Rick DeStefanis

Rick’s Blog

  • What Writers Do When They’re Bored

    I took some time off from working on my next novel to get photos of the critters that have been hanging around the neighborhood this summer. It all began a few weeks ago when my wife and I spotted a litter of Fox kits in a neighbor’s yard. It was after dark and they were standing well off the road when the headlights caught them. A few days later, I was down at the road getting the mail when Blondie, my male Labrador, ran three baby coons up a tree. Then still later my neighbor, Tish Pierce called and said the coons were in her cherry tree having lunch. I figured it was time to break out the camera. So, these are some pics of the coons.

    uh oh

    Smile, he’s taking our picture.

     

    Baby Coons

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Meanwhile……………………

     

     

    A couple nights ago my wife and I heard a strange sound just outside our bedroom window. It was around midnight and I thought perhaps something had caught a rabbit. Grabbing a flashlight, I went to check things out, figuring it was one of our cats that had caught something. When I rounded the corner of the house, the three, now much larger, fox kits had a neighbor’s cat surrounded. They scattered and the cat bolted across the yard and under a wood fence. End of that, I figured. Wrong!

    I got back in bed only to hear a cat squalling under the same window twenty minutes later. Grabbing the flashlight, I again head out. This time I rounded the corner to find one of the foxes has returned and had our yellow tomcat “Tater Tot” backed against the wall of the house. The lone fox ran away and Tot all but jumped into my arms. I tossed him into the laundry room for the night and finally got some sleep.

    The photo below of one of the young foxes a day later. He was resting at the edge of the woods in the neighbor’s backyard.

    Young Fox in the Backyard

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    You may also enjoy: GoldFinch Sunflower Seed Heist and Road Rage Recipe

  • Road Rage Recipe

    Road Rage Recipe

    Why?

    Why do you drive up an entrance ramp to an interstate highway with a posted speed limit of 70 MPH driving 35 MPH?

    Why do you brake and slow to 35 MPH on an interstate highway several hundred yards prior to entering the quarter-mile long exit ramp?

    Why do you sit and stare at a traffic signal that has just gone green for 5 seconds or more before going when there is no cross-traffic?

    Why if you are texting at a traffic signal that goes green and I have to honk to get you to wake up and move, do you give me the finger?

    Why are you freaking texting and driving?

    Why, after sitting at a green traffic signal for 5-10 seconds do you floor it and speed to the next signal only to do the same damned thing?

    Why do you ride on my bumper for miles and when you finally decide to go around give me the evil eye?

    I am the last car in a long line of traffic in the left-hand lane—Why is it you can’t get behind me, but choose instead to come up the right-lane, edge over, and force your way in front of me?

    Why do you run down a quarter-mile long line of backed-up traffic in the right-hand and get road rage when I refuse to let you over?

    Why do you drive 15 to 20 miles per hour below the speed limit in the left-hand lane, spot a yellow traffic signal and accelerate, running it on red and leaving me sitting at the light?

    Why do you drive along 5-10 MPH below the speed limit, but when I try to pass, you accelerate until we are both going sixty-five in a forty-five?

    Why when I make my left-hand turn and proceed and you have a yield sign do you slam on your brakes and go road rage?

    Why do you drive through grocery store/shopping center parking lots at 30 MPH and honk your horn in rage when some hapless sap is trying to back out of a parking spot?

    Why, dumb-ass white boy, do you think I want to hear your stupid glass-pack mega-phone tailpipes sputtering down the road?

    Why, dumb-ass hood-rat, do you think I want to hear your filthy bass rap lyrics booming everywhere you go?

    Okay. I know how most of you are feeling right now. Chill. IT AIN’T WORTH IT! YCFS: You Can’t Fix Stupid. Most of these idiots would fail a sobriety test stone sober. They don’t get it. Grit your teeth. Drink a glass of your favorite beverage when you get home i.e. beer, wine, bourbon….and pray they don’t ever legalize the mounting of .30 cals or rocket launchers on our front fenders. We’ll all have adjoining cells at the funny farm and these idiots will still meekly inherit the earth.

    “I don’t care what you say. That there’s funny.”  –Larry the Cable Guy

    FYI: The next novel: Rawlins, has been pushed back to late summer or fall. Sweet Thang decided we had to remodel, the garden needed weeding, the car died and had to be replaced, the kids came into town with the new baby…..I could go on. My last best Beta-Reader is looking at it now, then it’s off to the editors.

    You may also enjoy: Bear Sighting: Desoto County and Part Two: Wyoming and Montana Road Trip

  • How About a Western?

    Rawlins: An update on the latest work in Progress

    Rawlins is the tentative title for the novel I am now writing. I don’t want to give away too much, but here’s a brief outline: The story begins in West Tennessee during the last full year of the American Civil War and eventually leads westward to the Oregon Trail. The protagonist, Virgil Rawlins, is a seventeen-year-old boy who finds himself un-expectantly slapped in the face with the reality of war, death, and loss. With an animus-driven by the deaths of friends and family, he seeks those responsible. The question becomes: Does Rawlins follow in the footsteps of other infamous outlaws of the time (James, Younger, etc.), or will he survive his quest without appearing on a wanted poster? To tell his story with historical accuracy is requiring quite a bit of research. My hope is that it may lead to a series, but that’s tentative. And, as always, yes, it’s also a love story.
    I still owe my ‘Vietnam War Series’ readers another book, which I will begin writing later in the summer. In related news:

    The new hardcover edition of Valley of the Purple Hearts with BIB Award.

    A hardcover edition of the latest novel, Valley of The Purple Hearts, is now published. Special thanks to interior designer Carol Carlson who did a great job. The hardcover edition of this “Best Indie Book” award winner for literary fiction is now available on Amazon.com. If you wish to receive a signed copy, contact me directly with your name and mailing address. The book retails for $38.95 plus postage. I will sign, package and mail a copy to you for $42.00. Be sure to include the name of the person for whom you want the book signed (exactly as you want it to appear). Since packaging and mailing books isn’t something I want to do long-term, I will limit this offer to the months of March and April 2018.
    Meanwhile, back at the ranch: The February monsoon ended here in North Mississippi. That wasn’t necessarily because it stopped raining but rather the month ended. I think we had somewhere around twelve to fourteen inches of rain in February. Knowing it could have been much worse with things like tornados, snow, etc. you will hear no complaints from me. However, a little sunshine for a while would be nice.

    As always, putting your written reviews of my books on Amazon makes me very happy, as does seeing your comments here on the site. Best wishes to all.

    Rick

    You may also enjoy: Valley of the Purple Hearts and Book One of My Southern Fiction Series: Tallahatchie