Where's Sr. Joan when you need her?

Not too long ago, three nearby parishes were combined into one: St. Gregory's, St. Therese's and St. Leo's. They combined to make Lumen Christi Catholic Community in what was St. Leo's. Millions of dollars were spent to expand the church. It is really nice inside, although the "worship spaces" leave much to be desired.

Now they are sans priest. Father Bauer, the former pastor, was assigned to the Bascilica. The parish now has no pastor, but a nun has been assigned in the interim. According to the Catholic Spirit:

Six priests have been given new or additional assignments by Archbishop Harry Flynn. He also appointed St. Joseph of Carondelet Sister Frieda Kalenze as interim parish life administrator of Lumen Christi Catholic Community in St. Paul, beginning Monday, June 25. Sister Frieda most recently served as parish administrator at St. Peter in Mendota and St. Olaf in Minneapolis. She also has served her community in several positions on its administrative team.

I know there is another priest working at the parish, but how long can this parish function without a pastor?

From this side of the trenchesFor Ma Beck

I took some more donations to Highland LifeCare Centers.
It was a beautiful day. A bit hot, however.
While I was there, a young woman came in for counseling.
She told the receptionist she wanted some counseling since she knew she was pregnant.
Being a mom, my first reaction was to tell her, "Congratulations!" Instead, I just smiled sheepishly at her.
She seemed distressed, but more overwhelmed at the situation than desperate. Not desperate enough to go down the street to Planned Parenthood.
I was so thankful for the ladies that were in the office. So kind, understanding, professional and loving. If I was pregnant and in a difficult situation, I would've wanted to find these ladies in the office.
But, even being in the pro-life office that I was, I was glad I wasn't the counselor, though I am sure they get a great deal of training on how to help pregnant women.
I didn't know what to say. I still don't. Although this woman was making steps in the direction of life, I was tongue-tied.
Though I wasn't working or volunteering there and didn't need to say anything, it was hard and very awkward for me.
I was filled with joy because it appeared that this woman was trying to find positive solutions to her crisis, but still knew that if this woman wasn't at TLC, it would be very easy for her to abort her baby.
It was a very powerless feeling and I was struck by how hard it hit me.
Just down the street is Planned Parenthood. Babies are dying. It's the dark and gritty front-line.
The people that stand outside the clinic and try to help save the lives of babies are incredible. All the people involved in the pro-life movement are.
We need more people like them.
Maybe, one day I will be able to stand along side them. Not an easy place to be.
At least, in this office, babies are being saved. THANK GOD.
Not all battles are lost.

Ma Beck over at WardWideWeb had a different experience. God bless you, Ma, for trying to help in a very difficult situation. Check out her blog for her very moving posts.

Like I mentioned in prior posts, Highland LifeCare Center will be moving practically right next to PP. The Archbishop is allowing the Holy Eucharist to be reserved there for Adoration. I might be overwhelmed, tongue-tied and powerless, but the Body of Christ right next to PP can work miracles.

You can read my prior posts about Total Life Care Centers
here
here
here

Eliminating the need for confessionals?

Is it a quark or is he a quack? A University of Washington (my other alma mater) physics professor is working on a quantum physics experiment to prove the existence of reverse time. Stephen Hawking, well-known scientist and atheist, doesn't believe in it. He thinks time only moves forward. However, I have listened to a brilliant (I mean brilliant) physicist talk about reverse time like it was a given. I tend to believe in the possibility. Anyway, it is interesting.

If we only had a chance to undo past sins, that would be wonderful. Or, is it more of a curse? Would we be forever correcting our mistakes, like Hindus or Scientologists, in this life or past lives, until we somehow managed to achieve Nirvana or Enlightenment or...?

Confession actually starts to look good compared to having to do things over and over until you get it right.

Beam us up, Scotty!

One of his many hurdles...

Strong drink required

A week or so ago, I was listening to Relevant Radio and they were talking about abortion. Specifically, partial birth abortion. Despite my strong stomach, I HAD to turn off the radio. What barbarism have we come to that this atrocity takes place AND is on polite Catholic radio. Not that it shouldn't be talked about, not that it was improper to have it on Relevant Radio. Just the fact that our society, we, you and me, have gotten to this point and we are jaded to it.

The gentleman said everyone should read the 2000 and 2003 partial birth rulings. The ruling on partial birth abortion should be REQUIRED reading for everyone. For the 2003 link.

