At four this morning, Meg and I piled into the car and drove out to somewhere with less lights. We got out the binoculars and had a good look at Mars. For some reason (probably because I'm short-sighted, although I don't quite understand how that affects looking through binoculars) I didn't get as "close" a view as Meg did. She saw the craters on the surface, and all the little details. But no tripods. She said that Mars looked like a sponge. Although I couldn't get a good look at the planet myself, it was still a fun experience, and of course it's when you sit back and think about what it means to say that you've looked at another planet, another world, that it starts to get profound.

The Canadians are often thought of, internationally, as nicer, less stupid Americans. With the news that Canadians are now banned from smiling in passport photos, that reputation is going to take a hit.

And it's the birthday of my good friend Courtney today. She's small and Jewish and a fan of Bruce Campbell, which is all you need to know really. Except that her birthday was yesterday. Oops.