The last day of a work week is always a good day. You can quote me on that. It may be busy beyond belief, completely annoying and infuriating but you still don't have to go to work tomorrow. And that's a very good thing.

I just got back from a wonderful lunch. Nice roasted tomatoes and a chicken kabob in this bizarre new restaurant that has a full Persian menu and a full American continental menu, not to mention people smoking tobacco (?) out of a giant Persian water pipe. And I got to see a friend I hadn't seen in a long time. And then, walking back up the street to my car, I passed the ballet place, which always has the most amazing display windows. (Forever, or close, they had these wonderful suspended tutus and that was it.) Right now they have a Christmas tree, decorated all in delicate ballerinas. It's made much cooler by the fact that none of the ballerina ornaments quite match, and the tree's kind of ratty and old.

Not to mention the fact that Lou Reed was singing "It's a Wonderful World" off a new kids' album when I got back in the car. WRVG has got to be one of the best radio stations in the country. I consistently hear brilliant music on there, with no regard to marketing category or even the song just before. It's like god's own radio station. Like having someone give you a great mixtape every day.

Michael Jackson wishes he could shop like a normal person. We all wish he could, too. Unfortunately, the man-thing Glove Monster seems completely unaware that he is NOT a normal person. And I'm pretty liberal about the kinds of movies kids are old enough to watch when. But even I think those poor kids are too young to have memorized Spiderman, if only because of the grisly fight scene near the end. (Up till that moment, the movie has a different tone, the action swooping and clean. I think the shift is a miscalculation, but I'm nattering on...) Maybe the kids think they're superheroes and they really don't want to give up their Spiderman scarves. If that's the truth, maybe it's the best thing that could happen to them and they'll grow up to fight crime. Or maybe they think they're ghosts.

(Murder by Numbers is not as bad as you think it is. Imposter is much worse.)

Dan Rather is also insane, but in kind of a lovably daffy way. Senate staffers nosing around where they don't belong can be good. Don't tell John Travolta about this; he'll make another movie. (What am I thinking? John Travolta can probably do this with his mind.)

Stephen Hunter says Treasure Planet is good. Which makes me happy. He didn't care much for Solaris, but I still have high hopes. And there's always the Clooney Factor.

I expect tomorrow's entry will be all sentimental and junk, what with me having so much to be thankful for. I'm not being sarcastic there, which is kind of interesting in and of itself. But probably only to me.

Be well. Travel safe. Sleep tight.