Rainy Mondays, etc.

After mowing too much over the weekend, I happy to say it's a rainy Monday. Since I'm still not finished with the 800+ opus on antebellum 19th century history I'm enjoying, I'll take this opportunity to do some thinking out loud about what's going on in the world.

First, Lynn Redgrave is dead at 67. I've always thought of her as Georgy Girl; she was so touching in that movie which I saw in Stamford, CT when I was single and living in an apartment there. Brings back memories to think of her. Oddly, I also always thought of her as a sophisticated, calm, beautiful woman - definitely not a Georgy Girl type. Sad that she died after fighting breast cancer so long.

Another new item that has my attention is the attempted car bombing in Times Square. They have a photo of a man who looks suspicious and I hear they have some other clues. They'll catch him, I have no doubt, because police work has become so efficient at ferreting out criminals.

Too bad "CSI/New York" isn't on the case. With their fancy lab equipment they'd have the case solved in a few days. It always makes me laugh when I watch those shows (and I watch them all the time), that the female CSI's go to crime scenes with low cut blouses, short-short skirts or very tight pants, and spike heels. Recently I saw one at a fire/murder scene with white pants on! The Miami version is the worst, but then I think of that show as a comedy anyway. Horatio, that's a cause for both hands on your hips! I suppose it's good for ratings but get real.

Like everyone else I'm watching the oil slick in the gulf, frustrated that they can't stop it from moving ashore or stop the leak. Doesn't it seem to you like an oil company should have a plan beforehand of exactly how they will seal off a leaking pipe in deep water? I've been very disappointed that President Obama wants to approve oil drilling off the east coast. Now maybe he'll have second thoughts about it.

Meanwhile I worry about the wildlife caught in the oil. The people too of course, but mostly I am anxious for the animals and fish. The gannet shown in the news that was being cleaned looked scared half to death. Thankfully some will be saved, but how many thousands of animals will die?

Lastly, Tiger Woods. He played like a duffer at Quail Hollow, and now I hear he's blaming hecklers! Again, let's get real. The people have been very supportive of his return to golf, but he just can't stand the idea that he isn't at the moment the world's greatest golfer. Turns out Tiger is human after all, and the loss of his personal reputation and possibly his family and the respect of millions actually affects him. He can't blame his previous mistakes on anyone but himself so he'll blame his (temporarily) diminished golf skills on anyone. He'll be back at the top, but he has a lot more damage control and personal issues to solve before he can concentrate on his game enough to get back to the top.

In the meantime, my favorite, Phil Mickelson, is really doing well and I'm thrilled for him.

It's Official - Media Has Taken Over

I came home from getting the car serviced this morning to find my husband in the house rather than his shop, sitting in front of the TV. He had come in to watch Tiger Woods' public mea culpa.

Well, that just beats all! Normally he figures trangressions like Tiger's are none of our business and should be kept between husband and wife. In this case, though, even Dave got caught up in the media frenzy over this gossip and he just had to see what Tiger said.

I take this as an official sign that the media has taken over the world. It was the media that demanded an apology from Tiger, and any other celebrity who does something stupid, and it was the media that hounded anyone involved in this scandal. They contacted other golfers hoping that they would denounce Tiger for his actions, they searched the world over for Elin Woods and finally photographed her skiing in Europe but to their frustration have never been able to talk to her. Everyone on TV has speculated from the time Tiger's car hit the tree on Thanksgiving on exactly what happened.

Okay, media types, you've had your apology and I hope you will do us all a favor and leave Elin and the kids out of it as Tiger asked. The problem is that the apology won't be good enough for the media; they'll pick apart every word, every nuance of his demeanor, how his mother looked, and every other possible detail and there will still be endless speculation.

This is all none of our business, folks! Please leave these people alone so that they can try to save their marriage or not, whatever they choose. Meanwhile, there is one thing most of the rest of us can be eternally grateful for - not being famous.