Coyote Hills

I just finished reading Coyote Hills, Jonathan and Jesse Kellerman's latest Clay Edison private detective novel. Jonathan Kellerman is best known for his Alex Delaware series, which features a child psychologist who works as a consultant for the Los Angeles Police Department. I read a few of those novels a long time ago, but lost interest in the series. Then, a few years ago, I picked up a copy of The Lost Coast, the fifth book in Clay Edison series, which Kellerman co-writes with his son, and liked it so much I decided to read the first four books in the series. I have been looking forward to this latest release ever since. Clay Edison is a former deputy coroner turned private investigator working in the San Francisco Bay Area. In this latest novel, fellow PI Regina Klein brings in Edison to help her with a case involving a possible homicide. Klein has been hired by a wealthy couple to investigate the death of their son, who was found dead on the shore of San Francisco Bay with drugs in his system and a head injury. The police rule it an accident, but his parents insist it was anything but. Edison and Klein investigate and find that not only was it not an accident, but one of a number of similar deaths. I found this to be an absorbing and fast paced novel, and I really enjoyed it. I strongly recommend you pick up a copy at your local library today.

The 2nd Annual Boca Street Fest

I attended the 2nd annual Boca Street Fest at Mizner Park in Boca Raton, Florida this past Saturday, and I must say, this was a very well attended event. I have visited this park-like retail complex a number of times, but this was the first festival I have ever attended there. Which meant finding the parking garage instead of just parking on the street, which turned out to be easy to find and free. Free! My favorite price point! There were over 100 vendors and food booths there, in additional to two music stages, one of which was featuring the group Wolfhawk. All I can say is that they were loud - very loud indeed - and I didn't even go into the amphitheater where they were playing. The other stage was much smaller and featured more eclectic music, such as the Miami Klezmer Band, a Jewish and Yiddish group, which was much easier to listen to.

Mizner Park consists mainly of upscale shops and restaurants and is much more like a park than an outdoor shopping mall. In the center area between the rows of shops are fountains, gazebos, and very lush landscaping, as seen in the photograph on the right. I circled around the festival twice, but it was the experience of just walking around that pleasant plaza that I really liked best. Mizner Park is a great place to visit, whether there is a festival with hundreds of people, or it is just a normal, quiet weekday.

Boca Raton, by the way, has been at the center of a controversy concerning a potential downtown development called One Boca, which would have added thousands of housing units, retail, office space, and a hotel to city-owned land. Residents were concerned about the loss of green space, traffic congestion, and the use of public land for private development. Voters rejected the project just last week, although the Boca Raton Planning and Zoning Board did approve the construction of a 12-story hotel at Mizner Plaza, a shopping center just south of Mizner Park. Win some, lose some. The battle between developers and concerned residents in Florida is not a new story and will continue well into the future. In any case, definitely check out Mizner Park if you happen to be in the Boca Raton area. You'll like it.

No Kings For Stuart, Florida

I drove past the intersection of South Kanner Highway and Southeast Federal Highway here in Stuart, Florida yesterday afternoon and was surprised to see so many people at the "No Kings" protest. I later learned from an online article in the Stuart News that over 2,000 people were in attendance, some of whom can be seen in the photograph above. This is Florida, after all, and I am pretty sure you can be arrested in this state if you are a registered Democrat. And watching the local news last night, it appears there were a lot of other "No Kings" protests throughout Florida, not to mention throughout the entire country. I was especially happy to see that there was a "No Kings" march across the Southern Boulevard Bridge over Lake Worth to Mar-a -Lago, where President Trump is currently spending the weekend. Hopefully he invited everyone in to talk things over and listen to their input. Makes sense, after all, as long as they happened to be in the neighborhood, right? Right?

The 2026 Palm Beach International Boat Show

My sister Susan and I attended the Palm Beach International Boat Show this past Thursday afternoon. It takes place along Flagler Drive in West Palm Beach, Florida and features a vast number of boats and yachts, all docked along a network of piers on Lake Worth.  I decided to park at CityPlace, a number of blocks from the event, since I figured anything closer would be very expensive. As soon as I got to the parking garage, I saw a sign saying the lot was full and please try elsewhere. I decided to enter the garage anyway and keep circling until a space opened up, since I would be paying $30 whether I stayed 5 minutes or 5 hours. Happily, I found a spot almost immediately. In other words, they lied. But why? In any case, we walked to the show and made our way to the piers.

We started making our way past the various yachts on display. The vessels were docked by exhibitor, and there were plenty of salespeople on hand to greet potential buyers. A number of companies had an open-air reception center, where you met with the salespeople and then were taken to a private pier where the yachts were docked. Most exhibitors had the sterns of their yachts backed right up to the dock, with salespeople waiting on the stern to greet visitors. Others had a table with a sales rep right in front of each yacht. Since the vast majority of these boats were many millions over my budget, I didn't bother to tour the inside of any of these vessels.

The big attraction at this show are the superyachts, which are luxury vessels from 80 to almost 300 feet in length, such as the one in the photograph on the left. I assumed these would all be docked at the very end of the piers, but there seemed to be superyachts all over the place. And the exhibitors seemed to come from all over the world, as did many of the visitors. What I have a hard time getting my mind around was that there were a lot of people there who were really interested in buying one of these behemoths. 

