"Are you wearing clean underpants?"

I think this is an appropriate response.

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"Have you accepted Jesus into your heart?"

I don't think I really understand this question. I mean, I suppose I would answer "no" in that I don't believe in a savior, but I like the idea of everyone being good to each other and taking care of the least among us, so a better answer might be "in spirit."

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That would get you, what, a key chain?

15,000 points gets you a hat. That's the biggest prize. A hat.

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It's kinda like Star EIP, but for 60,000 points you can get a concert ticket. But that's the lowest number of points.

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I dunno. I think I have a higher "personal" threshold than you do. Asking someone "Have you accepted Jesus into your heart?" is not only a veiled accusation (i.e. they're asking because they bet you haven't), it's about as rude as asking, "Are you wearing clean underpants?"

Well I said, depending on how it's done. Most times I've been approached it's been more "Can I talk to you about Jesus" and less, "Accept Jesus as your personal savior or perish." Also other factors like personal space and tone play a role in how tolerant I'd be for an approach.

I'm also biased because Judaism is generally discriminatory when it comes to proselytizing. Jews are fair game, but gentiles are pretty much turned away at the door and have to be pretty persistent to get in.

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Tooth fixed?

Not nearly. First priority is gettng the infection and swelling down, so that they can take a complete set of x-rays and I won't die, then we see about the root canal.

Perkins, what dentist did you use?

The guy you recommended didn't have an opening until Thursday, so I went with a dental office at the Hillsdale mall. They seem competent.

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Oh!Oh! Where's Steph? And JZ?

At the Pride parade in Chicago this year, there was one of those protest groups with the big signs about going to hell, and a loudspeaker, and a guy preaching, yadda yadda. I was across the street taking shelter in a shady doorway while the preacher man ranted on. At one point he gets on to the subject of Sodom and Gomorrah, and booms for a while about hellfire, etc., and concludes with "And do you know, WHAT WAS THE SIN OF SODOM AND GOMORRAH?"

And I thought of you guys and our conversations here, and so wished I was close enough to answer.

But then, brief pause, and then, over the loudspeaker "Well, you're not being very hospitable, ARE YOU?!?"

I about died laughing.

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RWA was tiring. Too many people, too much information. The RITA awards were totally gonzo; the President did them without consulting anybody else, so they were a video montage of disasters from 1980 to the present, the idea being that romance novels were an escape from the cruel world.

You get some idea when I tell you that (A) the video montage included scenes of Tienanmen Square set to "Don't worry, be happy" and (B) up until Friday night, the video montage included scenes from both September 11th and the Challenger explosion.

Nora Roberts walked rather than read the script assigned to the toastmaster.

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15,000 points gets you a hat. That's the biggest prize. A hat.

Man, they should at least offer a walk-on for the sequel or dinner with a cast member or something. A hat you could buy.

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I'm glad you found a doc to see. Is the infection getting better?

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