Strong warnings apply. Sit down. Hug your kids and be prepared to be nauseated.

Not just sitting on the front porch

I just got an invitation in the mail. Another 50th wedding anniversary. Incredible! The summer my son was born, four summers ago, I had three 50th wedding anniversaries to attend for two aunts/uncles on my mom's side and one aunt/uncle on my dad's side. This one is for my mother's cousin.

These people are my examples, and what wonderful examples they are in many, many ways.

When I first got married, almost 19 years ago, I couldn't imagine being married for even a year. It just seemed like such a long span of time to a young kid. Once the first year mark was attained, the rest just kind of followed without much anxiety on my part. 50 years still seems like a huge milestone in my eyes.

My maternal grandparents also made 50 years. My family is blessed. I am blessed. Even my areligious parents-in-law are a good example. They are coming up on 50 years too.

I found a calculator to determine the odds of my making it to my 50th wedding anniversary. It was approximately 25%. Seems kind of questionable to me. I don't even think it takes into account life span, life style, temperment, etc. It just looks at your age when you got married, education level, how religious you consider yourself, number of kids, previous marriages, and prior divorces.

According to the blog I found this on:
Now that you've seen the generic probability that you'll still be married to your current spouse at the anniversary of your marriage that you entered, you may have more questions than answers. If the probability is really low, that might be a good place to begin a conversation with your spouse.

Obviously, the person writing this hasn't been married too long since part of the magic of staying married for decades is to know when to just leave well enough alone. Starting a conversation about the low probability of making it to our 50th wedding anniversary is not a good idea. With both of us being engineers, we tend to be practical/pragmatic, so would figure if the train we are on isn't going to make it to the station, get off now and try to find one that will!

Where was this information when I got married? What do we need priests to counsel about marriage for? Maybe the odds makers in Las Vegas should be required to provide this information to prospective couples as a public service. Save everyone the time and trouble and just use a handy-dandy calculator!

Stay for the coffee and doughnuts

We went to several parishes over the past half dozen years trying to find a parish we liked within 45 minutes from our cabin. I won't ramble on about all the problems since it's the same old song and dance, sometimes literally, that we all are familiar with. What bothers me isn't the clothes people wear or the songs that are sung, but the "check-list mentality."

During the spring, the parish we regularly attend in the woods of NW Wisconsin has a baptism during Mass fairly often. Sometimes the children being baptised are toddlers, sometimes infants. Most of the people showing up to have their kids baptised are completely unfamiliar to me (it's a small parish with only one Mass). A good deal of the time, the families don't go up for Communion and leave before Mass is even over. Some families, and their entire entourage, leave as soon as the "baptism part" is completed. Their seats are reserved for them in the front pews, so their leaving is obvious.

Aren't the parents supposed to be parishioners in good standing, meaning practicing? Why go to the trouble of having your child baptised Catholic if you don't adhere to the beliefs yourself? Baptism appears to be a novel idea, like the first time riding a bike or losing a tooth. A chance to take pictures to fill in the requisite pages in the baby book.

When my kids were baptised, the priest mentioned several times how this was THE MOST IMPORTANT day in their lives. To treat baptism as just a fulfillment of an expectation, or as an obligation, or some rite of passage, is to miss so much of the beauty God has provided in the sacrament.

Thank goodness they are getting their children baptised, but it's like getting a post card in the mail from a far-off place as a souvenir. Kind of a let-down, a disappointment. Instead of just getting a suitable-for-framing-baptismal-certificate, they should give their child and themselves the "real deal."

Goin' to the cabin to refinish the deck

Taking the kids to some garage sales this morning. I have to ply them with cookies to keep them from mutinying. My son is actually starting to up the ante by asking for cupcakes. So much for innocence!


Going to the cabin later today. Hope to scrape the deck, prime the deck and then paint the deck. Fun job. I also hope to dig up one really ugly bush and get a garden ready for next year. If we even get the deck scraped, I'll be happy.

Have a good weekend!

The train has left the station

Your Personality is Somewhat Rare (ESTJ)

Your personality type is serious, fair, independent, and competent. Only about 9% of all people have your personality, including 7% of all women and 11% of all men You are Extroverted, Sensing, Thinking, and Judging.

How Rare Is Your Personality?

