Cold, cold, cold. Time to stay inside and do a jigsaw puzzle. We have filled the front window with them and I have one in progress myself . . . Didn't sell as many decks of playing cards this Christmas as we usually do. Has bridge lost its fascination momentarily? Have lived through several cycles if its popularity in our 38 years . . . Farm Show is in progress. Neither Bob nor I have been there for years, but we watch a lot of the events on PCN. Come to think of it, JJ didn't bring me the donuts I was promised. Bet he ate them all before he got to the car . . .

Last night's big game was a disappointment. The loss of the Texas quarterback early on took away all the fizz. I fell asleep in the third quarter and didn't learn the outcome until this morning . . . Retired teacher Jack Brandt finds retirement boring so he is headed back to college (HAAC) to study Spanish. How do you say "good luck" in Spanish? Judy Robinson would know; she tutors students in the language . . . Made an effort to clean my computer keyboard this afternoon. If you know an easy way to do this, I hope you will share with the rest of us. The monitor screen isn't as bad as it used to be. Bob would ask what all the little "dots" were all over it and I had to admit that I didn't know. We eventually realized they were JJ's fingerprints as he pointed to icons, etc. Now that he uses the mouse the prints have all but disappeared . . . Bob finished storing our Christmas decorations at the house. The place always looks so bare for a few weeks after the holidays . . . Bob turns 70 on January 20th. The closer the date the more depressed he becomes. It happens every birthday. We originally considered a big party but that has been scuttled and Bob plans to hibernate. Perhaps that is not such a bad idea considering the weather . . .

A slight break in the freeze--it got above 32 degrees for a few seconds today . . . Robert Murrary reports that the asking price for his house at 810 Green has been reduced to $164,900 . . . We tried the new dishwasher last night and it will take some getting used to. It is one of those energy efficient gadgets that uses less water but takes almost two hours to complete the cycle; seems to me that means more electricity, but who am I to judge. Anyway, it runs so quietly that we weren't sure it was running at all most of the time. In the end Bob proclaimed the dishes cleaner than they had been in years. I hope he wasn't just trying to justify the expense. Think I will read thru the manual again. I rather liked the old days when the machine chugged and rattled and was finished in half an hour . . .

Continued cold with only three visitors. Can't blame you for not coming although the bargains are piling up. Am doing all the "easy" inventory first, so I appear to be making gigantic strides when, in truth, there is a great deal more to do--the hard parts, so to speak . . . Received an e-mail from Bolton Winpenny outlining plans for Freedom to Marry Week in Pennsylvania. Events run from January 30th till February 16th and I was quite impressed with the scope of the activities. A number of them happen right in our neighborhood. The list is extensive and I will mention the local ones as they occur but that will only scratch the surface. You can find a complete rundown at http://freedomtomarrypa.org/. This is by far the largest event of its kind in recent memory . . .

Brrrrrrrr . . . Tom Leonard was our only customer today and a quick walk to the bank told me why. I can't imagine anyone out for a stroll And it is to get worse we are told . . . This is my 194th post on this site--we started back in June--and apparently quite a number visit this log often. I must also assume that none of us is very observant. Got an e-mail today asking "Where are you located?" Somehow I had forgotten to post the address and no one brought that to my attention until today. Thanks, Tracey . . . The day before Christmas was our busiest of the year and with Mark heading for Texas it was just Bob and me to manage. We have to thank (belatedly, I admit) our neighbors Amy and Doug Hill who took pity on us and came bearing newly-made chowder and bread for a quick lunch. Delicious and much appreciated . . . Everyone asks how our season was this year. Happy to report that it was better than last, but to be perfectly candid, the year was our worst since 1974 . . . Between holidays spent a delightful evening with the newlyweds Eric and Joanne and with Rick and Mary Ann Furedi-May. Rick and Mary Ann gave the rest of us shivers as they recounted their research days in the Florida swamps with alligators nipping at their ankles . . . Floridians Pam and Ty Cowell had a nice old-fashioned Christmas tree loaded with Bare Wall ornaments. No palm for them: "It's a fake fir," Pam said . . .

Cold and blustery; I do not function well in weather like this . . . Happy New Year to all our readers . . . It is that time of year when all my friends desert me; no one wants to get roped into taking inventory, particularly in a store like The Bare Wall where merchandise is scattered round several rooms. But I am piling up the bargains, so drop by as soon as the weather permits . . . Bob spent the day packing up the store holiday decor. But we are leaving the tree until last--all the ornaments are on sale . . .

Have spent the last few days OD-ing on football games. (Most of my teams lost.) . . . Bob and I can remember when the bands were a big part of the show. Today we get a lot of know-it-all talking heads at half-time and just a peak at the bands, if that . . . but then, the bands don't perform like they used to. Can you remember the unique formations they would come up with? Bicycles with rotating wheels, airplanes that flew down the field, tilting pots that filled teacups. I guess the only remaining eye-catcher is the "script Ohio" that Ohio State still performs. Texas did the big moving "block T" but I haven't seen that for a long while . . . Our high school band did similar but less complicated formations for games back in the '50s. We were eager to outdo the other band which was just as intent on out-doing us (and none of us had "band camp" back then) . . . I guess music teachers today are not as accomplished as ours were. Bob and I have seen bands at high school games on PCN and the performances on the field are chaotic . . . sad that such a wonderful tradition has been lost. I don't think our young musicians are being given a proper opportunity to strut their stuff. It diminishes the pride and respect that our bandsmen once enjoyed . . .