Tom Collins Author

Friday 13th

This Friday is the 13th. A very dreaded and unlucky day! As for the origin of this strongly embedded superstition concerning Friday the 13th and for the general desired to avoid anything numbered thirteen, people will point to the story of the Last Supper and subsequent crucifixion. Jesus Christ and his disciples met for that Last Supper on Thursday. The last and 13th guest to arrive was Judas who betrays Jesus, leading to his crucifixion the following day—Friday!

Southern Cornbread Dressing Recipe

This post is especially for the many newcomers (folks from California and New York) who don’t know how to make the most important Thanksgiving dish on a southern dinner table. It is, of course, the “dressing” that accompanies the Turkey. Not just any dressing, but good ole Southern cornbread dressing and gravy! Some folks still call this dish “Turkey Stuffing” even though most of us no longer actually cook a stuffed Turkey. The recipe below has been handed down for at least three generations in the Collins family and will keep about twenty people happy at Thanksgiving. For more or less just adjust the recipe accordingly.

  • Prepare two large skillets of cornbread-about 8 cubs. I use Martha White Self-rising Cornmeal Mix. Make in advance, break apart, and let it try dry out for two or three days.

  • Dry out a few slices of white bread, remove the edges, and tear into small pieces—enough for two cups.

  • Crumble the cornbread into a large mixing bowl. Add the pieces of white bread.

  • Sauté 2 large onions (chopped) and an equal amount of celery in butter. When tender, melt an additional stick of butter in the same pan and then mix the onions, celery and the added butter into the cornbread mixture.

  • To the above mixture, add the following and mix thoroughly:

  • 2 tsp. of poultry seasoning

  • Four Chopped boiled eggs

  • Two cups of chicken stock

  • Two raw eggs

  • Dust with pepper and salt

The mixture should moist. If it seems too dry, add more melted butter or stock. Transfer to baking pans or casserole dishes. I use disposable aluminum pans and transfer the finished cornbread dressing to serving dishes when ready to serve. Bread is a great insulator, so it will take longer to bake than you expect to thoroughly heat the dressings to a safe temperature of 165 degrees (200 degrees is even better), and that may take an hour or longer depending on the depth of the mixture in the banking dishes. The mixture should not be deeper than one and a half or 2 inches in each banking dish. Bake at 325 degrees. Do the cooking ahead of time, and reheat to warm your dressing when you are ready to serve. The cooked dressing can be refrigerated and even frozen to serve later.

Now for the Gravy that people rave about. The truth is, my closely guarded secret gravy receipt (handed down from my mother) is nothing more than Campbell’s Cream of Chicken Soup thinned slightly with chicken stock and milk or cream, and to which small handful of Turkey meat bits has been added for a real homemade look.

Finally if you and your dish are traveling on Thanksgiving, remember time passes faster and the drive seems shorter listening to an audio book. All of my Mark Rollins Adventure mysteries are available on Audible and Amazon. The most recent, Beyond Visual Range, was the NYC Big Book 2022 Award’s Distinguished Favorite in Military Fiction.

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Ask your independent bookstore about the latest book by Tom Collins, Stories from Applewood Manor—Explore Asheville, North Carolina’s History. Mysteries, Ghosts, and Tall Tales. For signed copies of books by Tom Collins, go to TomCollinsAuthor.com. Ebook and print editions are also available on Amazon, Google Play, Apple iBooks, Barnes & Noble, Smashwords, and other online bookstores. Audio editions are available on Amazon, iTunes and directly from Audible.com. The latest book, Exploring Asheville, was the 2022 winner of the Independent Press Award and the NYC Big Book Award for its literary category. My novel, Beyond  Visual Range, was NYC Big Book 2022 Award’s Distinguished Favorite in Military Fiction. 

Jason Brennan Insightful Presentation and Answer to the Question Who is the Richest 1%.

Jason Brennan is a philosopher and business professor at George Town University and a noted author. If you missed his presentation Why It Ok to Want to Be Rich, you can still listen to the recording here.

Do not be confused by the title, Brennan deals with some of the fundamental issues we are faced with as a society and about government policy. What is the role of Corporations and Businesses? What is their responsibly to promote the economic and social wellbeing of the population? How can they best “Give Back?” What about the wealthy? How should they be taxed? What about the super-rich? Should they even be allowed to exist? Where do the Super rich keep their wealth? Who are the richest one percent in the world?

Brennan does a great job dealing with the sensitive but extremely important issues. And some of information is likely to surprise you!

