Hmm, this is one Monday where I feel less prepared than usual. Let’s see, what’s new?

-We took the Magpie back to college yesterday, and already the house seems much quieter. Sadly, her roommate had to leave school at the midpoint and she was assigned a new roomie. The good news is, they seem to have hit it off so far.

-After a week of relatively warm temperatures, it looks like we’re heading back down into the single digits, with a smattering of sub-zero nights ahead. Interestingly, when I used to work at a particular environmental education center on Long Island (roughly 5 years in two different stints) I remember Martin Luther King Day weekend as being the coldest of the year, and we always had groups, usually Girl Scouts, at the place. Meanwhile, our family has been up here for ten years now (wait–almost 11) and it definitely seems like the trend has been for warmer (relatively) winters with the bulk of the snow occurring later in the winter than it used to. Of course, I haven’t kept records, and ten years is nothing when we’re talking about climate patterns, but still.

-On the writing front, I actually put some time into a ‘new’ project that has languished for quite some time while I was wrasslin’ with BARTON’S WOMEN. I’m a little stuck with it, though this could be because it’s been ignored for so long. Meanwhile, I edited my short piece for the Elephant’s Bookshelf Winter anthology, and finished edits for the three pieces I have going in my writers’ circle book. I have been quite fortunate so far to have worked with editors who are very professional and very qualified. An interesting thing is that the process for me (so far) has been much like working with a beta reader–yet different at the same time.

-We caught up on BBC’s Sherlock–I have to say, the episodes were interesting and entertaining, and while Benedict Cumberbatch’s Holmes can be a complete tool, it’s really nice to see that he’s a little more human, a little more cognizant of how he affects people–though he still can’t help but be a tool on occasion. I’m curious to see how they handle the new dynamic, what with Watson ***spoiler!*** being married. Hopefully, Mary will get to be more than just a pretty face, and a pressure point for bad guys to get to Watson. She’s off to a good start.***end spoiler!***

-Cracked into A Dance With Dragons this week. It’s slow going so far, as I reacquaint myself with characters who were largely missing from A Feast For Crows. I’ve found most of the Martin books to be this way, a little bumpy at the start, then picking up and providing one hell of a ride.

-Hmm, time for some music, perhaps? Sure, why not:

-And that’s it for me–how was your weekend?