First, why is it important that Warnock beats Walker today in the Georgia Senate runoff?

1. Warnock is bright; Walker is a dunce.
2. Warnock will vote with the Democrats; Walker won’t.
3. With Warnock, the Dems will have a big enough majority that they will control committee agendas; if Walker wins, it will be 50-50.
4. With Warnock, the Dems will still have control of the Senate if a Democratic Senator dies; with Walker, they will lose control if a Democratic Senator dies.
5. In 2024, it will be harder for the Democrats to keep Senate control. They will be facing uphill battles in Ohio, Montana and West Virginia, Republican states currently with a Democratic Senator.

Second, I finished another book. It’s called “Decline and Fall” and it was written in 1928 by Evelyn Waugh (the Brideshead guy). It is a quick read, and very clever and funny. It’s the third Waugh book I have read this year, and the one I liked best. It also appears to be one of Waugh’s favorite Waugh book, and that must say something. A young man is kicked out of university for immoral conduct (not his fault) and winds up teaching in an out of the way, fourth class (if that) boarding school in Wales. His fellow teachers are a kick, and the school boys a pain. Virtually everyone winds up in prison, and a few die. What could be funnier? Take my word for it; it is very funny. And I saw that there’s a three part BBC version of it, shot in 2017. I think it’s on Amazon Prime – if so, we will give it a try.

Third, I made reservations for our upcoming extended family Portugal trip next summer. In my mind, you could still go to Europe round trip on 60,000 miles – for the two of us, Edie and me, now we will be spending 185,000, and still have to pay a few hundred dollars on top of that. The world changed when I wasn’t looking.

Finally, our neighborhood carry-out, The Little Red Fox, is closing due to family health reasons. A lot of people crying about this. I am sorry about the health problems, of course, but won’t miss the Fox. I never liked their coffee, their breakfast pastry selection was limited and rarely included anything I wanted, same with their sandwich selection. Everything else was overpriced, their ice cream was mediocre, they took out all indoor seating when Covid hit and never replaced it. There is better coffee right across the street at the Italian Cafe, where you can also get buttery croissants and (I am told) excellent gelato, and the selection of pastries and lunch items is better next door at the basement cafe of Politics and Prose. There is also excellent food on the block at Buck’s, Muchas Gracias, I’m Eddie Cano and Rosemary’s. Not bad for one city block, about .3 miles from our house. And – as I understand it – the Fox space is already spoken for.

Over and out.