Happy Birthday to ... me!

(or, I Can Cross That Off My Life List)

Fun theatre, great acoustics, nice seating ...

Played lots of favorites ...

... ended with 25 or 6 to 4!

Kind of weak on the vocals (the lead singer tonight was definitely not an original member, but he was a great sound-alike). The instruments, however, were FABULOUS! Live concerts never sound like the familiar, recorded versions, but the instrumentation at this performance was really great - every bit as good as recordings. (Actually, better in a way because of the live performance energy.)

A Few Pics from the Milwuakee County Zoo.....

Awwwwww......

It's not everyday you get to ride a fiberglass cow; you'd be excited too.

Trying the delicacies of the zoo.....No wait, that's goat food.

Smoking....chapstick?

AAAAHHH!!! It's a bear butt!
(Sorry, I couldn't help myself....)

Craft Sale

Among other things for sale today, Nick and Mike launched their computer game business. For only 25 cents you had a shot at getting high score. We also sold out of pizza in the first half-hour, sold 12 bow and arrow sets (plus orders for 8 more) and sold a variety of other stuff. A fun time was had by all, but we'll figure the profit after our naps.

Tipping Question

What do you suppose the psychological value of this is?

Not to demean the great rendition done by certain members of this blog...

But this guy's is pretty good.

That is all.

All Saints' Day

Saint Elizabeth of Hungary and Saint David

Random Conversation

Upon hearing the announcement to bring food items for blessing to the Thanksgiving Mass, "We should bring Bailey! Wouldn't people be surprised if we held her up like a turkey?"

When discussing a disappointing surprise, "It's like getting a crunch bar for Christmas." (with a doleful shake of the head)

Reason #607456069786940647 Why I'm glad I have a Social Life

From an email today:

Hey Everyone!
SMC-TV is pleased to announce that you can now watch clips of events on Channel 2!
Due to some technical difficulties which Comcast is trying to help us solve, there is no audio, and the visual quality is not great...
but you can see yourself and your friends!

I really hope I can come up with something better to do with my time.

It was decided that this could make our election decision a lot easier

BREAKING NEWS!!!

I'm on the phone with Mary right now and she is telling me that (drum roll)
ELIZABETH AND BEN ARE ENGAGED!
Apparently, all the Lietzke's were at Elizabeth's apartment for Mary's birthday dinner and Ben proposed in front of everyone during a Pictionary game. ;-) A wedding for next fall is being planned!

There's a New Sheriff in Town

In this week's Archbishop's Column, coadjutor Archbishop Nienstedt writes in response to mail generated by the diocesan decision that a gay activist and her father (authors of a book) could not speak publicly at a local parish.

In his article we read "those who promote homosexual activity or a homosexual lifestyle are not permitted to speak at Catholic institutions." "To do so would cause scandal, leading Catholics to be confused about what is right and wrong according to the teachings of the church..." "Those who actively encourage or promote homosexual acts or such activity within a homosexual lifestyle formally cooperate in a grave evil..."

"The USCCB statement 'Always Our Children' is not a normative teaching statement of the bishops ... the majority of bishops at the time of its publication, never had the opportunity to discuss or vote on that document ... What is considered normative would be last year's document adopted by the USCCB general assembly and entitled 'Ministry to Persons with a Homosexual Inclina­tion: Guidelines for Pastoral Care.'"

So what's the big deal? This is obviously a simple, clear presentation of the truth of the Church's teaching, just as it should be. The remarkable thing is where I read it! The Catholic Spirit has a reputation for its liberal slant and for cushy articles; a place where you may go to read movie reviews and discover where you can find the best prayer labyrinth. It's rare to see something there that deserves more than a cursory scan.

To the editors of the Spirit - more of the same, please! You have the potential to publish a great catechetical tool instead of the current 20 pages of biweekly chat. To Bishop Neinstedt - thank you for not worrying about political correctness at the expense of your flock, and for speaking the truth in love. We look forward to hearing more from you!