I can't believe that! I've taken the Myers-Briggs Personality test many times, mostly at work (check out the link provided for a slightly better test), and always was a:

Your Type is
ENTJ
Extraverted Intuitive Thinking Judging

"Creating order out of chaos" is one extraverted thinker's way of describing her volition. Determined, logical, critical, they love a challenge, especially one that will allow tangible improvement in productivity, efficiency or profitability. They are direct, finding the quickest, most direct path between what is and what should be.

They excel at implementing ideas and are often on the lookout for good ideas worthy of their attention. They are quick to organize, orchestrate, find resources, coordinate, and follow through to the end of a project. They love a problem, especially one that will make full use of their competencies, their logic and sense of order, justice and fair play.

Many find competition to be stimulating and fun. "These are the rules of the game now let us play." Fairness is sharing and respecting the same set of rules, so may the best one win. And since they readily acknowledge that there will be a winner and a loser, they would simply much rather be the winner. So they hone their strategies on the fine knife of experience and sharpen their skills to meet the next challenge head on.

They love having greater challenges bestowed on them as a result of having successfully met the last, as this attests to their competence and skills. They appear dispassionate because of their impersonal and objective approach, but close observation will reveal deep passion and enthusiasm as well as sensitivity, especially to cherished ones. However they expect others to roll up their sleeves as they do and meet the task in spite of personal hardships or discomfort.

They have little tolerance for personal whims that threaten a smooth running operation. They are direct and honest with most things that displease them and expect others to do the same. Their humanity shows in their sense of fairness and justice as well as their love of humour.

Like Doritos, you can't just take one of these goofy tests:

You Are Somewhat Machiavellian

You're not going to mow over everyone to get ahead... But you're also powerful enough to make things happen for yourself. You understand how the world works, even when it's an ugly place. You just don't get ugly yourself - unless you have to!

How Machiavellian Are You?

Father Welzbacher would be proud.

You Are Apple Red

You're never one to take life too seriously, and because of it, you're a ton of fun. And although you have a great sense of humor, you are never superficial. Deep and caring, you do like to get to the core of people - to understand them well. However, any probing you do is light hearted and fun, sometimes causing people to misjudge you.

What Color Red Are You?

How I've lived this long and not known what color red I am is baffling.

Short changing individualism

Pretty soon my kids will turn 2 and 4. They have the same birthday. As some people like to say, twins born two years apart. When people find out my kids have the same birthdate, they think it was great planning. I didn't plan anything really. Both kids were complete surprises, despite what my mother-in-law believes.

Because both of my pregnancies were high-risk with lots of complications, I had two planned C-sections. This allowed me to, within a window of a week or so, pick the date of both kids' births. When our families found out that I planned to have my daughter born on the same day her brother was, we got a lot of grief. That caught me off-guard. Even though, at the most, they would be born less than a week apart, people thought it was an offense to their "individualism" to have them share the same birthday. My brother said, "That's just wrong." Some of my husband's family kept pushing for me to have their birthdays be just one day apart.

Before all this unsoliticted advice came my way, I thought that the kids having the same birthday was a great idea. I still do. I thought my kids would forever be connected in this small way and their birthdays would be a celebration of them together and apart. Pop psychology aside, the Church is a good teacher on the role of the individual, but also on our roles as a community. From the Archdiocese of Cincinnati:

In a global culture driven by excessive individualism, our tradition proclaims that the person is not only sacred but also social. How we organize our society—in economics and politics, in law and policy—directly affects human dignity and the capacity of individuals to grow in community. The family is the central social institution that must be supported and strengthened, not undermined. While our society often exalts individualism, the Catholic tradition teaches that human beings grow and achieve fulfillment in community. We believe people have a right and a duty to participate in society, seeking together the common good and well-being of all, especially the poor and vulnerable. Our Church teaches that the role of government and other institutions is to protect human life and human dignity and promote the common good.

Society has gone off the deep-end in pushing the cause of individualism. It is the down fall of Libertarians who believe you can do whatever you want as long as it doesn't interfere with me doing what I want. Individualism finds its extreme in abortion, euthanasia and some medical research where the rights of the individual outweigh the rights of those not afford the same status. We fall into the trap of thinking that our own lives are more important than those of our neighbors, contrary to Jesus' message of loving your neighbor as yourself.

