Dear Blog,

Well, it's later rather than sooner. A whole month has gone by since I last wrote. It's not that I haven't been thinking about you - you are almost always on my mind. Did you notice I gave you a new header? The Chinese lantern shot seemed so last season. The calendar thinks it's still Fall, but the thermostat and I feel otherwise. Fall seems like a not-quite-long-enough weekend oh so long ago, just a brief respite between two extremes. It's now extremely cold - at least for a California girl like me. All the leaves in the picture above have disappeared - only a few frost laden maple seed pods cling to the tree.

I've moved from dystopian literature into the study of economics, at least until the library gets a copy of The Witch Of Hebron, the sequel to World Made by Hand, by James Howard Kunstler. There are actually a lot of similarities between economics and apocalypses. It's all about doom and gloom followed by recovery. As Lois Lowry said when we heard her speak recently, all stories start out with something being not quite right and end with a resolution.

Seeing Lois Lowry in person and having one of our Anastasia Krupnik books signed was definitely the highlight of November. The whole experience really kindled my passion to write. Now to figure out what to write. . . perhaps an economic apocalypse? I think I've been listening to too much NPR.

Thanksgiving was swell. I spent far too much time cleaning and rearranging the house, I cooked way too much food, and I almost forgot the cranberry sauce. Now that the windows are washed, the books and bookshelves are dusted and once again color coordinated, the family room has a new coat of paint, the leftovers are gone (except for the port blue cheese ball), and the table is clear of dirty dishes, we're ready to turn the living room into craft central (click to see what craft central looked like two years ago). There will be knitting and sewing, for sure. I just taught Avery how to knit continental, as opposed to the American way I taught her a few years ago, and she is diligently working on a scarf. She also came up with a very clever repurposed scarf pattern which I will share later this week. Can you believe it? Two posts in one week! Well, at least that's the plan.

'Til then, be well, stay warm and write back. I'd love to hear what you're up to.