This morning, at 7 a.m., Pete woke me, saying that there were swallows on the swallow house outside our bedroom window. I opened one eye, and saw the male, sitting on top of the house, and the female, or rather her tail feathers, sticking out of the house. So here we go again.

Last year, swallows occupied the house. I do not know if they are the same birds or not. I’d really like to know. I guess this is going to remain one of life’s great mysteries. And I suppose, it’s good not to be all knowing. Then, there would be nothing left to know. Curiosity is what keeps us mentally active.

Corky's sculpture

Other birds – magpies, robins, chickadees, among others are picking up the horsehair on the ground and using it to build their nests. This is why after brushing the horses, I leave it on the ground.

I had hoped that this was a stay-at-home day. It was not to be. First, Pete and I went to VCRS and salvaged a pallet and a half of books. It was a good haul. We have noticed that the Bishop’s Attic Thrift Store books have been picked through, so they’re fair in terms of what is readable. However, private donations designated for us have not been picked through, so they’re quite good in terms of what is readable. We had a pallet of each to sort through.

We are always on the lookout for kids’ books, and with events coming up, we need a good supply.

Bill had other things to do, so instead we were joined by our friend Gene, who was a huge help. We finished unloading the books at the Meeting House just in time to respond to a phone call from our friend Robert, who wanted us to go to Wasilla, to a car dealership, and check out a Nissan.

This wasn’t what I had in mind, but I tried to keep an open mind. Robert had already enlisted the services of Stormy, a car dealer, and she had papers in hand. I suspect in hearing Robert, that she really got her hopes up. In seeing my unsmiling face, these hopes were dashed. I don’t like disappointing people, but conversely, this was to be a big decision on my part.

We next went to Anchorage, to the Subaru dealer and talked with Jhmie (this is how she spells her name) – she showed us a price list. We can, she noted, get a new vehicle for the price of the used one for sale at the Fairbanks dealership. We left it at that. This car, it got my vote. I am not getting my hopes up. The guys have two votes, and I just have one.

And then, we went to Title Wave books and left with 20 plus boxes of children’s books. There. Problem solved. We now have enough children’s books on hand for upcoming events, including the reading rendezvous in Anchorage on the 20th.

Tomorrow will be a day at home, for us and for the birds.

Next: 125. 5/7/23: Science of Reading Symposium