Not that long ago, kids used to share rooms. In some cases, they even shared beds. Extended family lived under the same roof. People had a more immediate sense of how their actions affected others. In today's world, sins like pornography, prostitution, etc., aren't believed to be "that bad" since people don't consider the sin as affecting them. It's the modern belief of "to each his own."

In a few weeks, the kids will have their joint birthday party. Even if they had different birthdays, it is unlikely they would've had separate parties. It's hard enough to get everyone together for one day out of the year, but ask them to do that twice within a week and those people who rallied for different birthdays would tell me I was crazy to try to monopolize their calendar with my kids' parties.

My birthday is Christmas Eve, so don't tell me I don't know what's it's like to have my big day overshadowed by someone else. I don't think my kids' sense of individualism will suffer from having their birthdays on the same day. They might have to learn to share and think of others. After all, aren't those things we want our children to learn?

More quotes

Don't use Al Capone as your moral compass.
Father Mitch Pacwa

Faith makes miracles; miracles do not make Faith.
Proverb

A happy life consists not in the absence, but in the mastery of hardships.
Helen Keller

Wisconsin or anywhere but here

I was living in Seattle when Jesse Ventura was elected governor of Minnesota. Everyone I worked with wanted me to shed some light on how this could happen. What were the people in MN thinking?

No answer. All I could say was, at least he wasn't Humphrey.

The people of Minnesota spent the next four years cringing every time Jesse felt threatened and lashed out at reporters and the media. They tolerated his tenuous affiliation to the Navy SEALS, but criticized him when he shut down the governor's mansion. In the end, they were just glad to see him go without having him cause too much damage to the State. Harvard, where he went to "teach" after leaving office, could have him, the same with Mexico, where he reportedly went to live. So long, farewell, Auf Wiedersehn, GOOD BYE!


Now that I've moved back to MN, I still shake my head at the politicians we have.

According to a recent article, Al Franken, who is running against Senator Norm Coleman (not a favorite of mine), recently raised more money than Coleman. Although most of the donations were of $100 or less, it doesn't hurt to have Hollywood types backing you. Franken, despite his Harvard and Hollywood pedigrees, has an even thinner skin than Ventura. I guess he'll invoke the grade school play ground rules of not hitting a kid that wears glasses. Franken might find that Minnesota Nice melts around election time.

Earlier this year, the University of Minnesota mulled over the idea of giving Al Gore an honorary doctorate. They gave one to Hillary...and Yanni. I guess he'd be in good company. The U of M is probably waiting to see if Gore announces a run for President or if the latest concerts put Gore in "rock star status." The U of M has it's own reasons for bestowing this degree and I have a feeling it changes with which way the wind blows. Hey, it's not my Alma Mater!

I just hope I don't have to be like Alec Baldwin and feel I have to leave the country if these things come to fruition. Maybe I'd just go to Wisconsin, or Canada, or Mexico, until all this blows over. I should check to see if Jesse has a guest room available.

Organized religion is a sham and a crutch for weak-minded people who need strength in numbers. It tells people to go out and stick their noses in other people's business
Jesse Ventura in a Playboy interview

Total Life Care Centers in the news

Over the weekend, BOTH papers in the Twin Cities ran articles on Total Life Care Centers (Highland Life Care specifically) moving two doors away from Planned Parenthood in Highland Park. That's pretty incredible. Just when we hear that abortions in MN rose 7%, hopefully, this move will help decrease that number by making Total Life Care Centers more visible.

The Star Tribune article

The Pioneer Press article

America's Cup goes to the Swiss

With the 4th of July holiday, I forgot to mention that the Swiss team beat the Kiwi team for the trophy. I didn't even hear about the race on the news, probably because the US wasn't in the running.


The Alinghi team repeated as America's Cup champion, defeating Emirates Team New Zealand by just one second in the seventh flight to win the series 5-2. Switzerland is only the third country to repeat in the event's 156-year history.

For more on the story, go here.

Generation Jones

My father was a member of the "Greatest Generation," and my mother was of the "Silent Generation." My parents, however, didn't get married until later in life, resulting in me being a late Generation Jones or early Generation X. This is something I didn't know until I recently looked it up...I had never heard of Generation Jones. My generation had always been called the "Baby Bust."

