Sitting here, 23:26, sipping my ever so slightly too milky Darjeeling, snaffling a Santa Claus Dairy Milk bar borrowed from a seasonal selection box given to one of the kids, scanning the thesaurus, "a new edition for the nineties", specifically at the entry in the index between gasworks and gateau.

At times I think there are no words
But these to tell what's true
And there are no truths outside the Gates of Eden
— Bob Dylan, Gates Of Eden (1965)

Today's specialist subject, kidlets, inspired by above: gates.

• Piper At The Gates Of Dawn:
  the Floyd's debut album, and "the best psychedelic album ever made", according to one keen Amazon reviewer; takes its title from... anyone out there...? Clue: the next chapter is headed "Toad's Adventures"
• William H. Gates III:
  though you may know him better as plain Bill; obviously a nerd though, by all accounts, one with philanthropic intentions; must mention a favourite Onion headline while we're here: Evil Genius Gates Drops Windows 98 Into NYC Water Supply ("Excellent," said Gates... "Everything is going exactly according to plan.")
• logic gates:
  takes me back to my O-level Computer Studies, when RM380Zs were RM380Zs, needless to say; NANDs, NORs and NOTs demonstrated the power of negative thinking
• Gates McFadden:
  name was rattling round my head; one Google search later reminds me that this was Doctor Beverly Crusher on ST:TNG; you'd never guess from the name that Gates was a lady, would you?
• Gates Of Eden:
  not only a Dylan track but also a collection of short stories that I read a couple of years back by one of the Coen brothers, Ethan; check your library
• Gareth Gates:
  the Buzz Aldrin of pop without the catchy moniker; in January of both 2003 and 2004 I saw shops trying to offload GG calendars for the princely sum of 99p
• pearly gates:
  ancient joke from my childhood: Brian Clough goes up to heaven and is welcomed by The Holy Trinity; addressing the big fella in the middle, Brian says "And what are you doing in my chair?"

That's enough hinged barriers for now.

Be seeing you!

Ed