Parking Lot

May 29, 2026 ~ gigicatchesair ~ Leave a comment

Good evening. It is I Gigi the parti poodle here and as you may remember last week, we were in hot pursuit of the garish orange Hummer. We had just headed down the curvy dark hill and had reached the bottom. Ruffles the bulldog attempted to remain inconspicuous as we waited behind the rotten black-market brutes as they pulled into the left-hand turning lane as the light turned green. We followed the van down the long road towards the next town.

“Where do you think they are going?” Edison the Manx asked Ruffles.

“Left,” Ruffles replied.

“Yes, I know they went left. But left to where?”

“All that matters is they didn’t get on the freeway. I do not like the freeway.”

“What matters is that my sister is in that monstrosity,” Artemis said pointing her paw forwards at the Hummer. “Do not lose them.”

“I will not lose them,” Ruffles said. “I will not lose them.”

“I’ll bet they are going to that parking lot on the other side of the bridge,” I said.

“What parking lot?”

“My novelist takes me out for scrumptious lunches there in the summer when they have outdoor seating. The city shut down the street in front of the restaurant to allow for safer foot traffic. But they have a large parking lot around the back. At this time of night, it would be empty. They could easily meet someone there to take Demeter.”

“I think the poodle might be right,” Edison said. “An empty parking lot at night seems like a likely place for questionably legal commerce.”

“Personally, I would meet at the Bakery,” Madeline the British Shorthair said.

“The Bakery?” Charlotte the Chow said. “Why would you meet someone in the middle of the night at The Bakery?”

“Sometimes they throw the day olds into the dumpster.”

“I tend to think Gigi might be onto something,” Charlotte said. “I think the back parking lot of the café makes a lot of sense.”

“Café, café,” the dachshund twins called out.

“Oh, do shut up, will you,” Artemis said with an edge in her voice.

“They are driving up the bridge,” Ruffles said. “There they go up the bridge.”

We all watched out the windshield to see where the orange Hummer was heading.

“If it’s going to the parking lot, it will veer left,” I said.

“You mean it will suddenly turn evil?” Bruiser the Jack Russell said, fear in his eyes.

“No, veer left. I think you are referring to bend sinister.”

“Bend sinister, bend sinister!” Titus and Tyler barked.

“Not bend sinister, veer left!, I barked back. “Stop acting like nitwits!”

“They’re veering left” Ruffles said and started turning the steering wheel.

“If we park in the parking lot at the same time, they’ll see us,” Charlotte said.

“But there’s no where else to park around there,” I said.

“What if they take off and I never see my sister again?” Artemis said, panicking.

“We have to follow them or we’ll lose them too,” I said.

Ruffles drove the van into the parking lot right behind the orange Hummer.

“Park the van and shut off the engine,” I said.

“But what if they drive out of the parking lot and we lose them?” Ruffles said.

“We can’t lose them; we can’t lose them!” Artemis said.

“Park the car and shut off the engine!” I yelled.

Ruffles swiftly pulled into one of the stalls and shut off the engine. We all scrambled to the tinted side window and looked out. The Hummer had stopped at the far side of the lot and shut off the engine.

“Now what?” Ruffles said.

Until next week, I bid you adieu.

MY BOOKS

You can check out my books Chicane and all five installments of the Musicology book series Musicology: Volume One, Baby!, Musicology: Volume Two, Kid!, Musicology: Volume Three, Twist!, Musicology: Volume Four, Sweetie! and Musicology: The Epiquad on Amazon in Kindle and Paperback editions. You can also check out Musicology’s web site at www.musicologyrocks.com and vote for who you think will win Musicology!

