The violent lady from Old East Hill sitting along side some lost soles

Chip described her in perfect detail so when I did see her I would know it was her. He told me no matter the temperature outside, it could be scorching hot but she will be dressed like it is chilly. Usually a long heavy dress, a visor, sunglasses, jacket or sweater, and her press slung tightly around her chest. “Be careful as she will try to talk to you” he said. “And if she makes eye contact she quite often explodes into a rage.”

Lost Sole #361, found July 11, 2010, North Davis St in Old East Hill of Pensacola, FL

I continued to watch those shoes over the next for days, they moved from the wall to the ground, to the street, and eventually disappearing, one at a time. When there was just one left, I snapped the shot and it became Lost Sole #361. I wonder if anymore will pop up at that bus stop?

Lost Sole #346 is dedicated to Phil Harris, found in Port Charlotte, FL the day he passed. He had a colorful personality, which makes this shoe somewhat fitting, although he was not flashy, just honest and real.

Article copied from CNN online
(CNN) — Capt. Phil Harris of the Discovery Channel show “The Deadliest Catch” died Tuesday of complications from a stroke suffered late last month. He was 53.

“It is with great sadness that we say goodbye to our dad — Captain Phil Harris,” said a statement from his sons, Jake and Josh Harris. “Dad has always been a fighter and continued to be until the end.”

I will miss him on the show. I watch it religiously and find it quite fascinating. I worried about him as his health had declined over the past year or so on the show, even leaving the ship one time to get medical attention for blood clots. He didn’t seem like he was going to be around much longer, and sadly he wasn’t.

Capt. Phil Harris was in charge of the Cornelia Marie on the Discovery Channel's popular show "The Deadliest Catch. (Photo Courtesy of Discovery Channel)

His boys are still young but toughened already. I am sure they will grieve inside for some time and will never forget their pop. However I see them growing up fast from this and taking on the responsibility of running the ship that has been thrust on them with a head-on determination.

Good bye Phil, you will be missed by millions I believe. Your legacy will live on for generations.

I invite you to download all three. I just ask that if you enjoy what you see and read, please buy a book. (visit our Lost Soles Store) They make very unique gifts :) These books take a lot of work to create. They are true labors of love. I do everything in regards to their production: write, photograph, lay out the design, edit, everything except physically print them. Viovio.com does that for me.

And please feel free to send the PDFs to anyone you think might be interested in looking at it. Anything you can do to generate exposure for the project is greatly appreciated.

–Note: If you want a volume before Christmas you MUST order before December 15th!!—

Volume 1: A Journey Across America, One Shoe at a Time

Volume 2: Friends, Family and Lost Soles

Volume 3: Lost Soles Lead to Hope Found **NEW**

Pops, Nora, Aimee, Sharon and Rachie at the condo

Rachie and Donny arrived first driving from Port Charlotte, FL. They were greeted with sunny skies and beautiful waist-high surf to watch roll in from which their fourth floor master suite balcony gave the perfect vantage point. And with Donny being a surfer without a board it was almost torture for him.

A few hours later the parents and her other sister Aimee reached Pensacola, they too were greeted with nature’s beauty in the way of a dazzling sunset full of oranges, reds and purples reflecting off the water and the low clouds. I wish I had gotten a pic of it. Looking back now, I wish I had taken a lot more pics in of everything over the weekend.

It was great to see when Sharon’s parents first met their grandchild. A moment that cannot be described. The year before they were so torn up and distraught over Noah’s passing that they were overcome when they saw little Nora for the first time.

We just hung out that night and the next day we explored the beach and Fort Pickens. That evening Sharon’s mom made us incredible Maryland-style crab cakes which is her claim to fame and rightly so.

The following day was football sunday and I got the pleasure of watching my Bengals beat their Ravens over at Sidelines sports pub. The evening was spent just hanging out again after some shrimp quesadillas. After that we all got a cocktail and sat around to listen to Sharon’s pops play the guitar and sing us songs. My request was Homeward Bound, I just really like the way it sounds when he sings it.

