Another first, a significant one. The nicest thing about July First is that there are two whole months of summer ahead of us. I plan to clock a lot of balcony time, with lovely work to do. I was telling someone about the files and clippings and notes and ideas I have been collecting for about five (more) years and my hope to get through them all this summer, reduce them to file cards, chapter headings, outlines, and so on. Virtual ones, some of it, to stash in my hard drive and elsewhere, but lots and lots of paper, too. Paper is very comforting, and it doesn't disappear if you press the wrong button. Anyway, this person looked at me in horror and said, "You like that?1" Yes, I do. I love paper. I love words. I love ideas. How could I not like that? This will all be in preparation for my writing retreat in Saskatchewan in October. It's nice to have a goal and a deadline. On the other hand, whatever happened to the vast amounts of leisure I thought I would be wallowing in by the time I was this age? Not there, not here, not yet. I guess I'll have to live a little longer.