Yes we did!

… Some final lingering thoughts and scenes from this election night …

I got into the office late this afternoon … and then began the long wait. Hours of waiting for results to come in …

We had CNN on the TV, and laughed at their hologram technology. We couldn’t leave alone the fact that it looked like something out of “Star Wars” and Princess Leia pleading “Help me, Obi-Wan Kenobi; you're my only hope.” ... Oh, Jon Stewart is going to have fun with this, we kept saying.

We became enthralled in the updates from the major news sites -- MSNBC, The New York Times, USA Today, the Washington Post -- and the mechanisms they were using to track the votes. We found it especially fun to track the MSNBC and Times sites, with their live updates and theirs tools that allowed us to click on specific states to get tallies. You could even zoom in to get vote totals from specific counties. I was checking out totals coming into my old residencies and other places of interest. Way cool!

Cell phones were ringing and echoing across the office with text message updates and news alerts …

The anticipation of what was happening mounted as we watched the footage of the crowd in Grant Park …

Our pizza delivery arrived at around 9:30 …

And then at 10:03, seemingly out of nowhere, CNN cast Barack Obama as the President of the United States …

At first, it seemed almost too good to be true …Not only was it the outcome so many of us had been wanting, it seemed way to early to call, given the way things played out in 2000 and 2004 …

But then we saw NBC call it, too, and we watched the footage of jubilant crowds in Chicago. In Times Square. Outside the White House. In Harlem …

It was so over … My friend Laura ran out of the office crying tears of joy. Our editor emerged from his office, greeting us with fist bumps and saying “Change is coming.”

Even more striking, John McCain came out within the hour -- far earlier than any of us had expected -- and conceded the election. You could hear a pin drop as we gathered around the TV to watch him speak …

“… He managed to do so by inspiring the hopes of so many millions of Americans who had once wrongly believed that they had little at stake or little influence in the election of an American president is something I deeply admire and commend him for achieving.”

Around 10:45, I was directed to go to one of the local colleges to check out a report of a riot …

In my car, I immediately turned on the radio and caught the conclusion of McCain’s concession, and then realized I’d stumbled on an obnoxiously Republican station. The commentators began forecasting riots at any moment and other absurd scenes playing out … I promptly changed the station and found WGN …

At the college, it was quite the opposite of a riot. Students had erupted in cheers and were pouring out of residence halls into a courtyard, hugging and shouting “Obama!” I found one group of students dancing on a car and blasting music. I talked to a young black man, proudly wearing an Obama T-shirt, who told me, “I never thought this day would come.”

As I got back in my car, President-elect Obama was about to step to the podium in Grant Park. I listened all the way back to the office, in awe of the moment …

“If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where anything is possible; who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive; who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer.”

Back at the office, I caught the conclusion of Obama’s acceptance speech and watched as Joe Biden and their families joined them on the stage. Again, we were crowded around the TV. Text messages ringing by the minute …

Words like “transcendent” and “remarkable” were spoken. We mulled our headlines for tomorrow and settled on “Yes he can!”

We mused about the results. Obama had won 56 percent in Wisconsin. 51 percent in Florida. 51 percent in Ohio. 53 percent in Colorado, 56 percent in New Mexico. 55 percent in Pennsylvania. He cleaned up in New England.

Before I left the office I checked my Facebook, too, beaming as I read some of my friends’ status updates -- “Can’t be much happier.” ... “We did really did it =) obama!!!” ... “very happy with the outcome...now then...lets get to work!” ... “glad she stayed up for this- I'm so proud of our country!” ... “thank u america...i applaud you for the first time in 8 yrs.”

And my favorite, “An early bedtime on election night. Good night, President Obama!”

Today's the day

Just another Tuesday, right? …

Out of bed at 6:12 a.m, though really I was awake about 30 minutes earlier because Kates didn’t shut off her alarm when she got out of bed. Put on my sweats. Give Phoebe her bottle while I watch last night’s Letterman on the DVR (He had some great lines in his monologue last night -- A lot of people are saying the weather is going to play a huge part in the election; for John McCain to win hell has to freeze over. And yesterday McCain campaigned in two states -- panic and desperation.)

The morning continues with trying to get Phoebe to eat her cereal, which is always a laborious and messy process in the morning. I have to find time to eat my own breakfast while Phoebe plays. Change her diaper. Dress her. Dance with her (This morning we did have a good time dancing to “Sloop John B.”) And if things go smoothly and I catch a little luck, we’re out of the house by 8:15 and driving to the daycare.

Ah, but today is not just another Tuesday.

Today is Election Day. I got to vote this morning. And it feels so good to say that.

I arrived at our polling place at 8:36 a.m., and I was back in the car barely 10 minutes later. I was voter No. 168 at our place… No lines. No fuss.

