Busied myself with this and that. In between domestic chores, continued Berman's book. He describes the present state of the country in the introduction--and boy, it's horrible and sad, partly because it rings so true. I was especially struck by his emphasis on the consumerism that is a great tide--no, more like a tsunami that sweeps away all thought, kindliness, and belief in inner riches.
He doesn't mention, but Leonard Pitts did in a column a few months ago, the present trend--I assume countrywide--of naming or renaming sports stadium for their commercial supporters. "Veterans Stadium" is now "Wachovia Center," for instance, so sportscasters (commercial whores themselves, of course) can't even refer to a venue without repeating the name.
Now, with television everywhere (doctor's offices, supermarkets, etc.), we can barely ever escape being targets of selling--and what's most horrifying, neither can our children. More about that in a later entry as I continue to read.
High point of the day was a web call from Singapore. Adorable little Violet was shown--she had nothing to say but "glug," although she's over four months old--and Vivian thanked me for her Halloween book. They're the hope for the future and I'm glad they live in another country.