Greatest Generation  1911 to 1924
Silent Generation       1925 to 1942
Baby Boomers             1946 to 1964
Generation Jones      1954 to 1965
Generation X              1965 to 1977
Generation Y              1978 to 1997

The Baby Boomer generation is absent in my immediate family. I had never really thought much about Baby Boomers or had a bone to pick with an entire generation of people until another local blogger accused the generations that followed the Boomers of being ungrateful. Just what does my generation, and the subsequent generations, have to be thankful for? Dylan? And?

I was not even on the planet when Kennedy was shot. I do, however, remember Man landing on the Moon. My generation came home to latch-keys, TV dinners and sitcoms featuring Mork and Mindy. We also had the "unrequited craving of unfulfilled expectations," and were left to deal with:

1. Abortion and birth control
2. The questionable implementation of Vatican II, including wreckovation of churches
3. Society of victims
4. Drugs prevalent in all aspects of culture
5. Feminism and the emasculation of men
6. Vanity, ageing is to be avoided at all costs
7. Schools that bend to pop culture, pop psychology, sensitivity, and sex ed
8. Sexual revolution
9. Decay of the family structure and the morals of the country
10. Cafeteria or Library Catholicism

I'll try not to blame all the ills of society on the Boomers, so will stop at 10.

Dealing with what came before
The Boomer generation brought us affluence, excess and self-indulgence. Prospering off of the sacrifices and successes of their parents, they forged a new path and didn't stop to look back. In my extended family, it was the first generation to divorce and leave the Church. The nostalgic notion of the Boomer generation being "the generation that would clean up our cities, end racial inequality, and find the cure for the common cold" has been found to be lacking. A CNN article comments:

"Some of us were old enough to participate in the money rush in the '80s," he admits. "But for the most part, Generation Jones came of age watching the slow, hypocritical sellout of the lovefest of the '60s -- it turned into the money grab of the '80s."

"They swore they would never sell out. They gave in, they gave up and joined the establishment."

The idea that my generation, or more specifically, women of my generation, owe something to the Boomer generation is absurd. I worked in a strongly male dominated field, and doors to this field may have been opened by Boomers, but that door opened a Pandora's box. My generation followed in the footsteps of women like Gloria Steinem, who fed us a good line, but didn't deliver on the idea that "you can have it all." We were led down a path and then left there to find our way out of the woods. The second bite of the apple didn't taste any better than the first.

The bottom line
Despite spending this post criticizing the Baby Boomers, I think the whole pointing-fingers thing is a waste of time (I never claimed my generation made sense or wasn't conflicted!). I might not be overtly grateful to the Boomer generation, but I don't have disdain for them either. All of us are called to deal with the hand we are dealt. Life isn't fair (refer to the above list, item #3), but life is good. Stop yer whinin' and get on with it.

People try to put us d-down (talkin bout my generation)
Just because we get around (talkin bout my generation)
Things they do look awful c-c-cold (talkin bout my generation)
I hope I die before I get old (talkin bout my generation)
The Who

Motu Poo Poo Fever

Mass in Latin?

We're there.


(Actually, this is from the 4th after a day at Como Zoo)

First the Motu, now the Dreamliner

I'm kind of a bit sad I didn't get to work on this plane, the 787 Dreamliner. It is set to roll out tomorrow, 8 July (which is 7-8-07!). Tom Brokaw will be the emcee. You can watch the rollout on satellite or webcast. Millions and millions of parts came together to build this thing!

I was wondering, when I looked at the orders placed at the Paris airshow, why so many orders were made for Airbus products. Of course, my husband thought I was light-years behind not to know that Boeing already had well over 600 orders for the 787 and the next available slot to order a plane is several YEARS out. So, with Boeing's production of the 787 roaring at capacity, the airlines who didn't get in on the ground floor and place their bets when the 787 was in development, have to settle for what's left (Airbus).

What's really interesting is that about 50% of the plane (fuselage) will be built out of composites, with the manufacturers being Alenia (Italy), Vought (South Carolina), and Spirit Aerosystems (Boeing's old Wichita facility), instead of the huge aluminum fuselage pieces being built by a variety of Japanese manufacturers (Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Fuji Heavy Industries, etc). This makes the plane much, much lighter. Also worth noting, is bleed air off the engines won't be used to provide cabin pressurization and air conditioning, allowing for greater full efficiency (which is a BIG thing with airlines). Air conditioning and cabin air will all come from outside fresh air. Ah, breathe!

Boeing bet the farm on the 777 and now on the 787. Seems they are poised to take back their #1 position. For more on Boeing and the Dreamliner, go here.