**STREAM OF THE WEEK: THE PAPER TIGERS (2020)-NETFLIX**

This week’s pick is a sleeper of story that is part Kung Fu, mystery, and comedy cleverly written and directed by Bao Tran. Back in the 1980’s a Kung Fu master and chef, Sifu Cheung takes on only three young students: Danny (Kieran Tamondong), Hing (Junior Kinder), and Jim (Malakai James). They practice in Sifu’s garage and slowly become martial arts experts. When they become teens, Danny (Yoshi Sudarso), Hing (Peter Adrian Sudarso) and Jim (Gui DaSilva-Greene) take to the streets and fight anyone willing to take them against Sifu’s orders. Even their nemesis Carter (Mark Poletti) who trains under a different Kung Fu master. Danny is sent an invitation to fight in Japan and Jim is to go with him. But something happens along the way.

A few decades later Danny (Alain Uy) finds himself disillusioned and divorced from his wife Caryn (Jae Suh Park). The former couple share a young son named Ed (Joziah Lagonoy) whom Danny refuses to teach Kung Fu to. Danny tries to help raise the boy but finds his insurance job often gets in the way.

Danny runs into Hing (Ron Yuan), whom Sifu taught ancient Chinese medicine. Hing also did construction and seriously hurt his knee and now collects disability. Hing also tells Danny that Sifu recently died. Hing says the coroner claimed the cause of death was a heart attack, but the two old friends suspect something more sinister is at play. They attend the funeral and run into their former rival Carter (Matthew Page) there who provides some possible information on what may have happened. Danny and Hing track down Jim (Mykel Shannon Jenkins) who has become a Jiu Jitsu trainer and is in the best shape of the three. Despite their age and a couple of physical setbacks, the old friends set off on an odyssey to find out who killed their beloved Sifu and bring the villain to justice.

Exit and Plan

April 9, 2026 ~ gigicatchesair ~ Leave a comment

Good afternoon. It is I Gigi the parti poodle here to introduce this week’s blog. As you may remember last week Artemis the Persian and I had crept downstairs and found we were face-to-face with a locked door. But because Bernard D. Bunny could not resist executing his Easter Bunny rock performance, he jumped up and opened the door with the power of his hind legs.

When the door blew open the three of us were stunned to see our kidnapped friends Madeline the British Shorthair and Edison the Manx inside. They looked distressed to say the least and they both had lost weight. Bernard offered them a carrot. They munched it down quickly despite being carnivores.

“Where is my sister?” Artemis asked.

“We don’t know,” Edison said.

“You don’t know?”

“We don’t know,” Madeline echoed.

Artemis sobbed a long sorrowful sob as I have never heard a cat sob before.

“There, there,” Bernard said patting her on the back with his paw. “There, there.”

“I overheard the kidnapper say something about a Persian cat,” Edison said.

Suddenly, everyone went silent and looked at him. When he didn’t answer I said, “Well? What did he say?”

“He said he wanted to take the Persian to market.”

“To market? What does he mean by take her to market?”

“I do not know what he means by take her to market. I only know he said he was planning to do it tonight.”

“Tonight?” Artemis said. “When did you hear him declare tonight?”

“Today.”

“Today?” Madeline said. “I never heard him say anything of the sort.”

“It was when he took us outside this morning. He got a phone call and I overheard it.”

“My goodness! I am so glad you did. I must have been preoccupied with something else, like being incarcerated.”

“We must set a plan in place,” I said.

“I concur,” Bernard said.

“But first we must get Edison and Madeline out and returned home safely. Let’s head back up the stairs.”

Artemis, Bernard, Edison, Madeline and I all stepped out of the room. I could hear both Edison and Madeline breathe a collective sigh of relief. We ascended the stairs one step at a time. When we reached the top step, we all looked around to make sure no one had come home. We then trotted over to the front door and Artemis, and I pushed the chair over so Bernard could hop up, turn the knob and let us out. But after devising a plan, we will be back to rescue Demeter. Until next week, I bid you adieu.

