* coffee - wicked strong. I may need to blend myself a smoothie to appease my stomach lining.

* chatting among ourselves: the new incarnation of Hawaii 5-0 (shift captain disapproves of the cross-casting); first speech tournament of the year (other team member coaches for a local college and was worn out from the weekend); copyediting fail (an ad for Blair listed last week's concerts and mispelled "September")

* the boys were glad that I took it upon myself to read the feature on circumcision

* I also read aloud Jaime Sarrio's column on how employers help special needs students get foot in door

* couldn't fit this one in, but it caught my eye: an AP report on text messaging has changed the lives of deaf people

* I often skim the City Paper while waiting my turn. A couple pieces about the Murfreesboro mosque controversy:

At the most recent county commissioners' meeting, "those speaking in support of the mosque raised driver's licenses in the air as they commented, presumably in response to criticism from mosque protesters saying that many of the congregation's supporters are being flown in from around the country." The article also contains some observations about whether local clergy are choosing to involve themselves and why (not).

I'm not seeing Ken Whitehouse's "Luddites" online, but this jumped out at me:

The rhetoric is preposterous; we constantly hear "if only the Muslims would assimilate" and "they need to say they aren't for terrorism." These are the breathless ravings of people losing their grip -- and their control.

Last I checked, the Amish haven't assimilated. We still buy their furniture. As a white Christian mal, no one has ever asked me to apologize for or distance myself from the actions of Timothy McVeigh or Eric Rudolph, both domestic terrorists.

Muslims in Murfreesboro are as much responsible for terrorism here as area Catholics were for the terrorism once committed by the Irish Republican Army. We never asked the Cathedral of Nashville to put out a statement decrying the bombings and murders of Northern Ireland that went on for decades.

Last but not least, via the UUA twitter feed, from a meditation by Gordon B. McKeeman:

For simple things that are not simple at all...
For Grace that turns
our intentions into deeds
our compassion into helpfulness
our pain into mercy...
We lift our hearts in thankfulness
and pray only to be more aware
and thus more alive.

[Interested in reading to the blind? The Nashville Talking Library needs folks to record books as well as newspapers. Click the link for details.]