Twelfth night--how I wish New Englanders celebrate it! My tree is still up, though it's dropping needles shamelessly.

The New York Times reports that a young man found a publisher for his book while riding on the A Train in New York. Now A Hip-Hop Story by Heru Ptah is a big hit. Don't you love literary success stories? They fill me with hope and are especially comforting after a day of rejections. I didn't have that kind of day today, but I'll tuck this story away for the inevitable day when I do.

I followed Carol's suggestion (see comment posted on December 30) and tried to locate the Academic Search Premier database in a library I frequent. I didn't find it at any of my regular haunts, but when I googled, I discovered that a community college in my hometown has it. I called to see if they would allow me access, and they agreed. I'm so thrilled, and anyone who does research on a regular basis will want to investigate this extraordinary resource. Over 7,000 periodicals in the database--just incredible. Every publication I'm looking for (well, most of them anyway) is included. Heavenly.