Articles written by Jim Bessey - Page 5

What is Helium

About me - Jim Bessey

Helium is home, plain and simple. I've lived here now for more than two years, and cannot imagine a day without Helium. Over the months I've met a large and diverse group of talented writers. I'm proud to call many of them friends, and all them peers.

As a

+ more bio information

RSS Feed

Creative Writing > Short Stories Short stories: Inspired by the song Don't Take the Girl, by Tim McGraw: 1 of 1
Dark room, flickering candles, hard floor under my knees. Im shaking, sobbing. "God, take me instead. Rip the heart right out of my chest. Please, God" Darkness surrounds me, and I see every moment of these past fifteen years.* * *Gray dawn light, on green wet grass, and Daddy's smiling that goofy "we're goin' fishin' boy" sm... More..
Arts & Humanities > Writing & Rating at Helium A guide to Helium's Home & Garden channel: 1 of 1
Writing for Helium's Home & Garden channel adheres to the same principles you will follow for many of our other channels, with one important difference: you may find yourself offering "how-to" advice to our readers. When you do offer advice for working with power tools and construction equipment, please include some safet... More..
Autos > Driving & Safety Driver safety: Hand gestures between motorists: 1 of 1

Drivers love to talk to each other on the road. They do it silently, with their hands. Unfortunately, most of these car-to-car discussions are unfriendly. Why, for instance, do we have no universal signal for "I'm sorry"?We've all seen the "one-finger salute." Many of us have returned the gesture by reflex, often because we l... More..
Arts & Humanities > Horror, Mystery & Suspense Book reviews: Nothing to Lose, by Lee Child: 1 of 1
"Nothing to Lose" - a bit of a stretch for Jack Reacher? Novelist Lee Child once said that he named series hero Jack Reacher after the guy in the supermarket who can stretch to retrieve items from high shelves for short women. Apparently an elderly woman once asked Child if he was the store's "reacher." With "Nothing to Lose... More..
Home & Garden > Home Repair (Other) Ceramic tile: Tips for choosing the right size for your project: 1 of 1
What's more fun than doing a tile job? - choosing the tile!Shopping at tile stores is a sensory experience. So many shapes, sizes, textures, patterns and colors to choose from; it's enough to make you dizzy. At first it's easy:"Love that! Love those! No way I'd use them!" But then comes, "- oh, I like those, too. These would ... More..
Arts & Humanities > Horror, Mystery & Suspense Suspense book reviews: Your Heart Belongs to Me, by Dean Koontz: 1 of 1
"Your Heart Belongs to Me," released late in 2008, adds yet another supernatural tale to Dean Koontz's impressive bookshelf. "Heart" makes it FIFTY bestsellers for this popular, prolific author. Long-term fans know that Koontz varies his stories from terrifying to inspirational. This one falls somewhere between the extremes. ... More..
Sports & Recreation > Camping Great games to play while camping: Croquet: 1 of 1
Croquet is a wonderful camping game.Some campers like to find remote mountain streams filled with trout. Since we have teenagers to entertain, we prefer busy camping resorts filled with people. We love to play games to pass the time and avoid the dreaded cries of "I'm bored." One of the best group games we always enjoy at the... More..
Arts & Humanities > Horror, Mystery & Suspense Book reviews: Mary, Mary by James Patterson: 1 of 1
Sixteen years ago, James Patterson's readers first met D.C. detective and psychologist Dr. Alex Cross. We've laughed, loved, cried and bled with this amazing man through fourteen (fifteen, soon) engrossing novels. For those of us who follow Dr. Cross, he is family.Patterson's "Mary, Mary is installment eleven in this vivid se... More..
Sports & Recreation > Camping Great games to play while camping: Connect Four: 1 of 1
Taking the kids on a camping excursion means you have to keep them entertained or suffer the consequences. Over the years we've found a few games ideally suited to the rigors of the campground. One of our favorites is Connect Four, from Milton Bradley [retail price, $19.99]. Connect Four is billed as "the vertical four-in-a-r... More..
Arts & Humanities > Horror, Mystery & Suspense Book reviews: Bones, by Jonathan Kellerman: 1 of 1
"Bones," by Jonathan Kellerman, is the 23rd novel in the Alex Delaware series.On a murky night, a shy and lovely piano teacher's body is dropped on an isolated marsh-bank in the heart of LA. An obnoxious prep-school flunky serving community-service parole takes the call: "East side of the marsh. Look, and you'll find it." He ... More..