Slate does serious rock geekery with a review of the Gang of Four return album: Seize the Time - Gang of Four and the eternal returns of retro rock.

Could it be that Return is saying, "You want a Gang of Four resurrection? Here you are, then, exactly what you secretly, deep-down crave: the old songs, again."

The serious rock geek question is, Does anybody remember the Television comeback? I don't, and I even bought the album.

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I moved into a new apartment today. It's a huge place with all the fixings. It's hard to believe the most frustrating thing (so far, at least) is that I can't figure out how to send e-mail using Outlook Express on my computer. It's a little over my budget, but still a steal. I'll probably look for a roommate to reduce the costs.

I'm in the Mohandiseen area of Cairo. I'll be here for three months futzing about - perhaps signing up for some Arabic courses, hopefully going to Syria to visit an archaeological dig later this month.

There's something absolutely Mars-like about Cairo. Seriously, I don't even recognize the fruits and vegetables.

The first day I was here, I stood up on the balcony of my hotel wondering what Cairo would be like if it were completely deserted - say, after a neutron bomb explosion.

The odd thing is, around sundown during the four weeks of Ramadan, that's exactly what happens. No, not a neutron bomb, goofball - I mean the streets are deserted.

The reason is, nobody eats all day, and as dusk, everybody rushes home to eat with their family, all 22 million people at once. If you have any sense what the city is like during most hours of the day and night, it's really disconcerting. You can almost think for a few moments.

After dinner, the kids start throwing fire crackers.