MY BOOKS

**STREAM OF THE WEEK: BILLY IDOL SHOULD BE DEAD (2026)-HULU**

So, how does a normal middleclass clean cut English boy who wears glasses named William Broad become a drug addled major punk rock icon named Billy Idol? That is the story presented in this engrossing documentary by Jonas Åkerlund. I must say off top I have seen Billy Idol perform twice and he and his band put on an exhilarating show. The first time I saw them play, woman after woman stormed the stage and were escorted out of the concert by security. The second time was tamer in that way and still a great show. I hope he gets inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame this year.

The documentary starts in England with the dawn of punk rock. Born into a middle-class family, the young Mr. Broad started to observe the scene. At the time he was not a drinker, smoker, or drug taker. In 1976 he joined a band named Chelsea and the lead singer told him he should wear contacts instead of glasses and bleach his hair blonde. He took the advice and shortly thereafter he and a couple of other musicians left the group and formed the band Generation X. William Broad then changed his name to Billy Idol. He chose the name based on his chemistry teacher referring to him as “idle” on his report card. The band had hits like “Ready Steady Go” and “Dancing with Myself” and appeared on British television. During this time, he met dancer Perri Lister and the two started a long-term relationship. It was also during this time drugs started to hit the punk scene, and Idol became acquainted with heroine.

When he was only two years old, his father, an English salesman also named William, moved William, William’s mother Joan and his little sister Jane to New York where the family lived for four years before returning to England. Because he was familiar with the city, when Idol realized the punk scene in England was waning in 1981, he saw an opportunity to head back to where he had spent his early childhood and become a solo artist.

At that time a new phenomenon was about to take place called MTV and in 1982, Idol became one of the earliest artists to perform on it. He wrote the mega hit “White Wedding” and working with his new guitarist Steve Stevens. They came up with a concept for the video with his girlfriend Perri playing the bride, shot it in a few short days, it aired and the rest is history.

But success brought pressure, and pressure made the drinking, drugs worse. Idol’s paralleling success and harrowing drug and sex spiral play out in both interviews, footage and animation over the course of the film.

Certified Sadistic Accountant Chapter Twenty-Four

May 3, 2024 ~ gigicatchesair ~ Leave a comment

Good evening. My name is Gigi the parti poodle and I was running a bit late, but I am here and ready to introduce chapter twenty-four of my story Certified Sadistic Accountant. As you may know, last week my novelist and I were more than happy to find out Foreigner is finally going to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. I was so excited about it I decided to pen ala Weird Al and Twisted Tunes, a different take on one of the group’s biggest songs. Here it goes,

Well, I’m, hot mailing

Click it and see

I’ve got a letter burning inside of me

Come on baby, do you do more than text?

I’m hot mailing, I’m hot mailing

You don’t have to read my font

To know what I really want

Honey, you ought to scroll

Now you type so fine

Let me read another line

I want to see

What attachment you’re sending me

Now it’s up to you

We can leave a bad product review

Just me and you

I’ll show you trolling like you never knew

That’s why I’m hot mailing

Click it and see

I’ve got a letter burning inside of me

Come on baby, do you do more than text?

I’m hot mailing, I’m hot mailing

If it feels alright

Maybe we could Zoom all night.

Shall I send you my link?

But you’ve got to click on that key.

Come on, girl. Click the send key.

Tell me, are you hot mailing?

Inbox looks that way to me.

Are you old enough?

Will you be phishing when I call your bluff?

Is my texting right?

Will you send your dirty pics tonight?

Well I’m, hot mailing

Click it and see

I’ve got a letter burning inside of me

Come on baby, do you do more than text?

I’m hot mailing, I’m hot mailing

Now it’s up to you

We can write a bad product review

Oh, before we do

You’ll have to block and unfriend you know who

Well, I’m, hot mailingI

Click it and see

I’ve got a letter burning inside of me

Come on baby do you do more than text

I’m hot mailing, I’m hot mailing

Hot mailing, every night

Hot mailing, you’re emoji’s so tight

Hot mailing, you’re texting me wild

Hot mailing, I’m so sexting you, child

Hot mailing, I’m a little bit geek

Hot mailing, you’re a little bit freaked

Hot mailing, you’re making me pog

Hot mailing, for your sweet, sweet blog

Did you read what I wrote?

