Okay, it looks like I have to let go of my Palin baby conspiracy theories. Bristol popped out a 7#/7oz boy named Tripp just two days after Christmas. It would be hard to argue that the kid was not full term and for Bristol to be Trig’s mom as well, Tripp would have been at least 5 weeks early. At 7 pounds, that’s unlikely.

Still, while I’m sure Tripp and his Uncle Trig will have fun at pre-school together, given what we’ve seen of this family it’s not clear we should celebrate the fact that they are reproducing. And what’s with the preternatural disposition for oddball names anyway?

The latest incarnation of the famous Times Square crystal ball goes off (or down) tonight. This version is a 12 foot geodesic sphere, which is apparently twice the size of previous years, and it weighs in at just under 6 tons. Oh sure, it’s still covered with Waterford Crystals (some 2,668 of them), but it’s also sporting LED lights this year that are capable of displaying over 16 million colors. But don’t worry, since the ball is only on TV for about a minute, you won’t see most of them.