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Appetite for Murder: A Mystery Lover’s Cookbook

Also available here

by Kathy Borich

A tantalizing slant on cooking and crime. Relive your favorite classic detective stories and then whip up the food that caught the culprit.

Austin Mysteries

Rainey Street “Drownings:” The Austin Smiley Face Killer Connection and Recent Updates 🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁 More Bodies: 12 in the Last 22 Months

"Look, you don't have to go to law school to figure out there's something very, very wrong at Lady Bird Lake," Nancy Grace says in the episode's opening of her “Austin Serial Killer Fears” episode.  She even derides the police who refer to the events as “unfortunate incidents.”   Yes, she is a bit over the top, and some of her guests are so called experts not really familiar with the Austin area or the specific cases, but she does have a point.

Move along everyone.  There’s nothing to see here. That seems to be the escalating nonchalance citizens are getting from the Austin Police Department regarding the 12 bodies that have been found in or very near Ladybird Lake in Austin Texas in the past 22 months. The last three  - one February 6th , another April 9th, and a third on April 13th have not even been identified. 

Different Drummer herself has noticed the weak city response in terms of safety measures as she and her husband ride past the Rainey Area near Lady Bird Lake.  A chain is only as strong as its weakest link. What good are some pallid lights and a split rail fence if there are big gaps with only a sign to warn those of danger? Certainly, someone drunk, as may or may not be the case, probably would  or could not read it.

Update: They are beginning to install electricty along the path for better lightning as of April 2024

 February 6, 2024

“A body was found Monday, Feb. 6, 2024, in a Texas lake, the same site where other deceased individuals have been discovered in recent months, authorities said. 

“At least five people have been found dead at the lake, which is a portion of the Colorado River running through downtown Austin, since last year.” –Louis Casiano, Fox News

The body is that of a woman, which differs from the previous drownings, all of which were men around age 30. As usual, the police are mum and saying there are no signs of foul play, but what else is new? –DD

Different Drummer will keep you informed as further details emerge. Below is the area where the recent body was found.

More details and pictures at the SmileyFace Connection link Sunday, April 21.

In 2023 alone, five bodies have been found in in Lady Bird Lake, and according to local reports, as many as eight in the past 10 months.

Different Drummer and her husband Gary have been biking this trail around the lake for decades. They live in the thick of it, on a quaint tree-lined street across the river from the glittering Austin Skyline.

Follow our two Cycling Sleuths chronicle where their path crosses those who did not return home to their loved ones.

Earlier Posts

Second Post

Smiley Face Connection: February 2024 Update: Another Body Found

The Serpent’s Tooth: A Texas Mystery

Austin is now the trendy number one city, but back in the eighties it was more laid back – not so many skyscrapers and urban hipsters. Just outside of town, you'd be likely to run into old cowboys, ranch hands, and a diamondback or two. And just maybe – an accidental death not as accidental as it seems…

Complete with Texas Recipes for the Oktoberfest Dinner where all is revealed.

Chapter One

An Illustrated Introduction to Classical Horsemanship: Concepts and Skills from A to Z
by Gary Borich

A comprehensive resource in a succinct alphabetical format that brings the beginning rider through every aspect of learning to train and ride for show and trail.