Just a quick note to say I'm going offline for a few days. We're off for a vacation to see the family, and I'll only have limited Internet access. But I will be texting updates to Twitter, so check me out there.

In the meantime, read my friend Kim's blog. She was nice enough to put me on her blog roll a week ago and I haven't returned the favor until now.

I know I'm late to the blogosphere's party about John Edwards, but I wanted to actually take some time to think through all the facets of this story before commenting. And after reading many, many articles on the affair, the political fallout, the shady payment, etc. etc., I can conclude a few things:

1. The National Enquirer gets a gold star for being first and being right. But I'm also docking it two gold stars for paying for the story. The reason nobody takes the Enquirer seriously is because of ethical breeches like that (the "tabloid" design doesn't help either, nor does its placement next to the Weekly Word News, Star, et al). The Enquirer actually has a pretty good track record as far as reporting big stories. Now, if it would just take the high road in its reporting, maybe it would win some credibility and some extra readership.
   
2. John Edwards is a two-faced scumbag politician. He cheated on his wife who is battling cancer and funneled campaign cash to his mistress for making a grand total of four videos. And remember, he was the moral of the Democratic candidates for president, the one who cared about the "other America" in his "Two Americas" scenario. I still agree that scenario exists (just look at the rich-poor gap) and has for years, but he clearly was only paying lip service to the part about caring. Or, as politicians call it, "campaigning."
   
3. The mainstream media played the story too safe, which I attribute to the largely debunked piece the New York Times ran on John McCain about six months ago. The allegations in that story -- that McCain was cheating on his wife -- were based solely on anonymous sources. McCain vehemently denied it, and I think most people believed him. Now, another story about a presidential contender comes along -- one who is out of the race already -- and why would you run the risk of embarrassing yourself the way the Times did?
   

So, back to the point of this post: Did Edwards get a pass from the media? With a few exceptions -- notably, and ironically, the Enquirer -- Edwards most certainly did get a pass. He was able to release the story on his terms, and he chose a time when fewer people would talk about it. Hey, it's hard to beat Friday afternoon on the same day that the Olympics start.

Somehow, I expect we'll see John Edwards again. Certainly nowhere near the White House unless he's an invited guest. But he'll lay low for a few years and show back up again, probably in some type of partnership with Al Gore on some TV/advocacy project. I'm not rooting for the guy or anything, that's just my predication of what will happen.

I will say I feel mighty letdown by a guy whose message resonated at least somewhat with me. I liked his progressive mindset, and I appreciated his candor when he said that he was wrong in voting for the Iraq War (although I thought then as I do now that that was more of a strategic move than an honest confession; still, it was nice to hear). And, most importantly, he misused his campaign funds to pay for his girlfriend.

A real moral choice John Edwards turned out to be.

 Grandma Charlene was the embodiment of the old cliche, "Behind every successful man is a great woman."

The physical differences between the two of them couldn't have been more exaggerated. Grandpa was built like a brick shithouse: Tall, thick as an oak (but mostly muscle) and strong as an ox. Grandma was petite and short, but also toned and healthy, which happens when you and your husband are big golfers.

Grandpa had squinty eyes that often made him appear asleep. Grandma wore glasses, and they accentuated her eyes to be just a little above normal, or they only appeared that way compared to Grandpa's.

Grandpa was the extrovert. He was the authoritarian, the high school principal and football coach (oh, how he was disappointed the day I quit football in 7th grade. And after only 3 days, too). Grandma was the introvert, but she too didn't tolerate any nonsense. But if you were willing to chill out, have a conversation and watch her go about her household chores, she was sweet as pie. She'd listen to my stories of life on the school yard, who was picking on me, which girl I thought was cute, which team I thought would be really good in the NFL that year (I was obsessed when I was a kid), etc. etc.

And she made sure to instill in me the importance of a good education. She and Grandpa gave me savings bonds every year for Christmas and my birthday, and those helped me get through college. They stayed on me about getting good grades and stressed that without a college education, I wouldn't amount to much. And I believed them.

I'll miss her and always remember the good times we had together. Like when you'd take me shopping at Pamida, or how you and Grandpa always drove me to the Shriners Hospital for surgery and regular checkups. I might not be able to walk today without your support.

And then there were the awkward times, like when you were holding Matt's hand and he jumped down the stairs and nearly took you with him. Or the time I swiped the check when we went out to eat and paid. I love how you and Grandpa included the exact amount of the check in my next birthday card.

Charlene Parker was a wonderful grandma, a role model and a helluva golfer. I'll miss you.