2014 is coming to an end. Are you glad or sorry?

For those of you heading out on the town, have a great time.

For those of you staying in, here's an open thread, all topics welcome.

Happy New Year everyone!

My new Spanish learning program, Fluenz, arrived yesterday. I'm going to try it out now, so I won't be blogging much today.

It is really cold here.

Forecasters say temperatures in Denver will top out at 4 degrees on Tuesday before dropping to as low as minus 9 at night with a wind chill of minus 15. A 70 percent chance of snow remains until this evening through which about an inch is expected to fall.

This is an open thread. All topics welcome.

(I also put up an open thread at the wordpress site. You can comment at either or both. Comments there will help me get the bugs out.)

I've been working on the Wordpress version of TalkLeft since Xmas Eve. I just put up an open thread there, so you can help me see what the comment section will look like with a lot of comments. If you have a few minutes, please check it out and let me know what you think in the comments. You have to be registered to leave a comment, but it just takes a few seconds and you can use the same user name you use here. Since it's an open thread, you don't have to write about the site, you can write about whatever you want -- both there and here.

I don't have a specific date for it to replace this site, but I'm getting closer.

Again, all topics welcome, here and there.

Merry Christmas, everyone. Enjoy the day and your time with your families and friends. Regardless of your religion, Christmas is a special holiday.

A big snowstorm just arrived here. I'm staying in, listening to KSPN Aspen on my Sonos, and tinkering with the wordpress version of TalkLeft I keep saying we're moving to. (Yes I know there's too much white space below the header and before the content, I'm trying to figure out how to change it.) Feel free to let me know what you think.

My favorite Xmas present: An Internet password journal. It's like a phone book but for your passwords. Under $10. I don't recommend traveling with it, but at home, it's great.

This is an open thread, all topics welcome.

Anyone cooking tonight? What's on your menu?

Sony has made "The Interview" available now to everyone by streaming. Let us know what you think if you watch it.

Merry Christmas, everyone.

Darlene Love's final performance on Letterman.

Another of my favorites:

Last night, Bon Jovi performed during the Bobby Bandiera and Friends Hope Concert at Count Basie Theatre in Red Bank. He wore a NYPD property t-shirt, saying he wanted to show support for New York City's police. [More...]

Busy day at work today. I blogged a lot this weekend, so scroll down if you haven't read the posts.

This is an open thread, all topics welcome.

Who is leaving town for the holidays? I'll be right here.

Pro Publica, the New York Times and Frontline have a joint report on the failure of India and the UK to connect the dots regarding plotters of the 2008 Mumbai attacks. The report is largely about Zarrar Shah (real name Abdul Wajid), the chief technology guy for Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), and cites documents released by Edward Snowden. It also notes the failure of the U.S. to connect the dots on David Coleman Headley. Headley is serving 35 years for his role in the attacks, after making a cooperation deal with the Government to avoid the death penalty. (Headley is the twice convicted heroin dealer who became a DEA informant and with the Government's blessing, was allowed to go to Pakistan and let off supervised release early. The Transcript is here.) [More...]

December likely is the month that bloggers balance the ledger sheet and reassess their time commitment to blogging because of the financial drain. How many hours were spent blogging, how much money did it cost in lost income from their day job and how much did the blog earn from donations? When they do, the blogosphere runs the risk of losing them. They may be news junkies, policy wonks or activists, but they live in the same capitalist world that you do.

So, as you're putting a little something in the pocket of your doorman, housekeeper, hairstylist, secretary, whomever.....think about the bloggers whose sites you read day after day either for enjoyment or enrichment, and please make a note to add them to your gift list. If ever there was a month to do it, this is it.

If you would like to contribute to TalkLeft, I certainly would appreciate it, and you can do so via credit card or paypal. [Links below]

It's the end to a busy week for me. Our last open thread is about to be filled. Here's a new one, all topics welcome.

Our last open thread is full. Here's a new one, all topics welcome.

Your turn. Our last open thread is full. All topics welcome.