Not too long ago I signed up for DSL through my phone company. They were running a special where the equipment was free and the setup fee was waived. They sent it via UPS, and it's apparently popping around my city as we speak. Apparently it can only be delivered to me, personally. So, they didn't deliver on the first attempt. I called them to tell them I'd just pick it up. I went out during my lunch today, and it never made it back to the centre--so it's been roaming around on the truck. Sigh. I don't really want to go over there again, since it's on the other side of town, so I asked if they could just deliver to my work, which is just a block away and (presumably) is serviced by the same truck. That's what we're going to try anyway, so I'll keep my fingers crossed.

Today went pretty well. We had a meeting of our local library consortium. That's when librarians from all over the region get together and network/discuss what's going on in their institutions, etc. We lend materials to each other, that kind of thing. I don't know if I've mentioned that I'm a medical librarian (I know Zabet has, usually in connexion to the latest syndrome I think I have. (Medical librarians tend to be hypochondriacs--I don't know any other of my counterparts who can read about strange reactions to medications that slough off the skin without at least itching). Anyway, this meeting was sort of special because I'm the president this year. That sounds more impressive than it is--we're a laid-back group. It basically means that I do the administrative stuff, lead meetings, introduce speakers, and plan programmes. I really think the secretary-treasurer has to do more, because he/she does all the paperwork and handles the money. But it's a good step for me, because I have always had so much trouble getting up and speaking in front of people. I'm slowly getting used to it--I don't have near the anxiety I used to. It helps that I've known most of these people for several years now, and they're supportive. That's especially appreciated, because like many other traditionally "female" professions, librarianship is aging, so I'm younger than most of the others in the group. (I should point out that early librarians were almost exclusively male; it wasn't until Melvil Dewey decided that we had women going to college who were virtually unemployable due to society's bias, which meant they could be had cheaply, appealing to their sense of "service" that the profession became stereotypically female. Or at least that's what I learned from my history of libraries class).

I've spent a quiet evening at home, reading (a hobby, I might add, that I've sadly been unable to persue much lately). I'm re-reading the Amelia Peabody mysteries by Elizabeth Peters. I love those books. Amelia's son, Ramses, reminds me of a friend--he's just the right mixture of Britishness, precocious intellect, pedagoguery, honour, emotional aloofness, and tender-heartedness. If I didn't know better, I'd say the author knew my friend. Of course, she could have based the character on someone else very much like him. Scary to think of more of them out there. :) Don't get me wrong, I love him like a brother, but he's not an easy person to know, although it's certainly worth the effort.

Anyway, I've spent my evening curled up with my cats, my dog, and my book, warm and snug while it snows outside. It's not so much exciting, but I realise how fortunate I am to have my pets, my apartment, etc. It's those simple things in life that I'm learning to appreciate as I get older.

I hear my cat demanding food, so I'll wrap out for now. Maybe tomorrow I'll be online through the DSL. :)