Winter Quiz!

Our connection to the outside culture, Entertainment Weekly, has a "winter-themed entertainment" quiz on the back page this week. Because when you think winter, you think Fargo, question #1 is, naturally, about Fargo.

Or, more specifically, "Fargo," the Coen brothers' bloody 1996 movie. Only one scene of which was even set in Fargo, I'll have you know. (None of the movie was actually shot in Fargo, and most of the murders took place in Minnesota, which is well-known for its bloodthirstiness.)

The answer, by the way, is "Jerry Lundegaard."

Looking At The Bright Side Dept....

This picture, from The New York Times, makes a Fargo winter look downright hospitable.

It's captioned: Children made their way along a street on Saturday in the city of Iiyama in Nagano Prefecture, Japan. The coldest winter in decades has brought record snowfall to the area, known as Japan's snow country.

The article itself is fascinating. In Japan's snow country, they remember 1945 as much for the 23 feet of snow they received as for the end of WWII.

2006...

We're well-launched into 2006, and the idea that we'll be elsewhere this time next year is beginning to seem more real. Christmas will be in Fargo, as will New Year's. The kids' gifts reflected this also, with a much higher than average number of blankets being received. (Warmly received, I should say.)