THE THING ABOUT THE OLD DAYS ... THEY THE OLD DAYS:  We may not appreciate it from our brisk rewind, but twenty-one months had passed since season three of The Wire aired before season four debuted, and with two episodes already in the books fans must have been getting antsy about the lack of Omar, even though Michael K. Williams was listed in the opening credits.

In "Home Rooms," (Sepinwall / Guardian / Goodman), Omar makes his return, and it's just as triumphant and cinematic as one could have hoped ... and even more naked. (A reader emailed last night to wonder whether HBO had requested more male nudity this season.) But Omar's not central to the plot this week ... we just get more evidence of his legendary status and moxie.

GAME 162: So it's not quite going to be as crazy as last year, but here's a rundown of the five games that matter, and why.

WE, HOWEVER, WILL STICK WITH "SNOWPOCALYPSE" AND "BLIZZAPOCALYPSE":  For 2012-13, the Weather Channel will start giving winter storms names like Draco, Khan, and Xerxes, because why should hurricanes have all the fun?

A QUARTER MILLION MILES ISN'T REALLY THAT FAR. IT TOOK ME TWO CHEVYS BUT I'VE DONE IT IN A CAR: I just want to note how much time I've wasted in the last two weeks playing Kerbal Space Program. It's a space program simulation game that's in early Beta and it's about the coolest game I've played in years. You run a space program and, using various technologies, try to bring glory to your people. And you will kill a lot of astronauts in the process.

A lot.

And it is awesome.

(Demo mode is free. Early Beta is $18 and entitles you to all improvements from here on out. Lots of features are hinted at, but it is completely awesome as-is.)

TRAGEDY OF THE SANDWICH CARD: Today, as I often do, I bought a sandwich at Whole Foods and dutifully had my sandwich card stamped. Except, the cashier gave me a sly wink and with a low voice pointed out that he was intentionally double-stamping my sandwich card. No question as to whether he might have mistook the number of sandwiches I purchased and there was no long line or other inconvenience that might merited additional compensation from Whole Foods. This was a completely gratuitous giveaway of Whole Foods property.

To wit, what are my ethical obligations here? Do I have a duty to report the cashier? This seems overly harsh. Should I simply decline to get my card stamped next time to render whole Whole Foods? Should I destroy the other 1-stamp sandwich card in my wallet to render Whole Foods whole? Can I ethically assume that cashiers have discretion to double-stamp cards at will? Does my complete (although certainly penetrable) ignorance of that authority change my ethical calculus?

Does this deadweight loss in the sandwich program impart upon me an obligation to other people who rely upon sandwich cards?

Is it relevant that the chicken sandwich with roasted peppers was pretty damned good?

NO, NO, NO, YOU WON'T GET WHAT YOU WANT: Despite an alleged offer from Coachella to throw a 100% vegetarian festival for a reunion show, the Smiths' Morrissey (through a rep) declines: "The Smiths are never, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever going to reunite — ever."

NO ONE IS ALONE AT THIS READING: No one is yet confirmed, but BroadwayWorld alleges that they have a list of the cast that did the table reading of the screenplay for Into The Woods earlier this week.  Some pleasant surprises (Nina Arianda and James Corden as the Bakers?), some exactly what you'd expect (Meryl Streep allegedly in talks for the Witch, Anna Kendrick as Cinderella, Patrick Wilson and Cheyenne Jackson as the Princes), and a surprising number of non-movie names, perhaps in the thought that Meryl and the concept are enough to sell tickets.