For a YouTube clip on the static load (ultimate load) test on the 777 (not 787) back in 1995, go here. They bend the wings up, up, up, as far as they will go until they fail. And, when they fail you'll know it!! Kind of campy, but VERY cool. Rumor is the 787 wings will be able to touch wing tips above the plane without breaking, but will only be tested to a little over the required 150% to pass the test.

Let Freedom Ring

Have a blessed, safe and wonderful 4th!!

I will be gone for most of the weekend. Taking the kids to the cabin so sweet hubby can have the house to himself so he can strip paint.

Pascal's wager

Back when I did the post on Buridan's ass, I was really going to post something on Blaise Pascal (June 19, 1623–August 19, 1662) since it was the 384th anniversary of Pascal's birth. Not that I keep track of these things, it had just been mentioned on TV and jogged my memory a bit. Pascal has his own "philosophical mind game," along the lines of Buridan's ass.

Blaise Pascal is from the old, old school of scientists. The ones that were both schooled in science and in theology. Pascal was a French mathematician, physicist, and religious philosopher. He was a child prodigy who was educated by his father, made important contributions to the construction of mechanical calculators, the study of fluids, and clarified the concepts of pressure and vacuum. As an engineer in my past life, I dealt with "Pascals" (a unit of pressure equivalent to one newton per square meter) on a daily basis, but never really gave much thought to the man behind the units.

Pascal's wager is actually very simple and it's simplicity brings about criticism and atheistic parallels. I don't believe Pascal, who possessed a mind of incredible talent, was using his wager to prove anything, but as a ponderable for those who didn't believe in God. An impetus to start a conversation, not an end in itself.

A description of the wager:

The Wager is described by Pascal in the Pensées this way:

Let us consider the paraphrased translation of Pascal. "God either exists or He doesn't. Based on the testimony, both general revelation (nature) and special revelation (Scriptures/Bible), it is safe to assume that God does in fact exist. It is abundantly fair to conceive, that there is at least 50% chance that the Christian Creator God does in fact exist. Therefore, since we stand to gain eternity, and thus infinity, the wise and safe choice is to live as though God does exist. If we are right, we gain everything, and lose nothing. If we are wrong, we lose nothing and gain nothing. Therefore, based on simple mathematics, only the fool would choose to live a Godless life. Let us see. Since you must choose, let us see which interests you least. You have nothing to lose. Let us estimate these two chances. If you gain, you gain all; if you lose, you lose nothing. Wager, then, without hesitation that He is."

In his Wager, Pascal attempts to provide an analytical process for a person to evaluate options in regarding belief in God. This is often misinterpreted as simply believing in God or not. As Pascal sets it out, the options are two: live as if God exists, or live as if God does not exist. There is no third possibility.

Therefore, we are faced with the following possibilities:

You live as though God exists.
If God exists, you go to heaven: your gain is infinite.
If God does not exist, you gain nothing & lose nothing.
You live as though God does not exist.
If God exists, you go to hell: your loss is infinite.
If God does not exist, you gain nothing & lose nothing.

With these possibilities, and the principles of statistics, Pascal attempted to demonstrate that the only prudent course of action is to live as if God exists. It is a simple application of game theory (to which Pascal had made important contributions).

The irony is, Pascal was a Jansenist. He is also considered the father of probability theory. How he reconciled probability with his predestined Jansenist beliefs...the odds are against us ever understanding.

The good, bad and not so ugly

I won an award!! It's an alley garden award. I haven't won anything in so long, I can't even remember the last time (my husband did win a book at the home school conference). Back when I was working, I got performance awards, but moms don't usually get recognized for that type of thing, although they do get other awards and rewards.

I get a little flag to place in my garden and the neighborhood creates a list of gardens that won awards for the upcoming garden tour.

Odd thing is, my garden is far from complete. The wall surrounding it is made out of stones we have lugged back from the cabin, gradually, over the summer, and isn't quite finished yet. I don't have all the plants I want in my garden in there, since the wall isn't done. Plus, the yard just beyond the garden is overgrown with weeds for a few feet until it gets past the garage and then my backyard garden takes over. Still, I think the committee wanted to encourage people to clean up the alley and, although I'm not done, they awarded my efforts thus far. It's another Sally Field moment!!