Sure, I could’ve voted early, as the campaigns and municipalities were plugging so heavily this year, out of fear for long lines and chaos on this day … But there’s something important to me about actually voting on Election Day. I suppose I’m a little superstitious, too, and couldn’t erase my lingering thoughts of something happening to my ballot if I cast it early.

I knew I was right as I began walking toward the polling place this morning. I couldn’t keep the smile from leaking out of my mouth, knowing the history we’re making today. The smile came out again as I received my ballot, again as I began marking it, and again as I left the poll.

On top of that, our polling place is a historic, picturesque beach house in town. It couldn’t have been prettier this morning -- a sunny fall morning on which the forecast is predicting record high temperatures. The leaves were bright orange and yellow. Lake Michigan was shimmering gold.

I arrived home in time to see “Today” showing Barack Obama voting in Chicago … What a moment, watching his smiling daughters at his side and the senator taking his time completing his ballot, and then the applause and cheers as he submitted his ballot … In the next moment, the network switched to Joe Biden casting his ballot in Delaware. I got a good chuckle when Matt Lauer pointed out nothing in a campaign goes unplanned and how well Biden timed his walk to the poll, just after the network had broadcast Obama casting his vote.

For now, I’ll go about the rest of my day, catching up on some house chores while keeping a close eye on the television coverage …

And then later this afternoon, I’ll go into the office and I’ll be in the thick of it all night long. Oh, what a night …

If Barack Obama doesn’t win this election, I think our office may implode …

* * *

I took a walk down memory lane over the weekend as I read an amusing story reviewing the long campaign odyssey.

It has been quite a ride, after all … Quite honestly, I’ve never ever doubted Barack Obama would be at this point, even while the media initially had Hillary written down as the Democratic nominee and even as we supported her in our state's primary ...

I’ll remember the day Kates and I -- on my deathbed -- watched live as Barack Obama announced his candidacy …

I’ll remember our excitement over the possibility of the Chicago Olympics in 2016 and the remark my colleague Joe made …

I’ll remember the day we got to see Hillary Clinton make a campaign stop in town …

I’ll remember the electricity of watching the Democratic National Convention in Denver … With Michelle Obama leaving no doubts she was a proud American. Hillary touting Obama, saying “No way, no McCain.” Getting to know Joe Biden and hearing his pledge to get back to having the conversations middle-class Americans are having at their tables about affording jobs, mortgages, healthcare and college tuitions. And Barack Obama accepting the nomination in front of 84,000 people crammed into Mile High Stadium, with fireworks exploding high in the sky …

I’ll remember watching the Republicans turn at their convention, mostly out of curiosity. George Bush speaking -- awkwardly -- from the White House, having excused himself from the convention to monitor Hurricane Gustav. Joe Lieberman crossing the aisle. And being somewhat intrigued by Sarah Palin’s defining speech, getting no clue of the circus that would follow her …

I’ll remember eagerly watching the debates …

I’ll remember eagerly watching Saturday Night Live, and the pop culture phenomenon their political sketches created …

I’ll remember the constant dispatch of political e-mails and text messages and Facebook notifications from the Obama campaign, and how Obama and young voters got the vote out with the Internet and technology like never before.

I’ll remember the significance of this election. John McCain could be the oldest President. Barack Obama could be the first black President. Sarah Palin could be the first female Vice President. Neither Obama or McCain were born in the 48 continental states. The next President will be the first senator elected since John Kennedy. The early voting and the predictions for record voter turnout.

And I’ll remember the palpable electricity and hope for change resting on this day.

Good reads ...
a TV news: Cautiously gung-ho
a Failure Is an Option ...
a Madam President: Will She Ever Get There?
a Obama's Nation
a The ’08 Campaign: Sea Change for Politics as We Know It

Sunday reading

Some of the reading material that caught my attention during the last week ...

Sports...
a Once the Star, Now the Stand-In
a Five Cuts: The Phillies followed the modern era success formula ... I especially like/agree with Reason No. 2.
a Santo's act made for TV move ... Whaaaaaaa? Though it may not happen now after the Brewers announced this week Bob Brenly wasn't their man.
a After a Steep Fall, Leyritz Tries to Rebuild Life
a Pierce now belongs with the greatest

Entertainment ...
a Banks swings into stardom with 'W.,' 'Zack and Miri' ... I really like watching Elizabeth Banks
a King of the Slackers: It's a Full-Time Job ... A good read about Banks' "Zack and Miri"co-star, Seth Rogan. Man I wish I had extra time -- and money -- to see a movie in the theater ...
a Late-night laughs capture the online vote
a For Tracy Morgan, Every Day Is a Show
a David Archuleta's liner notes break the word count bank

