What Caught My Eye Today

Vickie Lynn Hogan - She was stricken while staying at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino and was rushed to a hospital where she was declared dead. The curvaceous blonde whose life played out as an extraordinary tabloid tale — Playboy centerfold, jeans model, bride of an octogenarian oil tycoon, reality-show subject, tragic mother was 39. You may be more familiar her stage name...Anna Nicole Smith.

Driving - Vermont lawmakers are considering a measure that would ban eating, drinking, smoking, reading, writing, personal grooming, playing an instrument, "interacting with pets or cargo," talking on a cell phone or using any other personal communication device while driving. The punishment: a fine of up to $600." I see fornication didn't make the list, so I'm cool with this.

Air Travel - More on Pelosi's request for an upgrade to a big plane for travel. After the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, the Pentagon agreed to provide the House speaker, who is second in the line of presidential succession, with a military plane for added security during trips back home. Former House Speaker Dennis Hastert, an Illinois Republican, flew in a small commuter-sized Air Force jet. Pelosi said she would be happy to fly on commercial airliners but said the House sergeant-at-arms office urged her to continue Hastert's practice of using Air Force transport. She said she was informed on her first trip home that her plane would not make it across the country. "I said well, that's fine, I'm going commercial," she told Fox News Channel. "I'm not asking to go on that plane. If you need to take me there for security purposes, you're going to have to get a plane that goes across the country, because I'm going home to my family." Funny how those little tidbits of information seem to have been left out of the initial allegations made by the Republicans. Always nice to see members of Congress getting along so well.

Cheddar Vision - Catch the latest craze to sweep the Internet (http://www.cheddarvision.tv). When contacted about the sudden emergence of a competitor, the International Coalition of Paint Drying Watchers issued the following statement, "We've seen competitors come and go. A couple of years ago, the Watching Grass Grow World Alliance launched a similar campaign against us and folded after a couple of months. We feel that we offer a superior offering to our customer base, and that this latest attempt to challenge our dominate market position will ultimately fail."

NBA - The Boston Celtics losing streak hit 16 on Wednesday night. Amazingly, they are only the second worst team in the NBA. That distinction goes to the Memphis Grizzlies.

Cycling - Floyd Landis won't defend his title in this year's Tour de France in order to concentrate on fighting doping charges against him. I don't want to split hairs, but you cannot defend something that you might not have.

Soccer - Only six soccer stadiums in Italy meet security requirements, meaning that league games in other arenas will be played without fans following last week's death of a police officer during riots at a game in Sicily. See, that's why they're called 'hooligans' rather than 'fans'.