Steven Helmer Publications

My dad gave me a bag of socks he isn't able to wear any more and, when I noticed there were a couple pair that were thicker (meaning I won't wear them because I'd never be able to get my foot in my shoe), I decided to turn them into heating pads for the family. This is a simple project. All you need to do is put uncooked rice (I used about four cups per sock) in the socks and tie off the open end. Then, when you want a heating pad, you put the sock in the microwave for 2 1/2 to 3 minutes. This works really well too because the rice/sock holds in the heat for quite some time. I put mine in the microwave for about 2 1/2 minutes before bed last night so I could have it down by my feet. When I woke up during the night, about 2 hours later, it was still warm. When I've made a similar one, in the past, for my wife, she was able to use it for everything from staying warm to helping her with a sore back or cramps. Yes, these can be re-used. The last one I made (for my ...

I'm burning off some of my vacation time by taking Wednesday afternoons off (it helps reduce some of my wife's stress because I can get our oldest daughter after school). I had a "check engine" light on in my 2017 Chevy Cruze and decided to make an appointment to get that checked out right after work yesterday. I figured the appointment would take, at most, an hour, with them diagnosing the problem and, if they couldn't fix it easily, having me make another appointment. I was definitely wrong about that one. I was there 3 1/2 hours as they took half the engine apart trying to figure out what was causing that light to come on only to have them not really knowing what the problem was but essentially making an educated guess and suggesting I change where I get my gas. My biggest concern, of course, was I wasn't going to be able to get my daughter. Fortunately, I did get out of there just in time. But, I'm still a bit irritated considering I have only had...

I was reading an article last night that said the television ratings for the long-time hit, The Walking Dead , were continuing their downward spiral and, while the show doesn't appear to be in any danger of cancellation yet, it also doesn't look as though it is going to pull itself out of that descent any time soon. After reading it, I thought of three ways I, if I were a show writer, would save the series. Granted, it's quite possible the series has reached the point of no return already. But, I do feel these steps would at least give it a fighting chance. You can read my story here:  https://wizzley.com/three-ways-i-would-save-the-walking-dead/

Synopsis: Daryl ( Norman Reedus ) leads a mission to rescue an injured Eugene ( Josh McDermitt ), who has taken shelter in a barn while trying to escape a herd of walkers. As the group makes its way to Eugene, the begin to notice odd behavior from the herd and, eventually, discover a new threat to the survivor communities. You can read my review here:  https://wizzley.com/the-walking-dead-episode-review-evolution/

Synopsis: After his father is killed by a matador, bull calf Ferdinand escapes the bullfighting ranch and finds safety when he is found and adopted by a florist's daughter. Even though he grows into an enormous bull, he still remains non-violent. However, after a misunderstanding at the annual flower festival, he is sent back to the bullfighting ranch. If he doesn't fight, he will be sent to the meat processor. You can read my review here:  https://wizzley.com/movie-review-ferdinand-2017/

Synopsis: The citizens of Cnothan have never been friendly to outsiders. But, most of them have an exceptionally large hatred for Englishman William Mainwaring, who has purchased some of their land and always seems to be welcoming confrontation with the way he thinks he is smarter than everyone else. As a result, when his skeleton is found at the bottom of a lobster tank, just about everyone can be considered a suspect. You can read my review here:  https://wizzley.com/book-review-death-of-an-outsider-1988/

Synopsis: In 1957, manipulative teenager Mary Lou Maloney was named prom queen. However, because of a poorly executed prank committed by her boyfriend (who was angry about her cheating on him) is set on fire and burns to death on stage before she can receive her crown. Thirty years later, Mary Lou's angry spirit is released on the eve of her high school's prom night and, after taking the place of the school's prom queen favorite, seeks to get revenge on her former boyfriend, who is now the school's principal. You can read my review here:  https://wizzley.com/movie-review-prom-night-ii-1987-1/

Synopsis: The Enterprise crew rescues a derelict shuttle and quickly discover the shuttle was piloted by an unconscious Captain Picard ( Patrick Stewart ) doppelganger. They quickly determine the unconscious Picard is from 6 hours in the future, when the Enterprise is apparently destroyed by an unknown force, and must race against the clock to figure out what happened and how to prevent it. You can read my review here:  https://wizzley.com/star-trek-the-next-generation-episode-review-time-squared/

