Steven Helmer Publications

Synopsis: Baking competition featuring four 2-person teams making themed cupcakes, confections and cakes while staying within a fixed time limit and trying to avoid elimination after every round. The Netflix show is hosted by Hunter Marsh and is judged by Adriano Zumbo, Candace Nelson and various guests. You can read my review here:  https://wizzley.com/sugar-rush-review/

Synopsis: Christine McConnell lives inside her enchanted home and takes in wayward monsters looking for sanctuary. To pass the time and to keep them well-fed, she creates spooky and edible masterpieces in her kitchen ranging from bone-shaped candy treats to spider-shaped cookies and haunted cake mansions. You can read my review here:  https://wizzley.com/the-curious-creations-of-christine-mcconnell-review/

Synopsis: Celebrating their first Christmas after their father died and alone on Christmas Eve because their mother has to work, siblings Kate and Teddy decide to try to hide in a closet and attempt to videotape Santa as he delivers gifts. Their plan works and, in an attempt to get additional footage, Kate and Teddy wind up stowing away on Santa's sleigh and, in doing so, ultimately cause Santa to crash in Chicago. With the sleigh in shambles, the reindeer loose and Santa's sack of toys lost somewhere in the city, the siblings must try to help save Christmas and get home before their mother does. You can read my review here:  https://wizzley.com/movie-review-the-christmas-chronicles-2018/

As far as snow goes in general, I can take it or leave it. But, when I walked outside yesterday, Christmas Eve, and looked around at all the grass, I must admit, it felt as though something was missing. So, I was kind of glad to look out my window this morning and see some of the white stuff falling down. So, as I watch the snow fall, I will take a moment to wish you all a Merry Christmas. May it be full of miracles for you.

Synopsis: Veterinarian Kate Turner takes over a small town practice and spends her days making house calls to the various local residents. Her world is flipped upside down when she visits one of the regular clients and discovers the elderly couple has been murdered and all 27 of their champion-bred show dogs have been set free. Considered the primary suspect by the police, Kate attempts to figure out who the real killer is. However, just about everyone in town seems to have a motive. You can read my review here:  https://wizzley.com/book-review-muzzled-2014/

Synopsis: Four estranged brothers return home to say goodbye to their dying mother but spend just as much time bickering about their inheritance and whether to use a device, given to them by a doctor, that will end her suffering. They are awoken during the night by a group of people wearing masks who want them to give their mother "mercy" and must decide whether to comply or put their lives on the line. You can read my review here:  https://wizzley.com/movie-review-mercy-2016/

Synopsis: Psychiatry student Laura spends a great deal of time on social media and has more than 800 followers. Feeling sorry for an unpopular classmate, Marina, she decides to accept her friend request. However, Marina develops an unhealthy obsession with her only friend and Laura is forced to change her mind. When Marina kills herself as a result, Laura's life begins to be flipped upside down as someone or something takes control of her social media and begins to kill off her closest friends. You can read my review here:  https://wizzley.com/movie-review-friend-request-2016/

Synopsis: Dr. Veronica Simon has spent a great deal of effort being the perfect politician's wife, even pushing aside her own political aspirations in support of her husband despite rumors he is having an affair. When he and their daughter are out of town, Veronica, feeling neglected, winds up having a weekend fling with a mentally-ill local artist, Victor, who develops an obsession with her and begins stalking her and her family. You can read my review here:  https://wizzley.com/movie-review-indiscretion-2016/

Synopsis: Two teenage girls, Libby and Kit, entertain themselves one evening by placing prank calls to people they pick randomly out of the phone book. They put themselves in danger, however, when they unknowingly call a man that has just murdered his wife and make him believe they witnessed the crime. You can read my review here:  https://wizzley.com/movie-review-i-saw-what-you-did-1965/

Synopsis: A pair of friends on a road trip through the desert are tormented by an unseen tow truck driver. They do their best to escape him but his pursuit is relentless and his actions become even more aggressive each time they meet. Their only hope is to out maneuver him long enough to find someone to help them. You can read my review here:  https://wizzley.com/movie-review-wrecker-2015/