Butchart Gardens, Victoria, British Columbia
(No, I don't have any pictures, at least not at the moment. It's really nothing fancy, especially compared to my neighbor's. Hers is awesome. Maybe I'll take a picture of hers and post it instead!)

I mentioned a few posts ago that our washer broke. I didn't think it was a belt because it worked intermittently. Not good. Sweet hubby looked at it and concluded that it was either the controller or the motor. Neither was music to my ears, but I was hoping it was the controller. Hubby did some tests and found the controller was the culprit. $125 and an evening installing the new part and we are back in business.

Those are the good and not so ugly things.

The bad is our car had some serious problems (both struts and some bushings on the lower arm) and it is going to cost us around $1200. Ouch. Big ouch. With me not working, we are pretty much living paycheck to paycheck. That's not so bad, except when things go wrong, which they seem to more often then you would expect, they really throw you for a loop.

The car will be done today, so I wasn't without it for more than a couple days. I plan to take the kids to the cabin myself in a few days so hubby can try to get some work done on the house, so we really need the car to be in good shape.

Blessing your children

One of the most beautiful and profound things I get to do as a parent, is bless my children.

According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church:

Para. 1669: Sacramentals derive from the baptismal priesthood: every baptized person is called to be a "blessing," and to bless (Cf. Gen 12:2; Lk 6:28; Rom 12:14; 1 Pet 3:9). Hence lay people may preside at certain blessings; the more a blessing concerns ecclesial and sacramental life, the more is its administration reserved to the ordained ministry [bishops, priests, or deacons](Cf. SC 79; CIC, can. 1168; De Ben 16, 18).
Para. 1671: Among sacramentals blessings (of persons, meals, objects, and places) come first. Every blessing praises God and prays for his gifts. In Christ, Christians are blessed by God the Father "with every spiritual blessing" (Eph 1:3). This is why the Church imparts blessings by invoking the name of Jesus, usually while making the holy sign of the cross of Christ.
Para. 1672: Certain blessings have a lasting importance because they consecrate persons to God, or reserve objects and places for liturgical use. Among those blessings which are intended for persons—not to be confused with sacramental ordination—are the blessing of the abbot or abbess of a monastery, the consecration of virgins and widows, the rite of religious profession and the blessing of certain ministries of the Church (readers, acolytes, catechists, etc.). The dedication or blessing of a church or an altar, the blessing of holy oils, vessels, and vestments, bells, etc., can be mentioned as examples of blessings that concern objects.
_______________________________________

SOME PRAYERS

BLESSING A CHILD
Heavenly Father,
Bless (name) and keep him (her) in Your love.
Grant him (her) a good rest tonight,
And send Your angels to protect him (her).
In the Name of the Father,
And the + Son,
And of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.

BLESSING OF SEVERAL CHILDREN
Heavenly Father, lover of all,
we praise you for giving us Jesus as our Saviour:
He blessed the children who came to Him,
and welcomes those who come to Him now.

Look with love upon these children.
and protect them with Your love.
May they grow in wisdom and age and strength
in Your presence and in the sight of all.

We ask this blessing, Father,
through Your beloved Son, Christ our Lord.

Amen.
_______________________________________

A website with a slightly different approach, summed it up well.
Use your thumb or forefinger and trace a cross on your child's forehead. Say "God bless you" or "God be with you" while you are blessing them. You can bless a child before he or she drifts off to sleep, before he or she leaves for school in the morning, or at any other time during the day.

Melissa Musick Nussbaum of Colorado Springs, a mother of five children, says the gesture of a blessing reminds a child that he or she belongs to God. "In a world that calls them by many other names, or that labels them with brands like Adidas, Nike, and Gap, this is a way of reminding them: ‘This is your true name. You are a child of God.' It is a powerful way to remind them over and over that this is who they truly are."

The words of a blessing, says Nussbaum, are an expression upon which a parent can rely on both the good and bad days. "We can say these words honestly and truly to our children, even if we've fought, even if there is some distance there," she says. "It is an amazing thing, blessing a child."

Blessing my children is kind of new to me. My parents set good examples, but they never blessed my brother and me. I'm sure they prayed A LOT for us though. Now that I'm a parent, this idea of "free will" isn't something I would have created. I would have kids be programmable well into their twenties. Experience is a good teacher and kids need to learn from their choices, but I'm getting a bunch of grey hair and my kids are only 3 and 1.

