Otters are always good value. One of the main attractions (for me) at the Philly Zoo was that they had giant otters. Otters longer than I am, quite something to see.

I'm sure I've told this a million times. I saw wild giant otters in Peru. I watched them lying back in the water holding piranah with their all-too-human-looking hands and chomping the fishes like we'd chomp a sandwich.

What would your signature song be? [link]

Gud, your heart going wacky doesn't sound good.

I've got afib, it happens. Most of the time it's under control.

Listen, I'll make a deal with the universe -- everyone that wants to go home from work here can go, provided I land a job that I have to go to and not be at home. That seems like a fair trade, yes?

That sounds like an excellent trade.

Scroll down for pics of a lightning storm coinciding with a volcano eruption.

I'm thinking battle between Ororo and Magneto. (Magma has high iron content, right?)

Matilda is now at the age where she has interesting misconceptions. Like...

Matilda: "Daddy, when I get my powers I'm going to be a big girl."
Me: "Uh, what powers?"
Matilda: "You know. Like this. ::holds arm out level and shoots imaginary power bolts - Psheoo Psheoo! from her fist. I'm thinking from Starfire on Teen Titans::

Also, she's a little confused about the whole Growing Up business and keeps making reference to when I'm going to get little again. Like, "Daddy when I'm a big girl I can drive the car. But when you get small you won't be able to reach the doorknob."

Matilda: "You know. Like this. ::holds arm out level and shoots imaginary power bolts - Psheoo Psheoo! from her fist. I'm thinking from Starfire on Teen Titans::

I've said for years that part of me really thinks I should have telekinesis, and I totally blame fiction for that (Raven on Teen Titans, Willow, et al.).

Also, she's a little confused about the whole Growing Up business and keeps making reference to when I'm going to get little again. Like, "Daddy when I'm a big girl I can drive the car. But when you get small you won't be able to reach the doorknob."

Matilda has come unstuck in time!

Has she been watching Benjamin Button?

Has she been watching Benjamin Button?

That would mean she's mastered the cable remote and ordered On Demand. Hmmm....

Ack. This has got me annoyed.

Go be a grown up.

Jenkins is confronted by a constituent named Elizabeth Smith -- a full-time waitress with two young kids. Smith's employer doesn't provide insurance, and she can't afford private coverage. Smith's not looking for a handout; she's looking for an affordable choice.

"I want an option that I can pay for," Smith told her representative. "I work. I pay my bills. I'm not a burden on the state. I pay my taxes. So why can't I get an affordable option? Why are you against that?"

Jenkins responds, literally chuckling at the question, "A government-run program is going to subsidize not only yours but everybody in this room. So I'm not sure what we're talking about here."

Jenkins went on to tell Smith that "people should be given the opportunity to take care of themselves with a refund, or an advanceable [sic] tax credit, to go be a grown-up and go buy the insurance."

Putting aside the asshatness of it and the fact that she really didn't answer the question. If you are providing a refundable tax credit to a single mother working as a waitress, guess what, that's a government subsidy.

Also, let's set aside the issue of if the tax credit is big enough for her to afford insurance. So the better solution is to use taxpayer money to pay a private insurer with greater overhead instead of using taxpayer money to, say, let her use something like Medicare with a lower overhead?

Ugh. I hate disingenuous arguments. I mean the woman asked why she's against a potentially lower cost option for insurance. The answer she got was that you should grow up and get your own insurance with a government subsidy instead of asking for a government subsidy. Argh.