The temperature here continues to blow and the wind continues to drop. Har har. Reread that sentence the way it’s supposed to be written. Tenacity, as I went about my day today; this word ran, repeatedly, across my mental screen.

I talked with the new Mat-Su College director about my giving the commencement speech today. Hard to say what she thought about my doing this. She holds her cards close to her chest. She may still find someone better qualified who isn’t waiting for a tooth implant. Now if I don’t get this, this won’t be the end of the world.

My job as the executive director of the Bright Lights Book Project is not for the faint of heart. I had presumed that once we moved out of the not so historic Meeting House and into the historic Eagle Hotel that life would be more easy. Well, yeah, in some ways. But in some ways not. The hotel is where the wind don’t blow so strange. There is a wind tunnel near our entrance, a side door. Sometimes it’s hard to stay upright leaving the building. And sometimes it’s hard to stay upright entering the building.

K building health and fitness bookcase

The issue of heat is now a heated issue. The motor that is central to their being heat in the former banquet room died and now the b.r. is cold. Atli, the owner, says that somewhere in the building is a another motor. Somewhere, like the pot of gold at the end of a rainbow. If he can’t find it, he will purchase a new one. In the meantime, we either work in the cold or we go with electric heaters. I don’t like the latter option and have voiced my concerns. I am now being heard. Pete’s on his way to Juneau, so his thoughts are elsewhere.

Back to the subject of tenacity from which I have strayed. I think I dealt with the electric heater issue okay. That I dealt with it at all is a sign of tenacity.

The other issue, the bookcases in the K-building. Today Pete and I drove down the Palmer Wasilla Highway and we talked to business owners about having bookcases in their places of businesses. We got a lukewarm reception – pun intended. Always, in these places, those working have to talk first with their superiors and say that their superiors will get back to us. They seldom do.

But a victory on the tenacity front. For some time I have envisioned our getting a bookcase in the MTA ice arena building. Pete suggested that we talk to someone local who has political clout. This someone talked to John Moosey, the Palmer City Manager, and he told this person with political clout that, sure, we can have a bookcase in this building.

I am very pleased about this. The building is on my distribution route. And right now, we have a lot of sports and fitness books. These books were formerly in the K-Building. So sometime next week we’ll relocate books and bookcase. And the books will have been given a once over, with me discarding those books that were in a holding pattern on the bookcase.

Next: 23. 1/23/24: Out of Words