Dirk's Fancy Toidy Room

I recently completed remodeling our upstairs bathroom. It feels absolutely luxurious. 45 square feet of Laguna Bay-colored ceramic tile on the floor. The new vanity is made of rel maple. At least the front and sides, while the rest is of particleboard covered with some kind of paper-plastic veneer. We even have -- get this -- a new threshold, covering up the joint between the new tile and the berber carpeting out in the hallway.

And I didn't even have to trim the closet door or bathroom door to make them fit over the new floor.

We spent nearly $600 on this adventure, stimulating the local economy while doing so.

Now U.S. Interior Secretary (and former Idaho Governor) Dirk Kempthorne has his Interior office bathroom remodeled. To the tune of $236,000. Now, I can't blame him. This is all General Services Agency-approved, part of a multi-million dollar remodel of the Interior Department's building. They removed lead paint and asbestos fibers. THey repaired aging plumbing.

They put in a refrigerator and freezer, which, heaven knows, no bathroom should be without. And floor-to-ceiling wood wainscotting -- which you can't exactly call wainscotting, can you -- and fancy tile. Plus enough money left over for monogrammed towels for a guy who's going to be out of a job come Jan. 20.

I won't say another word.