On the subway the other day, a woman, who could best be described as "free-spirited," walked up the car, singing quite loudly to herself.

Clothing-wise, her outfit spoke of Goodwill.

When she got to one exit, she turned to one round-faced elderly man and told him: "You look really sane! I know a lot of crazy people, but you look sane."

While shopping for groceries, the aisle was partly blocked by a restocking cart and someone's grocery cart.

There was a middle-aged man using the aisle too. My guess is he was in his early 50s, slightly balding, bespectacled and had a bad haircut and a cheap trench coat.

I excused myself as I passed by him with my cart.

A second after I passed between the two carts, he's in front of me. He opens his rat-like mouth full of rotting teeth and, in Italian-accented English, says (words to the effect of):

"Read the paper in three weeks and you'll save a lot of money. At least 10 per cent. And remember, the second coming of Jesus Christ will give us all eternal life!"

I smiled politely and avoided eye contact.

On CTV Newsnet's Countdown, they introduced a new segment Thursday night featuring eight-year-old Daniel Cook.

To see his interview with Conservative Leader Stephen Harper, go to CTV.ca News's Election 2006 page. You can find the link in the right-hand features column.

Look for the picture of Harper with a red-headed waif. :)

On Monday, CBC News is to unveil a minor makeover to appeal to those fussy cool kids.

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Microsoft shut down the blog of a Chinese blogger after that person used it to discuss a high-profile newspaper strike in China.

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The Congressional Research Service released a report this afternoon that says Dubya's domestic spying policy rests on what could charitably be described as shaky legal ground.

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Hugh Thompson, who put his U.S. Army helicopter between Vietnamese civilians and the kill-crazed troops of Lt. William Calley at My Lai in Vietnam, has died.

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From the BBC:

Two thousand people will be invited onto the pitch to watch the band's half-time performance on 5 February.

But only people aged between 18 and 45 are eligible, US National Football League spokesman Brian McCarthy said.

"You have to attend rehearsal and be able to stand for long stretches of time," he told Detroit Free Press. The youngest Rolling Stones member is 58.

Update:

The NFL has relented. The 46-and-ups can now apply to get up at half-time and shake their groove thangs too.

This Poynter.org story looks specifically how the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the closest major paper to the story,  handled the Sago Mines disaster surprise ending.

This NYT story looks at how various U.S. newspapers handled the curve in news at the Sago mine disaster.

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Democracy Now! talks with Ken Ward Jr., an investigative reporter at the Charlotte, W.Va. Gazette, in part about mine safety issues and the media in relation to the Sago Mines disaster.

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