Thursday Reads -- You're Going the Wrong Way

Have any of you been feeling out of sorts lately? Perhaps you've been dazed by the drudgery of snow and cold and more cold. Maybe it seems you're going in the wrong direction.

Well, consider the story of the 88-year-old North Platte, Neb., man who drove the wrong way on Interstate 80 for 40 miles Tuesday night. According to the Omaha World-Herald, when troopers "frantically" tried to get him to stop "he smiled and waved." His wife sent him out to get dinner (of course) and he got turned around.

It all ended well with no injuries. Please read the story, it's good.

So what else is going in the wrong direction today?

Gov. Culver's budget plan continues to dismay some at this hour, according to The Register.  But the governor will get to sign a $56 million disaster aid package as early as today. Cedar Rapids, according to The Gazette, will get $9.5 million in housing assistance, which is about what local officials have been saying they need to fill the gap between a crush of applications and scarce dollars.

Meanwhile, in Washington D.C., your U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley is raising tough questions about the stimulus bill. For example, he's questioning funding for the National Science Foundation after the disclosure that foundation employee spent 20 percent of his working hours surfing Internet porn. Radio Iowa says Grassley wants to know who else was looking at naughty stuff when they were supposed to be doing science things.

I came across this story after doing a routine Google search for...never mind.

Elsewhere, the state's indoor smoking ban has sparked another lawsuit, this time by a guy who says he was fired after reporting a workplace violation of the law.

And the Mason City  Globe-Gazette is rockin' this morning, with front page stories about

Kevin Costner's barn gig in Leland and the

kickoff of the 50th anniversary of the last performance of Buddy Holly, Big Bopper and Ritchie Valens. Rave on.