To watch the recorded presentation click below or go to https://youtu.be/OYEaQnt2sNc .

Wanting to be Rich is Ok!

Register now for Jason Brennan’s free Zoom lecture, Why It’s OK to Want to Be Rich. The April 20th,2021 event is hosted by the Political Economy Research Institute of Middle Tennessee State University.

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 For signed copies of books by Tom Collins, go to TomCollinsAuthor.com. Unsigned print and eBook editions are available on Amazon, Google Play, Apple iBooks, Barnes & Noble, Smashwords, and other online bookstores. Audio editions are available on Amazon, iTunes and directly from Audible.com. Collins is also the resident author for Stories from ApplewoodThe Applewood Manor is the longest continuously operating bed and breakfast style hotel in Asheville, The untra short stories are about Asheville including its ghost, mysteries and tall tales. Check out the latest Tom Collins Novel, Beyond Visual Range, available in print, digital and audio.  
Published by I-65 North, Inc.

 

Audio Books

With vacation time approaching consider adding my Mark Rollins Adventure series of mysteries to your Audio Book library. Nothing makes the miles fly by faster than a good book.

All six of my mystery novels are available in audio editions as well as in digital and print formats on Amazon.com. This includes:

  1. Mark Rollins’ New Career & the Women’s Health Club

  2. Mark Rollins and the Rainmaker

  3. Mark Rollins and the Puppeteer

  4. The Claret Murders, a Mark Rollins Adventure

  5. Diversion, a Mark Rollins Adventure

  6. Beyond Visual Range, a Mark Rollins Adventure

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 For signed copies of books by Tom Collins, go to TomCollinsAuthor.com. Unsigned print and eBook editions are available on Amazon, Google Play, Apple iBooks, Barnes & Noble, Smashwords, and other online bookstores. Audio editions are available on Amazon, iTunes and directly from Audible.com. Collins is also the resident author for Stories from ApplewoodThe Applewood Manor is the longest continuously operating bed and breakfast style hotel in Asheville, The untra short stories are about Asheville including its ghost, mysteries and tall tales. Check out the latest Tom Collins Novel, Beyond Visual Range, available in print, digital and audio.  
Published by I-65 North, Inc.

Deja Vu

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It feels like déjà vu all over again!  Do you remember the great 2010 flood? That was the backdrop for my book The Claret Murders. The book is available as an audio book, digitally for the Kindle and other devices and, of course, in paperback and hard cover editions.

It's Nashville ... with a devastating flood, a beautiful lawyer, a deadly secret, and wine to kill for.

An old man finished a glass of wine--his favorite claret--went to bed and died. Now more than fifty years later, a Nashville attorney, Ann Sims, prepares to auction off his estate--a derelict old mansion with its forgotten secret. Sims is living with a secret of her own, a secret that could cost her the fortune she is to inherit and end her career. Afraid, for good reason, of the possessive and greedy men in her life, she turns to Mark Rollins for protection.

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 For signed copies of books by Tom Collins, go to TomCollinsAuthor.com. Unsigned print and eBook editions are available on Amazon, Google Play, Apple iBooks, Barnes & Noble, Smashwords, and other online bookstores. Audio editions are available on Amazon, iTunes and directly from Audible.com. Collins is also the resident author for Stories from ApplewoodThe Applewood Manor is the longest continuously operating bed and breakfast style hotel in Asheville, The untra short stories are about Asheville including its ghost, mysteries and tall tales. Check out the latest Tom Collins Novel, Beyond Visual Range, available in print, digital and audio.  
Published by I-65 North, Inc.

 

Wanting to be Rich is Ok!

Mark your calendar for April 20th,2021. That is when the Political Economy Research Institute of Middle Tennessee State University will host the Zoom lecture, Why It’s OK to Want to Be Rich!
It is not to early to register.

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About the Event: "Finger-wagging moralizers say the love of money is the root of all evil. They assume that making a lot of money requires exploiting others, and that the best way to wash off the resulting stain is to give a lot of it away. In Why It’s OK to Want to Be Rich, Jason Brennan shows that the moralizers have it backwards. He argues that, in general, the more money you make, the more you already do for others, and that even an average wage earner is productively “giving back” to society just by doing her job. In addition, wealth liberates us to have the best chance of leading a life that’s authentically our own."

