Brad Mehldau Trio is on the turntable (their album Blues And Ballads, not the whole band; they'd break the whole shelf) playing "And I Love Her." And I love it. 

I've poured a short glass of scotch with one ice cube. Whiskey is the only thing I enjoy slowly. Mostly I gulp and bolt things. I want to slow down but just don't. Whiskey is slow and that's what I like best about it.

Stephanie is in the shower and when she comes out can use the sink. For five days it has been plugged beyond anything I know to clear it. Anything but the plumber who took things apart, snaked a muskrat out of the pipe (might have been hair, but I saw eyes), and the water she flows again. 

The snow has melted enough that the roads are dry though riddled with potholes and bumps. We got fourteen inches Friday into Saturday, but it's all cleared and piled along the sides of driveways and roads. A clear driveway makes me happy and reminds me of Dad. 

The dog snores when she sleeps on her blanket three feet away and is intriguing accompaniment for Mehldau's jazz trio. And I love her too, though this wheezing and snoring is odd. She needs whiskey. 

Both daughters are at school tonight. One is rehearsing the musical until past my bedtime. (I've been known to be in bed by 7:30 saying I'm going to read but falling asleep before eight. I really am 87 years old and get the hell off my lawn you damn kids.) The other is at mock trial until a slightly different time than the other. Having two children means driving to and from the high school more times than I can count, though I can't count very high. Back in my day, we used to walk...

Having railed against Amazon for weeks, I of course ordered a printer cartridge from them. They had a ridiculously low price and we were snowed in pretty well when I ordered. It was so convenient! So convenient, I ordered the wrong one and will spend eight bucks to send it back. Meanwhile, Best Buy had the right one, two miles away, and get this: they match Amazon's price if I ask nicely. Had I bought the wrong one at Best Buy, I could have returned it for free. But Amazon is convenient. Place your best on when I might learn my lesson. 

I figured out that I have about 2,000 days on the job before I can retire. Stephanie says that's no way to think about it (as she took away sharps and poisons). Take it one day at a time, she said. She didn't sing the One Day At A Time theme song, which surprised and saddened me, but the message was clear. 

So I took just today, this one day at a time, and you know what? It totally sucked. What does she know? 

Brad Mehldau is playing "My Valentine" now and it might just be a perfect song the way he plays it.

I have this record, a turntable, an amplifier, and a great pair of speakers. I'm sipping good scotch. My lovely wife will come down soon. Our printer works as does most of our plumbing. The dog snores but is every way love itself. 

There's every chance I may learn not to panic every time I feel sad. I may come to believe again in possibilities for my future. I suppose almost anything is possible.

At least when Brad Mehldau is playing and Stephanie is walking down the stairs to be with me.