What’s on my mind?

Murder Takes the Cake Promotion – A New PowerPoint Presentation on Coal Mining for My Boss – My Office Relocation – Forced Medical Treatments – Dancing With the Stars Winner – Too Much Jay Leno – State Legislators & the Strange Things They Choose to Care About – Nancy Pelosi’s Inability to Prove a Negative – Book Companies Going Out of Business – The Legend of Bigfoot – The Fine Print on the New Credit Card Bills in Congress – Last Chance Harvey

Any wonder why I have a headache?

Last Chance Harvey – I purchased the dvd of Last Chance Harvey and loved it. I watched it late the other night while recovering from food poisoning (I think it was the mushrooms that did me in). Dustin Hoffman is wonderful, if still very short in stature. Emma Thompson was wonderful – never realized how tall she is until she stood next to Dustin. Last Chance Harvey is an adult movie (not because of sex or violence but because of the lack of same.) It’s a simple movie about middle-aged adults dealing with loneliness and starting over with new relationships. It’s quiet and powerful, yet understated. Real acting goes on in this movie! No special effects. No need for stunt doubles.

Pending Credit Card Reform – All the things in the new Credit Card Consumer Bill of Rights, or whatever it’s called this week, sound great. There are just two problems –the Coburn gun legislation amendment that is tacked on to it and the fact that Congress wants to delay the credit card reforms from taking effect for nine months or so. They are basically telling the credit card companies to jack up their interest rates now, because in nine months they’ll only be able to raise them for just “cause.” Hey, I bet they don’t delay the implementation of the gun legislation part of it.

Bigfoot – Trying to convince the northern half of Evelyn David of the merits of “Bigfoot” as a secondary character in our next book. I put my chances at about 50/50.

Bookstore Companies/Suppliers – Tried to buy paperback books in my local (two blocks from my house) Drug Warehouse store. They used to have a good supply and variety of the latest. Now nothing. I asked what the deal was. Manager said their book supplier went out of business. Another sad sign of the times.

Nancy Pelosi – In a way I feel sorry for her, although she’s a big girl and experienced enough at the way Washington politics work to have avoided this trap. She may or may not have attended a briefing where she may or may not have been told about water boarding in the past or in the future. And she may or may not have understood what she was being told, if she was told. Not that she could have done anything with the information at the time – she was sworn to secrecy. She wasn’t being consulted, she was being informed by the CIA what the Bush Administration (torture or non-torture) had already approved and/or maybe already implemented. So how did Nancy Pelosi become the skunk at the D.C. picnic? Or maybe that smell wafting out of the beltway is of fish – a very large red herring.

State Legislatures – Oklahoma, not to be outdone by other states that’ve spent massive amounts of time and money on trying to mix government and religion, has approved a Ten Commandments monument for the state capital grounds. Meanwhile state agencies are going to take at least a 7 percent budget cut. It should be noted that taxpayers aren’t paying for the monument; we’ll just be on the hook for the legal fees from the litigation that is sure to come.

Too Much Jay Leno – Why would NBC shoot itself in the foot by putting The Tonight Show with Jay Leno on at 9 pm Central each weeknight, instead of dramas or comedies? Okay, sure, production costs are cheaper, but what happens when no one tunes in and they can’t give away ad slots? The Peacock really is an endangered species.

Dancing with the Stars – Great show, but it’s troubling that the best dancer rarely wins.

Forced Medical Treatments – I’m on the fence with this one. Should a thirteen year old be forced to endure chemo? Do the parents not get to decide? What do you think?

My Office Relocation – On May 29, my office (my day job) is moving to a newly renovated building. See photo below. Think it will be done in time?

The PowerPoint Presentation for My Boss – I’m working on it! I’m working on it!

Murder Takes the Cake Promotion – My co-author and I are working on something special for librarians. Check out our new website and stay tuned.

Evelyn David