Steven Helmer Publications

Synopsis: This true crime memoir tells about the author's childhood and, later, life in an Amish community and the abuse and sexual assault she was subjected to at the hands of people who were protected from criminal prosecution because of their religious beliefs. Review: This is probably the type of book I wouldn't even glance at under normal circumstances. And, quite frankly, the only reason I wound up checking it out from our local library was I couldn't find the book I wanted to get, was in a bit of a time crunch and it happened to be within easy reach as I walked toward the checkout counter. But, once I started reading this, I had a hard time putting it down. This book was a real eye opener for me because hearing about the abuse from the victim's perspective almost made me feel as though I was on the receiving end of it myself. The torture her and her sister went through at the hands of her mom and step father was pretty unnerving and, after reading she edi...

Synopsis:  Captain Thorne Sherman is delivering supplies by boat to a remote island when a hurricane forces him to remain onshore to wait out the storm. What he doesn't realize is the island is inhabited by mutant giant shrews that must consume their body weight in food every night and are running out of things to eat. Who's in it? The movie stars James Best , Ingrid Goude , Ken Curtis , Gordon McLendon and Baruch Lumet . Review: I recorded this movie some time ago but never seemed to find time to watch it until this past weekend, when my wife was busy with a sewing project and the weather kept me indoors. I had some doubts about this film when I started watching it and wondered if it would be more laughable than dramatic. But, as it turns out, it was actually better than I was expecting. I'm not saying the movie was perfect. In fact, it took so long for any action to happen, I began to wonder if the film was just going to be a bunch of people standing around tal...

Synopsis: Tim Goodman has been estranged from his father, Harry, a police detective, since his mother's death 10 years ago. When he learns Harry has been killed in a car accident, Tim travels to Ryme City, a city where capturing and battling Pokémon is illegal and the creatures are treated as equals, for closure. Instead, he meets his dad's Pikachu and, for reasons he can't explain, realizes he can understand the Pokémon. When the Pikachu, who is suffering from amnesia, tells him he believes Harry is still alive, Tim agrees to help investigate and ends up discovering a world of illegal Pokémon battles and mastermind's diabolical plot involving the genetically-created Mewtwo. Who's in it? The movie stars Ryan Reynolds , Justice Smith , Kathryn Newton , Bill Nighy and Ken Wantanabe. Review: When this movie first came out, I have to admit, I wasn't overly interested in watching it. I wouldn't describe myself as a huge Pokémon fan, but I also l...

The clock is ticking. Only 100 minutes left. We are running out of time To pull ourselves out of this mess. We should have known this was coming. It's not as though we weren't warned. Yet, here we are, counting down To a point where nobody will be left behind to mourn. Maybe we should be rejoicing. After all, we act like this is what we wanted all along. The only thing we can't decide is whether to do it slowly Or end it quick with a nuclear bomb. I think the thing that saddens me most Isn't that we are ticking down to what we deserve. It's that we're too arrogant to go quietly And won't be satisfied until we also destroy all the other species on this Earth.

Synopsis: When someone begins sending anonymous "poison pen" letters to village residents accusing them of random indiscretions, police officials pay little attention to Hamish Macbeth's pleas for expert help. This changes when a local post mistress and the suspected letter writer are both murdered and Macbeth is once again forced to track down a killer. Review: I originally wound up skipping over this book several weeks ago because it went missing at our local library and I decided it was better to skip ahead in the series rather than wait patiently for it. So, when I saw it was finally available again, I was quick to grab it and start reading it right away. As it turns out, I wound up enjoying it to the point I read it in near-record time. I did kind of wish I had an opportunity to read it in the correct order because there were several times when I became temporarily confused and had to remind myself that a certain event hadn't happened yet. But, overall, I...

Look, I'm not saying Jennifer Lopez and Shakira won't put on a good performance. It's just I feel as though such a high-profile venue should be used to for something more than a showcase for two established performers trying to get a little extra publicity. Instead, I would much rather see it used as a way to give a relatively-unknown band its big break. You could even have a year-long contest featuring clips of the bands and let the fans vote for who they want to see perform a full set. Perhaps the second-place finisher can perform at the Pro Bowl? Or, a better idea, how about hold a high school marching band contest with the top band (or bands) getting an invite to perform in front of millions and the money that would normally go to pay a performer/build an elaborate set being donated to the the winning school(s). At least then, the money has the potential to do something good. Yes, I know there are those who are going to complain that my ideas are boring and ri...

