And more to come. I pause, look down at my lit-up computer keyboard. I am attempting to convince myself that all the hard work on the Bright Lights Book Project is going to pay off – the question is, in what way? Maybe this is the problem – I am not sure that I know the answer to this question.

First of all, what do I want for me? Same old same old. More space for my horses. A friend to ride with. A centered riding person to provide me with lessons. A group of people to trail ride with.

I very much want to do another long trip, not one in which we travel from place to place by car and trailer, and then do trail rides. This summer we did not do any lengthy rides. It was good because it enabled me to realize that I can ride just about anywhere. But I want to do an extended trip.

Alys in NY-2000 CC trip

I’d be up for moving to Homer, Alaska because then we could horseback ride, bicycle, and sea kayak. Plus, the Mat-Su Valley is continuing to grow. I am no longer a bicyclist. I’m a car driver. I want to get around by bicycle, like I used to.

I want more time to write. More time to read. Some time to draw and cartoon.

This is enough for now.

And for the Bright Lights Book Project? I’d like for it to become a full-blown literacy center, with classes being offered in adult and children’s literacy. I would like to teach nonfiction writing classes and develop the writing component. This is something that I’ve always wanted – it would be minus the stultifying demands of academe.

As for the book end (pun intended), I would like simply to be a book screener. Others can sort, stamp, clean, and categorize.

I can’t seem to get around the fact that the best place for this center is the Eagle Hotel. There is plenty of room here, for what I envision, and there would be a revenue stream.

In considering this wish list, I wonder if there is a large enough pool of applicants in our area.

Change does seem to be a constant. We now have developmentally disabled teenagers coming in and cleaning books three days a week. This means that I have to be there three days a week, at 1 p.m., before they get there. And we have to have enough children’s books on hand for them to clean. Today we noticed that for the first time in a long time, we were short on books. So after work (if there is such a thing), Pete and I went to U-Haul and grabbed more of the books that Milena, who used to be our President, left us.

So we now have enough books on hand for this and maybe next week.

And we may have a volunteer sent over from the Department of Health and Human services. Gosh, I am going to have to be even more accountable.

I pause. The end is not in sight.

Next: 246. 9/10/24: A huge Yawn