Here's my advent calendar this year: [link]

Woot! We just got (little) bonus checks! I think it's really kind timing to do it now, whether you're going to use the money for gift-giving or paying a heating bill.

I'm not a big collector, but I have collected nativities from around the world. I enjoy the differences in both craftsmanship and style. They are my favorite part of decorating the house for Christmas.

...no posts in Natter in 45 minutes? On a FRIDAY? Where IS everyone???

I'm trying to feel productive today. I have a teleconference for the next hour that is also a webex, though, so I can't do work on my work computer. Hmm. Time to pay bills? It's on my list for today.

Feeling so much more upbeat now that I'm not on a plane or dealing with annoying evil people. Or something.

It's not morbid or weird to me. You knew him, you loved him. And you honored that.

Yes. (And the past few days, when I've been saying goodnight to Dread Beastie's and Tzepesh's skeletons, I've asked them to say hi to MK.)

Man arrested at large Hadron collider claims to be from the future.

We had the division Christmas Party this morning, I covered for the main desk for part of it, then I was distracted by stuff, then I went to lunch and now I'm here for about 40 more minutes because I've got a doctor's appt.

I wonder how many of the students from this office are going to the football game. (It's in Detroit and will also be on ESPN 2 tonight.)

All I can think of when I see this headline is the old newswriting cliche that dog-bites-man is not news, man-bites-dog is:

[link]

I need a quick Is Steph Paranoid? vote:

There has been a noteworthy increase in break-ins in the past month on my street and the immediate surrounding streets. The police, of course, have recommended keeping an eye out for "unusual activity."

Just now (about 20 minutes ago) I noticed there was a couple (man and woman) with 2 cars parked in front of our house (one right in front, one across the street). The man was on the ground working on his car, and the woman was just standing by the trunk talking to him and looking around.

People have car trouble. This is a fact of life. But with all the recent break-ins, everyone on my street is a little tense.

After about 10 minutes of fiddling with the car, the man got up, and the couple walked away hand in hand, down the street (which is totally residential -- there's no auto parts store or anything they would have been walking to).

So I texted Tim and he told me to call the non-emergency police number and just tell them what was going on. I called, and the woman was very nice, and while I was talking to her, the couple came walking back, each one got in a car, and drove away (the car that was being worked on was either fixed or was never broke in the first place).

I mean, if *I* were going to case a neighborhood in broad daylight, I wouldn't want to be obvious about it, right? I would do something like work on my car and have my partner casually look around the neighborhood.

Yes, people have car trouble. Yes, my street has had a huge jump in break-ins in the last month.

Calling the police: paranoid, or not?

According to the talk we got from our local cops, you did exactly the right thing. They added noting the model make and lic. number of any strange car (if you can) is also a help.

They added noting the model make and lic. number of any strange car (if you can) is also a help.

All I could see directly was make/model and color, but not plates, which I told the police line woman. There was no way for me to see the plates without going outside, which I really didn't want to do, even with Kato.

I may have also taken pictures from my window. (Funny how it felt *nothing* like being Veronica Mars.)