William Jefferson is now unemployed, leaving him more time to hang around his house and gaze longingly into what I hope is a now-empty freezer.

Please, please, can somebody send Charles Rangel back as well?

this is not a joke

An actual police report from a neighborhood listserv:

Theft 1
SHIFT: DAY 09/30/2008 09/30/2008
1430 UNK
GEORGIA AVE AND PINEY BRANCH RD NW
Street/Highway/Road 402 08139126
Status: Open
C1 RPTS S1-2 APPROACHED C1 AND SHOWED C1 A BROWN PAPER BAG AND
STATED THAT THERE WAS FORTY-TWO THOUSAND DOLLARS INSIDE OF THE BAG.
S1-2 TOLD C1 FOR FIVE THOUSAND DOLLARS C1 COULD HAVE IT. C1 REMOVED
FIVE THOUSAND DOLLARS FROM C1'S BANK ACCOUNT AND GAVE IT TO S1. S1
GAVE THE BAG TO C1 AND THERE WAS NOTHING INSIDE.


This just presents so many questions, I don't know where to begin. But it is the first time I've heard of an e-mail scam work without the e-mail.

Bristol Palin's baby daddy is 'psyched' to be father, says his pal

You've gotta love the New York tabloids - any time a major political story includes the words "baby-daddy" and "stand-up dude" I'm going to be hooked.

NY tab story on Palin baby daddy

breaking news: it's not breaking

Last night I covered the U.S. women's soccer team in a game against Canada for the Associated Press. When I checked to see how my story looked on the wire, I found it published in the Honolulu Advertiser.

All fine and good, but the real point of this point is this:
included in the side links on the page was a lists of "Breaking news headlines." One of the headlines: "Surf better suited for snorkeling today"

I think I want to go to Hawaii. And where do I apply for the waves beat?

you win one reality show dancing competition...

Surfing around Nola.com's Mardi Gras coverage, I noticed something a bit odd.

Click over and check out the caption of the first photo.

The guy has won two Indianapolis 500s, raced in the top circuits since 1998 - but after a season of "Dancing with the Stars," it's "Dancer Helio Castroneves."

(Of course, his Wikipedia page also gives his dancing career a more prominent placing. But at least it mentions the whole auto-racing part of his career.)

This is my favorite story of the day. Who honestly says they went to Buger King expecting coffee in a white porcelain cup? Sometimes I fondly miss New Zealand more than mere blog posts can express.