DINNER PARTY INTEL: Musk’s ex-girlfriend makes a mint

1. Milking Musk

Jennifer Gwynne did not got even with an old boyfriend, she got a windfall. Gwynne, 48, of South Carolina, dated Elon Musk for a year when both were in their early 20s and students at the University of Pennsylvania. Last week she sold her Musk memorabilia, which included some old snapshots and a signed birthday card, on auction for $165,000. “This isn’t tasteless,” she said, “it’s the smartest thing I’ve ever done.”

2. Punctuation power

Thérèse Coffey, the UK’s new health secretary, upset pedants by assigning the Oxford comma to the grammar bin. The pedants hit back, using a photograph of Liz Truss and Coffey each cradling a piglet. The caption read: “Two piglets, Truss and Coffey.” By adding the Oxford comma, the pedants eliminated any insult of the ministers: “Two piglets, Truss, and Coffey.” An ancient punctuation mark may have been saved.

3. Pitching out plonk

It has not been a vintage year for the San Francisco Giants baseball team, but at least the season is ending with the promise of vintages to come. Spectators and players will soon able to lift their spirits with a fine bottle of chardonnay or a full-bodied cabernet sauvignon. The Giants have become the first US professional sports team to hire a sommelier to oversee their wine offering.