In Such Crooked Times

It always happens this time of year. I watch the coverage of the Boston Marathon and I get those pangs, wishing I was out there with the runners. Although that was tempered somewhat because the weather was so lousy. It wasn't quite as bad as the forecasts predicted, with the rain stopping in mid-morning and the sun even making an appearance around noon. But there was still a howling headwind that slowed runners down and caused many a runner to suffer from hypothermia. So I'm glad I wasn't out there.

Still, mucho congrats to Steve Runner, Rob Bradford, and everyone else who slogged their way through less than ideal conditions. I'm still trying to determine which marathon I'll do in the fall, but I definitely plan to do one.

I had yesterday off to help Deb take the girls to their first dentist appointments and just hang out. Unfortunately, the weather was miserable again and Deb went to the doctor to find out she has a nasty sinus infection. Not exactly a fun way to spend her school vacation week.

Let go the line:

• The country's still reeling from the mass shooting spree at Virginia Tech that left 32 people dead Monday. It has raised a lot of questions about the slow reaction time of the school to the first two murders, which occurred in a dorm at 7:15 a.m. The dorm was locked down, but the rest of the campus didn't know about the incident until two hours later when the gunman was shooting up a classroom. We've all met people like Cho Seung-Hui, the disturbed kid who killed all those people before blowing his own brains out. The loner who doesn't seem to fit in, who gives off some warning signs that he might be capable of something scary someday. But you never expect something like this to happen.
• Already criticized for being a pretty boy, Democractic presidential hopeful John Edwards is now being slammed because he's been getting $400 haircuts. Damn. My haircut yesterday cost $15. Granted, I don't have a head of hair as nice as John Edwards, but still...
• Eddie Van Halen's out of rehab, so the Van Halen tour with David Lee Roth is back on, right? Not quite. He's making an appearance as an honorary NASCAR official this weekend. Uh, okay.