A while back I discussed what I had learned from my dog Claude. Claude and I go on walks most mornings. Sometimes it is warm in the morning, sometimes snowing or raining. I have to adjust my clothing to accommodate the weather.

Not Claude. He wears the same thing every morning.

It finally occurred to me that to Claude, there is no such thing as good or bad weather. Weather just is. The walk is the important thing.

I think the same thing can be said about politics. There is always some big crisis going on, currently the debt limit crisis. But if it isn’t the debt limit, it is the next war, or the next sex scandal, or some group is getting a subsidy or handout and someone else isn’t. It is a never ending stream of woe and gnashing of teeth.

Best to treat it like a dog treats the weather. What goes on in Washington just is and, really, has little impact on you.

Save yourself for the walk, the good stuff: family, friends, a nice yard, a cold beer, a good movie. Life’s short.