1. What’s the perfect go-with for your favorite hot beverage? I don't really like hot beverages..
2. What’s the perfect go-with for your favorite cold beverage? Pasta, sandwiches, etc
3. What’s the perfect go-with for a clear, sunny Saturday? A strawberry milkshake
4. What’s the perfect go-with for waiting in a long line? A book or phone
5. What’s the perfect go-with for seeing a fantastic stage play? Grandma's curtains used as a scarf around my neck LOL

It's been rainy today..Danae and I just get this weird feeling before it rains. It's hard to explain..a heaviness, maybe? Barometric pressure is weird :P

My parents and I have been watching the spaceship return to Earth, and Curti got up on the TV stand and was trying to catch the shuttle haha! He's so cute :P

( april 4-10 )

A love story that defies social boundaries: The House in the Cerulean Sea by T.J. Klune (Feb 26-Mar 19). Since the bookstore isn't doing bookclub anymore, a few of us decided to continue ourselves, and this was the last book we read. It was wholesome and squishy haha, the kids were so fun! We're going to read the next one (Somewhere Beyond the Sea) in May since we liked the first one

A book that makes you feel FOMO: Pouncing on Murder by Laurie Cass (Feb 27-Mar 4). I feel like I'm missing out on the beauty of Michigan when I read this series, the author describes it so well! Eddie the cat in the book says "mrr," and I've caught Curti saying the same thing haha

A book where gardening or a garden is central to the plot: This Little Kitty in the Garden by Karen Obuhanych (Mar 5). Such lovely illustrations!

A book with a "type C" character: The Body in the Bookstore by Ellie Alexander (Mar 7-10). Detail-oriented, methodical, and analytical individuals who thrive on logic, structure, and precision..yep, those are the traits of many people who work at bookstores. Agatha Christie was mentioned throughout the book, like The Mysterious Affair at Styles being the first Poirot book, and a couple days later I got to use that trivia at work..Danae was like "I love that you just know that off the top of your head" haha

A book you meant to read in 2025: My Beloved Monster: Masha, the Half-Wild Rescue Cat Who Rescued Me by Caleb Carr (Mar 11-17). He bonded with Masha kind of like how I bonded with Abby. The love of a cat is so special <3

A book you were hoping would fit into a prompt but doesn't: Cat with a Clue by Laurie Cass (Mar 18-24). Minnie the Librarian comes across way too many dead bodies than is realistic, but at least the series is entertaining :P

A book that takes place during harvesting season: Wrong Side of the Paw by Laurie Cass (Mar 25-29). Oof, definitely the worst in the series..it didn't have the same vibe as the others and Eddie wasn't in this book as much as the others. They're getting repetitive too, so I should probably take a break from them..

( the topics )

Here's what the National Weather Service said yesterday: "Fairbanks, we just lived through the history books. The numbers are in, and the December to March 2025-26 season will go down as the all-time record coldest for Fairbanks since records began in 1904. With an average temperature of -13.6°F, we’ve edged out the legendary winter of 1965-66 to take the #1 spot.

Persistence: 150 consecutive days and counting at or below freezing, marking the longest stretch the Interior has seen since the early 1970s.

Extreme Cold: We saw 31 days at or below -40°F, the fourth-highest count on record and the most since 1965. Additionally, 72 days reached at or below -20°F, and 52 days fell to at or below -30°F, with 66 days not even getting above 0°F."

Last March was also the coldest in recorded history..the average temperature was -9, obliterating the previous record of -6 in 1959. That was definitely a crazy winter!! Someone on Facebook said this was their first winter, and they feel like they have superpowers haha! Next week it's supposed to get into the 40s!! We earned that warm weather :P

30. How are you feeling today? Yesterday was alright..still getting cool books at work!

31. What is your favorite thing about mornings right now? Reading in bed, cleaning/shelving books, eating yummy vanilla cake haha

April 1: What are some things that you've bought recently? Books, food, an April bus pass, etc

Now I know why the bookstore has been CRAZY busy the last couple of days: someone in the Fairbanks Facebook group posted a couple pics of the bookstore and said this: "Shout-out to Forget-Me-Not Books!! Staff extremely polite/helpful and serve a huge purpose to our community. Great place for used books which supports the Literacy Council of Alaska." 87 people liked/loved the post. Awww, that is so cool!! Everyone's hard work (that we enjoy!) is definitely paying off. This morning a kid ran up to the door, and when I unlocked it and let him in he was like "yay, I love this bookstore!!" I'm glad the atmosphere is fun again <3 (everyone probably has Spring Fever since the weather has gotten warmer too lol)

