This morning, a snow squall, some wind, some snow, the wind blowing the snow sideways. Began around 8:00 a.m. I worked from 10:15 to 11:00 a.m., and every so often I looked out the window in order to see if there was any change in the weather. There was not. We left here to go to town at 11:15 a.m. As soon as we headed down Buffalo Mine Road, the weather changed. The sky was partly cloudy; there was no snow or wind. By the time we got to town, it was partly cloudy/partly sunny. I looked over at the distance, in the direction of our place. The sky was blue gray.

I decided not to think about what it might be like over here, and instead focused on my job. Leila Peterson who I’d heard about previously, is the Eagle Scout who built a little library at the Matanuska River Park, came to the historic Eagle Hotel to both learn about what we were doing and to do some Scout-related service work.

She worked today for several hours, cleaning books. She got to meet Pam, and Alicia and her son Clark and her daughter Beth. Alicia is a volunteer who just got back from a trip. Alicia took several board books, which she’s going to pass on at a baby shower. And Leila briefly met Cherokee, who interrupted my conversation with Leila by reminding me to make sure that everyone locks the inner door.

I don’t know what Leila thought about the project or all of us. She was very quiet. But she did say that she will ask other Eagle scouts if they’d like to do volunteer work.

It is true, this project has, over time acquired a life of its own. I am a visionary, not a leader, so I have depended upon others to take the bull by the horns and run with it. The bull is still very strong, and although we aren’t hanging on for dear life, the grip remains tenuous. I now have to put my energies into getting more books out the door. This is my least favorite thing to do, but I will do this because I don’t want for us to have more books on hand than space. This is what I most fear. I also don’t like making phone calls, but this too is something that I must do.

I don’t like to text. I won’t text. Seems non-sensical to me.

We left for home at 3:15 p.m. Got home, the sky was partly sunny, partly cloudy. I took Raudi for a walk. She was very energetic, and in fact, she got away from me twice. Unlike the other two mares, who have never gotten away from me, she knows how to do this, which makes her unreliable. But both times she ran ahead a short ways, and then she stopped and waited for me. She can see something 100 times, and the 101st time she gets blown out of shape about it. And I don’t even know what it was that she was so concerned about.

Hoping there is that word for good weather tomorrow.

Next: 5. 1/5/24: State of Squalor Holler Address