Reality Show

Stop me if you've heard this one: A teenager walks up to her mom and says, "I'll let you take me driving if you take me to Walmart."

Yup. I got blackmailed into a driving lesson. Granted, she planned on using her own money, and she already knew what she wanted before she even mentioned it. Nonetheless, it was just weird. Days of moaning on about not wanting to and all of a sudden, it's she who's bribing me.

Nonetheless... Now that is one odd word. According to Etymonline, it popped into our lexicon around 1847, as the phrase 'none the less;' and then contracted into one word from around 1930. My guess is that the Great Depression made those extra spaces too expensive.

And finally, we anticipate being debt free (except for mortgage and braces; one never escapes those bills!) by March of 2011, just in time if Eric retires. But maybe he won't retire. Maybe he'll take an assignment overseas. Or maybe he'll star in an off-Broadway Spanish-language adaptation of "The Hills Have Eyes."

Life is full of variety and opportunity.