Ordination

Goodbye, Studs

Studs Terkel died today at age 96. RIP. More here.

Great American

Joe (Sam) the Plumber is a model American. He is using his 15 minutes of fame to take maximum advantage of the system and John McCain. He is milking it for far more than it should be worth. I actually admire him even if I don't agree with much of what he is doing. The system makes it possible so why not use it?

I've been to the mountaintop

Crispus Attucks fell so that
Rosa Parks could sit,

Rosa Parks sat so that
Dr. Martin Luther King could march,
Dr. Martin Luther King marched so that
Barack Obama could run, and
Barack Obama is running so that our
children and grandchildren can fly."

Nicked from Telling Secrets

Religion run amuck (updated)

Prayers are requested for our friend Lee. He has a few problems like cancer which requires very expensive chemo forever, no income until he gets disability which will hopefully be soon, no energy to do regular work, separation from his wife and kids and, worst of all, parents from hell. Oh, he does have some wonderful friends who help financially and give him a place to stay. And he is active in the Episcopal church.

Then there are his parents. They are constant reminders of how evil religion can be, especially certain types of "Christianity". They are fundies who know everything there is to know about God. Everyone else is evil. They have hated his wife since they first met many years ago. They tell the family, including the kids, they are going to hell because they belong to the Episcopal church cult. They will help Lee financially until they suddenly have a change of heart and go back to their religious rants. They are simply unstable. Not to mention evil.

They just threatened to sue Lee and his wife for money they "borrowed" and for custody of the children. Ordinarily the documentation they possess - emails, blogs, etc. - would prove his folks are not fit parents for children of any age and should be served with a restraining order. No self respecting attorney would touch the case. But he is a retired lawyer. Lawyers stick together and know judges who will side with them even in outrageous cases. Fortunately Lee managed to talk his mother out of that for the time being at least.

Please add Lee, his wife and kids to your prayer lists.

Update: John writes better than I do - here.

Indian summer 2008

The dam is visible behind the little island.

We have drought conditions. The water probably wouldn't be as high as the grass line in this photo but it would be where the reddish part begins. The pond is down by at least two vertical feet. It is fed by rain runoff only in our neighborhood - mostly the fields across the road. The fields are so dry that any rain we have - even an inch or so - soaks in.

The lake is pretty normal so far as it drains a large area to the north of us. Rain tends to go either north or south of us for some reason. It is easy to see on the weather maps. This year has been especially dry in our immediate vicinity. I am starting to have trouble with my well and hope it doesn't get worse.

More Friday cat blogging

PuddyTat waits for a protein supplement.

While Tim guards one of the two cat doors into the barn's cat house.

Friday cat blogging

Good afternoon. PuddyTat, Tim and Dudie. And my shadow on Halloween.

Friday shuffle

1. Cana de Azucar - Paco de Lucia
2. Lonesome River - James King
3. Come Softly to Me - Fleetwoods
4. Kicks - Paul Revere and the Raiders
5. Bach: Flute Sonata in E Major - Stephen Preston, Pinnock
6. You're the First Time I've Thought About Leaving - Reba McEntire
7. Who's Sorry Now - Connie Francis
8. Holst: A Somerset Rhapsody - Davis, Toronto
9. Tennessee Rag/ Beaumont Rag Medley - Scruggs
10. Sametz: Gaudete - Princeton Singers

I had to pause and let Come Softly play to the end. sigh. I'm not used to the iPhone playing music without headphones. The Touch doesn't. The Reba song made me melancholy again. Then it was followed by Who's Sorry Now. Well, no harm done actually. So far.

Prop 8

Nobody from California reads my blog - that I'm aware of. Nevertheless, I'm willing to campaign against Prop 8 and all legislation that takes rights and privileges away from any legitimate US citizens. I pray Pennsylvania's very unChristian bigots will someday see the light, read what Jesus had to say about homosexuality, love and judgment and get rid of discriminatory legislation.

Your vote counts?

There is a very scary set of videos on Just Another Black Sheep.
Don't watch them just before bedtime.

Hockey Mama for Obama

Thanks to Chris in Pittsburgh.

World's Cutest Grandniece

Menu

A cannibal was walking through the jungle and came upon a restaurant
operated by a fellow cannibal.

Feeling somewhat hungry, he sat down and looked over the menu...

Tourist: ____________________________$5.00

Broiled Missionary: _________________$10.00

Fried Explorer: _____________________$15.00

Baked Democrat or Grilled Republican: _____________ $100.00

The cannibal called the cook over and asked, "Why such a price difference for the politicians?"

The cook replied, "Have you ever tried to clean one? They're so full of crap, it takes all morning."

Fame comes to an OCICBW regular

Georgianne Nienaber at the Huffington Post has written a feature article on one of my favorite people, Grandmère Mimi. She was one of the OCICBW folks who traveled to New York for our little get together a year ago. I was privileged to sit with her at supper.

Mimi's blog is The Wounded Bird. She is a much more serious blogger than I am. Sometimes. She is a perfect example of how growing old gracefully is a bunch of hogwash. She lives life to the fullest.