Surviving the Odd is a dark comedy memoir written by the daughter of a once prominent but now fading stand up, who is herself a very accomplished entertainer. In 1968, Governor Ronald Reagan emptied California's mental hospitals, leaving hundreds of thousands of mentally ill and emotionally disturbed people on the street. With no medical training or higher education, Tony Milo brought them into a home he called Milo Arms. He cared for and treated them like his own family. Tony ran the home with his five children underfoot, and Candi, his middle child - bright, curious, and mouthy, watched and learned from her father the real definition of family and the value of an open heart.