Iquitos, The Past Will Kill

For any novelist, the toughest part or writing a novel, is sometimes finishing the work in the first place. The telling of the setting, characters and all of which make up the fictional piece seems easy at first since there is a story which needs to be told. But when is it time to leave the keyboard? 

The story is written. 

The work is finished. 

Let it be, as the Beatles once sang. 

After a year of writing a story involving two former cops from Riverside, it was time to put the book to bed. The adventures had been told. There were corpses littering the ground from Southern California to the hinterlands of northern Peru. Enough terror and sorrow for one book, but it did have a happy ending. Well, perhaps that is up to the reader and not the wordsmith to decide. But was it done?

These were some of the 'hinterlands' to reside while doing research

The best thing when a novelist thinks it may be ready for readers is to send it off to the editor. Then, wait to hear back. Finally, when the writer receives something like the following from their publisher after a submission: 'John, I do want it. I have sent the attorney a memo to get you a contract.' it makes all the hours alone behind the keyboard worthwhile. Of course, it took many years to receive a contract for John's first novel, 'Hunted', but it has paid off since this is his fourth with Black Opal Books. He's hoping for a long relationship with this growing publishing house in the state of Oregon.

And here it is!

John R. Beyer's fourth novel with BOB

The work will be released this Saturday, the 17th of November.

As any fictional writer realizes, there has to be a lot of truth to a piece or it will sound like fiction. That actually does make sense since it is the job of that very same fictional writer to make the story believable. Fiction, even science fiction, isn't fun if isn't at least plausible. The relationships must ring true. The science must work. And in any work of fiction, the times and places must have a feeling of reality. John knows to make a story feel real, there must be sound research and exploration, and that is reason our intrepid trio took three separate journeys to Peru, including a month-long trip deep into the Amazon jungle. Iquitos to be exact -- where much of the novel takes place. John wanted to research, explore, and live that life...and drag his loving wife and best friend along with him. So the author and his daring team, Laureen, and Paul Bakas suffered mosquito bites, heat stroke, suffocating humidity, and generally had a great time gathering the information John needed in order to put pen to paper and bring life to the story rattling around in his cranium.

Along the way, we met some characters, some of whom appear, in one form or other, in the novel. We played with rescued sloths and monkeys, fed orphaned manatees, swam with pink river dolphins, fished for piranha and generally had the most wonderful experience my wife said she'd never want to have again. And, in the silence of the jungle night, we heard the unmatched cacophony of life end so swiftly with a deafeningly silence that inspired a scene in the novel (spoiler alert).

Some of the following photographs may look familiar to regular followers of our blog, but a trip down memory lane is sometimes good for the soul.

Cooling off with a breeze in a covered dug out on the Amazon

Nothing better than a couple of  lukewarm beers in the jungle

John and Paul with Ademir - our guide for a couple of days

The author with his number one Editor in Lima

The work is done, edited, printed, and soon on the bookshelves for readers to enjoy, but the memories of the research and exploration will never be forgotten or completed. There is always the next book to write. Perhaps one or two have already been started.

To purchase 'Iquitos, The Past Will Kill'

https://blackopalbooks.com/
https://www.amazon.com/
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/

And at other book sellers around the globe...

San Bernardino Strong

John had his second novel, Soft Target, released in 2014 - it was a fictional account of a terrorist attack in a small city in Southern California. Terrorists commandeering a public middle school in the city of Victorville which left countless dead and horrific memories to last a lifetime.

It was a piece of fiction.

On December 2nd, 2015 at approximately 11 a.m. that horror became an unbelievable reality when two Islamic Terrorists (we will not mention their names out of respect for the victims and their families as well as these two evil persons do not deserve any one remembering them), entered the Inland Regional Center in San Bernardino and murdered 14, seriously wounding 22 innocent souls. There had been a planned holiday party luncheon for those who who worked for the County Department of Public Health.

