Thoughts on the election:
A friend called me bright and early, a Democrat, and said she was depressed. She was upset that Harold Ford had lost. But I look at it as a wash. A Republican-held seat stays Republican. Bredesen won by a landslide. And I couldn't be happier for Steve Cohen, who deserves a trip to Washington purely because of his perseverance on the lottery. And his victory meant that a Democratic seat in the U.S. Representatives stays blue. I told her to look at the big picture. It's a good day today. Harold Ford had a huge uphill battle in this election. But he's young, and he's smart, and he will land solidly on his feet somewhere. So, I don't feel sorry for Harold Ford.

I'm paying for my stress levels over the last week. Canker sores have taken up space on some valuable soft tissue real estate in my mouth.

I left the office for several hours this morning to talk to journalism students at the U of M about resumes and clip files and internships. I know I must have been clueless as a student, but I have a hard time believing that I was that clueless. "How do I get a clip file?" Um, you write stories for a newspaper. "How do I do that?" Am I being punk'd here?

I took a few moments to visit with the new person who is running the high school newspaper program I helped launch nine years ago. She seems energetic, which is good, because that job can suck all the life out of you. It's a great program, and I'm glad it's still going strong.

This past weekend I walked into the bathroom and found the mirror streaked with toothpaste spit. "Jesse!" I yelled. "Explain this," I demanded, pointing at the mirror. "I was brushing my teeth and the toothbrush kept slipping out of my mouth," he said. "Well, let me show you how to clean the mirror," I said cheerfully. I showed him where I keep the cleanser and sprayed the mirror down. Then I put a washcloth in his hands and ordered him to wipe. A few nights later I was settled into the couch watching television when Jesse hollered from the bathroom that he was cleaning the mirror for me again. "OK, that's great!" I said. 30 minutes later, he emerged with the news that he'd also cleaned the sink for me. I turned to SkooterPie. "You might want to rinse off your toothbrush really well before you use it next," I told him. I may have created a Windexing monster.

I guess NaNoWriMo is a bust again this year. I haven't written a single word to start off a novel. Sigh.