Please, someone, anyone: Tell me that this is just a tasteless joke. I found it via this link, which seems reasonably supportable. I've tried to restrain myself and avoid commenting on Passion, since I haven't seen it and have no plans to do so. (For what it's worth: Nor would I bother to view a film about Gandhi if it consisted of flashback scenes of Gandhi's life interspersed with prolonged slo-mo scenes of him being shot to death. I'm nothing if not ecumenical regarding this kind of thing.) But, nail-shaped jewelry? Maybe it's just that April Fool's Day wasn't that long ago. Yeah, that's it. Must be some kind of prank. Please, someone tell me that not even Mel Gibson is nutty enough to put his stamp of approval on this.

Bugwise: We have some free-range Crematogaster hanging around a heating vent in the family room, engaging in various social activities. As long as they don't mess around with my kitchen, I figure I've got my own no-maintenance observation colony to play with. Rick is skeptical, but I've promised to block up their travel corridors with diatomaceous earth if they get too brazen. They really are cool, especially when they wave their abdomens in the air with the agility that gave them the common name "acrobat ants". (Once again: Photo credits go to Alex Wild, who has kindly given me permission to link to the terrific insect photos on his wonderful website. Thanks, Alex, as always.)