Pilot's Log

Hey.

I'm keeping this one short as it smells like there is a horrid combination of temperature inversion and grass fire in this neighborhood. (What is it about nicotine that keeps people smoking? All smoke does for me is give me a headache.)

As anybody who is a fan of American auto racing is aware, this is the last season of the NASCAR Nextel (ex-Windsor) Cup in which driver Rusty Wallace will be competing. He's "retiring" by buying up new car dealerships in the East Tennessee area (and perhaps in the Carolinas as well) and he's already appearing as a pitchman in the advertisements for them.

And so at the dinner table (where we almost always have the TV on as we eat) we commented on the clothes he wore in the latest ad: a big loud tropical print shirt. Mom asked (sarcastically), "Where do you think he got that?"

"What would you rather see him wear? A nice business suit and tie?" I rhetorically asked. "His race car driver jumpsuit?"

"The jumpsuit would probably look better on him."

"Fat chance seeing it," I told her. "He's sponsored by Miller Lite Beer and if he wore that, he'd be advertising the beer too. It's probably not allowed."

"Maybe they could dummy up one, with just his name on it...?"

I know, this is thinking too much about the issue. At least he isn't singing a jingle or pounding on the hoods of the cars like other TV hucksters I've known. I'm sure he's a really nice guy too. (And having him on there beats the silly stuff the dealership had been doing before--magic tricks!)

FP