Abilene appears to be drowning, or at the very least, it's soggy and wet under yet another grey blanket of rain clouds. I know it's near blasphemy for a West Texan to complain about rain, but we've had weeks of it. For heaven's sake, we are literally an inch or two away from our average rainfall for the year!

However, I've been distracting myself for the past week by burying my nose in the Harry Potter series again. I've only read them once before, beginning in fall '05 when Val all but shoved the first one under my nose, and I enjoyed them quite a lot - they're clever, well written, absorbing, and often laugh-out-loud funny. (I adore Fred and George, the Weasley twins, who are first-rate practical jokers, and witty sentences such as "Just then, Neville caused a slight diversion by turning into a large canary.") I've read the first four books over again this week, blazing through them all in a day or two each, which has definitely helped ease the boredom of long, nearly silent hours stuck at the office.

Another recent read that I highly recommend: The Book of Jane, new from my friends Anne and May. If you love chick lit, sharp wit, lovable characters, a well-drawn story or all of the above, go get this book. Now. Read it with your feet propped up, and enjoy it. And then hop on over to their blog to tell them how much you liked it.

Nearing the end of the workday...Happy Monday!