Happy Holidays!

I did NOT realize it had been almost two months since my last post, so I apologize if you're counting on me for regular updates!

The last post was from Texas, so I'll give just a quick recap since then: November was fairly busy with seven presentations ranging from the Atkinson (Nebr.) Public Library, the local chapter of the Archaeological Institute of America at the Joslyn Art Museum, the Saunders County (Nebr.) Historical Museum and the Bennett Martin Public Library in Lincoln. The last was particularly good for me as I was presenting for the Ames Reading Series there, with the talk recorded for local cable.

I also tried a new venue for book sales that has worked out fairly well - gun shows! I had seen billboards for the Fremont Gun Show and, knowing it was well established and probably had a lot of historical gun collectors of the fort period, I gave the organizers a call and rented a table. It worked out better than I hoped! Sales were very good and met some people who had great information for me on other projects. I tried the O'Neill show a couple weeks later - sales were also decent there, but my table was set up in a very awkward location for people to get to, and I was also confronted by my first heckler!

This guy came up to my table and immediately challenged me on what I knew about the "tunnels of Fort Robinson." He didn't want to say any more than that, but finally let on that he was talking about tunnels that the soldiers had at the fort to get to the brothels in town. "I was going to buy the book until I found out you didn't have anything about the tunnels!" he said. I let him know it was a travel guide rather than a recount of purient fort activities, but he decided to spend another 10 minutes with me to cover things I didn't know. I finally shut him up by letting him know he was mispronouncing Fort "Harstuff" (it's Hartsuff), but what an ordeal! I did have to check Tom Buecker's books on Fort Rob when I got home - nothing about tunnels in either, so the guy may well have been COMPLETELY full of it.

Only one talk in December and that was last night for the Spring Lake Neighborhood Association in South Omaha. Nice sized group - they had me stay for their holiday potluck and Councilman Gary Gernandt was also in attendance!

To close this report out, I want to wish ALL of you a very Merry Christmas and best wishes for a happy and prosperous New Year. Oh, and GO HUSKERS!