A Review of "Pineapple Grenade" [20]

Pineapple Grenade by Tim Dorsey
William Morrow, ISBN 978-0061876905
January 24, 2012, 352 pages

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From the publisher's description...

"Miami has always set the weirdness bar, but Serge Storms is back in action and ready to pole vault over it.

First, there’s the media frenzy over the “Hollow Man,” a gutless corpse found on the beach. And yet people think it’s perfectly normal to find dead sharks in the middle of downtown boulevards—or to spot black mushroom clouds behind the airport. Then there are the roving bands of carjackers who suddenly find themselves inconvenienced. Not to mention people lurking outside sex-addiction meetings.

Could this be the work of Serge, that eccentric trivialista and one-man vigilante? And why is he extensively photographing foreign consulates right before the critically important Summit of the Americas comes to town? Does it have something to do with Serge’s declaration to tell his ever-stoned sidekick, Coleman, that he’s decided to become a spy? Of course he’s not working for anyone yet, so Serge is content to just spy for himself until he shows up on radar and his talents are appreciated. His ace in the hole? Serge’s newly revamped Secret Master Plan! His spider senses tell him something big is about to go down in Miami, and it just might involve the recently reactivated CIA cell operating in the same historic building that plotted the overthrow of Fidel Castro."

When I read that description, I will tell you I was psyched.
I love thrillers and mysteries set in Florida. I am not sure why, but somehow it just makes a great setting. The sun, the swamps, the heat, the storms, the beautiful ocean..it just adds up to a very interesting place. Not for me, but for a book.
And I love a good killer. Yes, it is a little out of the box when the 'good guy' is also a bad guy, but it is totally doable. Speaking of Florida and a good guy killer, where it totally works, let me just say one word.  
Dexter.

Well then, why did I not like this book? And I did not.
I think a large part of it goes back to what I wrote in my Monday Musing post this week, except this is the example of a series where the author does not do what must be done.
Yes, here I am stepping into the middle of another big series. This is book 14. And that can be OK for the reader, as it has been in a couple of books I recently reviewed. In fact, in a series, a reader must be able to step in anywhere and still 'get' the book.  But it does not here. I never felt any connection to the main character, Serge. He is clever, he and his sidekick are funny at times. But I just did not care.

And this book is written in a very particular style. The book jumps all over the place, from one storyline to another, with a lot of information, much of which just seems for our education or amusement.  Again, you can look at a recent review here of a book that had a similar 'confusing' storyline, and let that time it totally worked. Here it did not. For me, it never came together.

Even the Florida angle did not really pay off this time, since we seem to spend way too much time just wandering around bad neighborhoods on the edge of Miami. Not quite the Florida feeling I was looking for.

Now, I will tell you that previous books in this series got some great reviews. I checked them out before I requested this one. But Pineapple Grenade, so far, is getting decided mixed ones, even from longtime fans of Serge and his friends. So if the premise sounds interesting, of a killer and his sidekick on a bunch of funny, madcap deadly adventure in the sultry Sunshine State, you might want to try a book early in the series, like Florida Roadkill, the first. And again, stop before you get here.

Honestly, unless you are a die hard fan of this series, I would not recommend this one. Even then, you might not be too thrilled.

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My thanks to the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book to review.

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Wordless Wednesday...Epcot

...with a short side trip to the Boardwalk and Yacht Club.

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...as always, for more Wordless Wednesday, check these out.

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A Review of "Fodor's Walt Disney World 2011" [86]

Fodor's Walt Disney World 2011
Fodor's; Pap/Map edition, ISBN 978-1400004614
November 16, 2010, 608 pages

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You know, there are all sorts of vacations. There is, is order of complexity, sitting on a beach with a tropical drink in your hand, there is a road trip covering several states, with stops at points of interest and oddities, there is a month long tour of Europe...and then there is a trip to Disney World and the Greater Orlando Theme Park Megalopolis. 
Make no mistake, a trip to Disney is perhaps most akin to planning a military invasion.
Now, that is a bad thing.
So long as you are aware of what you are getting into.
And many people, as I can personally attest to from my latest trip, are not.

