1. This is one way to get a few vacation days. I suppose. Or would this fall under sick leave?

2. A fool and his money are soon parted.

3. For those finding themselves affected by flooding, take extra precautions against bacterial disease. A study conducted in 2004 (PDF, 8 pages) after flooding in Haiti showed good results from using PuR water treatment systems, though boiling should achieve similar results.

4. You would think that, after the Nick Adenhart tragedy two seasons ago, MLB would get their act together involving DUI charges. Nope, not yet. There is simply no excuse for this.

5. Not a big fan of bed bugs. Not at all. If you travel, say to a meeting, take some precautions to help you not bring any home with you.

6. I've blogged about my foray into the world of the "electronic office". To date, I still have yet to print out a manuscript. A combination of EndNote X4, Adobe Acrobat, and Microsoft Word 2007 with "track changes" has meant that I can read and review all of my papers without printing anything out. In terms of saving money for printing costs ... I imagine the savings are minimal (savings of paper and ink purchased in bulk for an institution won't add up if only one person isn't using them) but I believe it's certainly helping in the productivity aspect of things, which will reap huge dividends for me personally. Plus, it does add a bit of a "green factor" to my approach which I can claim credit for as well, which is always good.