I've been feeling down for several days now. My husband Philip K. Dick was born on December 16, so it's a sort of anniversary. March 2 is even worse, since that was the date of his death. And then there is November 17, the date when his house was ransacked. The perpetrators were never identified.
The coming days will be better, with Christmas and the New Year.
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I need a little help to set up my kitchen for doing some cooking videos, so I set up my wish list on Amazon. This will also help me to expand my cookbook with new recipes. You can help at the link below:
https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/P4DB4GP6BBY9?ref_=wl_share
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Also please check out my cookbook on Amazon:
Dragon Story Part Three
Read Part One Here:
https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/8871039884109084733/1274271512222280435
Read Part Two Here:
https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/8871039884109084733/8101879342737499530
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Henry politely said, “Good morning,” and turned to begin the long trek home with the maple tree slung across his back.
“Halt. Worm!” the knight shouted.
Turning his head from side to side, he saw no worms on the ground. He asked, “Where?” thinking that it might be a nice little snack for his wife.
“You! You are the worm! Stand and meet your destiny.”
“I’ve never seen a destiny before. What is it?”
“Your destiny,” the knight informed him, “is to become a trophy on the wall of my castle.
“Why would I want to hang on a wall? And why would you want me to do that?”
“Well, you are a sort of a sorry-looking dragon. And your jacket is torn. But I’ve been searching high and low for a dragon for weeks on end, and you are the first and only dragon I have come across. It seems there are no other dragons to be found, so you will have to do.”
“I know of another dragon, one that would suit you much better.” Henry thought that this might solve his domestic problem without the hassle of a divorce. Surely the knight would frighten his wife, and she would run away, never to be seen again. Maybe she would even meet her destiny and hang on this knight’s castle wall. He wished he knew what a destiny was.
Henry stumbled here and there while leading the knight along the field toward his house. He stopped occasionally to adjust the maple tree when it ruffled his scales and made his back itch. Neither of them spoke along the way, but from time to time Henry let out a puff of smoke and the horse snorted at the smell of it. When the house came into sight, the knight spurred his horse and left Henry behind. The dust kicked up by the horse’s hoovers made him cough and sneeze.
As the knight approached the house, Mabel opened the door and came out to meet him. Henry sat on his haunches and watched the spectacle, for a thing to see it was. Mable shouted, “Who are you, little man? Did my lazy, good-for-nothing husband bring me a canned man for my breakfast?” Her inner fire rose from her gaping mouth, and the horse slid to a stop. The knight uttered a curse that will not be repeated, while the horse swung around and carried him back across the field at full tilt.
Henry sighed, picked up the maple tree and shuffled home.
“It’s about time you got home,” Mabel told him. “I’ve already been to the farmer’s market and traded a sheep’s fleece for a feast of eggs, potatoes and ham. Your breakfast is cold now, but you can heat it up yourself.”
Henry sighed, hoping that his weak inner fire would be up to the task of heating his food.
“Is that a maple tree?” she asked. “What a lovely gift! It will be for dessert after supper.” She smiled at her husband. Looking at him a bit more closely, she said, “Your jacket is torn. Pull it off, and I’ll mend it for you.”
Henry, for his part, decided that a divorce would not be necessary, since he would have a full belly, a mended jacket and a happy wife.
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If you feel inclined to support my work, you can send a buck or two by Paypal:
https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/TessaDick7
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Read Part One Here:
https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/8871039884109084733/1274271512222280435
Read Part Two Here:
https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/8871039884109084733/8101879342737499530
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Dragon Story Part Two
NOTE: You can read Part One at
http://pkdmemoir.blogspot.com/2023/03/dragon-story-part-one.html
Henry Draco wondered who was riding a horse into the woods so early in the morning. Surely most humans would be sound asleep, unless they were out working in the fields. In either case, they would not be riding horses. Could it possibly be a knight? Or could it be a stray horse that somehow gotten out of the barn or the paddock? Well, whoever or whatever it was, it was no concern of his. Huffing and puffing, he passed between the trees and stopped from time to time to sniff the air in search of the sweet scent of maple sap.
At last he found one, a young maple with a trunk six inches across, mature enough to contain plenty of sap, but young enough to easily pull out of the ground and not too heavy to carry home. With a great grunt of effort, he pulled the trunk one way and the other, twisted it and pushed on it, until he heard the wonderful sound of the roots letting go of the dirt. He had just slung the maple tree over his back when the clopping of horse hooves began to sound faster and louder than before.
He wondered what Mabel would say when he presented her with his gift. He never knew how she would react, whether she might be angry or pleased. Well, in any case, he had done his duty and found something to eat. Now to trace his steps back and get out of the woods. He simply could not remember the way he had come. Turning this way and that, he searched for any familiar landmark, but he had to conclude that he was lost. Not one to give up easily, Henry decided to pick a direction and walk until he got somewhere. Perhaps he ought to head toward the sound of the clopping horse. Yes, he said to himself, that horse would not be in the woods. Horses liked to run, and it was much too difficult to run among all these trees.
His plan worked out well enough, for when he emerged from the woods he saw the horse running toward him, with a knight astride. “Halt!” the knight shouted. He held a lance upright, pointed toward the sky, so Henry did not feel threatened. Well, he was a little nervous.
“Dragon,” the knight addressed him, “what happened to your jacket?”
Puzzled, Henry looked down at his jacket and inspected the sleeves. Sure enough, the sleeve that had caught on a cedar branch was torn and dirty. “Just a little scuffle with a pesky knight,” he said, hoping that this would inspire some respect from his adversary. Knights, after all, had a habit of slaying dragons. Henry Draco had no desire to die this morning, least of all to die with an empty belly, and the knight seemed serious about getting a trophy.
“I’ve been looking for such a challenge,” the knight told him, “but frankly you are not a very presentable trophy. In fact, your scales are dull, chipped and cracked. Perhaps you can lead me to a more acceptable specimen, and then I won’t have to settle for your head on my wall.”
Henry considered this offer, but the only other dragons who knew lived miles away. Then he thought again. Perhaps this would help him to escape death and become a bachelor again. “I know,” he said, “a most beautiful dragon who live just over that rise.” He pointed in the direction of his house, where Mabel was probably fussing and fuming because they had no food in their larder. “Follow me!” he shouted as he took off at a comfortable lope, the maple tree bouncing on his back and dragging on the ground. It was a tall tree, several feet longer than his back, so it slowed his pace as he traveled toward home.
Read part three here:
http://pkdmemoir.blogspot.com/2023/07/dragon-story-part-three.html
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This little fantasy presents an ordinary dragon who suffers under the domination of a nagging wife. This is only the first part of the story. Stay tuned for part two, coming soon.
Dragon story, part one
We've been snowed in for ten days in beautiful downtown Crestline. I have major cabin fever, but I'm okay. I have heat, light and plenty of food. Also good friends and neighbors.
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