A day did not go by on my most recent trip when I did not have to assist my fellow travelers, mostly correcting misinformation. It is a complicated topic and we can not all be experts. But take the example of a Canadian women, and then her whole family, with whom I had a conversation at Sea World. They had no idea about the Disney or Sea World water parks, they had no idea about the various Disney Parks. When someone says to me "What is Epcot", my heart sinks. They had never heard of a FastPass! People, I do not do lines, and in most cases neither do you have to. I try to be helpful and guide the lost and confused...but I am only one person! :-)

I have been to Disney many times. I love Disney and regardless of what one family member, who will remain unnamed, recently said, I totally get The Magic. But the thing is, in the whole central Florida area, there are a huge number of things to do and unless you has unlimited time and unlimited money (and if you do, can I go with you next time?) you need A PLAN.
And many visitor do not have a clue, yet alone a plan.
Without one, you will waste money and time, not get the most out of your trip and end up being one of those families you see on Main Street at the end of the day, as the park is closing, the mother exhausted, the father red-faced and angry and the kids crying. Folks, this is suppose to be fun!

So please, please, before going to see the Mouse...or Harry if you swing that way...buy and read a book. A comprehensive travel guide like this very good guide. There are many, many decisions to be made and you need help. You need help just knowing how many decisions you need to make. How are you getting there? Where are you staying? In park..out of park? What will it cost? How are you going to get around? Do you want to rent a car? Where do you want to eat..and what about the Disney food plan? What do you have to see, because know, you will not see it all. Decisions must be made and this is a very fine book to assist you in doing that.

There is a huge amount of material to be covered and Fodor does about as good a job as is possible in presenting all that material without overwhelming the reader. From the very beginning of your planning, through your arrival at the parks, to how to spend your days, all the topics are covered. Whether you are traveling with little kids, or teenagers, are an older couple or even alone, the various unique issues each situation presents are covered. A huge list of hotels, in and out of WDW are covered, as are many, many restaurants, again both in the parks and resorts and outside the Mouse Empire. Each park and the must see attractions at each are discussed. A great deal of helpful information, all presented in a very clear and logical way, is at the heart of this book. And it is also presented in a very attractive format, with a very large number of very nice, full-color photographs and many helpful maps and graphics and a very nice pull out map.

About 1/2 the book is devoted to WDW, about 1/4 to Universal and Sea World, and the remaining 1/4 to the greater Central Florida region, from Tampa to the Kennedy Space Center. Yes, even my beloved Gatorland is discussed.
It is a very comprehensive book...but, like any guide, it is not perfect. The hotel I stayed at on my most recent visit, an out-of-park hotel, was not included, and at least two in-park restaurants I ate it were not there either. Understandable and not an issue really, since any one book can not contain everything. But take the fact that the very popular restaurant at Canada in Epcot, Le Cellier, was not mentioned. Things like that were a bit odd maybe.

The book is very up to date, which is refreshing. Theme parks are always changing a bit, adding and subtracting  attractions and this book is on top of what is going on in the parks. For example, the fact that Toontown is disappearing, being folded into a bigger Fantasyland is discussed, as is the changed made to the Shamu show at Sea World since the killing of a trainer by one of the whales. But that also pointed out another small issue I had with the book and that is some of the ratings. The greatly reduced Shamu show is still a Fodor Pick, whereas I think it is clear that the best show at Sea World is now the dolphin show, into which the park has poured all their best. Platform divers, acrobats, swooping tropical birds, and a large amount of trainer/animal interaction, make this, not Shamu the must see show. All ratings are subjective and while I found myself disagreeing with some one them and some of the opinions offered, for most visitors that would be a very minor issue.

For someone planning a first trip, this is a great book. For others, who have made trips, even many trips, in the past, this is still a very useful and very enjoyable book. Full of fun facts, countless things I am sure you don't know and tons of helpful information.
Strongly recommended.

Now, let me just say, as much as I like this book and recommend it, I would not let it be the only book I would read if planning a trip to Disney, especially if you are a first timer. Although I have not looked at a recent edition, [author or publisher, please note I would be happy to check out and review the 2011 editions if you would like :-) ], I have also found  The Unofficial Disney Guide by Bob Sehlinger very helpful in the past. Lets say it gives a slightly different, but no less helpful or interesting, perspective on WDW. The fact that every review on Amazon is a five star review gives you an idea of how good this book is.
Together they would make a great team to help you make you trip to Walt Disney World the funnest trip ever...A Magical Trip to a Magical Place.

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My Thanks to Amazon Vine for my review copy of this book.

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Wordless Wednesday...Sea World

St. Augustine Lighthouse

Oh, I have been very, very bad and not posted a lighthouse visit for months! True, it is winter, and lighthouse visiting here in the Northeast tends to lessen in the winter, but still it is unforgivable. Please forgive me anyway.

