The latest:

>> In November 1999, some friends and I took a trip to Thailand. We marveled at the traffic, noise and bustle of Bangkok, but were truly taken with the beauty and peacefulness of the southern part of the country, particularly the time we spent on Koh Phi Phi Don.

The island was popularized in the movie "The Beach." A few weeks ago you might never had heard about it, but since Sunday, it's been in the news a lot. It was completely destroyed in the horrible tsunamis that have devastated Southeast Asia.

It's been a while since I've posted; all the usual reasons apply. But I just made a donation through Amazon.com to the Red Cross. If you're an Amazon customer, it's fast and easy to give. I might feel more strongly about this because I've been to that part of the world, and I was very taken with the sweet, kind nature of the Thai people, and feel great sorrow when I think of the suffering that they and millions of others will encounter because of this disaster.

There are plenty of organizations that will gladly accept your donations to help, and it only takes a couple of clicks. This is the real power of this ever-shrinking world of ours.
posted by Bryan at 4:17 PM