$9.25

I figure that's what the Minneapolis Star Tribune owes me. In mileage. Twenty-five miles times the going rate of--what, $0.37/mile--for telling me Alton Brown would be doing a reading/book signing at Bound To Be Read in St. Paul. I got there, looked around, and found a reading about to start for something called something like Are You Earning What You're Worth? (and I don't need someone to tell me that I'm not), but no Alton Brown, and no I'm Just Here For More Food. Here's my conversation with the man at the counter:

Me: Isn't Alton Brown supposed to be here tonight?
Him: Yeah, if you believe the Strib.
Me: Dang it.
Him: Are you earning what you're worth?

He was very sorry I missed Alton (who was there on Saturday), but it wasn't his fault; it was the Strib's.