T minus four days and counting until WWDC, and the Mac community is officially frothing at the mouth-- and those flecks of foam flying every which way aren't toothpaste, Bubba; that's pure, unadulterated hysteria right there. The kind you could bottle and sell to Grandma if it weren't, you know, quite so gross. Maybe we're just too caught up in it ourselves to look at the situation objectively, but we're pretty sure it's safe to say without fear of exaggeration that Monday's Stevenote is at least a million times more eagerly awaited than any other event in the entire annals of human history.

Which explains why, since the show won't be webcast, one particularly enthusiastic reader over at MacRumors (we say "enthusiastic," a licensed mental health care professional says "obsessive and borderline psychotic," let's call the whole thing off) apparently phoned all 58 Apple retail stores in order to compile a definitive list of which locations would be showing a live satellite feed of Uncle Steve's Wild Ride. (We're hoping to catch the gig at the Apple Store Northshore, ourselves, if circumstances permit.)

What this means, of course, is that despite the fact that the Stevenote is slated to occur during the regular work day, Apple stores across the country are likely to be overrun with wild-eyed, foam-flecked Mac fanatics who will see no problem whatsoever with calling in sick, quitting their jobs, or even cutting off a pinky toe in order to free themselves of employment responsibilities on the big day. If you're planning on descending locust-like on your local theater-equipped Apple store to witness the birth of what may well turn out to be the Mac's next golden age, we recommend showing up early, since, as anyone who's ever wound up waiting in line at a grand opening can attest, those stores have maximum occupancy ratings, and come Monday we suspect that they're going to have to be enforced with the judicious application of tear gas and the help of some rather large firearms. Say hello to my little friend!

Something tells us that even with Academia lending a hand (MacMinute has a list of universities planning to show the Stevenote), that's not going to do much to stem the flood of rabid Mac devotees poised to overrun Apple's retail outlets. It's a pity, then, that more of those twenty-ish additional planned Apple stores aren't yet open to help ease the imminent overcrowding issue and prevent a few dozen trampling deaths. In particular, the Apple Store North Michigan Avenue, which was mentioned by El Stevo in the original Apple retail unveiling way back at the turn of the century, is finally slated to open its doors over two years later, at 6 PM on Friday, June 27th. And while we're glad to hear that this flagship Chicago store is actually going to be serving customers in just over a week, it's a shame that it won't be operational this Monday to host a few thousand rampaging Mac zealots overdosing on G5 speculation. (But hey, at least it's got a 16-Mac Internet Café. Oh, sure, Chicago gets iced mochas, while the rest of us can't even get free Evian at the Genius Bar anymore...)