This is the time of year we feel deep sympathy for everyone working in retail, if solely for the neverending medley of Christmas music piped through so many of their workplaces in which we fear to tread. At this point, we would be more irritated if the hyper-sensitive car alarms in our neighborhood blared out "Jingle Bells" or "Deck the Halls" rather than the regular beep-uh-beep-uh-beep. To salve the retail ear wounds, might we......

EssEffist, bowing to the traditional Wednesdayness of the local food columns, weighs in with a favorite of ours, perfect for the warm days we've been having: seared ahi on a salad of tomatoes, cucumber, and grilled corn. This is a fantastically easy dish that you can start and finish in under an hour. Invite some friends over and double the recipe, and watch them swoon....