I suspect that having it announced nationally that the Microsoft tablets are not working on the Patriot's sideline in last Sunday's playoff game is not the publicity the company was seeking. I can see the messages: "Your computer should work all the way through, not just on the surface. Get an iPad!" Or "Don't Just Scratch the Surface of Computing Power": From the Bob Scott Fake Ad department.

Who is this guy Ben Gazi and why are they so worried about his hearing? Didn't he star in the TV show "The Fugitive"? .. ... My voice teacher tells me it is decidedly not true that "What happens in Vegas Stays in Vegas. "I was married there. Believe me, it was legal in all 50 states. ... Recently I went to Reno, the discount gambling center of the West Coast. I noted the billboard at the airport advertized "Welcome to Reno. You Can Afford Us."

Things in California are so bad that the latest Halloween party game is bobbing for water. Contestants pick up apples with their teeth, spit them out, and drink the water. ... While in the Lake Tahoe area, I noted one company was offer Donner Party cruises. It's an all-you-can-eat deal. ... And the Jeopardy answer for "Places" for $600: "There is no time, neither day nor night, nor seasons but only despair and false hope."