He had not played much lately and stumbled through a few songs and forgot a few lyrics but it was great to hear him play. It reminded me of when he plays for us at their home on Deal Island, MD although it just did not have the same feel. There is just something about being at the table on their screened porch, with your hands covered in Old Bay Seasoning picking steamed crabs you caught earlier that day to the light of a citronella candle hearing pops playing his old Martin Guitar singing…”did he ever return, no he never returned, and his fate is still unknown **bullshit**…” I always have to ask myself during that song, “why didn’t she just give poor old Charlie a nickel to get off the MTA instead of sandwiches???”

The night ended with a few of us going out to the shaker and literally carrying someone home and laughing so hard while doing it that one of us peed their pants (names have been withheld to protect identities).

It makes me a little sad to think Nora may not have any siblings or cousins to have family gatherings with. Maybe she will get a little cousin or three, so when we get old and just hang around the house during vacation, she can go off and make memories with them that they can tell their children. If Sharon and I were not so old, we would love to be able to give Nora the gift of a brother or sister. It seems weird to think of that way, but when parents have kids, in essence they are gifts to those children.

I did have a brother and sister but they were much older. Fortunately I was given the gift of friends. I have never felt like I grew up alone, it feels like there was never a time when Skippy and Jason were not around.

The vacation was coming to a close but not without more drama. Hurricane Ida had formed in the gulf and was heading straight to Pensacola. She got as high as a category three in intensity before easing up. We were saved by the cool waters which, had it been a month earlier, would had fueled her to a cat 4-5 Im sure as she had great structure.

It still made for some tense moments about whether or not to end the vacation early as it was a gamble that it would weaken before landfall and we were directly on the Gulf. But with this storm not being anyone’s first rodeo we opted to ride it out. Before it came though, Donny, pops and I went to the Naval Museum for the day.

If you have never visited the museum before you must go see it. It is full of planes and exhibits detailing the trials and tribulations of war. It can be very powerful. Donny and pops are both big military history buffs, adding to it that pops served in the Vietnam War, it was a feast for their eyes. There is sooo much to see in there I knew we could not see it all in one day. So when they told us that the museum was closing around 1 we were frantic trying to see everything. We had to brush by so many cool and interesting exhibits it was killing them. We did manage to see an Imax movie, appropriately titled Storm Chasers :)

Afterwards we went to the Cubi bar located inside the museum for lunch and a couple beers. It is a place I have taken many other people but had a feeling it would be especially a treat for these two as it is a recreated replica of an Officer’s bar from the Cubi Point base in the Philippines. Come to find out pops had been on that base before, just not to the officer’s bar as he was just an enlisted soldier.

This is a photo of the San Miguel beer bottle with the old-style label, the shape of the bottle is very distinct. This beer holds a legendary status among servicemen who were stationed in the Philippines.

He went on to tell us how a day-long training trip to the Philippines lasted a week due to a typhoon that was headed their way (de-ja-vu :) He recalls it being more like a vacation at the base more than anything else. The class lasted just around an hour and a half. He remembers how that was the nicest base he had ever been to. That in the mess hall they had Filipino chefs that would cook eggs any way you wanted them and with any ingredients you specified. Every day he and his fellow soldier that he was sent with would check in at the airfield to see if they were going back yet, always a little late and hung over, and hearing the news that the flight was cancelled again.

The corporal they checked in with everyday would get on them about being late every time and they would just reply “What are you going to do to us, send us to Vietnam?” and chuckle. He was not amused by it though, and after a few days of it, told them “Do not say it, I do not want to hear it soldier Harp.”

Pops told us stories of how soldiers would find ways to smuggle San Miguel out to Vietnam. They would add another fuel tank onto a plane and fill it with cases of it. They would hide it in empty ammo boxes. I guess necessity really is the mother of all inventions.

It was a such a nice time hanging out and listening to stories. It was a highlight of the trip and one I will never forget even if I did not write it down. I look forward to having more times with pops so I can pick his brain more. I soak it up like a sponge to release to the stories from her grandpa to Nora someday. Hopefully he will be around to tell most of them straight to her.

Well the storm was still coming to us and the rain had begun to fall. We begrudgingly left the museum and headed back to the beach. The waves were now getting huge, almost crashing over the pier. We took turns going out on the pier to see the waves returning fully soaked. But it was well worth it to witness the power of the ocean up close and personal.

