

Her writing is fresh, evocative, and eloquent, seemingly effortless.

But Damyanti is a writer who admits that for her, writing is a slog.

She progresses slowly, word by word, on her computer

through multiple drafts and revisions,

but she writes because she must.

Her fellow IWSG members understand this so thoroughly!

🔪 🔪 🔪 🔪 🔪 🔪 🔪

The gritty underworld and glittering aristocracy of Mumbai:

To a Canadian American like me, Mumbai is exotic.

But Damyanti's ability to bring Mumbai alive is engrossing.

Before long, I forgot about exotic Mumbai, as I was drawn into this kaleidoscopic city.

Damyanti constructs a Mumbai that is so absorbing you are there, period.

The novel opens at rush hour in Borivali Railway Station,

swarming with jostling noisy people,

and the book transports readers to Mumbai's hectic nightlife,

to its stinky marshland and mangroves,

to sultry Madh Island on the magnificent Arabian Sea,

to its crowded beaches, busy police stations, and dangerous alleys.

It is unforgettable!

Borivali Railway Station, Mumbai

Youtube

🔪 🔪 🔪 🔪 🔪 🔪 🔪

I highly recommend this gripping mystery, The Blue Bar,

which I suggest you quickly follow up with You Beneath Your Skin.

The sequel to The Blue Bar is scheduled to be released on October 24, 2023.

Tentatively titled Blue Black Hair, the sequel is set in Mumbai

and Inspector Rajput returns to tackle the hair industry, caste, and castration. The Big Thrill

Update: I just read Damyanti's blog post for IWSG Day:

"Does a Stunning Book Cover Ever Inspire You to Purchase the Book?"

Her title for her new book is now The Blue Monsoon.

The cover for The Blue Bar is striking!

Enjoy IWSG Day. Stay happy and safe.

Till next time ~
Fundy Blue

https://selkiegrey4.blogspot.com

My next post will be on Friday, February 3rd. 🤞

🔪 🔪 🔪 🔪 🔪 🔪 🔪

Terry and I are enjoying our time in Waikiki;

but, just for the record, it isn't always sunshine and balmy breezes.

So as I write this, we are enjoying Sunday playoff football

and are not feeling guilty about wasting a day of beautiful weather.

A Rainy, Chilly, Windy Sunday #1
Honolulu, Hawaii, USA
January 29, 2023
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue
All Rights Reserved

A Rainy, Chilly, Windy Sunday #2

Honolulu, Hawaii, USA

January 29, 2023

Friday, January 27, 2023

A Maui Cat Named Rusty

I came across a touching memorial for an orange tabby cat named Rusty,

and I thought a photo of Rusty's face would be a cute one for Nicole's Friday Face Off.

But, as I tried to find out more about this beloved feral cat, I fell down a rabbit hole.

Since it took me a while to find my way out of the warren,

I've postponed using the photos I have for Rain's

Thursday Art and Dinner Date theme Scarves until next week.

Into the Rabbit Hole ~ A Scarves Preview

Waikiki, Oʻahu, Hawaii

January 23, 2023

I stumbled across Rusty's memorial while walking through a gulch

between the Marriott Hotel and the Elua Condos on the Wailea Beach Path in Maui.

A Distracting View: West Maui Mountain

Along the Wailea Beach Path, Wailea, Maui, Hawaii

January 23, 2023

Trail Map Near Rusty's Memorial

Along the Wailea Beach Path, Wailea, Maui, Hawaii

January 23, 2023

But the story behind Rusty and his memorial was much bigger than I knew.

Rusty the Cat

Wailea, Maui, Hawaii

January 18, 2023

Curious to find out more about this feral cat who inspired the memorial,

I started searching online.

I quickly discovered that Rusty was one of Maui's many "community cats,"

a catchall term for all cats, including feral cats,

that live outdoors and are unowned and free-roaming.

Maui Humane Society

I learned that Rusty had lived by the gulch for twenty years,

and he was known to visitors from all over the world.

No one owned Rusty, but caretakers took him to veterinaries

for checkups or for treatment after fights with other cats.

One caretaker took Rusty home twice,

but he always found his way back to the gulch.

Tributes to Rusty

Wailea, Maui, Hawaii

January 18, 2023

Rusty was an informal ambassador for Maui,

because he greeted so many people who walked by,

many of whom returned year after year to see him.

Sweet and friendly, Rusty gave and accepted love from countless people.

He died on 9/18/22 from cancer of the jaw.

Rusty

Wailea, Maui, Hawaii

January 18, 2023

Unfortunately, as I searched for information about Rusty,

I also learned that feral cats are a widespread ecological problem

for Maui and the other seven main Hawaiian islands.

