A friend of mine is hosting a pet picture contest and the prizes are all books, including the first three of my Paladin series.  I thought some of you might be interested and want to check it out–Alexis 

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Down Home Ever Lovin’ Mule Blues

Pet Pictures Contest

Give us your best shot!

Cats, Dogs, and Equine categories.  Don’t forget the mules!

Lots of prizes from a dozen authors!

(Not all prizes are listed, and not all titles are prizes.  Go to http://www.jacquierogers.com and click on Contest for a complete listing, as well as contest procedures and rules.)

Okay, so the Sheryl Crow concert was cool, and not just because of the weather.   That woman can rock the house–or the park, in this case.   Her band was great, very tight with driving percussion–Alexis’s favorite part of any band.   The lead on act was James Blunt, who reminded me of Davy Jones of the Monkees for some reason.  Partly in looks but also in accent.   The concert was at an outside venue in a really nice park–lots of grass and tall firs.  The food at the concessions was a definite cut above the usual.    Even though the temperature was a bit on the nippy side, it was a great night for music.  

The Italian car show was also worth seeing.   Nothing like a Masarati to have me drooling!  

And my Mariners have been winning games!   A bit late in the season to do them any good, but it’s definitely a step in the right direction.  They’ve been playing a lot of what Alexis calls “babies” to see how they’ll fit into next year’s lineup. 

Speaking of Alexis, she’s in a tizzy.  She’s going to be moving her office from one room to another that’s bigger.  Although that’s a good thing, I guess, it means she’s been going nuts picking out paint and fabric and . . . . well, you get the idea.    For the next week or so, she’s going to be in transition, trying to schlep everything upstairs to the new room and getting it all arranged.  So if we’re quiet or slow to respond, assume she’s got me and the others hauling office supplies  and furniture upstairs.  How many books does one woman really need to own?   And then there’s rehanging all of her matted & framed book covers, and finding a new spot for that squawkbox of a parakeet.   Sigh.  

So anyway, I’ll check in as time and Alexis allows.    Keep safe out there–

DJ

Look, I know you’re all missing DJ, but there was a major computer melt down at headquarters–not his fault, by the way.  He was with me out in the boonies and not guilty this time.   Anyway, he and Cullen have been knocking heads over how to fix whatever went wrong since around three this morning.   I don’t know much about the innards of computers and want to keep it that way, so I have no idea how long your boy will be M.I.A., but evidently you worry when he doesn’t show up.  

He says you’ve been asking about me.   I know he probably doesn’t say so, but we all appreciate the good vibes we get from all your interest in us.   I know what we do definitely isn’t a sport, but that doesn’t mean having some cheerleaders on the sideline isn’t a welcome addition to our lives.   So thanks for that.

I’m till working out with Barak and Bane when they’ve got time.   I’m never going to be the caliber of switch hitter that they are with swords, but I’m improving.   Not enough that Devlin has let me go back to regular duty.  He uses me for other things–it’s not the same, of course, but I feel more useful than sitting on my backside in the alley and glaring at people.  I still do that sometimes, just for grins.  

Barak and I watch baseball together over beer and veggie pizza.   As DJ has told you, this has been a real sucky year for our local team, but baseball is baseball.   Besides, football season is upon us.   Since I put up with the veggie pizza for baseball, don’t you think Barak should try peperoni for football?  He won’t go for it, but I’m going to give him some serious grief over it.  

Back to work.  

Penn

Devlin here–I know I’m late.  Sorry.   I would’ve been here earlier, but I had to wait to be escorted from the lab to the front door before I could head for my office.  Protocol, you know.   The stupid thing is that when I’m not a patient, I can come and go as I damn well please.   You’d think the idiots would realize that if I wasn’t okay–as in gone stark raving crazy–I’d be dead, not walking out.   However, stupid as they are,  Kincade will have his rules followed, but I digress.

 I want to go on record here that I didn’t get mad at DJ for the flowers or the chocolates.   But if I had cracked up and laughed, he would have been bitterly disappointed.  After all, he was doing his best to jerk my chain.  Can’t let the idiot find out that I find him more entertaining than infuriating.  Well, most of the time.  Once in a while he really does deserve to dust light bulbs  and scrub floors.  It’s better than kicking his worthless ass from here to Mount St. Helens and back, don’t you think?

I also have to admit that I wasn’t in too much of a hurry to leave the lab.   Let’s see–getting fussed over by Laurel 24/7 or spending my day shoveling a mountain of paperwork from one side of my desk to the other.   Hmmmm.  Which shall it be?   Of course, all that paperwork is still waiting for me, but I’m well rested and ready to take it on.    Laurel sends her love, btw, and her appreciation for all the worrying you all do about us.  She says it helps all of us–even Trahern.  

DJ might be a little down in the dumps when he gets back, but it won’t be because of me.   His Chiefs were soundly pounded on Saturday–to the point that their “player of the game” was the punter.  How sick is that??????

You might now be able to see me waving from behind this pile of paper, but I’ll be around for a while today.

