Jan. 15, 2015  A Wine Writer, Of Sorts; Joseph Finora, Amateur Winemaker and Author  by Lettie Teague   Self-publishing success stories give aspiring writers hope that fame and fortune—or at least a few dollars—are possible.  The story of Joseph Finora, though, and his wine-centric thriller titled “Red Like Wine,” is an antithetical tale.  A longtime resident of Long Island’s North Fork, the 55-year-old Mr. Finora is a freelance financial writer and an amateur winemaker who decided to pen a whodunit in his spare time.  Mr. Finora worked on his book every day, in the early morning hours, for more than three years and then spent several months trying to get it published.  But no one was interested in a murder mystery that takes place at a fictional vineyard in a fictional town with a Manhattan crime writer as the hero-sleuth.  The author spent weeks trying to think of something suitably snappy but nothing came to him.  Then, his daughter piped up: “Name it ‘Red Like Wine,’ ” he said Gabrielle, then 12, told him.  Next, Mr. Finora chose Xlibris, a self-publishing company.  The first printing, in November 2013, was 25 books.  The transition from writer to businessman was swift—and daunting.  Suddenly, he had a lot of copies to sell and no distribution network.  The big bookstores didn’t buy self-published books from publishing houses and there was only one book shop on the North Fork.  Mr. Finora turned to pharmacies, supermarkets and even a marine-supply store, Preston’s in Greenport, which has turned out to be a big supporter:  “I sold a lot of books over maritime weekend,” he added.  And what about selling “Red Like Wine” at vineyards?  After all, they seem like the most logical place to sell a wine-focused thriller.  In fact, Mr. Finora had a few book-signings at various vineyards when he first published his novel, but he didn’t move a lot of copies.  His theory about the slow sales:  “No one gets up and says I’m going to go to a winery and buy a mystery,” he said.  The local farmers’ markets, on the other hand, have been good places to sell “Red Like Wine.”  On most Saturdays, the author shows up at the market in Riverhead and shares a table with his friends from the North Fork Smoked Fish Co.  http://www.wsj.com/articles/a-wine-writer-of-sorts-1421373322

The painted turtle (Chrysemys picta) is the most widespread native turtle of North America.  It lives in slow-moving fresh waters, from southern Canada to Louisiana and northern Mexico, and from the Atlantic to the Pacific.  The turtle is the only species of the genus Chrysemys, which is part of the pond turtle family Emydidae.  Fossils show that the painted turtle existed 15 million years ago.  Four regionally based subspecies (the eastern, midland, southern, and western) evolved during the last ice age.  Although they are frequently consumed as eggs or hatchlings by rodents, canines, and snakes, the adult turtles' hard shells protect them from most predators.  Reliant on warmth from its surroundings, the painted turtle is active only during the day when it basks for hours on logs or rocks.  During winter, the turtle hibernates, usually in the mud at the bottom of water bodies.  In the traditional tales of Algonquian tribes, the colorful turtle played the part of a trickster.  In modern times, four U.S. states have named the painted turtle their official reptile.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.S._state_reptiles  While habitat loss and road killings have reduced the turtle's population, its ability to live in human-disturbed settings has helped it remain the most abundant turtle in North America.  Adults in the wild can live for more than 55 years.  Read more and see pictures at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Painted_turtle