Inland Regional Center in San Bernardino after the horrible event

These were the good guys and gals. Those public servants who truly believed that every day they went to work, they made a positive difference for the clients with whom they dealt. They were the ones who should be the role models for most of us.

They were everyday heroes.

Two monsters showed up (and one of whom actually worked in the office and his fellow workers had treated him - according to all reported accounts - as a colleague and friend) murdering the party goers. These were his co-workers. Evil is not even close to what this person and his spouse were during those moments and the ones that followed as they tried to elude law enforcement before luckily being gunned down.

Law enforcement heading toward the gunshots, not away.

This is a bit out of character for J and L. Most of our pieces are upbeat: about countries where we have traveled, the people we meet, and the research we conduct. But today - this is about the ones who lost their lives and the wonderful first responders.

It was a moment of personal angst for J and L since their daughter, Jessica, worked as a teacher in a small private school in San Bernardino, only a mile or so from the Regional Center. Of course, as first reports came out, no one truly had a clear vision of where the mass shooting was taking place - active cases are often fluid and this one was no different then unfortunately the ones we hear about too often.

First responders taking care of the wounded - these are heroes working on heroes

Laureen called John at work and asked if he had heard the news of the shooting, This was about ten minutes after the first shots had been reported. San Bernardino may be the largest county landwise in the United States, but not so much in the population. Especially in the realm of education where John and Laureen know many people in the field and that includes public health.

This was personal.

After ensuring that Jessica was safe and it wasn't her school, they learned that it was the Regional Center. Both J and L had been there numerous times in the past dealing with their functions in the educational world.

To say what went through our hearts as the news kept leaking out is hard to explain. Good people who do and did wonderful things for fellow citizens being executed during a party that should have been nothing but happiness was beyond reason.


Our hearts were broken as were many in the county, the country and the world, after hearing of such an evil inflicted upon such strong and honorable people. What would cause people to kill innocents for any reason? That question and many more will not be answered any time soon and to these bloggers those questions may never be.

These wonderful heroes deserve an answer and so do their family and friends.

On Friday, the 17th of November, J and L were invited to take part in a benefit -- a musical for the victims, families, first responders, and others physically or emotionally taxed by this terrorist attack. It will be the second anniversary and the musical was to be performed at the California Theater in San Bernardino.

Of course, J and L agreed to do as much as we could to assist such a worthy cause as long as J didn't have a singing role. The reasons were simple - the production was to be run one night only on the 25th of November. J may be able to take up an acting role in such short notice but singing? L on the other hand knew she could handle singing (and maybe some dancing) - she's a pro after singing for years in their own and other's productions.

As always - the Show will go ON!

Night after night of rehearsals left J and L, along with the rest of the cast, pretty exhausted, but spirits were high thanks to the bubbling personality of Shannon Maxwell. She is the director of the musical, and niece of Heather McClusky, who wrote the original script as a historical, but funny tale about the history of San Bernardino. But there is a moment during the second act where a moment of seriousness takes over the stage. It is where a song, recently written by Ms. McClusky, is sung in tribute to those lost their lives and their families, on December 2nd, 2015. It is a touching, soul wrenching number, and should be listened to only with a box of Kleenex at hand.

Unfortunately, with all things theater and film, as we've learned the hard way through the years, there are sometimes snags and delays. The musical will not be performed on November 25th, but has been postponed until March 17th. Roughly, on the 23rd anniversary of the original production.

Of course, this will not be the only blog about this production since at least one more will need to be written about the wonderful instant friends we met during those few hectic nights of rehearsal - Rebecca (who we actually have known for years by her stage name, Odessa Red), and new friends: Andrew, Patrick, Ryan, Derek, Becky, Shannon, and all the others who made those nights together memorable and enjoyable.

We look forward to more practices and finally the production. It is needed in a small city in Southern California named San Bernardino - which witnessed a senseless tragedy during a season of hope.

