Of Bratwursts and Beer ...

Susan was in New Orleans this past week, at a seminar for a national organization for public opinion research. As part of her visit she spent a little time with our real estate agent, looking at houses in the uptown area. She was not impressed.

She went to only one session at the convention, on the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, of all things. A lot of her friends were there and a major subject of conversation was whether we were going to return to New Orleans anytime soon. She and I have declared a moratorium on discussions on the subject until June 1, so she had no answer to give. Susan returns tonight.

Susan’s countdown to the end of her teaching career is down to three weeks. We thought the part-time job would be a good way to phase down to retirement, but she has gotten impatient to be done with teaching. I think it will be tough for her to quickly put together a satisfying retirement experience; like me, she has no real hobbies and it takes a little time to put together a rewarding volunteer schedule.

I continue to enjoy my retirement in Cincinnati. My volunteer work has been more pleasurable than expected. I am doing some writing on business matters, and preparing to team-teach an upcoming seminar for my professional volunteer organization. Today is spring cleaning day at campaign headquarters of my political volunteer organization.

Cincinnati has a strong German tradition, and yesterday I went to Maifest, just across the river in Covington, KY. I guess this is for people who are having trouble waiting for Oktoberfest. My dinner was bratwurst and sauerkraut, washed down by some good German beer.

Hillary Clinton was going to address the group a bit later in the evening. As I followed the crowd walking from the parking area to the Fest I struck up a conversation with a gentleman who is a clinical psychologist. It was his professional opinion that the Clintons are narcissists, and had no business in government.

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