Media & the Internet ...
a Christian Science Monitor: A paper without paper is still a paper ... It was the click made in newsrooms around the world this week when we learned CSM is going paperless.
a Meet Russert’s Replacement? Not Yet

Politics ...
a The next new chant: 'No we can't' ... A ha-larious, satirical scene that could play out in January. This one had me laughing out loud.
a Obama uses his TV time well
a Obama Is Up, and Fans Fear That Jinxes It
a Windy City whirlwind?
a Who’s the Question Mark? ... "Ever since Steve Schmidt became Mr. McCain’s campaign manager, the candidate has become a question mark."
a Paul Simon planted seeds of Obama surge
a Al Franken may face his toughest crowd in race for U.S. Senate
a What I Will Miss About President Bush ... Six writers reflect on what they have most admired about him.
a Northern Star Rising ... Sarah Palin's not going away.
a Palin's prank call from fake French president

Life & other stuff ...
a Mattel is now worth more than GM. Got an old Beach Bomb VW model in the attic? You're rich!

Sunday reading

A collection of good reads that caught my eyes during the last week ...

Baseball ...
a Cubs against Rays: The Series to die for ... A fantasy of what could have been. Great stuff that had me laughing out loud.
a Building the Rays
a Moyer a pitcher for the ages
a An Energetic Presence on Hand for Every Phillies Pennant
a Demolition Takes Shea Stadium Piece by Piece
a If Brenly leaves Cubs' booth, intrigue will follow ... I'll really miss Bob if he leaves the Cubs' booth, but if the Brewers hire him I'll stand up and clap. After the reports that came out of New York, I'll take anyone over Willie Randolph to manage the Brewers.
a After his grating escape to Los Angeles, Ramirez will strike it rich again

TV ...
a Pamela Fryman is the set mom on 'How I Met Your Mother'
a How 'SNL' Got Sarah Palin
a After playin' Palin, Tina Fey returns in '30 Rock'
a Fall season fails to capture viewers so far ... Kates and I didn't have any interest in watching any of the new shows this season -- except for "Worst Week," which was getting high praise coming in. But after watching Sam fumble beyond belief each week, it got unbearable after a couple weeks.
a 'Heroes': Five Ways to Fix a Series In Crisis ... I don't think "Heroes" is as bad this season as some of the critics have been saying. But I could get on board with several of these suggestions ...

Music ...
a Radiohead's 'In Rainbows' experiment pays off with 3 million sales ... It's a great album.
a Music site to sell songs for a dime

Politics ...
a Barack Obama for President ... From The New York Times.
a Many reasons still for Obama to worry, and McCain to hope ... It's not over until it's over.
a It's Time to Retire the Shuttle
a Perfect role for Palin: Good sport ... A reaction that pretty well sums it up about Palin's appearance on last weekend's SNL.
a $150,000 Wardrobe for Palin May Alter Tailor-Made Image
a Look Is the Same; the Labels Have Changed
a Campaign curtains closing, and I don't want to leave
a The aura of Mr. Smooth
a Obama, McCain cried when...
a Confessions of a Phone Solicitor ... This is a great read on multiple levels. It's amusing -- and quite funny to me -- the lengths the McCain campaign and its supporters are going to try tarnishing Obama. ... And few things test my patience more than telemarketers.
a I needed to know: can Obama pick a fantasy team? So I asked him ... This is a fun read from my friend Tom.
a The vast left-wing fantasy ... An editorial setting the record straight on ACORN.

Media & the Internet ...
a Safety in Numbers? Poll-Driven Press Goes Out on a Limb
a How the board came to endorse Obama
a Popularity or Income? Two Sites Fight It Out
a Campbell Brown's CNN Role: A Matter Of Opinion
a YouTube tosses 10-minute limit to show full TV episodes
a Facebook in a Crowd ... An excellent perspective about the fake-ness lurking on Facebook.

Life & other stuff ...
a As Yard Sales Boom, Sentiment First Thing to Go
a The incredible, flexible, movable house

Wee ball

OK. I got comfortable on the couch and fell asleep for most of tonight’s Game 3 -- which, after a lengthy rain delay, didn’t start until almost 9:30 …

But I awoke for the best part -- if you discount Ryan Howard’s breakthough home run and 45-year-old Jamie Moyer’s pitching performance …

The thrilling ninth-inning ... Eric Bruntlett gets on in the bottom of the ninth when he’s hit by a pitch … Then Shane Victorino comes up prepared to bunt, but Rays pitcher Grant Balfour throws wildly at his ankles, the ball gets by the catcher Dioner Navarro and Bruntlett takes off for second base. The ball bounces off the backstop to Navarro and it looks like he could have a play on Bruntlett, but Navarro throws wildly, the ball skips past second base and Bruntlett trots safely to third base …

Now the Rays walk Victorino and another batter to load the bases … Oh, and they call in their right fielder Ben Zobrist to play defense as a fifth infielder. Can’t say I’ve seen that before.

