Monday Newsbreak: 8/25

--My week was dominated by Tropical Storm Fay as it wound its slow, meandering way through the state of Florida. The “eye” passed directly over Gainesville, which was a blessing in disguise, sparing us from constant exposure to more outer bands and the concomitant flooding. It put a “damper” on my son’s preparation for college in Jacksonville, while my daughter’s school was cancelled on Friday. The road race that I was going to run in this past Saturday was postponed until October 4. Ironically, a thunderstorm unrelated to Fay hit us Sunday and caused more flooding than the tropical storm.

--So Barack Obama picked Delaware Senator Joseph Biden to be his running mate. I’ve always liked Biden, but he does have a tendency to put his foot in his mouth from time to time. I wish his own campaign for president had taken off instead of stalling. I still think that Hillary Clinton would have been a better choice for VP. But we’ll see how it all ends in November (or December if we have another “2000”).

--The Olympics have wound down, and I am glad of that. I liked watching certain events (running, swimming, beach volleyball), while I avoided others (boxing, synchronized swimming) like the plague. I also ended up tuning out the gymnastics after the extreme nationalism and rule-breaking (underage participants) on the part of the Chinese teams seemed to take the spotlight.

--My hometown of Gainesville is currently undergoing its annual population swell as thousands of University of Florida students inundate the area. And it gives me pause to think about my status as a UF alumnus. Being a member of their alumni association carries some benefits, and I may just be ready to take advantage of some of them.

--This Tuesday is a local election day for me here in Alachua County, with races for county commissioner, school board, sheriff, judge, and property assessor. Taking a few minutes to vote (after reading about the candidates and the issues) is one of the coolest and easiest things you can do for your community and country.