Another Year at SherlockPeoria
By Don Hobbs

Unlike fellow SherlockPeoria columnist Brad Keefauver, who can write a high quality Sherlockian article at the drop of a suggestion, I have to plod through a barrage of ideas before I hit upon something worthy of this website and the Sherlockian world in general.
After awhile, I am usually able to come up with something. There have been a few gems among the 288 other weekly columns I have written to date. There has been some downright cop-outs along the way as well. Last week's was a prime example.  Wow, a picture off of the Internet and a caption "Compliments of the Season" - The Maniac Collector. How original.

Since this is the last article for 2007, I had thoughts of making it as memorable as possible but I got the flu on Christmas evening and my brain is not up to the task. The highlight of my week was on Christmas day. It involved opening my Christmas Cracker. A Christmas Cracker, for those who do not know, is a little tube that when pulled apart, opens with a pop and usually has a paper hat, a toy, and a riddle inside. My riddle was as follows:

Q:        What do you get if you cross a skeleton and a detective?

A:             Sherlock Bones.

For some odd reason, I never get anything Sherlockian at Christmas. I  hear the same old excuse every year - "You already have everything." My youngest daughter Megan, broke that tradition my buying me a copy of the Canon.  Even though I had a copy of the book, it was the thought that counted. She works at Border's Books so I can use her as my own built in 40% discount on new Sherlockians books or whatever else I fancy.

As the year winds down, I am making final preparations for New York City and the annual Birthday Celebration Weekend. I had a call from Ron Fish yesterday. Along with is wife Carol, they are part of the driving force behind the Gaslight Gala, the event that replaced the Baskerville Bash last year. Ron was inquiring as to any special needs I would need to show the 20 minute version of  "The Great Whimsical Sherlock Tour of Oklahoma and Texas."  Ron and Carol along with some other Sherlockian were on Long Island this summer and someone brought out a copy of the video and showed it to the unsuspecting crowd. Evidently it was such a hit, they asked to show a reduced version at the Gaslight Gala.

I decided against making New Year's Resolutions for 2008. They are always set with loftiest intentions but are usually forgotten faster than one of those French trains. Instead of making self-promises that tend to be a bit unreasonable, I will try to simply be a better person in 2008. This should not be too difficult, but only time will tell.

Happy Collecting!!