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1. What story does Simon tell when people ask him why his family left Omaha?

When people ask Simon why his family left Omaha, he tells them alpacas drove them out. Simon's father, Martin is a Catholic deacon. He was a liturgical director at a big church in the Omaha suburbs. For the Feast of Saint Francis, Martin planned an animal blessing. He forgot to make a list of pets allowed at the blessing and those not. In addition to the cats and dogs at the blessing, there was a potbellied pig, two alpacas, a giant tortoise, and a great horned owl. The alpacas caused an uproar and got the dogs howling. The owl grabbed the cat. The media was at the service. Martin was fired, and Simon's family left Omaha.

2. What is the town like where Simon and his family move?

Simon and his family move to a town in western Nebraska called Grin And Bear It. Grin And Bear is a small town on the Dismal River and the edge of the Dismal River National Forest. On the black rolling hills near the town are radio telescopes that listen to faint radio signals from space. Anyone who lives in Grin And Bear It has to agree not to transmit any radio signals, so there are no televisions, cell phones, microwave ovens, or internet.

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