Amber & Just One More Thing...

Oh my goodness, I love Columbo.

I have been watching episodes from Netflix which aired on the Mystery Hour from the early 1970s and they are fantastic.  Unlike most modern mystery programs, the first 20 minutes show the murder so we, the audience, know the identity of the murderer and therefore more than Columbo.  We then get the pleasure of watching him slowly, slowly, and persistently circle in on the answers, picking up clues and putting them in the pockets of his rumpled trench coat.  He is the anti-Poirot: thinking aloud, imprecise, and clean-shaven.  And yet somehow, in the midst of his sloppiness and annoying questioning and self-depreciating asides, he brings calm and justice.

Peter Falk is fabulous.  His Columbo is an enigma.  Just how goofy is he really?  Is his tangential babbling all a rouse to disarm the crooks?  Or is he simultaneously bumbling and genius?  Whichever he is, he is likable.  The anecdotes about his wife ("My wife says I am the second best [detective].  She says there are 80 guys tied for first place.") round his person.  The episodes are filled with little human moments like when our hero blushes when kissed by a hooker played by Valerie Harper.  (I guess we know what happens in season 3 of Rhoda after her marriage to Joe dissolves.)  (I never liked that Joe or his temper.)

And the guest stars!  John Cassavetes (who directed Falk in some fantastic roles), Leonard Nimoy, Julie Newmar, Eddie Albert, Roddy McDowall (whose Lord Love a Duck is also on Netflix streaming), Anne Baxter and Edith Head (playing herself and choosing a new tie for the detective).

Dare I say it?  I may enjoy Columbo more than either Castle or Bones.

God bless, Peter Falk.  My favorite angel-seer über Berlin.





Who better to explain the simple joys of being alive?  Compañero.

Amber & There's No Mystery Left

2010 was rather mysterious.  There were a number of mysteries that really absorbed (hogged) alot of my cognitive powers.  For example, it was about seven months from start to finish wondering why my side hurt so much before a new mystery (What on earth did my doctor just say is wrong with me?  Epiglottal appendicidits?) demanded to be answered.

We also solved some year-spanning mysteries, like what exactly we stared at for all those years at the River House?  And we celebrated yearly mysteries on June 8 with Kitty Eyebrow Day.

But our friend 2011 has (finally) brought us a new year's answer for one mystery that plagued me all winter long.  Namely: what on earth is this guy?

This was a deep, dark mystery, compounded by the fact that the image name was "Oink.jpg."  Clearly, that guy is not a pig.  Unlike when we learned all about the dik-dik, I had no general family of animals from which to start my research, never having taken a zoo class in "fuzzy tree creatures."  I had almost given up--although the image was still sitting there on my desktop, taunting me at start up every day.

But, lo!  When I went to do my Monday round-up of all things adorable, there was my mystery buddy along with some of his equally mysterious cousins!

I think that's the same guy, right?  Anyhow, it seems I am behind the cute animal times (makes sense since they are part of pop culture these days).  Cuteoverload solved my mystery in 2009.  Those guys are Japanese Dwarf Flying Squirrels.  That means they can do this!

Surprise!  Cute and flying.

Amber & Mystery Solved

We were wondering about what was across the River from us.  In certain spots, you can sort of see clearing through the trees.

Answer: farm land.  Thank you, Google Maps.

Amber & Diana's Fan Base

Once again, Diana topped the month's search engine traffic.

Her fans/stalkers are sure loyal.

I'm very pleased by the addition of number 9 to the roster, only I'm a little afraid that those folks missed an R when they were typing.  If they typed correctly, I am sure they were quite pleased with my offerings.  If it was indeed a typo, I apologize.

And, number 10 continues to be a mystery.  Why do cats like watermelon?  And why do people wonder about it?

Amber & Investigative Journalism

We here at Amber & take our commitment to quality journalism very seriously.  This may be the Internet, but we believe in fact-checking and proper sourcing.

