Lumas 15, 29.

DIARY

- WEATHER - Today is beautiful and blue almost everywhere. Granted, the gulf coast is being drenched with a mild low moving over Florida, bringing rain all the way to Texas. And the relief is temporary; by Monday the eastern half of the nation will be hot, muggy, and stormy as ever this year. But for today... ahhh.

- TIGERS - Trounced Oakland yesterday. Smarmy Dmitry Young is taking a break in the miners. Justin Verlander, on the other hand, won't be going to the All-Star game. I guess eight White Sox players aren't enough from one intraleague team.

- JULY - is anti-boredom month.
- MONDAY - was the Feast of St. Thomas and the start of the Dog Days.
- TUESDAY - was Independence Day and the moment when Earth was at Aphelion.
- SUNDAY - is the Feast of Our Lady of Peace.
- HAPPY BIRTHDAY - Last Monday: Franz Kafka. Last Tuesday: Nathaniel Hawthorne, Victor Babeş, Louis Armstrong, and Ann Landers. Wednesday: P.T. Barnum. Yesterday: Frida Kahlo, Bill Haley, the Dalai Lama, and President Bush. Today: Ringo Starr and Robert Heinlein. Saturday: Beck. Sunday: Ann Radcliffe (who wrote The Mysteries of Udolpho), Matthew Lewis (who wrote The Monk), Tom Hanks, and Courtney Love.

- NEWS OF THE WEEK -
Crazy week, newswise.
BBC News: Chad rebels 'launch CAR attack'
CNN.com: Flag amendment fails by single vote.
BBC News: US Guantanamo tribunals 'illegal'
Houston Chronicle: 5 U.S. soldiers accused of Iraq rape, murders.
Reuters: Ex-Mexican president ordered arrested in massacre.
Reuters: Mexican Election Too Close To Call, Both Candidates Declare Victory.
CNN.com: Rebels, government troops battle in Chad.
CNN.com: U.S. officials: North Korea tests long-range missle.
CNN.com: Independence Day liftoff for Discovery.
ABC News: China, Russia Resist North Korea Sanctions.
Associated Press: Enron founder Ken Lay dies of massive heart attack.
Washington Post: U.S., Allies Seek Punitive Action Aginst N. Korea.
Spaceflight Now: Discovery arrives at space station after a two day chase.
Newsday: NY court rules against gay marriage.
Reuters: Taiwan to test-fire missle.
Reuters: N. Korea may have long-range missle at site.
The New York Times: 3 Palestinians Killed as Israel Renews Strikes.

- QUOTE OF THE WEEK -
"We must believe in luck. For how else can we explain the success of those we don't like?"
- Jean Cocteau.

- PICTURE OF THE WEEK -
Art Crimes: New York 52.

- LINK OF THE WEEK -
The Greener Side: Bedbugs' neverending night on the town.

- STATE OF THE WEEK -
Vermont.

- QUESTION OF THE DAY -
What is a memory you associate with the circus?

END OF POST.