No columnist should have this much fun

So I’m going to leave Ottawa for a while. That’s right, folks, it’s time for another Previously-Scheduled Travel Opportunity. I’ll be back in two weeks. I may check in here while I’m away; at any rate, regular blogging will resume after Dec. 12. I feel a bit (though only a little bit) like Sergei Krikalev, whose country fell apart while he was up in a space station. Do be gentle with one another, won’t you all?