Trust but Verify

  Zip, its Gone August 2021 Okay, I surrender. Where did July go? I love racing, but I only blinked, and July went adios . Parnelli Jones, where are you? For those of us living at Ft. Nichols on the Llano Estacado of Texas, July was a blur. Everything and everybody were on the bright side, but there wasn’t enough time to catch our breath. The third book in the Border War Series, The Russian, went to the press (three cheers, please). With any luck at all, it will arrive in bookstores, the Internet, and book clubs in winter, 2021-22. Continuing on the bright side, “The Third Dawn” was originally published nearly twenty years ago. A biblical novel on the life of Christ, it was allowed to wither on the vine and out of print several years ago. Now, however, there is a resurgence of interest in religious-based themes in the book market. Accordingly, and with my wife Gwen as editor, we have begun an update of the original manuscript. While the storyline remains unchanged, it was past ...

  "You're a Cop?" “You? A cop? How did that ever happen?” When I told people what I was doing, that was their first thought. It reminded them of the 1960s TV series, “Car 54 Where Are You?” You have to play the cards when they are dealt. Coming out of the Marine Corps, my skills were good but limited. The job market had nothing to offer for a person with my skill set—a BAR gunner, and an explosives installation and removal specialist.  I quickly learned to never be surprised by what surprises you. I had not planned on a career in law enforcement, but when you need a job you go after whatever is available.  It was a radio ad—The Tucson Police Department is hiring at a NEW paygrade of $90 per week. That was good money in 1961. I jumped at it, little expecting I would remain a cop for fifty years. It was typical in that era that most police recruits were former military, so the stress and discipline of rookie training was a piece of cake. Nevertheless, I was impres...

In 2020, I am Eyeing The Russian In children’s games, we began by shouting, “Ready or not, here I come.” Times have changed, but the outcry is still appropriate for the new decade. Ready or not, it is here and I’m ready. Ready to create, to write, and to make the most of every day. It reminds me of a comment a critically ill man made when asked by a friend how he was doing. His answer was spot on. “I enjoyed my sandwich at lunch.” Such a little thing, but how accurate. It’s the little things that count. Another way of saying it is to enjoy the journey, not just wait to reach the final terminal of wherever we are going. Enjoy the journey! My journey as we start this new era is to make the most of each day as we construct my series of novels, the “Border Wars.” The series began with Color of the Prism , a fact-based novel set on the Arizona/Sonora border. Tarantino Productions purchased the movie rights but never put together the fifty-million budget to complete the film. Below i...

The #MormonMurders and my Upcoming Novel Recent horrifying images from Mexico reveal the unfathomable violence of the Mexican Cartels.  Nine peace-loving Christian women and their children were sacrificed on the altar of inhumanity in the Mexican state of Sonora, just south of the Arizona border. France 24 photo credit Questions remain as to why these lives were so violently destroyed. However, indications lean toward specific targeting for the simple reason of one cartel establishing its power and influence over an opposing cartel. La Linea, the armed branch of the Juarez Cartel and in conflict with the Sinaloa Cartel, is the prime suspect in the slaughter of these innocents. My research and past experience in law enforcement in Arizona brought La Linea to life for me long before the brutal murders of these nine innocent people. Last year I spent some time along the border researching my soon-to-be-released “We Were Young Once . . . ,”   Fur...