January Proper

As mentioned before, it's been bright and blistering cold. I like the way the dog has, since the temperature dropped, migrated up from the foot of the bed to sleeping with his head directly on the pillow next to me in this absurdly human repose. He sleeps soundly, and when I say his name, he bolts up in confusion just as you or I might do, the rowdy furs around his ears forming a wild approximation of old man's bed head.

Despite winter, snowboarding hasn't happened for me at all this month due to work, work every single day. However, I've been skating, skating despite the cold, each time feeling almost worse and less capable on my board than the last—fatter and lazier feet, creaking bones, muscles that don't move, nothing coming naturally but rather brutally after much hard work, sweat and swear words. A thaw would be nice, for my skating at least ... just sayin.

Melissa's house. A perfect Portland backyard, no?