I think it ended up being a great decision. Granted, pulling a child out of a traditional school setting in favor of taking their classes online isn't something that is going to work for everyone. But, while I had my doubts when we pulled the trigger following her freshman year of high school, it was definitely the right choice for her. First of all, her grades have improved considerably. She went from barely passing her classes to A's and B's with high marks both on tests and homework (the latter was her primary issue). She feels the lessons are much easier to follow without constant distractions from kids who don't want to learn (a huge problem for her last year) and, if she doesn't understand something, she can get almost immediate help from the teacher or can just watch the video replay of the class. She is also a heck of a lot less stressed than she was last year. She doesn't have to worry about forgetting something in her locker or only having three ...

I was reading an article earlier today that talked about the NFL experimenting with onside kicks during this weekend's Pro Bowl and, while stuff like this normally doesn't interest me all that much this time of year (especially since the Pro Bowl seems like a big waste of time now), I am admittedly curious if this will pan out. Here's the gist of it - instead of attempting an onside kick which, due to all the new safety rules, is practically impossible to convert, a scoring team can receive the ball at their own 25 yard line and get one chance to pick up 15 yards. If they do, they keep the ball. If they don't, the opposing team gets the ball with excellent field position. I personally think something like this can add some new excitement to the game. Not only is this a better (and probably safer) way for a team to get the ball back when they are behind, I can see it potentially being used at various other points in a game as well. For example, if a team has just ...

OK, full disclosure, I've never been great at remembering names. But, it's gotten much, much worse since I've gotten older. My wife, who is a teacher's assistant, had her holiday party this past Friday and, even though it really wasn't my thing, I figured she would want a drink or two and I went with her so she didn't have to drive. While we were there, I had someone walk up to our table and start talking to me because. He must have noticed my blank stare because, after a few minutes, he stopped and asked me if I knew who he was and, when I admitted I didn't, he then told me and continued on as though his name should ring a bell. From the gist of the conversation and some shrewd deduction, I was able to figure out I went to school with him. But, even after finding his picture in the year book, I still am drawing a blank. I just don't remember him. I'm not sure if that's because he wasn't very memorable, if it's just a sign of old ...

Synopsis: A pair of brothers and their female companions are traveling to a deserted beach resort in an effort to wait out a viral plague that has wiped out most of humanity. When they have car problems, they agree to travel with a stranger named Frank, who is trying to get his infected daughter to a hospital. The partnership quickly leads to tension as hard decisions need to be made. Who's in it? The movie stars Chris Pine , Lou Taylor Pucci , Piper Perabo , Emily VanCamp and Christopher Meloni . Review: I came across this movie on Netflix a couple weeks ago and, quite honestly, wasn't really all that interested in watching it. I recognized Chris Pine and Piper Perabo but the description reminded me a bit too much of the low-budget zombie movies we've been disappointed by in the past. However, I was in the mood for a movie last night and, not finding anything that both looked interesting and fit in the allotted amount of time we had to watch it, decided to giv...

Synopsis: In 1944, Allied forces believed the war in Europe was almost over and even placed bets about it ending by Christmas. They did not realize Adolf Hitler was planning one last, desperate holiday offensive. Review: I usually go to the local library rather than buy books because I read them too quickly. However, my wife came across this book a few weeks ago and purchased it for me as a Christmas present. I was intrigued and, once I was caught up with my library books, I sat down to read this one. Overall, I was impressed. I have heard and read about the Battle of the Bulge before and, because of that, there was some familiarity with some of the facts and people involved. However, I liked how this book brought things down to a more personal level and showed the battle from specific individual perspectives. One thing, in particular, I liked about this book is the way it focused a lot on the ton of misinformation that was going around during the early hours of the Nazi o...

Synopsis: Actor Jeff Goldblum explores the history and cultures behind everyday items like bikes, gaming and tattoos and puts in his own observations. Review: We started watching this Disney Plus documentary series a couple weeks ago because we couldn't find anything else that looked interesting and I knew my wife was a big Goldblum fan. As it turns out, it is a very entertaining series. I think the thing I really like about this show is the way Goldblum looks at normal, everyday items most people (and shows) wouldn't even consider interesting. This includes things like coffee, bikes and denim. Some of the people he meets while exploring these things (such as a man who explores old gold mines in search of vintage denim clothing) are very memorable. The series is actually much more educational than I was expecting it to be. For example, I never knew the Amish made up a good chunk of the workforce constructing American recreational vehicles until I saw this show or ju...

