The first phase of a journey

It was a long, wet, stressful drive from home to Newark today. At times the rain was so hard that I had trouble hearing the radio. Lots of traffic including some really slow drivers who held everybody up. Then it took 45 minutes to find the hotel because the directions were wrong. But the party this evening with a portion of the OCICBW clan made it all worth it. I'm not doing photos but others will eventually. Check Telling Secrets. I'm too tired to care at the moment but those people sure are fun to be with.

Don't know about blogging for the next two weeks. I'm off to Mondsee, Austria tomorrow for a week of singing with the Berkshire Choral Festival then a few days in Vienna and Budapest.

Friday shuffle

Actually it is my iPhone now but I haven't taken a photo of it yet.

1. Lilies in the Moonlight Polka
2. Strauss: Drei Männerchöre, Vor Den Türen - Chanticleer
3. Bruckner: Ecce Sacerdos Magnus
4. Rachmaninov: Piano Concerto#2 C minor - Lang Lang
5. Whatever Will Be, Will Be - Doris Day
6. A Million to One - Jimmy Charles
7. Clarke: Trumpet Voluntary
8. Handel: Israel in Egypt, And in the Greatness... - Taverner
9. PDQ Bach: Intro to Echo Sonata for Two Unfriendly Instruments
10. Torroba: Concerto de Malaga - Pepe Romero

I'm too tired and too lazy to try to link any of these.

Back to politics briefly

A great source for links to admittedly liberal political commentary is the blog Just Another Black Sheep. A satire which will offend many but is very well done is Jesus Christ quits Christianity after viewing Republican Platform.

Daily Episcopalian has a piece on Christianists which resonates with me, as the expression goes.

As I've written and said before, what is it about loving God, loving others, feeding the hungry, sheltering the homeless, etc. that so many "Christians" don't understand? Are their Bibles missing the Gospels?

I'm not really a far left Democrat but I'm certainly not one of these Republicans and admit I don't understand them or their reasoning.

Remembering the day

There are many remembrances of 9/11 on the blogs. Two remembering a special "saint" are here and here. One who was nearby is Counterlight. My favorite is GAFCON's.

Prayers for all who still have difficulty dealing with the reality of religion turned against its supposed source. It's enough to drive thinking people away from religion, eh?

Party, party

Well, supper near Newark, NJ anyhow. If you will be in the neighborhood, please join me for supper this Friday - 12 September 2008. If you are on Facebook, the invitation and eventually the location are here. Otherwise please email me - pseudopiskie at windstream dot net if you can come.

Why pray?

When watching the news, I often pray sort of automatically for things that are contrary to my beliefs. For example, I'm thinking, "Please steer Ike away from Mimi and the people who have not yet returned home after the last hurricane."

I find it difficult to ask God to interfere with nature but I admit I do occasionally. Sometimes my life would suggest that there is someone or something that influences the rain or snow or other phenomenon in my favor. I realize that is terribly egocentric but I assume I'm not supposed to be doing something if the weather seems to be preventing or delaying it.

When I pray for others, which is the usual pattern, I ask for guidance in dealing with whatever situation they find themselves in. I request patience and peace and insight and others' inspiration, whatever is needed to get them thru or make the most of whatever is happening. I ask God to send love, light, peace, whatever is needed.

I guess life is somewhat easier if God can be blamed for both good and perceived evil. For me, I'm the one who messes with life. God is there to help me work thru challenges by giving me someone to talk with. The God I chat with is neither Santa Claus nor Mother Nature.

So, please, God, help those in the path of weather's death and destruction deal with what may seem like no future or at least an uncertain one. You are always there for me and for them. Please find a way to help us all learn to listen and act in community as you would have us live. Jesus gave us the guidelines. Help us understand and implement them.

By the way, God, that goes for our politicians too.