For the first time in a long time, my doctor got my glasses prescription right on the FIRST try! They're not *perfect,* but he said they wouldn't be because my prescription is so complicated. When I take them off, my eyes get really confused haha, it's a weird feeling! (The prisms help my right eye, which has strabimus, point in the right direction.) It's nice when I don't have to keep going back to the doctor lol

Here are the songs I've picked up on Shazam since I last updated in October:

"Lose Control"-Teddy Swims
"Twilight Zone"-Golden Earring
"Behind Blue Eyes"-The Who (sometimes I just want a fast way to look at the lyrics)
"Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood"-The Animals
"War Pigs"-Black Sabbath
"Motorcycle"-Colter Wall
"Wobble"-Flo Rida
"Despacito"-Luis Fonsi & Daddy Yankee. THIS was the song that was crazy popular a few years ago?? Not what I expected haha
"A Hundred and Sixty Acres"-Marty Robins
"I Second That Emotion"-Smokey Robinson & the Miracles
"Ain't That a Kick in the Head"-Dean Martin
"Come a Little Bit Closer"-Jay & the Americans
"Money for Nothing"-Dire Straits
"While My Guitar Gently Weeps"-The Beatles
"White Rabbit"-Jefferson Airplane (one of the songs featured at that book trivia event. I heard it the next day, I think)
"Never Going Back Again"-Fleetwood Mac
"Blaze of Glory"-Bon Jovi (probably wanted a fast way to read the lyrics or didn't recognize it at first)
"The Stroke"-Billy Squier. After reading those lyrics, it's obvious what that song is about LOL
"(Don't Fear) the Reaper"-Blue Oyster Cult. Sometimes I don't recognize the song at first when played live..has a different sound or something
"Am I Okay?"-Megan Moroney
"I Drink Alone"-George Thorogood & the Destroyers
"Soul Kitchen"-The Doors

( 28. What are three things from this past month that have been stressful? )

1. What is the film of your pre-teens? The Mummy Returns, LOTR, etc
2. What is the song of your teens? "Battlefield"-Blind Guardian, "Guardiani Del Destino"-Rhapsody, etc
3. What is the TV show of your twenties? Game of Thrones, Deadliest Catch, etc
4. What is the book of your thirties? The Worst Journey in the World, And Then There Were None, etc
5. What is the song of March 20, 2026? I'm still loving both "Night Castle" and "Sanctuary!" I threw in some Gregorian Chant in earlier too..so soothing!

Finally this cold weather is coming to an end, it's supposed to be in the teens and 20s this next week!! That's going to feel amazing. This March has had the most days (7) with minimum temperatures at or below -40 out of every March since 1942! The 18th tied the 3rd latest -40 observation on record. Even people who LIKE cold weather are getting tired of it haha. We've definitely had more than enough :P

Danae and I keep talking about the fact that if she hadn't been hired when she did and people finding out about us taking donations again, the bookstore probably would have had to close (I kept begging Shelby last year to take donations, but she wouldn't listen to me). We were on the edge of disaster and I hope to never experience that again. On Tuesday, we got 800 donations!! (We have to count all our donations, maybe for grant purposes?) The atmosphere is happier, we're getting really great books in (which the customers love too), lots of people are stopping by again..Danae and I are loving it! Danae said she looks forward to going to work because of all the donations, and she loves working with me..aww. We work so well together we don't have to say anything, one of us will count donations and the other will work the register, and we switch at some point during the day. We also have great volunteers, and all our collective efforts have really turned things around and it's become a fun place again. Yay! I'm so grateful. We might have a bit too many books now, but it's better than having none haha

( march 14-20 )

A year ago today, Curti adopted me! He was SO tiny haha. He was pretty scared when I first held him, but after a few minutes he relaxed and started purring..I had been chosen! He can definitely be a handful, but his cuteness makes up for that haha. He LOVES jumping, a common trait of Siberian Forest Cats. He's curious and has to be in the middle of everything, begs me to pick him up when I comes home, is very smart (he learned his name in like 5 seconds haha), loves playing chase, etc. I'm so glad we found each other <3

