Curious Humbug! I'm probably going to skip Christmas with my family this year. (It's not going to be a pleasant one. Long story.) I just want to go somewhere -- anywhere in the world -- that will make me feel a sense of wonder or joy or delight. Bora Bora? Paris? NYC? ... Any suggestions? Where would YOU go and what would you do?

Political Fashion Monkey: "In South and Latin America each nation has its own 'Presidential sash', usually featuring the country's national colors and symbols. The Presidential sash is a symbol of the continuity of government, and when the old president resigns, the same sash is passed on to the new President." ... I wish our president wore a sash.

Curious George: Bypassing the IT Guy ... The IT manager at the office of a "friend" has blocked access to one of his favorite websites. Does anyone know of a website or a service or some other method that will allow him to access that favorite site? I know that sites such as Bloglines do a good job of aggregating content from other sites -- but Bloglines shows only headlines, summaries, and links to the original site. Ideas? Anyone?

Curious Money: So I soon should be receiving more than $30,000 out of the blue. (I am serious.) I've never had anything more than a few thousand in savings or checking. (I'm not counting retirement accounts.) Plopping all this dough into my regular savings account probably is not the wisest thing to do. I probably could get more out of it in some other type of account or instrument. So what should I do?