Often been surprised by a movie after what a film critic said about it? Ever felt cheated out of big bucks on the recommendations of a punk 24-year-old? Or really loved the ones they panned? Well, you no longer need to feel out of step with the current movie review band. Different Drummer is for you. Read more about our take on the film world. And get ready to relive your favorite movies with the recipes that follow each review. You can find many other great recipes in Different Drummer’s own Appetite for Murder: a Mystery Lover’s Cookbook, too.
Light and bubbly like dry vintage champagne, Amazon’s McDonalds and Dodds is one of the best mysteries to hit the screen. The opening says it all: A score as crisp and delightful as the vintage wine with the medieval city of Bath represented like a modern D.C. Escher graphic print. This mystery lover, classically trained violinist, and one time medieval scholar finds it irresistible.
Read MoreWho cares if you’ve never rowed in your life. It’s the middle of the Great Depression and you’re living in a rusted-out jalopy eating a can of beans. Making the Washington State rowing team may be the only way to get a roof over your head and a steady paycheck.
Read MoreThe only 21st century sword and sandal film that deserves a place next to those other classics, Spartacus and Ben Hur. Winner of five Oscars, most notably Best Picture and Best Actor (a magnificent Russell Crowe) as well as 7 other nominations, this is a classic for all time and well worth watching again.
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Laugh out loud with this minor classic that stirs up a cocktail of Goonies, Stand by Me, Breaking Away, and The Christmas Story, with a little Cujo as our cherry on the top.
Read MoreIndiana’s version of Dazed and Confused. But it is also very Greek, too, since it asks the question, “Who Am I?” Except we are not talking about kings and queens, but four Bloomington, Indiana, townies trying to find their way in life the year after high school.
Read MoreThis film is what Different Drummer is all about – finding a superb little sleeper that is as extraordinary as it is little known. And this 1983 gem starring such greats as Gregory Peck, John Gielgud, and Christopher Plummer is that in spades.
Read MoreTwo thousand twenty astounded us, even in minor ways. A nation once addicted to car chases, and superheroes relished a film that is very still and intellectual, spending endless screen time fixated – like its titular heroine – on chess, an entire world of “just 64 squares.”
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Who could resist this trio? Michael Caine as a backwater Texan along with his big brother Robert Duvall, and “I See Dead People” Haley Joel Osment rounding out the crew. They aren’t exactly dead people when their great nephew arrives, but they are settling in for it without much resistance.
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That’s why we called them the greatest generation, pals. This war and the Depression before that shaped them. They didn’t complain. They just did their duty, and more than you can even imagine died, and died valiantly.
Read MoreSome people have driven 22 hours to get there – the wonderful Crystal Café nestled in the rolling hills of Iola, Wisconsin. Just about everything there is delicious, but their specialty of homemade pies to die for. Just thinking about their pies brings back Midwest Memories from that fabulous summer of 2018.
Read MoreSuddenly remakes of Agatha Christie are all the rage. Most of them are tres ordinaire, as my father would say, but a few are quite good. This film fits that category.
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Our modern day Cinderella is a middle aged war widow, but she’s a bit of a fairy godmother as well. Potential Prince Charmings sometimes disappoint, but others are hidden in plain sight.
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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.
“I survived the Rainey Street ripper': Drugged man who plummeted 25ft off bridge believes 'serial killer' stalking Austin tried to drown him.” Daily Mail
Twelve bodies have been found in Lady Bird Lake and Colorado River since 2022
Police insist there is no serial killer but the mounting bodies sees rumor persist
Jeff Jones survived falling off bridge near river, thinks he may have been pushed
Update: They are now installing much needed lighting along the Hike and Bike Trail near Rainey Street.
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.
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.
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.
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.
