With our neighborhoods increasingly overrun by bank branches, it must count as a minor victory that only half of the former CVS store abandoned when the pharmacy moved across the street is a bank.

The other half is a shiny new branch of the Chipotle chain. They were giving out free burritos at their official opening yesterday. When I rode by at about 6, the line was out-the-door and down to the corner by the Store24.

I'm torn about a big national chain spun off from McDonald's no less down the street from local folks BoLoCo (Boston Local Company). But, at least Chipotle sponsors a cycling team.

Does anybody at the Globe edit wire stories? From the front page of boston.com, this AP story on Rudy Guiliani's Florida efforts says:

In an unconventional move, Giuliani largely bypassed the early voting states of Iowa, New Hampshire, Michigan and South Carolina, pinning his hopes on a fractured field and the prospect that his moderate GOP record would attract support in the delegate-rich states of Florida, New York, California and Illinois.

As Brian Mooney wrote in December, Giuliani didn't bypass New Hampshire. He took a conventional approach to New Hampshire - ads, mailings, events - until his early lead in the state disappeared and he sank in the polls.

Ironically, Mooney himself gave the same wrong impression in his article on Giuliani last week, writing:

Giuliani built this box for himself with his highly unorthodox strategy of finessing six earlier states and loading up for bigger, delegate-laden states, starting with Florida[.]

I don't see how campaigning vigorously until quitting is exactly "finessing."

In Thursday's Republican debate, Tim Russert issued one of his inane Russertian gotchas, catching John McCain in a contradiction over whether or not he's ever said he's ignorant on matters economic.

Over at the Globe's Political Intelligence blog, James Smith supplies prosecutor Russert with the evidence.

The Boston Archdiocese is moving its administrative offices to a donated office building in Braintree that is more than one mile from any T service.

Not green. Not good for the church's poor constituents.

Bad decision.

Hat tip to Media Nation.

Walking through South Station this morning I saw a commuter rail employee carrying a sweatshirt professionally screened with:

MBCR
FUBAR

Saw this guy chillin' by the Chestnut Hill reservoir.

Scot Lehigh gets it exactly wrong in the lead paragraph of his column today:

On my bike ride home Christmas Eve, I noticed that the new Kenmore Square bus station is open for business. Not finished, but buses were picking up and dropping off under the glass structure.

Having the buses off the north side of the square really opens things up nicely.