I've occasionally seen a magical device known as a Round Tuit.

That's how much I got written when I started this entry a week and a half ago! I still haven't gotten the Ultimate Round Tuit, but a few little ones keep popping up from under the furniture and the back of the fridge. One just poked it's head up from behind my computer monitor and said perhaps it's time to get a Round Tublogging.

I have two major deadlines this Friday:

1. the registration forms for my students entering the Spring Music Festival are due, meaning I have to have them in the mail by tomorrow, meaning I have been busy doing last-minute finalization of details and forms tonight. That's done--I've licked the stamp, licked the envelope, and gargled with peppermint oil to get rid of the taste! :-)

2. I have to replace around a hundred of my eBay listings, as there is a major price increase going into effect on my saddle pads on Friday. The Canadian dollar has been good for Talena the Consumer, not so good for Talena the Business Owner with an American-Based Supplier. And, it follows, not so good for the customers of said business. Oh, well. C'est la vie.

Besides these two "small" projects, I have been nearly consumed lately doing research on who the "sons of God" mentioned in Genesis 6 and a few places in the New Testament are. It's been a fascinating study, and it's kind of shaken up my established notions of a few things. But it's been good. Anyone curious for a peek at what I mean can visit Michael Heiser's website and click on "The Divine Council."

The temperatures this week have been hovering around -40°. That's the one temperature I don't have to clarify between "F" and "C"! It just means FREAKING COLD no matter how you measure it! Yesterday, in some places close to here, it was -47°C in the morning, and colder than -55°C with the wind chill. Thanks to this little bit of old-fashioned winter weather, our van has decided not to start. Period. It won't even turn over. We boosted it yesterday, and it begrudgingly woke up from hibernation to do its job, but today the lazybones was back to Neverland. Jason thinks it might just be the battery. He's going to replace it, but that presents two challenges: 1) how to get to Canadian Tire to buy a new battery when our only working vehicle is dead in the snowbank, and 2) how to change a battery out in Arctic-like temperatures in mittens, or without going into hypothermia.

Needless to say, we've had a semi-cozy week indoors. I say "semi", because although we have a full load of wood (Praise the Lord!), the only way we could keep our whole drafty house warm in weather like this would be to set it on fire--and while that would make things extra-toasty in here for a while, the life-expectancy of the heat would be a little less than the life-expectancy of the snow and cold. Not to mention, we would then be shelterless. (I guess we'll just keep layering up in our sweaters and turtlenecks.)

Despite my current heavy workload, I have been managing to take little "sanity breaks" and do a little scrapbooking here and there. While my full gallery (which really only has a fraction of my actual layouts in it, due to the work required to scan in my volumes of paper layouts) usually has a pretty current inventory for those who would like to see what I'm up to, I thought I would leave you with this one. I scrapped it yesterday—while the photos are over two years old, the journaling I wrote yesterday was representative of both then and now. (Jude's been fighting a cold this week, and it has made for some long days.)

Oh, that Tuit's back. He brought his friend, Round Tuworking. Guess that means it's time to go.

Miss you, friends! I'd love to hear how you're staying warm in this! Hugs!