Steven Helmer Publications

My dad, Art Helmer, passed away on June 6. We held off on memorial services until the end of the month (he was cremated) to allow people to make travel arrangements if needed and because he insisted we not cancel any of our plans we had already set (this included my wife flying out east to see her family and my brother attending a music festival). Considering we have already been coping with his death for about three weeks, I wasn't really expecting the funeral to be as emotional as it wound up being (I blame the song "Amazing Grace"). But, between the service at the funeral home and the military service at the gravesite, it wound up being an emotionally exhausting day. I was out cold the second I got to bed last night. Today, of course, is now a start of a new chapter in all our lives without him and making an effort to fill the void he left behind. My oldest daughter and I already have made plans to help out with the Badger Honor Flight this fall as a way of honorin...

Synopsis : When bookstore owner Claire Mallory's English professor husband was killed in a car accident, the fact he was having an affair with one of his students was kept under wraps. But, when a local romance writer publishes a new book that is essentially a tell-all about the faculty at a local college, her husband's secret, along with others, is revealed. When the author is murdered shortly after this discovery, Claire and her teenage daughter are potential suspects. Review: When I was at our local library a couple weeks ago, I once again decided to pick a book out at random and, this time around, I quite literally made the choice by judging the book by its cover. Unfortunately, this one turned out to be a disappointment for me. I'm not saying there weren't things I didn't like about this book. In particular, I thought the interaction between Claire and her daughter was both funny and realistic. It's just there were way too many other things I di...

A couple years ago, I stopped by one of our local stores a couple days after Easter and came across some unwanted Easter lilies. The flowers were wilted and falling off so I was able to purchase them for just $1.50. I ended up planting them next to the house and, every year since, they have popped back up and bloomed. There is a lesson to be learned from this - sometimes we get caught up on present beauty or remember past beauty and forget about the hidden beauty that can still emerge with understanding and nurturing.

Synopsis: A corrupt small town sheriff is disposing of a body when two runaway boys decide to take his squad car for a joy ride. Realizing the trouble that could cause him, he does everything he can to get the car back before anyone finds out it has been stolen. Who's in it? The movie stars Kevin Bacon , James Freedson-Jackson , Hays Wellford , Shea Whigham and Camryn Manheim . Review: I decided to scroll through Netflix movies while my wife was taking a shower yesterday evening and, after looking at a few, decided on this one because she is a big Kevin Bacon fan. Unfortunately, the film just did not live up to expectations. When we started watching this movie, I expected it to be a thriller (like it was advertised). After watching it, I would probably classify it more as a dark comedy. There really wasn't anything about this movie I would consider even remotely intense. In fact, I think the only thing that made me cringe at all was all the swear words coming out o...

Synopsis: Still traumatized from a mistake that led to one of her callers being kidnapped and murdered, Jordan Turner now teaches new Los Angeles 9-1-1 operators rather than field the calls herself. That changes when a teenager is kidnapped from a mall and Jordan's experience and ingenuity is needed to track down the victim. Who's in it? The movie stars Halle Berry , Abigail Breslin , Michael Eklund , Morris Chestnut and Roma Maffia . Review: I came across this movie a couple days ago and decided to record it so my wife and I could watch it when we had time. We finally got around to doing that last night and I can honestly say I was glad I made this choice. There were a few things that really stood out for me when it came to this movie. One of the main ones is I liked how it gave a behind-the-scenes glimpse of what life must be like for people working in a 9-1-1 call center. While it manages to portray the people working there as heroes, it also made sure to show u...

I am a long-time Mountain Dew addict and, despite numerous attempts to kick it or at least try to cut back, have failed miserably to break that addiction. At nearly $6 per 12-pack (except for when I can find a decent sale), it is becoming an expensive habit to support. And, as a result of that, I've been making an effort to find a much-cheaper "generic" alternative. I wound up finding Our Family Mountain Drop soda at one of our local grocery stores this morning and, after seeing it for just $2.99 for a 12-pack, decided to give it a try. So far, I am happy with this purchase. At first, I wasn't really sure if this would be the case. This isn't the first time I've tried to save money with similar cheap brands and the previous attempts resulted in me getting a soft drink that just tasted a bit "off" when compared to the brand name. However, the Our Family brand actually turned out to be pretty decent. I'm not sure if the flavor is exactly...

Synopsis : Already a little depressed about spending Christmas alone in a community that doesn't openly celebrate the holiday, Constable Hamish Macbeth reluctantly helps an unfriendly recluse find her missing cat while trying to locate Christmas decorations that were stolen from a neighboring village. Review:  Normally, I wouldn't even consider checking out a Christmas-themed book in the middle of June (especially when the weather already hasn't been summer-like). But, it was the next book in the Hamish Macbeth series and, not wanting to read it out of order, I made an exception. Unfortunately, after finishing the book last night, I kind of wish I would have just left it on the shelf. Let me start out by saying I didn't hate the book. It's just, when I read a series like this one, I do have some certain expectations. In this particular case for example, since Macbeth is known for solving murder mysteries, I was sort of expecting him to be solving one this ti...