Seriously. I have paid this much for brunch.

Rather than thoroughly addressing the spread of malaria (thanks, mosquitoes, we're done.), this seems like a better moment to address something: I am really, really lucky. So are you, probably, in that you have internet access and can spend your time reading my site rather than filtering your water, mending worn-out clothing, working 16-hour days, things like that.

Instead, I'd like to refer you to the Nothing But Nets campaign, devoted to sending mosquito nets to Africa. The thing is, malaria causes something like 500 million infections each year, and somewhere in the vicinity of 1 million deaths, most of them children, and most of them in sub-Saharan Africa. (This, by the way, works out to roughly 110 deaths per hour. Think of that next time you're watching 60 Minutes.) How easy is this to stop? I cannot even begin to tell you. Ten dollars buys a mosquito net, which NBN will ship and distribute.

Anyhow. Check it out. I"ve donated tonight, and I highly, highly recommend it.

(Another thing, from exploring the website: the Union for Reform Judaism and the United Methodist Church are two of NBN's biggest partners. Coincidentally enough, I grew up attending both a reform congregation and a Methodist church. Go team!)