Joel here. I'm off to Australia on Microsoft's dime to cover the Xbox 360-sponsored World's Largest Water Balloon Fight. They'll be putting me up in a hotel and paying for my flight. We thought you should know, in case you worried our coverage of a water balloon fight might be compromised by the junket. (We joke, but we really do think disclosure should rule the day.)

And while I've got you, I'll add in one trivial anecdote: Last night, I was walking through Manhattan on the way to the train, finding myself next to the Nintendo World Store. It was closed up tight, but the equipment was still humming as the employees wiped down the DSes in the center dais. So I stood outside in the damp spring evening and downloaded the demo of Brain Age through the glass.

Impressive? No. But it felt futurey.

Anyway, more soon from Australia. If you live in the Sydney area and would like to meet a real, live blogger's liver, send me an email at joel@gawker.com

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