This lead sentence of a press release issued by the Royal Norwegian Embassy in Washington certainly caught our attention: "Norway's glacier museum launched its new climate change center by putting former Vice President Walter M. Mondale in a water pool and unplugging it."

Say that again?

"The symbolic opening of the new building at the museum took place in a pool, representing the possible consequences of rapidly melting ice," the embassy explains.

Norway has put climate change and global warming at the top of its agenda, and was picked to host the World Environmental Day in 2007.

Too many hits

At least Sen. John McCain's softball team is moving up in the standings.

On a dreadfully hot Tuesday night in Washington, "the No Talent AZ Clowns," a congressional league team made up of current and former staffers for the Arizona Republican, smoked "the One Hitters," a most intriguing group of ballplayers sponsored by the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws and related advocacy groups.

The One Hitters, lest we forget, were featured in Sunday's Style section of The Washington Post for their 13-3 record and No. 1 ranking in the congressional league. Apparently, the press attention was a bit premature.

"The story only motivated our team even more," said AZ Clowns co-captain Rebecca Jensen, Mr. McCain's legislative assistant.

Then there is Mark Bruegger, the senator's former research assistant and a recent graduate of Catholic University's Columbus School of Law (he's joining the Army JAG corps this fall), who attributes his team's success to being "drug-free."