I feel a little sorry for Joe the Plumber.

Poor guy. He ventures out of his yard last weekend, from where he’s been playing football with his son, to where his neighbors are clustering around Barack Obama, who’s decided to visit his neighborhood on a campaign trip (!!). And Joe asks a question about his tax plan.

And the conversation catapults him into a media frenzy.

And now his whole life is laid bare. Poor guy. Turns out he’s not actually a licensed plumber. And that he isn’t in the tax bracket of >$250K that he was making a big deal about–and wouldn’t be even if he bought the business (because we’re talking net v. gross here, of course). Oh, and that he owes back taxes.

Oops.

I do feel sorry for the guy. After all, he didn’t ask to be highlighted by John McCain in the debate. Did he?

But…hmmm…he lived in Mesa, Arizona before recently moving to Ohio.

Naw. It was just an unfortunate, unexpected blast of celebrity.

I’m betting Joe wishes he woulda kept tossing the football around with his son instead of accosting Barack Obama.

Let that be a lesson to you: if you see a presidential candidate in your neighborhood, make sure all your ducks are in a row before you venture out, or you might find yourself to be the next Joe the Plumber.

(Yes, AmandaG, it’s tonight, 9 pm. Hope to “see” you there.)

Here’s a link for the Debate Drinking Game rules.

Also, it sounds like it could (maybe, possibly) be anything goes, based on this.

Could be fun. If not, we can spice up the boredom with spiced wine!

They all lie and exaggerate. But which ones can you live with?

Colleen Unleashed update: $1,060 raised for CF as of this weekend! Yay! You’ve helped me push past my goal with just about two weeks left! But don’t stop now! Can we double the goal? Come on, yes we can! Let’s do it! Donate here to support Cystic Fibrosis research.

Pirate Boy and I thank you very much.

And don’t forget: everyone who donates will be entered into a drawing to win one of three Advance Copies of As Shadows Fade! Please help support my efforts and that of the Wet Noodle Posse team. Click here to donate.

And, hey Mom, since you’ve been monitoring the word count…here’s an update: My total word count to date is: 24,431…toward a goal of writing 30,000 words. (And you all wondered why I’d been so quiet lately.)

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So, weekend roundup.

Who saw Burn After Reading? Was it good? It ruled the box office, but the reviews have been fair. Bs, mostly. Am dying to see it…will make a point of it this week, I hope.

Did you see SNL on Saturday? If not, did you see the Palin-Clinton sketch? Best one ever. Loved it. Fey totally nailed Palin.

The sketch was funny, but, damn, it was also very poignant in a way. And it made several points worth thinking about.

Unfortunately, it’s been taken down off the Net, so if you missed it, it’ll be awhile before you can see it again. Too bad. (Wait: I found a link. You have to go through an Army ad, and then watch a 15 second ad, but it’s here.)

Even Music Man laughed through it, and at the end, we both looked at each other and realized how much truth there was in that sketch.

Prayers and support to the Texans dealing with Ike. We’ve got a flooded basement courtesy of Ike, but that’s nothing compared to what you’re dealing with.

Hmmm. Interesting op-ed in today’s NY Times.

Think about it.