Beirut, love it or not

Apparently Cynthia's connections with Beirut aren't disappearing, even after she escaped to Amman. (She should be in France soon.)

Today's NYT print edition carries her picture within a picture.

Confused? The NYT snap depicts tense Beirut residents chatting and sipping cuppas at a cafe. Cynthia's snap sits in the cafe -- of a lady in the Asian bicycle silhouette -- which she took in Beijing.

It's a beautiful shot, picked up by De Prague Cafe in Beirut where Cynthia hung out often, as she noted. It still lies there, many days after she left Beirut.

She noticed the photo she took being in NYT and suddenly e-mails started floating around. Now I'm holding multiple print editions of today's NYT to send to her and other friends.

For once, I don't have to burn down the NYT, which says only Beirut, Beirut, Beirut all day long. I am tired of Beirut. I'm tired of hearing American reports saying "Beirut," as if they were saying "Babe Ruth."

I'm tired of any footage about Lebanon, Israel and Palestine. Don't they get tired? Don't readers get tired? Am I the only one who finds Fox News a welcome respite these days?

So it's not only Cynthia. All of us will be connected to Beirut for a long, long time. Just like Ai-rack. Buckle up folks!