Which reminds me: I've never replaced the batteries in my smoke detectors in my current apartment. Hmm.

We found out the batteries in our smoke detector were dead a few months ago when I tried to pan-sear some scallops.

Better than finding out during a real inferno, I suppose.

Kate, I'll eat delicious bread and cheese, just for you. I'm selfless like that.

Aw, you're so good to me.

My fondest wish for Ryan (which is enshrined in his Chinese name) is that he grow up to be kind.

I love this, and feel much the same way about my future kids. And it sounds like you and Wallybee are doing a wonderful job of raising him. (So glad she found her wedding ring, by the way!)

Yikes, Tep.

Yeah, I should get on that. How long have I lived there? Two years? Three years? All the years blend together. Anyway, batteries.

Yikes, Tep.

Like I said, better than a middle-of-the-night inferno. I like to think I pre-emptively saved our lives. (Better than focusing on my inability to sear scallops, damn it.)

I'm saving my life by eating mostly take-out.

I love this, and feel much the same way about my future kids. And it sounds like you and Wallybee are doing a wonderful job of raising him. (So glad she found her wedding ring, by the way!)

He's doing well so far. It's just so much fun picking up on the little advances he makes. Back at the playground, he loves the slide; Sunday was when I first noticed that on the dismount, he now reliably lands on his feet.

May Ryan always land on his feet!

In my news, I seem to have had a bout of fairly mild food poisoning. Quite unpleasant, but not too serious. I spent Friday through Sunday in bed, gradually reintroducing this thing called "food" to my body. Today it seems reconciled to it.

It could be the humidity. It's humid here almost all the time. But they cheep when there are no batteries or dead batteries, too. Gotta find a solution. Madness encroaching.

Once, in an office I worked in, the fire alarms went off and they evacuated us. Turned out that the dust from construction on one of the floors had set off the alarm.

I think that was the same construction project during which they managed to rip out the wiring that provided electricity to a section of our office. In dealing with several hysterical people who NEEDED their computers right away I ended up string extension cords around.

But they cheep when there are no batteries or dead batteries, too.

If they are wired into your electricity, then there should be a connector you can disconnect and remove it completely.