Synopsis: At the tail end of World War I, President Woodrow Wilson agreed to place American troops under British command as the latter invaded Russia on the pretense of guarding supply stockpiles from the Germans but with the secret mission of supporting resistance to the Bolshevik Revolution. This non-fiction book tells the story of some of the men who took part in the failed military campaign. Review: I was recently reminded about this rarely talked about military campaign while reading The Ghost Ships of Archangel and, when I came across this book at our local library, I decided to check it out. After finally finishing it last night, I have to say I wasn't disappointed. The author does a good job of bringing the men who participated in and, more often than not, died, in this event back to life by sharing details about their lives back in the United States as well as their dreams and goals. This information, gathered from family members, letters and diaries really made...

Synopsis : Too-serious Jess reluctantly agrees to tag along when her friend, Christy, accepts an invitation to party on a yacht only to find out the boat belongs to an executive at an "evil" research company. Things get worse when the yacht suffers mechanical issues near an island housing the genetic monstrosities created by that company. Who's in it? The movie stars Alexia Fast , Jesse Metcalfe , Veronica Dunne , Sabina Gadecki and Tom Maden. Review: There was a time when I could pick out five B-rated movies and would find at least one or two that were watchable. That, however, has not been the case lately and, when I picked out this film last night, I was hoping it was the one that would break that streak. After all, from the vague description on Vudu and IMDB , I thought it would be a simple slasher flick. And, it's pretty hard to screw those up. Unfortunately, not only was the description (and title) of this movie horribly misleading, the entire film t...

Part of this is about helping the environment. But, a larger part of it relates to my New Year's resolution to declutter . Plastic shopping bags take up a surprisingly large amount of space, even with us attempting to reuse them as liners for our various garbage cans. I think reducing the amount of those being brought into the house will go a long way. There's also a small financial incentive involved. I know at least one of our local stores gives you 3 cents off your purchase every time you bring your own bag and I'm sure, if I did the research, I'll find others that offer something similar. I know it's not a significant amount of money, but it's something. The biggest challenge, of course, is remembering to take the bags with me when I do go to the store. I have plenty of them. In fact, I think there's about four in the trunk of my car, but they don't do me much good if I leave them behind. I'm trying to help this situation by keeping a ca...

Synopsis: Trying to entertain themselves during a sleepover, four friends visit a website and attempt to summon the mythical demon Slender Man. They believe their efforts are a failure until one of them goes missing and the remaining three begin to slowly lose their minds. Who's in it? The movie stars Joey King , Julia Goldani Telles , Jaz Sinclair , Annalise Basso and Taylor Richardson . Review: I recorded this film off of a movie channel a couple weeks ago and immediately forgot it was saved to our DVR. I rediscovered it last night and, since my wife and I have both been craving a horror film, decided to watch it. To tell you the truth, I didn't have high expectations for this film, mostly because it was only rated PG-13 and everyone knows horror films are rarely scary if they don't have at least an R rating. But, I held out hope that it would manage to surprise me. Unfortunately, it turned out to be a pretty big flop in my book. The problem with this movie...

To tell you the truth, I had to debate whether or not to renew it this year. I like Costco, but the closest one is more than 30 minutes away and going there always requires some pre-planning (or remembering to check out their website). As a result, we don't go nearly as much as we probably would prefer to. Then, on top of it, the cost of the membership increased recently too. However, after some reflection and a bit of math, I did decide it was worth spending the money on it again. Actually, when it came right down to it, the decision wasn't as difficult as I thought it would be. All I ultimately had to consider was my wife's contact lenses. She wears them daily and has the one-and-done kind (wears them once and throws them away). I can buy a 6-month supply of those at Costco for what it would cost me for a 1-month supply at any of our local vision places. That savings alone pays for the membership for us and any deals we get at the store later are just icing on the cak...

I'm not just talking about decluttering my house (even though that is included). I am also talking about decluttering my life in general. In other words, I want to remove the excess. This means excess weight, excess stress and excess debt. It's a broad enough goal for me to have a good chance of succeeding and even a partial victory can make a big difference, at least in my opinion. Anyway, I hope you have a safe and happy 2020.