And then there's this: "The Interior just endured a deep freeze that will be talked about in the years to come. From February 25 through March 11, the average temperature at Fairbanks International Airport plummeted to -20°F, officially marking the coldest such period recorded this late in the season. This frigid stretch didn't just edge out the past; it shattered the previous record of -17°F (1971)...the dramatic nose dive illustrates a level of cold rarely seen in over a century of data. Whether you waited in line for heating oil or were just trying to get the car to turn over, you just endured a historic stretch of weather that's one for the books!" Wow. It's not really going to warm up anytime soon either. People on the bus today were grouchy, so it's getting to a lot of people. I hope this doesn't mean the summer will be cold too..

( 12. Name five people you admire, and discuss why )

1. How confidently could you find Japan on a globe? I just tried using a blank map and then a map with the country names and I was correct, so pretty confident haha
2. Many words from the Japanese language have made their way into English. Which have you used recently? Maybe karaoke? I was showing Danae the karaoke I did to "Do You Hear the People Sing?" the other day, so it's possible I said it then. I was just looking at Japanese words on Google and I hadn't known "honcho" came from a Japanese word! It sounds more Western lol
3. The idea of wabi-sabi is finding beauty in imperfection and transience. Which imperfect items in your home do you absolutely love? The three-legged lizard I made in middle school, my journal that's falling apart, well-read books, etc
4. In Japan, punctuality is legendary. On a scale from “Five Minutes Early” to “Fashionably Late,” where do you usually land? Five minutes early..I absolutely HATE being late and find it stressful. I'm usually like 20 minutes early when waiting for the bus (or more, if the bus is late). If I'm early, I have time to read and relax
5. Which notable people of Japanese ancestry do you especially admire or appreciate? I don't know a lot about Yoko Ono, but she seems nice lol

On Wednesday a local brewery was hosting a "Bookish Trivia Night," and Danae and Shelby set up a table there with our merch and vouchers for the store, and we had free books people could take. I love trivia, but never get to play trivia games because a lot of people I know hate them, so I definitely had to check it out! The place was SUPER loud, which was annoying..they should have held the event in a private location or something. There were different categories, like "Name That Tune," where the host played a 30 second clip of a song and you had to name the song, artist and the literary reference in the song. The first one was super easy, "Love Song" by Taylor Swift, about Romeo and Juliet. Since it was Dr. Seuss's birthday, there was a category about him too. Mom and I got a pretty low score overall, but other groups had like six people..not fair, but at least I got to see how it worked! I told Danae to tell me about other trivia nights, because I'm a nerd haha

My coworker Christian indeed had a series of mini strokes on Tuesday, but after a night at the hospital he felt much better, and was able to come back to work yesterday. That was scary, I hope it doesn't happen again!

I like to listen to music when cleaning books and eating lunch at work, and this week all of a sudden I wanted to listen to music from The Hunchback of Notre Dame for the first time in years..I had forgotten how epic it is! And listening to "Hellfire" as an adult... O__o I didn't understand the full impact of that song even as a teenager, but Frollo is very attracted by Esmeralda and he hates it (I love the "mea culpa" in between him saying it's not his fault). In the morning he says he "had trouble with the fireplace," which had me DYING..he stayed up all night consumed by his fiery sexual urges LOL. I wonder what parents thought of THAT scene when they watched it for the first time haha. One of the best Disney movies/soundtracks!!

( march 4-6 )

It's been a year since I had to say goodbye to Abby, one of the saddest days of my life. She was amazing and I miss her every day. After she died and I went to bed, I felt a presence at my feet..it was definitely Abby, telling me she was still there in a way. I was always amazed at how she loved EVERYONE, how calm she would be going into an unfamiliar place. She loved Greenies and would expect them as soon as I came home from work haha. I loved her "mmmgh!" when she was surprised. Once she licked my tears away when crying. We were definitely soulmates. I hope she's not mad I adopted Curti haha (she definitely did NOT like other cats). I'll have a vanilla bean frappuccino later in memory of her! <3

