Tara and I just got back from a long weekend in Atlanta. It was nice to see the town. I'd passed through before but never stopped to look. The first touristy thing we did after finding our hotel -- the downtown Cour ... read more
We had a great visit with our little girl this morning. There were no observers. That happens this afternoon. Vika mentioned we should think about showing more affection in front of the observers. It's more in line with how Russians tre ... read more
Here's my goodbye letter to Zazzle. Yes, it's awfully bitter and conspiracy theory-ish, but I was upset. :) Your new policy sucks, big time. And when I tried to create something new before the deadline after which they start charging ... read more
Ah, yes, the good ol' Nigerian prince (with a Hungarian email address, for some reason) scam, just looking for somewhere to park my money! First of all, their numbering system is messed up. File number 180 out of 86? Anyway... ... read more
I just thought I'd mention that Elizabeth is settling into her new life pretty well. Tara is her full-time parent, I just appear after work and on weekends. :) Even then, it's Tara who does most of the work. Elizabeth's biggest hurdle so ... read more
Clay and his adopted daughter Jenna look forward to their upcoming "homeland tour" to Russia. His intentions are pure. Hers, not so much. When she goes missing, he goes looking, only to find she is not the innocent little girl he thought she was. Not even close. His only hope is to get her on the Last Train Out.
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Zenya was just two-and-a-half when two very strange people came to visit her orphanage. They talked funny, she thought, as if almost able to speak properly, but with such horrible accents it was difficult to understand them. She assumed they were stupid. Gloopy, in Russian. They were there to see her, though – just her! – so she let it go.
She was devastated when they stopped coming after one week. It was not fair! They had been coming every day, and she had bows in her hair and wore a pretty dress eve... Give your own review HERE! Blurbs, links and more at William Arthur Holmes dot com.
Politicians are more likely than people in the general population to be sociopaths. I think you would find no expert in the field of sociopathy/psychopathy/antisocial personality disorder who would dispute that a small minority of human b ... read more
The problem with the world is that intelligent people are full of doubts, while the stupid ones are full of confidence. The difference between a democracy and a dictatorship is that in a democracy you vote first and take orders later in ... read more
I visited a struggling family member today. He still has trouble walking. Has to hold onto things as he goes. Trouble seeing, too. You never know what he can see or not see in front of him. At least he was much less scary/out-of-it tod ... read more
We'll be spending the night in Moscow, after all, and flying down to Astrakhan tomorrow afternoon. I was stressed out without an internet or even a usable power connection. But I'm obviously connected now. I had the power converters, but ... read more
I like a headline that demands attention!It's official, I'm a parent. Elizabeth had her first bowel movement since we've had her, and it was on my watch! Tara was unable to put Elizabeth down for a nap while I was out walking around town l ... read more
Time flies when you lose nine hours. We fly to Astrakhan this afternoon. This morning, we'll be having the free breakfast that the hotel offers. Then we'll exchange our dollars for rubles (before the dollar devalues even more). I could' ... read more
We fly out today. It would've been nice to have gotten one last good night's sleep, but the cat made sure that didn't happen. Stupid cat. Anyone want one? Seriously. She's very pretty and sweet when she's not keeping you from sleeping. ... read more
We just got back from today's first visit with the child (we're not supposed to mention her name online). We'll be going back this afternoon. In the meantime, Tara's trying to catch up on her sleep. She had woken up around 5 this morning ... read more
Tara, Elizabeth and I just returned from a trip to California. We went for my nephew Thomas's wedding (to bride Heather at Lake Tahoe), but it was also a convenient excuse to let everyone on my side of the family, especially her Grandma an ... read more
On a whim, I asked Bing Co-Pilot (chatgpt) to write a blog post about Folsom. Here's the resultIf you are interested in learning more about the history of Folsom, California, you might enjoy reading this blog post. Folsom is a city in Sa ... read more
By Julia Conley The environmental law organization Earthjustice celebrated a huge victory for farmworkers and children on Thursday after the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ordered the Environmental Protection Agency to ban all food uses of a ... read more
Richard Grossman says that Occupy Wall Street activists need to go beyond greed and corruption and focus on usurpation. As in illegal seizure of power. As in the corporation has usurped illegally seized power from the people. He quo ... read more
Australian researchers have been astonished to discover a cure-all right under their noses -- a honey sold in health food shops as a natural medicine. Far from being an obscure health food with dubious healing qualities, new research has s ... read more
Turmeric, a spice which they eat loads of in India, essentially shuts down cancer switches in the body. Especially effective for breast and prostate cancer, but really all cancers. I add turmeric to at least one meal a day, as well as cay ... read more
Once in a Blue MoonVol. 8 No. 1, February 1997A lot has happened since our last newsletter, so let's just jump right in with the news... Mike and Evelyn get married Almost two years ago now (June 21, 1995, actually), Mike married his l ... read more
the NEWSLETTER Vol. 3, No. 2 February 10, 1991 It's a girl... and a boy and a girl and a boy... Chance, a dog, has given birth to seven little dogs. Three boys and four girls! Hasn't she ever heard of birth control? The puppies ... read more
The Happy Hairball(something we keep coughing up) Volume 5, Number 8 December 20, 1993 Publisher: This guy -gtgt Editor: Same guy Distributor: Brave little delivery boys and girls worldwide Address: Nashville, TN 37215 ... read more
The Holmes Family Newsletter Vol. 1, No. 10 -- Worldwide Circulation -- December 6, 1989 Newsletter sold! The Holmes Family Newsletter was involved in a hostile takeover. A group of Japanese investors have taken control of the Ne ... read more