Happy Leap Day

frog jump1, originally uploaded by itslikethis999.

In the official Blog365 guidelines — the "rules" for the challenge of blogging every day in 2008 — we are not supposed to blog today. This is a leap year, and this 366th day is a day of rest.

We’re also not supposed to blog about not blogging.

Obviously I’ve chosen to disregard this rule. I have been enjoying writing something every day, even if it’s short on length and depth. So: My apologies to the Blog365 members. I mean no harm or offense. It’s just that I like to write.

Let me use this post to follow up on issues raised in other posts this month:

I am no longer quite so concerned about Punxatawney Phil retaining his lead in accuracy of Spring/Winter forecasts. I would much prefer for this winter to end right now. Two more weeks of this will not do.

How am I doing with my plan to exercise 40 minutes a day for 40 days? Terribly. I think I’ve managed about 3 days of exercise all month. I’ve come to terms with this.

Cathy Day’s reading from her book "Comeback Season was rescheduled due to snow. She’ll be reading on Friday, March 21 at 7pm instead. Even if Punxy Phil was right about the winter weather, we should be clear of the white stuff by then.

Today, I placed a special order for creme de violette with the PLCB. I don’t know when the stuff will arrive, but I’ll post about the whole process then. I’m so looking forward to having a new cocktail too!

My niece continues to be adorable, and my photo of her and me wearing bowls on our heads continues to be highly ranked in Google when you search for pretty hats (at least for now). I gave a short talk about search-engine-friendly blogging at Refresh Pittsburgh, and I’ll be posting my presentation and some follow up thoughts soon. Sorry for the wait.

Planning for PodCamp Pittsburgh 3 is moving along. Our next meeting will be March 26 at the Creative Treehouse, at 7PM. (Note the later time.)

So far, three people have sent me letters for my handwritten letter project, and one person filled in the form for me to write to her first. It is delightful to receive a piece of mail that is not a catalog, a flyer, or a bill! I’ve written to two of my new penpals, and I owe the other two still. (I’m very sorry for the wait.) And, one of the lovely people whom I replied to has written back to me — a true penpal! This is very fun.

Quite a few people have shown themselves to be excellent six-word memoirists.

The cold or flu or whatever that I caught this week continues to linger. Last night was terrible, with my temperature climbing to 101, but I think I might be doing a bit better today. In any case, I’m soothing my brain with repeated viewings of "Pride and Prejudice," fast-forwarding past the Mr. Collins and Mrs. Bennett bits to watch the scenes between Elizabeth and Darcy. You might think this would grow old quickly; ordinarily I would expect this to grow old quickly too, but it’s an indicator of the state of my health that it has not. It is, in fact, perfect.

A side effect of watching this much Jane Austen: My sentence structure and word choice are becoming increasingly florid. Or maybe that’s just my fevered brain at work.

And with that, I must go. A fresh cup of hot tea and Mr. Darcy await.