Going Inkless

     I cringe when I hear someone called "crafty", and I doubt I will ever feel comfortable using the word on someone who does crafts.  This is one of those situations where common misuse legitimizes an error, like the modern spelling of "donut".  What was once improper becomes not only accepted, but more commonly used than the original.  Language changes with use.  It is alive that way, and I fully accept that describing someone as crafty now means that they either enjoy doing crafts or excel at them, or some combination of the two.  It just doesn't sit right that way in my vocabulary.      When I first encountered the word, it didn't apply to crafts at all.  If you were good with your hands or inclined to crochet, whittle or make collages, people might say you were creative, talented or industrious.  To say you were crafty would be mildly insulting.  It meant you were up to something, something that probably had little to do with yarn or glitter- unless

     "Don't forget to sleep," I tell him as I'm going out the door to work.  At 8 am, he's been home less than an hour after an hour long commute, and he's still working.  There are schedules to arrange and payroll to approve, email and phone calls to answer and figurative fires to put out.  Remembering to sleep is a real concern.      During the holiday buying season, his company is at its busiest, and the shipping operation he manages at two warehouses is the focal point of that activity.  There are hordes of temporary workers to train and to inspire to care about a job that demands attention to details and a quick pace.  There are daily struggles with equipment and technology, delivery schedules and personalities under pressure.  The business goes around the clock this time of year.  Managers and supervisors have divided up the shifts so there's always someone in each warehouse to guide the workflow and respond to the inevitable crises.  My husband ch