Entry 8:

Hanna,

Yes, it was a bit silly not talking in person when we had the opportunity. But I didn't want to, y'know, waste the good stuff.

I saw a snippet of this news conference (Headline News, I confess, but it's what's on if you want to see national news early). I agree with you that Chavez seemed to have some pretty loose standards for a potential labor secretary, and, as you pointed out earlier, if Mercado really had been a friend in need, she'd have been staying at the house without doing the laundry. The speculation over lunch was whether an early withdrawal by Chavez would make it more or less likely for Ashcroft and/or Norton to tank. I think there's a good argument for both sides--either Chavez was the one sacrificial lamb, or Democrats smell the blood in the water and are looking for more carnage.

I like your restaurant idea. But I go back and forth about whether babies really have it so great. Sure, there's the suckling and the cuddling. Sure, there is having your every need attended to. But there must be a reason why we don't remember our first three to five years. My theory is that it's too scary and emotionally painful to process. I'd like to think, by now, that Eli has reasonable confidence that Will and I will take care of him. Nevertheless, something as simple as the need to fart seems so upsetting to him, and yet there's no way to explain that it's only temporary and he won't die from gas. I think for babies it's the agony and the ecstasy of living in the moment. Would you take both the good and bad ends of that deal? I don't think I would.

Until tomorrow,
M

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