I went to the dentist earlier..he looked at the extraction site and saw a tiny clot, but not much else, so it seemed to be a partial dry socket. After I got the tooth pulled, I left the gauze on too long, and pulled part of the clot out with the gauze. Yikes, I won't do that again! On Saturday it was so painful I broke out in a sweat, and eating cold things was SUPER painful. At the dentist, he put some kind of medicated strip thing in the extraction site..it was SO painful when he was squishing it in there. D: Thankfully, it has helped A LOT and it'll stay there about a week. I hope it heals quickly now. I'm exhausted after being in pain for so long! No more extractions, please D:

( 2. What is your favorite color, and why? )

1. How confidently do you open a bottle of wine or champagne? I don't think I've ever tried lol
2. When did you last cut something with scissors? Yesterday
3. Which of your household tools is fancier than necessary? I don't think any of them are super fancy..
4. When did you last wield a hammer? Years ago
5. What is your can opener like? I probably have one, but I don't think I've ever used it..it's probably a regular one though..

I've still been in a LOT of pain since I got my tooth pulled, a very deep ache, which is exhausting and makes my head feel fuzzy. I finally couldn't take it anymore and went to the clinic (my dentist is closed on Fridays)..he prescribed a high dose of Motrin and antibiotics (he said the extraction site looked a little angry). Hopefully that'll help! I feel like I've been in pain this whole month, ugh. I'm ready to feel normal again lol. I also went to the eye doctor (my vision has gotten a little blurry), and I'm back to -7 in my right eye, yayy me. :P My prisms changed the most, so much that he can't put the full strength in my lenses, but should be able to see well most of the time. I hope I can keep my current frames, I get compliments on them and I love the color!

And here's yet another pic of Curti being cute hehe:

"If I fits, I sits!!" Awww! His facial structure makes him look perpetually surprised lol

( feb 26-27 )

1. What has recently tugged at your heart strings? At work Danae has been working to clear snow around the building at work, but there's still a "ledge" there (she only has so many spoons..more than me though lol). Yesterday a customer in a wheelchair couldn't get over the ledge, so she had to get out of her wheelchair so her bus driver could get it over the hump, and then the lady had to CRAWL over to where her wheelchair was! I saw her do that one other time at the bookstore's previous location, and about died because I thought she had fallen! It was upsetting to both Danae and I..the customer didn't seem too fazed, but it's still not ok! Alaska is definitely not a great place for wheelchairs. The lady is pretty tough though, she was telling me about the snow she had to shovel around her house..she must have great upper body strength! We were glad when she got safely on the bus, phew!
2. How much yarn do you have in your house? I have a couple things made from yarn, if that counts..
3. When did you last throw someone a line, or when did someone last throw you a line? Danae and I help each other out at work, if that counts
4. With whom are your conversations a tightrope-walk? Shelby..she's very intimidating! Not very empathetic either :/
5. When did you most recently rope someone in to something they were reluctant to do? Maybe when I saw the doctor's assistant on Monday..

It's chilly out, but SO nice and sunny for once! The brightness hurt my eyes after so many gloomy days (we got almost two feet of snow in ten days!). It's exhilarating not having a migraine! The customers were happy too lol. It's not going to last though..an even bigger storm is expected to arrive Sunday and last until Tuesday. They're predicting total snow accumulations between 8 and 16 inches!!! D: That's crazy, we have enough snow now!! I hope I don't get migraines again, though thankfully I have that awesome new medicine lol

This morning I went to put my boot on and felt something in it..Curti left me a gift of his favorite white mouse toy! Awwww, he loves me!! So cute and touching <3

( 20. What is family life like right now? )

1. What do you picture when you think of lawyers? A courtroom, lawyers arguing/defending, lots of money to pay haha, etc
2. What do you picture when you think of accountants? Someone in an office on a computer, doing mathy stuff :P
3. What do you picture when you think of clergy? Catholic priests in fancy robes, and maybe carrying candles, fancy churches, etc
4. What do you picture when you think of garbagemen? Men on trucks jumping down and getting trash out of trash cans. I also wonder if they realize how important they are..when it was -40, the garbagemen couldn't collect the trash, and it all piled up..it made the hallway where I live smell awful! Pretty crazy lol
5. What do you picture when you think of a best friend? Dana, fun times with friends, a supportive/happy person, San Diego, etc

Ugh, my migraines have been worse this month..I might need a higher dose of Amitriptyline. Yesterday I checked the weather and it said a big snowstorm is coming tonight/early tomorrow..yep, that'll do it (Danae is sensitive and could feel it too). Annoying lol

( feb 7-13 )