I'm back from glorious Missoula! I've uploaded my photos from the trip into a new Yahoo album (Warning: puppy pictures). I can die happy now that I've been to The Elbow Room, a double-wide trailer converted into a bar.

Coming soon to WIB: The Monday Caption Contest, November election endorsements

Jeremy notified me about the following commentary by sports-broadcaster-turned-pundit Keith Olbermann. Channeling the ghost of Edward R. Murrow...

I'm about to depart from Missoula back to Seattle, but was once again hasseled by the Transportation Security Administration, better known as TSA. The acronym also stands for Totalitarian Security Assholes. Obviously, I'll be venting in this post.

I'm all for airport security. Don't get me wrong. The last four times I've been at the airport I've been selected for "advanced screenings." I don't mind, and I understand because I'm usually flying stand-by and purchasing my ticket the day of the flight.

However, when the security agent is counting the ounces on the lotion container, I get a little irritated. And woe, the inconsistancies! On the way over to Missoula, I had my lotion bottle, which was one ounce over the limit (3 oz.), but, because the container was less than half full, the security agent didn't see a problem with it. My all-purpose contact solution container was too large, though almost empty, so that was confiscated. Whatever. I figured I'd just buy the smallest size available in Missoula, which I did.

But in this recent round, I was told that the size of my lotion bottle was all that mattered and had to be confiscated, even though the specific face lotion I use is available in no smaller size. Then, the brand new all-purpose contact solution I just bought was also confiscated because it wasn't technically a saline solution or eye drop solution. Apparently, TSA doesn't recognize recent advancements in the contact lens industry, which have allowed the visually impaired, such as myself, to be able to use one all-encompassing disinfectant solution, instead of using a combination of varying disinfectant solutions and pills.

I, of course, informed the TSA manager of this history and experience, and suppose that I was lucky enough to be able to board the plane in my state of rage and arrogance.

I got a job! In celebration, I'll be heading to Montana to visit Scott for a couple days. I'll be back this weekend.

- P to the A to the OLO

Last night, I joined Chris, Kenna, Courtney, Claire and Tamara (although she slept the whole time) in watching the Senate debates last night on King 5.

In a nutshell, Maria Cantwell, the incumbent Democrat, boasted her record, Mike McGavick, her Republican challenger, attacked it and Bruce Guthrie, her Libertarian challenger, made mostly idiotic, illogical statements. After Guthrie mentioned being a lecturer at WWU, all of us WWU alumni agreed that we had to go back to a different college to earn B.A.'s again because Guthrie certainly destroyed any credibility WWU had and devalued, if not nullified, our degrees.

Outside the King 5 studios, Green Party candidate Aaron Dixon, who did not meet the fundraising and polling requirements for the debate, protested and demanded that he be included. After refusing to leave, he was arrested, according to the P-I.

As for the candidates' specific arguments in the debate, both the P-I and Times have nice summaries, so I won't go in-depth there, but here are some stand-out statements by the candidates:

Cantwell (on McGavick): "Do you want to send somebody to Washington who is willing to cut thousands of employees off his payroll and take a cash bonus as a reward for that?"

McGavick (on Social Security): "I don't trust Wall Street to manage this money, I don't trust individuals to manage this money. It should be a government program."

Guthrie: (on drug control): "I'd prefer drug and alcohol testing on members of Congress."