From the edification department

The more you know: We've got a few public service announcements today, so please pause while we adjust our glasses and adopt an appropriately sincere expression.

Please adjust your set: Come Feb. 17, if you don't have subscription service, a newer TV or a converter box for your television, all you'll get over your rabbit ears is a bunch of static. If you're ready for the switch from analog to digital broadcasts, you should notice clearer reception. However, David Caruso's dialogue on "CSI: Miami" will continue to induce cringes.

Hey, coffee lovers: The owner of a Mountlake Terrace coffee shop is offering free drinks for a year if you'll do a teeny-tiny favor: Find a buyer for the family house. In the current economic climate, achieving that feat may entitle you to an additional perk: sainthood.

Inaugural balls are glitzy affairs, characterized by people in expensive clothes, champagne, and, occasionally, riots at the coat check. Should you attend one, you can improve your odds of having an enjoyable evening by wearing your finest long johns and bringing nothing but your date and your best right hook.