It’s humid here. Very humid. But it is quite lovely to still have a few glimmers of the sunset well past 8 p.m.

I drove all over town today for work. I haven’t been in my car this much since I worked for the Leader. It felt good to be out and about on such a gorgeous day.

My mom made pasta bake, garlic cheese bread, salad and a delicious white cake for dessert. No special reason, really. It was nice!

I’m not quite sure how I feel about our new pope. Pope John Paul suited me just fine, thank you. And I agree that the selection process certainly was quick. But I’m hearing that Pope Benedict XVI is being called a transitional pope. What does this mean?

I flipped through a back issue of People Magazine earlier this evening, which I hadn’t done in years. It appears, however, that I haven’t been missing much.

I’m so full from dinner.

And Matthew’s in New Orleans through Sunday. I miss him already.

So I’m at working, listening to my iPod’s songs on shuffle mode. I’m feeling patriotic when I hear Bright Eyes’ “When the President talks to God.” Next up: Sting’s version of “Someone to watch over me.”

Quite the adjustment, wouldn’t you say?

I just started reading “The Rule of Four” this afternoon. About 40 pages in, it’s a good read. I’m curious how much it will read like “The Da Vinci Code.” I seem to recall some critics comparing it to Dan Brown’s best selling work to date.

It’s nearing 1 p.m. Matthew has nearly put in an eight-hour work day. I, on the other hand, remain in my PJs and robe. I’ve had zero “quiet time” this weekend and, this morning, I’m drawing on the interest I’ve accrued.

Yes, another Sunday morning at home, another layout. I wonder if LiveJournal has other users who change their layouts as often as I. It’s not that I’m unhappy with what I have; it’s that I want to see what else is available. Truth be told, I’m happier with the layout templates provided by Blogger than those presented by the LJ staff.

Don’t get me wrong: They do tremendous work. But let’s try some layouts that would make Steve Jobs proud, eh?

Here’s a Web site you may want to read, assuming you’re a Nebraska tax payer:

http://netaxpayers.blogspot.com/

I picked up my Elantra from the body shop today. She’s as good as new (if not better). I think they also washed and waxed my new beauty before turning her back over to me.

Now this is what my car should look like.

One question, however, remains: Where does the Apple sticker go?

Since Sunday, I’ve had a runny nose, sore throat and slight fever. It’s awful. And I’m sure that two days of non-stop rain isn’t helping my cause. I can barely breath this morning as I stare at a pile of used Kleenex on my desk.

Gross.

While at the grocery store earlier this evening, I came across a display of Raman noodles at the end of an aisle. The boring sign, complete with an awful sans serif font, simply stated that a package of Raman noodles would cost a would-be shopper a measly 9¢.

Yes, you read that correct: nine pennies.

So, in theory, a person could have a meal — sans a beverage, unless you count tap water — for 9¢.

For fun, let’s keep track of how many items cost more than 9¢. I’ll go first.

(1) A postage stamp.
(2) A phone call on a pay phone.
(3) A fake tattoo from one of those filthy, poorly placed machines near the automatic doors of Your Favorite Grocery Store.
(4) A can of soda.
(5) Twenty minutes at a parking meter in downtown Omaha.

Bush and the First iPod: http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/04/10/news/letter.html