I was especially stunned by yachts such as the one in the photograph on the right, which seem to tower over the people walking next to it. These vessels look like small ocean liners. It is hard to imagine the type of wealth required to buy one of these things. Of course, just across Lake Worth is Palm Beach, home to Donald Trump as well as many other billionaires. I can't help thinking that thanks to the tax cuts given to these people through the "One Big Beautiful Bill," all the rest of us are actually subsidizing the purchase of these boats. Not to mention the expense for a crew and the fuel to run it. One of the selling points for one of these superyachts was that it had enough space to hold 5,000 gallons of diesel fuel. At current prices, that means it would cost $27,500 every time you filled up. Will that be cash or credit?

Heading back to Flagler Drive and the exit, we passed the cocktail reception for the launch of the International Superyacht Alliance, dedicated to connecting the U.S. to global markets and new destinations for industry growth. I was tempted to stop, have a drink, and share my thoughts with them, but then thought again. Regardless of the ostentatiousness of the whole thing, I did enjoy walking around and looking at all these luxury vessels. The show continues both today and Sunday if you want to go. And if you do go, a warning. Parking garages close to the event cost $80. I myself would advise heading to CityPlace and walking to the show from there. Just ignore the "garage full" sign.

Opening Day Has Come And Gone - What A Difference A Day Makes...

Yesterday was Opening Day for both my South Side heroes, the Chicago White Sox, and their North Side rivals, the Chicago Cubs. The White Sox were opening the season against the Brewers up in Milwaukee, while the Cubs were playing their home opener against the Washington Nationals at Wrigley Field. Yesterday, both teams were in first place, not having lost a single game. The Cubs are the odds-on favorite to win the National League Central, while the White Sox have undergone a major rebuilding with a group of young promising players. I have been looking forward to the White Sox finally turning the corner at last, and at the very least, not setting still another Major League baseball record by tying the Washington Senators by having four 100-loss seasons in a row. A very modest goal, right?

At the beginning of the White Sox television broadcast yesterday afternoon, both Steve Stone, seen on the left in the photograph on the right, and John Schriffen were very upbeat, expecting great things from this team. Shane Smith was the starting pitcher for the White Sox and went 1.2 innings, giving up 4 runs on 3 hits, followed by 4 relievers who gave up an additional 10 runs, with the Milwaukee Brewers winning by a score of 14-2. Not only that, but the Brewers starting pitcher, Jacob Misiorowski, fanned 11 White Sox hitters to set a franchise record, with 4 relievers bringing the strikeout total to 20, tying a modern Major League record for strikeouts in a 9-inning game since 1900. How about those White Sox - still setting Major League records, even on Opening Day. Their North Side rivals, the Chicago Cubs, lost to the Washington Nationals 10-4 in their home opener at Wrigley Field. And so, I ask you - was I wrong to bet my entire life savings on a White Sox-Cubs World Series this year, which would be the first subway series in Chicago since 1906? Of course, yesterday could have just been a fluke. There is still hope, right? Right?

Opening Day Has Arrived! At Last!

The 2026 Major League Baseball season starts today. And when I googled Chicago White Sox to see what the experts are saying about my South Side heroes, I was happy to see at the top of the page "Chicago White Sox - 1st in American League Central." Which is true. Granted, everyone else in the AL Central is also in first place, but no matter - the possibilities are endless this morning for the White Sox. In any case, I read on the internet (do they still call it the Information Super Highway?) that the experts think the White Sox will have a lot more offense this season, and some predict their new first baseman, Munetaka Murakami, will be All-Star game material by the midseason break. And their new closer, Seranthony Dominguez, could be among the American League saves leaders this year. But the Sox are forecast to finish only 68-94, a mere 8-game improvement over last year. And why not any better? The answer - the starting pitching looks to be even weaker than last year, and so while the White Sox may have a promising future, the general feeling is that it will not be this year. On the other hand, their North Side Rivals, the Chicago Cubs, are predicted to have a win total in the low 90s and give the Milwaukee Brewers a run at winning the NL Central. As for my adopted hometown team, the Colorado Rockies, they are predicted to win between 63 and 67 games, have modest offensive improvement, but a very iffy pitching staff. Only veteran pitcher Kyle Freeland had a good spring, while the rest of the rotation struggled. But still, don't forget, all three teams are in first place right now. At least until this afternoon. Let's play ball!

The Palm Beach International Boat Show Starts Today!

The Palm Beach International Boat Show starts today and runs through this Sunday. This is a big event for South Florida. It takes place along Flagler Drive in downtown West Palm Beach, right on the Intercoastal Waterway and directly across from Palm Beach, where I suspect most of their target market lives. An article I read said that there would be over 100 superyachts on display this year. However, I looked at the preliminary "In-Water Boat List" on the show's official website and was surprised to see that well over 200 superyachts, ranging in size from 80 to 260 feet, could be there this year. The website says that it will be up to the exhibitor whether visitors will be allowed on these vessels, and so I have my doubts whether many, if any, will be open to the general public. The website says to contact the exhibitor if you have a serious interest in one of those yachts and book an appointment. Sounds like a plan to me. All I need to do is rent a yachting outfit, hopefully with epaulets, show up at the gangplank of the 242-foot Casino Royale (which has a James Bond theme) and, as they say, Bob's your uncle. I'll let you know how it goes. And by the way, I took the photograph above in Palm Beach yesterday afternoon. I imagine that many of the Palm Beach crowd will be looking to trade in those old, outdated yachts in the photograph above for something way more suitable. God bless them one and all.