Year: 2021

a book enjoyed etc.

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I’ll start off with a book enjoyed. Sometimes our expectations don’t line up with reality. The result of this often is disappointment but sometimes it’s not. Not was what happened this time. It was an awesome surprise.

Basically, Dupree had a defining moment when he admitted he hated everything about his life. Suicide had a certain appeal, for an instant. In the end he walked away from that thought and then just walked away from his life.

Sometimes life’s greatest mystery is finding yourself
Adam Dupree is at a literal crossroad of life. Dupree’s life has become a living hell and it’s time to make a change. Turn right and end it. Or, turn left, break free, and see where life takes him.

That one decision sends Dupree on an epic journey of rediscovery as he attempts to understand the mystery inside himself. Moving down a literal and figurative highway, his life attains meaning by defending the weak, protecting the poor and standing up for what is right in an unjust world.

As he re-discovers the thrill of being alive, Dupree becomes a hero, victim, and healer. But above all, he becomes a man with a purpose in life.

From deep Southern California, up the Great Central Valley, through Oregon and into Washington. Along the way, Dupree meets a cross-section of America. Some good, some bad, some givers and some takers.

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One aspect of this book did not sit well with me, for some reason that is not easy to define. It had to do with the way he walked away. Not that he shouldn’t have. I can totally see why he did but there was something immature and maybe a little off about the way it played out. That uncomfortable impression showed up a number of times throughout the story.

The things I liked, though, far outweighed the uncomfortable bits. In many ways he was reborn and the people he met along the way and his responses to them brought about the changes.

This time, I was probably more aware of the writing (as opposed to being lost in the story) and I consciously had an appreciation for the scenarios the author dreamed up.

It wasn’t all sweetness and light but despite that a lot of cool things happened..

I think this is a book I will not soon forget.

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On the this-and-that theme.

After a very structured and productive work week, today was a bit of a shock. Productive is not a word I could use for it. Disjointed comes to mind and feels pretty honest. Oh well, I can’t expect to win every day.

At least it wasn’t a total loss. There were some fruitful conversations. I managed to get to the store for weed killer while shopping was still an option. My brother called for a catch-up chat. A good day all in all, just not what I hoped for.

I think I’m done, there will be some exterior painting done in a week or two and tomorrow we will try out the paint test patches to see if the colors work as well as we hoped. It’s 1:00 AM and my mind is mush so I’d better quit.

Maybe tomorrow we will have some books. Hopefully.

I’ll let you know.

Free and Bargain books May 27, 2021

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An interesting bargain collection showed while I was browsing and it looks like it will be a good introduction to authors new to me. The publish date is October, it’s a low price with 15 stories, Mystery and Suspense. $0.99 until October 12th. Enticing.

Dangerous Pursuits: 15 Stories From Today’s Most Popular Mystery and Suspense Authors

The chill of fall brings with it a hint of peril in Dangerous Pursuits, a clean and Christian suspense anthology featuring some of today’s most popular female authors.

Start your fall off right with 15 gripping tales of Clean and Christian suspense from today’s most popular ladies of mystery and suspense.

Join Mary Alford, Lisa Harris, Therese Heckenkamp, Cynthia Hickey, Gina Holder, Ronie Kendig, Dana R Lynn, Shirlee McCoy, Dana Mentink, J. Carol Nemeth, Cara Putman, Sharee Stover, Terri Reed, Alana Terry, Lenora Worth on a dangerous journey filled with mystery and suspense that will keep you turning pages until the very. Last. One.

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I found a previously experienced author with a FREE novella. This doesn’t look much like my previous reads for this author. The way I look at things, that’s always a good thing.

The Warrior’s Seal (The Tox Files): A Tox Files Novella

Amazon quote:

A Special Forces team is thrust into a war with the past to save the president after an artifact unleashes a deadly toxin.

Special Forces operative Cole “Tox” Russell and his team are tasked in a search-and-rescue–the U.S. president has been kidnapped during a goodwill tour. The mission nosedives when an ancient biblical artifact and a deadly toxin wipe out villages. Tox must stop the terrorists and the toxin to save the president.

