The Middle Distance

October is to Panama what February is to wintry U.S. states, a month to endure. Will the rain never cease Michelangelo? Will there be no end of it? Of course rain is easier to tolerate than February's snow, sleet and cold, but we wimps here in paradise still feel that whining is called for when the sun makes only token appearances. With actual life limited and soggy up close I believe the best thing to do is go somewhere else. Somewhere in the middle distance.

Volcan Baru is shrouded in fog this morning which means that if you stare off into the middle distance your visibility has maxed out. It is, though, nice there in the m.d. I can see inside the fog where the nothingness cavorts and dances and all things are possible because they are all imagined anyway. Hope lives there and dreams too. I can see the Past rearranged to my liking and forward to the Future as far as I choose. There's a debate lurking there and a dental appointment to boot and...now I've done it, I've left the m.d. and returned to the real, the up close where the window in front of me could use a washing, my dog is sick and I do in fact have to see a dentista this afternoon.

Screw that, it's back to the middle distance for me.

There is a debate tonight to look forward to and it's shaping up to be a good one. The format calls for the two candidates to stand toe to toe and shout their opinions at each other. When McCain loses his temper which, of course, is inevitable, he will be permitted to pull a handkerchief from his sleeve and use it to slap Obama across the face in challenge. Obama will then have the choice of weapons and I am told he will select nineteenth century dueling pistols as his gun control legislation won't allow anything more modern. The debate committee has ruled out sabers and such as unfair to the older opponent. The Seconds will then be called to join the fray and issued weapons of their own. Palin, who doesn't follow rules, will select a hunting rifle. As a further fairness consideration, she will receive only one bullet. Biden will choose a wolf. The combatants will then stand back to back and pace off ten steps before turning and beginning their assaults. If any two of the opposing parties remain standing after the initial thrust, they will be issued gladiator clothes and weaponry for a second round of debating in which there will be no rules whatsoever. Vegas has a potential Palin vs Obama final at even odds with a Wolf vs McCain the least likely to occur but a good bet at ten to one. Whatever the outcome, this is definitely "don't miss TV".

Yup, it is true. The middle distance is the place to be.