Skip to main content

The curious deer

The curious deer

Marty’s photo of the day #3630: Every morning before work, I take my dog, Nellie, to a clearing in the woods by my house, and we attempt to play Frisbee. Yesterday, we had a very curious (and I think very pregnant) doe hanging around. First, I had to talk the deer out of Deb’s garden, […]

Fitger’s Inn, now and in 2056

Fitger’s Inn, now and in 2056

Marty’s photo of the day #3616: If you’ve read either Time Is Irreverent or Hits, Heathens, and Hippos: Stories from an Agent, Activist, and Adventurer, you know a little about Fitger’s. The historic Duluth landmark used to be the Fitger Brewing Company, but now it is a boutique hotel, a bookstore, and a collection of […]

The spring moose

The spring moose

Marty’s photo of the day #3607: This photo is an hour old. Last night, Deb and I were taking part in our evening “porch” (our tradition of sitting on the front porch each evening with liquid refreshments, recapping the day’s events), when Deb spotted a black figure in the woods directly in front of us. […]

How’s the war?

How’s the war?

Marty’s photo of the day #3564: This excerpt from my first book, Cool Creatures, Hot Planet: Exploring the Seven Continents, tells the story: Our adventure began on Friday, April 11, 2003, when we landed at Kuching Airport. Our guide, Bayang, picked us up with the Borneo Adventure van. He was a muscular, round-faced man in […]

Dogs and heights

Dogs and heights

Marty’s photo of the day #3555: One of the ways dogs are like humans is that some are afraid of heights and others are not. I’ll never forget, many years ago, when Deb and I rented a Forest Service lookout tower in northwestern Montana. Our Labrador retriever climbed right to the top, but I had […]

My romantic comedy wedding

My romantic comedy wedding

Marty’s photo of the day #3529: The following excerpt from my newly published sixth book, Hits, Heathens, and Hippos: Stories from an Agent, Activist, and Adventurer, takes place in northern Minnesota: Our ceremony could have been right out of a romantic comedy. On the lakeshore, in front of the cabin, is a round washing-machine-sized rock […]

Lizards think I’m ugly

Lizards think I’m ugly

Marty’s photo of the day #3528: The following excerpt from my newly published sixth book, Hits, Heathens, and Hippos: Stories from an Agent, Activist, and Adventurer, takes place in Australia: I had decided to hike up every river within a ten-mile stretch of Queensland coast. Since all the rivers dropped down from the mountains, I […]

Drunk shopping

Drunk shopping

Marty’s photo of the day #3527: The following excerpt from my newly published sixth book, “Hits, Heathens, and Hippos: Stories from an Agent, Activist, and Adventurer,” takes place in Cangas de Onís, Spain: Once we finished our excellent meal, the man from behind the bar walked over and introduced himself as Angel, one of the […]

Defying death in Borneo

Defying death in Borneo

Marty’s photo of the day #3525: One of the chapters in my newly published sixth book, Hits, Heathens, and Hippos: Stories from an Agent, Activist, and Adventurer, follows Deb and me on a death-defying backpacking trip in Borneo with the Iban, a tribe once famous for headhunting. Here’s an excerpt from that chapter. Johnathan was […]

New York City stories

New York City stories

Marty’s photo of the day #3511: I took this photo of New York City several years ago, when I was on a college speaking tour. My soon-to-be-released humorous memoir, Hits, Heathens, and Hippos: Stories from an Agent, Activist, and Adventurer, features several stories that revolve around New York City, including my trips there when I […]

Owl adventure Pt 2

Owl adventure Pt 2

Marty’s photo of the day #3487: My writing room is on the second floor of our house, and it features two walls that are mostly windows. The view of the Bitterroot Mountains and the forest below is wonderful, especially at sunrise. Two years ago a great horned owl landed on a branch right outside one […]

Owl adventure Pt 1

Owl adventure Pt 1

Marty’s photo of the day #3486: My writing room is on the second floor of our house, and it features two walls that are mostly windows. The view of the Bitterroot Mountains and the forest below is wonderful, especially at sunrise. Two years ago a great horned owl landed on a branch right outside one […]