Synopsis: Kate has spent her life putting her career first and climbing the corporate ladder. This has allowed her to be a successful business woman but, at 37, the still-single vice president of a whole foods store desires to have a baby. She discovers she is unable to have a baby on her own and is turned down by adoption agencies, she decides to hire Angela as a surrogate and eventually lets the other woman live with her despite being complete opposites. You can read my review here:  https://wizzley.com/movie-review-baby-mama-2008/

Synopsis: Still reeling from the sudden death of her husband and heavily in debt, Naomi Wallace reluctantly accepts her sister's invitation to move into her unoccupied mountain home until she can get on her feet. There is just one condition, since the home is up for sale, Naomi and her teenage son, Logan, must leave the house every Sunday so the realtor can have an open house. The house is beautiful and their neighbors seem friendly. But, when strange things begin to happen after they move in, they begin to suspect something isn't quite right. You can read my review here:  https://wizzley.com/movie-review-the-open-house-2018/

Santa's elves Are sweet and kind Their hearts are open And they care about all mankind. Santa's elves Don't judge or hold grudges even when they are dissed. They are quick to understand and forgive Because they know there's always room on Santa's nice list. Image courtesy of Pixabay Santa's elves Remember those in need. They remember those who don't have anything And those who need stomachs and souls to feed. Santa's elves Remember, even when times are tough, it is important to spread Christmas cheer. So, maybe, just maybe, all of us Can strive to be Santa's elves this year.

Synopsis: Ever since attending at wedding at the Plaza Hotel 20 years earlier, best friends Olivia and Emma have been planning their own dream weddings at the same venue with plans to serve as each other's maid of honor. When they both become engaged at the same time, it seems as though their dream will come true. However, when a clerical error causes both of their weddings to be scheduled for the same date and, since neither refuse to give up their reservation, the quickly become each other's worse enemy. Who's in it?  The movie stars Anne Hathaway , Kate Hudson, Chris Pratt , Steve Howey and Candice Bergen. Review: When this movie first came out in 2009, I looked at the trailer and thought it would be a horrible film. However, I wound up reluctantly watching it with my wife when it first came out on DVD and, to my surprise, I found I liked it. As it turns out, I came across this film again a couple days ago, and, after seeing it again, I found I still enjoyed it. Ev...

This is not a place I eat at very often, mostly because it is a little outside my price range. However, we had a company Christmas party yesterday evening and, since we needed a place that was convenient for everyone (there were a couple people traveling from outside of town), this seemed like the most logical choice. And, after dining there, I would definitely recommend it. To tell you the truth, I was a little surprised to find out we were the only ones who were having dinner there last night. I know it was a Thursday in December, but I figured it would be much busier, especially after the experience we had. First of all, the food was delicious and, unlike many restaurants, also somewhat unique. For example, this is the first local restaurant I've gone to that had gumbo and crawfish on the menu. I wound up having the former but, to be safe (I wasn't sure how spicy the crawfish would be), went with chicken as the main course. Both were excellent. Plus, I liked how the rest...

Synopsis: Unable to fly home for Thanksgiving break, Justine remains behind at college despite the campus being deserted except for a couple security guards and the groundskeeper. When she decides to borrow her friend's car to drive into town for snacks, she is confronted by members of a murderous cult. They follow her back to school and begin to hunt her down. You can read my review here:  https://wizzley.com/movie-review-kristy-2014/

Synopsis: Years after becoming a hero by saving Trans American Flight 209, Ted Striker has been committed to an insane asylum following a failed test flight of a new passenger space shuttle, a crash he blamed on computer issues. In an effort to save his relationship with Elaine, he escapes the asylum and boards the inaugural Mayflower flight only to once again be forced to take the pilot controls after the ship’s computer malfunctions and sends the craft toward the sun. You can read my review here:  https://wizzley.com/movie-review-airplane-ii-the-sequel-1982/

