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And met Plato, the newest member of the Bedlam Farm family. Plato lives in the pond in the back by Lulu’s Crossing, he first appeared a week ago, and I barely noticed him. But each day he gets closer and he seems to be at ease with Fate, who loves to jump in the pond to cool off. I thought he would jump off, but he hasn’t budged. She stares at him, I think she hopes to herd him one day. Even my fevered imagination cannot conceive of a frog-border collie friendship.

I’ve named him and started talking to him, he seems an old soul to me, contemplative, I think I hear him at night.

I want to thank those of you who have voluntarily subscribed to my blog, and encourage those of you who have not to think about it. Blog subscriptions are the future of the word, moving steadily online, the future of writing, the future of me.

The blog will remain free to those who cannot afford to subscribe. For everyone else, there are cheap and safe options for you – $3 or $5 a month, $60 a year. I have been urged to raise these numbers, but am not comfortable doing it right now. Millions of people come through the blog each year, very few subscribe, but people are getting more comfortable with it. It matters, it makes it possible to keep the blog free and to support the high costs of maintaining it and the pictures.  No financial information stored here, only you can control subscriptions and cancellations, both of which are simple to do. You can cancel at any time.

So think about it. The blog is my living memoir, my shared experience, my new kind of dialogue with the world. Sometimes it is lovely, sometimes jarring, sometimes uplifting, but it is real in any case. And authentic. And I love it, you can’t fake it every day five times a day.  My blog began as a way to support my books, I could not have imagined all the changes that followed. Today, the blog is the book, and is a lot cheaper for you.

I appreciate being paid for my work and for the photographs. It took me a long time to do, but I feel grateful that I did. It feels good to be paid for your work. I do not bookmark anything here, you are free to use and share the content and images any way you wish. Thanks again for subscribing, thanks for thinking about it. Thanks for supporting my work, the dogs, donkeys and now, a frog to think about.  I’m off to Vermont for two days to give a talk and celebrate my 68th birthday. Wow.

I think it says something that I have become attached to a frog. And that you can support him. I’m not sure what it says, either.