I enjoyed watching the broadcast media and reading the print pundits this week. Usually not much happens during the holidays, and many in the business are on vacation. (Particularly radio talk show hosts, as ratings are not gathered during this period.)

Who anticipated the death of a former president and the execution of a well-known despot? Even with the 24-hour news cycle that permeates most Americans’ existence, these two events provide more than enough analysis and commentary.

I’ve written it before in this blog, and I’ll write it again. I’m glad I don’t work in that field any longer. I am thoroughly enjoying the slow pace of the past week and a half, with my family at home. It’s nice to have a life.


On a slightly related matter, yesterday while watching the Sun Bowl, CBS switched over to coverage of President Ford’s casket arriving at the church in Palm Desert. My 5-year-old daughter watched with a level of attention that was unusual for her, considering this was not a program on Nickelodeon or the Disney Channel. She asked what was happening and why the people were all dressed in black. I explained (very briefly) about the significance of a presidential funeral and mourning protocol. I am not sure if she will remember much about this, but who knows? I can remember December 1972, riding with my father (just a leisurely drive during the holidays) through the rural areas of Maryland and, most likely, southern Pennsylvania, listening to Harry Truman’s funeral on the radio. Or maybe it was just one segment in a memorial process that took several days. Either way, I knew this was something that didn’t occur often.

The things I can remember. That’s my noggin for you.