The reference in the last A Fresh Start blog post was to Lodge 26 of the Water Buffaloes, from The Flintstones. Extra bonus points were awarded to readers who got the correct number. Quadruple points went to a reader who reminded me of the Great Gazoo. Points were taken away from those who asked me if I remembered the Bensonhurst chapter of the International Order of the Friendly Sons of the Racoons. (Look it up!) Please, I remember! I really liked the question about whether Carl would become a Sith Lord.
My real family is nowhere near as nutty as Carl’s. I haven’t killed my brother; he still lives at home and helps take care of my 97-year-old mother, who hasn’t disowned me yet. My sister and her family live half an hour away, and I have several cousins and their families I see regularly.
I got several emails from various foreigners who are reading the story and were curious about my description of how Washington actually works. The general gist of the letters was that it sounded too bad to be true, but I was probably right. Now for the bad news – it’s actually worse! It would just take too long to write some of it.