The Journal got an unexpected e-mail from General Treasurer Frank T. Caprio's spokesman, Tim Gray, this week pointing to a new feature on the treasurer's Web site: a blog.

After weeks of budget hearings and endless stories about the swelling deficit, we were more than ready for a lighter read, so we checked it out.

For the record, "Frank Caprio's Blog" as the two-week old blog is known, was not actually penned by Caprio. It was written by Gray himself.

And it was quite a read, offering a running commentary on everything from the bank bailout to the stimulus package to singer Jessica Simpson's weight travails and former Yankee coach Joe Torre's new book. It also had a fictionalized conversation between Gray and Mickey Mouse.

But don't bother looking for the juicier bits. The office was quick to remove the sports and pop culture postings just hours after Political Scene questioned whether such topics were appropriate for a taxpayer-funded government Web site.

"Treasury's website is updated daily with new material as we strive to leverage the web to increase government transparency; we will continue to tailor content to better address the public's interest in Treasury," Caprio Deputy Chief of Staff Xay Khamsyvoravong wrote in an e-mail.

Before the postings came down, Gray, a former sports broadcaster, told Political Scene in an e-mail that he wanted to mix "pop culture with politics and current events...with hopefully a little humor as well...not your typical blog."

Interesting idea, but appropriate to be doing on the taxpayer's dime?

"A lot of it focuses on what's going on with the economy and job layoffs which is what we deal with in the office," Gray told us.

Here's what's on the blog now.