I had seriously weird dreams last night. And the night before I woke up with a start, because I thought I saw my father in the dim.

That was weird, Tom. And for whatever reason, last night's episode didn't grab me -- I was distracted and not really following it. Although I did manage to catch Kane in glasses which is always a treat.

Weirdly, there were several inches of snow out where I live in the suburbs (not really), and more coming down, and when I got down here to my office, it was raining and just a little slush on the ground. No wonder it's not a snow day!

I have to go shovel the driveway now. Blergh.

I thought the same thing about the white font, Tom.

Once I got past the Holland Manners! and Jonathan! thing.

George W. Bush Shoe Dodge Oil Painting

Apparently you can buy it on eBay.

Blowfish testicles poison seven in Japanese restaurant

::Scratches "blowfish testicles" off shopping list. Returns "The Idiot's Guide to Grilling Blowfish Testicles" to Amazon::

Seven diners in northern Japan fell ill and three were still in hospital today after eating blowfish testicles prepared in a restaurant not authorised to serve the poisonous delicacy.

The owner of the restaurant in Tsuruoka city, who is also the chef, had no licence to serve blowfish and was being questioned on suspicion of professional negligence, police official Yoshihito Iwase said.

Iwase said the seven men ordered sashimi and grilled blowfish testicles at the restaurant last night.

Shortly after, they developed limb paralysis and breathing trouble and started to lose consciousness – typical signs of blowfish poisoning – and were rushed to a hospital for treatment.

A 68-year-old diner was in a critical condition with respiratory failure and two others, aged 55 and 69, were in serious condition, Iwase said.

This just reinforces the polite Canadian myth, doesn't it?:

It seems even a thief appreciates good manners.

A masked man walked into a Needs convenience store in Lower Sackville, N.S., Tuesday night and demanded cash and cigarettes from the clerk. Cpl. Joe Taplin, an RCMP spokesman, said the employee simply refused.

"He asked him, 'Please leave the store,'" Taplin said.

That polite request caught the would-be bandit by surprise.

"The suspect then looked at him and said, 'You know, you're the first one to ask me to leave in such a nice way, and because of that I'm going to leave,'" Taplin said. The man left the Cobequid Road store and headed up toward Sackville Drive.

Taplin said the clerk handled the situation well, though the usual advice for people in this situation is to simply hand over the cash. He said the clerk used his negotiation skills and didn't escalate the situation by arguing.

I have to go shovel the driveway now. Blergh.

I just saw a message from one of my DE friends on Facebook saying he was going to wait for the snow to melt rather than shovel because it's supposed to be 40 by 2pm. That's also a valid life choice!

I'm very lucky. A neighbor evidently shoveled the walk in front of my house while I was sleeping in.

Where is Super Porny Pants when you need her?

Doing this [link]