About the Speaker: Jason Brennan is the Robert J. and Elizabeth Flanagan Family Professor of Strategy, Economics, Ethics, and Public Policy at the McDonough School of Business at Georgetown University. He specializes in politics, philosophy, and economics. He currently has 7 books under contract with Oxford University Press and Routledge Press, at least 2 of which will be published in 2022. He is the author of 13 books, including Why It's OK to Want to Be Rich (Routledge Press 2020), Good Work if You Can Get It (Johns Hopkins University Press, 2020); Injustice for All: America's Dysfunctional Criminal Justice System and How to Fix It, with Christopher Surprenant (Routledge, 2019); Cracks in the Ivory Tower: The Moral Mess of Higher Education, with Phil Magness (Oxford University Press, 2019).

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For signed copies of books by Tom Collins, go to TomCollinsAuthor.com. Unsigned print and eBook editions are available on Amazon, Google Play, Apple iBooks, Barnes & Noble, Smashwords, and other online bookstores. Audio editions are available on Amazon, iTunes and directly from Audible.com. Be sure to check out the latest Tom Collins Novel, Beyond Visual Range on Amazon.
Published by I-65 North, Inc.

The Story Behind The Story

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I was talking with a reporter last night who was preparing a story about giving books for Christmas. She wanted to know why I wrote my new book, Beyond Visual Range. I tried to explain, but it wasn’t until we ended our call that I got the words in the right order and realized why the book was a good choice for Christmas. At first glance the story of two women drone pilots battling a rouge military, in space, that is bent on overthrowing the government doesn’t sound very Christmassy.

Here is what makes the book different. I wanted to tell the true story of our military drone pilots, but as a mystery author, I wanted to do so using my fiction adventure mystery genre. That is what Beyond Visual Range is—the true story of our drone warriors in a fictional mystery format. These warriors protect the rest of us every single day of the year including Christmas Day. And they do so at great sacrifice and suffer grave wounds. Consider these lines from the book:

“It is an environment full of grays with few blacks and whites. It’s a job where it is easy to violate one’s sense of what’s right or at least to question it. We can recover from horror, fear, and grief. Warriors have been doing that for all of history, but when we feel we have crossed the line—violated what’s right, it injures our very souls. The closeness of the drone pilot to his victim creates a bond of sorts. To strike when he least expects it seems cowardly or a betrayal. Worse is to kill an innocent, like the little girl, by accident or not. That is an act that stays in your head forever.

Your gift of Beyond Visual Range will be an entertaining mystery adventure that tells the true story of the struggles our military drone warriors face protecting us so we can enjoy a safe Christmas. And, until December 21st you can give a signed library quality edition at a 40% discount with free shipping. Just go to https://www.tomcollinsauthor.com/specials-2020.

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For signed copies of books by Tom Collins, go to TomCollinsAuthor.com. Unsigned print and eBook editions are available on Amazon, Google Play, Apple iBooks, Barnes & Noble, Smashwords, and other online bookstores. Audio editions are available on Amazon, iTunes and directly from Audible.com. Be sure to check out the latest Tom Collins Novel, Beyond Visual Range on Amazon.
Published by I-65 North, Inc.

Christmas Specials for 2020

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Three Book Gift Ideas for Christmas
40% off and Free Shipping

Sale Ends December 21st

 

1: My Newest Mystery Adventure:
Beyond Visual Range

Signed Hardcover Edition: Regular $29.00, Christmas Special $17.40
In this mystery adventure two women drone pilots battle in outer space to defend their country from a rogue military element threatening to overthrow the government. One is a former fighter pilot who after a crash now flies from a wheelchair. Here is what one Amazon reviewer said:

Not only can this happen; some or all of it probably is happening. Not only is our future in the balance, our very existence is too.

2: Two Book Set of my Law Firm Mysteries: Mark Rollins and the Rainmaker & Mark Rollins and the Puppeteer

Signed Hardcover Set: Regular $58.00, Christmas Special $34.80:

Drawing from thirty years of experience working with law firms the two law firm mysteries open the doors on a world of greed, lust, crime, and mystery. In the Rainmaker someone wants to kill the law firm’s public face—its rainmaker. In the Puppeteer, a lawyer and rising political star dies in Nashville’s, notorious Printers Alley with a bullet through his head!

3: Your Choice of Two Editions of my Professional Guidance Book: The Language of Excellence

Signed Hardcover Edition: Regular $39.00, Christmas Special $23.40
Signed Paperback Edition: Regular $29.00, Christmas Special $17.40

This book is one of the best gifts one can give to a young professional. It can be invaluable to the entrepreneur starting a new business or a seasoned executive frustrated by the difficulty of steering an unresponsive corporate ship. The Language of Excellence is a guidebook for business and personal excellence. It takes the most fundamental elements of management theory and practice and distills the content into simple and readily teachable images and phrases for aligning an entire organization from top to bottom.

