“Over the years, I’ve had numerous occasions to attend religious services in a variety of houses of worship. And while there is no single set of rules for “non-members” that covers all faiths, I’ve discovered a general set of principles that have tided me well in these trips…”

“A growing number of New York construction workers are vowing not to work on the mosque planned near Ground Zero… The grass-roots movement is gaining momentum on the Internet. One construction worker created the “Hard Hat Pledge” on his blog and asked others to vow not to work on the project if it stays on Park Place…”

“[a moving picture] shot from a streetcar traveling down Market Street in San Francisco in 1905. Before the earthquake/fire of 1906 destroyed the area.”

“As if investors weren’t feeling edgy enough about the stock market as economic fears mount again, now there’s the “Hindenburg Omen” to worry about. Or not… All four conditions for the omen were met in Thursday’s trading session, the first time that’s happened since June 2008. Three months after that last signal, of course, was the start of the market meltdown that followed the collapse of Lehman Bros…”

“…For years, I’ve heard complaints from Christians about why Harry Potter should be avoided at all costs – though they are quick to defend, praise and all but worship JRR Tolkein’s “Lord of the Rings” series and CS Lewis books. It’s frustrating on several levels. First, JK Rowling is an amazing author – both in style and story telling. Second, you simply cannot love Tolkein’s work and reject Rowling’s based on Christian principles. In fact, if anything, you should be quick to defend Rowling for making such an obvious parallel to the pained life, death and resurrection of Christ…”

“Fred and I packed up the boys and some quickie Dollar Store purchases and headed over to Amy’s and Chris’ after dinner tonight to celebrate a time-honored tradition in our friend group: pranking the heck out of the newlyweds’ house. This tradition started almost seven years ago when Fred and I got married. It wasn’t out house that got it. It was Fred’s car. Aside from the usual painted messages and cans tied to the back…”

“Quick. Name a legislative issue on which U.S. Sen. Jim DeMint agrees with the House Democratic leadership, i.e., Speaker Nancy Pelosi. It’s OK. We would have had a tough time, too, until South Carolina’s junior Republican senator sent out a news release last week headlined, ‘DeMint Praises U.S. House for Moving to Pass FAA Extension with Essential Safety Provisions.’ “

“A struggling family facing foreclosure has stumbled upon what is considered to be the Holy Grail of comic books in their basement – a fortuitous find that could fetch upwards of a quarter million dollars at auction…”

“In these difficult economic times, many Americans are wary of buying items they’ll use just once or twice and then store in the garage. But for those times you really need a hedge clipper, bread maker or camping stove, there’s a social networking site called NeighborGoods.net. The site is an inventory of items users are willing to lend…”

“The New York soup shop immortalized by the Seinfeld show’s “Soup Nazi” character reopened Tuesday in Midtown Manhattan after a hiatus of six years. There was a line around the block, but the soup man himself — Al Yeganeh — was unavailable. He has never been amused at his portrayal in the sitcom and the media…”

“It takes a lot to spook the solid old gold market. But when it emerged last week that one or more banks had lent 380 tonnes of gold to the Bank of International Settlements in return for foreign currencies, there was widespread surprise and confusion…”