Now developing on Ubuntu 12.04 with Python 2.7. Use symbolic links for media, so add media/banners to .hgignore. I had a syntax error in banner_tags.py that only Python 2.7 caught. For local development, read database name from SECRETS.

Dear {{ to_name }},

Your friend, {{ sender_name }}, wanted to send you a link to an 
interesting story found on {{ site_name }}.

{{ story_title|safe }}
http://{{ site_url }}{{ story_link }}

Thanks!
http://{{ site_url}}