I read it online most days.  Also often read the WSJ and the Washington Post, but I have a particular affinity for the NYT.  I sometimes feel compelled to shoot them a comment, and from time to time they publish them.  There was a long article today about the 14th Amendment and the birthright citizenship issue.  I wrote and they published:

It’s interesting that, although many question President Obama’s citizenship, no one seems to question John McCain’s — he was born in Panama, or Ted Cruz’s — he was born in Canada. In these three cases, they all were born U.S. citizens for different reasons. There is no easy answer to the Anchor Baby dilemma, but I can tell you this, if I were a pregnant woman in Juarez, I would do whatever it took to get across that river. ”

It might smell as sweet if it were called Caelbran Isildur, but no one would like it very much.

This is the name recently given to a newborn, according to my local newspaper this morning.  Seriously.  I had to argue with spell check for several minutes to be allowed even to type it.  Maybe for short this child will be called Kale, a very popular vegetable right now.

I’m sure I should have known the allusions, but I had to google them.

Isildur is a character in The Hobbit.  Wiki says  Isildur was a Dúnadan of Númenor, the elder son of Elendil, High King of the Realms in Exile. He was briefly the second king of Gondor and Arnor.

He can get an action toy who shares his name.

And a tee shirt.

All righty then.

And Caelbran, spelled a slightly different way, is a boy in the Star Wars series.

I don’t know why I continue to be drawn to reading these lists of newborn babies’ names.

My personal favorite this morning is Violet Mary.

This is a back-to-school story for  teachers and coaches.

My sister has been involved with the Pecos swim program for a very long time and is seriously flunking retirement now with her continued passion for the sport and the kids.

Many years ago, there was a young swimmer whose family could not afford some of the “extras” that other families could.  (Actually, this happens more often that you might think.)  As coaches and teachers do, she quietly provided such things as team tee shirts for this boy who promised he would pay her back one day.

The swimmers do a lot of dry land training in addition to the hundreds of hours spent in the pool.  Weight training plays a part, and after about 30 years, this bench was seriously in need of repairs.  Joannie posted this picture on the Pecos community site and asked if anyone had any used ones she could buy for the team.Very soon, she received a message from that “boy” and his wife who are now busy raising a family of their own in San Antonio:

“Coach Capshaw, I think those benches were there when I was. We would love to help. If you will post (or message us) a picture of what would work best, we can order it on Amazon and have it shipped to you or up to the pool. Tim”

Two brand new benches are now on the way.

You never know what you may be modeling in the classroom or on sports fields.  Maybe a handwork ethic.  Maybe to be kind and have a generous heart.  Maybe to see the needs of others and do something.  And when you have a student who grows up to exhibit these qualities, you know it was worth it.

Remember something over a year ago I swore off TV news?  I have back-slid just a little, but am ready to come to Jesus again.  There’s always a last straw.  Again.

I just heard some pundit refer to people who fly drones as “the drone community.”  Give me a break!

This time tomorrow, I will be able to say I have been network news clean for one day.  Is there a community for me?