Have to get into the shower in just a minute to be ready for Lance's arrival. Have a bunch of errands to run, and then have to get back here to get a bunch of work done before leaving for Albany in the morning.

I guess the question that wraps up this holiday season is - will I survive the next few week? Or are radical changes coming up for me that are punitive and humiliating?

I think it's just time to throw in the towel.

I'm out of words.

Okay, so .. here I am, looking for a client's file, and can't figure out WHERE I put it. Lovely.

So, I have to tear through everything to see if I can find it in time to prepare the documents that I have promised to deliver .. YUCK!

And, I have to see if I can reschedule my OutSmart interview for tomorrow. The whole no car thing is a huge impediment.

The black rings represent the cascading damage if a terrorist nuclear device was exploded in the Central Business District of Houston 

Houston, a recent morning with solid fog 

So, what if it were true? What if it were true that "terrorists" were set to explode a nuclear device in Houston on December 27?

Okay, so the "gossip" is politically suspect, but it's deliciously appealing, in a morbid sort of a way.

A bomb "several times that of Nagasaki" would be on the order of .20 megatons. Obviously, if it's a trunk bomb, it will be surface detonated.

The highest pressure zone would be within one half mile of detonation - nothing
would be left standing, and 90% casualties. If the weapon were detonated in the CBD on the 27th (a work day) nearly a million people would die.

Within the one-half mile to 1.25 mile circle, very little would be left standing, and 50% dead, 40% injured with very short life cycles.

Between 1.25 and 3 miles, severe damage to wood frame structures. 5% fatalities
and 40% injured.

Between 3 and 5 miles out, some damage. Commercial structures largely
untouched.

So, basically, if the blast occurred in the CBD, all of Houston's historical "wards" would be wiped out, as would Midtown, Montrose, UofH (both of them,) and the Heights. The areas of River Oaks, Southampton, Rice Military would be severely damaged and uninhabitable. Most everything inside the loop west of downtown would be too badly damaged, and irradiated to be re-occupied.

The fallout would be severe. If the blast occurred in the CBD, based on
prevailing winds, most of inner Houston out to about Hillcroft would be irreversibly
irradiated.

It never rains, but it pours.

The most exciting thing that happened today was reading this political hype email about a potential nuclear terrorist attack on Houston, allegedly set for December 27.

After that, the whole car blowing up and being towed off for $500 of repairs was sweet. $500 I don't have, and don't know if I will have until after Christmas.

Nicole came by with my Christmas gift - it is a copy of Fahrenheit 9/11 - I screamed I was so pleased. I'm surprised she didn't burst into flame when she carried it to the cash register. As she said, it's proof positive that her love for me means more than ideology. What a sweet Christmas sentiment!!

I haven't done a lick of work today. I have a bunch TO do. Rescheduled my IRS audit, due to auto infirmity. I don't know how I'm getting to my interview tomorrow afternoon.

I know what I'm wearing; don't know how I'm getting there. I guess I'll have to take a cab. Bleh.

I should vacuum and clean the kitchen floor. And get ready to walk the mutts.

I need a Christmas miracle.

Wow. Just got home a couple of hours ago from Dallas.

I accomplished everything that I intended to; Al didn't have the balls to ask me for a drink - he had Donnie do it. Everyone else was VERY nice to me, and very glad I was there. I don't know if Al was at all inhibited at the party, but he sure was around me. And, Donnie was clearly irritated that Al couldn't be man enough to come up to me and ask me to make him something.

Today, Gary came over to Larry's, brought breakfast, we watched two movies, then we went for Mexican (bleh) and I drove home.

The drive home was smooth sailing, but, I kept thinking that my headlight pattern was weird - turns out one of my Super Blue headlight bulbs was out. I have, of course, the old headlamp bulbs from two years ago (I never installed the Super Blue bright bulbs .. silly) So, do I replace the Super Blues? Or .. ?

Clearly, I have to put in the old ones for a while.

Anyway.

Ruby is SUCH a great car. I really need to get her polished up.

Work for tomorrow, work Tuesday, another IRS audit on Tuesday, bleh.

I have to put myself to bed here soon.