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Currently, I’m reading a four book collection and books 1 and 4 are my favorites.

Once Upon a Summer: Contemporary Retellings of Timeless Tales

Here is what it says about my favorites:

A New Beginning — Who is she? Acacia Martin raised by an impostor mom serving a prison sentence for her sins, or Jasmine Callahan abducted at birth from a family she’s yet to meet? Luckily, she has Drake to help her untangle the mess that is her life. Will he ensnare her he art in the process?

Unkissable — Reality diva Charlotte Lavigne’s on-camera meltdown reminds former teen-TV prince Jaime Reyes exactly why he left Hollywood ten years ago. A chance encounter leads to a bargain that transforms them both. When it’s time to face her past, will their rediscovered love be strong enough to build a future together?

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It has been a beautiful day today. The world looked lovely with rich greens, blue skies and awakening perennials sprouting up everywhere. So pretty.

It makes the thought of yard work seem worthwhile.

Happy Reading!

Checking in

/ For the Love of Books / 2 Comments

Hey everyone,

I’m just checking in. I planned on posting everyday but it’s been sporadic lately. My mind has been focusing on other areas and without good book suggestions I’ve been coming up empty on things to talk about. Today is looking like that kind of day too. I figured a little something, anything, would be a good idea just in case I don’t get back here later.

The usual emails have no suggestions that interest me so that’s a bust. I’m almost finished the read I mentioned last night and haven’t looked to see what’s next. It isn’t a very long book and another hour or so should finish it but no time, I’m headed to work.

I have a big day planned. We will see if it works out. Fingers crossed. Usually when I plan a deep dive that’s the signal for emails to go crazy. Maybe I can fly under the radar for a while. That would be nice.

Tomorrow will be busy too. A painting company is coming to power wash fences, deck, and stucco in preparation for painting once it all dries out. Even if I don’t have to be involved just having them here will be a distraction. It will be great to have everything freshened up. This is the first time I’ve had this work done on this house. It turns out I should have been painting the wood every few years. Oops.

We won’t even talk about the yard. With all the rain and periods of hot weather the plants and weeds have gone crazy. My excuse for not getting out there is all the rain we’ve had. The soil is like clay and sticks to my boots in big clumps, an impossible mess.

The grass has just taken off and it’s fun to watch the birds in the back yard hunting for bugs. It’s like they are walking through shoulder high fields. The little birds are almost lost from sight in it. The guys are coming to mow today. I wonder if the birds will be sad.

If anything interesting shows up I’ll be sure to share it later.

Just to add a little color to the day, here is my current read.

It’s near the end, she’s figured out who killer is and she’s in his clutches. Will the authorities (her friends) find her in time? Of course they will, you don’t kill off the main character. Knowing that, the suspense is still great.

Have a good day, and Happy Reading!

Free and bargain books May 25, 2021

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Finally I have a moment, and a few things to share.

BookRunes has a FREE suggestion for us that is intriguing. I know I use that word a lot but in this case it is probably truer than usual. I’ve only read the first chapter and the synopsis and I want to see where this story is going.

The Morning Light: never passes us

Amazon quote:

Poetic, engaging and original, The Morning Light is a charming story of discovering the ancient and shared voice within each of us.
A violin maker’s story of music, craftsmanship and the seeking of serenity set against homelessness, twists of fate and a never ending desire to reproduce the sweet and soulful sound of a grandfather’s violin, fine-tuned to play with a resonance that connects the heart.

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BookBub has a bargain suggestion for us. This is book 1 in a series. A year ago we were offered book 4 and I think if I remember right it was a good read.

A Match to Call Ours (Front Porch Promises Book 1) 

Amazon quote:

Brittany Gorman needs a job, but nanny to six-year-old twin girls isn’t exactly what she’s looking for. Their single father, Parker Watson, isn’t sure hiring Brittany is the right move, but he’s desperate for help.

Soon Brittany is charming the twins and their father as well. But Parker still clings to the bitterness of his past, a past that has made him a recluse on his isolated Montana ranch, distanced him from God, and kept him from finding love.

