Northwest redux.

Today I arrived in Portland, aka Portlandia, to . . . overcast skies and cooler than average temperatures. By noon-ish, though, there was actual sun, and it felt warm but not hot. Perfect, in other words. I understand that something like this is happening in the S.L.C. Boo ya. Summer, you guys.

Tomorrow it's Powell's and another book-buying extravaganza. I intend to find a big fat used copy of Lady Murasaki's Tale of Genji. In a conversation with middlebrow yesterday, I heard about his plan for reading, what was it? Large Literature? Big Fat Books? I don't know--he's reading Tom Jones right now, then moving on to Tristram Shandy. I will be reading Lady Murasaki this summer. Along with piles of detective fiction. Also lots of poetry, of which I acquired a bunch in Seattle and will be combing the Powell's shelves for more.

In a related development, we plan on building some more shelves at home.