Today I had to call a couple of reporters for a contract project I'm doing. One said, "I don't cover that beat. You need to talk to Ricky." I asked when she stopped covering it and she said, "Well, actually I do cover it." Pause. "But I don't find this interesting."

Ricky told me that even though his publication is weekly, he has a daily deadline. "It's good, because it keeps me disciplined," he said. "It is always good to have discipline in your life, wouldn't you say?" I agreed, and he added, "After all, if the sun rose in the west, you wouldn't be happy, would you?" Again, I could find no argument. He said he'd be happy to interview my client, but no earlier than 10. I said, "You're not a morning person, huh," and he said, "Oh I am, I get up at 5:30 every day. But I move quickly without hurrying. I always move quickly without hurrying."

I also got another contract job, coincidentally enough. That one is for a think tank that deals with alcohol abuse. I visited a related site, www.alcoholscreening.org, where you can test yourself for problem drinking. In theory you can get a green, yellow, or red light at the end of the test. In practice . . . well, I'll be interested to hear if anyone I know actually manages to get a green light. 

¶ 11:41 PM