Can Brittany’s prayers and two little matchmakers soften Parker’s heart and help him find love with his perfect Montana match?

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I’m currently reading a mystery/suspense novel. I’ve only just started and I’m anxious to get back to it.

Wow. Believe it when I say you need to hurry, these great bargains don’t last long. 4 days later and it’s lost the attractive price.

It has started off with a bang and is still a good read though.

Secrets and Suspense: A Clean Romantic Suspense (The Men of Fire Beach Book 4)

There’s trouble brewing in Fire Beach!

Cara Hunter owns the bed and breakfast in town, but before she came to Fire Beach, she was in the military. Strangely, no one seems to know exactly what she did when she was in the military, but when Bubba and Makenna find her unconscious on the floor, her past may finally get revealed.

Cole Davenport is a criminal investigator whose lead suspect is Cara Hunter, but when he meets her, he has a hard time believing she’s a killer. When he gets caught up in Cara’s past, will he be able to help her? Or will he lose his life in the process?

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Actually I have two books going on right now, I needed a break.

The first book is sci-fi. It is long and has many battles with even more factions. I’m enjoying it and cheering for the good guys but need a cleansing of the palette to continue on.

No wonder it seems so long, I had forgotten it’s over 600 pages. 668 to be precise.

Patriot Star

It doesn’t get much worse than the prospect of a three-way civil war, and in a global superpower grown arrogant and complacent in its prosperity, one influential man leads the peaceful charge against corruption and tyranny, while others plot more radical solutions. Council Minister Merak Dorvallen’s allies are few, and now his youngest son Coren, a Lieutenant in the vaunted Irrianite military, is the target of government assassins. Desperate, Merak reaches out to Ohrim Sunvail, an old friend in exile who harbors potentially helpful secrets. Ohrim’s exceptionally competent and head-strong daughter Mei’ Shera accepts the assignment and thwarts the assassins, setting in accelerated motion events that will shape a drastically different future for Irrianon.

In the midst of the chaos, scientists in Irrianon have secretly cracked the code for interstellar space travel, which will shape a drastically different future for the entire planet of Toryl, especially when they find a sister planet of humans only a few years behind in technology. The winner of the Irrianite civil war will lay a solid first claim on the stars, unlocking a universe of possibilities for both progress and potential disaster.

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It’s a good time to read right now at my house. The sky is a heavy gray and the wind has been ferocious off and on most of the day and night. The perfect time to curl up with a warm blanket and a hot cup of tea.

I’ve had a productive work time over the last few days and the resulting euphoria makes reading time even sweeter.

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I hope you are enjoying it too.

Happy Reading!

Read and Enjoyed May 21, 2021

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I’ve enjoyed this first one. I wasn’t sure I would at the beginning, somehow it wasn’t easy getting started. It could have been the fault of distraction. My second attempt was much better and it was a great read.

I think my favorite thing about this story was the empowering interaction between the main characters. So much love and wisdom. Lots of tense moments too where community members at large even had her back. They recognized strangers out to get her and they didn’t give an inch, even going so far as to send them on wild goose hunts.

Hummingbird by D Stearman

She feels like a misfit. Who is she? Where does she belong?

Is she Lexa, Alexandra, or someone else? Forced to commit a crime, she flees south of the Border—and a vindictive bounty hunter follows her.

Will she escape? Find redemption? Learn who she really is and where she belongs?

Her answers lie hidden in a tiny seaside village where wandering hummingbirds rest their wings.

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Another one enjoyed. I prefer characters with depth and this story had them in spades. It’s more than a month since I read this and it is still a good memory for me.

One of the attractive things about these two books – the settings. Both of them exotic in their own way. Mexico and Ireland. Who doesn’t want to go to one or both of these places.

This one is still a bargain if you are interested.

Once Upon an Irish Summer (Once Upon a Summer).

You Can’t Embrace Your Future Until You Deal With Your Past…

Fiona Burke has long been obsessed with Ireland’s famed, sixteenth-century pirate queen, Grace O’Malley. Now that she’s on the final stretch of earning her PhD in history, all she needs to do is finish her dissertation—with Grace O’Malley as her subject—then return home to Boston to defend it. Once that’s done she can compete for a highly coveted history professor position.