In English punctuation, a serial comma or series comma (also called Oxford comma and Harvard comma) is a comma placed immediately before the coordinating conjunction (usually and, or, or nor) in a series of three or more terms.  For example, a list of three countries might be punctuated either as "France, Italy, and Spain" (with the serial comma), or as "France, Italy and Spain" (without the serial comma).  Opinions among writers and editors differ on whether to use the serial comma.  In American English, a majority of style guides mandate use of the serial comma, including The MLA Style Manual, APA style,  The Chicago Manual of Style, Strunk and White's Elements of Style, and the U.S. Government Printing Office Style Manual.  The Associated Press Stylebook and the Stylebook published by The Canadian Press for journalistic writing advise against it.  It is used less often in British English,  but some British style guides require it, including the Oxford University Press style manual.  Some, including Fowler's Modern English Usage, use it only where necessary to avoid ambiguity, in contrast to such guides as Garner's Modern American Usage, which advocate its use to purportedly eliminate the possibility of ambiguity.  The style that always uses the serial comma may be less likely to result in ambiguity.  Consider the apocryphal book dedication quoted by Teresa Nielsen Hayden:  To my parents, Ayn Rand and God.  There is ambiguity about the writer's parentage, because Ayn Rand and God can be read as in apposition to my parents, leading the reader to believe that the writer claims Ayn Rand and God are the parents.  A comma before and removes the ambiguity:  To my parents, Ayn Rand, and God.  But lists can also be written in other ways that eliminate the ambiguity without introducing the serial comma, such as using other punctuation, or none, to introduce or delimit them.  An example collected by Nielsen Hayden was found in a newspaper account of a documentary about Merle Haggard:  Among those interviewed were his two ex-wives, Kris Kristofferson and Robert Duvall.   A serial comma would preclude this reading:  Among those interviewed were his two ex-wives, Kris Kristofferson, and Robert Duvall.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serial_comma

Sunrise and sunset calculator — City lookup  Link to moon phases, weather and time differences at http://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/sunrise.html

"People think newspapers are struggling because the Internet stole our readers.  But that’s not the problem; when readers go online, they’re still clicking on our sites for their news.  Between print and online, most newspapers have more readers than they’ve ever had.  We don’t make much money off online readers at the moment, because most advertisers are still learning how best to utilize the Web."   

http://fb2.in.net/chitat/en/P/parks-brad/faces-of-the-gone

MORE GROUNDHOG NEWS

Jimmy, the official groundhog in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin bit the mayor's ear during a Groundhog Day celebration on Feb. 2, 2015.  Mayor Jonathan Freund flinched, but he went on with his declaration that Jimmy had predicted an early spring.  WISC-TV reports that the Groundhog Day celebration became even more precarious when Jimmy's handlers, Jerry and Maria Hahn, said the mayor had gotten it wrong and that there would be six more weeks of winter.  The city later issued a statement saying only the mayor can translate Jimmy's prediction.  http://www.philly.com/philly/news/nation_world/20150202_ap_7d8f355274834b60b86ec6d4b9de7843.html  

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio took part in a Feb. 2, 2015  Groundhog Day ceremony meant to avoid a repeat of a falling rodent last year, with Staten Island Chuck emerging via elevator from his underground home.  The groundhog sniffed, eyes darting, with its rear initially turned to Mr. de Blasio and other assembled dignitaries. Then it veered their way, brooding for a moment.  A hush came over the Staten Island Zoo.  No shadow, the zoo declared.  Spring was coming.  Chuck remained untouched.  http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/03/nyregion/on-groundhog-day-a-new-script-and-a-sign-of-spring-in-new-york-city.html

Feb. 3, 2015  A recently discovered novel by Harper Lee is to be published in July, her first since her acclaimed "To Kill a Mockingbird" was published in 1960.  Publisher Harper announced that it had acquired the rights to Lee's novel, titled "Go Set a Watchman," which will be published on July 14.  Lee said in a statement released by Harper that she completed the 304-page book in the mid-1950s and that it was rediscovered by her lawyer, Tonja Carter, last fall.  The publisher plans a first printing of 2 million copies, and the book will also be available in an electronic edition.  "After much thought and hesitation I shared it with a handful of people I trust and was pleased to hear that they considered it worthy of publication," 88-year-old Lee said in the statement.  "I am humbled and amazed that this will now be published after all these years."  The novel is set in the mid-1950s and features many of the characters from her first novel some 20 years later.  In the book, the character of Scout has returned to Maycomb, Ala., from New York to visit her father, Atticus.  Brittny Mejia  http://www.latimes.com/books/jacketcopy/la-jc-harper-lee-to-to-kill-a-mockingbird-sequel-20150203-story.html

http://librariansmuse.blogspot.com  Issue 1252  February 4, 2015  On this date in 1801, John Marshall was sworn in as Chief Justice of the United States.  On this date in 1825, the Ohio Legislature authorized the construction of the Ohio and Erie Canal and the Miami and Erie Canal.