Seattle's death toll was 1600 out of approximately 400,000 people, a death rate half what was seen in other US cities.

I love walking through graveyards. It's a thing. There's a beautiful graveyard in Hollywood that I've been to a number of times, and there's a whole section where all the death dates are clustered in August through November, 1918.

Also, that article notwithstanding, the 1918 outbreak is like the quiet plague -- I've read so little about it, compared to other plagues in history. It's like it was so scary to people of modern times, few people like to talk or write about it.

Doesn't everyone have HPV already?

According to several different OBGYNs I've talked to, yes, nearly 90% of adults has some form. The trick is that there are dozens of different strains--some dangerous and some not. I believe the vaccine is to prevent the HPV strains that have been shown to lead to cervical cancer.

Oh, and religious groups who oppose the vaccinations can bite me, and I'm not saying sorry for feeling that way. Grrr.

Nilly, Sheryl, and Kristin -- none of you have even come close to offending me this year. May you have a peaceful holiday.

I was going to go into the office today. I have work that I need to do to make up for making a really stupid mistake a few weeks ago. But it's a beautiful day and the traffic would be bad because it's Fleet Week and the Blue Angels are here -- and I was just in the city last night (to see Serenity again with some fannish pals).

So I think I'm going to be irresponsible and take the dog for a walk, buy my book club book, do yard work, and make a pot of curry. Maybe I'll write a little.

I figure I've offended everyone at some point this year. I'll have to also ask forgiveness for calling in sick on Yom Kippur because I have so little vacation time.

I'm a bad, bad Jew.

I don't actually think you've offended me this year, Allyson. Hard though that may be to believe... t grin

Kristin, that was a lovely post. Also, msbelle is, yup, still the nicest.

[Edited to wave to Suela. My, I miss posting with you guys!]

I figure I've offended everyone at some point this year.

Not me, not that I can remember. Of course, now the former sentence makes you a liar, so it's not like I helped you with that.

calling in sick on Yom Kippur

This year's Jewish holidays are in the worst possible days-of-the-week for anybody who doesn't get Jewish-Holidays-off, all middle-of-the-week. A friend (it's her family that hosted me on Saturday in NYC) is in college now, and she misses so many classes.

And on better news, because the unspoiled me can't post it on the proper thread, a friend just e-mailed me that she got us tickets for "Serenity", on the 18th.

A side note--I feel uncomfortable being included with those who are truly Jewish, so please don't feel you have to acknowledge my post in thread right now. Please just let me know via email if I have offended you so we can talk about it privately. Thanks.

Allyson, you don't get Yom Kippur off as a religious holiday? Seriously? You shouldn't have to take a sick day OR a vacation day. That's just wrong.

We have classes cancelled at my school, but the offices are open. Sucks for the Jewish staff.

This year's Jewish holidays are in the worst possible days-of-the-week for anybody who doesn't get Jewish-Holidays-off, all middle-of-the-week. A friend (it's her family that hosted me on Saturday in NYC) is in college now, and she misses so many classes.

Obviously working in a Jewish institution we get all the holidays off, so that means we have classes about 9 times the entire month of October. It's crazy. They started school a week earlier than usual to try to compensate for the way the holidays fall this year.

They started school a week earlier than usual to try to compensate for the way the holidays fall this year.

In Israel, the school systems (up until the age of 18, when high shcool ends) start on the first of September. Always. This year (because last year had 13 months, a "pregnant" year) it meant there was a whole month of school before the holidays started. There are years in which there is less than a week, but even in those years they schoolyear only starts a day early, tops.

Mora than a few parents just don't send their kids to school on the days between the holidays and the weekends, though. They just 'bridge' between them. Nobody gets lots of school work done in this month, anyway.