Catch Me If You Can

I recently received a 1-star review for one of my books. All the rest are 4s or 5s. I know exactly who did this. Yes, I have high-tech skills, and yes, I'm a computer hacker, but I'm confused about why this person did this. For me, doing this is stealing. It is the low of lows. Their revenge isn't a victory; it’s a revelation.

I once worked for a man who was suspicious of everyone, and he suspected employees were stealing from him. I was provided a free new car to drive as part of my job, but I had to pay for the gas. One day, I was underneath a huge printer, changing the ribbon, and Mr. Boss came into the parts department and asked the manager, "Is Sandi paying for her gas?" I came out from under the printer and took Mr. Boss aside. "Look," I told him quietly, "if I want to steal from you, I will steal the whole gas truck, not just a few gallons a week. With my computer skills, you'd never find it."

Yes, I am a hacker. I started using computers in the 70s, before most hackers' PARENTS were born! Computer science was my minor in college, and accounting was my major. As a CPA, we know where the money is buried. The IRS provides a 10% reward for turning in cheaters, but if I had ever done that, I'd be writing this from my yacht instead of my Florida home. But CPAs are not like lawyers; if the IRS asks us for information, there is no client/CPA confidence. We have to spill the beans. In fact, we have the responsibility to report fraud. Tax professionals, including Certified Public Accountants (CPAs) and tax attorneys, are obligated to report potential instances of tax evasion or fraud by their clients. He once argued with me that 3 years had passed on a questionable deduction - but in cases of fraud, the statute of limitations for assessment of tax never expires. The IRS can go back as many years as it wants to investigate and assess taxes, penalties, and interest. I let my boss know that, and now he had two things to worry about, but theft was his main focus.

Mr. Boss began weekly sessions in which I would tell him various ways I could steal from him. The gas truck theft would be easy, I explained to him. I'm the one who orders and approves the fuel tanks to be filled. I'd issue the purchase order, but then have the gas delivered to one of the parents on a soccer team I coached, who owns a gas station. I'd split it with the guy. A pretty easy way to steal $28,000-$40,000 every few weeks. But I explained to my extremely wealthy boss that there are three types of people. The first type is totally dishonest. They will steal at any opportunity. It is their true nature. But fortunately, most of these people are working the streets, running cons, or sitting in prison. The second group is totally honest. Born honest and raised honest. When they find a twenty-dollar bill, they pick it up and ask around, "Did anyone drop this?" I like to think I am in this group. It is the way my parents raised me. Plus, why would I ever risk everything I have: my CPA license, my home, my family, my freedom –  just to steal? Money has never been a motivator for me. It is only a measure of how much I'm appreciated.

The third group? That's where it gets interesting. They are honest until they're not. Something happens that makes them feel entitled. They feel underpaid or unappreciated. They rationalize. "That person owes me." That's when the trouble starts. I gave a workshop at the annual AICPA conference on employee theft, titled "Catch Me If You Can." I think it is the only CPA workshop where you can't buy a DVD of my presentation. The board was worried employees would use it to steal from their employers! I had so many ideas!

I came up with the title after reading the 1980 book Catch Me If You Can by Frank Abagnale Jr. and journalist Stan Redding. That book inspired the 2002 Spielberg film starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hanks. The book describes how Abagnale donned a pilot's uniform and copiloted a Pan Am jet, masqueraded as the supervising resident of a hospital, practiced law without a license, passed himself off as a college sociology professor, and cashed over $2.5 million in forged checks – and all before he was twenty-one. It's written in the first person and reads almost like a thriller. Fast-paced and entertaining, Abagnale recounts his various cons and escapes across multiple countries.

Here's where it gets interesting: the book is acknowledged to have been partly fictionalized, and the factual basis for the events has been challenged. Abagnale himself acknowledged issues with accuracy. He stated, "I was interviewed by the co-writer only about four times. I believe he did a great job telling the story, but he also overdramatized and exaggerated parts of it. That was his style and what the editor wanted." More damning, in 2020, journalist Alan C. Logan conducted an in-depth investigation and found documents that contradicted many of Abagnale's claims. Logan's investigation revealed that Abagnale was in Great Meadow Prison in New York between the ages of 17 and 20 (1965-1968). That was the exact time frame during which Abagnale claimed to have committed his most significant scams. So ironically, the greatest con Frank Abagnale may have pulled was convincing the world his cons were real in the first place. Today, he'd probably be a computer hacker.

