Friday's Odds and Ends

New iPhone app for Roman Catholics - confession via the telephone. A Vatican spokesman responds, "One cannot speak in any way of confession by iPhone."

Was that PR speak for "Are you nuts?"

Senator Harry Reid criticized House Republican's proposed spending cuts by saying, "After all, you can lose a lot of weight by cutting off your arms and legs, but no doctor would recommend it."

Good  point Senator Reid, so how about proposing that we rein in the cost of Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security by cutting the cost of administering those programs. Streamlining the paperwork alone would save millions.

In response to the growing U.S. debt to China, Michelle Bachmann, representative from MN said, "With all the money that we owe China, I think you might correctly say, 'Hu's your daddy.'"

This is sad and scary. As we make short-term fixes to our spending problems, does nobody consider the long-term effects?

Yesterday there was a Red Flag Alert in Texas. Even though we've had lots of snow in some places recently, the state is still in drought conditions and the danger of wildfires is constant. We're accustomed to a weather alert for caution about outdoor burning and the like, but the alert yesterday included a warning about possible "erratic fire behavior." 

As opposed to consistent fire behavior?

Other than one in a fireplace, I don't think there is anything consistent about a fire. I think even the reporter found that choice of words comical. There was a hint of amusement in his voice when he made the announcement.

At a recent track meet in northern Manhattan, Ida Keeling set a world record, running 60 meters in 29.86 seconds. The 95-year old woman from the Bronx has been setting track records since she took up running at age 67. Read her amazing story HERE

Hooray for Ida.


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Today, there is an interview with me on the Web site for my new publisher, Books We Love Publishing Partners. 

Tomorrow from 10 - 2,  I will be at a "Meet the Author" event in in Madisonville, Texas. This event is sponsored by the Madison County Writers Guild, and it will be held at the Kimbro Center – on the Square - in downtown Madisonville. I have never been there, but I hear the Square is a nice place to visit. I will have copies of my new book, Open Season, as well as some copies of One Small Victory in hardback. If you are in the area, stop by and meet all the authors who will be there.

Please Keep the Libraries

The latest news from the city of Dallas indicates that the city is ready to cut library services and staff to meet a $130 million budget gap. The proposed cutbacks would slash hours at the central library in downtown from 44 to 24 hours a week . Branch libraries could also see a reduction by half, and 96 full-time positions could be lost.

I hope city administration can find a better solution to the budget problems.

When I lived in Omaha, Nebraska, there was a city budget shortfall, and one of the first things administration did was cut library services. I remember thinking how sad it was that children would not be able to go to the library several days a week. For some, the library was the only place they could find books to read.

Then I thought of the people trying to do research. Where were they to go? This was just as the Internet was getting popular, but lots of people still did not have computers. So where did they go to experience this new wonder of wonders? The library.

Libraries are a priceless natural resource and should not be cut. They are our connection to the past, as well as a place to be introduced to books and authors. I buy a lot of books, but I still go to the library to look for something new and different from what I read just for fun, and I know a lot of others who do the same.

To solve the funding problem, one solution would be to charge a minimal yearly fee to get a library card.

Would you be willing to pay $25.00 a year for a library card?