February 2025

February 2025

Okay. So far 2025 sucks.

 Not only am I living here in Weldon, the middle of nowhere, but I still have no dogs and no money.

 There is a glimmer of hope in the horizon, however. I called my NM state representative last week and asked her office to look into my FEMA claim for having lost everything I used to possess during the massive flood in Roswell, NM, last October. A FEMA person telephoned me today, and said my case has been resolved, and FEMA is going to deposit money in my bank account. I’ll believe it when I see it, but at least it’s something. The guy who called said the money should be in my bank account tomorrow. He said it should have been there today, but it isn’t. We shall see.

I miss my dogs, darn it! Will probably have to move back to Roswell because Roswell’s cheaper than California, but it won’t take a lot to fix up the house so it’s livable. And I can have my dogs with me! Well, as soon as the fences are rebuilt. I had no idea water could do so much damage. Silly me. I’m old. I’ve worked hard all my life. I’m sick of struggling. Which matters as much now as it ever has, which is not at all. Grumble.

 Because of the hideous Eaton Fire (yes, I know Pacific Palisades burned too, but I have no attachment to PP), many of the places mentioned in my Daisy books are now ash and rubble. The home we lived in when I was born belonged to my aunt, and I gave it to Mrs. Bissel. It isn’t there any longer. The house I grew up in on a street called Morada Place isn’t there any longer. The first house I ever bought isn’t there any longer. More than 10,000 structures burned in the Eaton Fire. The Zane Grey Estate is gone. The Andrew McNally House (of Rand McNally) is gone. Eliot Middle School’s auditorium is gone although, thank heaven, the beautiful tower remains. So many people I know (and I) feel as though we just watched our childhoods turn to cinders.

This was the Zane Grey Estate

This was Andrew McNally's home

This is Eliot Arts Magnet School (used to be Eliot Jr. High School):

The one that hurts me the most is Mrs. Bissel’s house. That was my happy place in a generally unhappy childhood. It looked grand and imposing, but it was really just a big old family home. My aunt reared six children in that place, and my family lived in it several times.

The church across the street from Mrs. Bissel’s house, St. Mark’s Episcopal, burned to rubble. Mercy Allcutt and her family attended a service at St. Mark’s in Thanksgiving Angels. The Altadena Community Church on the northeast corner of Lake Avenue and Altadena Drive, burned down. My aunt sold the property so that church could be built. Homepark Avenue was built in the 1950s on a parcel of land my aunt sold to a developer. Every house on the block is gone.

Anyway, here’s a photo of Mrs. Bissel’s house, which was built in 1914.

 And here’s a photo of Altadena today. The ashes of Mrs. Bissel’s house are there somewhere:

Seventeen people died in the Eaton Fire. It was, in truth, a firestorm. Nothing could withstand the flying embers. The Santa Ana Winds were blowing crazily, in all directions. Many people, particularly on the west side of Altadena, didn’t get an evacuation order until after their power was already out. So they didn’t get an evacuation order then, either. They had to look out their windows and decide for themselves. I have no earthly idea how Altadena will rebuild after this catastrophe, but I hope it comes back. And not as tacky tract houses, either. Most of the Jane’s Cottages (look ‘em up; they’re adorable) bit the dust. Here’s an ad from the 1920s about Jane’s Cottages:

I mean… Nertz. Makes me sad. As I was already sad, I’m now pretty much dog-paddling in the Slough of Despond. Although, as noted above, I’m a little happier since the telephone call from the FEMA agent.

But enough of that. I guess I have the new cover art for Spirits Adopted. Here it is. It wasn’t up on Amazon’s Kindle site the last time I looked, but it might be there now. The Kindle edition will be published on February 25. If you want to pre-order a copy please feel free to click on the cover and it’ll take you to the Kindle site.

I’m unable to send anybody anything at the moment because my few remaining possessions (and tons of books) are still locked in my old garage in Roswell. I can certainly give away e-copies of Spirits Adopted, however, so why don’t I do that? If you’d like to win an e-copy of Spirits Adopted, send me a message (alice@aliceduncan.net), let me know which device you use (Kindle, NOOK, Apple, or whatever) and I’ll save your name. I don’t have Bammie to select wieners for me, but you never know. By the end of February, I might be back with my dogs (or they with me) somewhere. Anywhere.

Shaken Spirits, read by Daisy’s voice, Denice Stradling, is still available in audiobook format. If you like to listen to books, go grab a copy. Or more. What the heck:

Shaken Spirits Audiobook

I’m attempting to write Dancing Angels, Mercy Allcutt’s 10th adventure, but I’m having a hard time concentrating. Gee, I wonder why. I’m sure I’ll finish it one of these days though, so if you’re interested in pre-ordering it, here’s the Kindle link:

Rosy Spirits, Daisy’s twenty-first adventure will be published sometime next year. My publisher has it up for pre-order on Kindle, so you can secure your copy! Whatta great plan. Rosy Spirits takes Daisy and Sam in a whole new direction, and I’m actually looking forward to writing it. That’s a major improvement, as far as my writing juju goes. Little Joey (Daisy and Sam’s son) is a lot of fun. He’s only about nine months old, but he’s inherited some of Daisy’s formerly nonexistent clairvoyance! Poor Sam now has to deal with two loved ones who have a habit of stumbling over bodies. He can take it.

Because the Pasadena Civic Center is going to be built directly in back of Daisy and Sam’s home on South Marengo Avenue, I had planned on moving the family to Altadena soon. Guess I still could, but knowing what will happen to Altadena in 2025 has made me think twice. Thrice, even. 

Anyway, here’s the place-holder cover for the Amazon Kindle link for Rosy Spirits. Click right on the cover and it’ll take you to the Kindle link. Thanks!

If you’re on Facebook, please join Daisy Daze! Anyone who has an interest in the 1920s will probably find Daisy Daze interesting, at least sometimes. Daisy Dazers give me plotting advice all the time. They’ve been going at it like gangbusters lately and I’m extremely grateful for their ideas. Daisy Daze was founded by Iris Evans and Leon Fundenberger, both of whom like Daisy and Mercy. Daisy Daze is a great place for Daisy Gumm Majesty Rotondo and Mercedes Louise Allcutt (soon to be Templeton) fans to hang out, as well as anyone who is interested in the “Roaring Twenties.” We concentrate pretty closely on the Pasadena and Los Angeles areas, because the books are set there. We also cover a lot of stuff relating to early motion pictures, because both Daisy and Mercy have friends in the biz. Daisy Daze is entertaining, it’s educational and if you’d like to be a member, check it out here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/905100189878318/

If you’d like to visit my web page, here’s the link, thanks to Lyndele von Schill, who seems to be capable of doing anything and everything. Amazing woman, Lyndele. So glad she befriended me on Facebook! Home | Alice Duncan . If you’d like to be Facebook friends, please go here: (20+) Alice Duncan | Facebook .

Here’s a link to my author page at ePublishingWorks: Alice Duncan Author Page (ebookdiscovery.com)

Thank you!

P.S. I put the parrots at the top of my newsletter, because they were displaced by the fire too. Altadena is home to hundreds of parrots and peacocks.