I'd like to finish with a thought. Is hacking stealing?

I honed my hacking skills when I owned a technology company and received a ransomware demand. I circumvented the hacker and didn't pay the ransom. I have only used my powers for good. Remember, I was raised to be good. But finding out about this 1-star review? I'm not sure I'm at peace with this person. It feels intentional. A type of revenge against me. My best friend wants me to write a "best revenge book" because I have told her so many ways to get a pound of flesh, but maybe I should let it go.

Hey, does anyone want to release an updated "Catch Me If You Can"? The best ideas in Frank's book didn't even make it to the screen, and I have hundreds more. But today, I'm not writing screenplays - I'm creating my own animated series, so I'm going to move on, let it go –  and not let this dark person get inside my head. If you want to see one of my videos that helped me decide to "let it go," please watch my YouTube video - https://youtu.be/LPUMiMM4JE0.

Happy New Year, and more about my web series next month when you catch up with me when you can!

Joyful and Fearless

 

Can I be Fearless?

In 1992, 20th Century Fox handed director Barry Levinson a blank check. Robin Williams was at the height of his popularity, fresh off hits like "Good Morning, Vietnam," "Dead Poets Society," and the voice of the Genie in "Aladdin." The supporting cast included Joan Cusack, Michael Gambon, and Robin Wright. The film had stars, songs, a massive budget, and every ingredient that should have guaranteed a hit. 

Yet when "Toys" was released in December 1992, it opened in sixth place and limped away with just over $23 million at the box office, barely half its budget. Barry Levinson was even nominated for a Razzie Award for Worst Director. How could such a well-resourced project fail so spectacularly?

The answer lies in a perfect storm of missteps that began before cameras even rolled. Barry Levinson and his then-wife, Valerie Curtin, developed the screenplay in 1979, inspired by a newspaper article about Soviet naval intelligence studying American submarine toy models. The script itself became a victim of its own ambition. Despite twelve years of preparation, the screenplay seemed pulled in two directions. The producers kept describing it as "whimsical," while studios kept interpreting it as a dark comedy. 

Even Robin Williams seemed oddly restrained, playing it warm and cuddly when the film desperately needed his manic energy. The result was a film that critics found visually stunning, but the story was confused, and audiences simply couldn't connect with what they were watching. 

But there was one part of the movie I enjoyed: the song "Let Joy and Innocence Prevail," sung by Grace Jones.

I tell you of a girl, her husband was a soldier
Gone to war in some strange country far away
No word had come to her but the rumors of great battles fought
And dying in their thousands and the world full of fear
As the day would turn to evening she would light a pure white candle
And place it in a window bright from where it could be seen
As she placed it in the window softly without thinking
She said let this burning candle be a beacon
Let joy and innocence prevail
Let joy and innocence prevail
Believe that luck will never fail
Let joy and innocence prevail
And one night, asleep
She dreamed she saw her husband fall
In a great white cavalry charge
And waking in tears
She saw the candle burning in the window
She still had hope
And through the window
A man in the distance
But as he came closer
She saw he was a stranger
The stranger said, "I bring a message from a General
A captain has been wounded, his life hangs by a thread
He calls out your name and he wishes you to come to him
But the journey is a hard road and you may be afraid"
And she laughed and said, "No road could be too hard for I am fearless
A captain and a husband, I have gained this bright new day"
And she said with all her heart, she would fly to be beside him
And her love would heal his wounds, restore him to her
Let joy and innocence prevail
Let joy and innocence prevail
Believe that luck will never fail
Let joy and innocence prevail
Let joy and innocence prevail
Let joy and innocence prevail
Believe that luck will never fail
Let joy and innocence prevail
Let joy and innocence prevail!

"Toys" remains a fascinating cautionary tale about what happens when unlimited resources meet unclear vision. But there's another lesson in this film, one that Grace Jones captured perfectly in the film's haunting song. The film's central message, that we must choose joy and innocence over warfare and destruction, resonates today.

A decade ago, my own husband faced his own battle: triple bypass surgery, then a stroke two years later. The doctors wanted him to stay in the hospital for two weeks of physical therapy, but he wanted to come home. He complained about the noise that prevented him from sleeping, the lack of regular meals, and they hadn't started any physical therapy. I was fearless enough to sign those release and liability forms and take him home, even though he couldn't walk and I could barely get him out of the car. 