In Case You Ever Miss Me ...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RxT5NwQUtVM

(and someone could show me how to insert You Tube stuff sometime.)

Happy Birthday, Tony!

Love you!

Nick's Laugh of the Day

A picture's worth a thousand words.....

......Or coffee in this case!


(Mom dared me to take a picture of Jon, our waiter at Texas Roadhouse where we went to dinner for Dad's Birthday. He was a little confused when I said my mom would buy me coffee if he let me take his picture, but he happily complied. Heeheeheeheehee.)

This isn't what it looks like.....

That's referring to the model of a brain I made for biology......Really.

Reordering prescriptions...

I am now convinced that hell is one long automated phone call where you can never get to an actual person and you just keep punching in numbers and being prompted to say nonsensical things.

Learning Curve

I just figured out that my Lio link updates every day. This is the cartoon I wanted you to see.

Chicken Run meets the Evil Hwy. 10/35W Merge

Can't you just picture the spunky leader of the flock saying, "Okay on three, everyone move right!"

Turkey truck rollover closes highway ramp
A semitrailer truck hauling turkeys rolled over in Mounds View early this morning blocking the ramp from eastbound Hwy. 10 to southbound Interstate Hwy. 35W.
Traffic in the area is heavy, especially on eastbound Hwy. 10 where backups to Hwy. 65 are being reported, said Jake Martin of the Regional Transportation Management Center.
Southbound Interstate Hwy. 35W is backed up from Hwy. 10 to Lexington Avenue in Circle Pines, Martin said.
Crews are on the scene cleaning up the accident, which happened about 4:10 a.m. Martin said the ramp will likely be closed for "quite some time."
Elsewhere on the system, traffic is moving swiftly and levels are a tad lighter due to the observance of the Veteran's Day holiday.

Today in the Comics

This is probably not funny to a nicer family (but even grandma laughed).

BTW - Fred Bassett did nothing noteworthy today. (It's not the strip shown here, but that pretty much sums it up.)

Disaster Averted (the Saga Continues)

I'm washing my hands of the surplice today, so this morning I took it down to the laundry room to stick it in the washtub and just wash to whole thing with Woolite before I iron and starch it. I turned the water on and waited for it to get warm. While I was waiting, I noticed that something didn't look quite right. Sure enough, as I watched, the water slowly turned bright orange and then back again. Needless to say, I took the surpice back upstairs and spot-cleaned it with distilled water. $@^$ South Bend water.

So I was cc'ed on an email last night in which I was volunteered to make posters for the Tridentine Mass. They were hoping to be able to print them today and have them up by this weekend, so I stayed up until a wholly ungodly hour, and this is what I ended up with:

How Does She Do It?

Yet another fabulous ID photo!

(and proof that you're a card-carrying homeschooler.)

"the liturgy, even in the music, should educate all people -- including youth and children."

It'll seem like forever before something concrete filters down to the parish level, but at least more and more people are talking about the problem. (It's a start.)

Monsignor Miserachs contended that "in none of the areas touched on by Vatican II -- and practically all are included -- have there been greater deviations than in sacred music."

"How far we are from the true spirit of sacred music, that is, of true liturgical music," he lamented. "How can we stand it that such a wave of inconsistent, arrogant and ridiculous profanities have so easily gained a stamp of approval in our celebrations?

"It is a great error, Monsignor Miserachs said, to think that people "should find in the temple the same nonsense given to them outside," since "the liturgy, even in the music, should educate all people -- including youth and children."

For the rest of the article, follow this link.

Solidarity!

I rarely give a second thought to what happens in hollywood, but this cannot be ignored! Pray for an end to this madness!