So, you can imagine my frustration when Nick lobbed this adorable bomb at me last week, a really solid effort to wipe me out with cuteness, and I had no idea what kind of animal it was or where it came from.

So, I put on my Hercule Poirot mustache and got to work.

You'll note that on the white board behind what is very clearly a zoo-keeper, it says "S. A. ORYX."  But the hind legs of our little buddy were definitely not oryx legs.  But, he was definitely some kind of African hoofstock-- I recognized his distinguishing characteristic properties from my class at the National Zoo in Cheetahs and Their Food.  So, I looked at a bunch of pictures of different grassland hoofstock, looking for one decidedly small in stature.

And aha!  It was a dik-dik.

Once I knew it was a dik-dik, it was as easy as Googling "baby dik-dik zoo" to find out that this little guy lives at the Chester Zoo.

And that is the story of how my quest for journalistic integrity and thoroughness lead me to kill myself with cuteness.  Look at that tiny hoof.  Look at it!  I dare you.

Amber &

Happy Kitty Eyebrows Day, Everyone!

In the words of the founder of this holiday, James...

"This is very special day of kitty mystery when every year since 2006 we celebrate kitty eyebrows."

That makes this the 4th annual kitty eyebrows day. (Take that, people who say kitties don't have eyebrows.)


And, go ahead and Google Image the phrase "kitty eyebrows."


Look who comes up on the first page.

Amber & Kissable Cousins

The Mystery Guest Cat in today's Kevin Drum e-newsletter is a flame-pointed Siamese, just like Woody.

I think Woody is more handsome.

(photo by whomelse?  James)

Although Rustle does live in a home with nicer carpeting.

Amber & Mrs. Peel, We're Needed

With the holidays leaving my Hulu queue as dry as a dessert, I've been watching the 1967 season of The Avengers over on Netflix Watch Instantly.

These are the episodes I remember most vividly (in color, one might say, or colour) from my youth.  Obviously, I wasn't quite alive for the original run, but I think they aired late nights on PBS, after my other favorite and fellow British Isler, Doctor Who.

As an adult, the highlight is the charm of Mrs. Peel and John Steed.  Their banter and chemistry is superb, as are Mrs. Peele's outfits.  She karate chops and flips her hair and makes puns, all while looking lovely with fake eyelashes.

Steed remains dapper and with-chapeau while mayhem swirls around him.  I still find him irresistible.  I'd take Steed over Johnny Depp any day.

Another highlight is the surprise special guest stars that I doubt I noticed on first watching.  A super special treat was a bespectacled Jon Pertwee (the third Doctor on Doctor Who) in full brigadier gear.

And, later in the season, there was a bearded young Donald Sutherland rocking pin-up girl bangs and a weird Eastern (cold war) accent.

But, even with my new adult skills and a BFA in program watching, I still find the villains just as creepy as I did as a wee lass.  Only now, I just make the window smaller on my laptop rather than hiding behind the couch.

But then, as now, I knew things would end well with mystery solved, Steed and Peele quipping and flirting and being suggestive in a distinctively British way with that peppy, and happy music in the background.

And that lavender outfit!  I still want to be Emma Peel when I grow up.

Amber & Farm Share of the Week

Plum tomatoes, green beans, whit onions, cobbed corn, clipped basil,
broccoli, bok choy, pickling cukes, two red lettuce, eggs, lavash
crackers, multigrain loaf, Shephardic challah, apricots, tortillas,
mystery pink flowers (Diana?), and one regular tomato. Thanks to CRD
for picking it up while I was pooped.

Amber & Kitty Mystery

What's this guy doing?




Thanks to CuteOverload.com for reminding me that Pickles isn't that weird. For a kitty.

Amber & Watermelon Cats We Know

It would seem that people are not the only animals pondering the nature of the relationship between cats and watermelons. Cats are confused, too!

CRD pondered the relationship here, and then I did further research into whether watermelons are the cats' best friends or worst enemies. James took this photo of Baby Scarlett looking baffled by her watermelon companion.

