Kids 'R' Ussia

10:45 AM -- Wednesday really is Hump Day in Russia. Reuters reports from Ulyanovsk:

The governor of a central Russian province urged couples to skip work Wednesday and make love instead to help boost Russia's low birth-rate.

And if a woman gives birth in exactly nine months time -- on Russia's national day on June 12 -- she will qualify for a prize, perhaps even winning a new home.

"It's normally something for the home -- a fridge or a television set," Yelena Yakovleva at the Ulyanovsk regional administration press office, said.

Make mine a samovar, Yelena!

— Larry, Caesarian Monkey, Light Reading