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Poems and Ponderings

POEMS AND PONDERINGS is a quirky pseudo-autobiographical mosaic of some of the author’s more peculiar experiences that have shaped his life. From the mundane to the bizarre, these witty and often disjunct yarns cover a wide range of topics from wind turbines to chipmunk infestation, Harley-Davidsons to honeysuckle abatement, phallic envy to women explained. Presented in poem and prose form, this collection may make you smile or perhaps make you shed a tear, but it will surely keep you entertained.
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Here's an example...

Up on the Roof
 
Some take a pill, some snort a line.
Some smoke a joint, or gulp some wine.
For me, these aren’t the thrills I seek.
I mount my roof––stand on its peak.
 
I know it’s not so smart to do.
I balance not as well as you.
But I still like to stand up, where
the mourning doves take to the air.
 
I claim it’s for my home upkeep.
My wife says it’s because I’m cheap.
But if this is the day I die,
I want to do it as I fly.
 
Down on the ground, the Earth looks grim,
and God tells us to trust in Him.
But as I stand on top the world,
I feel like I’m a flag unfurled.
 
So, if you find a better way
to meditate, reflect, or pray,
I’ll gladly seek the way you’ve found,
and join you back down on the ground.


And Here's Another...


The Two Deaths of Oliver Cromwell

They stuck his head high on a spike 
outside Westminster Hall,
so Charles and Loyalists alike 
could celebrate his fall.
Indeed, they had Cromwell to blame 
for old King Charles’ end.
And Charles, the son, would soon reclaim 
the throne to seek revenge.
 
They strung him up and stretched him tall 
and severed old Crom’s head. 
But it was odd that through it all 
old Cromwell hardly bled. 
You see, he had been two years gone 
when that blade lopped his crown.
They’d dug him up to right his wrong 
when Charles came back to town.
 
So, if I’m ever forced to pay 
for my misdeeds past done,
and if a judge might say one day 
that I must die by gun,
or be force-fed some drug until 
my heartbeat at last pauses,
I’d much prefer to, like Cromwell, 
​first die of natural causes.  
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​The Cyrus Brandt Series

Book 1

TWISTER'S WAKE

.The Cyrus Brandt Series begins with Twister's Wake (see synopsis below). Set in Central Illinois, this thriller/mystery is a fun read. I hope you enjoy it.
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​TWISTER'S WAKE
Cyrus Brandt’s life is falling apart. Amid a disintegrating marriage and a failing career, he returns to his childhood home on an Illinois farm to make a new start. 
Adapting to the slow pace of his new environs, Cyrus quickly finds himself in a burgeoning romance with Annie, who owns a diner in the nearby town.  But when a spring tornado deposits the body of a murdered man on a nearby rural roadside, Cyrus’ quiet new life is turned upside down.  Annie’s brother, Sheriff Thomas Bales, is now caught up in a manhunt, and Cyrus volunteers to assist the sheriff’s under-staffed department in the search for Byron Patterson, the prison escapee and prime suspect. 

This is a tale of a man reborn, who discovers that the memories of his violent past, which he has tried so hard to repress, are now useful for confronting his immediate future.



Book 2​
THE PATH
The Path 
Having returned to his childhood home in Central Illinois, Cyrus Brandt is now navigating a new career as an official deputy sheriff. But it isn’t long before he becomes embroiled in two simultaneous cases; one involving the mysterious disappearance of two local high school girls, and the other finding the people responsible for the drug-related deaths of two boys from the local Amish community.
 
Struggling to manage, the overtaxed Cane County Sheriff Department must join forces with an Illinois State Police Crime Scene Investigator to try to solve the cases. But just as hope begins to fade, Cyrus boldly acts on his suspicions of corruption of a neighboring county sheriff’s department, and the two investigations suddenly converge in a way no one could have anticipated. 
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Book 3
DEADLY CROP
Available NOW!
​Deadly Crop   
Cyrus Brandt Series continues with DEADLY CROP.  Rachel Bales has joined the department as a new deputy. The Cane County Sheriff's Department confronts four murders in succession and struggles to find the connections. 


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