Sunday morning roundup and ramble

Maureen Dowd on how times have changed. Here's what Niall O’Dowd, the editor of New York’s Irish Voice and Irish Central Web site, told her: “This will end Irish and British what-abouting,” he told me. “What about my suffering? Who suffered the most in this conflict? We must just say one death was too many and all are responsible. There’s no moral high ground here.”

It's a sad thing to say with regard to one's state Attorney General, but it's a good day in Virginia, for the country, and for the environment when Cuccinelli loses.

There's a lot to be said for ordinary (as long as you make something of it).

On a related note... I certainly, often find myself too busy in the very self-imposed way the author rolls his eyes at, and as the pages of this blog will attest, I'm the first to point out that I'm not working three jobs while raising three kids while saving the world. I don't expect sympathy or respect for my business; usually, when I bring it up here, it's to provide context for why it's especially annoying that someone is wasting my time. Sure, my busy-ness is self-imposed, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. There are things to do in this world, and I'm often willing to be exhausted to do them. Sometimes I want a break, and I'll slow down (this is one of my lay-low-and-rest-up weekends). I guess my point is, sure, there are people who think they deserve a medal for being busy, and those people are annoying, but that's not to say that it's necessarily bad to be busy.

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Traffic lights (and other lights) were out all over the place on the walk to and from dinner last night. It looks like about a third of the region--across two states and the District--is without power, and it may take up to a week for some to get it back. The Times' tally is 2 million without power. It is hot as Hades outside--I skipped my morning bike ride out of exhuastion, wariness of the heat (combined with unwillingness to get up early enough to avoid it), and the probability of much of the trail being blocked by fallen tree branches (which are abundant in the city as well; the first thing I did yesterday was clear branches out of my front and back yards). I am so, so lucky to have power; even people just around the corner from me don't have power.