That night the winds did kick up quite a bit. They lashed at the condo all night with 40-50 mph intensity. I watched it as much as I could as I love a storm and rarely do I get to ride one out in style like that. It was pretty cool to watch Al Roker, Jim Cantore, and Stephanie Abrams of the Weather Channel broadcast live just a few yards from the condo. There was a big drawback to the storm which I failed to think about until it became time to take Jack and Jinjer out to go potty :) That was not fun in the driving wind and rain, but they handled it like champs, because just like us, this was not their first rodeo.

We awoke to the wind still howling and the sea just as angry. But the time had come to say goodbye to everyone. They all packed up and headed out after a tearful goodbye. It was awesome seeing how they just fell in love with little Nora. Everyone was a big help by holding her and taking care of her so we got mall breaks to relax. Rachie and Aimee got to wrap her up in the sling and walk with her, and Donny invented a new game called Sumo with her.

We all agreed we need to do this at least once a year from now on, minus the tropical storm of course. Maybe it can become a November tradition and celebrate Thanksgiving together at the condo.

Jack and Jinjer as puppies, although they do not look much different today, just a little grayer around the muzzles

What happened is we were hanging out Sat morning and looking for something to watch. As we flipped through HBO channels we came across a movie and saw Jennifer Anniston and Owen Wilson, we stopped to see what it was and realized what it was. The scene was a funny one and sucked us in. “How bad can it be” we said.

Well if you have ever seen it you will understand what I mean when I say it paralleled our lives quite a bit. And now if you have never seen it, and you have when people ruin movies for you, stop reading now.

It started with the biological clock storyline, where Owen goes out and buys a puppy for Jennifer in order to try and buy some time before having to satisfy Jen’s urge to children. We did that with Jack and Jinjer. At first I did not want them to be honest, but I surely did not want a kid yet.

I recall vividly Sharon making a phone call just to inquire about a puggle she saw an ad for online, and telling the lady our credit crd number to pay for two puggles! I also recall the panic in my phone when I said “Two? what do you mean two? Hello?! What are you doing Sharon?” and she just waved me off and it was done. We had two puggles on the way.

And although our dogs were not as much trouble as Marley was in the movie, they sure were not great. They pooped all over themselves in their crate, they chewed up many an expensive item, they demanded attention, and definitely disrupted our lives.

I remember our first Valentine’s day after getting them and not long after getting them semi-potty-trained. Sharon and I had went out for a romantic dinner. Everything went great and we were in a great mood. It had been a while since we felt safe to leave them alone for a couple of hours and just relax while dining out. I distinctly remember walking up to the motorhome without a care in the world, just totally at ease and happy. As I opened the door I saw little red and silver wrapper all over and chewed cardboard strewn about, with Jack behaving like he was on speed, and Jinjer howling away in delight over the fun she had been having. We have come to find out that if Jinjer is crazy when we walk in the door, she has most likely been tearing something up.

At first I was taken back, “What is all that.” I thought in my head. Then it all hit, first the fact that it was the box of dark chocolate truffles Sharon gave me, then the fact the dogs ate them, and then my stomach sank when my brain recalled that chocolate is deadly to dogs. Sharon’s brain must have been processing it all exactly the same because we both got the look of panic on our faces at the same time.

“What do we do?” Sharon frantically asked. Flashbacks to just a week ago when we came home to almost the same scene only involving the chemicals for our sewer system flooded my head. So we did the same thing this time as then, we called the 24 hour pet emergency hotline. They told us to get them to a vet immediately. So much for the romantic, peaceful night.

We loaded them both into the car, they seemed fine except Jack was acting strung out. Of course the only thing open late on a Sunday is the emergency vet, which always costs 4 times as much. We went in and they took them back to examine them. They said they had to pump their stomachs, which during that procedure found out only Jack had chocolate in his stomach, hopefully it had not going into his system too much as it could already be too late. But at this time Jack did not have the signs of going into cardiac arrest so they felt confident that he would be alright but they still wanted to keep him overnight.

We agreed and asked if they could keep Jinjer as well to just watch her too. Secretly we knew two things, they HATE being apart and we needed a break. They kept both and we headed home, at around 3 a.m. the vet called us. I answered in sheer terror of getting bad news. But all was alright and they said we could come get them now if we wanted or just wait until the morning. We opted for the morning, and slept in :)

There are many other stories we could tell, and have many written down. Much like Owen did in the movie for his job as a weekly columnist for a local Florida newspaper. He was a storyteller. Making everyday life’s struggles seem less painful by showing everyone that they are not the only ones experiencing them. He loved to write stories of human interest like I do. I think I want to be a columnist when I grow up.

