In which I ramble on hoarsely for an hour

Poor Karl Erikson. In an hour he and I will be chattering away on his Secondhand Radio hour of power, and I've got a cold so ferocious I just might be able to infect people over the phone. Sneezing, gasping for air, fumbling for my handkerchief, and slurping up the hot tea -- yes, I am the perfect freaking guest. Spare a kind thought for him, won't you?

(I, on the other hand, expect to enjoy myself just fine; after all, I'm gonna have the cold whether I'm inflicting it on the rest of the Internet or not. Sharing is caring!)

1... 2...

Mysterious Worlds edition: First, Patrick McGoohan, the eternal Number 6. (We pause here for a very wrong rendition of "Dem Bones.") Second -- oh, lord -- Ricardo Montalban, and whether he's Mr. Roarke or Khan to you, we've just lost one of our most thrilling voice actors. In one day, no less...

From the That'll Larn 'Em! department...

From the indispensable Perfume (Luca Turin and Tania Sanchez), p. 226:

Rose jam is one of the most delicious things ever and, aside from artichokes, one of the few opportunities we have of demonstrating our superiority over flowers by eating them.