*Obama visits the Republican retreat. Like my grandma's chicken soup, it couldn't hurt. I look forward to watching a replay tonight.

*I'd be less concerned about the Yankees breaking ways with Johnny Damon if I thought they had a better replacement than the Brett Gardner-Randy Winn tandem.

*I'm looking forward to seeing Martin Scorsese's next film, "Shelter Island", but I'm not bowled over by the trailer. It can't be a good sign that the film's release was delayed until Feb. 19, rather than late 2009, when studios like to unveil what they think will be Oscar contenders.

*Devices like the IPad may be lifesavers for newspapers, but only if newspapers produce content people want to read. For now, I'm off to a publisher's meeting next week. I'm bringing my laptop and my IPod.