My daughter, Maddy, amazes me with her time management skills. When she has an assignment - preparing for a quiz, for example - she estimates how much time she'll need to master the content. She'll divide up the time by the number of days remaining until the quiz, and use that time promptly after school each day, carefully incorporating both new and review materials.

I have no idea where she gets this from. Not from me, not from her mother.

Last year, there came a point in our Castle Rock renovation when we had to replace the carpet. I figured we'd have to close the library. But Greg Mickells, the Manager of the Philip S. Miller Library, figured out a new wrinkle. When patrons showed up, we offered them a comfy chair, fed them cookies and lemonade, and asked them what they needed. Then we sent in staff to navigate among the roaming bookstacks (which got moved around to free up various parts of the floor) and fetch the items.

Last weekend, I had a religious experience.

I had driven via US 24 over the Front Range, then down to Salida, where I had lunch with Jeffrey Donlan, the library director there. Then I drove over to Montrose, where I had a beer and sandwich with Paul Paladino, Montrose's library director. (This wasn't a work day, of course.)

I was supposed to be in Durango by about six p.m. I figured I would make it by 8 p.m. -- I was running a little late, and it had started to snow. So I took off on US 550 as the darkness fell.

As you have no doubt read elsewhere in this paper, the Philip S. Miller Library is moving back downtown. The library, as well as our technical operations and administration, will occupy the old Safeway building on Wilcox. If all goes well, we'll be in there by fall of 2002.

What I'd like to do this week is give some background information. Newspapers tell you what; I'd like to tell you why.