The Days of August

This has been a very strange month. At the beginning of August, I was excited about having some time to get into non-breaking-news sorts of things, more reflective posts while the government and just about everyone else in Washington seemed to go into a rather extended siesta. Unfortunately I haven't done quite as much of that as I would have liked.

A move at the beginning of the month was followed by taking some time out every day to explore Boston and get settled in here. I also have been devoting serious chunks of time to catching up on a pile of books - one that had been steadily growing taller throughout the spring and early summer while I was fixated on things like John Bolton, the Supreme Court, and then the massive pork-barrel spending spree binge by Congress and the White House at the end of July. And I've been taking more trips out into the field for some birding, now that I have a whole new area to discover.

While I've mainly continued to focus here on discussing current news stories - from Iraq to gas prices to Pat Robertson's lunacy, etc. I've been doing some behind-the-scenes work, particularly on the redistricting reform effort, and preparing myself for the big stories that will return to the political forefront after Labor Day: the Roberts nomination hearings, stem cell research funding, and the ongoing debate over anti-torture amendments to the Defense Department Appropriations bill (among others).

As we finish up this lazy month and get back into the hyperactive swing of things, I just wanted to say thanks for sticking in there through this quiet month, and I hope you'll do the same once the craziness begins again. Things will probably start to look a little bit different with my posting schedule once I start classes, but I don't anticipate any major adjustments being necessary. In the meantime, I'll continue on in the same vein here, and I'm also going to jump back into debates over at The Yellow Line later today on a "radical middle agenda" offered by author Mark Satin so be sure to check in there.