After working with papers with strange colors on them I asked the archival specialist about the cause. She didn't know, unless there had been colored papers in post-flood soup. But she reassured me that there were no living mold spores--they'd all been gamma-radiated.

Then she offered me gloves--to keep my hands a bit cleaner. These are plain cotton gloves that fit either hand, and they are specially for archival work. Not only do they keep dirt etc. from your hands, they keep your body moistures from the records.

Either I have short thumbs or the gloves are generously sized in that department. The fingers fit fine, but the thumbs were a bit long and were borderline in the way when I was separating multiple sheets of paper.

I'll probably use them a while tomorrow.

What would you like to know about teenage pregnancy and how to prevent it (or greatly lessen the likelihood)? A lot of today's materials were about just that. The state senator whose campaign manager was the person who kept these records had a baby when she was 15. Her folks made her stay in school and get a part time job to help support the child. This woman then went on to college, then law school. And is in her second term as a state Senator. Her work in this area was recognized by Family Circle. One of her slogans--pasted on a bunch of billboards--is "VIRGIN: it's not a dirty word." Since she started her program, illegitimate births have dropped. Kids listen to her because she's been there herself.

I think I'm going to have at leat one box about just this person.

And, looking at some of the other once-soggy (but now dry and wrinkled) papers, there may be another person with enough records from the PR person (source of the records, campaign manager to at least one, probably more) to fill another box. (There are at least ten boxes circling my desk.)

Easy drive both ways today--almost. I encountered a bit of a slowdown on the way in--someone had a car problem--and a short (distance-wise) delay on the way home. It looked like anywhere from 2 to 4 cars had played crinkle-fender at a very busy intersection. And when you have to compress three lanes of traffic into two, delays are inevitable.

Driving in this morning I spotted two segments of a modular home about ready to be assembled (in Slidell). Near one of the larger interstate intersections on the east side of New Orleans there are several modular units on display. Basically, they are (probably) 12 ft. wide mobiles with house-like siding. However, they can be placed side by side, stacked, or left single, like a shotgun house. They add a shingle roof and some other things that make them look like stick-built houses. This afternoon they had a unit made up of two sections, with a steeply peaked roof with dormer windows. This is the fast way to get a new house. And those display models don't stay there very long.

As a long time (since 1960) mobile home resident, I think it's great. (Remember--my current one has been through Betsy AND Katrina.)

Enough blithering--I think I can finish the Carl Hiaasen novel this evening without staying up half the night. (I plan to go to work tomorrow.)