Beirut Burning

New Orleans, LA

My bookgroup has an interesting selection for next month's book. We're reading Baghdad Burning: Girl Blog From Iraq. I haven't started it yet, though I've skimmed a bit. Baghdad Burning is a collection of blog postings written by a woman living in Baghdad at the time the US invaded. The book was selected months ago, but it seems particularly relevant to read now because of what's happening in Lebanon and Israel.

Women in Beirut are blogging now and what they write is heart-wrenching. Read for yourself: War On Lebanon. Beirut is burning.

Andrea, my roommate from college, has roots in Lebanon. I worry for her friends. I worry for her distant family members. There are my friends and their families in Israel. I worry about them too. Hoping everyone is ok and that the violence from both sides will end.

An eye for an eye is as ancient as the Old Testament. There's that saying that "an eye for an eye leaves everyone blind." What happens when one group decides that the eye of one of its members is equal to 16 eyes belonging to another group. Or 160 eyes? Or 1600 eyes?

What follows is a darkness beyond blindness.

G-O-A-L-!!

New Orleans, LA

I've been missing the excitement of being surrounded by people who care about the World Cup. So far, the only person I've interacted with who has cared the least little bit about it was the man at the po-boy shop who cashed in my Powerball ticket last week ($3!). While waiting on customers he could not take his eyes off the game on the TV above the door. Asked him who he thought would win the finals and he laughed, "Brazil!" Ha ha! But Brazil is OUT. And now Germany is OUT.

I've got to find somebody/someplace with cable and a big screen TV.