We are and will always be San Bernardino Strong!

Operation Scorpion

What if? That is one of the questions writers of all genres must ask themselves before putting pen to paper (or fingers to keyboards).

What if? That's a good start...

 It's true that there are not always answers to every question one can come up with but with the premise of looking - delving into such a question as 'what if' gives the researcher more than ample ammunition in doing a good deal of looking for evidence.

A person can not write without wondering what they are writing about. Sounds confusing but in reality it is not. If we all knew the answers to everything then there wouldn't be anything to write or read. It is the job of researching to see if knowledge can be gained to satisfy the quest. Some of the answers are welcomed and some are not - but that is life.

That insatiable appetite for wanting more is what makes a writer, researcher, explorer and reader continue on their quest. To learn what they may not have known before.

What would be the reason for libraries or museums if that were not true?

As is the case of John's 3rd  novel, Operation Scorpion, being released by Black Opal Books on January 14th, 2017.

Operation Scorpion has been a long project that took years to research and write - each of John's works entails traveling to the locations written about and deep searching. As with our blogs we want our readers to understand that we, as the writers, are trying to deliver the best research and exploration we can - albeit with some humor and silliness occasionally. But it is important to us and hopefully to you also.

Author busy researching his next work!

Though Operation Scorpion is a work of fiction it still depicts a sense of reality and what if questions. Would a rogue military officer truly hide nuclear waste under the very noses of his commanders? Would that same officer consider selling the waste material to terrorist groups planning harm to the United Stated? Would an ex-cop turned private detective accidentally stumble onto this evil mission and dissolve it while all the time being a patsy for a federal officer under ground?



These are the questions J asked himself while writing his newest novel. Hopefully the work will suffice in answering those same questions for the readers.

That is his hope.

Hunted - 2013 Black Opal Books
Soft Target - 2014 Black Opal Books
Operation Scorpion  - 2017 Black Opal Books

Thanks for reading - we truly appreciate it. J and L


https://www.blackopalbooks.com
https://www.barnesandnoble.com
https://www.amazon.com


P.S.: You can also see John's latest short story being released later this month at https://gnujournal.com

https://gnujournal.com

Air Show

Spending time in the sunshine looking up as aircraft climbed into the heavens doing detailed and seemingly dangerous maneuvers while spewing streams of colored smoke seemed like something to do on an October day, so that is what I did.

It was the 14^th annual Apple Valley Air Show in the High Desert and since L had a prior engagement J decided that wandering the small airport experiencing the sights and sounds of air planes zooming here and there was something an explorer would like to view.

P- 51 Mustang

With the likes of the B-25 Mitchell, the P-40 Warhawk, dozens of other vintage, experimental aircraft and modern winged machines to look, at the day didn't seem as if it could get any better – but then it did. Sitting on the black tarmac ready to fly and show off to the hundreds of guests from all around Southern California and places beyond was a beautifully maintained P-51 Mustang. 

This single-seat, propeller-driven fighter was produced in 1940 by the North American Aviation Company and saw action in World War II. It was so popular as a mean spirited killer of the enemy, that it actually stayed in active military service until 1984 when the Dominican Air Force retired the last remaining fighter. 

Uncle Jack - 19+  Great Hunting

It was also the plane my Uncle Jack Thornell flew during WWII in Europe when he became a fighter ace with roads, schools and a whole of other stuff named after him when he returned to Massachusetts. A town hero - no, a national hero.

Since there were no available photos of Uncle Jack and the plane he flew during WWII, I did some research and soon learned more about my uncle than I had previously known. That's what we do - research and this time it really panned out. Most folks don't talk about their war experiences for solid reasons and Uncle Jack was one of those who remained relatively quiet but what was known or thought to be known was that he had shot done 5 enemy aircraft during the war which made him a flying ace. Those are called 'kills' - now, anyone losing their life during battle is a tragedy even if it is the enemy but unfortunately that is the cursed nature of war.

