it's easy! Each commedian starts with 100 points. If the wife writes the jokes, add 10 points. If the commedian has a day job, add 10 points. If he works for the IRS, he shouldn't be joking - subtract 30 points If the joke pertains to shells, add 20 points. If the joke does not pertain to shells, subtract 20 points. If the joke refers to pigs, subtract 50 points. Well, you get the idea :-) Actually I do have a shell-related item to mention. A while back I sent some shells to a person, including some nerites. The other day he e-mailed me to say that in examining the shells more closely, he found that one of the nerites had a filed operculum! Yep, someone had actually taken the time and effort to file down an operculum, to make it fit in the aperture of the shell - a shell that sells for about a buck. Someone must have had time on his hands! Actually the shell was from an old collection, so probably the collector did it himself. I can't even imagine a commercial supplier of shells taking the time to do that. Anyway, question - has anyone else ever seen any evidence of "operculum tampering"? I have received shells with opercs from a different species. I have received shells with opercs from a different family. I have received shells with opercs that are not even supposed to have opercs! But reshaped opercs is a new one on me. I guess in addition to filed lips, rebuilt apexes, resharpened spines, filled holes and cracks, painted patterns, artificially polished surfaces, and glued-on carrier attachments, we also need to check our specimens for altered opercs! Paul M.