I became his personal physical therapist, watching YouTube videos and working with him all day. I put my programming projects on hold. In two days, he no longer needed the walker. In two weeks, he was walking to the mailbox. In two months, he was back at Disney, walking three miles a day. Like the woman in Grace Jones's song who said, "No road could be too hard for I am fearless," I learned that fearlessness and joy are not opposites; they are partners. You can be brave enough to defy the doctors, bold enough to bet on love and healing, while still holding tight to the joy and innocence that make life worth fighting for. "Toys" failed because it lost sight of that balance. My husband had lost the part of his brain that gave him balance and the doctors said he'd probably never walk again without a walker, but we've had a decade of travel and spending days at Disney. The walker still sits in the corner of the closet.

I'm writing the 4th book in my Kira and Henry series, War Games, while my husband is fighting his health battles again. When I write YA novels and screenplays, I use the Save the Cat! structure, and unlike Toys, I always know what my story is about and how it should be told. I become fearless and disciplined, but keep the joy of writing, because in life, in love, in the moments that truly matter, we cannot afford to lose it. It is time for me to be fearless again. And it is time to let joy and innocence prevail. 

Note: My April 2021 blog about my fearless granddaughter, Suby, tells the story of my great, great-grandmother on the Cook side of the family, who was truly fearless and went behind enemy lines to bring her captured husband home during the Civil War. 

The above picture is of my granddaughter, Tulaasi, on Mount Cook in the Ben Ohau Range of New Zealand's South Island. She and my oldest granddaughter, Chandra, fearlessly worked for years in Australia, New Zealand, and throughout Europe. My granddaughter, Vrinda, who is required to wear snake-proof boots to work as a field biologist in the Florida wilderness, is fearless. More about them in future blogs

I have been writing this monthly blog for over 6 years, every month - and I have so many stories I've yet to tell!

Happy Holidays to all of you!

Out of my Comfort Zone

The Twilight Saga is my favorite series of films and books. I discovered the books from a 12-year-old.  Almost two decades ago,  I wrote an algorithm for a dating site based on music preferences and met in the patent attorney's office in Portland to explain the logic. During a break, I noticed one of the lawyers' kids reading Twilight. He gave such an amazing pitch that I stopped by Barnes and Noble on the way home (pre-Kindle days) and bought the book. I was hooked. 

After the movies came out, we took our granddaughters up to lunch at the View Point Inn, and it was magical to be there. My love for the Pacific Northwest beaches propelled me to buy a vacation home on the Oregon coast, a few miles away from where the beach scenes were filmed.  I was on "Team Jacob" during the movie since I'm Native American and rooting for the tribe and wolves.

Over the years, I've been fascinated with wolves, especially after finding out that we are descendants of the Wolf Clan of the Cherokee tribe. I wrote a Hallmark-like romantic comedy script a few years ago, Nature's Way, set in Seattle and Port Angeles, that discusses the reintroduction of wolves into the National Parks. After doing genealogy research about my family's life before they were relocated from North Carolina to Oklahoma during the Trail of Tears, I wrote my first solo YA/MG book, Sleep Warrior, set in Cherokee, NC and the Eastern Band of the Cherokees. However, I wanted to learn more about my Oklahoma roots since my grandmother went back to the reservation close to Tulsa to die.

A few months ago, I went to Washington, D.C., to see one of my pictures that was accepted into the Smithsonian's Mirror, Mirror exhibit about the Disney Parks. While there, I visited the National Zoo and spent a lot of time with the red wolves - watching them. I decided to write a script centered around the red wolves - but in Oklahoma.  I've never written a teen light horror/fantasy script, nor one with a male lead, so I decided to write Blood Moon Wolf for my Native American Media Alliance Feature Film project this month. I had pitched 3 scripts, and this one was my last choice.  First was Kidnapped Kangaroo, which I've started this month writing as a YA book, and next was Chocolate Factory Death, based on a near panic attack I had around the loud machinery inside the Lindt chocolate factory I toured last year in Cologne, Germany.

But my cohorts liked my Blood Moon Wolf  "mini treatment" the best, so I took a deep breath and jumped into the abyss of the unknown. Teenagers as the leads? How do they talk? I reached back into the memory of helping to raise my four granddaughters and decided to name the wolf after the oldest; the leader of the pack - Chandra.  My other character, Riana a combination of Suby, Vrinda, and Tulaasi - very strong young ladies.