Synopsis: A team of scientists flying in a vessel deep in space come across a giant black hole. Upon further investigation, they discover a long-lost space ship hovering above the black hole unaffected by its immense gravity. The ship, they learn, is commanded by Dr. Hans Reinhardt and controlled by a series of androids he says he created after his crew abandoned ship 20 years earlier. His goal is to pilot the spaceship through the black hole but the visiting team believes there is something he is hiding from them. You can read my review here:  https://wizzley.com/movie-review-the-black-hole-1979/

In total, I was at the ice rink yesterday for about 5 1/2 hours. I showed up to help with the Skate with Santa Open Skate and skating exhibition (both fundraisers for People Against a Violent Environment). Then, after that, they had ice show auditions so I hung around while my daughter had her tryout and got measured for a costume. By the time we got home, there was enough time to grab a quick dinner and get caught up on Supernatural before going to bed. For her part, my daughter held up pretty well, considering she was on the ice for a good chunk of that. She did a great job during her two exhibition numbers, despite having a music screw up on the first one (forcing her to help a bunch of younger skaters improvise). And, her audition (at least from what I could see of it since they don't allow parents out of the warming room) looked solid. I don't think she'll get a solo but maybe has a shot at a trio or quartet. We'll find out in a couple weeks. She's going ...

My wife and I watched this movie (as we do every year) about a week ago and, as always, I enjoyed watching it. However, here it is a week later and one scene, well, actually, a line, keeps replaying in my head because it's stumping me a bit. The scene is the one where Jamie Lee Curtis returns from the store with smoked trout instead of ham: How in the world is smoked trout a better choice than frozen pizza, as she suggests? Not only does that sound like it would be something many people wouldn't enjoy, she didn't even buy enough to feed a group of people. I would think frozen pizza would have been perfectly acceptable, Christmas party or not. Now maybe if she would have said something like "it was better than liver tartar," I probably wouldn't be so bothered by that line today.

I'll be spending a good chunk of my afternoon at the Beaver Dam Family Center today as it holds its annual fundraiser for People Against a Violent Environment (our local battered spouse shelter). Santa Claus will be stopping by the rink from 3:00-4:30 to skate with the kids and, afterwards, the Swan City Ice Skaters will hold their annual Christmas exhibition. This always ends up being fun for everyone and usually results in dozens of food items being donated to PAVE.

Synopsis: After his girlfriend, Liz, breaks up with him, directionless and heartbroken Shaun drinks himself into a stupor and, the next morning, vows to get his life in order and win back Liz's heart. There's just one thing standing in his way, almost the entire town has turned into flesh eating zombies and, along with winning her back, he has to find a way to keep her alive. You can read my review here:  https://wizzley.com/movie-review-shaun-of-the-dead-2004/

Product Description: "All natural" frozen pizza from the Mystic brand with sausage, mushrooms, uncured pepperoni, green peppers, red peppers and onions. I ended up purchasing this pizza yesterday evening while doing some shopping at one of our local grocery stores for $5. I prepared it for dinner that night. You can read my review here:  https://wizzley.com/review-of-mystic-all-natural-house-special-pizza/

The cats didn't let me sleep in today (no surprise) and, since I was up, I wound up watching another M*A*S*H re-run, Twas the Day After Christmas . As I did that, I began to realize the camp cook, Sgt. Pernelli ( Val Bisoglio ) was a character that really deserved more air time than he got. I think the thing I like about Pernelli is his no-nonsense attitude and willingness to express his opinions without a filter even if it is to a superior officer. Basically, he's one of those career Army guys this show needed more of. It kind of makes me wish he was part of the regular cast.

I think I would travel back far enough to buy stock in Elmer's Glue before they invented this whole slime craze. As my daughter is playing with it, I have to applaud the person who thought of it. It's no longer just for school any more.

In an unexpected development last night, my daughter, Azalea, passed Freeskate 6 on her first try. This makes her a Learn to Skate graduate. She'll continue to skate (of course) but can focus on improving her skills without having to worry about passing any more classes. Her journey through the program is more a story about perseverance than anything else. Some kids sign up for skating classes, are naturals and breeze through the curriculum. My daughter is not one of those kids and had to overcome her lack of natural talent through hard work. This meant repeating some levels multiple times, usually because she got hung up on a specific move and sticking with it. On top of it, she had to sit out several weeks with a broken foot (non-skating related), sustained numerous bumps and bruises and nearly gave herself a concussion on two separate occasions. In fact, she pulled a leg muscle while practicing Monday and passed despite being a bit gimpy last night. She also had a sudden 3 1...