What the research turned up, beside the photograph in this blog of Uncle Jack standing next to his P-51 named Patti Anne, after his younger sister, was the fact that he actually was credited with 21.25 kills and not 5 as what had been believed - where that number came from I can't recall but it was in his memory since childhood. Nineteen of the kills were strictly in the air by Uncle Jack, 2 were planes on the ground trying to take off and join the air battle while the .25 is probably a bomber that Uncle Jack and other allies were teamed up on over Europe. In that case each fighter pilot was given partial credit since no one could definitely say which fighter was the one that in fact took the enemy plane down. Whatever the case with exploration and researching new facts or that should be written old facts came to light about my famous relative Lt. Col. John (Jack) Thornell.

Is that Colonel Shakirov flying? Nope, he's just a fictional character - we think

Even more enthralling was the fact that Uncle Jack shot down three Messerschmidts during one single day, and those planes were handled by experienced pilots, and were wonderfully and expertly designed fighter aircraft. 

Don't mess with Jack! 

Another bird which piqued interest was the Russian-built Yakovlev (Yak-3) which served the Soviet Air Force from 1941 until 1952. This single-seat fighter had very similar lines to the P-51 and according to the Russian pilots and ground crew was much superior. Yeah, well, they would say that. 

The official start of the air show

The ex-special purpose officer, Colonel Yuri Shakirov from J’s novel ‘Soft Target’ would probably agree also – so who knows. The fighter was also used in both the Yugoslav and Polish Air Forces after WWII because of the stability and easy handling of the plane.

The day started at ten with the arrival of skydivers at the opening ceremony circling to earth with colored smoke packs and waving American flags. It was a very patriotic entrance which brought the crowds to their feet cheering and yelling.  

The announcer shouted: “Ladies and Gentleman, we now have an air show!”

Hang in there, kid!

Laughter, shrieks and thrilled shouts of amazement from the crowds intermingled with the sounds of the powerful planes landing and taking off from the tarmac. Cotton candy, hot dogs, nachos, kids fun zone, a petting zoo, a climbing rock, face painting, booths that sold this and that, and a beer garden were only some of the fun things for the guests to enjoy.

And fun they had.

And it flies?

As the sun rose higher, so did the spirits of the people attending the air show in the local community of Apple Valley. For such a day all it had taken was to do a little research on when the event would be held, pack up the family and friends and drive a short distance on the outskirts of the city to partake in a wonderful experience.

 Dozens of planes, vintage and not so very gorgeous vehicles were on display for the guests to view that almost every square foot of the Apple Valley Airport was taken up by this and that. Crowds walked and ran to see planes doing what seemed like impossible tricks in the air while children screamed with joy with the rides available to them as parents took photos of their little ones on those very same rides.

There was so much to do and only one day to do it but as I milled about, I saw families taking advantage of the beautiful weather and enjoying being with each other - and isn't that what counts - good family and friends?

This guy was so tired by the end of the day - you can see it

Walking with the Dead - Almost?

Jacks of the Lantern

J and L have been fortunate enough to travel extensively to bring stories and photographs back for our readers to enjoy but with Halloween just around the corner we thought we may add our own idea about this peculiar horriday.

The origin of Halloween as we know it today is still a bit of a mystery as many scholars refer to it as All Hallow's Eve or the Eve of All Saint's Day, it is the time of year we mere mortals use humor to confront the power of death. Most of these historical experts believe October 31st was tamed by the Christians to take away the power of the Celts and their Gaelic Samhain feast day (and was actually celebrated on a different day altogether). Why allow the Druids (the original tree huggers) a day of visiting strangers and demanding cakes (the original treat), candy or anything else of value from strangers when anyone could get into the mix and nix the pagans.  Of course, with any theory, there are skeptics who believe it was Christian all along - very few but they exist and doesn't the sound of Druids, Celts (kelts), Gaelic, and Samhain give a better ring for Halloween? Sounds almost spooky and ancient.

