Sunday, October 28, 2012

Happy Halloween


October 31st is Halloween.  This is a fun time for kids to go knocking on doors and saying trick or treat.  It used to be you could say, what's your trick? These days kids look at you as if you are crazy so most people just hold a bowl full of candy out and let them dig in.

Last year I don't know what possessed me, but when one group of kids said, "Trick or Treat," I asked, "What's your trick?"  I had to laugh because one little girl laid down and rolled around.  Actually, I didn't laugh at the time because I didn't want to hurt her feelings.  Instead, I said what a great trick. 

Halloween is a fun time for children to go door to door doing trick and gathering candy to take home and enjoy.  Unfortunately, there are dangers out there, so I'm hoping the adults will join in the fun and escort the kids around the neighborhoods. 

Even the older kids need to be careful and stay in groups.  Enjoy!

Have a great week, and I'll see you next Sunday. 

Sandra K. Marshall
http://www.eirelander-publishing.com

Sunday, October 21, 2012

Why Do Kids Bully Others?

We raise our kids to be mentally and physically strong; to stand up for themselves and for others. The key is we tell our children to stand up for themselves, but we must also teach them it's there duty to defend those who can't. 

It's a shame that children are bullied.  Sometimes, they are even picked on by their families.  Often these parents think this will make the child stronger, but often it becomes a form of abuse, and the kid becomes an abuser.

When I was young, I was teased but that teasing was gentle compared to what goes on these days. It has advanced to something more than verbal.  With technology, the child can't get away from the bullying because it's on social media like FB or Twitter.

What is causing this horrible trend?  Movies like Mean Girls and some shows on television glamorize bullies and make young people think this is the thing to do.  Parents don't have time to give attention to their kids. 

When I was a child there were family dinners, and we ate together and talked about what was going on in our lives.  We played games after the dishes were done, and we laughed and talked.

These days the lives of children and everyone are stressful.  What do think needs to be done to stop bullying?

Thank you for visiting my blog.  Have a wonderful week, and I'll see you next Sunday. 

Sandra K. Marshall
http://www.eirelander-publishing.com

Sunday, October 14, 2012

My Thoughts on Election Campaigns


Hi Everyone,
 
Okay everyone, I'm not talking about the candidates, so no bashing here.  I'm sick of listening to politicians on both sides of the fence.  I'm going to tell you what I think needs to be done during elections. 
 
1:  3 months of campaigning maximum before vote
  
2:  No Super Pac's (Has anyone thought about what the money given to super pac's might accomplish if used to pay down the debt?)
 
 3:  Candidates shouldn't have to raise money and shouldn't receive donations from anyone
 
4:  1 free add for each candidate per month for 3 months (networks donate the time)
 
5:  Three debates for presidential candidates and one debate for vice presidential candidate
 
 6:  A URL should be posted verifying the truth of all candidates so the voters can have easy access to find out the truth if they don't want to check out facts for themselves.  This is a necessity since when listening to the candidates you only get the partial truth from any of them.  Part of the reason is because 2 minutes isn't enough time to explain anything.
 
 
We should respect all of our candidates who run for any office because the jobs are not easy, and I can't imagine anyone wanting the jobs unless they love our country.  Oh sure, there is corruption everywhere, but most really want to make things better.
 
Remember folks, democracy isn't perfect but it's a lot better than many other governments. 
 
Give me your opinions of our election campaigns, but there will be no bashing of candidates here on either side.
 
Have a great week, and I'll see you next Sunday.
 
Sandra K. Marshall, Author @
 

 

Sunday, October 7, 2012

Meet Author, Robert Thornhill

Author, Robert Thornhill
Hello Everyone,

My guest today is local author, Robert Thornhill.  I connected with Robert on the professional site LinkedIn.  Although, I haven't read his Lady Justice series I was intrigued by his blurb and excerpt. 




About the Author

 

Award-winning author, Robert Thornhill, began writing at the age of sixty-six and in three short years has penned ten novels in the Lady Justice mystery/comedy series, the seven volume Rainbow Road series of chapter books for children, a cookbook and a mini-autobiography.
     Lady Justice and the Sting and Lady Justice and Dr. Death and Lady Justice and the Vigilante won the Pinnacle Award for the best new mystery novels of Fall 2011, Winter 2012 and Summer 2012 from the National Association of Book Entrepreneurs.
     Many of Walt’s adventures in the Lady Justice series are anecdotal and based on Robert’s real life.
     Robert holds a master’s in psychology, but his wit and insight come from his varied occupations, including thirty-three years as a real estate broker. He lives with his wife, Peg, in Independence, Missouri.

Visit him on the Web at: http://BooksByBob.com
 
 


The Lady Justice novels are set in Kansas City.
The main character, Walt Williams, is a 69 year old officer with the Kansas City Police Department. He started the City Retiree Action Patrol. You can see what the acronym spells.
The series is mystery/comedy in the same genre as Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum series. The difference is that her characters are young and sexy and mine are old geezers like me.
 
 
Blurb
          Members of the Midtown Book Club are found murdered.
          It is just the beginning of a series of deaths that lead Walt and Ox into the twisted world of a serial killer.
          In the late 1960's, the Zodiac Killer claimed to have killed 37 people and was never caught --- the perfect crime.
          Oscar Roach, dreamed of being the next serial killer to commit the perfect crime.
          He left a calling card with each of his victims --- a mystery novel, resting in their blood-soaked hands.
         The media dubbed him 'The Librarian'.
         Walt and the Kansas City Police are baffled by the cunning of this vicious killer and fear that he has indeed committed the perfect crime.
          Or did he?
          Walt and his wacky senior cohorts prove, once again, that life goes on in spite of the carnage around them.
         The perfect blend of murder, mayhem and merriment.
 