Synopsis: When he is caught cheating in a casino in Argentina, a gambler agrees to clean up his act and, instead, goes to work for the casino owner. However, his loyalties are tested when his boss returns from a trip with his new wife, Gilda, a woman the gambler once had a love affair with and isn't completely over. You can read my review here:  https://wizzley.com/movie-review-of-gilda-1946/

Synopsis: When Priscilla Halburton-Smythe decides to marry successful playwright Henry Withering, her parents are thrilled and hold a party at their castle in Lochdubh. Among their guests is Captain Bartlett, a man with a long history of angering people and who nearly causes a commotion at Priscilla's party by sleeping with three of the guests in the same night. When Captain Bartlett is found dead of an apparent hunting accident, the local constable, Hamish Macbeth determines it was, in fact, murder and suspects one of the house guests had enough motive to commit it. You can read my review here:  https://wizzley.com/book-review-death-of-a-cad-1987/

Synopsis: Newly-wed Ann moves into a mansion that has been in her husband's family for generations. The house is also occupied by her husband's three elderly aunts and their maid, Willow. While none of them are rude to her, Ann has a hard time feeling welcome in her new home. And, after a series of accidents, believes someone is trying to kill her. Is it just in her imagination? Or, is her life in danger? You can read my review here:  https://wizzley.com/movie-review-crow-hollow-1952 /

OK, to tell you the truth, I'm still a little undecided about this whole Griffins and Gargoyles thing going on in this season of Riverdale . However, I am admittedly somewhat intrigued about who the Gargoyle King is. And, I have my own theory. I think it's Pop Tate ( Alvin Sanders ). This theory is based on a couple of things: First, we know G &G has been going on in Riverdale since at least the 1990s, when Riverdale's parents were the ones still in high school. Second, if Jughead's ( Cole Sprouse ) theory about the Gargoyle King controlling everything that happens in Riverdale is correct, then that person needs to have some long-term connection to the city. Assuming, of course, the current Gargoyle King isn't a copycat or some character that hasn't been introduced yet, the fact the game has been around since at least the 90s means the king must be older than the first set of high school students to play it. After all, someone had to create the ga...

Synopsis: After a weather station is destroyed in the Himalayas in an apparent Yeti attack, Rod Jackson and Frank Pulasky are sent to investigate both that and a mysterious ray that is melting the polar ice caps. While there, they encounter a race of aliens that are working to change the Earth's climate so they can live there. You can read my review here:  https://wizzley.com/movie-review-snow-devils-1967/

Synopsis: Best friends Rocky and Puddin' Head are waiting tables at an inn in Tortuga when Lady Jane asks them to deliver a love letter. They fail in this task and, instead, mix up the love letter with a treasure map belonging to the notorious Captain Kidd. When they discover the mistake, Rocky and Puddin' Head decide to hide the map and force Kidd and his business partner, Capt. Bonney, to share the treasure. You can read my review here:  https://wizzley.com/movie-review-abbott-and-costello-meet-captain-kidd-1952/

Synopsis: Siblings Jackson and Angela run a profitable scam involving Angela pretending to be a medium with the ability to talk to ghosts and convince them to leave people's homes. When Jackson insists they pull the same scam at a former foster home with a history of a brutal mass murder, he thinks of it as just another job. However, this time, something is different. Angela really can see and hear the ghosts of the little girls who were tortured and killed. You can read my review here:  https://wizzley.com/movie-review-malevolent-2018/

I'm still waiting on final numbers but did hear the live and silent auctions at Saturday's fundraising banquet raised more than $10,000 for our local ice rink. That doesn't include ticket sales, games, the raffle table or money we made whenever someone ordered a featured drink from the bar. Plus we had something like $1500 in cash donations prior to the event (though some of that was spent on things we needed). So, considering this was the first (and only) time I ran this event, I think it did relatively well. Now to start working on my next project for the rink...

