I would think that with the election over, the heat about Sarah Palin's outrageous clothing fiasco would be dying down. But no. Today she said she never asked for the clothes, just a Diet Coke or two. If I were her I'd like to calm things down, too, but maybe the truth is somewhere in the middle.

I normally don't talk politics on this site, but when I heard that comment, a picture popped into my head. After all, I am a writer. Can't you just see the RNC aides dragging Sarah and her brood into Neiman's and Saks, kicking and screaming, shouting that all she wants is a Coke. Yeah. I'd have a hard time with that, too. Then, pushy handlers that they are, they whip out credit cards and force her and her family to try on and buy designer outfits or suffer the consequences. See what I mean?

Now, I can understand some of it. After all she spends a reasonable amount of time in Juneau. I've been there many, many times because, of course, my sister and co-author, Phyllice, lived in Alaska for over thirty years. For those of you who are fashionistas, you gotta know that the main choices are Gottshalks, K-Mart, Fred Meyers, Costco and if you are expecting Nordstroms, Bloomies, or Macys---forget it. They used to have a store named Damon's, but it went out and was replaced by Gottshalks. There are some department stores besides Gottshalks in Anchorage. There is Nordstroms, J. C. Pennys, Sears, Burlington Coat Factory and I forget what else. It's not New York, but there are far more choices than in Juneau.

I remember one time when Phyllice and I arranged a "Sisters Retreat" in San Francisco. All Phyllice wanted to do was shop. She was almost like a shark in a feeding frenzy, scouting out all the choices.

Maybe that's why Sarah has been moving government services from Juneau to Anchorage. Maybe she's a little homesick for Wasilla and Nordstroms.

Anyway, that's my political commentary for today. Congratulations to President-Elect Barack Obama and his Vice President Joe Biden for what all the pundits say was well planned, well run campaign. Amazing what expert planning and organization can do. Even when the opponents look down on experience as an organizer, who had the last laugh?.