Arch said:
...it turns out we're going to be wiped out by a comet.
Errr... my wife asked just about the same question when I showed it her ("will it hit us?"). Sorry to disappoint all you folks (especially those with a Bruce-Willis-fetish) but this one won't come anywhere near the Earth, its orbit never comes inside the orbit of Mars. It actually orbits the Sun once every seven years, but has never shown up like this before, since its discovery in 1892.
Regarding finding this object - and I admit that without a tail it does look a bit star-like with the naked eye - I confess to having an advantage here in that I know my way around the night sky better than Mr/Ms Average I suppose! So it needed only a quick glance, yesterday evening after sunset, at the place in the sky where I knew the comet would be somewhere about. And I instantly saw 'something wrong' with constellation Perseus - an extra 'star' that shouldn't be there, and the rest was easy for me. For those who don't have this faculty and have had difficulty finding it - all I can say is, sweep the sky with binoculars in the area indicated (the moon of course will be later rising as the week advances), until you have it. Once you have it, it will be obvious. Good luck!