Still with no outs Carlos Ruiz, comes to the plate … and hits a squibber down the third base line. Evan Longoria charged it and tried to bare hand it, but his underhand throw goes way over Navarro’s head. Bruntlett scores easily.


Phillies win Game 3 in the bottom of the ninth as the clock is about to strike 2 a.m. in the east …

Now I can’t fall back asleep.

I’m watching MadTV … They just showed this ha-larious skit with John McCain trying to learn how to use a computer … I wonder if it would be as funny if it wasn’t 1 in the morning ...



This Palin spoof was pretty good too ...

Thursday's Saturday Night Live on Friday

... Kates and I are cleaning off our DVR, and we just watched last night's Thursday night edition of SNL ...

Need I say more?

The opening sketch was wonderfully entertaining. I've so missed Will Ferrell as George Bush ... And seeing Tina Fey, Darrell Hammond and Ferrell playing together -- priceless.



And Fred Armisen's bit with the interactive map was ha-larious!

Sunday reading

Some of the good reads that caught my eyes during the last week ...

Sports ...
a Ramírez done as Dodger? ... Man, I hope not.
a Free agents-to-be raising their price tags with big postseasons
a Sports also paying a price amid struggling economy
a How much do you love football? So much you'd cut off a pinkie to play it? That's what Trevor Wikre did. ... Astonishing. My friend Tom sent me this one.
a Tony Womo Out Three To Four Weeks With Bwoken Widdle Fingey ... From The Onion.

Politics ...
a Powell endorses Obama, chides McCain campaign tone ... The news of the day.
a Sarah Palin stirs up controversy in the wink of an eye
a Leonard Pitts Jr.: It's sad, but Sarah Six-Pack is the real thing ... I remember "Dave." Great movie.
a Pentagon divided over John McCain
a Johnston speaks about Bristol Palin, Obama, baby ... Not that it's any of our business. But if he's doing interviews about it, I'm going to read it.
a Working for the Working- Class Vote ... This is an interesting one from The Times about what Obama calls his "biggest boneheaded move."
a Behind McCain, Outsider in Capital Wanting Back In ... an interesting perspective of Cindy McCain.
a He Just Can’t Quit W
a Bush Calls For Panic ... From The Onion.
a Poll: 85% Of Americans Would Like To See Candidates Compete In Funny Obstacle Course ... Also from The Onion.

Joe the Plumber ...
a Three Guys and a Table ... I didn't watch this week's debate. I couldn't take any more of it, but reading and seeing the media storm over Joe The Plumber has been quite amusing.
a Joe the Plumber: Not a Licensed Plumber
a Joe the plumber's story has some cracks
a Debate darling 'Joe the Plumber' not a licensed plumber, owes back taxes
a If `Joe the Plumber' is like my plumber, he can go pound sand

Media & the Internet ...
a Rolling Stone ends large format after 4 decades
a Parker Says Sarah Palin Isn't Ready ... More from her column a couple weeks ago
a Mainstream media look for love in fresh faces Palin and Obama ... More from Kathleen Parker.

TV ...
a For NBC Pages, ‘Please Follow Me’ Is a Fervent Wish

Life & other stuff ...
a Suit against God tossed over lack of address ... From my friend Raechel.

And finally ... my eyes caught this AP photo this week from the Book Fair in Frankfurt, Germany. So dazzling, I had to share it ...

Aside from that Red Sox comeback ...

How could you go wrong with last night's television ...

I, of course, was sleeping through one of the greatest comebacks in baseball's postseason history. But I'm not bitter about it ...

Kates and I caught last night's other highlights on DVR tonight ...

First, the special Thursday night edition of SNL ...

It's always good to see Fred Armisen’s impression of Barack Obama. And Darrell Hammond, well, he's good doing just about anyone -- his take on John McCain's constant blinking was right on ...



And Kristen Wiig as the misinformed “Crazy McCain Rally Lady” was perhaps my favorite of the night -- coupled with Amy Poehler's and Seth Myers' "We Liked It" segment ...

* * *

Next it was on to Letterman's show and (insert dramatic music here) John McCain's appearance ...

As if we didn't already know it was going to be good (Read the fascinating transcript here), Letterman pulled out a map illustrating how McCain skipped out on Letterman's show a couple weeks ago.

The band played The Who’s “I Can’t Explain” when McCain was introduced. Letterman’s first question to the senator was “Now what exactly happened?” To which McCain said “I screwed up.”

