So earlier I heard that "human specimens" were found at O'Hare. There was no more info. But now I finally found out what those specimens are.

18 severed human heads discovered at O'Hare airport

Investigators in Chicago are working to determine if a "potentially legitimate" shipment of severed human heads is, in fact, legitimate.

"We need to make sure that they are truly used for medical research purposes," said Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Brian Bell.

Shipments like these are far from uncommon. Heads, arms, legs, and other dissociated body parts are actually boxed up and flown from place-to-place more often than most people probably realize. I once worked in an orthopaedics lab where severed human parts were coming and going on an almost daily basis. Speaking from experience, when something becomes such a common part of your day-to-day, it's easy to become nonchalant about it (even when that thing is dismembered bodies) which totally explains Bell's amusingly blasé attitude about the whole thing:

"Everybody here is 'Oh my gosh, you got a box of heads,'" Bell told local reporters, adding: "It is a potentially legitimate medical shipment. We've seen it at various ports in the nation."

I am not allowed to eat anything until after my surgery (which is scheduled for noon).

This is too late for Meara, but have managed to wrest the concession from doctors that hard candy is acceptable before surgery. I kept pointing out that hard candy doesn't add anything to your stomach, so it can't increase the danger of throwing up. I've also gotten them to concede that black coffee is a clear liquid.

"potentially legitimate" shipment of severed human heads

Man, if I had a nickel for every time I've had that problem...

Man, if I had a nickel for every time I've had that problem...

I know! Once I spent hours dividing my severed heads into "legitimate" and "illegitimate" piles. Then I stepped out to get a burger and returned to discover my dog and been playing with them and I had to sort them all over again.

Kat, have you called the doctor? Does the rash look like it follows the sciatica nerve? That's what popped into my head as I read your symptoms.

And the clothes go round and around and around...

Yikes. This is a disturbing read, but really fascinating: an oral history of the UT Tower shootings in 1966. [link]

Wow.

I saw a made-for-TV movie about this when I was a kid. It kinda' freaked me out.

"potentially legitimate" shipment of severed human heads

And we just re-watched "8 Heads in a Duffel Bag" the other day. Laughed so much at that one.

I heard that story this morning. Isn't that pretty much the series opener of Bones?

One funny thing: The place that the severed heads were addressed to (they didn't say what it was) is "under investigation", but this investigation has nothing to do with severed heads.

I supposed they could be under investigation for anything, from "receiving shipments of headless bodies" to "failure to pay payroll taxes."