Druids - original tree huggers

 Well, maybe not ancient but pretty darn old since the first mention of All Hallow's Eve didn't show up in the Old English language until 1556. In geologic time that may not sound ancient but when it's hard to remember sometimes what one had for lunch yesterday it is indeed a long long long time ago.

Whenever the term or terms became part of the yearly festival of dressing up like ghosts, ghouls, zombies and ex-spouses it has stuck and became part of a worldwide culture. Billions are spent each year for this one special day around this globe and grows more every 364 days until the next neighborhood haunting.

It's truly a day to go out, for both adults and children and dress up to try to give the person next to you a heart attack and then laugh when the defibrillator doesn't function properly. Probably just another trick to obtain that elusive Snicker's Bar.

On a serious note - if there is one here - we at J and L tend to be a bit suspicious about supposed hauntings since we've visited countries such as France, Spain, Italy, England, the Caribbean, South America  where legends abound of ungodly things happening within the walls of houses, castles and cemeteries. Nada. Not even the creep of a hair on our necks.

In San Diego, California we visited the Whaley House (supposedly the most haunted site in California) but yet when John jumped up and down on the stairway where the most 'feelings' were of other worldly spirits the only feeling he got was he would be exited from the building. Though, to be completely honest as written in another blog we did have an uncomfortable feeling and the photographs showed 'something' unusual in a downstairs room that we could not explain. Stairs batting zero and room batted us almost out of there in a hurry - even got a cold chill.

Whaley House San Diego - Nice digs for a ghost

But nothing could have prepared us for the 'night ghost walk through Dublin'. Sure, it was almost dark, the sky glistening a long lasting sunset in the summer but as our tour guide (yes, sometimes you have to take a tour to see certain things) moved us from place to place visiting ancient Viking residences to the more mundane things of only a few hundred years ago we knew there was something special waiting for us.

No not that - ghostly sighting!

Sure enough we found that 'special something' where a poor lass named Darkey Kelly who had become involved with a married man of some note in Dublin in the 18th century and ended up pregnant. Now, Darkey Kelly didn't have a pristine past since she was once a girl of the night turned madame of her own business but nonetheless she was pregnant, single and coming from the darker side of Dublin. The father of her child fearing for his reputation (whatever that meant), was terrified others would find out declared that Kelly was in fact a witch (that being enough to seal anyone's fate, especially during such a superstitious time in society). That was all it took to have Kelly dragged by the hair up forty stone steps to the churchyard of St. Audoen's where she was summarily tried, convicted and burned alive along with her unborn child.

Laureen scared - not really - just a cartoon

Rumors, myths and tales tell of people hearing a young woman moaning in the night about the loss of her child or others say they have seen her spirit walking the churches grounds in search of something that no longer exists - her child, her innocence, her lover, or the people that murdered her on a lie?

We listened and took photographs and felt sorry for her. But upon returning home to the states and looking at the downloaded pictures something jumped out at us. While taking multiple photos of the area where this poor woman was mercilessly dragged to her ultimate death we had shots of an empty pathway, an empty gate and then suddenly two photographs taken a split second apart were totally different. One was dark showing the gated area and the next one showed the same gate but eerily there seemed to be an orb of light to the right of the gate. We put it down to a number of things but always coming back to it we quite couldn't put our finger on what we were looking at.

Research began. Don't take anyone's word for something - research first! Other blogs that referenced what we may have photographed.

3/13 - 4girlsandaghost - "I took a photograph from up on the churchyard steps, looking down towards the entrance gate. Not being a big believer in orbs, I disregarded it for the moment. Very shortly after I took the picture, the tour guide went on to say that the apparition of Kelly was often spotted just inside the gate."

