Just to make sure you’re awake, Craig Ferguson just informed me that Christmas is only 45 days away. We now return you to your regularly scheduled three beautiful things:

1. Julia and I meet up as it’s getting toward the newly early eventide. We walk along the Mall, sipping tea, and watching a glorious sunset.

2. Four states opposed hate from the voting booth.

3. The central branch of the Arlington County Public Library is open Sunday evenings until 9 p.m. I have never been to a non-college library that kept such hours before, and it fills an unrealized need in my life.

How about you? What’s been beautiful in your world this week?

1. Optional: Become a Cybils judge.
2. Request books from your library.
3. Request more books from your library.
4. When the holds all come in at once, go pick up the books from the library.
5. Put the books in a bag. (They don’t belong to you after all, and you’d feel awful if you hurt them because you hadn’t learned how to juggle before taking up this fitness regime.) While a canvas bag will allow for ease of mind, a large and sturdy plastic bag will add to the difficulty of the routine, as you will have to carry it in unusual ways to keep the books from breaking the bag, exercising different sets of muscles.
6. Take the books with you while running other errands. Bonus fitness points may be gained should these errands generate additional parcels to juggle.
7. Carry the books and all additional packages/bags/hangers of dry cleaning nearly a mile to get home. (Should you live closer, feel free to take an extra walk around the block or up and down the driveway.)
8. Repeat steps 2-8 later in the week.