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Book Review: The Skeleton in the Closet by M. C. Beaton (2001)

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Synopsis: Fellworth "Fell" Dolphin has had a hard life. His parents were both abusive and misery and since his father's death, he has been forced to work as a waiter to support both himself and his controlling mother. As a result, when his mother dies, he is more relieved than sad and is shocked when he learns his parents were surprisingly wealthy. To fend off his mother's relatives, Fell convinces his co-worker, Maggie, to pose as his fiancée, not knowing Maggie is secretly in love with him. They soon find their lives upended when an investigation into where his parents' money came from both re-opens a long-forgotten train robbery case and unearths a family secret. Review: I originally checked out another book from my local library but lost interest with it after the first chapter (that sometimes happens). So, since I wanted something else to read, I returned to the library in search of something from a familiar/favorite author. Originally, I was going to give ...

Movie Review: Air (2015)

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Synopsis: Sometime in the near future, a biochemical weapon incident has wiped out most of the planet and left the air unbreathable. Bauer and Cartwright are among the few survivors and are in charge of maintaining a makeshift facility designed to house cryogenically frozen scientists until the air outside is breathable again. They are given two hours every six months to complete their tasks before returning to their sleep chambers. However, when Cartwright's chamber catches on fire, the men realize one of them will die if they don't find an alternative. Who's in it? The movie stars Norman Reedus , Djimon Hounsou and Sandrine Holt . Review: We finally had an evening that wasn't centered around my daughter's theater rehearsals and since it was reasonably early but raining outside, my wife and I found another movie to watch. She's a big Norman Reedus fan so when I came across Air on one of our movie channels, I chose it.  Even my Norman Reedus-loving wife tho...

Movie Review: Identity Thief (2013)

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Synopsis: After barely scraping by with two kids and one on the way, things are finally looking up for Denver resident Sandy Patterson when he is offered an opportunity to be part of a new finance firm with five times the salary. However, that financial security is put in jeopardy when a woman in Florida steals his identity, both destroying his credit rating and getting him in legal trouble. When he learns it could take a year or more for local police to clear him, Sandy takes matters into his own hands and travels to Florida to bring the thief back to Denver so he can trick her into confessing in front of the police. Who's in it? The movie stars Jason Bateman , Melissa McCarthy , John Cho , Amanda Peet and Jon Favreau. Review: Our 15-year-old had another late theater practice last night (thank God those are almost over) so, after watching Resident Evil for the umpteenth time and realizing we still had a couple hours to kill, my wife picked out Identity Thief . I wasn't su...

Movie Review: Flight Risk (2025)

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Synopsis: After spending time behind a desk because of a mistake that led to a witness death, U. S. Marshal Madolyn Harris is given a second chance, this time escorting a crime boss accountant, Winston, from his hiding spot in Alaska so he can testify against his former boss in New York. However, while flying to Anchorage on a small charter plane, Madolyn learns her pilot, Daryl Booth, is really an assassin hired to make sure Winston doesn't make it to New York. Who's in it? The movie stars Michelle Dockery , Mark Wahlberg , Topher Grace , Maaz Ali and Leah Remini. Review: My 15-year-old daughter is performing in a community theater version of Guys and Dolls  this weekend and the final rehearsals have been taking until 11 p.m. Since we needed to wait up anyway last night as a result of that, my wife and I wound up finding a movie to watch and settled on Flight Risk . I didn't know anything about this movie before coming across it on Starz and wasn't sure what to exp...

Movie Review: The Man Who Could Work Miracles (1936)

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Synopsis: A group of celestial beings give assistant George Fotheringay near limitless powers as part of a social experiment. At first, Fotheringay is amused with his new abilities, which include being able to make things levitate, heal injuries, teleport to far-off lands and create things from thin air. However, as his secret gets out, he soon finds himself surrounded by people trying to exploit him. Who's in it? The movie stars Roland Young , Ralph Richardson , Joan Gardner , Ernest Thesiger and Sophie Stewart . Review: I added The Man Who Could Work Miracles to my library about a week ago, mostly because I saw it was based on an H. G. Wells' story and sounded somewhat unique. I finally got around to watching it this morning and wasn't disappointed.  While described as a comedy, I think I would consider the movie more of a psychological drama. The film does a great job exploring something I think a lot of us dream about and putting it up against human nature. If one ...

Trail Camera Videos (6/14/2025-6/15/2025)

We had some nice weather yesterday and last night, something that looks to be short lived since there's rain in the forecast once again. So, I took advantage of the weather we did have by putting out one of my trail cameras last night. Here are some of the videos, which consist of a lot of rabbits, some opossums and another visit from a fox:

EAA Aviation Museum (Oshkosh, WI)

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We have a lot going on the next few weeks so, since this was one of the few days nobody had anything important going on, I decided to take the family to the EAA Aviation Museum in Oshkosh.  It's been several years since we last toured the museum and it ended up being a blast for all of us. There was a lot to see, some fun interactive games to play and my 15-year-old even got to go up in a plane and fly it (ages 8-17 only) as part of our admission.  I was also pleased with the price. Four tickets (3 adults and one child) were $52. It's one of the few places we've gone that didn't charge around $100 for a family of four, mostly because a lot of places consider anyone over the age of 10 an adult ticket. For the record, the family rate (2 adults and up to three kids) is $37. In other words, it's well worth the visit. Here are some of my photos and videos: ________________________________________________________________ The House on the Rock (Spring Green, WI) Menominee ...