 
Excerpt:

LADY JUSTICE

AND THE
BOOK CLUB MURDERS

 

PROLOGUE

 

Monthly meeting of the Midtown Book Club at the home of Ed Weems

 

    "Idiot!" Ed Weems mumbled as he slammed the novel on the coffee table and slid his heavy black glasses with the coke-bottle lenses up the bridge of his nose.
    Larry Dunlop looked up from his own book and grinned, "They caught him, didn't they?"
   "Of course they caught him. They always do," Ed replied. "One fingerprint --- the guy forgot to wipe one fingerprint off of the light switch --- that's how they got him."
    Larry put down his novel and stretched, "I hope you weren't expecting the bad guy to get away with it. People don't want the bad guys to win --- everyone roots for the guy wearing the white hat. That's why, no matter how clever the perp is, he always gets caught in the end. That's what sells books."
    "Well I want to read a novel about someone who commits the perfect crime. Any ideas?"
    Oscar Roach had been listening to the conversation with amusement. "Exactly what is your definition of a perfect crime?"
    "Well it seems pretty obvious," Ed replied. "Someone commits a crime and gets away with it."
    "Too simplistic," Oscar said with a smirk. "There are actually three definitions of a perfect crime."
    "Please enlighten us, Master," Ed retorted sarcastically.
    "Well, first of all, there are some who believe that in order for a crime to be perfect, it must be undetectable --- that it is committed and no one ever knows about it.
     "For instance, with my job as an orderly at the hospital, I could steal one pair of latex gloves from every box in every exam room for a month and nobody would ever be the wiser --- they just don't keep track of those things.
     "Of course, if no one ever knew that the crime was ever committed, it wouldn't make for much of a story in a novel."
      Ed was beginning to show interest, "And the second kind?"
      "The second kind is the subject of most mystery novels --- a crime is committed --- the cops know about it, and it becomes a cat-and-mouse game to see whether the perpetrator was clever enough to avoid detection. Obviously your guy wasn't --- he left a fingerprint."
      "Okay, then what's the third category?"
      "The third category is when a crime is committed, the police know who did it, but they can't prove it."
      "An example please?"
      "Sure. In 2009, there was a jewel heist. The thief left behind his DNA, which led to an arrest. Unfortunately for the police, the DNA was from identical twins. Neither of them would talk, so it could not be proven beyond reasonable doubt which twin was the thief."
       Ed was impressed. "You seem to know a lot about this subject."
       "I've been looking into it."
       "Any particular reason?"
       Oscar paused before he spoke, "Because I'm going to do it."
       Ed was taken by surprise. "Do what?"
       "Commit the perfect crime."
       Ed and Larry exchanged worried glances.
      "What the hell are you talking about, Oscar?" Larry asked. "You're a middle-aged hospital orderly for chrissakes!"
      "Exactly my point," Oscar replied with resolve.
      "My life is pathetic and so are yours --- and so is this stupid club."
      "What's so bad about our club?" Ed asked indignantly.
      "Do I really have to spell it out? We started out with ten members and one-by-one they've been dropping away --- mostly because they've found something better to do with their lives --- like Liz, who moved back to Columbia to finish her degree at MU. All that's left is us losers."
      "Hey, speak for yourself, you jerk!" Larry retorted.
      "Oh please, Larry. You're a forty-year-old custodian in a middle school who spends his day cleaning up after snotty-nosed kids, and Ed, you spend your life in a cubicle doing data entry into a computer for an huge accounting firm that doesn't even know you exist.
     "When was the last time that you did something REALLY exciting --- something that made you feel like you were living on the edge?
     "When was the last time you got laid --- or even had a date?
      Neither of them responded.
     "Have I made my point?"
     "Don't you think committing a crime is a bit extreme?" Ed asked. "Wouldn't it be more logical to plan a canoe trip or maybe a weekend at Branson?"
     Oscar shook his head in disgust. "Nope, an evening with Andy Williams is not my idea of living on the edge --- it has to be a crime --- and not just any crime --- murder.
    "I'm going to commit the perfect murder!"
    Ed and Larry were speechless.
    "I'm going to do it and I want you two to do it too. Let's turn this pathetic club into something special --- something that will make our hearts race --- something that will challenge our intellect and something that will take us away from our dreary lives."
    "But --- murder!" Larry stammered. "I could never kill someone --- not on purpose anyway."
    "It's not that big of a deal," Oscar replied. "I see people die at the hospital every day. Look at the obituaries in the Kansas City Star. Dozens of people die every week.
   "I'm not talking about killing the Mayor or somebody like that. The streets are filled with the homeless and prostitutes. Their lives already suck and we would be doing them and the city a favor by getting rid of a few.
   "Think of the challenge. We each have read dozens of crime novels and watched countless TV shows. We know what we have to do to commit the perfect crime. All we have to do is create our plan and execute it.
   "We can do this --- I know we can!
    "Are you in?"


 All of Bob's book's can be found at Barnes and Noble, Amazon, and Bob's website. Here is a link to his special offer page, http://booksbybob.com/lady-justice-combo-special_330.html

Bob, I want to wish you the very best with your writing career.  You are a very prolific writer.  I think many people will find your website interesting. 

Thank you for visiting my blog, and have a good week.  See you next Sunday.

Sandra K. Marshall
http://www.eirelander-publishing.com