Not unsurprisingly, that story made me get misty. And then it made me topple my Fruit Water into my lap (grape, no chemical preservatives), but the cap is on, so no damage is done.

There is (was?) a rogue hugger wandering around Westwood bearhugging chicks from behind and maybe reaching for a boob grope. I pray and pray that he'll get a krav student (it's not that far from the centre) and get the tar beaten out of him.

Aimée, I do have to say it's pleasing to me how damned easy it is for babies to say my name. Fun, even. It makes world domination so much easier.

Fred, congrats indeed on T's promotion and its retroactiveness.

But how am I going to pull off the truth (I walked into a door...) with a straight face?

How about another truth: Car accident. It was a car door, wasn't it? Still, I think you should seize the chance to say you walked into a door, maybe along with an eyeroll. Or use Emeline's answer.

Perhaps I shall explodiate, after all. I called the Illinois Attorney General's office and found out I'd had my IL DL suspended in 1981 for failure to appear on a traffice ticket. Apparently, like murder and the enmity of an ex, tickets have no statute of limitations. The nice man gave me my old license number and transferred me to another place whose recorded message informed that they had too many calls, why don't I call back later.

Wonder what the number is...

Apparently, like murder and the enmity of an ex, tickets have no statute of limitations.

ugh! Something like this happened to a friend here in Maryland because of some kind of ticket she got in Boston when we were in school in the late 80s. Even though she had successfully gotten a license down here and had it renewed several times in the intervening years. She actually ended up with a warrant out for her arrest in MA. So she had to go up there and go to court. It all got settled a couple of years ago but came up again this year when she had to get her license replaced after it was stolen. Due to what turned up to be a clerical mix up the bad Boston stuff was still showing up as not having been settled. It's all good and she's a legally licensed driver and all but UGH!

REALLY hoping your situation is resolved much more easily!

Congrats on T's promotion, Fred! And I'm glad the review went well, Gud.

how am I going to pull off the truth (I walked into a door...) with a straight face?

I love it when the truth sounds like a bad excuse. When my home computer crashed and burned (with actual smoke) last year, my then-roommate was supposed to hand in a paper and lost all her work. She told her professor that she couldn't finish the paper on time due to her wedding that was scheduled right then, so that she wouldn't have to use the "computer crashed" excuse.

Zenkitty, I'm so glad you found this interesting!

Corwood Industries! A drive-by, just for me? I feel all special now. Yay!

I was taught that the word Jesus uses for "Father" (Abba) when addressing G-d was more like "Daddy" than the formal "Father" it is translated as.

Well, it's more like "dad" than the even more endearing "daddy", but you're totally right. And there's a lot in Judaism about simply talking directly to G-d, about the simplest things, the most everyday stuff, so it definitely ties back to what you described.

[Edited to Yay! good news, Fred and Gud.]

Well, it's more like "dad" than the even more endearing "daddy", but you're totally right. And there's a lot in Judaism about simply talking directly to G-d, about the simplest things, the most everyday stuff, so it definitely ties back to what you described.

This is very very happy-making.

Trudy, do you know the book Mister G-d, This is Anna? The little girl in the book simply has conversations with her, well, friend, Mister G-d, just like she has conversations with all her other friends. When I read this book, as a child, it fit perfectly to the way I saw things.

Oslo has overtaken Tokyo as the world's most expensive city, according to a survey published Tuesday. Tokyo had held the top spot for 14 years in the Economist Intelligence Unit's biannual survey.

Of 17 U.S. cities featured in the survey, the most expensive were New York (27th), Chicago and Los Angeles (tied for 35th), and San Francisco (40th).

Chicago more expensive to live in than San Francisco? That's crazy talk.

[link]

Chicago more expensive to live in than San Francisco? That's crazy talk.

Tommy, does it say if the figures are for the cities proper, or the entire metropolitan area? It might make a difference, if outlying areas are cheaper for some cities. But yeah, crazy talk.

Yes, tonight it'll be time again...time to play the State of the Union Drinking Game!

3. If George W actually says, "If Al Qaeda is calling you, we want to know why." first person to finish a whole beer gets to toss Li'l Smokies at any of the others until they finish their beer. Use the toothpicks.