As a couple , they too, lost a baby in the movie. And while it was just a miscarriage and not a full-term still birth, it hit us pretty hard. The emotions they expressed were so true-to-life it made me almost turn the movie off. If I could have fast forwarded it, I would have. The part where Marley seemed to know something happened and comforted Jen was of particular note.

When we came home from the hospital after losing Noah, the dogs did not greet us at the door like they ALWAYS do. Instead they both just layed on the bed with their heads down, looking so sad as if they knew. They seemed to be right next to us for some time afterward. Jack never left Sharon’s side, wherever she went he went. It was a few days later when they started to get back to normal, and seeing them be happy again helped us out of a funk sometimes. Having them to take care of was a reason for Sharon to keep going, and I think got her through the tough times more than we realize.

Jen and Owen went on to have a healthy baby and some of the arguments they had stemming from lack of sleep and loss of patience were also very real. They made me feel better. Like maybe we are not the only ones having these issues. Raising a child is not easy, and this is where marriages expose their strengths and weaknesses. I can see where if a relationship is already weak it will break, and if a relationship is strong, it will just grow stronger through it. I like to think Sharon and I are the latter.

Now from there the Owen and Jen’s lives are progressed further than where ours are now and most likely take a different path. They go on to have 3 children and move up North. Now where their future is like ours is that they eventually lose Marley. Owen has to go through the pain of putting him to sleep as he holds him. This about tore us up! Earlier in the movie I had hit pause for a little while so we had the ability to fast forward. I just could not bear to see it and think of the day we will lose our Jack and Jinny. It is a reality I know will happen but I just put it out of my mind, it is wayyy too painful, and hopefully over 10 years away.

We have experienced so many wonderful things with Jack and Jinjer and they have enriched our lives more than we will ever know. They gave us the ability to have patience and understanding, they prepared us to have a child through all the crap they have done.

Some people had the audacity to say to us before Nora came that we would not feel for them the same after we had her. That they would not matter as much as they did. Well they were wrong. We feel no less for them as we did before Nora. They are an intricate part of our lives and we we are and will remain that way for the rest of their lives. I admit, they may suffer a tad in the attention department, but they seem to understand. They have adapted so well and welcomed Nora into “the pack.” We are an untraditional family of 6. Mommy, Daddy, Big Jack, Jinny, Nora and our angel in heaven, Noah.

It took me several hours after the movie to get right again. In the shower I almost broke down thinking about Marley’s death. I made myself think of all the good years still to come. I thought of watching Nora grow up with the dogs and all got right.

Outside Magazine, October 2009
Written by Christopher Solomon, Map by Chris Philpot.

Foot. Loose.

Something strange is happening in the coastal waters near Vancouver, B.C. Detached human feet, seven of ‘em, neatly wrapped in running shoes have been found washed up on beaches or floating next to piers. The Mounties aren’t talking, but locals have plenty of theories. Let’s just hope they’re wrong about the flesh-eating lobsters and the rural loner with all the knives.

When feet started washing up in the dark, misty Pacific Northwest, it wasn’t hard to imagine the worst. The Reebok Ripper? Sure, why not?

And a Child Shall Lead Them
When you’re dealing with a tale of intrigue and suspicion in which nothing wants to be what it seems, the best place to start is at the beginning, before everything about the Mystery of the Feet got complicated. Before the dogged reporter and her theory of the Smiley Face Killers. Before the funeral feast of the submerged pig and the ravenous lobsters. And way before my afternoon with a knife-wielding man named Mountain Mike. Before all this, there is only the bucolic image of a little girl on a beach, looking for shells.

It’s August 20, 2007. The girl and her family are on a sailing trip in British Columbia. They toss anchor at uninhabited Jedediah Island, 50 miles northwest of Vancouver. It’s high summer, but the day is moody with drizzle, the cedars dark and foreboding above the pretty curl of cove.

The girl finds four sneakers on the sand. She lines them up, chooses one. It’s a Campus-brand shoe, a righty, white with blue mesh, size 12. She unties the laces, tugging at a sandy sock within.

