There’s A New Cop In Town

If you happen to find yourself in our old hometown of Show Low, Arizona, be aware that there’s a new cop in town. And he’s a pretty good guy. This is our granddaughter Hailey and her fiancé, Toby McIntire. Yesterday Toby graduated from the Maricopa County Law Enforcement Training Academy and next week he starts work as an officer in Show Low. We’re all very proud of him.

I have a long association with the Show Low Police Department because when I owned my newspaper in the White Mountains, the police chief and most of the officers were good friends of mine. At that time the competing newspaper seemed to always take the position that the police were wrong no matter what they did, while I was a supporter of good police work, no matter whose toes got stepped on.

You are embarking on a wonderful career, Toby, but one that will have many challenges. There will be frustrating days when you go off duty and wonder what the hell you’re doing with your life and ask yourself if you are really making a difference in the world and your community. But there will be other, more satisfying days when you will know that you do. I hope those days outnumber the bad ones by a huge number.

Be sure to enter our latest Free Drawing. This week’s prize is an autographed copy of The Search for Grandma Sparkle by Darlene Miller. This cozy mystery begins when Sarah Spoolstra learns that her grandmother Opal and niece Jessica are missing, and she decides to search for them. When their car is found with two flat tires, Sarah and her boyfriend travel up and down the rural roads and creeks of southern Iowa looking for her missing relatives. Because of a recent storm, would they have sought shelter in an abandoned barn, house, or maybe even a coal mine? Were they abducted? Who would have a grudge against the gentle woman who only tried to help people through her church’s SPARKLE Club?

To enter, click on this Free Drawing link or the tab at the top of this page and enter your name (first and last) in the comments section at the bottom of that page (not this one). Only one entry per person per drawing please, and you must enter with your real name. To prevent spam or multiple entries, the names of cartoon or movie characters are not allowed. The winner will be drawn Sunday evening. Note: Due to the high shipping cost of printed books and Amazon restrictions on e-books and audiobooks to foreign countries, only entries with US addresses and e-mail addresses are allowed. After 90 days, unclaimed prizes revert back to the drawing pool for a future contest.

And finally, here’s a chuckle to start your day from the collection of funny signs we see in our travels and that our readers share with us. One look at this sign told me there was absolutely nothing I needed in this store.

Thought For The Day – If humans stood in a single file line around the Equator, most of them would drown.