Clearly, Baby S. saw this LOLcat and wanted to test the affinity herself.


Oh the mystery! I think Baby S. was unconvinced.

Amber & Hero Wars

It's hard when your philosophical or spiritual parents fight. Like when Pappa Noam Chomsky says that Koko doesn't really have language because she has no grammar and Dr. Penny says she does because she is communicating complex thoughts through repetitive symbols.

I'm caught in the middle of an argument, and I think I'm going to hide in my room. Dr. Temple Grandin says that a big reason that kitties' emotions are hard for us to read is because they don't have eyebrows like dogs do. James says they do. And, he has even named a day after them. Mark your calendars for Kitty Eyebrows Day, celebrated on June 8. As James describes....

"This is very special day of kitty mystery when every year since 2006 we celebrate kitty eyebrows."

Who's right?

Amber & Mystery: Solved

Remember this mysterious photo?

Jimmy explains the mystery!

"The photo was taken at the annual Epiphany diving for the cross at the South Street Seaport. A Greek congregation from Astoria holds a ceremony and then men dive in the water for the cross -- the first one to get it receives a blessing. This year, even though it was "warmer," the water had turned into an undulating icy Slurpee. The Police diver, pictured, is advising one of the priests not to have men dive in for safety reasons. Instead they tossed the cross into the water on a lanyard and then yanked it back up. Here's another priest untangling the lanyard for that:"



Who'd have guessed?

Amber & Dream Teams

You may have noticed that I didn't get to blog yesterday. It was my mulch manager's last day in the garden, and I needed to very quickly learn everything she knew about mulch before she left.

While I was busy mixing organic residues, grass clippings and Raiser's Edge queries, James was busy assembling his Dream Nero Wolfe Team in the form of icons for his hard drives.


Although we disagree on the merits of the A&E series, A Nero Wolfe Mystery, we agree that there was some amazing casting. I am absolutely smitten with Timothy Hutton's Archie Goodwin. He's everything I imagined while reading the novels and maybe even a little more dapper.

Amber & Unknowing

CRD's post today features The Best Film Ever Made. I was so overcome by the genius of it, that I was sunk into the depths of ennui myself, knowing that I could never know the inner workings of Woody's brain or what he smells on the breeze, or what Tiggy was really thinking when in the midst of crazy head.

I will never know the truth of Kitty Mystery. I am lost in the Cloud of Unknowing.

Or maybe I just have a sinus infection.

Amber & Kitty Mystery

Kitties are tapped into what Jimmy calls Kitty Mystery of Life. Chances are you've witnessed Kitty Mystery. You're sitting on the couch with your cat and it hears a noise and goes dashing off into who knows where. Your cat is dreaming and running in place, but what is he thinking about? Kitty Mystery.

Here is the Kitty Mystery of Yesterday:

How did THIS cat

(photo by Jimmy)

manage, while in his resty den, to move his glass of water into his food bowl?

Amber & Watermelon Cats

The universe is a vast place full of unknowable mysteries. CRD explored one such mystery earlier this week: the link between watermelons and kitties. CRD raised so many questions in my mind on the topic, I had to do further research. I am left to ponder...

Cats & Watermelons: Friends or Foes?

This pair are definitely foes.


But these guys seem to be friends.


What is it with cats & watermelons? Theories?

Amber & Cary Grant

I love Cary Grant: his perfect dimpled-chin, the dark and dancing eyes, the absolutely bizarre accent. I adore him as the older, presumptuous, rogue bachelor trying to woo ladies into his bed without wedding them first in That Touch of Mink and Indiscreet. I'm tickled by his wackiness in Bringing Up Baby and Arsenic and Old Lace. But he is at his best amidst the tension and mystery of Hitchcock. Among those, Notorious is my all-time favorite.As my former classmate, Cosimo once described, the film is held together by "the kisses...the kisses...the kisses."