Thanks to everyone who left a comment or emailed me about Dad's being in the hospital. He's doing much better now and he expects to be sent home from the hospital on Friday.

I was surprised at the number of folks who wrote in defense of People and US magazines. I suppose that everyone's got his or her own favourite brain candy. I'm no different: I myself prefer comic books and have recently been enjoying the set of old-school Dungeons and Dragons manuals that David "This Boy is Toast" Petite gave to me for my birthday.

When I visited Dad yesterday, he said to me: "I don't really want magazines. What I really want is some light entertainment on TV. I want to watch Oprah and Dr. Phil."

I sighed, pulled a twenty from my wallet and put in an order for an in-room TV. Dad's always been there for me, and if he's bored stiff in a hospital room and hankering for daytime TV, I'm going to make sure he gets some.

I hope he at least tunes in to Law and Order at least once in a while.