Today was a weird day. I'm in the first week of a trail concerning a very serious auto accident. It's supposed to be another day of testimony broken up briefly by an inspection of the vehicles involved. Over the lunch break, a woman jumped off the nearby Criminal Courts Building apparently because her son was convicted of something. There were emergency personnel all over as we went out to lunch. When we got back to court, we learned that one of our jurors had come upon the woman's body just after she had jumped. In fact, he informed that he realized this as he looked down and saw that he was "standing on her brains"! The judge sent everybody home for the weekend.

the man next to me on the flight paid $5 for a can of budweiser. and people complain about high prices at haute restaurants.

Any food or beverage served in flight would appear to be haute cuisine.

This morning it was in the high 30s. In the elevator at work, I saw a woman wearing flip-flops.

That's really clever!!!

She'd just had a pedicure, I bet. Which is why you would have seen me walking home last night wearing flip-flops.

The other night we were meeting my brother at Southpaw for the Steve Earle show. So we get there and the place is so insanely crowded that we are jammed into the front of the bar but no mind the place is small and I have a pretty decent view of the room. After about ten minutes craning my neck and peering I begin to think bro is not there--he is quite tall so it's not like he'd be easily obscured.My phone buzzes--its a text reading "In front of the mandolin about 10 ft back" Sure enough, I find him shortly after.

Sometimes I love technology.

So that's where my trial exhibit went.

Oh. I thought maybe that's where hollywood's mother-of-convicted landed. (Admins, feel free to delete if this is deemed too tasteless)

Fell through the cracks?

Both J. and I (and the dog) already fought with that crew when they were filming near Madison Square Park. Aren't they through making that piece of trash yet? Jeez.

My three year old to his sister, "You have big boobs!"

She yells back, "I'm only eight years old!!! What are you talking about?!?!?!?! I don't have any boobs!!!"

Where do kids get this stuff? My daughter comes up with odd stuff as well. Is there some wild and crazy older brother (OK, sexist, I suppose) who runs around whispering in all the kids' ears?

In the case of my boy, I'm pretty sure it's from his older male cousins.

They get it at school. That may well mean that their school-mates have evil older brothers, of course.

I am hoping my nearly-6 year old swiftly forgets some of the phrases she's picked up from Borat this week.

More from my 3 year old, "I have a big wee wee and a big meatball under it."

Ah, three - a delightful age. One of our nephews at three went around asking everyone he met, "Are you a boy? Do you have a penis?" or "Are you a girl? Do you have a begiant?"

Fly

It's like you gave birth to Borat.

On the way to our polling place tonight, we passed a young electioneer flacking the Working Families party: "End the war! Lower the rent!" Not much to argue with there. I suggested to Roy that the fine print must be along the lines of "kill the puppies!"

I must be punchy because I've been snickering about this since.

Speaking of puppy-killing, our premier (and my provincial representative) is a kitten-eater. And not just any kitten-eater, either: an evil reptilian kitten-eater from another planet. Well, that's what his opponents said at the time -- they were really determined to lose the election, and they succeeded.

There's even a Wikipedia page about this

My surreal thing: I had leftover quail for supper. I blame all of you people

Fly

It's the leftover part that makes it très soigné, Fly.

More from my three year old, "why she so fat and ugly?" about a woman who was standing right next to us*

"Oooh, she's pretty! I want to kiss her!" about a different woman who was standing right next to us.

"Mommy farted!!!!" while we were in a grocery store**

*COMPLETELY floored me. I was really embarassed.

**I swear it was the dog.

IIRC, four isn't much better.

And just wait 'til he turns 18!

Fly

I know what you mean. It won't get much better by the time he is 39 judging by his papa.

Decades of technological advances now allow people to watch low resolution, choppy video on their computer. They can also watch it on 2.5" screens on their walkman-like devices, which cost $400 and last a year and a half.

Scream; your 3 year old is spending a lot of time with your lovely but irreverent husband!!

On a somewhat positive note, my 4.5 year old has insisted on repeated viewings on DVD of Over the Hedge. Not bad really. Manages to entertain her and one mildly immature adult (moi). I take the interplay between the raccoon and the turtle (Willis and Shandling) as a sort of allegory for the past 5 years of life in the US. It seems some of the better writing in American film is in kids films. I guess the idea is that they need to throw a bone to the old folks so they will be inclined to run out and take the kids to the flicks.

I was waiting throughout my 30s for the perfect hi-tech enclosure for the individual nomadic life, with media/computer, kitchen, sleeping place, and bathroom enclosed, weighing < 15 lbs and collapsable to put in a bag. I stopped waiting and am now considering a purchase in the NY housing market.

Did I say "run"? A current email I have not opened solicits me to join AARP and get a free pedometer! I guess walking is all people over 50 can do. But nobody walks in LA.

Easy, young fella. We can also chew gum, occasionally at the same.

She wears an Egyptian ring that sparkles before she speaks.... Nice ring.

I got a solicitation from them in the mail a couple of weeks ago. I wish I could retire now. Can't have too many notepads though, even if I have to rip off the bottom third.

And some of us can even complete our sentences.

i thought you had time off for good behaviour?

Me? Good behavior?

What/whose is the original quote/sig for this? It has been haunting me. How does one put so few words together and describe a lifetime?

She wears pink feathers and a something-or-other skirt...

Robert Schonfeld got it from Bob Dylan

I would like it better if HE wears pink feathers . . .

He'd be perfect for a cooking show in which he plays an inspector clousseau type chef with a dash of Borat, Ali G and Pepe Le Peu thrown in.

Aarrgghh. I've got it on vinyl and didn't remember. But it is the last five words that were not penned by Mr. Zimmerman that are so beautiful.

I think he'd be hilarious doing a parody of the whole celebrity chef/French chef thing. A cooking show with elements of The Office and Candid Camera.

#1 Last night, walking past Circuit City, I see a line of boys and men camped out. Some had actual tents. I guess that some kind of video game system is coming out?

#2 Read that Amber Valetta was or is in rehab for "body image related issues."

PlayStation2 that won't even play older version games. (Edit: Corrected later by others to version 3)

Surreal? This morning on Classic Arts Showcase, Renata Tebaldi's Mimi in "La Boheme" performed in La Scala was followed by Rodolfo Mederos playing a Carlos Gardel tango with a full orchestra on stage behind him and the whole audience was standing in the rain, many with umbrellas. Talk about surreal . . .

PlayStation 3. I have already been asked to call my J&R guy to see if the boss can get one.

Plus ca change.....

Planned obsolescence, baby.

thankfully, my nephews are not shameless enough to ask for a ps3 after having only just received a ps2 in the summer.

I attended my first UES coop meeting yesterday. Surreal, to say the least.