And with that thought, here is chapter twenty-four of Certified Sadistic Accountant. Rock on!

Certified Sadistic Accountant

by

Gigi the parti poodle

Chapter Twenty-Four

Curtis huddled in his breakfast nook watching his round vintage-style wall clock. His clock had a silent sweep non-ticking quartz movement. But he heard the seconds marking off time in his head. He’d been sitting there for almost two hours hoping the police officer hadn’t followed him and was parked outside. His plan was to leave in a few minutes and blend in with traffic. However, it was Saturday and there wouldn’t be many cars on the road until around ten or eleven. He sipped the coffee he’d made with his espresso machine. Mr. Dupree was right about one thing: coffee should be made with whole beans and ground to order.

For some reason he started wondering what happened to all the coffee grounds once they were used and discarded. He figured some ended up being spared and turned into potting soil. But how many ended up in garbage dumps paved over with a golf course built on top? All those grounds trapped like prisoners with no dirt to fertilize. They would sit there for decades, centuries even. Curtis took another sip of his coffee. If he’d just not fallen asleep, he would have made it to the mailbox in the middle of the night. Maybe even beat the prowler. The policeman wouldn’t have walked up to his car and asked for his license and registration. He looked at the second hand on the clock. It glided past twelve. After it glided past twelve again, he would get up and leave.

When Curtis had pulled into his driveway at 6:40 AM, he’d noticed the red Ford Fiesta still parked in Earl’s driveway. Maybe his neighbor wasn’t as lonesome as he thought. The second-hand glided past twelve. He rose from the table and quietly stepped outside. As he turned to lock the door to his duplex, Earl and the woman with the long dark brown hair, short skirt and tennis shoes stepped outside onto Earl’s porch as well. Curtis told himself to act naturally as if he was heading off to do something ordinary for the weekend. He would not greet them. He would let them greet him first, act like he was focused on his normal weekend plans. Oddly, all Earl did was wave and after a moment Curtis realized Earl and the woman were not on friendly terms. There was tension between them. Curtis waved back, climbed into his pale green Honda Accord, and backed out into the street.

Curtis looked around the neighborhood as he headed for the main arterial. He scanned the streets trying to see if anyone was following him. He didn’t see any police prowlers around. He checked his rearview mirror. No one was behind him. He continued forwards.

He pulled up to the stop light to turn right onto the street that headed towards the mall. He turned on the radio and when he looked up in the rearview mirror, he saw a police car. Curtis froze, rattled. Breathe deep, he told himself. Just drive. Curtis gripped the steering wheel tightly; he flipped on the turn signal as his eyes peered to the left to see if anyone was coming. He turned cautiously and headed down the hill. He looked up in his rearview mirror. The prowler was on his tail. Curtis drove at the speed limit. Take it easy, he told himself. Stay nonchalant. Down the hill, past the eateries, and on to the mall. The prowler kept right on his tail. Stay calm and think, he told himself.

As he drove forwards, he saw the lights on the railroad track come on. He slowed to a stop and checked the rearview mirror. The prowler’s tinted windows made it difficult to see the driver. The sound of the train’s signal was deafening. He wondered if the officer was taking down his license plate as he waited for the train to pass.

As the last car went by, Curtis noticed another prowler sitting on the opposite side of the tracks. His heart began beating faster. He waited for the bar to lift. Then he crawled over the tracks and continued forwards. The prowler on the opposite side passed him and made a right turn towards the little lunch shack at the end of the street. The prowler behind him continued following his Honda. Curtis decided he was being paranoid. There were police cars everywhere. He was overthinking what happened last night.

