BATON ROUGE - It's off somewhere today, maybe the Florida Keys, for Gov.-elect Kathleen Babineaux Blanco.

But only for two or three days because there is much work to be done to prepare to take over state government Jan. 12.

Blanco said she and her husband, Raymond, both need a brief vacation after the grueling six-week runoff campaign. She knew she needed to get some rest when she awoke at 8 a.m. Sunday "after five hours of sleep." She was on such a busy schedule of meetings Sunday that she said, "it probably still hasn't sunk in."

"I need to be freshened," Blanco said Sunday afternoon, then glanced over at Raymond, smiling. "So does my husband, who worries a lot!"

A special memento

On Sunday, Kathleen Blanco was wearing a prized possession: a metal cross, made for her by her son, Ben, who was killed in an on-the-job accident in January 1997, just short of his 20th birthday. She was headed for Mass on Sunday night. The cross was briefly misplaced during the campaign, but found in her Lafayette home. She plans to visit her son's grave this week.

All made up

If you think Kathleen Blanco looked really good during the debates and on television Saturday and Sunday nights, congratulate Susan Spade of New Orleans, who owns Make Up Art in New Orleans' upscale Maple Street area.

"I am a Blanco fan," Spade said. "She is an easy canvas and a beautiful lady inside and out," said Spade, who will be back for the inauguration. She did the make-up for the films Interview with the Vampire and JFK.