6/09 - ghostcatcherie - "Upon analyzing my photos from the tour I found a very unusual shape in one of the photos taken on the 40 steps. I brightened this to see more detail and shape seems see through. I initially thought it to be a shadow, as it is transparent, but the colour and positioning seems odd. It was also taken with no flash in very little light. Although I cannot say this was a ghost, it is still a very interesting photo indeed."

A Dark Corner

A Darkey Kelly?

Compare the photos we took of the place Darkey Kelly was brought and you decide. We're open to any explanations but the hairs did stand out on our necks on that tour, and what was a rather warm day for Dublin suddenly turned very cold as we stepped through the gate where many years ago a young woman was dragged to her death.

So, Happy Halloween and remember the ghosts, goblins or whatever visiting your doorstep may not be mere humans dressed up for the night but could be those who haven't decided if it is their time to leave this blue planet?

Who knows for sure but isn't that the haunting fun of such a night?

Conch

Always good to advertise

When in Rome do as the Romans do, but since we were not currently in the Italian capital we decided to attend the weekly Island Fish Fry in the Turks and Caicos - more specifically on the island of Providenciales. Provo, as the locals refer to this island, is the best known of the forty cays (pronounced keys) and islands which make up this tropical paradise. The majority of the tiny nation's 30,000 plus residents reside on Provo with the rest of the islands a much smaller number living in residence. The majority of the cays and islands having no one living on them full time. Anyone want a deserted island?

Then this would be the region to visit. Provo is also the hub of the tourist industry boasting well over 200,000 tourists per year who come to soak up the incredible warmth of the sun while basking on pearl white beaches overlooking the most clear and aqua colored waters in the British West Indies.

Miles of this with no one around!

True, the cruise lines arrive on Grand Turk, part of the Turks Islands, but if the visitor doesn't take some time to visit Providenciales or one of the other islands which make up the Caicos side of the chain,  then they have missed out on unbelievable beauty.

Falling in love with a location is quick and true once the vistas are taken in among the palm lined roads and walkways. Spectacular weather, clean environment and extremely friendly people make one want to drop anchor and call these islands home - and home we felt.

Home - yep.

We arrived on Thursday and Thursday evenings from 5:30 to 9:30 p.m. is the local fish fry at Bight (Children's) Park on Bight Beach where dozens of local restaurants erect easy-ups and start cooking their favorite dishes for the visitors to taste. And tourists are equal in number or may fall in comparison to the local population who come out every week for this gastronomical experience. It's an evening of awesome sea food, plenty of healthy drinks (both with and without spirits), dancing to live music, and just visiting with new found friends.

Dancing and Singing

 All beneath the Caribbean sky!

Eateries like: 'Smokey's on da Bay', Kay Jo's', 'Bugallo's Conch Crawl', 'Doreen's Place', and 'Froggies' on da Beach' are just a number of restaurants which come out to allow the public the chance to sample their marvelous cuisine.

That's a bbq.

Nice Menu

Booth to booth, J and L walked tasting this and that and soon to repeat the circuit again.

Tuna, marlin, groupers, and bonefish were cooking over coals, gas rings, and bbq's just waiting to be eaten. Rice, beans, coleslaw, chowder, various salads and anything else to make a mouth water was there as well to make the meal complete for the adventurer. Washing all this delicious food was the local favorite Rum Punch or perhaps a cold Turks Head Island Drought. The entire combination of the food fest made the evening that more magical and enjoyable.

One of our favorite dishes was conch (pronounced konk). We had it fried, sauteed, and battered. We couldn't wait to nimble on more but soon we learned what it was and what it looked like when it was alive. The following morning watching a local news station we witnessed the harvesting of conch and  began to have second thoughts about partaking in that delicacy again.

Yummy but not so pretty

Conch is a sea snail - a big hideous slug like animal which happens to make its abode within one of the prettiest shells on earth.

Now, that's beautiful

Biology is funny that way.

So, we visited, we met, we tasted, we explored and all we could come up with was we need to come back for more of everything but the conch.

