Happy Family Poses For Picture–Hey! Where’s The Cow?

Support your independent thinker this weekend by purchasing my book!

If doing life right were easy we’d have short novels and no war. In honor of imperfect relationships and challenging living conditions I’m having a $.99 Kindle eBook sale on The House on Tenafly Road this upcoming weekend Feb 15-16 (the day after Valentine’s Day makes you begin to wish you had a morphine-addicted spouse–or maybe  realize, damn, you have it good).

So gather up your pennies (c’mon it won’t break the bank) and buy the book. Tell your friends, too–you know, the ones who like really falling in love with screwed up characters who redeem themselves. Or the ones who like page-turners with military heroes. Or the ones who like big books with maps. Love, death, maps and redemption–who could ask for anything more?

Pensive Chicken

TAN

TAN, BROWNISH, DRAB, KHAKI

BISCUIT, BRONZE, BROWN, BUFF

CREAM, ECRU, GOLD, NATURAL

SADDLE, SAND, SUNTAN, UMBER and TAWNY

 

Real Man With A Dream And A Plan

Marcus Miller and family in shack that he built himself. Spencer, Iowa. This is half the house. Miller is a hired hand who has managed to save enough to make a part payment on seven and a half acres of land. However, he is most anxious to get steady work or to operate a farm. 1944

courtesy of Library of Congress

Life Comes Into Focus Only Briefly. Don’t Miss It!

Dog Love

So last year the little red baby fox that we thought was so cute brought his family to eat our chickens. The death and destruction wasn’t cute, but the fox, peeking his head over our compost heap, panting excitedly for bloody chicken still was kind of adorable. What to do? Someone mean in the family suggested a gun but that wouldn’t be a fair fight and I’ve often heard that new foxes take the place of the old. You probably know where this is going, right? I found a dog on craigslist. Not just any dog but a Maremma. What’s a Maremma, you ask? It’s basically a big white dog who loves his own people, but is a bit iffy with others (especially vets who are afraid of them). Nala (Beloved in Swahili) was supposed to be an outside dog . . . but after she chased off the foxes my husband said her job was done and her reward was sleeping in our bed. This is becoming a pattern. My  husband tells the rest of us that every animal must have a purpose and then he brings home a useless retired dairy goat who winked at him or something. Now we have Nala and her fur on the couch, but I will say that I think it’s a great thing to have a softy of a husband.