Now, where was I going?

We are a family of mini golfers; we take the game pretty seriously. Oh, you know, we're definitely out there to have fun, but we're also all about par and under. About holes-in-one. About the great courses, the best clubs, ball color choice. Well, and ice cream. Definitely out there for the ice cream afterwards. The only drawback is that we can't really take Dean's friends with us -- unless they too are from a family o' golfers. Otherwise, we're out there shooting our twos, maybe threes, and the poor friend is consistently giving up after his sixes or sevens or eights....

I hadn't really intended to write a mini golf post, but the photo was handy. I'm honest, if nothing else.

Speaking of honesty, how fed up are you with the presidential campaign? I saw a headline or two recently about Obama's "move to the middle" to attract more voters and I thought -- feh. Have courage, have faith, be who you are, stand up for what you believe in, follow through on what you've done in your life so far and swing for the fences. Don't give us more of the "middle" crap where it becomes impossible to separate one candidate from another based on the same meaningless, conciliatory non-answers to questions on key issues. Speaking of key issues, wouldn't it be refreshing if members of the media took it upon themselves to poll Americans about things that mattered -- like, oh, the war or education or the economy -- and not about which candidate pet owners are more likely to support, or which candidate you'd rather invite to a cookout? Really. I weep for my country. That IS one bad thing about the internet -- what it has done to "journalism" (and I used to think USA Today was bad...).

I wish people who had pools in their yards actually used them. Have I expressed this before? It's another brutally hot and humid day today, and as on every other hot summer day I don't see a single, solitary soul in any of the pools I pass as I walk the dog or drive Dean to camp. No one. Can we come over? Can we show up and use your pool so at least someone is benefiting from it?

I haven't been sleeping well. It does make me cranky. Need. fairy. godmother. Just sayin'.

Speaking of which: I talked to a dad yesterday of one of our students; he needs to withdraw her from our school because he found out on Monday that his town tax assessor's office had been incorrectly calculating his property tax for the last few years. With me? The town made the error. The result? He has to cough up $15,000 in back taxes. Now. He thinks they are going to lose the house -- they just do not have the $$. This makes me wish I could win the lottery (or just already be wealthy, but then I wouldn't be working so maybe that's not the point) -- anyway, I wish I could just march right down to the tax assessor's office, pay the family's tax bill, tell the tax assessor to please be calling up the family now, while I'm watching, to tell them that the matter has been taken care of, and then to please write it all up officially (now, while I'm watching) so the family knows for certain that it is off the hook. My name? Oh, just tell them "a friend."

Do they still call it "hump day" where you are? Wednesday? Hump day? Let's all get over it, shall we?