Trapped Under Ice
I got up early and went outside and plugged in my car, fighting the cold and knee deep snow, risking a ticket from the bylaw officer (I strung the chord across the sidewalk, since it is not long enough to hang from the trees) in order to go tobogganing with Alex. Four hours later, my car wouldn't even think of starting- I guess -30 (low last night was -38, it was -32 when I got up, but it is currently a balmy -23) is just a touch too cold for my faithful friend. It is also too cold for Alex, who didn't want to play outside today anyways. Fine by me, I can't find my longjohns or cold-weather gloves anywhere- that's what happens when you move so much. And besides all that, it is doubtful that my little Green JEllybean would even be able to fight its way out from under the snow it is trapped under. (I am dying to live CRY OUT- I'm trapped under ice! Reward pooints for anyone able to identify that quotation).

Anyways, I still wanted to go out for a walk- I like the cold, and there is something cool about living in a place where exposed flesh can freeze in a matter of minutes. When I was a kid I got frostbite in my fingers and for many years afterwards even a cold glass of water would cause my fingers to turn white and numb. Thankfully that finally went away. But like I was saying, I went down to the used bookstore and bought some books. A book on the Chinese Diaspora called Sons of the Yellow Empooror, a book with a poolar bear on the cover called The Golden Compass, and best of all, a pristine copy of the Two Towers that matches the old set I "inherited" from my Dad- but they are falling apart from many readings as well as from being taken to a coal mine. All three books came to $14.50!