The sound of numbers crunching could be heard all over the city last week.

Jesse Jackson’s accidental admission that he’d like to emasculate Barack Obama was hardly the week’s only awkward idle chatter.

Word that A-Rod had been making late-night visits to ­Madonna’s home base hogged the spotlight from the week’s other odd couples.

Lovers of cheap furnishings camped out in Red Hook last week prior to the opening of a new Ikea.

The dog days of summer arrived a month ahead of schedule last week.

As the price of smokes shot through the $10 barrier last week, even nonsmokers were fired up.

In a week in which another construction crane fell, everyone seemed to be living like it was their last day on Earth.

Gas prices remained astronomical and American Airlines debuted a $15-per-suitcase surcharge

Anchor Sue Simmons talked her way into the headlines last week, but foul language could be heard all around.

The Police announced last week that they’d wrap their reunion tour in the city this summer