Master Detective vs. Criminal Mastermind? Or Not

2007-01-10T20:40:00.000-08:00

I came across a fascinating article recently, one that gave me a great idea for a short story. The author of the article theorizes that Sherlock Holmes and Professor Moriarty were not the rivals that we have always believed they are, but more on that in a moment. I began to do a little researched and discovered that although Moriarty is widely believed to be Holmes primary nemesis, he actually only appears in a handful of the Sherlock Holmes stories. I believe it is only four out of over sixty stories. The author of this article brought out some very interesting points. He argues that everything we know about Moriarty, we know only because of what Holmes has said. He also questions why in the first story that Moriarty appears in, does Holmes go on and on about the man, whom Watson has never heard of. Let's face it, Watson was never the brightest guy in the world, but if Moriarty was such a big deal to Holmes, surely he would have mentioned him before. It's not like Moriarty would have just burst onto the scene suddenly. The author advocates that the reasons for these is that, faced with no criminals worthy to face him, Holmes invented one and took on the role himself. Ergo, Sherlock Holmes and Professor Moriarty were one and the same person. I found this to be a very interesting, and indeed even plausible theory, and may at some future date, attempt to right a short story based on this premise.

Kind Words

2007-01-09T18:15:00.000-08:00

I heard an interesting song today that was an excellent reminder that we should always be ready with a kind word, even for a stranger. We have no idea what people are going through, and a kind word from someone they don't even know could make all the difference in their life. The song is called Moments and here are the words:

I was coming to the end of a long long walk
When a man crawled out of a cardboard box
Under the E. Street Bridge
Followed me on to it
I went out halfway across
With that homeless shadow tagging along
So I dug for some change
Wouldn't need it anyway
He took it lookin' just a bit ashamed
He said, You know, I haven't always been this way

I've had my moments, days in the sun
Moments I was second to none
Moments when I knew I did what I thought I couldn't do
Like that plane ride coming home from the war
That summer my son was born
And memories like a coat so warm
A cold wind can't get through
Lookin' at me now you might not know it
But I've had my moments

I stood there tryin' to find my nerve
Wondering if a single soul on Earth
Would care at all
Miss me when I'm gone
That old man just kept hanging around
Lookin' at me, lookin' down
I think he recognized
That look in my eyes
Standing with him there I felt ashamed
I said, You know, I haven't always felt this way

I've had my moments, days in the sun
Moments I was second to none
Moments when I knew I did what I thought I couldn't do
Like the day I walked away from the wine
For a woman who became my wife
And a love that, when it was right,
Could always see me through
Lookin' at me now you might not know it
But I've had my moments

I know somewhere 'round a trashcan fire tonight
That old man tells his story one more time
He says

I've had my moments, days in the sun
Moments I was second to none
Moments when I knew I did what I thought I couldn't do
Like that cool night on the E. Street Bridge
When a young man almost ended it
I was right there, wasn't scared a bit
And I helped to pull him through
Lookin' at me now you might not know it
Oh, lookin' at me now you might not know it
But I've had my moments

Rantings of a Writer

Master Detective vs. Criminal Mastermind? Or Not

Kind Words