It's official: Christmas came early

Q: What could be worse than running the annual AP story on the year-on-year price increase of items in the damn partridge song?
A: Turning the index into a business front centerpiece by your personal finance columnist!

Q: Isn't it a mortal sin to call the list "quirky"?
A: On the bright side, it wasn't "famously rolled out."

Q: Should critical scholars be concerned that the price of lords a-leaping rose but the price of ladies dancing was stable?
A: Not until they look at the price differential between maids ($7.25) and ladies ($839).

Q: Why didn't the price of drummers* go up?
A: BECAUSE DELIVERY IS INCLUDED IN THE COST OF THE PIZZA!

* "I don't like the sound of those drums, sergeant."
"I know, captain. It's not their regular drummer."