It was on.



McCain was totally on the defensive and working hard to gain sympathy. His whining about Barack Obama not accepting his invitation to a town hall meeting? And then his suggestion that Barack Obama come on Letterman’s show to debate the issues with McCain? C’mon…. They’ve had three nationally-televised debates -- one of which was a town hall format -- and McCain has lost more ground than he’s gained.

But Letterman stayed his course and never let up. And, oh, it was fun to watch … McCain was squirming when Letterman pressed him on whether Sarah Palin was ready to become president. And then McCain couldn’t give a definitive answer when Letterman pounded him on the legitimacy of the Obama-Bill Ayers connection (Didn’t he say in Wednesday night’s debate that he didn’t “care about an old washed-up terrorist”) -- and to top it off, Letterman brought up McCain’s connection to Gordon Liddy. McCain initially stumbled to respond. ...

It struck me even more when McCain, as Letterman was still pressing a few minutes later, did a complete one-eighty and tried to laugh all of it off, saying "There's millions of words said in the campaign! Come on!"

It was a bad idea for McCain to go on the show.

But hey, Ne-Yo’s performance was pretty good.

* * *

I heard about this one on the radio this morning ... Ha-larious.

My favorites, each delivered by Obama ...

"I was originally told the venue would be Yankee Stadium. Can somebody tell me what happened to the Greek columns that I requested?"

"I do love the Waldorf Astoria. I hear from the doorstep you can see all the way to the Russian Tea Room."

"Barack is actually Swahili for That One."

McCain's new stump speech

... So I'm taking a "me" day today.

I shipped Phoebe to daycare this morning and then came home. I'm not going into work today. I took a day off ...

But in between catching up on e-mail and some reading, doing some home repair, laundry and running errands ... the day has gone way too fast.

I did also get to catch up on some TV, and last night's Daily Show segment featuring John McCain's new stump speech was ha-larious ...

Sunday reading

Some of the reads that caught my eyes during the last week ...

Baseball ...
a Don Zimmer the ultimate common denominator
a Upstart Rays aim to keep surprises coming in playoffs
a Francona sets standard for managers
a Cardinal O'Malley is no Fenway regular. But he keeps tabs on Boston's secular faith
a Architect of Phillies, Gillick Will Listen to Anyone’s Plans
a When Philadelphia Was a Winner
a Series of changes in last 40 years
a Manny In La La Land
a Financial crisis will slow Cubs sale
a A look back on a Chicago baseball season gone bad

Football ...
a The Brett Favre Backup Club

Media & the internet ...
a Tina Brown jumps off page and onto the Web
a Couric Rebounds With Web and Palin ... I'm not yet a fan of her newscast, but her YouTube stuff has been catching my eyes.
a Katie Couric In The News For All The Right Reasons: Her Work
a Turn and Face the Change -- With Newspaper Industry in Crisis, 'Everything's on the Table'
a Social networking sites help companies boost productivity
a Seeking Broader Reach for Social Web Sites
a Check out my Twitter ... I'm telling you, forget newsprint -- it's all in social networking, blogs and newsfeeds, people.
a Newspapers’ Web Revenue Is Stalling ... Ugh.

TV ...
a Brea Grant gets off and running as latest 'Heroes' villain

Politics ...
a The destructive policies of President Bush
a In Wisconsin, a tilt toward Obama
a Historians ponder Lincoln's legacy, lessons we can learn
a He Told Us to Go Shopping. Now the Bill Is Due.
a Postponing the election: It's a joke, or is it?
a A frustrated Esquire endorses Obama
a Obama vs. McCain: Scripted and improv
a Worst of times
a When the gloves and lipstick are on

Life & other stuff ...
a What makes Boston in a league of its own

Sunday reading

Some of the reads that caught my eyes during the last week ...

Baseball ...
a Maddon's unorthodox thinking pays off with playoffs for Rays
a To the finish, nothing comes easy for them
a Most valuable half-pint
a Picture quite bright for Rays
a The Dodgers are best in the West, but are they playoff-worthy?
a After Saying Goodbye to Playing, Piazza Returns for Shea’s Farewell
a To Pilots, Shea Is Less Ballpark Than Landmark
a Top 10 immortal years in sports
a Winning slogans sure to inspire baseball's also-rans
a Where Yankees fans thrive
a How Yankees fans survive in Red Sox Nation

TV ...
a Through it all, 'ER' won her heart ... My affection for ER isn't what it used to be, but there's no doubts the show holds a special place.
a 3 Questions about this fall's TV

Politics ...
a Guilty by association
a A father's charm, absence: Friends recall Barack Obama Sr.
a Sarah Palin should bow out ... You know it's bad if a conservative columnist is causing for Palin's resignation.
a Into the wild of Wasilla, Alaska, where Sarah Palin once ruled
a Palin's policies in Alaska weighted toward development
a Sarah, talk. Joe, stop
a McCain’s Suspension Bridge to Nowhere
a Steering the McCain Campaign, a Lot of Old Bush Hands
a Thinking About McCain
a Don’t Blame the New Deal
a The Bush Doctrine?
a The Truth About Politicians? It's At Snopes.com ... Ah, Snopes. Great site ... Though when I tried to reference it in a story once, my editor discounted it as a legitimate Web site. The irony.