The one thing that made it easier was that the instructor taught us the 8-sequence method. Wow, for someone who spent a career in a highly structured world of programming and accounting, this was catnip for me. I like to say that you can eat an elephant if you start with one bite at a time...meaning that breaking down a huge project like writing a DMS system can be done by one person. I proved that right when I created DealerStar DMS fifteen years ago and sold it a few years ago. Now, I get to write full-time, and I hope to never eat an elephant because I'm a vegan and animal lover. If I write a great movie, it will be because my cohorts coaxed me out of my comfort zone, and my instructor gave me a tool to keep me sane - along with the inspiration of my four granddaughters. 

I've been doing YouTube videos - to help promote my books - and I'm working on my Amazing Animal Kingdom series. If only we had wolves! Here's the Amazing Animals playlist. Thank goodness I don't have aspirations as a filmmaker!  But I love to tell my stories!

Next will be a video about my Wild Africa Trek adventure - really out of my comfort zone!

Here's the link to my videos about Disney's Animal Kingdom

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLx_8Ja4anZU7PdLL_kyT3kkTNaz3BhCQl

Two Quarts Low of Patience

 “Grant me the serenity to accept that which cannot be changed, courage to change what I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.”  

 

This is one of my favorite pictures of my granddaughter, Chandra.  She is grown now and I admire her mindfulness. 

We are born with no patience. A baby gets tossed into this world from a warm, dark, soft, and constantly fed environment into a loud, cold, and noisy room. Doctors used to hold the baby upside down and slap its behind to stimulate it to cry and take its first breath on its own. It makes sense that we started our lives being impatient for everything we needed.  

I believe that everyone then builds up a certain amount of patience after their caring parents respond to their needs, and they trust in the universe for things to be fair. Unfortunately, it is a hard lesson to learn that things are not fair. My parents treated my brother and me differently. I remember asking why Stan could ride his bike to the store alone, and I couldn’t. My mom used the 1950s phrase, “because he is a boy.” 

Today, I feel like I’m about 2 quarts low in patience. I’m trying to figure out why and overcome it. I seek out the shortest line at the grocery store, even when I have plenty of time. Keith and I prefer Mobile Orders and Quick Service at the Disney Parks in order to get our food faster. We’re not starved; we’re merely impatient. If someone doesn’t respond to my email that day, I wonder why and start worrying. Did my email get blocked? Is the person okay? Did I say something wrong? Worry, worry, and 2 quarts of patience draining out of my system.

 My New Year’s resolution is to cure my impatience. Cure it? Well, that might be rather ambitious, but I’m going to try. Here are the things that I’m going to try;

Being in a line. At the grocery store, I’m going to use this time to give my brain a workout. I’m going to try to guess the total of items that I’m buying or look at the candy bars and see how many words I can make out of “Snickers.” When I’m in a long line for the PeopleMover at Disney Parks, I’m going to get out my iPhone and click on the Fitness App and do my Breathing, which I often forget to do for one minute.  

No response to letters and emails. I’m going to ask myself if I need a response to enjoy the day. If I sent a gift, Do I really NEED a thank you or acknowledgment? If they got the check and cashed it, then I know they are okay. If I sent an email, was a response required? If so, I’ll ask for that in the email and put a date. Otherwise, I’ll forget about it. I did my part, and I’ll forget about it.

My writing career. My last job had instant gratification. I sold a product, booked an engagement, or signed a contract – usually within hours of my proposal. This new writing career tries my patience. I will send a query and don’t hear a reply (if any) for months or years. I must remind myself that JK Rowling got rejected 12 times for the best synopsis that I’ve ever read. She is now a billionaire. I don’t need to be a billionaire, and I’m not as talented as she is. I’m analyzing my need to write and leave a part of me in this world. I’ve already done that; my bookshelf at Amazon is full of things I’ve written, and I am proud of my two unpublished middle-grade books, and anytime I want, I can self-publish. You can read these at sandijerome.com, click on Books, then notice the links. Time for me to remember the serenity prayer, “Grant me the serenity to accept that which cannot be changed, courage to change what I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.”  Please grant me patience too!