Synopsis: Teenagers Steve Andrews and Jane Martin are on a date when they witness a meteorite crashing. They decide to search for it but come across an old man with an odd, slime-like substance attached to his arm and take him to see Dr. Hallen instead. When Steve sees the alien "blob" eat Dr. Hallen and grow, he realizes the whole town is in danger. But, nobody will believe him. You can read my review here:  https://wizzley.com/movie-review-the-blob-1958/

Synopsis: Six years after Rick Grimes ( Andrew Lincoln ) was seemingly killed, the remaining survivors have turned their communities into safe havens. However, when Rick's daughter, Judith ( Cailey Fleming ), insists a new group of survivors be helped and brought to Alexandria, an overprotective Michonne ( Danai Gurira ) doesn't want them to stay. You can read my review here:  https://wizzley.com/the-walking-dead-episode-review-who-are-you-now/

After months of preparation, the annual fundraising banquet for our ice rink was finally held. I would describe it as a relatively decent success with us bringing in thousands of dollars. It was, however, also somewhat stressful as far as organizing it goes. So, prior to getting ready for the event, I settled my nerves by getting some photos of birds on the bird feeder. Here are some of them.

Synopsis: Feeling her family is in a rut, Charlie Newton is thrilled to learn her mom's younger brother, Charlie (the man she was named after) is making a surprise visit. However, when Uncle Charlie arrives, he begins to act strangely. And, when two detectives also arrive, she begins to suspect her uncle is a wanted murderer. You can read my review here:  https://wizzley.com/movie-review-shadow-of-a-doubt-1943/

Synopsis: With Dean ( Jensen Ackles ) still in a funk, Sam ( Jared Padalecki ) encourages his brother to investigate a case with him on Halloween involving possessed toys. Dean agrees and the brothers soon find themselves facing a comic book store owner's ghost that puts the two of them in a real-life horror movie situation. You can read my review here:  https://wizzley.com/supernatural-episode-review-mint-condition/

Synopsis: After failing to complete an assignment about the Industrial Revolution, a group of students are taken on a Saturday field trip to a remote train museum as punishment. When the bus gets in an accident on the way back to school, they walk to a nearby carnival for help and are stalked by a mysterious railroad man, Jack, and his pickaxe. You can read my review here:  https://wizzley.com/movie-review-jack-the-reaper-2011/

I'm one of those people who tries to wear his lighter spring jacket for as long as possible this time of year. Not because I'm trying to be that stereotypical Wisconsinite who is able to ignore the cold. It's because winter coats tend to be a bit bulky and I don't like wearing them when I'm driving as a result. Unfortunately, I think we've finally reached the point where I'm not going to have a choice. It's somewhat bearable during the day still but, once that sun is down, it's pretty darn cold out there. Heck, I spent a good chunk of my night inside an ice rink last night and it was still warmer inside than it was outside. Now I just hope my coat still fits. I'm just not ready for this time of year yet.

Synopsis: Peter continues to have a recurring nightmare about losing his family in an alien invasion that is so intense, it is causing him to lose focus at work and putting his marriage in jeopardy. When his dream becomes a reality, he is forced to do everything in his power to keep his family alive. You can read my review here:  https://wizzley.com/movie-review-extinction-2018/

I managed to get my ballot a little after dropping the kids off at school this morning. At first, I thought I would have to stand in line for an hour. But, then I realized the long line was for last names starting N-Z and I actually fell in the A-M category, which had no people in line. I am a little curious, however, if there were A-M people standing in the N-Z line simply because our schools have taught us to stand in the back of a line if we see one.

She likes to dress up for the annual skating banquet (the same one I got stuck organizing this year) but didn't really have a lot of money for a new dress so she purchased the fabric and made it herself. I'm very proud of her. As someone who has no artistic ability at all, I can appreciate how much work was involved with this. And, even though she had a pattern, since it came with no instructions, she was largely figuring it out on her own as she progressed with it and even made a few personalized alterations. On top of it, she is making a matching clutch to go with it. To give credit where credit is due, she took the photos.

