Waiting for a book to come in the mail is like being on a diet. You have to take it one day at a time. I'm sure you have all heard about that guy who went on the Weight Watcher's Diet plan and ate a month's worth in one week. He thought he was going to lose weight four times faster than scheduled. If only it worked like that.

It's the same thing with the mailbox. I can check it as many times a day as I want, but it will not bring the package any sooner. I just have to wait the prescribed number of days.

Staying busy helps. It keeps my overly-imaginative mind occupied with lesser tasks like work, mowing the lawn, eating, and so forth. Those things, however, are temporary remedies at best.

It's too bad the Postal Service does not put GPS trackers on each package. Then I could track the pings on some giant interactive global map, in real time. It would be even more awesome if I could upload a tiny Boathouse Mouse icon that would show up as the blinking light. Maybe he could even alternate pictures with a right foot forward then left foot forward. Although, that may be taking it one step too far.

Fantasy over. Back to reality.

I do have a tracking number. Sadly, the online Postal Tracking Service gizmo does not recognize it. Sigh. It is their own number, generated in their system. I'm not sure why they even bother.

Ultimately, I am relegated to a silent wait.

Sooner or later, without forewarning, we will find a package in the mailbox and it will be Boathouse Mouse.

When I think about it in those terms, it almost sounds like Boathouse is a ninja …