Strictly a Loner

My Life and Times with Plattsburgh's Poorest Millionaire

By: Kathy L. Baumgarten

Narrated by: Klaus Baumgarten

Length: 2 hrs and 29 mins

Publisher's summary

We met Earl in 1990; we parted seven years later. So many little events had to fall into place before we met him that it seemed decreed above for him to become "our" Earl. He'd just chuckle to hear that, though. "Those jokers," he'd say about us. "They knew I was strictly a loner." What we also knew was his biggest secret.

In this often humorous, true story, two homeowners go head-to-head with their tenant Earl, a quiet old loner and military retiree from the South. Sometimes just an amusing curmudgeon, Earl confounds them with his obsessive hoarding and miserly habits. Always dignified, nonetheless he retained an air of secrecy about his past, keeping his distance from the people who saw him every day along the streets of Plattsburgh, a small city nestled above the Adirondacks.

Truly, he was a man that everyone saw and no one really knew. With the drama, suspense, and poignancy only a true story can evoke, Strictly a Loner also serves as a vehicle to examine society's attitudes toward money, family, mental illness, and aging.

©2007 Kathy L. Baumgarten (P)2020 Kathy L. Baumgarten

Stumbling Across a Polished Gem

I have to admit a certain pride finding this unpublicized gem. It is a well-crafted story by an unrecognized author, a short read--one that disappoints in only that you don't want it to end just yet. The author offers her story with the same skill as an accomplished chef--she cleverly leaves her audience wanting more but inexplicably satisfied.

Earl was a unique individual, a generic type that few of us will ever encounter or understand. The story is Baumgarten's puzzle figuring out just who Earl is. Is she glimpsing into the soul of a tragic figure, a tale of mental illness? Or is he a rare enigmatic species who lives an inoffensive life of ignorance and genius, never causing others joy or pain? Either way, Earl leaves scarcely a mark by his long life, making it difficult to decide whether to feel pity or admiration.

Yet the author finds that Earl did contribute to her and her family's life. It was a contribution of contradictions, crafted according to his own eccentric rhythms, his own perhaps undeserved contentment from his own puzzling perspective.

Read it or listen to it. It's length is perfect for an evening of solace and easy contemplation. You may even find yourself writing fan mail encouraging her to produce another volume.

Remarkable True Story

I met Earl by virtue of my fifty year friendship with the author and her family. I remember waiting for the latest odd news about the tenant in room number seven. We giggled and we worried and I was always glad they shared their lives with Earl those generous seven years. He was like an antique watch.
Kathy writes with a keen eye,great empathy and humor. Sometimes it was not so funny but quite irksome. I felt them patiently tolerating Earl. I appreciated the love and at times the candid consternation of the situation with Earl under their pie laced loving roof. Kathy’s crystal clear depictions of Earl’s mundane obsessions may bring to mind a resemblance to someone in your own family. Kathy and her husband gave Earl the gifts of family in countless small ways that are described and spin the tale of Earl and his unique brand of neurosis. Kathy weaves a heartfelt expertly fascinating recounting of Earl’s peculiarities that astound, repel and leave the reader fascinated and finally with the the true definition of kindness.Through Kathy’s ironic Earl observations, both sad and hilarious we glimpse the humanity of one very solitary soul. The story of Earl invites pondering of many social conventions and a variety of notions about practical life paths any of us could choose depending on scope and perspective. The story poses questions about motivation and where the line of drive and focus enters the realm of mental illness. It also spotlights lights the loneliness of aging. Kathy’s wit will both delight, give some belly laughs and make you cry as she muses to spin a tale that creates a gentle macabre fascination for the reader and a window into the day to day life of
a most unusual man with a secret. Highly recommended as a well crafted true story.
Bravo to Klaus the narrator who was a kid when Earl lived in his home and for his voice impressions of Earl and his mother,the Author, helping to bring the tale of Earl to life!
Susan Elizabeth Smith

Must read for all the feels!

I enjoyed this book so much! All the feels come out in this. I am so glad it was recommended and it also gives me so many more memories about my home towns history.

Couldn’t get past the reader

The story is somewhat interesting. Why a male reader, for a female narrator, is beyond me though. The reader sounded like a somewhat excited college student. Ugh, happy it was free.