Fiona arrives in western Ireland aiming to interview the locals and find additional folklore to flesh out her work. But when she encounters Grace’s distant relative—the handsome, commanding Rory O’Malley—she gets seriously distracted. Rory shares her passion for history and Ireland, and cares for his grandfather and great-uncle in a winsome way. Unfortunately he also carries wounds beyond his injured leg…wounds that threaten to dismantle every little bit of a relationship that he and Fiona begin to build.

As a famed TV host becomes intrigued with Fiona—as well as convinced she should do guest appearances on his show—Rory starts to figure out that he might be as interested in his own personal romantic future as he is in Ireland’s epic past. But can he take the steps toward the healing he needs before it’s too late? It all remains to be seen…Once Upon an Irish Summer.

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This last one was a recent purchase, it’s part of a series I love following. I think, probably because of the writing. In a way the stories have a certain sameness about them and yet I don’t tire of reading them. Well, maybe a little tiring, but not enough to keep me from going back for more.

Beckett: a clean romantic suspense novel (Lantern Beach Blackout: The New Recruits Book 3)

My current read Patriot Star is science fiction. It reminds me a little of Star Trek, both the Next Generation and Voyageur I loved those shows. I’m enjoying this book too.

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Happy Reading

on this dull but dry day (so far.)

Bargain books May 21, 2021

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BookBub has a bargain suggestion for us. A new-to-me author with a good looking story.

Implicating Claudia (Endless Mountain Series Book 2) 

Amazon quote:

Haunted by death. Hunted by a killer.

Finding herself on the wrong end of a murder investigation, Marine reservist, Claudia McIntyre retreats to an isolated farmhouse to escape the unwanted press.

But she’s caught the killer’s attention, and he has unfinished business with her.

Dawson Montgomery’s quiet life gets upended by the turmoil surrounding Claudia. She’s no longer a bratty kid neighbor. She’s a beautiful, stubborn woman who refuses to run from her demons, even when a madman sends her threatening packages.

A budding romance fills Claudia and Dawson with new hope, but the killer’s schemes threaten both their lives and their faith in the Almighty Protector.

*****This book is a romantic suspense/thriller with strong Christian themes.*****

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An interesting mystery in the suggestion strip, from a favorite author. I’ve read books 1 and 3 in this series.

Secrets and Suspense: A Clean Romantic Suspense (The Men of Fire Beach Book 4) 

Amazon quote:

There’s trouble brewing in Fire Beach!

Cara Hunter owns the bed and breakfast in town, but before she came to Fire Beach, she was in the military. Strangely, no one seems to know exactly what she did when she was in the military, but when Bubba and Makenna find her unconscious on the floor, her past may finally get revealed.

Cole Davenport is a criminal investigator whose lead suspect is Cara Hunter, but when he meets her, he has a hard time believing she’s a killer. When he gets caught up in Cara’s past, will he be able to help her? Or will he lose his life in the process?

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Currently, I’m reading and enjoying a book that is still a bargain.

Beckett: a clean romantic suspense novel (Lantern Beach Blackout: The New Recruits Book 3)

Amazon quote:

When the daughter of a federal judge is abducted, private security firm Blackout must find her.

Psychologist Samantha Reynolds doesn’t know why someone is targeting her. Even after a risky mission to save her, danger still lingers. She’s determined to use her insights into the human mind to help decode the deadly clues being left in the wake of her rescue.

Former Navy SEAL Beckett Jones needs to figure out who’s responsible for the crimes hounding Sami. He’s not sure why he’s so protective of the woman he rescued, but he’ll do anything to keep her safe—even if it means risking his heart.

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Happy Reading on a rainy Friday!

Free books May 20, 2021

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BookRunes has a FREE suggestion for us. It turns out I have read this author once but it was six years ago. Too far back to remember clearly. Looking at the blurb, I wasn’t sure how to feel about this one but then there were some interesting reviews and the price was right, so why not.