Here is what the author and distinguished business leader Gary Slaughter had to say about The Language of Excellence:

“In my judgment, The Language of Excellence by Tom Collins is among the best five books I have ever read on this subject…It just may be the only guide book to personal and business excellence you will ever need to read.”

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Unsigned print and eBook editions are available on Amazon, Google Play, Apple iBooks, Barnes & Noble, Smashwords, and other online bookstores. Audio editions are available on Amazon, iTunes and directly from Audible.com. 
Published by I-65 North, Inc.



 

 

 

Tomorrow is the Day!

Tomorrow, Sept 16, 2020, we will hold the first session in the Free Enterprise Lecture Series in support our capitalistic free market system. This is a Zoom event, to register go to https://mtsu.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_Wrc2JqmlRNibewzwPv15bw. Please feel free to pass the registration information on to family members and friends.

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For signed copies of The Language of  Excellence and other books by Tom Collins, go to TomCollinsAuthor.com. Unsigned print and eBook editions are available on Amazon, Google Play, Apple iBooks, Barnes & Noble, Smashwords, and other online bookstores. Audio editions of some books are available on Amazon, iTunes and directly from Audible.com. Be sure to check out the latest Tom Collins Novel, Beyond Visual Range on Amazon.
Published by I-65 North, Inc.

Reading From The Claret Murders

As I noted earlier, COVID-19 has shut down the opportunity to meet in person with book clubs and fans of the Mark Rollins adventure series. I have always enjoy doing readings at those events. Since I cannot do it in person, I’ll occasional do so by way of the internet. Today I am reading excerpts from Chapter 28, Mano a Mano, in my book, The Claret Murders.

Author reading from his book The Claret Murders

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For signed copies of books by Tom Collins, go to TomCollinsAuthor.com. Unsigned print and eBook editions are available on Amazon, Google Play, Apple iBooks, Barnes & Noble, Smashwords, and other online bookstores. Audio editions are available on Amazon, iTunes and directly from Audible.com. Be sure to check out the latest Tom Collins Novel, Beyond Visual Range on Amazon.
Published by I-65 North, Inc.

Applewood Manor, Asheville NC

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My Son, Stephen, and wife Robin have just become innkeepers after purchasing the Applewood Manor in Asheville, North Carolina. More than a hundred years old the Applewood Manor is one of the longest continuously operating Asheville bed & breakfast inns. While this is their first step into full service inn keeping, they are not new to the recreational property business. They own a beautiful French country villa in Roussillon, La Petite Colline de Roussillon, for those looking to vacation in Provence.

Applewood has its own standalone appeal as an historic bed & Breakfast in the breathtaking mountains of North Carolina, but it owes a measure of its popularity to Asheville as a destination—historic buildings and architecture, home of some of history’s most dynamic personalities and beautiful mountain vistas. The mountains of Asheville are the oldest in the country. And, then there is the mystical side of Asheville. Psychics from all over the world travel to the area drawn by  what they believe is a paranormal “vortex” of energy. Many say that the area draws that energy from the spiritual residue of ancient Native Americans who lived and died in those mountains. Then there is the blood spilled into its grounds during the Civil War. Certainly, Asheville has seen more than its share of mysterious events and deaths.  In fact, some say that Applewood sets in the most haunted place in the country.  

With Stephen and Robin at the helm, visitors can expect a wonderful experience with or without accompanying ghost.  Knowing them, you be well fed, offered great wines, giving an opportunity to learn new things or improve existing skills. And if you are a mind to, Robin will  have you on a tennis court or Stephen will have you on a bike pedaling up and down the areas mountains.

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For signed copies of books by Tom Collins, go to TomCollinsAuthor.com. Unsigned print and eBook editions are available on Amazon, Google Play, Apple iBooks, Barnes & Noble, Smashwords, and other online bookstores. Audio editions are available on Amazon, iTunes and directly from Audible.com. Be sure to check out the latest Tom Collins Novel, Beyond Visual Range on Amazon.
Published by I-65 North, Inc.

Win a Challenge Coin

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The pictured item is it the challenge coin for the United States Air Force MQ-9 Reaper Drone, a remotely piloted aircraft system.