Well, it was tasty so . . . .

In all of J and L's travels the Turks and Caicos was one of the friendliest and most beautiful locales we have had the fortune to encounter. Not much frantic night life but as one sits viewing the sunset in the West Indies enjoying a glass of their favorite drink the night life is right in front of them. A sky full of stars and the company of a loved one.

That is paradise - truly.

Books and Beats

Sometimes you meet the most interesting people close to home. No need to explore thousands of miles away from the known to make a friend but simply hold out your hand for a firm and pleasant shake.

J and L love traveling to exotic locales and sharing those adventures on a regular basis but sometimes the treasure are much closer. Over the summer we had a chance to re-meet (if there's such a term) Randy Jordan. A fellow teacher we both had known for years but more in a passing professional manner.

Amazon - Exotic?

 "Hey, how ya doing?"

"Good and you?"

Off to the classroom to teach never really hearing the replies not out of rudeness but simply everyone is so busy in their lives there's time for quick niceties but the sand doesn't hold still for in-depth discussions.

But the end of summer 2014 was a bit different since we attended an in-service concerning Sean Covey's, 'The 7 Habits of  Highly Effective Teens' at Lakeview Leadership Academy. A great eyeopening training as well as a chance to really 'meet' our peers on a much deeper personal level.

That chance led J and L into finding out Randy was a drummer in a local band, Tango Kilo. John used to play bass guitar in a garage band in high school but claims it was really a garbage band. Intentions were good but the sound was trash - his words.

As fate would have it John had a book signing for his novel, 'Soft Target' (published by Black Opal Books) on Sept. 13th at a local and very popular bookstore in Hesperia, California.  'Hi Desert Book Oasis'. The owner, Donna Penman (awesome name for a book store owner) used Saturdays during the summer as a venue for local authors to meet the public and explain why they chose to be writers. Most don't know why but simply the keyboard is calling and there are stories to be told - so be told they are. After the signings the nicely appointed exterior patio which resembles an early mission architecture is turned into a stage for local bands to play to the crowds of music lovers. Thus Donna created: 'Books and Beats' - rather clever really and a big draw during the warm months in Southern California.

Great idea - signing and band playing

So, one plus one equals two and soon John would be signing books and Tango Kilo would light up the evening skies with their unique and solely original sounds.

Tango Kilo greeting the sunset with their unique sounds

  John entertained readers with tales of inspiration for both his novels within the interior of the bookstore and later the members of Tango Kilo finished the night with heart pounding sounds that when they ended at nine left the audience wanting more. But nine it was and the concert and signing was over.

Moral of the story - smile, shake a hand, truly listen to the other person, and the next adventure could be in your very own backyard.

It happens as it did this hot September night. 

 

J and L with members of Tango Kilo

We want to send out our special thanks to a few new found friends:

Donna Penman - owner and gracious host from Hi Desert Book Oasis.
hidesertbookoasis.net

Patty Thayer - fellow teacher and 'volunteer' at Hi Desert Book Oasis (rather funny lady also).

The band - Tango Kilo - Randy Jordan, Robby Kauffman, Jeremy Lacey, David Mancha
 www.reverbnation.com/tangokilo

 Of course, Paul Bakas who is the photographer/videographer and close friend.

 And all those supported the book signing - if it wasn't for the readers there would be no need to write.

A few random photographs to show the fun had by all and if you were missed you were not intentionally missed and a heartfelt thanks from this writer to his friends and supporters.

Brandon Cruz loving those titles

Amy Stampe - must be an exciting part

Dr. Gary Wilkins with J - good friend

Erica Beyer, first autograph of the evening

Jessica and Justin Barr, coffee and books

Scarlett Rose enjoying the band

Randy Jordan thrilled by his purchase

Angie Douglas and family

Paul Bakas with Chuck and Karlene Russell

Mellisa Hays enjoying a good laugh

The author pontificating

A writer must write when the moment strikes!