I'm off today to visit a friend in New Jersey.  We're going to be meeting up with a bunch of people who we talk to on a list-serve for Muslim scholars of Islamic Studies.  People from the list often have regional dinners to get together.  It is a healthy intellectual environment.  People are people, but the conversation is good, the expectation of each other is high, and we all learn a lot.  I'm looking forward to meeting some of this crowd.

My adopted feral cat is still running from hiding place to hiding place and hissing.  But she lets us pet her a little more now.  Mike Knight is going to watch the cats while I am away.  Let Lalla CC out, keep Sidi/Lalla Molé in.  Perhaps magically when I get back the feral darling will be domesticated.

Mike will watch the cats, but if you all would not torture the hamster while I am away that would be super.  E-mail info@progressiveislam.org if there are any website problems.  Ilan and I both get a copy of that mail. If anyone signs up for a reader's blog this weekend, I should be able to put it on the menu by Monday.

Danke wa bisllamah!