Internet & media ...
a New Chicago Tribune publisher Hunter called a 'change agent'
a Columnist's 'dream come true' nears the end
a Music Critic vs. Maestro: One Loses His Beat
a Two Stories That Pushed Some Buttons
a Spinning through online entertainment and connected culture
a Some Facebook users aren't fond of website's new face ... Like all changes, it's going to take awhile. I didn't like it initially, either. But I'm learning to like it.
a The Dangers of Auto-Replace

Music ...
a Juliana Hatfield on life after the spotlight fades
a Going Down to Yasgur's Farm, Almost 40 Years Later
a New Kids on the Block soak up love on reunion tour ... Here's a review of their show in Boston on Friday night -- to which Kates and I tried to win tickets. We failed.

Life & other stuff ...
a We’ll Fill This Space, but First a Nap ... Yeah, consider I was up at 5:30 this morning doing "work."

It's all debatable

Some week.

Six people got laid off in my office. Six hard-working people who are passionate about their work. Done. Gone.

We knew it was coming. Every employee received a letter from the company last month -- a two-page letter that is now legendary within our company hallways for the way it rambled on about the state of our industry and then buried the real meat in the last two paragraphs: staff reductions will be made.

Though, as some in my office have pointed it out, it is amazing we’ve survived this long. When you look at our competitors in the region and others across the country, everyone’s facing the same dilemmas. We’re a dying breed … On “The Daily Show” this week Jon Stewart referred to our product as “the printy thing that smudges your fingers.”

* * *

We watched the debate last night ...

In addition to keeping a close eye on the Brewers game, of course.

I thought Barack Obama was the winner. Everything McCain fired at him -- or really, fired at Jim Lehrer -- Obama had a ready answer. I can't remember McCain ever facing his opponent to talk to him directly.

Obama really held his own, I thought.

Still, the line of the night might have been the text about the debate I recieved from my friend Matt ...

Every piece if clothing John McCain is wearing was given to him by the family of a person killed in a tragedy. That jacket -- owner trampled by a horse.

He's ha-larious.

Les Misbarack

This video came to me this morning, compliments of my friend Liz.

Very cool. Very funny. Genius.

Suspending his campaign?!

... I was scrolling though our DVR menu late last night when I noticed John McCain was listed as a guest on Letterman. Yeah, right, like he's going to show up after the stunt he pulled, I thought. ... I decided I would catch the show at a later time and went to bed...

Turns out I missed one of Letterman's greatest rants yet. Everybody was talking about it this morning ...



Seriously. What is McCain doing suspending his campaign? ... He's got Sarah Palin as his running mate. Send her out to continue the campaign. Send her to speak on Letterman ... I was thinking it before I even thought about watching Letterman's rant ...

And I was so glad to see him say it with millions of people watching. His lack of fear to say what's on his mind is one of the great things about his show ...

His blistering Top 10 about McCain's absense was just as good ... My favorite? No. 8: "Can't you solve this by selling some of your homes?"

McCain passed on a major opportunity to talk about the economy and get his message across right there last night on late night television ...

Sarah Palin's gotta feel like the dorky bench warmer; Coach won't put her in no matter how lop-sided the score is.

While I'm on the subject, boy did Campbell Brown have a good rant about Sarah Palin on Tuesday night ...

Sunday reading

I'm watching the final game at Yankee Stadium tonight. What else could I possibly watch? Tonight's Emmys or the Packers-Cowboys game couldn't possibly be this good ...

OK, maybe I'll flip over to catch a little of the Packers game.

... I've had ESPN's coverage on for most of the day, and the pre-game ceremonies are underway as I type this ...

It's pretty awesome to see the greats together on one field. We may love to hate 'em, but this is truly their night.

If there were any blemishes, think the whole idea of having actors trot onto the field as the starting lineup for the 1923 was a little ill-conceived. Every fan and player the cameras showed seemed to be thinking the same thing: "Uh, this is kind of lame, I hope the whole ceremony isn't like this."

That, and I got a kick out of the AIG billboard in center field that reads: "The strength to be there." ... Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiight.