Orion Nebula

To me, things like this are beguiling and incredible. I don't get atheists, so much can't happen by chance. It seems that atheists have to keep telling themselves that God doesn't exist, because there is so much beauty and astonishment in our world showing them the opposite. The more I know about science, the more there has to be a Creator behind all of it.


The following is taken from Space.com
In one of the most detailed astronomical images ever produced, NASA's Hubble Space Telescope captured an unprecedented look at the Orion Nebula. This turbulent star formation region is one of astronomy's most dramatic and photogenic celestial objects. More than 3,000 stars of various sizes appear in this image.Some of them have never been seen in visible light. These stars reside in a dramatic dust-and-gas landscape of plateaus, mountains, and valleys that are reminiscent of the Grand Canyon. The Orion Nebula is a picture book of star formation, from the massive, young stars that are shaping the nebula to the pillars of dense gas that may be the homes of budding stars.

Elementary, my Dear Watson

The "block party" this weekend was nice. Everyone had a good time. Conversation and food were good. However, the topic of schooling my kids came up. I was surrounded, literally, by a bunch of retired school teachers, so I knew it was a tough crowd.

Why is it that many teachers, at least the ones I've come across, are against home schooling? The conversation initially drifts back and forth about how schools are having such a tough time; it's hard to be a teacher; thank goodness they are retired, because look at how bad things are now; if they volunteer it's just with the "real little ones" for a few hours; funding problems abound; etc., etc. But, no one but a teacher can criticize the school system. Despite the litany of problems they profess, they don't see the stunned look on my face when they proudly talk about sending their children and grandchildren to these places.

I haven't even begun to home school my children, at least not "officially." I think a lot of what I do is "schooling," just not according to their definition. It's been some time since I taught my son his colors, numbers, shapes, alphabet and how to count to ten, although I feel if I hadn't taught him these things, they would've thought I was negligent in some way. Catch-22.

One of the ladies at the table asked me if I was going to send my son, who is three, to pre-school. I told her that my son is taking music lessons and noted his other involvements, but told her we planned to home school. No one looked up from the table, no one said a word. I waited for the other shoe to drop, but someone changed the conversation.

A rhinoceros. It has a thick skin. Guess I need to get one too.

It isn't just teachers and not all teachers are like this, but the idea that it would be perfectly acceptable for me to teach other people's kids, but not my own, is senseless. So many people are quick to criticize the State and the decisions it makes that affect our lives, but tell someone you plan to home school, and you aren't thinking straight. Worse, you are potentially doing something that might harm your child, limit his education, stunt his growth, and make him a social outcast. There is plenty of evidence to the contrary and most people have known or heard of a very successful child who is/was home schooled. Nowadays, there are lots of resources for people who choose to home school. My son, even at his young age, seems like an empirical example of the good home schooling can do, but these distrustful attitudes about home schooling persist.

Not to be misunderstood, I don't think all schools are bad, not all teachers are bad, and home schooling isn't for everyone or a panacea. Educating kids is hard and takes a lot of work. I just don't understand why people criticize home schoolers who are actively trying to be part of the solution and are taking responsibility for their own family.

Quotes of the day

I am not the Catholic candidate for President. I am the Democratic Party's candidate for President, who happens also to be a Catholic.
John F. Kennedy

We shouldn't call it Socialized Medicine, we should call it Christianized Medicine.
Michael Moore, paraphrased, during his appearance a few weeks ago on the View where he was promoting his movie, Sicko

In the gay (Catholic) community, it would seem, the maxim is: love the sin and love the sinner, but hate anyone who calls it a sin or him a sinner.
Richard John Neuhaus

Faith is to believe what you do not see; the reward of this faith is to see what you believe.
St. Augustine

Many a man curses the rain that falls upon his head, and knows not that it brings abundance to drive away the hunger.
St. Basil

Maybe he has an Airstream

It's been a tough weekend. First, the washing machine broke, then the strut and potentially other, even more serious and expensive, parts broke on our car. However, the kids always have something to make you laugh. Here's the latest.

A brief conversation between my son and me when we got to our cabin Friday night.
Mom, did Jesus move?
Did Jesus move?
Yeah, did Jesus move?
Where did Jesus live before?
In Heaven.
Well, where would He have moved to?
His cabin in Heaven.


I told him that Jesus probably has a really nice cabin.