2. The worse possible autumn-morning ambiance is the combination of cold, thick fog and the stench of the turkey farms.

3. On the other hand, the glow of blinking school-bus lights is actually quite nice, when seen from a distance through the fog.

4. I wish I could short 1000 shares of the fringed-knee-high-boots look; I could sell them in February and make a fortune.

5. I’m not sure if this is quite right, but one week of low-stress, routine work seems to more than make up for two weeks of high-stress deadline-driven work.

6. Basques have the most interesting names around: cyclists Koldo Fernandez and David Etxebarria; ETA terrorist Txeroki…

7. The unrestful-ness of getting kids to bed is a grand cosmic joke. Ha ha ha, cosmos.

cycling shoes
running socks under dress socks
lined waterproof windpants
khakis
long underwear over regular underwear
windbreaker
midweight fleece jacket
dress shirt
undershirt
bike helmet
sunglasses
thermal hat
heavy ski gloves

By my count, that’s 15 separate items, or 1.33 items for every degree of air temperature when I rode. I almost wish I could say that I didn’t relish putting on all this stuff, but but by god, I did. I am emphatically glad that winter’s (nearly) here.

“Even on Bloody Feet”
(Men’s marathon record holder Haile Gebreselassie on his first marathon, at age 16)

Old Lady (from The Wedding Singer)
(Old woman doing “Rapper’s Delight” from Adam Sandler’s movie The Wedding Singer)

“In a Complex Gaming Age, Faith in the Simple Virtues of Mayhem”
(”Gears of War 2″ review)

“Packages You Won’t Need a Saw to Open”
(story on replacements to hard-to-open plastic clamshell packaging)

“The Wild Wordsmith of Wasilla”
(Dick Cavett on Sarah Palin’s speaking abilities)

“Carleton’s ‘Save the Penis’ campaign goes limp”
(Local blog’s coverage of Carleton sidewalk that resembles a penis [no, really])

“Newell Wins Qualifier in Muonio, Falls in Semis”
(Story on Americans competing in XC skiing sprint races at Muonio, Finland)

“Racing Time”
(Blog post on top American cross-country skier Kris Freeman’s first race of the winter)

“The Season’s Start: Muonio”
(Blog post on first major XC ski races of the winter at Muonio, Finland - great picture)

“Parenting Moments You Never Think About When You’re Pregnant With That First Baby”
(Shannon’s blog post about annoying end of Friday afternoon’s activity)

“Or Mine. I Wonder What Mine Would Be Like.”
(Post and comments on Shannon’s blog about Vivi’s sleeping troubles)

Sigur Rós : “með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust” (”with a buzz in our ears we play endlessly”)
(album by Icelandic art-rock band)

Benny Golson & Art Farmer Jazztet:  Here and Now
(1959 album by great bop group)

“Germans Pace the Field in Muonio 10/15km Classic”
(Article on results of 10k/15k XC ski races at Muonio)

The Balance Sheet posts on the NASDAQ and on liberal economics.
(Two posts on James Surowiecki’s New Yorker blog)

“Say Goodbye to BlackBerry? Yes He Can, Maybe”
(Excellent Times article on whether and how Obama will be wired - he may have to give up both his Blackberry and email)

various pages of “eighteen seconds before sunrise”
(Website of Icelandic art band Sigur Ros)

“Forgetting Sarah Marshall”
(rented through iTunes)

“Munio Finland”
(blog post by world-class American XC skiing sprinter Andy Newell on races in Muonio)

“The New Liberalism”
(George Packer on Obama’s brand of liberal politics)

Julia: “Daddy, when can we get a dog?”
Me: “A dog? When can we get a dog?”
Julia: “Yeah, a dog. I really want a dog.”
Genevieve: “Me doo!” (”Me, too!”)
Me: “You want a dog, too?”
Genevieve: “Yeah! Bwack Amama dog!” (”Yeah! Barack Obama’s dog!”)

Call the Secret Service.

On the way to the mailroom, I was suddenly struck by a strong desire for a piece of good fruit. If I hadn’t spent my last cash on cup of coffee in the morning, I’d have hit the snack bar for an overpriced apple. After dropping off the FedEx (12 minutes to spare!), I headed back to the office to do the four or five things that I’d been too twitchy to complete while waiting.

On opening the door, I discovered two enormous boxes of Harry & David pears, sent to me and my colleagues by a faculty member with whom we had recently engineered a rather complicated grant proposal. Wish granted! And thank you!

P.S. Next Friday, I’m wishing for a million dollars.

P.P.S. Oh my god this is a good pear.

Yum

McCain Lawyer Impeach Obama!
McCain has reached an agreement with the Obama lawyers that makes Obama resignation effective November 11.
Barack Obama can lost President’s Chair.
McCain video report 10 November:

Proceed to the election results news page

2008 USA Government Official Web Site.

Amazingly, there are still a few veterans of World War I among us. At least ten men who served in the war are still alive, including the American doughboy Frank Buckles. Several of these servicemen are also their country’s oldest known citizens, and several - including Buckles - also witnessed the violence of World War II. It’s not suprising, given the way the histories of wars are written, that there’s is no parallel list of the women who witnessed the war.

BHO as FDR

Leaving aside the cigarette holder, since Obama stopped smoking a few years ago, I think it’s apt. Obama would look good in a top hat.