During the General Assembly, we typically adjourn to a time certain. “Mr. Speaker, I move the House adjourn to reconvene tomorrow at 12 noon” is a typical motion.

But on the last day, we adjourn sine die. That’s Latin for “without day.” In other words, we don’t specify the next day we will reconvene.

How to pronounce sine die? When I first arrived, speakers used the preferred dictionary pronunciation of “SAYH-nee DIE.” That’s how dictionaries from Webster’s to West’s say it’s correctly pronounced.

Lately, we’ve taken on Latinate affectations, saying “SEE-nay DEE-ay.”

I much prefer the former.

As someone who grew up in the Upper Midwest, where snow is regarded as a minor irritant, I did not discover the wonders of a Snow Day until I moved to Virginia. But I have adapted.

Seeing all that snow on the first full work day after Session was a gift. I’ll start getting caught up. And winding down.

“You look nice today. Did you dress up for a special occasion?”

“Nope. I wore this because it’s the last clean thing in the closet.”

Time to go home.

There was a little back-and-forth between the House and the Senate (and frankly, the Senate’s amendment improved the bill), but yesterday HB 2341 passed the House 94-0.

This bill will allow School Boards to remove a student who has been charged with a very serious crime in the community until that student is placed in an alternative school.

It’s a minor change in the law, but the Fairfax County School Board believes that it will protect students from kids who have committed very violent crimes in the community,

Just when everyone is crabby and the economy is still lousy and winter seems like it will never end, here come the national basketball championships to lift our spirits.

While it’s the men’s game that will get most of the ink, there is at least one good reason to pay attention to the women’s tournament this year.

Her name is Jenn Warkenthien, from a tiny town very close to where I grew up in South Dakota. And while South Dakota State University is not a typical basketball power, anyone who reads this story will join me in cheering the team on.

Yesterday’s horoscope included this advice: “Caffeine is your friend.”

Indeed. For the next several days, our sessions will be L-O-N-G. Today, we will consider SIXTY pages of Senate uncontested bills. Just explaining all of them should take several hours. Yet these are the bills that came out of the Senate without opposition.

Then we’ll get to the contested issues. Septic tank issues (a hugely controversial subject this year). Energy conservation. Guns in bars. All of which mean we should probably plan to eat not only lunch at our desks, but to order in pizza for dinner.

With one week before we adjourn sine die, it’s almost impossible to predict how long our daily floor sessions will run. That’s because we are coming to the time when the “bi” in “bicameral” comes in.

In many cases, the House can’t take action on a piece of legislation until the Senate has acted. Or both houses need to consider all revenue bills before a deadline.

This week, blogger Jim Hoeft of Bearing Drift came to Richmond and tried to stop by to see me. We emailed back and forth for six hours. (“I’m sitting in Senate Finance and can’t come by now. How about in an hour?” “Nope, I have to present a bill then.”) In the end, we never did connect.

That will be the case from now until Saturday. So if you come to Richmond, be flexible about your schedule. We have learned that this week, schedules are merely aspirational documents!

I never thought I’d see the day. But the Virginia House of Delegates has just passed a restaurant smoking ban. The final vote was 60 – 39, with one delegate (Crockett-Stark) absent.

The bill will make all restaurants smoke free, with three exceptions:

– Private clubs such as VFWs or American Legion clubs.

– Areas that are both walled-off AND have a separate ventilation system.

– Outdoor patios.

It may not be the perfect bill, but it is a huge move forward for Virginia.

Lots going on here today. But while we digest the differences between the Senate and the House budgets, here’s something to discuss.

Nate Silver, the statistics guru who basically called the November election right on the nose, now puts his clever brain and his statistical models to the Oscars.

Is he right? Is Slumdog Millionaire a lock?