Terry Odell's Blog, page 22
January 11, 2024
Friday Fotos – Windows
I found so many interesting windows (and reflections) on our trip that I wanted to share some of them with you. Hope you enjoy them.
How can he solve crimes if he’s not allowed to investigate? 
Gordon Hepler, Mapleton’s Chief of Police, has his hands full. A murder, followed by several assaults. Are they related to the expansion of the community center? Or could it be the upcoming election? Gordon and mayor wannabe Nelson Manning have never seen eye to eye. Gordo...
January 9, 2024
WCW – Lamb and White Bean Chili
(recipe modified from the NYT)
Cold weather calls for warming dishes, like this lamb and white bean chili.
Ingredients
Yield: 4 to 6 servings
2 T olive oil
1 pound ground lamb
Kosher salt and black pepper
1 onion, finely chopped
2 poblano peppers, seeded and diced (or 2 small green bell peppers, but poblanos aren’t too spicy and they add their own flavor)
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped (I used 2 t of jarred crushed garlic)
2 small jalapeños, seeded, if desired, and fi...
January 7, 2024
Time to be a Writer Again
Image by Alfred Derks from PixabayTravel is over. Covid is over. The release of Deadly Adversaries is set, although I should probably be doing more marketing. (It’s available for pre-order. Do you have your copy?)
Other life challenges are “normal” and don’t impact the writing. In fact, winter weather encourages being inside and leaves time for writing. I’ve resumed my goals of 500 words before lunch, and 1000 for the day.
I had the setting for the book—my December tri...
January 4, 2024
Friday Fotos – Some Favorites of 2023
Rita’s HeadI went through my photos and chose twenty of my favorites from 2023. I hope you enjoy them.
How can he solve crimes if he’s not allowed to investigate? Gordon Hepler, Mapleton’s Chief of Police, has his hands full. A murder, followed by several assaults. Are they related to the expansion of the community center? Or could it be the upcoming election? Gordon and mayor wannabe Nelson Manning have never seen eye to eye. Gordon’s frus...
January 2, 2024
Christmas Markets Trip Recap – Prague
If you missed my first post about our trip to Prague, it’s here.
Our hotel was located in the “old” section of Prague, very close to the town square. Our room was small, the bathroom tiny, but everything was clean and comfortable. All the rooms were named for notable people of the region, and ours was the Gregor Mendel, which pleased the biologist Hubster. We slept well, courtesy of all the travel day delays.
As with most European hotels, a substantial ...
December 31, 2023
It’s 2024!
Wishing everyone a Happy New Year. May your 2024 be better than your 2023.
We had a wonderful trip. Of course there were some glitches. Would you believe someone delayed our flight to Frankfurt because he didn’t like the adjustable headrest on his seat and insisted he be let off the plane? Which meant finding his luggage, and getting it off the plane, too. Luckily, someone who had a seat without that kind of headrest offered to switch, so we were only 45 minutes late arriving in Frank...
November 28, 2023
Holiday Update and Big News
I’m going to be out of the country. First to Prague, then to Vienna to board a riverboat to cruise the Danube. We’ll be experiencing Krampusnacht, and a whole lot of Christmas markets and local tours. I’ll see whether any of my German lessons stuck. The trip’s a photo safari, so I hope to come home with some halfway decent pictures. I also hope to find inspiration for a new book.
I’ve finished going through my editor’s comments, and am busy organizing, making lists, p...
November 22, 2023
Happy Thanksgiving
Happy Thanksgiving to all who celebrate. And even if you don’t, I hope you get a few smiles. And yes, you might have seen this before, but isn’t that what traditions are all about?
As for me, I am thankful for all of you who take the time to visit my blog and support my writing habit.
Available Now in digital, paperback, and audio formats
Deadly Relations.
Nothing Ever Happens in Mapleton … Until it Does
Gordon Hepler, Mapleton, Colorado’s Police Chief, is called away from a quiet Sunday w...
November 19, 2023
Technology Rant Update
Last time, I mentioned issues with my work email on my Apple devices, and said it was working at last, no thanks to the help desks. It still is!
Computer issues. Tech showed up (complete with man bun and thick glasses—honest! And it’s not a stereotype if it’s real.) and installed the new motherboard. He assured me that there should be no problems and when he was done, everything should look the way it was supposed to, that the hard drive and all it’s treasure trove of data...
November 12, 2023
And Still Another Technology Rant
I spent far too much time last week dealing with technology, and readers of this blog know my thoughts on that. While I embrace having technology and its accompanying devices, understanding them isn’t my forte.
After a year of not being able to set up my work email on my Apple devices, I decide that since it was supposed to work, I’d get the help I needed. Every time I’d tried, I’d get partway through the setup, and when it got to the verification step, it would...
