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Also, photo gallery of flood images here.

6 Minutes: Fumbling around in the fuse box trying to figure out which breaker cuts power to the kitchen.

3 Minutes: Fumbling around in the dark because I flipped the wrong breaker.

10 Minutes: Digging through the closet looking for an extension cord to run a light to the kitchen so I can see what I’m working on.

5 Minutes: Emptying out the contents of the light fixture box onto the living room floor.

20 Minutes: Pulling down the old light fixture.

3 Minutes: Yelling at the old light fixture because it won’t come down.

2 Minutes: Yelling at myself because I cut the source wires too close to the junction box, thereby complicating the rest of my evening.

12 Minutes: Staring at the instructions trying to comprehend Figure B(1)-ii

1 Minute: Deciding I can do this without the instructions.

43 Minutes: Trying to wrestle the new fixture into place.

2 Minutes: Realizing I probably should have read the instructions.

5 Minutes: Stripping wires with a razor blade.

15 Minutes: Waiting for my finger to stop bleeding.

2 Minutes: “Oh, I have to drill a hole in the ceiling?”

7 Minutes: Waiting for my cordless drill to charge.

12 Minutes: “Steph? Can you help me for a minute?”

18 Minutes: Arms over head. More wrestling.

3 Minutes: Letting the blood rush back into my arms.

2 Minutes: Steph letting the blood rush back into her arms.

4 Minutes: “Were light-bulbs included in the box?”

TRUE FACT #1: I enjoy cooking from time to time. Which comes in handy because I tend to get hungry about 3 times a day.

TRUE FACT #2: The ‘Rigatoni D’ at Maggiano’s Little Italy restaurant is the best pasta dish ever.

That said, I set out this weekend with one goal in mind: to recreate Maggiano’s Rigatoni D to exacting standards and relish in wonderful Italian food. Actually I just Googled for a Maggiano’s Rigatoni D recipe, found one, and threw all of the ingredients in the same pot.

I was incredibly pleased with the result. It tasted amazing! News flash for any of you other Rigatoni D fans though… not the healthiest dish on the planet. There’s a half stick of butter and a 1/2 quart of heavy cream in there. Edible heart-attack. Tastes good though.

“The worst deficit comes from a recession, and if we can take the proper action in the proper time, this can be the most important step we could take to prevent another recession…

Such a bill will be presented to the Congress for action next year. It will include an across the board, top to bottom cut in both corporate and personal income taxes. It will include long-needed tax reform that logic and equity demand. And it will date that cut in taxes to take effect as of the start of next year.

The billions of dollars this bill will place in the hands of the consumer and our businessmen will have both immediate and permanent benefits to our economy. Every dollar released from taxation that is spent or invested will help create a new job and a new salary. And these new jobs and new salaries can create other jobs and other salaries and more customers and more growth for an expanding American economy.

By removing tax roadblocks to new jobs and new growth, the enactment of this measure next year will eventually more than make up in new revenue all that it will initially cost. By lightening tax burdens as the Common Market countries have done so successfully- and they have full employment and an economic growth rate twice ours – it will improve the competitive position of American business, encourage investment at home instead of abroad, and improve our balance of payments and will help make us all – individuals and as a nation – help us make the most of our economic resources.”

President John F. Kennedy, a Democrat
August 13, 1962

full text

How to be Seth Godin in four easy steps…

Step 1: Identify an ordinary object.
Like a faucet, or a door, or a car tire, or a picture frame. I’ll choose a plunger.

Step 2: Tell people how that ordinary object isn’t all that great.
Plungers are dirty and gross. Their only job is to shove poop down a plugged up toilet. Plus they stink when you’re done using them.

Step 3: Conjure up some statistic. Godin-Points for attributing your statistic to a well known organization.
According to the Federal Bureau On Septic Waste, only 1 out of every 1,079 toilet uses require the use of a plunger, which is like a really really small percentage.

Step 4: Tell people why you shouldn’t be like your ordinary object. Godin-Points for an ambiguous analogy of what they should be doing instead.
Bad marketing, like a plunger, forces a product down the throats of consumers while the market is already clogged with other products just like yours that no one really wants. A good toilet doesn’t need a plunger; it needs better water pressure.

Save. Publish. Shave your head. Relish the glory of Godin-Points. Hallelujah. Purple cow. Amen.