If you collect challenge coins you will want to add this MQ-9 Reaper to your collection.  If you are not already a collector, this coin would be a could start.  It weighs over two ounces with a 2 ¼ inch diameter.

MQ-9 Reaper is featured in my latest novel, Beyond Visual Range.  In the new book, a modern day Dr. Strangelove is set to deploy a super non-nuclear weapon from space. Beyond Visual Range is-a frightening, plausible thriller that Foreword Clarion Review described as right out of today’s news when it gave the book four stars.

Enter the contest to win one of the five challenge coins (a $20.00 value), I am giving away this week.

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For signed copies of books by Tom Collins, go to TomCollinsAuthor.com. Unsigned print and eBook editions are available on Amazon, Google Play, Apple iBooks, Barnes & Noble, Smashwords, and other online bookstores. Audio editions are available on Amazon, iTunes and directly from Audible.com. Be sure to check out the latest Tom Collins Novel, Beyond Visual Range on Amazon.
Published by I-65 North, Inc.

What One Reviewer Had To Say

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The reviewer preceded his review comments with the statement that Beyond Visual Range should be required reading. Since my writing is financed from royalties that would be great—I wish! While it will not become required reading, I hope you will read it and if you do, I hope you will post a review on Amazon, Goodreads, or another book related site.

The technology exists. The possibilities are all too real... and frightening. Once I started into it, I couldn't stop reading until the end. It was captivating and well written all the way through.

Politics usually sends me off in another direction when I'm looking for something good to read, but the technical aspects got my attention. This novel peels the skin from the flesh and bone of our everyday life. Not only can this happen; some or all of it probably is happening. Not only is our future in the balance, our very existence is too.

Right now, you can still take advantage of the one month sale ending June 31st. Until then you can purchase the Kindle edition for only $0.99. July 1st the price reverts to $4.99. And don’t forget that the audio editions of Diversion and The Claret Murders are currently on sale for $7.49. Shortly Beyond Visual Range will also be available in an audio edition. Production has been completed, we are just waiting on Audible to distribute the finished product to Amazon, iTunes and other retailers.

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For signed copies of books by Tom Collins, go to TomCollinsAuthor.com. Unsigned print and eBook and audio editions are available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and other online bookstores.
Published by I-65 North, Inc.

Southern Festival of Books Goes Virtual

Southern Festival of books

Celebrating the written word since 1989.

Humanities Tennessee, the organizer of the state’s largest literary event, will transition the three-day festival to virtual access during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Readers and writers from across Tennessee, and the world, will be able to celebrate the joy of reading and lifelong learning while enjoying sessions online with more than 100 authors. 

“We will miss being at the beautiful Nashville Public Library and on War Memorial Plaza, with all of the buzz and energy that the Festival weekend brings. But the important traditions will carry on in new and exciting ways; the opportunity to hear writers read from and discuss their works, and the chance to engage in ideas and discourse that are vital today. Writers will join us from around the country, and we will also share some sites and literary history from Tennessee,” said Serenity Gerbman, Literature and Language Program Director for Humanities Tennessee.

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Be sure to check out the latest Tom Collins Novel, Beyond Visual Range on Amazon.

For signed copies of books by Tom Collins, go to TomCollinsAuthor.com. Unsigned print and eBook editions are available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and other online bookstores. Audio versions of The Claret Murders and  Diversion are available from iTunes, Audibles and Amazon. eBook editions are also available through Apple iTunes’ iBook’s Store and Smashwords.com.
 
Published by I-65 North, Inc.

Readings from Beyond Visual Range

This is the opening segment of chapter one:

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For signed copies of books by Tom Collins, go to TomCollinsAuthor.com. Unsigned print and eBook editions are available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and other online bookstores. Audio versions of The Claret Murders and  Diversion are available from iTunes, Audibles and Amazon. eBook editions are also available through Apple iTunes’ iBook’s Store and Smashwords.com.
 Be sure to check out the latest Tom Collins Novel, Beyond Visual Range on Amazon.
Published by I-65 North, Inc.


DON'T PANIC!

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Don’t Panic, a catchphrase from the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams, seems to be the perfect title for a book about how to survive Covid-19.

When the Government tells you “DON’T PANIC”, the one thing you know is that IT’S TIME TO PANIC! Not because of Covid-19, but because of what the Government is likely to do.

For alternative view you should read the article https://www.zerohedge.com/health/covid-19-evidence-over-hysteria Authored by Aaron Ginn.