So, as a special treat, we are going out of state, leaving the Garden State of New Jersey for a moment to head south to the Sunshine State of Florida and visit the very pretty St. Augustine lighthouse. The Bro, the Sil (sister-in-law for you internet challenged) and I flew down to visit The Niece, who is a college student in Florida, and on a free day, we all took a road trip to America's Oldest City to visit the lighthouse. You might not be surprised, but that was my idea and they graciously went along and we all had a lovely day.

It is all one can want in a lighthouse. It is tall, it is conical, it has stripes!
But a bit of background first. The lighthouse that now stands there is not the first structure that has stood on Anastasia Island. On the feast day of St. Augustine in the year 1565, the Spanish fleet, led by Pedro Menendez de Aviles, landed on the northern coast of what is now Florida and established the first European settlement in America, naming it in honor of the saint. Soon, it was quite a thriving port and a watchtower was built on the barrier island, most likely with a fire at the top at night to mark entry to the port.

In 1673, the Spanish started construction of a large fort on the mainland, Castillo de San Marco. which is still standing and certainly worth a visit as well. The fort was built of conqina, a natural limestone material composed of shells, quartz sand and clay. A few decades later, it was decided to build a new watchtower of the same material on the island to replace the wooden tower and after Florida was ceded to the United States in 1821, it was decided to use the still standing conquina tower as a lighthouse. Over the next few decades, several additions were made, removing part of the original structure and adding a 73 foot tall brick addition, raising it's height, installing oil lamps and reflectors and then a fourth order Fresnel lens in 1855.

But as a lighthouse, it was less than ideal and there was a a real threat of the tower collapsing from erosion, so in 1871, Congress authorized funds to build a new tower, the one that presently stands. Paul Petz, who also designed the Library of Congress, was hired as the architect, and the 165 foot tall tower was completed in 1874. The bricks for the lighthouse came from Alabama, granite was shipped from Georgia, the iron work infrastructure was made in Philadelphia, dismantled and shipped to Florida and then rebuild on the site, the new first-order Fresnel lens was made and sent from France. It was painted with it's distinctive black and white spiral and red lantern top, it's 'daymark' which has remained unchanged ever since.

There were three keepers stationed at the lighthouse, each taking an eight hour shift. Their duties included climbing the 214 steps to the top every 3 to 4 hours after dark, carrying buckets of oil, weighing about 30 pounds each, to replenish the lanterns and to rewind a winch for the 275 pound weight that slowly descended, moving the gears that revolved the len, like a giant grandfather clock. In the daytime, of course, the work never stopped either. Every prism of the lens had to be cleaned and polished, maintenance had to be done on the tower and they also had to maintain their own garden and livestock and maintain the keepers house that was built in 1876 for them and their families. From time to time they also had to act as lifesavers, for ships that struck one of the nearby sandbars and floundered.

These were probably the heydays of the tower, in the years leading up to WWI. The tower became quite a tourist attraction. In the 1800's there was a tramway across the marsh and then in 1895, the St. Augustine and South Beach Railroad brought visitors to the lighthouse, as many as 10,000 a year by 1909. In 1927, the historic Bridge of Lions was completed and now one could easily cross it from St. Augustine to Anastasia Islamd.
And of course, there were always the exploits of the keeper's families. One of my favorites is recounted at LighthouseFriends.com..

"Life at the station was full of varied activities for the keeper’s children as well. One noted story involves Cardell "Cracker" Daniels, son of keeper C.D. Daniels. Cracker would regularly use the tall tower in his backyard as a launching pad for his model airplanes and parachutes. After safely parachuting several inanimate objects off the tower, Cracker decided it was time for a live experiment. Cracker’s sister, Wilma, had a cat named Smokey, who was selected as the paratrooper. After a couple of practice descents from lesser heights, the reluctant cat was tossed from the top of the tower with the parachute strapped to its back. When the frightened feline reached the ground, it quickly fled from the area. Unaware of Cracker’s antics, Wilma searched far and near for her cat over the next several days. It was about a month before Smokey finally returned home, but it wasn’t until several years later that the family learned the real reason for the cat’s disappearance."