I’ve read the first chapter or two (I’ve lost track for sure, always a good sign) and I think I’m gonna like this book.

If you are like me and the synopsis doesn’t grab your attention, read the first chapter. You just might like it.

Dupree’s Rebirth (The Adam Dupree Romantic Suspense Quadrilogy Book 1)

Amazon quote:

Sometimes life’s greatest mystery is finding yourself
Adam Dupree is at a literal crossroad of life. Dupree’s life has become a living hell and it’s time to make a change. Turn right and end it. Or, turn left, break free, and see where life takes him.

That one decision sends Dupree on an epic journey of rediscovery as he attempts to understand the mystery inside himself. Moving down a literal and figurative highway, his life attains meaning by defending the weak, protecting the poor and standing up for what is right in an unjust world.

As he re-discovers the thrill of being alive, Dupree becomes a hero, victim, and healer. But above all, he becomes a man with a purpose in life.

From deep Southern California, up the Great Central Valley, through Oregon and into Washington. Along the way, Dupree meets a cross-section of America. Some good, some bad, some givers and some takers.

Part JOHN STEINBECK, part WILLIAM FAULKNER, part MARK TWAIN, but all Micheal Maxwell.

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This next FREE book was recommended on author Chautona Havig’s Facebook page.

Again, I found myself reading the first few pages to see if it would be boring. I’m going to go for it. This is an author I’ve not read before but the price is right.

Patriot Star

Amazon quote:

It doesn’t get much worse than the prospect of a three-way civil war, and in a global superpower grown arrogant and complacent in its prosperity, one influential man leads the peaceful charge against corruption and tyranny, while others plot more radical solutions. Council Minister Merak Dorvallen’s allies are few, and now his youngest son Coren, a Lieutenant in the vaunted Irrianite military, is the target of government assassins. Desperate, Merak reaches out to Ohrim Sunvail, an old friend in exile who harbors potentially helpful secrets. Ohrim’s exceptionally competent and head-strong daughter Mei’ Shera accepts the assignment and thwarts the assassins, setting in accelerated motion events that will shape a drastically different future for Irrianon.

In the midst of the chaos, scientists in Irrianon have secretly cracked the code for interstellar space travel, which will shape a drastically different future for the entire planet of Toryl, especially when they find a sister planet of humans only a few years behind in technology. The winner of the Irrianite civil war will lay a solid first claim on the stars, unlocking a universe of possibilities for both progress and potential disaster.

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Two free books is awesome, considering I thought we were done for the day.

I’m going to curl up with a cozy blanket. I’m freezing.

The weather turned cool after the blistering heat of a few days ago and my system is not loving it. The fast change from 30c to 12c is just too much to bear. Besides, it went from dry to humid as well. Thunder and lightening. Rain. The plants are loving it. The gardens are turning green over night. Too bad the weeds are outpacing the good stuff.

That’s a lament for anther day.

Happy Reading!

Bargain books May 19, 2021

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I was looking for slippers and instead, found the third book in a series I’m following. I buy books so that’s what shows up in the suggestion strips when I’m shopping, I couldn’t be happier. Slippers can wait for another day. Besides, it’s getting too warm for them anyway. Books are way more important.

Beckett: a clean romantic suspense novel (Lantern Beach Blackout: The New Recruits Book 3)

Amazon quote:

When the daughter of a federal judge is abducted, private security firm Blackout must find her.

Psychologist Samantha Reynolds doesn’t know why someone is targeting her. Even after a risky mission to save her, danger still lingers. She’s determined to use her insights into the human mind to help decode the deadly clues being left in the wake of her rescue.

Former Navy SEAL Beckett Jones needs to figure out who’s responsible for the crimes hounding Sami. He’s not sure why he’s so protective of the woman he rescued, but he’ll do anything to keep her safe—even if it means risking his heart.

As the body count rises, there’s no room for error. Beckett and Sami must both tear down the careful walls they’ve built around themselves in order to survive. If they don’t figure out who’s responsible, the madman will continue his death spree . . . and one of them might be next.

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That’s it for new books right now. I haven’t been able to see anything else I wanted.