Dev

What a weekend!    Most of it was sunny and hot–at least by Seattle standards.  The perfect day to go for a long cruise.    Devlin sent Cullen and me  to go check some outlying tunnels near Rainer and farther south by Mt. Adams and St. Helens.  We left at the crack of dawn Saturday, aiming to get home in time to watch the Seahawks game.   The day was perfect for a long drive–even if the Mariners lost again.    So did the Chiefs, for that matter, but the ‘Hawks managed to win in OT.   One out of three–sigh.

Sunday was a lazy day for me.  Household chores mostly.   I’m pulling some evening shifts this next week which always screws up my sleeping patterns, so I’ll be in and out all week.  Alexis has been working on Hunter’s book–in which my name pops up in it occassionally–while she watches the Olympics.   Did anyone see the womens’ marathon?   I’m in good shape, but running for 2 1/2  hours solid?   Amazing.  And the American woman who won silver medals at 41?   How cool is that?   Well, and then there’s the whole Phelps phenomenom–his teammates put on some amazing performances that helped that happen.     I also got a kick out of the guy who won the 100 m–How would it feel to be labeled the fastest man in the world???

Hope you’re week is off to a great start.  I’m off to get some shuteye–I didn’t get much sleep last night.   The barrier didn’t go down, but it kept fluxuating enough to have us on edge most of the time.

DJ   

About a month ago I taught a class for one of the local library systems, and they did a podcast interview with me before the talk started.  It was my first (and so far only) experience with being recorded.  I thought some of you might like to hear it.   This link will take you to the page on the King County Library site.  Scroll down until you see Barak’s book cover and click there.    http://www.kcls.org/events/author.cfm#padma

 Alexis

As promised, here’s Stacy’s picture:

Okay, what’s going on around here?   If it’s not some blood-sucking vamp boy sneaking in while I’m on vacation, it’s Jake the Snake slithering in behind my back.  

Obviously, I need to either strengthen my firewalls or shut this site down for a while.  Since the second option is unacceptable, that leaves working harder to keep the unwanted vermin out.  Well, you all seem to want them, but I defintely don’t.   I don’t mind fighting alongside Jake and company, but that doesn’t mean I want to share the blog with him.     I fried his dragon for him, btw.   I also pirated a copy of his game, modified it a bit, and then sent it on to Trahern.   The big man wasn’t particularly happy with how the game played out–good thing for Jake that Missouri is 2000 miles away. 

On a lighter note, what do you all think of synchronized diving?   Where did that come from?  And did you see them playing Olympic badminton?    How very odd!

I’m on duty all night, so I’d better go check on things–

 DJ, owner and operator of this blog.

Morning, ladies–Jake Beck from the Missouri Paladins here.  Thought it was time I stopped into to say hi.   Normally, I don’t hold with poaching on another man’s territory, but we’re talking about DJ here.   It’s not fair that he gets so much of your attention.  I get lonely, too, you know!    I’ll return control of the blog to him . . . eventually.  

I’m still working on that dragon computer game that Brenna so admired–actually, I think she admired me, period, but Trahern’s the jealous sort, so she hid it well.   Jarvis keeps warning me to leave her alone, but really all we talk about is the game.   I keep asking Jarvis to send me to Seattle on Paladin business, but he seems to think that Trahern would object–strenuously, if you get my drift.    I really don’t need any more time strapped down to a metal table in the lab, so I guess I’ll stay where I am.  For the time being anyway.   8-D

It’s been pretty quiet around here for the past couple of weeks, which always sets my teeth on edge.  It’s like waiting for a storm to roll through, one you can feel gathering on the horizon.   Our earthquakes tend not to be quite so spectacular as you get in other areas, but they come in bunches–light and shallow so that most people can’t even feel them.  But animals know, and so do we.   The barrier can end up looking like one of those strobe lights they have at dance clubs.

I see from his blog, DJ is a football fan.  No surprise there.   Missouri has two pro teams–the Rams in St. Louis and the Chiefs in Kansas City.  Hopefully one of them will have a good season.   I’ve been watching some of the Olympics.   Saw a couple of the gymnists fall–gotta give them credit for dusting themselves off and going right back at it. 

Don’t know how long I’ll have control of the blog, but until I get called away or DJ steals it back, I’ll be hanging around.  

Jake

Boy, last night was a banner night in sports for me!    First of all, Alexis’s favorite Mariner Raul Ibanez hit a walk off homer to win the game in the bottom of the ninth!    That man has been on fire lately–the other night he picked up 6 rbi’s in one inning!  

And then the Chiefs played a pre-season game last night and won!   Does life get any better??????

Barak is a little more subdued, but let me tell you Larem and Bavi were hooting it up with the best of them!   Professional sports is new to them, but they’re taking to cheering on their favorite teams like a duck to water.   I’m thinking we’ll be making a trip to the mall soon to outfit Bavi with all the necessary jerseys and caps to pay homage to his teams.   Sounds like fun.

DJ–off to catch up on some z’s.  The Chiefs game lasted till around midnight.