If you’re reading this at work, you probably hate me right now. Why? Because I am forcibly confined to rest. My doctor told me, “I want you vertical as little as possible,” and thus I am placed under modified bedrest for the next few weeks. It feels more like house arrest, except that pregnancy nesting instincts must be denied. I saw a dust bunny in the baby’s room and willed myself into just waddling past it. That hurt. Thank you, Shannon, for this invaluable guide to coping with bed rest.

Who knew we were such a nation of drug pushers? Here is the conversation I am having at least once a day, with moms and non-moms alike. Them: “Are you taking childbirth classes”? Me: “Yes, I’m taking hypnobirthing. I want to have a natural childbirth.” Them: “Good luck with that (wink wink). Or, “Yeah I did too, you’ll get over it.” Or: “You’re nuts! Take the drugs”!

What did you think?

Pundits debated Barack Obama’s decision to suspend campaigning for 36 hours and visit his sick grandmother, the woman who raised him from age 10. I guess they can be forgiven for a little cynicism, given McCain’s fake suspension last month to go to Washington, DC and “help” with the bailout plan in Congress. But I applaud Obama’s decision and I pray for his grandmother, who Obama has said “taught me values straight from the Kansas heartland," things like "accountability and self-reliance. Love of country.

I interviewed two leading economists to find out. On Tuesday, when the “partial nationalization” of some of our country’s largest banks was announced, Henry Paulson’s most widely circulated quote was “Government owning a stake in any private U.S. company is objectionable to most Americans – me included…” But the alternative, no credit in the market, is “totally unacceptable,” according to Paulson.