Hodgepodge

Boulder awoke to snow falling yesterday.  I walked over to the bakery and grabbed a fresh, warm bagel, and decided, on the walk back, to pay attention to my "bad" knee.  My left knee is always swollen, and causes me pain about 95% of the time.  Having lived in Boulder for a little over 10 years, now, I thought about how my knee felt as I walked back home from the store.  I decided that my knee was "telling me" that we'd get about 5 inches of snow.  When I turned on the television upon my return to the apartment, the forecaster was saying Boulder would get "possibly 1 to 3 inches" of snow.  We got a little over 5 inches in total.  Now I'll have to continue checking out my knee's feelings about snow and see how accurate they are....
   I was excited to receive the Public Library's newsletter this morning, because it stated that our library will be re-opening on February 12, and that, as of 2 March, it will be open at 9 a.m. Monday through Thursday.  I've missed being able to wander through the stacks and choose books to read at random - and I have longed for the library to be open at an earlier hour - I'd prefer 7 a.m., since I'm an early riser, but even an hour earlier is better than nothing.  I haven't had access to the Main Library's entire collection (no one else has, either) since September, when  a "make over" began.  I can't wait to see some old, familiar tomes again!
  I know I've mentioned that I began reading Preston & Child's Special Agent Pendergast novels again, and I'm about half-way through The Wheel of Darkness.  I'll have to request the next three books in the series today.  I have two new books on hand - the first two in a series by Herbie Belcher, The Faerie Wars and The Purple Emperor.  They were highly recommended, and I'm looking forward to starting a new series.
   I'm currently waiting to see if Rosie's parents want me to walk her today.  It's supposed to get up near 60 degrees this afternoon, but there is a thick and slick coating of ice on the roads and sidewalks this morning.  As Rosie has hip and back problems, I don't want to take her out and have her fall on the ice and hurt herself.  I'll walk Lucy at 11:30, as usual, as she has no restrictions.
   I found out that I was wrong about the networks programming  masters.  The Blacklist, on NBC, will be airing at 8; How To Get Away With Murder, on ABC, will air at 9.  The last episode of HTGAWM will air on February  19, which is the night that History Channel begins showing Vikings.  Hopefully, I won't find too many conflicts - other than Grand Jury duty, which means being on call every Thursday night.
   Forbes Magazine released a frightening report on the 30th of January - ordinary children, aged 7 to 16, read 4.7 books per year.  I have never been able to read enough!  We were only allowed to check out 10 children's books on each visit to the Public Library when I was a child.  Mom and Dad took us every Saturday morning to get new books - and I was usually through reading "my" books by Monday night.  Very quickly, my folks made certain that I always checked out books that would hold my interest, and that I would read several times, before our return to the library.  I know that a lot of people think that I'm odd and/or old-fashioned.  I prefer to read more than anything else - watch television, watch cinema, go to the theater, or listen to music.  I simply can't conceive of reading only five books in one year.  Reading is the spice of life; it can take you to the past, the future, and any place an author can conjure with words.