Robin Hardy's Abbey Lands
The Stories of the Abbey of St. Benedict on the Sea
Random Mutterings
Skeleton Panda Sea Squirts
Nov. 8, 2026: Not kidding you at all. Reefs.com says, 'These are Skeleton Panda Sea Squirts, also known as Ascidians....[T]hey are sessile, meaning that as adults, one end of the body is always firmly fixed to rock, coral, or some similar solid surface. The upper surface of the animal, opposite to the part gripping the substratum, has two openings, or siphons. When removed from the water, the animal often violently expels water from these siphons, hence the common name of 'sea squirt.'”
There's always next Halloween.
Never Give Up
Nov. 5, 2026: Meet the unstoppable Josh Sundquist, who survived Ewing sarcoma as a child, but lost his left leg in the process.
What remains (besides his right leg) is a vibrant sense of humor, courage, and indefatigable imagination—plus a lot of Halloween costumes. Click any of the links above to see more.
Thoughts on Padre
(and the Perils of Fame)
Nov. 2, 2026: I’m now about a third of the way through recording the audio for Padre, and I’m really enjoying it. It’s a pretty fair action/adventure/romance story. I’m also remembering when it was first published by a small Christian publisher way back in 1997. They were not heavy-handed about editing, but when I saw the cover art, I just wilted. They hired an artist to paint Royce riding behind Paul on a horse, which, I hate to say, looked like the cover of a children’s book. I made some timid objections, because Padre is emphatically not a children’s book.
Besides being almost 80,000 words, it’s a story of redemption, and you can’t talk about redemption without dealing with pain, sin and pride. The cover was woefully mismatched with the content.
Anyway, my reservations went unheeded, and the book did not sell well. This discouraged other, larger publishers from working with me. All this helped prompt my starting Westford Press. While I've been putting out new content year after year, I’ve watched a few Christian stars of that era flame out. (Philp Yancey, anyone? Joyce Landorf?—who divorced her husband to marry a married man.) Without a media juggernaut behind me, I’ve been greatly protected from temptations that have brought down other, bigger stars. And for that obscurity, I am grateful.
Important Research Results
Part 2
Oct. 30, 2026: As I repeatedly promised, here is the second part of my painstaking research for entertaining content. You're welcome once again.
When I asked Google AI where this office was located, it replied: "This specific design features the Brunswick star topped with a royal crown, which is the universal, traditional emblem for territorial police forces in the United Kingdom." We here at Random Mutterings are nothing if not international.
Audio Galore
Oct. 27, 2026: In case you haven't noticed, I've been on a tear recording audiobooks (see the results here).
This is due to an awakening. Previously, I had paid no attention to audiobooks, as I'm more of a visual girl, with a fondness for punctuation and correct spelling. But then one kind reader explained how she liked to listen to audiobooks during her long commute to and from work every day.
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And I began to see that many people don't have the time to sit down with a book that demands one's entire attention for hours on end. But there's another aspect that drew me to audiobooks: it carries the effect of a live performance. Hearing the characters speak and shout and cry evokes something that dry words on paper often can't.
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So now I'm believer. Deal with it.
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Unknown Name Unknown Number Audiobook
Oct. 24, 2026: "Important Research Results Part 2" will have to wait; I'm too excited—just got the audio for Unknown Name Unknown Number uploaded to Audible [edit: it's now on Amazon as well]. So much time has passed since I last looked at it, recording it gave me a weird and wonderful jolt: I had forgotten who the killer was! Anyway, I hope you enjoy it too.
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Next up: I'm seriously looking at Padre as the next audiobook. What do you think?
Important Research Results
Part 1
Oct. 21, 2026: Part of my job is scouring the internet for important information to share with my readers. Following are the latest nuggets of wisdom that I have recently acquired to pass on to you. You're welcome!
The spectacle of Elon's new Tesla roadster flipping and landing on its wheels is here.
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Getting back to nature, here's this:
This is also known as "parking by the buffet."
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Unfortunately, there's more to come in Part 2.
Tennis Trickster Mansour Bahrami
Oct. 18, 2026: This French/Iranian player is just hilarious. Even at 71, he's driving his opponents nuts with his crazy play. A natural showman, his tennis career was derailed by the Iranian Revolution of 1978-79. By the time he was able to play professionally again, he was past his prime. But his perseverance and wicked sense of humor have won him a worldwide following. (See his bio here. )
That's how you win
Moses Supposes
Oct. 15, 2026: Today, for your enjoyment and edification, we are proud to present the greatest song and dance in the history of film: "Moses Supposes" from the classic Singing in the Rain. In this scene, Gene Kelly and Donald O'Connor give a hapless phonetician the lesson of a lifetime. Click the image to be dazzled:
(Did you catch the moment Gene forgot to lip sync?)
You could call it Chataine's Guardian 2.0