Synopsis: World scientists discover six children with well-above-average intelligence and the ability to communicate with each other through telepathy. They are brought to England to be studied but, when their respective militaries and embassies try to intervene, the children decide to take refuge in an abandoned church so they can defend themselves. Who's in it? The movie stars Barbara Ferris , Alfred Burke , Ian Hendry , Alan Badel and Clive Powell. Review: I have seen Village of the Damned (both the original and the remake ) on more than one occasion and I have to confess, I never knew there was a sequel to that film until I came across it on one of our movie channels a few days ago. Being intrigued, I elected to record it and, since it is raining outside, found time to watch it today. Unfortunately, after seeing it, I was left feeling a bit underwhelmed. I think the best way I can describe this film is it isn't really a sequel. Instead, it was more of a re-imag...

Synopsis : Street-wise Julia is kidnapped by an inventor and held hostage in a futuristic house under the control of his prototype artificial intelligence program, Tau. Knowing she will only be kept alive long enough to help the inventor work out the bugs in his program, Julia begins to reason with Tau in an effort to escape. Who's in it? The movie stars Maika Monroe , Ed Skrein , Fiston Barek , Ivana Zivkovic and Gary Oldman. Review: I came across this movie on Netflix a couple weeks ago and, after reading the description, added it to my watch list. My wife and I finally got around to doing that last night and it turned out to be a decent film. To be honest, when we first started watching this movie, I wasn't really sure what to expect from it. It sounded unique. But, when I realized the movie was more or less about a woman trying to convince a computer to let her go, I was concerned it would get a bit boring (or a little dumb). That, however, turned out not to be ...

I am in the middle of my second fundraising campaign this year. The first was for our annual ice show. Now, I am collecting donations for the Beaver Dam Family Center's annual fundraising banquet, held next weekend. This is the first year I've done anything like this and I've discovered I'm actually pretty good at it. However, as is the case with most new things, I also learned some important things along the way. First, you can't rely on mailers. I'm not saying sending out donation request letters to local businesses was a complete failure. I did manage to receive some donations. But, for this banquet, we sent out nearly 200 letters and only got about 15 donations back as a direct result of them. That's not a very good response. When I followed up with some of the businesses, I was told they didn't even look at the letters and threw them right in the recycle bin. As a result, I found follow-up is very important. In fact, when I do this again in a c...

Well, to be honest, my feelings are actually a little mixed. On one hand, it means it will be dark by the time I get done with work, meaning I pretty much won't get to do anything outside in the evening. But, on the other hand, right now, it is pitch black out when I have to get out of bed in the morning. This is throwing me off because, without looking a my clock, I can't tell if it's midnight or 6 a.m. At least for a little while, the time change should help with that.

Synopsis: When a killer murders young women around London and severs their fingers after death, Sherlock Holmes is called in to investigate. While the common belief is the killer is some sort of maniac, Holmes thinks the murders are, instead, the work of villain Moriarty and are part of a much larger scheme the criminal has thought up. You can read my review here: https://wizzley.com/movie-review-the-woman-in-green-1945/  

Synopsis: A traveling art saleswoman is pursued by a lustful Arizona motel manager and she decides to have sex with him before going back home. However, what she was expecting to be a one-time fling turns out to be much more when he realizes he’s in love with her and travels across the country in an effort to be with her. You can read my review here:  https://wizzley.com/movie-review-management-2008-1/

Ever since my wife and daughters first brought Echo home a couple years ago, it has been like having another kid in the house. This includes the 2 a.m. feedings I thought were finally over. The past couple of months, however, things have been a bit different. He still likes to wake us up (with as much noise as possible). But, he hasn't been hungry. At first, we had no idea why he was doing it. He wouldn't touch the food we gave him, he wouldn't play if we tried to play with him and he didn't want to get in our bed or go in either of the girls' rooms. My wife finally figured it out a couple weeks ago. After I tried, unsuccessfully, to get him to settle down, she got up with him, carried him into the living room and rocked with him on the couch (holding him like a baby and rubbing his belly) for about 10 minutes. After that, he played with his brother, Mouse , a few minutes then crawled into our bed and went to sleep. This has now become a thing with him...