Fog

Fog seems to be the metaphor of choice lately -- and sometimes, not so metaphoric.

Fog was the reason that the drive down to the shopping malls of DC yesterday took just over three hours, roughly an hour more than normal. Traffic slowed from its average of 65 - 70 to about 20 for much of the route in southern Maryland. Thats the smart thing to do, of course, but after a while all you can think about is that this is time you'd planned to actually be at the mall, consuming vigourously.

Fog was also the reason that when I was at the mall, I didn't find a single thing worth buying. None of what I saw was of sufficient quality and individuality to make me think it was worth giving to my wife. Don't get me wrong, I am not thinking that its got to be fabulous, expensive, or one of a kind -- but it does have to reflect her magic and warmth, and nothing that I saw, did. After a while I simply stopped looking, but rather slumped into one of their area chairs, disgruntled and sulking.

And then there's the fog of politics, where ordinary decent people get transmuted into horrible monsters. How horrible? When I was contemplating the news that a Democratic senator has a serious, and possibly life threatening illness, which could result in the Republician governor of his state appointing a Republican to stand in for him until an election can be held, thus at least temporarily restoring the ability of the Republican Vice President to case deciding votes in cases where the Senate is tied, I actually found myself mulling over when it might be possible to arrange for a Republican senator from a state governed by a Democrat to have an accident -- nothing lethal, no, of course not -- just enough to require that he be replaced in office. Did I mean this? No, of course not-- but I did think it.

And then I came to work and found lots of emails about audits, and auditors, and how its very very important to give this just the tippy top attention you bet!

Fog.