The hilarity at Fox 9 in the Twin Cities continues.

Check out this video. Does anyone know how to save a local copy of that? I desperately want one. FRAPS won't seem to capture it. Help! Video captured, thx Ryan!

I am now a slang term. But they mention Mouser Week by name. Still no one at Fox has made it to mouser.org to read my post explaining the origin of the term. Oh well.

I'm still getting a huge laugh out of this, which is great.

I've written before about how, somehow, my name has become associated with an annual gathering of urban exploration enthusiasts in the Twin Cities. Well, apparently they've taken it to the next level. Local Fox affiliate KMSP, reporting about a guy who was caught in the telephone company tunnels underneath downtown St. Paul, had this to say:

"He was a part of a group called 'Mousers' who explore tunnels, caves, etc."

This comes to me second-hand; I'm trying to find a clip of the report online but so far have come up empty.

I am amused to no end.

UPDATE:

Wait, it gets better. It's not just some Fox douche... I'm in the City Legislative Agenda for 2008:

Public Health & Safety
Active Agenda
Trespassing in Critical Public Service Facilities

Saint Paul is home to nearly 600 miles of underground tunnels and sewers, many of which are used to provide power, telephone, water, sewage, wastewater, or other related utility services to residents. Utility companies and Saint Paul public safety officials are concerned that vandals could do significant damage to critical infrastructure. Or, trespassers could become trapped in a hard-to-access point in the city tunnel and sewer system, requiring city personnel to undergo a dangerous and costly rescue.

The city has earned the dubious distinction of being a national destination for “mousers,” or people who explore these dangerous tunnels and caves. The internet has linked thousands of interested mousers who law enforcement believes travel to Saint Paul each year.

Current law includes an unduly burdensome “no trespassing” posting requirement that eliminates the option of prosecution unless the city posts signs on each opening that include the following:

(1) state "no trespassing" or similar terms;
(2) display letters at least two inches high;
(3) state that Minnesota law prohibits trespassing on the property; and
(4) are posted in a conspicuous place and at intervals of 500 feet or less.

The posting requirement would mean that the city would need to put up thousands of signs on every manhole cover and in underground tunnels throughout the city.

City Position
Change state law to make it a crime for unauthorized individuals to be in an underground
utility tunnel

- City of St Paul 2008 Legislative Agenda

UPDATE 2
Here's the link to the story on KMSP The relevant segment:

"32-year-old Michael Krube was arrested Saturday and charged with gross misdemeanor trespassing in a critical public service facility for illegally entering St. Paul's sewer system. He's known as a "mouser," a slang term for a group of people who illegally explore old caves, tunnels, and sewer systems."

This seems like a worthwhile meme...

White Rock, NM
Albuquerque, NM
Almaty, Kazakhstan (3 separate trips)
Aktau, Kazakhstan (4 separate trips—over nine weeks spent here this year)
Ottawa, Canada
Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Amarillo, TX
Dresden, Germany
Brookline, MA
Port Jefferson, NY
In my truck at various trail heads in CO
In planes all over the world.

Plus the places I can't talk about. :-P