Just 24 more hours until payday. One more day until I can live like a king. Tomorrow can't come soon enough So I can be reminded about how much happiness money can bring. No more pinching pennies No more trying to make a dollar last. Pretty soon, my money troubles will all be in the past. Image courtesy of Pixabay Just 24 more hours until payday. Wait, what do you mean I have bills to pay? Just this once, can't I keep it all for myself And have enough cash to go out and play? I worked hard for that money.  It should all be mine. If I have to give it to someone else Then payday is going to quickly lose its shine.

I must admit, I was a little shocked when I learned the Green Bay Packers fired Mike McCarthy just a couple hours after losing to the Arizona Cardinals yesterday (and announced the move just a few minutes after I published my post defending him ). The move itself wasn't too much of a surprise. I just thought they would wait until the end of the season before moving on from him. As I absorb that and reflect back on McCarthy's 13-year career in Green Bay, I also am realizing his sudden decline and ultimate downfall might have started at the beginning of 2017, when his assistant coach, Tom Clements, left the team. When you look at McCarthy's early success, Clements was the one constant. He was the quarterbacks coach for a soon-to-be-departing Brett Favre and an up-and-coming Aaron Rodgers and later served as offensive coordinator and assistant head coach. During his time with the team, Rodgers won league MVP twice and one Super Bowl MVP title. Just as important was the p...

As Green Bay Packers fans absorb yet another loss, this time at home to the Arizona Cardinals, and a second-straight year without being in the playoffs, the noise about Head Coach Mike McCarthy's future with the franchise is going to get louder. But, while many will be calling for his head, I'm taking a different route and think the Packers should, instead, stand behind their head coach. Now, to be clear, I'm not saying his performance this year has been satisfactory. And, I do think keeping him needs to come with certain conditions, such as a new special teams coach and maybe simplifying the offensive coach structure and getting rid of positions like passing game coordinator and run game coordinator. There is also likely going to need to be some relationship mending between him and quarterback Aaron Rodgers. However, even with that being taken into consideration, there are reasons to keep him around and even give him more than a one-year extension. First, this is only ...

It's that time of year again, when I can watch Christmas movies and have it be seasonably acceptable. And, as I start doing that, I do find myself reflecting on the movies I've watched dozens of times and, in particular, those that have Santa Claus. Even though Santa should be one of the easiest characters to play, not all movie Santas are treated equal. So, I'd like to share my four favorites. Ed Asner in Elf A lot of Christmas comedies make the mistake of trying to make Santa Claus funny too. That doesn't need to be the case, however, and it is usually best to keep Santa in more of a "straight man" role. Even though Asner only has a few minutes in this movie, he does a great job of that when asked and comes off as both serious and compassionate, two things I would expect to see from Santa. Edmund Gwenn in Miracle on 34th Street I think the thing that always wins me over about this version of Santa Claus is the mystery surrounding him. Is Kris ...

Synopsis: Marie's godfather gives her a nutcracker during a Christmas Eve party and her brother promptly breaks it. After the party, she falls asleep with the nutcracker and dream her Nutcracker is really a prince and, after saving her from rats, transports her to his kingdom, where another party is being held. You can read my review here:  https://wizzley.com/movie-review-the-nutcracker-1993/

Synopsis: Three years after the tragedy at the Jurassic World Theme Park caused it to be shut down for good, an erupting volcano threatens to wipe out the surviving dinosaurs. When Claire Dearing is given an opportunity to save some of the creatures, she agrees and recruits her former boyfriend, Owen Grady, to go with her. However, when they get to the island, they learn the rescue mission isn't for the reasons she was told. You can read my review here:  https://wizzley.com/movie-review-jurassic-world-fallen-kingdom-2018/