Random Thoughts

The caterer for the family reunion brought some pastries and breads. The pastries were fairly standard stuff -- you can imagine them being delivered in batches of five hundred, packed in a six by six wooden crate, from a van marked Moms Home Pastries, A Division of General Universal Food Products, A Soylent Green Company -- but the breads weren't bad. One that my wife particularly liked was an orange quick bread. Some months ago, she and my daughter were on an orange kick, and before they were all gone I thought to grab some of the discarded peels and zest them. I'm pretty sure the container -- I got about half a cup, I think - is still in the freezer. As I've not made any bread in a while, I thought I'd give this a try.

I noted with dismay Obama's actions regarding the FISA bill. I would have bet money -- not serious money, but money nonetheless -- that he would have opposed that -- and indeed, he did at one time. Now he's The Presumptive Candidate, and trying to appeal to the masses, not to mention, the Republicans and the big companies( and their checkbooks) that back them, which is, I assume, why he's backed off on that original stance. It would still take some doing for me to prefer McCain over him, but actions like this make it a little easier. It makes him more Just Another Politician. I know thats harsh (Michelle called me, almost in tears, over that characterization), but I think that its justified.

I finished reading Twilight last night. You know, its probably a bad idea as a rule to stay up late to finish a book -- screws up your sleep cycle -- but when the book ends with an excerpt from the next one, and that ends with the heroine lying on some shattered glass, bleeding, while several suddenly interested vampires look at her -- well, it leads to interesting dreams. Much more vivid than, say, what I'm getting from Blue Ocean Strategy -- which is not at all bad, though I'm still in its early pages.