LIKE SWALLOWING A GIANT LOOGIE: What did we learn on The Race tonight?

We learned that caviar makes skinny girls cry, and that Team HiLo may, indeed, have the Luck of the Evil, even if (as one TWoP poster noted) "A roadblock is a task that only Charla may perform."

The rest, we re-learned from previous editions of the Race: travel agents are important. Doing your airport homework matters. Athletic detours are always doable. (Remember the soccer kids in, what, Spain?) Food roadblocks can be gross. (Live octopus in Korea, anyone?) It's nice to be liked, but it's better by far to use taxis.

What we still haven't learned: what happened to The Yield? What team does God really favor? Will we like any of these teams in the end?

Your thoughts, full of spoilers on the episode, are welcome.

FOR C-SPAN JUNKIES ONLY: Betcha didn't know this one -- just like at the Oscars, the Democratic National Convention does its own Necrology tribute to those Democrats who passed away since the last Convention, and it just aired a few minutes ago.

Order was alphabetical -- starting with Philadelphia's Lucien "the Solution" Blackwell, who worked his way up from hourly laborer to union head to City Council to the U.S. Congress -- and ending with beloved former Senator Paul Wellstone, a true mensch.

Other than Wellstone, biggest cheers seemed to be for Paul Simon and Pat Moynihan. Not as much for Mel Carnahan, even though he was the last man to defeat John Ashcroft in an election.

So now you know.

TEAM HILO BROUGHT LOW: In continuing Amazing Race coverage, it's moderately nauseating to read the fawning media coverage of Team HiLo in much of the press. USA Today reports that HiLo is "emerging as a big favorite," and quotes producer Bertram van Munster as saying "By the time the thing is said and done, Charla will be famous."

The Baltimore Sun is (thankfully) less fawning at the start, even including several priceless quotes from the wonderous recaps of Miss Alli over at TWoP, such as "This is not Mirnaland, where Mirna is Queen and gets to wave her Mirna-Wand and straighten her Mirna-Crown and tell everyone what to do." (Miss Alli shares the general loathing around here for HiLo.)

However, the second half of the article is fawning, and gives pause, particularly this statement from one of Mirna's law school classmates:

"It's probably very difficult for them to see a woman who's as smart and successful and strong as Mirna, and I bet they find that pretty intimidating. She won't allow anyone to push her around, and I think that's really difficult for people at times. But she's just standing up for herself."

I can't quibble with "successful," but her inability to read a map and speak languages in which she is allegedly "fluent" would seem to defeat "smart" and her inability to carry a side of beef would defeat "strong" (at least physically).

The good news? Maybe the media coverage means these cousins are about to experience the end of their 15 minutes of fame. We can only hope.  Then again, getting rid of Team Deep Dish tonight would be a happy ending too.

SUPER SLIDER ME: In advance of the one of the summer's most anticipated films, "Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle," the Chicago Sun-Times has 30 things you need to know about White Castle. Perhaps even more entertaining is the sidebar examining various "Psuedoslider" franchises that over the years have tried to mimic the Castle magic. Anyone ever eat at any of these?

And speaking of burgers, this blog will be somewhat "listless" next week as the family and I head around the Lake to the Michigan shore.

IF YOU CAN DODGE A WRENCH, YOU CAN STAY CLASSY: Not content to let his partner across the aisle to have a monopoly on sloppy mistakes that have made it into print regarding the film "Dodgeball," Richard Roeper slipped this oopsy-daisy into his "column" today:

"Bill Kurtis is the man. He was lampooned on an episode of 'South Park.' On 'The Sopranos,' Dr. Melfi once said: 'I get all my information [on crime] from the movies and Bill Kurtis!'
Bill Kurtis is the narrator of 'Dodgeball.' (Kurtis on Ron Burgundy in 'Anchorman': 'He was a god walking amongst mere mortals. He had a voice that could make a wolverine purr and suits so fine they made Sinatra look like a hobo . . . ')"

And incidentally, I've come to think recently that Ben Stiller might in fact be evil incarnate, a suspicion that was made all the more curious when during my first viewing of "The Boys from Brazil," who but Stiller's actual mother, Anne Meara, shows up as one of the mothers of the young Hitler clones.

KNOW WHEN TO FOLD THEM: Ricky Williams isn't the first sports star to walk away from the game while still in his prime. ESPN's Page 2 counts down the Ten Greatest Early Retirements, a list that includes four other NFL running backs: Jim Brown, Barry Sanders, Doak Walker, and Robert Smith.

One omission: where's the late Bison Dele?

DREADED NEWS: Is Dolphins running back Ricky Williams retiring? As in, now, at the age of 27?

Frequent PTI sub Dan Le Batard, whose close relationship with Williams produced this great piece on Williams' battle with social anxiety disorder, has the details.