Yes--tonight is the first pre-season Saints game--and it's at home.

Because it's a season sellout, I can watch it at home and let OD and my grandson "be in that number" physically.

And this morning I got my Who Dat shirt for donating platelets at the Blood Center. I'll probably be wearing it to the first game I attend.

Needless to say, by now people have been tailgating for a while. Not just on street-level parking lots, but in the Superdome parking garage, especially on the roof, where my parking spot is.

What is really nice however, is that a significant number of Cincinnati fans who have come to watch the game have also set aside time for renewal work in the city. Katrina repairs are nowhere near being complete; New Orleans has become a major destination for volunteeriem-minded Spring Break students, and many of the people attending conventions set aside some time for volunteer work. That says something quite positive.

The Blood Center was really busy today--at one point four people were donating platelets and two were giving whole blood. I can't remember seeing it that busy in the past. Maybe it was the T-shirts?

When I set out CC's dinner Stripe was sitting on the porch meowing quietly. He still won't let me pet him, altho Spot will now come over for head and chin scritching.

Tomorrow I must do yard work. And burn the burn pile.