Kerrian’sNotebook

KN, p. 162 “Fan Favorites of 2015”

 

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Kerrian’s Notebook readership was up again in 2015! Double wahoo!! More than ever, it seems as if readers and professional writers that follow the Notebook most enjoy learning about the nuts and bolts of crime as well as the crime fighters that take care of the bad guys.

The Top Ten favorites from 2015 are listed in reverse order. Click on the title to read that post.

Did your fave post of the year make the list? Let us know in the comment section below.

  1. “Irish Brown Bread” (p. 139)   Tasty, easy, and taste-tested by us.
  1. “Murder at the Conference” (p. 154)   Nefarious? Why, yes!
  1. “Could you be a detective?” (p. 134)   Do you have what it takes?
  1. “Could you be a sniper?” (p. 135)   It’s harder than just being a crack shot.
  1. “What does the TSA really do?” (p. 137)  It’s more than baggage handling.
  1. “Is that a body under the deck?” (p. 148)  The snakes were bummed that their own post (“About the snakes..”) didn’t make the Top Ten, but promised to keep the slithering to a minimum when they saw they had a mention in this post that did make the cut.
  1. “Who are the Texas Rangers?” (p. 144)  Many, many thanks to the Johnsons for their valuable insights, and years of service to the great State of Texas.
  1. “What does a Texas Ranger do?” (p. 145)  Soooooo much!
  1. “What poisons were in Agatha Christie’s books?” (p. 133)  Christie is a perennial favorite of mystery readers around the world and the poisons she used to dispatch many of the victims in her books were well researched.
  1. “How to Become a Texas Ranger” (p. 146) Apparently, there are either a LOT of people that are curious about the qualifications for becoming a Texas Ranger, or there will be a ton of books with Rangers as the featured characters published in the future. This post was read by more people than any other Top Ten Kerrian’s Notebook post in previous years.

 

To all the Kerrian’s Notebook readers all over the globe:

Your comments, reactions and enthusiastic participation through Facebook, Twitter, emails, and on the site itself, mean the world.

Many thanks for continuing to follow us as we travel around the country doing research, collecting odd stories and sharing weird facts about fires, EMS scenes, crime, and the people charged with helping the community when bad things happen.

 

Kerrian’s Notebook fans are the best on the planet!

 

*Photo taken by Patti Phillips at the Texas Ranger Museum in Waco, Texas.

 

 

 

 

 

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KN, p. 161 “Kerrian’s 2016 Resolutions”

 

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How many of you make resolutions every January and then completely drop the ball in less than a month? You promise yourself that you will lose 10 pounds, join a gym, stop texting so much, stop complaining about the boss and just change jobs…but for whatever reason, something always gets in the way.

I feel your pain. I did so badly on my 2014 resolutions that I didn’t make any at all for 2015. Not a one. This year, I’m feelin’ lucky. I’m more driven. I’m gonna get it done. After last year, Sheila’s laughing a lot while I write this and she says I’m on my own.

Here’s the 2014 list and how I did in 2015:

1. Play more golf.  It rained more than ever and I didn’t want to slog through the mud, so it was actually less golf.

2. Watch more football.  Didn’t happen. I had to do some needed work on the roof, the deck, the ramp, and a couple of windows and it seemed like the only sunny days were also football days.

3. Tell the Post Office not to deliver any fruitcake packages. They did anyway. The mail gal laughed every time she dropped one off. 26 last season.

4. Take a test drive in a Ferrari 458 Italia. Never got a chance. It rained on the day we scheduled and then the rain date was rained out.

5. Keep visiting the new Irish pub. That I did. Great place.

6. Work with Habitat for Humanity on the houses lost during Sandy. We were stalled by the insurance people and only worked on a few. Sadly, there were lots of lawsuits involved and many of the homeowners were not allowed to get back into the houses while the legal games continued.

7. Clean out the attic. Maybe. I may need nudging for this one. Mostly done and then we inherited some plates and Christmas decorations and some furniture, so the attic is full again.

8. Break 90 on the golf course. Didn’t play enough. I’ll save playing in the rain for the Scotland trips.

9. Clean out the attic. Sheila made me write it twice. It was her relatives that gave us the extra stuff.

10. Get a book recommendation at Nightstand Book Reviews. Yup, we both did that before the site closed forever.

2016 will be different. I acknowledge that some of my goals were too lofty and depended on the actions of other people and/or Mother Nature herself.  So, here’s what I’m thinking. I will list only things over which I have control.

LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL

Yeah, I know that was a dumb statement, but it sounded good in my head. 😉 

Here’s the can-do list for 2016:

  1. Take more naps. They’re good for you.
  2. Donate the 18 fruitcakes to my pals at the Post Office. Regifting is like recycling, right?
  1. Buy a bigger umbrella to keep me dry.
  1. Get a guy in to dig a trench to channel the water around the property, so that I can stop the flooding around the foundation and take more naps.
  1. Plant a pink dogwood to improve the front view. Very calming when the view is relaxing.
  1. Figure out a way to continue the 10,000 step program inside while it’s raining outside. Maybe I’ll walk a lap inside each room, add up all the steps and repeat the laps a few times a day.
  1. Take out my photos of the golf course to remind me of what it looks like on a sunny day. Dreaming and reminiscing is good for the blood pressure.
  1. Practice putting on the rug. It’s bound to stop raining some day, and part of my short game will be ready when the golf course is no longer covered with mud and puddles.
  1. Read more books.
  1. Thank all the Kerrian’s Notebook followers!!! The readership keeps on growing every year and that makes us both smile. Smiling is always good for the soul!

Happy 2016 everyone! Spread a little kindness, smile more, and make 2016 a great one.    🙂

 

 

 

 

 

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KN, p. 160 “Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays for All”

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2015 has been a year of challenges for most of the world, with violence at home and abroad in the news every day. If it’s not about international military and/or political power struggles, the media is probably telling us about government conflict or sadly, the latest shooting perpetrated by a disturbed individual. I can’t remember the last time when so many people were so angry about so many aspects of the world in which we live.

And yet, if you ask how they are, how the family is, nothing much has changed. Friends and family members may get sick, lose a loved one, have trouble at work or experience a bump in the financial road, but most would say they are happy overall – that they live a life that’s good.

We may not be able to control what happens outside our circle, but we can control our reaction to it. And we can certainly control our reaction to the events inside our personal world.

During this Christmas, and whatever your holiday season, let’s all promise to:

  • Be kinder to each other, including Uncle Tim who tells the same stories every holiday. You’ll miss those stories when he’s gone.
  • Be gentler in our responses to each other, even when Auntie May spills her coffee again. You’ll need help someday, too.
  • Be less critical of each other. Your way may not be the only way to get the job done.
  • Hug a friend. Hugs are full of comfort.
  • Smile. Often. You’ll feel better.
  • Call a relative or friend that doesn’t get out anymore. Five minutes. That’s all it takes to change a person’s day.
  • Give the gift of time. Stop texting and talk to your friends and family face-to-face. Memories are made when people laugh and giggle together.
  • Give the gift of forgiveness. Soften your heart and forget the small stuff before it gets to be the big stuff.
  • Write a letter and snail mail it to the older people in your life. Not everybody has email.
  • Make every day count. Volunteer, serve, donate. Make someone’s life easier.
  • Give the gift of love. It means the world.

Above all, have a wonderful Christmas/holiday season and a slam dunk great 2016!

The Kerrians will be back in January with Charlie’s New Year’s Resolutions. 🙂

 

*Photo by Patti Phillips – Notre Dame Basilica, Montreal, Canada

 

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