Approximately two million feral cats inhabit these eight islands.

nationsonline.org

The Hawaii Invasive Species Council says that feral cats

are one of the most devastating predators of Hawai‘i’s unique wildlife

and that even well-fed feral cats will instinctively hunt and kill prey.

Feral cats also spread a potentially lethal parasite (Toxoplasma gondii)

which contaminates terrestrial, freshwater, and marine environments

and negatively impact birds and mammals – including humans.

Feral Cats at ʻĪao Valley State Park, Maui

Wikipedia

As I read about organizations trying to address the feral cat problem

(Maui Humane Society, University of Hawaii, Save Maui Cats, Maui Forest Birds, etc),

I realized what a complex and tragic situation the feral cats present

and that there is a lot of disagreement about how to deal with them.

Feral cats are not just a Hawaiian problem.

PETA estimates that between 60 and 100 million homeless cats live in the U.S.

Their lives are short and hard, and they do not die of old age

(Rusty was a rare exception).

PETA says that The American Bird Conservancy estimates that free-roaming cats

kill millions of birds and small mammals in the U.S. every year,

including endangered species.

And this is just in the U.S. It's a worldwide problem.

This feral cat near Brisbane has caught a Pale-headed rosella.

Wikimedia

Part of the solution begins with cat owners,

because feral cats are often the descendants

of unaltered cats who were abandoned by their owners.

Cat owners anywhere can help to reduce the number of feral cats.

They can spay or neuter their pet cats and keep them indoors or safely contained.

They can microchip their pet cats so the cats can be returned if they become lost.

Also, they should never abandon their cats if they can no longer care for them.

Instead cat owners should surrender them to a local animal shelter

where the cats have a chance of being adopted.

Meanwhile, some of the people who loved Rusty have created

a Facebook page, Rusty Mauicat, in memory of Rusty.

They have formed The Rusty Cat Collective, a volunteer group dedicated to humanely addressing the feral cat overpopulation issue on Maui.

Rusty ~ Facebook

There are no easy solutions for dealing with the feral cat problem.

I hope that effective and humane solutions can be implemented,

sooner rather than later.

Terry and I don't have pets, because we like to travel,

and we feel it's unfair to keep leaving an animal behind

in a pet care facility or with a pet sitter.

I have donated to an animal shelter in Denver for many years,

and I had representatives visit my class annually to discuss caring for pets.

I'm going to pick one of the charities working on the feral cat problem

in Maui and start making donations to it as well.

It's a start.

I'm not going to forget a Maui cat named Rusty

or the impact cats like him have on their environment.

My eyes have certainly been opened.

Rusty ~ Facebook

🐈 🐈 🐈 🐈 🐈 🐈 🐈 🐈 🐈

Wishing you fascinating rabbit holes to fall into.

You never know what you might learn.

Till next time ~
Fundy Blue

My next post will be on

Wednesday, February 1, 2023 🤞

🐈 🐈 🐈 🐈 🐈 🐈 🐈 🐈 🐈

Community Cats:

“Community Cats” is a term used to describe outdoor, unowned, free-roaming cats. These cats could be friendly, feral, adults, kittens, healthy, sick, fixed and/or not fixed. They may or may not have a caregiver. These cats also may have 1 or more people in the community who feed and watch over them but are not household pets. This definition, the only outdoor free-roaming cats who are not community cats are those who have an owner. Community cats are cats that may be social or unsocial, but cannot be traced back to any one owner.

Maui Humane Society

Books Read in 2026

"18 Days in Heaven" by Gale Poirot
"A Serial Killer's Daughter: My Story of Hope, Love, and Overcoming" by Kerrie Rawson
"Eat Your Ice Cream: Six Simple Rules for a Long and Healthy Life" by Ezekiel J. Emanuel, MD.
"Is Math Real? How Simple Questions Lead Us to Mathematics Deepest Truths" by Eugenia Cheng
"Project Hail Mary" by Andy Weir
"Tell Me Everything" by Elizabeth Strout
"The Covenant of Water" by Abraham Verghese
"The Dawn of Everything: A New History of Humanity" by David Graeber and David Wengrow
"The Life Impossible" by Matthew Haig
"The Lord go the Rings" by JRR Tolkien
"The Match" by Harlan Corben
"The Night the Path Disappeared" by Terri Bergen
"The Notebook: A History of Thinking on Paper" by Roland Allen
"Theo of Golden" by Allen Levi
"Think Twice" by Harlan Corben
"Why Christianity Must Change Or Die" by John Shelby Spong

Standing Into Danger

Pages

Friday, February 3, 2023

Scarves I Can't Afford

Wednesday, February 1, 2023

IWSG Day: Wednesday, February 1, 2023 ~ "The Blue Bar" by Damyanti Biswas, a Talented IWSG Member

Friday, January 27, 2023

A Maui Cat Named Rusty

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