Curtis drove over the bridge and out towards the mall. He glanced in his rearview mirror. He saw a second prowler two cars back. Did the other prowler turn around and start following him? He was tempted to speed up, but the first police car was right on his tail. He passed the mall and headed towards the turnoff to the lake. He stopped at the light. He looked around to see if there were any other police cars. Then he turned right and continued towards the lake. The police prowler turned with him. And after a moment the other prowler turned and stayed behind him as well. He needed an alternate destination.

He would head back and stop at the gas station. He drove a couple of blocks and then got into the right turn lane. He saw the two prowlers merge into the right turn lane behind him. He continued down the road to the gas station across from the mall and pulled in. As he did the two prowlers drove past the gas station and back the way he’d come. Were they on to him, Curtis thought?

Mr. Dupree set Sheriff Bob’s coffee and biscotti on the dining room table.

“Thanks, Dal,” Sheriff Bob said. It’s been a long night.”

“Did we receive a second ransom note giving us further instructions?”

“No, we did not.”

“Did your guy out there see anyone?”

“Just some twenty-something kid coming home from a date.”

“Is your guy sure that’s what he was doing?”

“Nope. That’s why he took down the kid’s license and registration. We’ll run it through our system to see if his name comes up with anything. I also had another one of my guys follow him to his house.”

“My daughter could be lying in a ditch somewhere.”

“Or not. You need to keep your head here, Dal.”

“Fia has been gone an entire day. Almost two.”

Mrs. Dupree walked into the dining room. She was a visible wreck but kept her composure. “Do you have any leads?” she asked.

“None yet,” Sheriff Bob said. “There was a young man the officer saw parked out on the street early this morning. My guy got his license and registration. We’ll run it through our system. Probably won’t come up with anything but you never know.”

Mrs. Dupree nodded. “It isn’t like Fia to disappear for days like this.”

“Do you think it’s possible she ran into some friends from high school on spring break too? A lot of them are around town right now.”

“No, Fia was supposed to be taking the place of Dallas’s receptionist who went to Palm Springs this week. Fia was excited about the job and is a responsible young woman. She would not just take off.”

Sheriff Bob took another sip of his coffee. “Do you know if she was seeing anyone?”

“No…although she did always like that kid who was in marching band.”

“She did not,” Mr. Dupree snapped.

“Yes, Dallas, she did.”

“He was an odd little troll. Always wearing vests. You got to look out for boys who wear vests.”

Mrs. Dupree rolled her eyes. “But I still don’t think she ran off with friends or went to see a boy.”

“So, you believe the ransom note to be legitimate?”

“Yes. Absolutely.”

Sheriff Bob nodded. “I’m going to have my guy head home in another hour. I’ll send a new one to watch from the house. I think we need to consider doing a stakeout.”

MY BOOKS

**STREAM OF THE WEEK: THE PEZ OUTLAW (2022)-NETFLIX**

It’s always a pleasure to come across a documentary that is fun and engaging to watch and this week’s pick fits the bill. This is one of those biographical stories that screams out to be made into a major motion picture. I can’t imagine any actor who wouldn’t want the lead role. And his wife Kathy, son Josh and the villain would be stellar parts too.

Steve Glew is a bit of an oddball. But he’s smart and always thinking of ways to make money. When he was younger, he used to buy kid’s cereals (the more sugar the better) and send away for free items advertised on the back of the box. He ordered so many of them the cereal companies had to start printing “one item per customer”. Steve is a collector himself…of the cereal boxes. But as for the toys, he sold those at toy conventions as a side-hustle. It was a way to make extra money since his 9-5 job as a machinist, an occupation which he was clearly over-qualified for, didn’t pay nearly as well.

Then one day he found the holy grail of small toys: the Pez dispenser. And he had to get his hands on them. A lot of them. And he did…in Russia. He found that the factories there made Pez dispensers the United States Pez company rejected. But these rejected toys were worth thousands to American collectors. Thus began Steve’s odyssey as a smuggler of Pez dispensers and the egomaniac US Pez CEO, better known as the “Pezident”, who would do whatever it took to stop him.