Don't Forget to Cover the Pig: Finding Ourselves in Tasmania - A Memoir

Have you ever contemplated escaping, packing it in, and leaving the land of your birth behind? Perhaps you survived a failed relationship, the political landscape has become intolerable, or maybe you are ready for adventure.

In 1988, near the end of Ronald Reagan's reign, before either of the Bush or Clinton presidencies and the advent of the internet and cell phones, for reasons we do not fully fathom, we exchanged American city life for Australian farm life. Far from home, with no farming experience, we bought a sprawling 125-acre farm on the island of Tasmania-Down Under Down Under-where we added Australian citizenship and raised our three children to adulthood along with hundreds of furry, fluffy livestock that we fostered as pets.

From diaper-wearing goat kid and lamb orphans romping through the house to a whiskey-swilling rooster slumbering by the fireplace to launching a sunscreen advertising campaign featuring Matilda, a 400-pound sex-obsessed pig, we fumbled along. Challenged by the cultural divide and the emotional and physical highs and lows, we weathered the tragedies and celebrated the comedies.

I hope that reading about the hurdles we cleared on the path to living our dream, many of which appear too fantastical to believe but are true, will enlighten, entertain, and perhaps motivate you to live your dream.