Copley Square Swag Report: 8/15/06

So yesterday, as I was leaving work and walking to the T, I spotted a person dressed in a giant watermelon costume. There were a few people hanging around the water in bright pinkish-red T-shirts, wearing caps and carrying tote bags, clearly filled with some sort of swag. So as usual, for you, my gentle readers, I approached the watermelon and picked up some swag. (Surprisingly, they weren't handing things out very aggressively.)

I ended up with three pieces of Wrigley's Extra Sugarfree (yes, they spell it as one word) Gum in the Cool Watermelon flavor. Apparently it is a new flavor they wish to promote. Now I don't like gum, so even if this were certifiably kosher, I would decline to try it.

I've left my pieces on the chair of the Official MABFAN's Musings Non-Kosher Swag Food Taster this morning. I have no idea if she would be willing to try it, but if she is, we'll have a report.

And let me just add -- given the humidity, yesterday was not the day to be parading around Boston in a watermelon costume.

What is a Planet?

The major news sources are reporting that the Planet Definiton Committee, meeting at the XXVIth General Assembly of the IAU, is recommending a draft defintion of a planet that will include Pluto. (The New York Times article can be found here.)

How do I feel about this? Well, it'll keep Pluto listed as a planet, which I support, but it may very well open up the question of whether Charon, Ceres, and a whole lot of other bodies in our solar system are planets.

So...if you want to know more about my feelings on this matter, watch this space. I'm hoping to have an announcment to make later today. (And that's all I'll say for the moment.)

Save Pluto!: Announcing the Society for the Preservation of Pluto as a Planet

As founding president, I am delighted to announce the establishment of the Society for the Preservation of Pluto as a Planet (SP3). Our goal is simple: to have the world recognize that Pluto is, and of a right ought to be, considered the ninth planet of our solar system.

For more information, please see our website at http://www.plutoisaplanet.org, our blog at http://savepluto.livejournal.com, and our first blog entry at http://savepluto.livejournal.com/475.html.

"Pluto Is A Planet!"