We were already running late when the phone rang this morning. Expecting the caller to be our boss with a question about the changes Gabe put into production last week, I answered. I heard "Hello, this is George W. Bush," and immediately hung up the phone. And then thought OMG — I just hung up on The President!

It took me a few minutes to convince myself that I had hung up on what I thought I was hanging up on, namely, a recording. Even so, I had a momentary panic, wondering what I'd say if George W. himself called back to berate me for having hung up on him. Would I say, "I'm sorry, I thought you were a recording" and then preempt whatever it was he wanted to say by asking him to support gay marriage, to reverse the policies that are adding to the national debt, to support stem cell research, and to take a positive step for peace rather than our current war on terror, in which, face it, we attacked the wrong bunch of folks. Or would my mind lock up and leave me completely speechless?