Today's Topic: No news is good news

We were watching channel 4 out of Detroit to get the weather. This week's storm of the century has been downgraded to "Just Enough Snow to Clog Things Up". Then Brian Williams, he of hushed and serious tone, half-whispered his way through today's awful news: left-handedness causes cancer, Sarah Palin can see the North Pole from her house because it's floating south, banks are making it easier on themselves by simply foreclosing all properties with odd-numbered addresses. You know, the usual.

I have to ask - does anyone have any good news to report? Maybe no one on your street died this week. Or maybe the interest on your savings account rose from 1.75% to 1.80%. Or that thing that was in your eye fell out, the thing that no one else could see, but you would swear there was something. Anything? It doesn't have to be important - maybe the squirrel in the backyard successfully dug up the walnut he put there in September. I'm willing to dig deep here, people.

Please post a comment with your good news.

Meanwhile everything is going fine here. The kids have a week off school for their Mid-Winter Break. (That's capitalized.) The reason YOU don't remember having Mid-Winter Break is because You Didn't Have One. (That's also capitalized.) If their teachers came over during this break and, say, cleaned my garage, I'd be a little more in favor of it. But they're all at the airport right now huddled around the Air Mexico check-in desk on their way to pitcher night at Senor Frog's. Bon voyage! (I don't know Spanish for "see you in a week." but it's probably "usted" something.)

J's parents are in India for all we know - we got an email from them. They were probably touring one of the facilities where outsourcing is known as insourcing. Those people have fast internet connections. And phone connections too - I talked for hours with the the Tracfone support tech, and it was just like she (?) was in the room with me. Telecom progress is a tide that lifts all boats.

Speaking of things they don't do in India, I had a great burger and even better conversation with my old buddy Craig. It's been around 20 years since we've seen each other, and it's funny to compare notes - he remembered things that stuck with him for years that I don't remember, and vice versa. He's working for the Michigan National Guard and has been for a long time. He wears his uniform to work (he's not a civilian.) Reminds me of some of the people I knew who worked at Domino's in Ann Arbor. When you work there, you can either wear business clothes or the pizza delivery outfit (really.) I'm not saying a Guard uniform is like a pizza delivery uniform, although you can get a lot of pies in one of those personnel carriers you see on I-94 on Guard weekends. (I salute Craig - I'd hire him if I needed someone who does whatever it is he does. For the fun of having him around, if for no other reason. Which is why it's a good thing I don't own a company, I'd just hire people I like and we'd all sit around and talk and then I'd go out of business and go back to working for the man.)

We'll be in Jackson this weekend celebrating my mom's birthday. That'll be fun, and a good excuse to get everyone back to where it all began. Except for my sister. And also my brother. Or my mom or dad. And they tore down the hospital where I was born, so I'm on shaky ground. Anyway, back to Jackson for the reunion, which is a good thing.

I hope everyone enjoys their Mid-Winter Break (hah!) and is enjoying themselves.

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