And, right then, out plops the Start of Everything. Because inside the sock is a human foot. Over the next 15 months, six more feet, also clad in socks and sneakers, will wash ashore at six different places on the puzzle of islands in the Georgia Strait, between Vancouver and Vancouver Island, and in the nearby Fraser River delta.

At first the feet are all men’s feet, all right feet. Then a woman’s foot appears. Then a left foot. Four of the feet match: one pair of women’s feet, one pair of men’s. That’s seven feet, bow-tied in seaweed, that were once attached to a total of five bodies” bodies that don’t turn up.

The media arrive by helicopter and boat and do what the media do best: go apeshit. Reporters deliver fevered sound bites and write punny headlines (”Investigators Seek Leg-Up in Mystery Feet Case”), and for a few news cycles in early 2008, the whole world widens its eyes and scratches its head. Even the United News of Bangladesh clucks at the odd and tragic goings-on up there in British Columbia.

In Vancouver, at the HQ of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, the authorities know little and say less, and they do it in that grumpy, pinch-lipped way that makes people wonder what they aren’t being told. In November 2008, Corporal Annie Linteau, a Mountie spokeswoman, tells me over the phone that they aren’t even close to coming up with an explanation. But that, she says, is mainly because there’s no reason to think anything fishy is going on.

Seriously? Yes, Linteau says, pointing out that there were no saw marks on the bones, no evidence of foul play. Without that, what do seven feet amount to, really, other than ghoulish serendipity?

By the time I head out from New York for a personal look-see, in early 2009, detectives haven’t solved the mystery, but they haven’t given up. The Major Crimes Unit is trying to put names to the feet by tracking down DNA from relatives of 57 high-probability men on B.C.’s missing-persons rolls. (At press time, only one foot, the first, had been identified: It belonged to a missing man whom the authorities won’t name, in deference to his family.) But even this gumshoe work might not crack the case. As Corporal Linteau tells me when we meet in person” inside a windowless briefing room, where she flips through pictures of empty shoes set against rulers, like grim flash cards” the search is limited to people known to be unaccounted for.

And so, as I head for the water-licked fringes of Greater Vancouver, the mystery is still as open-ended as a drinking straw.

Tabloid Juiciness 1, Canadian Coolheadedness 0
One foot on a beach might’ve only made a splash in the local Alberni Valley Times. But six days after the first foot was found, on a Sunday afternoon in late August 2007, Vancouver couple George Baugh and his wife, Michele Cris, went hiking on Gabriola Island, about 40 miles south of Jedediah Island and across the Georgia Strait from Vancouver.

“We were on a trail that obviously hadn’t been used for a while” ferns were all grown up over it,” George is telling me. It’s February, and we’re sitting inside a cafe in downtown Vancouver. He says he and Michele were walking single file, Michele in the lead, when suddenly she stopped and said, “Look, there’s a foot.”

This is why I especially wanted to talk to George and Mice
hle. It’s not just that they found a foot (though that helps); it’s that, in all the newspaper accounts, the couple seemed so sensible. And that’s what a story about severed feet cries out for, isn’t it? Grounding? Credibility?

George is a slim, 52-year-old wine importer whose entire presence whispers Canadian civility. He’s wearing a forest-green turtleneck and a tight, gray-flecked Caesar haircut. When Michele came across the shoe, a Reebok runner sitting a couple of yards off the trail at the base of a madrona tree, they both kept walking” at first. It was just a sneaker in the woods, after all; maybe it had been carried up from the beach by a dog. But then they went back, because something bothered them about that shoe. It looked so…full.

George poked it with Michele’s hiking stick. He saw “something white, not dried out at all, sort of greasy-looking” nesting inside a fringe of frayed white sock. He called 911: no reception. Michele suggested that they knock on the doors of homes near the path” homes that just happened to be sitting on an isolated country lane called Stalker Road.

George: “I said, ‘No, we’re not going to knock at any houses. These guys could be involved.”

Now, here in the cafe, he’s talking, with characteristic thoughtfulness, about how humans crave patterns. It’s how we make sense of things, he says. That day on Gabriola, as they sat waiting for the Mounties to arrive, he pulled a newspaper out of a rural mailbox. “Then we read about the Jedediah foot, which was the first one,” he says.” I thought, I think we’ve found the other foot! We’ve solved the mystery.”

