UNPLUGGED

Caption: My legs hurt.

Pardon the late post--I'm on the road this week and it looks like internet access will be a problem. Please excuse any possible "interruptions in service."

Also, thanks to all who wished me well on the triathlon Sunday. I am pleased to say I survived and even managed to finish it before everybody went home.

I think the swimming was the hardest part, but none of it was exactly a picnic. The swim was 1/2 mile. The distance looked pretty easy from the shore but it was another thing in the late. Goggles or not, it's hard to see in a lake and hard to swim in a crowd. I think I zigged and zagged a lot.

The 24.8 mile bike ride gave me a chance to think about important things, like how much my legs and butt hurt.

The transition from the bike to the 3.1 mile run was another jolt. It is my experience that legs that have been biking a while don't like to be told to jog.

Did I mention it was uphill both ways? Even the swim?

All of which goes to show that having a seriously messed up heart is not an obstacle to endurance sports provided one is stupid enough.

KRUGMAN ON KIDS' HEALTH CARE. Here's a good one by Paul Krugman that attempts to answer the question "What kind of philosophy says that it's O.K. to subsidize insurance companies, but not to provide health care to children?"

GOAT ROPE ADVISORY LEVEL: ELEVATED