Had an urge to call Karin today, which I did and was glad. There's something about hearing the voice of a good friend over a phone line on a cold night that makes the world just a little warmer.

And it is definitely cold. We had to bring the cat in last night, as temperatures were down into the teens (F). Tonight looks to be the same way. It's a dry cold, the kind that makes your nose hurt. I got the kids new gloves last night, and they insisted on wearing them to the mall today to have their pictures made. We were just in and out of the car, but it was cold enough that those mittens came in handy.

(The pictures were a go. As usual, I waited until the last minute and got fleeced on the price, in spite of my coupon. But I got some beautiful sepia-toned portraits out of the deal, in which Katie is actually smiling instead of simply mashing her teeth together.)

Have also been thinking about writing lately... I think my characters are finally getting restless, which is a good thing. I have a recurring image in my head of Cam (from Storm Clouds) in a sky-blue cloak, looking out a leaded glass window at a snow-covered landscape. The room is lit by a huge candelabra, and he's thinking about Hannukah.

It's not a thought exactly -- more of an upwelling. But upwellings are the first sign that something is afoot. Kind of like the lava domes in Mt. St. Helens.

I wrote a few more lines on "Evergreen" today. I'm going to finish that story if it kills me. It's almost 11,000 words long at this point.