But the mystery was just getting started. In February 2008, workers clearing brush on Valdes Island, just south of Gabriola, found Foot Number Three. It was another righty! Another runner! Another size 12! (Well, actually, size 11. But…close enough!)

And this…well, this was when things sorta went nuts.

Read the rest of the article by clicking here >>

The mornings have been designated my time with Nora so mommy can get some uninterrupted sleep, if only for a couple hours. I don’t mind it much at all, I just scoop up Nora and carry her into my office. I set her into her swing and turn it on low. It has several settings for sounds, I prefer the rainforest complete with frogs, birds and howling monkeys in the background , very relaxing :) I find myself leaving it on sometimes even after she is out of the room.

One thing early on we have taken notice of is how fiesty Nora can be. She does not particularly care to have her diaper changed and tries to resist by throwing her arms and legs around and grunting, Rarely crying, more like vigorously protesting. Even harder is getting clothes on her. It is amazing how strong she is for being so small. I dread when Sharon hands me something long sleeve with lots of snaps on it, I knopw there is going to be a struggle. I call out often “She’s resisting, she’s resisting,” but honestly I get a chuckle out of it all.

While on the subject of dislikes I have to call attention to the car seat. There is a love hate relationship going on. She likes to go places. She is just not fond of being strapped into it, especially when you have to straighten her legs, she doesn’t like to be forced to do anything against her will. She has no love for being cold either. Cold hands are a pet peeve early on. I remember the first time she got unwrapped from her swaddle blanket in the delivery room, she wailed! She did not like that cold air.

What amazes me are the traits she exhibited from the second she got out, some even while she was still in the womb, are still very present now. Such as have the hand up by her face when she sleeps. We saw it on ultrasound and she still always holds it up there now when she sleeps. The jerking from inside the womb is still there as well when she sleeps. Every now and then she just throws her whole body into a spasm, then goes back to deep sleep.

When it comes to sleep, Nora is right on track with newborns being nocturnal. Although, this has improved a bit. Now we just need to get her to sleep in her own bed. She loves to sleep next to us, or right on top of us. Which I am sure all newborns do, we are just lazy and let her sleep wherever she will sleep. We have started small periods of time where we put her into the co-sleeper or crib, we try to let her cry, but once it reaches fury level we cave and go grab her. I am sure that is going to come back and bite us in the ass. But many books say the first 3 months cannot spoil a child. Let’s hope they are right.

So I spoke a lot about what Nora does not like, I am going to end it on what she does like. She likes noise. It seems the louder and crazier it is, the better she sleeps. She can be sleeping and have Jack and Jinjer going crazy barking right next to her and not bat an eye. She loves going places, just not the car seat. She loves to be cuddled. She loves when we sing to her.

The thing that soothes her the most is being in daddy’s arms as he walks around the house talking to her, that is sometimes the only thing that works. I have found myself walking around at 3 in the morning to get her back to sleep, only to look at her with her eyes wide open, fixated on me. It cracks me up, but it does melt my heart. I forget that I am exhausted and it is the middle of the night. I figure I should write down little events which I will someday forget, but do not want to.

One night Nora was being extra fussy. I did not realize it as I was in deep drooling sleep. Sharon woke me and said “here, do something with her” and handed her to me. I was still half asleep and kinda groggy, but the whines took care of that, I was alert quickly. Sharon told me she had not slept much at all and needed a break. I got up, and started walking with Nora. She was in my arms doing that wide awake thing. Her eyes were so open and just staring at me. She never took them off me and just blinked ever so slowly. It was the cutest thing I ever saw. But I had to ask her, “what are you doing little girl, what is your problem?” Usually after a few minutes of walking and rocking she closes her eyes, and goes to sleep for me. Not this night. It took almost an hour of soothing before she closed her eyes.

I decided to let Sharon keep sleeping so I went into the spare bedroom and sat on the bed. Because I tried to not disturb Nora at all. I slowly slid down, inch by inch until I was sort of laying down. But I was in just shorts and this was the coldest night we have had in a long time. I was freezing. Nora had full pajamas on but still needed a blanket. So in order to not wake her I did not get up, but instead became resourceful and pulled the flannel pillowcases off and used those for her, but I was still cold.