On a night when everybody's sharing their favorite Yankee Syadium memories, mine has to be the 2001 World Series -- the aftermath of 9/11, the late-inning home runs, playing in November, Derek Jeter ... Aaron "Bleepin' " Boone's home run to win the 2003 pennant would have to be a distant second...

Here's the collection of good reads that caught my interests during the last week ...

Baseball & sports ...
a Last rites for the Cathedral
a Melancholy in Bronx, but Not Because of Stadium
a Yankees Don’t Want Fans to Be Doing the Demolition ... The guy mentioned in the lede must be a piece of work.
a Cubs warm to idea of new park ... I'm thinking Carlos Zambrano and the Cubs were just drunk on adrenaline from Carlos's no-hitter. You can't tear down Wrigley.
a 104-year-old Cubs fan won't get to toss first pitch
a Finally, this could be Santo's year
a Could Sabathia and Ramirez win in new league? ... If they did, I would love it.
a Rodgers on right track ... This one come from my friend Raechel. Indeed, Aaron Rodgers has been impressive.
a Rodgers slips farther out of Favre's shadow

TV ...
a Series get a new post-strike lease on life
a With Tina Fey's impersonation of Gov. Sarah Palin a smash, will she make an 'SNL' encore? ... the question of the week.
a NBC's 'Heroes' delves into villains
a 'Heroes' tries to recover from truncated sophomore season
a Michael Emerson's 'Lost' world

Music ...
a A Jukebox on MySpace That Takes Aim at Apple
a A Total End To an Era In Pop Videos
a Richard Wright dies at 65; founding member of Pink Floyd

Media & the Internet ...
a Are 'Real' Journalists Jealous of Jon Stewart? ... Especially now during this presidential campaign, I look forward to watching The Daily Show more than ever ...

Politics ...
a Pointing fingers on the economy ... This is a good one outlining the truths and fibs of both campaigns in the light of last week's banking mess.
a Lipstick Bungle ... EX-cellent read.

"In a New York Times/CBS News poll conducted this week 77 percent of Republicans said that they had a favorable opinion of Palin. But when asked what specifically they liked about her, their top five reasons were that she was honest, tough, caring, outspoken and fresh-faced. Sounds like a talk-show host, not a vice president. (By the way,
her intelligence was in a three-way tie for eighth place, right behind “I just like her.”)

a McCain’s Radical Agenda ... This one's about health insurance.
a McCain Camp Calls Fey’s Palin Impersonation ‘Sexist’ ... oh, c'mon!
a Sarah Palin installed a tanning bed at the governor's mansion
a What kind of accent is that, anyway?
a Hillary fans aren't bonding with Palin
a A Letter About Sarah Palin ... my friend Matt tipped me off to this one. Very insightful.
a Gibson and the 'Good-Looking' Governor
a Hackers break into Palin's e-mail account
a The Big 'What If'
a Here's a dilemma: smitten by both Obama and Palin ... Kathleen Parker makes some good points.

Life & other stuff ...
a The Joneses and the Joads
a Tooth fairy gives less during credit crunch ... This also is a good one from my friend Matt about how the economy is affecting one profession.
a Wax Hitler returns to museum after beheading ... Another from my friend Raechel.
a 50 years later, Rockwell's 'Runaway' is still an arresting image ... Cool story. This is the second one in three weeks I've found about a Rockwell painting. Thinking about it, Norman Rockwell might very well be my favorite artist of all time.

The Onion ...
a Hey, Where Did All My Stuff Go?

Palin's world

Some worthy cartoons I came across tonight ...

Sunday reading

Some of the reads that caught my interests this last week ...

Baseball ...
a Memories of historic '98 season now seem a little tarnished

TV & movies...
a Series get a new post-strike lease on life
a Graduation nears for 'High School Musical 3: Senior Year'
a 'SNL' throws its hat into political ring
a `SNL' returns with spotlight on prez impersonators

Music ...
a Catching Up With... Fountains of Wayne's Adam Schlesinger
a Gilmour says no Pink Floyd reunion
a Singular Sensations: Some Acts Went to the Top, Then Faded to Background Noise
a New Kids know their way around the block
a Rollin' on Empty: In the World of Rock Music, Songs About Cars Have Lost Their Way
a The Twist Tops Billboard Hot 100 Era

Politics ...
a Bush painted as a failed wartime chief
a TV jokesters warming to Palin challenge
a A Tangled Story of Addiction: Consequences of Cindy McCain's Drug Abuse Were More Complex Than She Has Portrayed
a Daley vs. Daley

Media & the Internet ...
a Just Let Me Check One Last Thing . . .
a Lazy EyesHow we read online
a The Humble Moderator's Grand Goodbye
a Newspaper E-reader to be unveiled
a Facebook unveils new look with a new approach
a Fiddling Around With History: Gene's idea wasn't old, it was well-aged
a Twittering From the Cradle

Travel ...
a Mass. shrines split Lizzie Borden's legacy

Sunday reading

Some of the reads that caught my eyes during the last couple weeks ...

