19 degrees today. That’s the high. The low was 6.

As of October of last year, I now own the nicest car I’ve ever owned in my life and it’s getting immediately bludgeoned by this weather. Salt shooting up into the underbody. Freeze-thaw effect of ice wedging into gaps. Snow sludge tracked and squished into my floor mats.

Actually, up to this point (last couple of weeks) it’s been a fairly mild winter around here. Certainly no fourteen day stretches without sun like we had last year.

I’m beat. Mary started her new job this week and I’ve been waking up when she gets up in the morning (after staying up late after coming home from my job). That, and the dogs were barking and running around last night at 4:30 am. That, and the kids I work with have been going bananas for the past couple of days and, really, work has been kind of depressing in general.

So, I sit at work and make polite and occasionally pointed conversation, but all the while I’m really preoccupied with an ad in Car and Driver Magazine that uses the beach at Point Conception, CA and an incredibly smooth shoulder high peeling wave as the backdrop.

I miss the coast.

At work tonight, I noticed that someone had posted on the door of the arts supplies closet:

Please do not chew on or eat the arts and crafts supplies.

This is why my job is great. Some day I’ll write a book.

Wheels are in motion for a summer trip out west somewhere with any of the available traditional hiking/camping cast. It’s good to have things to look forward to.

Here’s why I love the GRPL.

There is a book I want to read. Bend to Baja: A Biodiesel Powered Surfing and Climbing Road Trip. But I don’t want to pay for it. It just came out a couple of months ago, but I figured one of the sixty-plus libraries in the area Lakeland Library Cooperative would have it. I searched the online catalog. No luck, no book.

So, I’m a little bummed. Then while clicking around one of the libraries websites I stumbled onto a link that allows you to suggest a book for the library to purchase. I plug in my library card number and politely suggest the above-mentioned book.

Two days later I get this note in my email.

Thanks for your suggestion! We will be ordering this and will let you know when it’s available.

How great is that? I checked today and the book is now showing up in the GRPL system.