"Like 27 bad dates"

While drinking my second $1.50 long island iced tea at the Ground Round last night, a waitress wandered over and asked me by name if I was old enough to drink. Katie, an old babysitter. She admitted she had a hard time picturing me beyond 8 years old. Turns out she fled the Twin Cities after finishing her acting degree. She was laid off from a job when the economy flopped earlier this year and struggled through 27 job interviews before throwing in the towel. She likened it to "27 bad dates." North Dakota promised a brighter employment horizon, a fact that had never occurred to me before. Bismarck's population has swelled from 48,000 to a little over 60,000 in four years. Developments springing up on the northern, southern and eastern fringes. Explains the rash of box stores and the twin Super WalMarts that pitched camp here while I was away at college. With Mandan boasting a population of 30,000 and rising just across the river, the Missouri River Valley is experiencing some serious economic growth in spite of the nation's woes. Doesn't mean Katie's necessarily all that happy fetching drinks for former babysitting clients at Ground Round, but beats the Hell out of countless bad dates in Minneapolis/St. Paul. And there are much worse places to live.

In broader news, I hope others are following stories on the developments in India and Thailand as closely as I am. Hostages in the Taj Mahal Palace and Oberoi hotels, Thai police and military prepping to force an end to protests at both Bangkok's airports. Condolences to the family of the chief of Mumbai's anti-terrorist unit and the loved ones of over 100 people killed in the streets and transit stations of the city, British and Indian nationals alike. It's terrible that agressors in Mumbai are targeting American and UK nationals, but those don't account for the bulk of casualties.