I assume the cat did not find it funny....and you cat lovers might not either...lol

In 1936, electricity was finally brought to the tower, lessening the duties of the keeper and in 1955 the tower was automated. Sadly, as with many other lighthouse, so began it's decline. The former keeper's house was rented out as apartments and fell into disrepair, being boarded up in the 1960's and then severely damaged by fire in 1970. But it was that act that resulted in the wonderful restoration both the lighthouse and keeper's house have undergone in recent years.

When the county threatened to tear the keeper's house down, the Junior Service League of St. Augustine had it place on the National Register of Historic Places and in 1982 signed a 99 year least for the building, raising hundreds of thousands of dollars to restore the building and finally to open it as the Lighthouse Museum. In 1990, they then signed a 30 year lease with the Coast Guard for the closed up lighthouse and undertook a restoration of the lighthouse and the first ever repair of a Fresnel lens, the 9 foot tall original lens that had been damaged by vandal's bullets.

After 14 years and at a cost of $1.2 million dollars the complete restoration of the lighthouse was complete and in 2002 the lighthouse was deeded to the St. Augustine Lighthouse and Museum, Inc, a not-for-profit group that operates it today.
And a fine job they do. The lighthouse is in excellent condition, surrounded by beautiful nature trails . There is also a very nice separate gift shop and the keepers house continues to be opened as a museum. If you are in north Florida, you really don't want to miss making a visit to this very nice lighthouse.

Of course, you will not be able to visit with the World's Cutest Doggie! But the view will still be as nice, the ocean from the one side, the old city from the other.

A Very Special Guest Post

Today, my dear readers, we are very privileged to have a guest post from a very talented young fellow, someone who has been mentioned here on my blog before, the Cutest Dog in the Whole World, Bandit. In case you didn't know it (and because my niece will be very upset with me if I don't mention it) you can visit Bandit at his very own blog "the world from down here" .

A week ago, I flew down to Florida to visit my niece and Bandit and while I was there, we all took a road trip, Bandit's first real road trip, to the historic city of St. Augustine and he was so excited that he wanted share some of his experiences there and to show you all some pictures of his trip. Because he really likes pictures of himself. A lot.

Hi! My name is Bandit and it is very nice of my Great Aunt Kiki...you know her as Caite...to let me tell you about my trip with her and my mom, my grandpop and grandmom and aunt Elly to St. Augustine. Kiki knew there was a lighthouse there, so there was no stopping her. I don't know why, but  she really likes lighthouses. Don't I look so cute in my new blue sweater? I am not sure blue is my color. Do you think it makes my butt look fat?
Come on! Let's all pile in the car and get going!

I had never been on a road trip before. I am only 6 months old. I loved looking out the window and sometimes they opened it a bit so I could stick my nose out and smell all sorts of new things. Are we there yet?

This is the lighthouse at St. Augustine beach. It was very high and I am very short, so I did not climb to the top. Me and grandmom stayed at the bottom while everyone else climbed all those steps. I am sure Kiki...oh, I mean Caite...will tell you more about the lighthouse in the future. I liked the stripes because it looked sort of like a candycane. Gosh, all this sea air is making me hungry. I hope we have lunch soon. I really like pizza.
This is a very old fort in St. Augustine called 'The Castillo de San Marcos'. They say it was finished being built in 1695. Wow, that is really old. I liked all the grass to run on. Can you see the snowflakes and snowman on my sweater?
After that, we went to a street a few blocks away with a lot of pretty old Spanish buildings and a lot of nice stores and a lot of people and musicians and lots of other dogs walking with their people.
This man was sitting very, very still outside a store. He looks sort of green and he didn't jump when I licked him. But I really like his hat.
These little people thought that I was very cute, which I am, and wanted me to stop and play. Hey! Where did my sweather go?? Did you see my sweater little girl? Who took my sweater?

Well, it was a very long day and my legs are very short, so by the time we started to drive home, I was happy to find a nice place to lay down and get some sun. Gosh, my mustache is looking a bit gray!

But I am just a baby!

See, here is a picture of my half one year birthday party on Sunday. There were a lot of people there and a lot of food and there was also some sort of big football game on the TV. But I know they really all came for my birthday and my mom gave me a cupcake and they all sang.

And then they were all starting watching the football game again.

But I got the cupcake!

I hope you enjoyed my post about my trip and remember, you can all come visit me on my blog!

Thanks Kiki!

Congratulations to the University of Florida Gators and their 24-14 victory over Oklahoma in the BCS National Championship for the school's third national football title.

{{Mary Kate, you are so lucky that you didn't hit Tim with your scooter...lol))