Rogers cut me off for three days, completely, so I was incommunicado. I won't go into the detail I wrote into my whining Word piece - I actually wrote a blog on Word, intending to slip it into cobwebblog when I was back online but that document has disappeared. Just as well. I wasn't happy. Isn't it terrible how dependent we are now on that cable? I took the time to read a lot and that was a blessing. Two books, both recommended:

ALLTHE LIGHT WE CANNOT SEE by Anthony Doerr. According to booksellers it's this year's Goldfinch, a runaway best-seller. I won't say anything about it, just that it's a page-turner and beautifully written.

STONER by John Williams. Actually published in 1965, it has flown under the radar till recently. It began to surface some time last spring. I read a few catchup reviews and I finally caught up with it. I bought both books with book gift coupons. This one is a classic novel, a quiet, clear story that could be depressing but somehow isn't.

As a writer I feel obligated to buy other writers' books rather than borrow them. They need the money. (So do I.) What have you been doing?

Always. More words. But are they useful? Significant? Drivel? I've been awake for a couple of hours, awake but not upright, huddled in a cocoon of blankets, plus my winter duvet. It's cold outside and my apartment can't cope below a certain temperature. I have to add extra shots of will, energy and discipline in order to plunge my shivering body into a swimming pool at 6 a.m. So with all that thinking you would assume that I have a blog to order. Not. I have a potpourri of disparate thoughts still to be organized and packaged.

So I looked up potpourri in Wikipedia:

Potpourri /ˌpoʊ pʊˈriː/ is a mixture of dried, naturally fragrant plant material, used to provide a gentle natural scent inside buildings, most commonly in residential settings. It is usually placed in a decorative (often wooden) bowl, or tied in small sachet made from sheer fabric. Potpourri is used inside the home to give the air a pleasant smell. The word "potpourri" comes into English from the French word "pot-pourri." The French term has two connotations. It is the French name for a Spanish stew with a wide variety of ingredients called "olla podrida," specialty of the town of Burgos. The word was taken and copied by the French military during the Napoleonic occupation of Burgos (1808-1813). Literally, however, the word "pot" in French has the same meaning as it does in Spanish and English, while the word "pourri" means rotten. In English, "potpourri" is often used to refer to any collection of miscellaneous or diverse items.

An olla is a ceramic jar, often unglazed, used for cooking stews or soups, for the storage of water or dry foods, or for other purposes. Ollas have a short wide neck and a wider belly, resembling bean pots or hands. (Wikipedia again)

Olla is a good crossword puzzle word. But in this weather it makes me want to cook up a big stew of some kind. Comfort food. I still don't want to get out of bed, but it's 5:53 and I must swim now. Discipline!