OK! Time to get serious, here.

I was up very early, yesterday.

It was about 6:30AM, over half-an-hour before sunrise, and I happened to be near the shores of Lake Ontario, still
within the city of Toronto, looking in the SE direction towards Rochester, NY, when I caught sight of the very thin-crescent moon, partly-lit by Earthshine,
and below the moon...astonishingly bright..the planet Mercury dangling just above the reddish-band of predawn sky.
In fact the planet Mercury was so bright, I mistook it briefly for Venus.
It is the THIRD TIMEI have seen
and identified the planet Mercury [Twice from a city; once, out in the country during which
I also saw Comet Hale-Bopp and the planet Mars in all their glory: March/31/1997].
By now, Raoul must be envious.

So much for the MYTH that it's difficult to see the planet Mercury from a city.

Jacob