I tried to pull up the ends of the comforter to wrap over me. It sorted of worked, but not great. Eventually after an hour or so, Sharon came in to check on us and covered us both up properly. Nora continued to sleep in my arms, and I told Sharon to back to sleep. After another hour Nora woke up hungry. She doesn’t cry at first, she lets you know by either trying to eat her own hand, or try to latch onto my arm. Like I stated earlier, my milk has yet to come in so I had to pass her to her mommy.

“So how is life as a daddy?” many ask. Life is good. I love being a daddy to my little girl. I wish I had my little boy as well, I would loved to have had one in each arm in that bed that night. Time is going by so fast, I need to write down more. Even events which do not seem like anything much at the time, may be treasured moments someday. Hell I try to treasure every moment. That is something I learned from my little boy, that life is so precious.

I think the picture says it all.

The cover unveiled for Volume 3, Lost Soles lead to Hope Found

Just as the other Volumes, Volume 3 follows Sharon and Randy’s journey through life’s ups and downs. It begins with surviving every parent’s nightmare, to healing as a couple, to eventually experiencing every parent’s greatest moment, and along the way it dives further into the almost other-worldly connection between the lost soles and actual lost souls.

I am very proud of this volume. It has so many levels to it and echoes back to experiences from earlier volume that once seemed insignificant, now revealed as very important events that shaped our lives. In essence this volume brings the One Shoe Diaries full circle. The ending is so perfect and Hollywood-esque, that if I had not personally experienced it and had witnesses I would not believe it was genuine. Following up on this Volume will be a tough act. However as evidenced in the One Shoe Diaries, life always has forks in the road. You never know what is store. Life is an adventure for sure.

On one last note, all three volumes will available as a Trilogy Book. All three volumes in one hardback volume to be released a week after Thanksgiving, but still in time for Christmas.

Click on the box in the left side of the navigation bar to view full screen
The 365 Project: Best of September

Nora relaxing in her swing after a long day of adventuring.

So far she has been a very good baby. Not too fussy,. And when she is, it is only because she is hungry, otherwise she is content to just coo and observe the world. She has taken well to swaddling and will instantly calm down once she is wrapped. In fact at first she hated to be naked. She is a squirmy little thing though. Much stronger than you would think. With her long arms and legs and big hands I feel as though I am wrestling a baby orangutan when we try to cloth her. This, along with the faces she makes has earned her the nickname “Mon Chi Chi.” Which is a cute doll from our childhood era that looks like half human and half monkey.

Sometimes she sleeps for up to three hours at a time at night. plus it is nothing new for us to be woken up in the middle of the night. Our dogs have been doing it for years! Whether one throws up on their bed, or has to go out to potty. Could be they got eaten up by fleas or mosquitos and chew themselves until they bleed so we end up giving them a bath, eventually falling asleep after they calm down. It seems like it is always something. So we have been training for parenthood since we got them.

I remember when they were puppies and getting up every two hours for almost two weeks to take them out. We actually set an alarm so I would not forget and have two puppies covered in poop. Come to find out that Sharon was way overfeeding them and once we fed them the correct amount they could go 4-6 hours. And at that point they learned to make a noise to go outside before they had an accident.

One thing we did with them that I am glad we did, was take them EVERYWHERE. We got them accustomed to the outside world and noise very early. And we are taking that same approach with Nora. So far in her first two weeks she has been to the beach for a volleyball tournament, brunch at the Hilton, 2 walks a day around the neighborhood, cruised around downtown on a Friday night, hit the Seafood Festival, spent a few days back in the hospital, been to Target, ate outside at New York Deli, visited numerous people, been to my client’s offices. And has taken it all in stride.

When the dogs go crazy barking at someone coming in the door, she doesn’t even flinch. TV sound does not affect her. People talking and laughing is white noise to her and she just sleeps through it. I believe it started when she was in the womb and Sharon barely slowed down. We went everywhere without letting her pregnancy hinder us.

Now this might all change as she grows, but for now it has been nice to not entirely change our way of life, we just have more stuff to bring. We have gotten acclimated to packing a load of crap for a day out. In fact I find it kinda fun to load up for a day out. It makes me feel like I am packing for an adventure, which I guess it is for Nora, and I aim to live vicariously through her for the next 18 or so years.