So, updates.

1. New Year's Resolution --the year of no-book-buying.  This has been going pretty well.  I will admit to some fudging.  I haven't paid money for any books, but I have traded a few at paperbackswap.com.  Also a couple of books have arrived that I pre-ordered from Amazon back in October or so.  And I have purchased books as gifts, but since they weren't for me, I'm saying that doesn't count.  So all told, it is going pretty well.  There are a couple of educational books I want to buy (to learn PHP, and no they don't have them at PBS or the library). I'm not sure if I will count those or not, but I'm holding off on them for now anyway because when the heck would I have time to read them since there are items on my to-do list for this week that have been there for the past three weeks in a row and still aren't done?

My brother-in-law suggested modifications to the original resolution-- I could buy one new book for every dozen I read that I already own, or I could buy one new book for every 20 that I get rid of.  If I get desperate later in the year, I may use that, because I've already gotten rid of at least 50 books, either through PBS, selling on amazon, or donating to the local sell-your-old-books-for-scholarships program. But for now I'm sticking with this as it is.

In case you're wondering why this is such a big deal, I should explain that wandering through book stores and buying a book or three has always been one of the joys in life for me, since I was in grade school.  When I was about ten, my grandmother gave me money for my birthday to spend at the book store that was walking distance from her house.  I still remember that store distinctly, and the books that I bought (The Egypt Game and The House with a Clock in Its Walls)(TWO hardback books, and I can't imagine that she would have given me more than $5)(I am becoming one of those old people who is always reminiscing about the good old days).

Anyway.  Bookstores and book acquisitions make me really happy, which is why Dean has never been a fan of this resolution from the first time he heard about it.  But now that I know our local library is so much better than I remembered it, I'm hopeful that I can substitute wandering through the library for bookstore meandering (and Amazon virtual wandering). Or maybe I will just bag it in a couple of months.  I've already lasted longer than many new year's resolutions last.

2.  I haven't bought any new books, but today we bought two new bookshelves.  It was actually Dean's idea, but you know he didn't have to say much to convince me.  We found yet another box of photo albums, and there are still several stacks of books in various corners because there just wasn't quite enough shelf space for all of them.  So I get to indulge in one of my absolute most favorite activities, rearranging books.  woot.

3. More than you wanted to know about my health.  you may remember cholesterol was quite an issue for me a couple of years ago.  Mine got really high, and I tried for six months or so to bring it down through diet and exercise, which made absolutely no difference.  So I went on a statin drug for six months, which was so successful that after six months my doctor decided I could stop taking it.  When we checked 6 mos after that, the numbers had come back up slightly, but not nearly as high as they were before. Next week I'm getting checked again.  I'm afraid I've become pretty careless about my eating habits--nothing horrible, but I haven't been as strict as I was there for awhile.  Will be interesting to see how the numbers turn out this time.

4.  The puppy.  We thought she was so perfectly house trained, we were feeling very smug.  We had started letting her sleep in the kitchen at night instead of in the garage.  But for the past week or so she has been having almost daily accidents.  Very frustrating.  I'm taking her in tomorrow to see if she has a UTI or something, but if it doesn't clear up soon, she is going back to the garage at night.  We're unsure if something changed, or if she was having accidents all along and just doing it in places where we didn't notice.  So much for getting the carpets cleaned.

5.  The cabinets.  Sometimes you can buy a can of paint and make a huge difference for about $30.  Sometimes you buy the paint and the difference is only marginal.  This was one of the latter.  They look better, but nearly as nice as I was hoping they would.  At least they are done and the downstairs bathroom is all put back together again.

6.  I made a final trip to UTown on Monday.  Returned books I had borrowed from my advisor, used up the balance on my student ID card, wandered around and got all nostalgic, met a couple of friends for a beer.  It was nice.  Not kidding: I got teary-eyed walking around the student center.  That school was a lifeline for me for a couple of years.  I'm not sure exactly how I'm going to replace it.  I'm applying for teaching jobs, we'll see if any of them work out.

7.  So, you know my daughter's internet name is Nell, right?  It has never suited her, and I found out recently that she doesn't really like it.  But the name I wanted to use--PellMel-- has her actual name in it, and it can't be an internet name if it has her real name in it, right?  Well, wrong.  She is of the generation that doesn't care if her real name is out there, so PellMel it is.  I have the most distinct memory of her at about four years old, flat out running across our backyard as fast as she could possibly go (pell mell, get it?), with the most intense, fierce expression on her face.  And it was for no reason.  She just broke into a sprint, with that white-blond hair streaking across the yard.  I always thought she would be a track star, but I couldn't even get her interested in trying it out.

And that's it for me. Reading report for February tomorrow, but unless I finish the one I'm on right now, there will only be one book in it.  I've been too scattered this month to concentrate.