The two agency calls turned out to be duplicates, both discussing the same job. Even so, it's a good sign when agencies are calling people, particularly when they're calling me.

There is no better celebration of bad writing than The Bulwer-Lytton Fiction Contest. Of course, we don't want to omit the celebrities. A book report by Britney Spears is up for auction. (The link may go away after the auction is complete.) I know that I've written badly in the past (including the not too distant past) and have been spared greater public embarrassment only by my relative anonymity and the grace of good editors.

The next two weeks at work will be busy, made all the more so by holiday gatherings that jump into the middle of the day. We don't have Christmas parties as such, not the kinds portrayed on TV. No drinking, at least none that I see, and no wild antics. The big parties are a thing of the past, victims of budget cuts and liability laws. Anyway, there are a couple of luncheons, one in the office and another at a local Chinese restaurant. Most people will be eager to get back to their offices to wrap up their projects.

We ordered the meats for our Christmas gathering from a local market. Last night our next-door neighbor, who works at the market, called to make sure that our order was right because it was different from what we ordered last year.