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They say... What are the main ELEMENTS OF A STORY? Setting Character Plot Conflict Theme Point-of-view Tone Style... but I would put them in order of importance: Character, Conflict, Plot, Point-of-view, Theme, Style, Tone, ... 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

My wife and I have been celebrating our twelfth wedding anniversary this weekend. The actual day was the 22nd (so mark your calendars for next year's gifts). :) With our daughter on a sleepover at a friend's house last night, Tara and I w ... read more

The ascendancy of crowds indicates the death throes of a civilisation. Crowds are only useful for destruction. -- by Gustave Le Bon in The Psychology of Crowds ... read more

Hilariously sad. See What It's Like Living in California Now ... read more

Eleanor's back surgery was a success!Everyone warned me against back surgery, she says. But, I'd be in a wheelchair now if I hadn't had surgery! ... 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

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

Oh my gosh! She's a handful!Well, we left the orphanage without much incident. She told the orphanage staff that she wanted to leave in the car. But, she refused to let me or Bill hold her hand or touch her other than put her snowsuit and ... read more

Oh... my... God. Do not EVER lose that document they have you fill out on the plane before you land! Stapling it to your forehead would be less painful than what Galina, Liena and I went through today. Vika was tending to the other coup ... read more

This Time Next Week -- I'm happy to say that this time next week, we will ... read more

Full disclosure: This comes from a Bing Copilot answer to my question. I hate to admit it, but that thing is pretty useful. An existing loan balance can make things a bit more complex, but it's definitely doable. Here are more detailed s ... read more

Just past Jackson, Tennessee, after getting onto 412, a trucker had some fun at my expense. I had just passed him and am 99% sure I hadn't merged back in front of him too close. Drivers around here are offended easily. He then came up ... read more

... for a fraction of the cost. This is the one thing that kills our food budget, but we keep buying it because my back muscles seem to need the electrolytes to keep from spasming. At least, that's what I've convinced myself of. I've be ... read more

A Minnesota couple harnessed their Belgian draft horses to help a semi truck driver whose vehicle was stuck on an icy driveway. Read, listen or w ... read more

Read, listen or watch the rest here: here, here, and/or ... read more

The Holmes Family Newsletter Vol. 1, No. 4, August 1, 1989 Largest Tri-Weekly Newsletter Circulation in the West! tri-weekly (tri-week'lee) 1. we TRY to get it out weekly) Editor's Note: This will probably be the last issue. See article ... read more

The Leaky Faucet Vol. 3, No. 8, December 10, 1991 Steve Denise host ThanksgivingTurkey was served and everybody ate it. What else is there to say? Okay, so it was an excellent meal thanks to the efforts of Denise and those who brought s ... read more

Falling Down a Manhole (can be quite painful and should be avoided)Vol. 6, No. 2, March 1, 1994 Michael moves!Michael has moved out of his mother, Lucy's, house. It's the first time I've been ... read more

Yee-Haw The only newsletter we do!Vol. 6, No. 7, December 29, 1994Belinda Has Puppies!Another one of Lucy's dogs has gone and had a litter of pups. This time the mother is Belinda, a Rottweiler, and she gave birth to a litter ... read more

The Holmes Family Newsletter Vol. 1, No. 1, Since 1989May 25, 1989Editor's Note: This may be the only issue, so pay attention! AnnouncementsWell, the big news, of course, is Steve and Denise's engagement. The wedding is set for t ... read more

Billy Club Vol. 2, No. 3, February 8, 1990 aka Bullseye, Hard Copy, The Holmes Family Newsletter ... read more