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For signed copies of books by Tom Collins, go to TomCollinsAuthor.com. Unsigned print and eBook editions are available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and other online bookstores. Audio versions of The Claret Murders and  Diversion are available from iTunes, Audibles and Amazon. eBook editions are also available through Apple iTunes’ iBook’s Store and Smashwords.com. 
Published by I-65 North, Inc.



Shoulder Replacement Update

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Everything was going along great until five weeks and one day post-surgery. Then arm pain at level 7-8 returned. It started with the right elbow. Any downward pressure sent an electrical shock through the arm and while the elbow seemed to be the center of activity, the pain radiated  from the back of my shoulder to my fingertips.

First on the job was the team at Results Physiotherapy. They felt that the problem was muscular. Muscles new to the job of raising the arm were in revolt. While massage to loosen knotted muscles did seem to provide immediate relief, it was not lasting. A few days later, I had my six-week follow-up appointment with the surgeon who performed the reverse shoulder replacement.  New x-rays did not show a stress fracture of the acromial or scapular spine, possible complications. Considering the x-ray results, the doctor indicated that a pinched nerve was the likely culprit which he decided to treat with steroids and a three-week vacation from physical therapy.

Hopefully, the steroids will work. We will see what happens in the week ahead.

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For signed copies of books by Tom Collins, go to TomCollinsAuthor.com. Unsigned print and eBook editions are available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and other online bookstores. Audio versions of The Claret Murders and Diversion are available from iTunes, Audibles and Amazon. eBook editions are also available through Apple iTunes’ iBook’s Store and Smashwords.com.
Published by I-65 North, Inc.

Annual River Swing and Auction

We are helping the Harpeth Conservancy celebrate its twenty-year anniversary by donating a twenty-year-old Claret and a signed copy of The Claret Murders for their annual River Swing auction. The Claret is a 1999 Château Cheval Blanc.

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Saturday, September 28th is the date for the organization’s annual River Swing. Over 700 guests are expected to attend this casual and festive event which celebrates the organization’s efforts to safeguard the Harpeth River – the Greater Nashville Region’s State Scenic River. You can purchase tickets for the 6 PM-10:30 PM event at by going to the organization’s web site: http://www.harpethconservancy.org/events/riverswing.

DATE & TIME:
Saturday, September 28
6 PM –10:30 PM

LOCATION:
River Circle Farm – Currey Family Farm (Facebook) (Google Maps)

RESERVATIONS: $250 (per person)

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For signed copies of books by Tom Collins, go to TomCollinsAuthor.com. Unsigned print and eBook editions are available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and other online bookstores. Audio versions of The Claret Murders and  Diversion are available from iTunes, Audibles and Amazon. eBook editions are also available through Apple iTunes’ iBook’s Store and Smashwords.com. Published by I-65 North, Inc.

Getting a New Shoulder

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My social media presence has been close to nothing for several weeks.  Since my fall on May 10th of this year (good ole 2019), I’ve been unusually busy with doctors and physical therapists.  And to be blunt, it hurts like hell to push a mouse or depress keyboard keys. And, my absence from the scene will continue for a while longer.

On August 8th, surgeons are going to give me a new shoulder—the old one having been destroyed in the fall. You can read more about my dive to the pavement by going to my post:
It Happens in a Flash.

I tore all the tendons in the group of muscles commonly known as the rotator cuff except for the smallest one, the teres minor. The rotator cuff is actually a group of muscles and tendons that surround the shoulder in order to keep the humerus (the ball of the humerus) centered while performing shoulder-related tasks such as lifting the arm.  With the rotator cuff gone, the instability causes severe pain and loss of function.

My operation is called a “reverse shoulder replacement.” Because there are no rotator cuff muscles and tendons to keep the head of the humerus in its cup, surgeons change the anatomy of the shoulder reversing the locations of the ball and cup and the deltoid muscles become the main functioning muscle group for the shoulder.

I understand recovery is painful and that it takes three to six months to gain something close to normal range of motion and functionality. However, it is hard to imagine that it is more painful than my current status. Driving is out for six weeks, and I don’t think I’ll be doing much posting.  Wish me luck.

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For signed copies of books by Tom Collins, go to TomCollinsAuthor.com. Unsigned print and eBook editions are available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and other online bookstores. Audio versions of The Claret Murders and  Diversion are available from iTunes, Audibles and Amazon. eBook editions are also available through Apple iTunes’ iBook’s Store and Smashwords.com. 
Published by I-65 North, Inc.