We hope you enjoyed the July 2026 issue of This Awful Awesome Life. Many thanks to Orlando Bartro, Sheila Kirk, and Tony Valerino for their contributions to the magazine.
We’re celebrating 250 years of this experiment in democracy. How are you feeling about the future? With the cost of almost everything continuing to go up; remember, we are a free publication.
August in This Awful Awesome Life is vacation/staycation month. We’re celebrating how you choose to celebrate the final weeks of summer before the kids go back to school and businesses begin their fourth quarter push.
Sheila Kirk enjoys a vacation as much as anyone, but she has a few conditions. Indoor plumbing, air conditioning, and something more substantial than nylon between her and woodland creatures while she sleeps.
I wrote a short story about postponing a dream vacation.
I’m a big fan of Jack Johnson and his music. He’s an exceptional human being and a talented singer/musician/song writer. This month’s poem is inspired by his song, “Holes in Heaven.”
In addition to exploring the reasons people choose not to go on vacation, we’re presenting a few ideas to make your staycation more fun. We are also featuring foods from around the United States and ways to say welcome.
Quizzes are a fun and easy way to dust off those mental cobwebs and test our cognitive abilities. This month’s quiz tackles words that have more than one meaning or represent different things. In addition to their traditional meanings, some words end up as book, song, or movie titles, and band names.
Author and history blogger Tony Valerino has once graced us with two articles. The first features Mother Teresa and his second article is about the 1980 Polish Shipyard Strike and the Polish solidarity movement that helped topple the Soviet Union.
Orlando Bartro explores the ways great authors begin their novels.
For our column, “Happy Birthday,” celebrating the birthdays of famous writers, I selected Daniel Keyes, the author of Flowers for Algernon.
For August 2026 in “The Twelve Months of Grain,” I’m featuring black rice. It’s colorful, packed with vitamins and antioxidants, and naturally gluten-free. Also known as forbidden rice, this healthy grain is used in Chinese medicine. It was once reserved for consumption by the wealthiest and most powerful. Commoners were forbidden from eating it. I made Asian Black Rice Salad and it’s delicious.
For our adult reading recommendations, I chose several beach reads and books to enjoy before the hectic fall months.
Our reading recommendations for kids and young adults feature an eclectic mix of fiction and non-fiction to help your kids unplug and fall back in love with reading.
We’re constantly updating our Author Page to include the latest published works of your new favorite authors, and we’re adding authors. Being able to give authors a free place to display their work is a dream come true for me, so please check every month to see who’s new and what’s new. Because of changes made by Squarespace upcoming Author Pages may be slightly different.
Don’t miss our new Artist Page where we will be celebrating creatives and providing their contact information. We will be updating and adding to the list during this month and the following months, so keep checking our new page.
Luke Murphy’s new novel in the Calvin Watters Mystery series, Dark Horse is available online and in stores. Read my review in this issue.
Annette Dashofy’s fifth Detective Honeywell mystery, Hell Has No Fury, can be preordered before its release date, August 6, 2026. Photographer Emma Anderson, Detective Matthias Honeywell’s love interest, needs help after her addict sister disappears and an unscrupulous land developer trying to steal her family’s land is murdered. When Emma’s best friend, Eric is implicated in the murder, Can Honeywell involve himself in a case outside of his jurisdiction?
Alaska Wilderness Mystery Author Robin Barefield recently released Murder and Mystery in the Last Frontier Volume 2: True Crime and Mystery in Alaska. This volume covers stories of murder and mystery in Alaska spanning 130 years, mysterious disappearances, serial killers, and even spies! Learn about the fascinating techniques used by Alaska State Troopers to solve crimes in remote areas that are often frozen and inaccessible by roads. If you enjoy true crime you’ll love this book! I plan to review it for the September issue.
Everything in Between is available as an audiobook, eBook, and in hardcover or paperback. Narrator Louise Porter does a wonderful job bringing Sabrina and her story to life. I can’t wait for you to have a listen. Purchase the audiobook for Everything in Between on Amazon, iTunes, or Audible. I’m incredibly proud of this novel. If you enjoy my writing, please check it out. Independent authors can’t afford splashy book launches and expensive PR campaigns to make the public aware of their work. Your support is greatly appreciated.
Adults can and should be able to disagree without threats, name calling, spreading misinformation, or lying. Can the leaders you support do this?
Now more than ever, I encourage you to watch C-SPAN and get to know the members of Congress, the members of the president’s cabinet, and the leading experts who testify at Congressional hearings. Listen to what they are saying and what they refuse to say aloud. Do they care about the Constitution and the people of this country?
In 2025 and 2026, we have struggled with maintaining the checks and balances between the three branches of our federal government. The fight continues as we head to the midterm elections.
Article 1 of the U.S. constitution gives states the responsibility of overseeing federal elections. Constitutional amendments and federal laws have been added to protect voting rights. They must be used to expand voting rights not cherry pick who is allowed to vote based on how likely they are to vote for one party over another.
Which political leaders disregard/ignore the powers of Congress and the authority of the federal courts? Who can we elect who will protect and support the Constitution of the United States? Do your homework before the midterms. Our future depends on choosing the best leaders at all levels of government.
After the mid-terms, pay attention and insist that our elected officials make good on their campaign promises. Hold them accountable!
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Happy Reading,
Fran