It rained last night, leaving a lingering autumn smell in the air and diminishing patches of moisture on the sidewalks this morning. It was relatively cool and cloudy today too; a welcome change from the warmth of the past week.

We got together heaps of old electronic debris, including a couple of televisions, three computer monitors, a toaster, three vacuum cleaners, a microwave, and several other bits and pieces, and heaped them into the van, which I then drove to an electronic waste recycling yard called ASL. This means that we now have a bit less clutter around here. Later, Jen took some stuff to Goodwill. It's nice to know that these items will get a second lease on life somewhere besides our garage. The main selling point here is that they won't end up in a landfill, and that there were no fees of any kind.

I did another party today too. Cake and a tip.

I spent a good part of the late afternoon wandering across the pages of Carlos Ruiz Zafon's The Shadow of the Wind, and I'm now lamenting the fact that it seems to be his only book currently available in english.