NOTE: When you’re ripping a piece of wood on a table saw (to rip is to cut with the grain of the wood, as opposed to crosscut, which cuts across the grain) and you get paranoid that your fingers may be too close to the blade, do NOT simply let go of the piece of wood. Rather, very slowly back the piece of wood out of the cut and then turn off the saw. If you let go of the wood, the wood in all likelihood will catch on the blade and fire back at you with roughly the force of two paintball guns. This is known as kickback. The instruction manual for my new portable table saw goes to great lengths to explain the hazards of kickback and very clearly identifies steps you should take to avoid it. I read each tip very carefully as I nursed a bloody gash in my hip left behind by a small triangular block of wood. And that’s what damage it produced through my shirt and my pants. Imagine if I’d been naked. Man. What a mess that would have been.

This morning, I was up at 6:45 a.m. I went into the garage to see how cold it was and I noticed a bright light shining in through the garage windows. It was the moon. It was amazing. The sky was already pale blue, and I could see very clearly in the gathering morning light, and yet there was the moon outshining everything.

My mom and mom-in-law have just hit the road, bound for Albuquerque, heading straight into an approaching western storm. They’re not daredevils. I know they won’t try to beat it home, or venture out into it if it gets too bad. But I’m still nervous: Two kindly ladies out on the Texas backroads with a storm on the way. Normally, I wouldn’t wish Lubbock on anyone. But under the circumstances, I’m wishing them a very safe arrival there.

To all my friends and family and all the people I have yet to meet and even those I may never meet, Happy New Year. Please, be safe.