Amazon Writer's page   Sandra Jerome 

https://www.amazon.com/Sandra-Jerome/e/B09S3RNRKL/ref=dp_byline_cont_book_2

Finding Your Own Happiness and the Japanese Diet

 

My granddaughter, Chandra was born in Hawaii. When it came time for her first birthday,  her parents didn't have a lot of money, so they gave her the gift of happiness for her birthday.  They made sure for the full day that she got whatever she wanted and didn't cry.  She got her favorite foods, picked up whenever she wanted, hugged, and lots of kisses.  After lunch, they took her for a ride in her little wagon along the road from their house in Aikahi Park to the beach where she loved to see the ducks along Aikahi Loop.

When I lived to Hawaii, I found it one of the happiest places on earth.  Our first house was on Hauoli Street in Kailua town - Hauʻoli means happy in Hawaiian. Keith recently remarked that his happiest times in Hawaii were walking with me along Lanikai Beach that was a block away.  The song, White Sandy Beach of Hawaiʻi by Israel Kamakawiwoʻole still pulls us back to those times.  Why is Hawaii a happy place? Maybe it is because so many people are there on vacation or maybe it is the spirit of Aloha.  One of the things that delighted me in Hawaii was the Asian cuisine.  I worked for Mike McKenna who was one of the first investors of Roy's Restaurants and friends with the founder, Roy Yamaguchi.  We'd eat often at the original Roy's in Hawaii Kai  where there is a tribute to Mike on the wall as you walk in.  Whenever we would dine there, Roy would come to the table wearing a McKenna Windward Ford baseball cap and prepare some special new dish for us to try.  Roy's blend of Asian and Hawaiian cuisine help me discover the  Japanese diet.  

The Japanese word for happiness is Kōfuku which means; euphoria, bliss, blessedness, satisfaction, beatitude.  The Japanese diet is a focus on satisfaction.  The Japanese Diet is the reason that Japan has some of the longest life expectancies in the world.  But what is less well known is that Japanese women have the lowest rates of obesity (only 2.9%) in modern cultures.  Naomi Moriyama writes in her book, Japanese Women Don’t Get Old or Fat that the basic elements of the Japanese approach to eating is “not a diet plan but a whole new way of falling in love with food”.  The emphasis is on small portions of fresh seasonal food.  We need to value quality over quantity and to eat slowly so as to appreciate the flavors of the food and reach a feeling of satisfaction with less food.  I like to call my plan the ELF plan - or  eat less food.  I eat whatever I want, but less of it.

The Japanese put a great deal of emphasis on visual presentation and making the food look beautiful and appealing to the eye.   I recently made a new dish called frushi that I discovered at the Epcot Flower and Garden Festival.  It is sort of a cantaloupe/pineapple sushi.

https://recipesofdisney.com/frushi/

 Here are the basic plan of what I eat;

Fish - salmon.  I prepare a nice salmon filet for our Sunday brunch and then use fresh wild canned salmon to make "tuna salad" with vegan mayo, mustard, celery, and pickles.

Vegetables - lots of kale and sweet potato that I grow organically in my yard.

Rice (preferably brown) but I also like sticky rice and risotto.  

Soy (tofu, miso soup, soy sauce) and frozen vegan Gardein products made from soy, but I try to stick to more unprocessed food.

Fruit such as apples, grapes, and watermelon.

Green tea.  It is hot in Florida, so each morning I brew 2 cups of green tea, add stevia, then pour into 6 Rubbermaid-BPA free 16 oz water bottles filled 90% with water, then put in the refrigerator to give me an all day source of water and green tea.

The diet also recommends noodles, but I haven't figure that out yet, but plan to add it later since  I know it has lots of carbs and I'm still trying to burn fat with 10 more pounds to go.  I avoid the 8 bad fats and use only olive, coconut, and avocado oil.

Dairy and bread are not part of my diet and when I do eat pork, beef and chicken they are regarded more as a special treat rather than the main focus of the meal. Fresh fruit is my preferred dessert however if a richer dessert is eaten it is in very small quantities.  I often get the latest cupcake at Disney World to sample it, but I cut it open, then eat a few bites. 

I am truly happy; probably the happiest I have been in my life.  I run/walk each day, do yoga, and strength building exercises.  I have lost 40 pounds and have 10 more to go.  I think my diet and health are a big part of this, but more importantly, I have found my own bliss.  I no longer look to others to make me happy for the day, I keep myself happy.

Visit my website for info on my books - https://www.sandijerome.com/