Baseball ...
a Rooftop seats a big hit with fans, management
a Cubs fans: Keep your eye on the ball, not on history
a Such Sweet Relief —Forget the curses, the billy goats and the Bartmen—let's deal in the rational world: The Cubs are the most complete club in baseball ...

Olympics ...
a Shawn Johnson and Nastia Liukin have friendly rivalry
a Olympics coverage heavy on gizmos

Movies ...
a 'The Rocker' shows off Rainn Wilson's Dwight stuff

TV ...
a Olympic TiVo relay team nears the finish line
a Craig Ferguson Refreshes Late Night With "An Hour Unlike Other Talk Shows"
a Heigl takes heat for blunt comments
a Aaron Sorkin Announces New 'West Wing' Animated Series At SorCon ... Pretty good. From The Onion.

Music ...
a Rapper Ice Cube talks about the 20th anniversary of N.W.A's 'Straight Outta Compton'
a After a year, The Police end comeback tour in NYC
a Brian Wilson feeling sunny about new album

Technology ...
a Photosynth uses lots of photos to put you amid a 3D scene
a Microsoft Live Labs Creates Web ‘Synth’ For 3-D Photo Tour

Politics ...
a Fashion Designers Hope to Stitch Up an Obama Win
a Memo From a Poison Penn
a The plight of the lame duck
a Is McCain '08 channeling Dole '76?

Life & other (crazy) stuff ...
a In Rural Missouri, The Place to Bring Your Cents of Humor
a Walls That Talk, and Repeat Themselves
a Chicago area's first Sonic Drive-In finally opens Tuesday
a Potter, Leno, Favre are constants for Class of '12: Yearly list offers a glimpse at the world according to college freshmen ... A good one, compliments of my friend Raechel.
a Even if you look drunk at a game, you can likely keep buying booze, says study of sports stadiums ... Interesting, sad and true.
a Four ears make Downers Grove cat an Internet star
a Purple Prose? His Is Truly Bruising
a Woman arrested, booked over library fines

Paris for President

... I couldn't post this one fast enough. There was a HA-larious video bolting across the Internet today featuring Paris Hilton mocking John McCain's infamous celebrity attack ad on Barack Obama ...

In case you haven't seen it -- or you want to see it again -- here's the video, and a post that discusses it on The Swamp.

See more funny videos at Funny or Die

Sunday reading

Kates, Phoebs and I just spent the entire afternoon sprawled out and sleeping on our living room couches, while the baseball games played out on the TV. Nothing like a lazy Sunday afternoon ...

I've been too scattered the last few weeks to do a whole lot of reading ... So I'm playing catch-up again this week ...

Here's my Sunday reading, including several good reads from the last few weeks. Enjoy ...

Sports ...
a Tough to watch what's going on in National League West
a Ballpark safety is about keeping your eye on the ball
a Cubs' Soto latest Puerto Rican standout behind plate
a Hall of Fame former Tribune reporter was game's official historian and a true original
a Favre's heir? With backing from mates, Rodgers waits patiently
a Pro athletes? They'll take Manhattan (Beach)

The Internet ...
a Believe it or not, these are fake
a Do you believe in miracles? A trio of unbelievable videos
a Facebook never forgets

Politics ...
a Vanity Fair satirizes McCain/New Yorker
a Highlights include groundbreaking footage of Truman, Eisenhower, Nixon and Kennedy

TV ...
a 'Survivor' mastermind shares his secrets

Music ...
a The Who look back without slowing
a 'American Idol' top 10 hit the road to stardom ... Just when I've caught my breath and I'm relieved another season is over, I catch these sunny kids, start reliving the good times of last season in my mind, and I can hardly wait for it to start over again ...
a Hannah Montana is bigger than Batman and Brangelina, but not Miley Cyrus
a Ben Folds talks new album and release date ... Aw yeah. The guy makes me feel like a kid in a candy store.

Movies ...
a 'American Teen' pulls you in to high school circle ... Add this to my list of movies I'd like to see. Very Short List also showed off the trailer a couple weeks ago.
a Rumors of Friends movie not true after all
a Samberg has some monkey business going on; video

The Onion ...
a Rain Told To Go Away In 1986 Returns
a Not Snowing Over Here, Man On Phone Reports
a Courageous E-mail To Boss In Drafts Folder Since December
a C.C. Sabathia, Prince Fielder Keep Imagining Each Other As Giant Talking Hot Dog, Hamburger