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the breast cancer fundraiser worked! we raised more money that we spent organizing the event, which apparently qualifies as a success when you are a new cause, new event, new effort to get people to part with their money. considering the planners were one university instructor and one winemaker, neither one of which had any experience in event planning, i am calling this one a SUCCESS. phase 2 will start imminently, so those of you around portland, look for special breast cancer flights and glasses of wine – 100% of the what you pay for the pour is going to breast cancer research.

highlight of w-e: the fund-raiser of course. but that is followed closely by BILL CLINTON. yes indeed. the 42nd president of the united states, saxophonist of snl note , and the man who put cigars in an altogether new category of sex toys, spoke at the local highschool on usnday. we stood in line with the kidlets, and sat in the bleachers of the auditorium for hours in sweltering heat, and it was all worth it. an important civic lesson in participatory politics for the kids, and a great experience for us. i remember believing bill was the most novel and freshest of responses to the post reagan era, and i still believe, all mistakes and abuses aside, that we (and by that i mean all of us, citizens of the world) were better off when he was in office. L’s patience was sorely tested during the hour-long speech, but J got something out of it bc the pin he chose outside of the highschool is the one that says “friends don’t let friends vote republican”. another mission accomplished.

this town is so small that we even saw bill drive by in his suburban – we were so close i could almost make out the brand of the (cuban?) cigar he was holding in his waving hand…

onto the sad news: the kidlets left. their spring break is over and they’ve gone home, and the house is eerily quiet. i could use the time and space provided by their departure to clean up, but i won’t. i may change take the sheets off their beds, but that’s as much as i’ll muster.

the recovery plan: “baby mama” at the cinema tonite. a bag of popcorn, a big pink lemonade, some junior mints – all that and a comedy that hopefully makes a smart and insightful yet sympathetic critique of our generation’s obsession with birth, babies and parenthood. i’m all for it, but i react very badly to the “you-are-not-a-whole/real-woman-till-you’ve-experienced-motherhood” bullshit.

movie review to follow shortly.

update on J’s festering wound (see morning calm, below) – it is festering no more. a bit of air and a lot of antibiotic ointment prevented amputation of limb.