At about 11pm yesterday I woke up to the sound of a slowly wailing emergency siren and the sound of a recorded voice murmuring instructions.

First thought:  Great.  The building is on fire.  I jumped out of bed, but realized the sound was coming from outside.  The voice was repeating:

“This is the Boston Police Department.  At midnight tonight a snow emergency will be in full effect.  All cars parked along the snow routes will be ticketed and towed.  This is the Boston Police Department.”

Now that it’s morning, I can point out two things.  First, it’s not snowing.  Second, all the cars are still right there on Comm. Ave where they’ve always been.

So basically, the message could’ve said, “This is the Boston Police Department.  Wake up!  Okay, go back to sleep now.”