"Just write what you feel," the teacher said
There's a tropical wave coming to the Edge of America. I'm not sure what a "tropical wave" is, exactly, but the weather guys tell me I'm supposed to be really concerned about it. Best I can tell, the local news mouthpiece led the 11 tonight with: "It's going to rain." ...

Headache, fatigue, tickle in throat mean cold's coming on ... The Old Daughter is in her second week of fourth grade. She's having Boy Troubles. One is really nice, but "I think he's kind of boring." The other picks on her all the time. The Wife tried to explain that's how boys show affection. The Wife tried explaining a few other things. The Wife finally got to the bottom line: "Boys are dumb." ...

Write what I feel? OK. Tip to job-hunters: When applying for a job in a newspaper newsroom -- no matter for what position -- run spellcheck on your resume. Nobody with a college education should let "judgement" get into the hands of a potential hiring manager. ... Back in the day, I would have crumpled up said resume and thrown it into the trash. Dragging it from my desktop to the Trash icon isn't quite as satisfying. ...

I have actually started an exercise program of sorts. I'm now a participant in a regular lunch-hour pickup basketball game, which for about the last 15 years has been organized by the guy who sits next to me at work. We play on the roof of our office. A concrete roof in the middle of summer on the Edge of America is at least as damn hot as you think it is, and it might be a few degrees hotter. I'm getting in shape whether it kills me or not, and at this rate, it might very well. I'm a lot slower and a lot worse shooter than I used to be, and I never was that fast or that accurate. Thankfully, I'm at about the median age for this group. Guy Who Sits Next To Me at Work is 52, I think, and was recently treated for prostate cancer. He's up there twice a week, every week, except for the rare occasion when a work commitment gets in the way. I'm too much of a wuss for twice a week. ...

Reading work e-mail at home is a bad idea. Somebody needs to put a parental block on my work e-mail. ... I'm going to Washington for the first time soon. Am very much looking forward to it. I went to Philadelphia for this same event back in 1998, and was humbled by standing on ground where Ben Franklin and John Hancock and Thomas Jefferson and others who built the bedrock of this country stood. As flawed as our government can be, it's going to be a thrill to be in the same area code as the place where the decisions are made. ...

Write what you feel. Area codes: 202, 407, 606, 214 ... was bored in a meeting today and wrote down all the different addresses I've had, going back to when I was born (don't ask me how I know; I just do). I came up with 19 -- and remember, I lived in one house for 13 of my 35 years ...

Write what you feel. No larger point here, just writing what I feel.