The Travolta Tragedy

I'm sure John Travolta and Kelly Preston loved their boy. It must have been horrible to lose their child, and I don't imagine that being in a foreign land over the holidays made any of it any easier. But ...

IF I HEAR ONE MORE PERSON SAY HOW AWFUL IT IS TO LOSE "THEIR ONLY SON," I WILL SCREAM!

What does that mean, anyway? Would it be less painful for them to get over the death of their daughter? Or that if you have two sons, one of them is disposable?

Manic Monday #21

Do you have any idiosyncrasies or unusual quirks when it comes to food and/or eating? I eat one thing at a time. For example, on Thanksgiving, I finish my turkey before diving into the stuffing. This annoys the people I dine with. I don't know why, as I don't pay attention to how they eat. But there you go.

Have you ever written love letters? If so, do you still have any of them? Love letters, specifically? No, but I have written chatty letters that include mushy parts. And I have hung onto them until long after the relationships have ended. Deleting them just always seems as final as getting my keys back.

How easy or difficult is it for you to say you're sorry? Depends on who it is and how big the infraction. The smaller the infraction, or the less intimate the acquaintance, the easier it is. It shouldn't be that way, but again, there you go.

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What goes on behind closed doors?

We're all back at the office after the Christmas holiday, and we're all nervous about our jobs. Mr. Big (my boss' boss) has been behind closed doors all day, talking alternately to my boss and others at that level. Their faces as they leave Mr. Big's office are inscrutable, as all in management seem united in pretending that this is normal, despite the fact that the Chicago Sun Times business columnist announced today that 2008 "was an exceedingly difficult year for many top Chicago agencies -- and '09 looks no better."

Oh, well. I'm trying not to fixate. If it's gonna happen and I'm to be let go, I imagine the decision has already been made and there isn't a thing I can do about it.

I've got to start somewhere

Today, for the first time in ages, I went to Bally's at lunchtime. It was PACKED with other poor souls, like me, who have resolved to lose weight, lose inches, add muscle … There were so many people there today that all three rows of treadmills were in use.

I spent 30 minutes on the bike, keeping my heart rate up for the full half hour. Then I did a few reps on one of the arm machines and finished with leg lifts. It felt good to do this old body good.

I know my January dedication to fitness makes me a cliche, but I have to start somewhere.