9/1 Morning Communiqué

CITY PAGES BLOGS AND NEWS

Why do pigeons bob their heads? Why do people say "Jesus H. Christ"? You've got the questions, and Cecil Adams is the man with the answers, as we welcome The Straight Dope to City Pages every Friday.

THESE DAYS

Scientists have found evidence that the Earth might have flipped over in the past, completely shifting the orientation of its poles.

A Zanzibar celebration to commemorate what would have been the 60th birthday of the East African island's most famous native, Queen frontman Freddie Mercury, has come under condemnation of local conservative Muslims.

MINNESOTA BLOG OF THE DAY

The arts and culture magazine The Liberator covers related local and national issues at its blog.

[Minnesota-based blog directory]

TIME WASTERS

If you're heading to the State Fair this weekend, don't forget to check out the dress made of sock monkeys.

Download out-of-copyright books and search contemporary texts at Google Book Search.

FREEDOM OF SPEECH

"I prop him up in a chair, or sometimes put him on the couch and cover him up with a blanket. The cat will curl up on the blanket, and it looks kind of weird."

-- Kay Judkins, whose husband, Jim, is a minesweeper mechanic in Afghanistan, on the life-size cut-out of her husband created by a popular military family-support program