Books

A study says that people who read several books each year have a tendency to live two years longer than people who don't.  Now, I definitely don't want to live forever, but there for a while, I was reading a book a day; I've currently slowed down to one every two or three days.  How much more will that extend my life, I wonder?  - Not much, I'm sure.
  Today is my sister's 68th birthday....  Kathy Jo was born at the Chincoteague Naval Air Station today, with the help of forceps, as she was a breech presentation.  Mom had so much internal damage they told her she'd never conceive again - but here I am!  (Our family likes to confound the medical profession.)  For her birthday, I gave her a copy of Killers of the Flower Moon - The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI.  I'm on the reserve waiting list for a copy from the library.
   I've been re-reading some favorites, and found a three-in-one Andre Norton hardcover.  Apparently I read two of the novels when I was in 7th grade, but I don't remember the third one, which I'm about two-thirds through...  I have a copy of the new C. J. Cherryh Foreigner series book, Emergence, to read; and I'm awaiting the arrival of my autographed copy of City on the Edge of Darkness by Preston and Child.
  I just received my new Bas Bleu catalog, and I've spotted another 10 books that look intriguing - I'll have to order them from the library - and I still need to sitdown at my PC and read May Day Over Wichita, which my cousin Sarah highly recommends.
 
    After several nights of single digit temperatures, the Chinook winds arrived early this morning, and it was 47 degrees when I left to care for Pip and Squeak; 49 when I returned.  It's supposed to reach the mid-60s again this afternoon (it was 68 yesterday), before getting chilly again tomorrow.  Then snow is forecast for Sunday, with a high of 30....  We'll see!

Cold

Sitting here, at my computer desk, looking out the west facing window, I just saw a raven land on top of the telephone pole, arch his neck and vocalize.  He "cawed" four times, with four separate plumes of breath steam ejecting from his mouth with each call.  - The temperature has climbed up to 7 degrees (F), from the 4 degrees it was when I first went out this morning.  Very high thin clouds, with plenty of sunshine out there - but, brrrrrr!  The gigantic thermometer on the shed at Pip and Squeak's house read 4 when I was getting fresh kitty litter in for them at 7:30 today.
   Had scrambled eggs, potato chunks and bacon for breakfast, after taking care of the black girls; the topped off the bird feeders and put almonds out for the squirrels, jays and ravens.  I had picked up a hard cover trilogy of books by Andre Norton a while ago, at the used book store.  I started reading the first novel, and I was almost finished when I realized I had last (and first) read the book when I was in 7th grade - that was the 1968-69 school year.  (Yikes!)
    I'm going to make meatballs in marinara sauce this afternoon.  I have all the ingredients and I'll heat up the crockpot and let things simmer until supper time.  Looking forward to dinner!