I haven’t settled into another book yet either so don’t have a current enjoyable read to share.

I checked to see how many I’ve started and kicked to the curb, there are ten in a row. Crazy. I want to read this newest book but maybe I’d better zip through those started books and send them on their way. Clear the deck a little.

It’s too close to lights-out to think straight. Tomorrow.

It was hot and muggy this afternoon when I ventured out to take a picture of the first buds on my sapling flowering crab apple. With so many clouds hanging around the lighting wasn’t good and it didn’t turn out. Maybe if it’s sunny tomorrow I can try again. That’s if there are any blossoms left.

They promised thunder and lightening today and it’s finally here. We could use the rain, it’s been so dry, but if it rains hard…

Anyway, tomorrow.

Happy Reading y’all!

I wonder…

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Sometimes I wonder, okay, often I wonder, what is going on with all the shouting and yelling I’m hearing these days?

It reminds me of a commotion a couple of years ago.

There is a drainage area running between my house and the one behind me, it’s filled with a layer of stones and the weeds like to grow in between them. I was out there cleaning things up one day and this bird starts making a terrible racket. He (I’m assuming it was a he) was making all this noise and then he starts with the theatrics. Down on the stones he’s flipping himself around, dragging one wing and flapping the other one wildly.

I’d never seen a bird do this before and I’m thinking What in the world? I’m looking all over and I can’t see a nest anywhere in the trees or bushes around me. I’m not seeing any other birds. He’s obviously trying to protect something but I have no idea what.

The memory of that bird reminds me of the shouting and yelling I’m hearing these day and makes me wonder all the same things. What in the world is going on, what is someone protecting?

I don’t know if it is appropriate or not, but the first thing that comes to my mind when I hear the frantic commotion – two names, Bill Clinton and Jimmy Swaggart. Those boys had somethings to hide.

Yelling usually means smoke screening. A dead give away someone cares about something.

Inquiring minds jump on things like this and start looking around to see what the fuss is about.

The first place my mind goes is to a movie with lovable funny man Tim Allen where he had all these wives and ex-wives and he kept adding more. Even worse, he involved his unwilling daughter in the cover-up and deception.

It all came crashing down when he was on a Caribbean island with a friend. Tim was having a good time romancing the locals until he and his friend went parasailing. Somehow his friend fell out of his harness.

Trouble started for Tim when his family was mistakenly notified of his death. The uproar between his known wives was bad enough but when unknown wives started showing up for the funeral, well…

This week one of the books I read was a stressful story where a well known, pillar of the community family, had a deep dark secret. Lots of yelling with fists flying.

In the end the secret wasn’t that this paragon of virtue had a wild temper and was abusing his family. No, the secret was that he had a mistress and was planning to kill his present family to be with his new family. He managed to murder his wife and one daughter while the other was rescued almost too late by her guard dog.

In other books the secret has been much bigger. A Hugh Heffner wannabe with a fabulous mansion filled with mistresses, a vast organization bringing in millions, and an off-shore bank account in the trillions.

When I think about it, the possibilities behind the yelling are endless.

Sometimes, it’s not just one bird squawking, sometimes a whole flock is involved.

One day there was a huge racket in the back yard. I looked out to see what the threat was, it was a band of kittens eyeing up the birds.

All the shouting makes me wonder. Will it be the guy with the mistress or will it be the Hugh Heffner wannabe?

For sure there is a secret. Smoke screens don’t happen without reason.

I wonder… do we need to be nervous?

So, the bird I couldn’t figure out?

As I worked my way through the weeds I went to move a cute little stone and realized it was an egg. Just sitting there on the other stones. Obviously that was what had his shorts all in a knot. What a crazy place to lay your eggs.

I googled birds to see if I could find this guy and I think it was a Plover. They lay their eggs on curbs and other unlikely places on the ground. They protect their nest by making a big fuss pretending to be injured. It didn’t work on me although I did give that area a wide berth as I kept weeding. I didn’t want him having a heart attack but at the same time I can’t work in the yard on your bird schedule either, thank you very much.

They didn’t show up the next year. I guess they moved on to safer parking lots.