I have been keeping busying while Eileen is away. Yesterday I went picked up the CSA package and tomatoes, strawberries and cherries at the Farmers Market. The market was very busy. I went around 10 AM. Then stopped by a little local shop (called “I Love Bread and Butter”?) and bought some spicy peanut butter, vegan peanut butter cookies and some savory zucchini bread. Stopped by the coffee shop to buy a pound of beans. Most of these purchases are in preparation for this week’s time away at the Hatch Cabin. But several cookies are gone as well as about half of the savory zucchini bread.

Back home to move the computer and bookshelf to make way for a new electric outlet installation Eileen and I have asked our workers to install. This new outlet will be for my treadmill.

That took up an hour or so. Then off to my Mom’s to check in with her and grab her library books. Dropped by the library to return them and get Mom some more books. Dropped those off to her. Then to church to practice organ, home to exercise and once more to sip martinis and read. Not a bad life, but missing my wife of course.

1. Dangerous Divisions in the Arab World – NYTimes.com

This editorial helped me sort out some of the complexities of the current mess.

2. Rights Report Faults Mass Relocation of Tibetans – NYTimes.com

The Chinese do seem to love to uproot zillions of people for the “good of the society.”

3.Redrawing the Family Debate – NYTimes.com

New groupings of people as family —- “Huddle”?

4. Don’t Talk With the Taliban – NYTimes.com

I like that this writer urges policy makers to review recent history.