I posted the first chapter up on the fatheriam.com  at http://www.fatheriam.com/Chapters.htm. It is a little longer then I want, so I am anxious as to any thoughts about how to cut. This is the problem with a memoir, you need to provide boring background to get to the exciting parts.  The way to make it not boring is to talk about Patricia's craziness but I am not happy about this.

            I also include Glen's attack by the wolf hybrid. That still breaks my heat fourteen years later.

            I see the book as an introduction, thirteen chapters and an afterwards written by Glen.

            2. The next chapter is "Final Days" Where I discuss the breakdown in Patricia's mental health that led to her openly abusing the children and filing for divorce.

            3. "First, Kill All the Lawyers" This quote by Shakespeare simply is not used enough. In this chapter I will focus on the craziness of the Machine, the Family Court, and how the lawyers set up on the path to destruction.

            4. "La Belle Dame San Merci – The Woman Without Mercy" This chapter will focus on non lawyer events such Welfare, Glen standing up against everyone as they tried to medicate him and Patricia accusing him of being a monster,  The Machine and Domestic Violence,

            5. "The Seige" We settled down behind our protective walls of lawyers, Guardian Ad Lietms, mental health professionals, police, and attacked each other through surrogates. Glen came to live with me and the younger two exiled in their own home.

            6. "Into the Night" Mental health became a critical issue as we underwent our first custody evaluation. Everyone but the dog in counseling, Patricia killed the dog.

            7. "Wards of the Court" I surrender my parenting rights to a stranger and by the hand of God the stranger is a saint who took my children under his protection and drew the brunt of Patricia's attacks. Okay, he was a lawyer

            8. "Trial by Fire" Everything moves into high gear as we approach a trial date, custody, property, personal items all addressed in a rapid series of mishaps and errors

            9. "1+1+2 = Whatever I want it to be, The Four of Us" The old CPA joke about "one plus one equals whatever I want it to be' applied to our life. First,  I am alone (1), then Glen moves in (1+1) and finally Jessica and Montie join us (+2). We begin to build a new life with limited contact with Patricia, interrupted by the passing away of my thirty-four year old sister-in-law after a long fight with breast cancer.

            10. "Hope" These are the days when it appeared we were on the mend, Patricia and Glen spending time together and other positive signs. All collapsed as Patricia decide my death was objective one.

            11. "Till I Say Gators"  'Gators' was the code word used by the undercover sheriff to signal for the law enforcement officers to move in and arrest Patricia. This chapter follows the criminal proceeding until Patricia's sentencing.

            12. " Victim" We all proved victims of the Department of Corrections, Patricia most of all as they ignored the term of her sentence and did not provide the treatment ordered.  And then Patricia introduced Grandpa Joe, the literal head of a criminal family that adopted Patricia, threatened me as new hit man and threatened to obtain visitation with the children. All based on a lie about being Patricia's true father.

            13. "Today" Where we are at today and what we look forward to with Patricia's release in April of 21007

            "Afterward by Glen Avery" Glen get his say about this mess as he look back a few months before his eighteenth birthday.

Take a look, tell me what you think.

copyright 2006 Stephen A. Avery