Today I was driving along some country roads and looking for some inspiration. No other reason than to brighten my spirits after the assault they’ve taken following several days of rain. We’re waiting out a Nor’easter, the worst of which appeared to pass Thursday night with high winds and heavy rain. The rain yesterday came in cycles between the gloomy skies and this morning I thought it would be dry long enough to sweep the leaves from the front and back decks. Fat chance. By late morning some very heavy rain had moved in. A few miles down the back bay the high tides left some of my neighbors living on newly created islands. The county Republican Chairman sent me an agenda by email for tomorrow’s picnic and included a mention of the water surrounding his home.

Today I had planned to be involved in a tea party protest but it was canceled. The Redhead telephoned this morning and shared her dog is in rough shape. He’s nearly 16 and his life expectancy is being measured in days. He’s been with her since she left Baltimore and has been her friend and protector and unconditional love. Last spring he would see me and dance around and rush to visit. Now his rear hips can barely stay steady. She stayed home this gloomy day. About 11:00 A.M. I got into the Jeep and drove to Milford, where I enriched the Walton family. It’s a quick place to go for an oil change and it’s the largest Wal-Mart store I’ve ever seen. And today, while I waited, I wandered into the Wal-Mart hair salon and got a clipping for below 14 dollars.

Many of us fear Wal-Mart taking over the world and I bet I walk into a Wal-Mart no more than one half-dozen times in a year but today I knew it was a dry place to wander while waiting on the car. I almost bought a Phillies cap while at the store but didn’t. I think Ryan Howard is a baseball immortal but don’t want to be accused of being a bandwagon fan. The Phillies appear to be nice guys. So do the Yankees but it’ll be a cold day in Hades when I’d wear a NY cap.

Can I be political for a moment? The woman who cut my hair is a person of color. On Friday afternoon we had a discussion about race on my radio program. It wasn’t pretty. I worry we may be going in the wrong direction. We generalize a lot when we talk about races. The woman who cut my hair was a good conversationalist. She moved to Delaware from Jersey City, New Jersey. Like any good hair stylist she is a “generalist”, talking about anything and everything customers banter about. Let me tell you something as well about my personal dealings in life and let me generalize. In all my business and personal dealings over the last 47 years I find something I like in the cultural difference. Black people speak with a blunt honesty and the old news guy in me really enjoys hearing it. It makes me feel I’m getting a fair shake when it comes to business.

My dinner is nearly ready and it’s still raining outside. I’m hoping to take a short nap and also hope to find the Navy-SMU football game on TV tonight. Navy has an outstanding right tackle named Matt Molloy. Matt attended Stephen Decatur High School in Berlin, Maryland. The symmetry is wonderful; the old military hero was a Berlin native. Matt’s dad tells me the Midshipmen could win 12 games this year. Matt will graduate in 2011 and then serve his country at sea. Maybe I can introduce him to my daughter? She sure likes Annapolis. It was just about a year ago she wandered the streets there with me on an equally rainy night and I believe she was impressed by the uniformed young men we passed on the streets.

Dinner is ready. Enjoy the remainder of your weekend. The skies will clear next week and we can all get back to business.

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