(By the way, I got 18 out of 20 on the quiz :-)

The Big Kahuna

(or Thanks From Emily and Neal)
Thanks so much for your baby gift for Andrew! Neal and I really enjoyed going out to dinner. We went to "The Big Kahuna Cantina" in downtown Baltimore. They had the best chicken quesidillas I've ever had. Also, thank you for the cute little frog onsies, they will fit him much sooner than I'd like (he is huge ...)
God Bless!
Neal, Emily, William and Andrew

Hotdish Appreciation Project, day 2

Rather than just delving into recipes and the finer points of hotdish appreciation, I thought it may be best to back up and start with the basics. Turning to m-w.com for a simple definition, I read the following:

The word you've entered isn't in the dictionary. Click on a spelling suggestion below or try again using the search bar above. Suggestions for hotdish: 1. hottish 2. hotties
3. hot dog 4. hoydenish
5. howdied 6. hoodies
7. hotted 8. hooted
9. haughtier 10. high tide
11. haughtiest 12. Heydrich
13. heat shield 14. howdies
15. hotdog 16. outdid
17. hotbed 18. hutted
19. Houdini 20. Hodeida

Hotties and high tide? We have a long way to go, ladies.

Some Gems from the Weekend

"Oh, take me now!" ~V., with eyes raised to the heavens, upon walking into St. John Cantius

"Love the abuser, hate the abused. Er, abuse."

(to the tune of The Hokey-Pokey)"You put the English in, you take the Latin out/You put the English in, and you turn the priest about..."

"Welcome to the first meeting of the Notre Dame Finer Things Club."

"Hey, you guys! Wheelchairs are for the handicapped, and if you're going to play with them, I will have to make you thus!" ~B., pretending to be an R.A.

(phone conversation )"Yeah, you should totally come over here. We're hanging out, fighting with lotion, and B. just made himself an R.A. and broke up some troublemakers. Plus, we're sitting in a circle by the fireplace and we look really philosophical....Okay, see you in a minute."

"W., hand over the papers [taken from an SMC retreat binder]. You're harming your soul! And I'm about to harm your body!"

Sounds like Family Formation meets "Hail to the Chief"

VATICAN: The Board Game

The Times They Are A-Changin'

Sr. Amy passed on the following link in PoliSci/Writing last week. It took me a few days to get around to reading it, but it is well worth it (and I think it's funny that she has that kind of sense of humor).

Without further ado, Wikipedia Brown and the Case of the Captured Koala.

Midterm Animation

Not much, but it did take me several hours, and the prof really likes it...

Heartbreak, thy name is Navy

A sampling of Facebook statuses post-Navy game:

• "Maria is utterly heartbroken"
• "John is utterly crushed...why do the Irish stink so bad?"
• "Amy is taking football too seriously, as usual."
• "Jenni is WHAT WAS CHARLIE THINKING!?!?!?"
• "Emily is WTF, Charlie?"
• "Brian is resigned to the fact that ND really does stink like donkey chips. Congrats to the Naval Academy - they waited long enough."
• "Michael is mourning the death of football."

Hot Dish Appreciation Project

Tamale Casserole
1 lb. ground beef (or chicken)
1 small onion, chopped
1/2 green pepper, chopped
1 (1.25 oz.) pkg. taco seasoning mix
1 can black beans, drained
1 (10 oz.) pkg. frozen corn
1 c. thick and chunky salsa
1 c. shredded cheddar
1 pkg. refrigerated corn bread twists
2.25 oz. can of chopped black olives, opt.

Brown ground beef, onion and pepper. Drain. Add taco seasoning, beans, corn, salsa and olives; mix. Pour into greased casserole dish. Top with cheese. Arrange corn bread twists in lattice fashion on top. Bake at 400 degrees for 15-20 mins. Makes 6-8 servings.
Note: a corn bread mix can be poured on top instead of twists.

Note to Gianna - When I told grandma about your project, she suggested you serve it with fluff. :-)

"We serve our country best by remembering that we're citizens of heaven first."

This is a very interesting speech by Archbishop Chaput drawing parallels between first century Christians and those in our own culture. "If pagan Rome could be won for Jesus Christ, surely we can do the same in our own world."

We're better Americans by being more truly Catholic -- and the reason why, is that unless we live our Catholic faith authentically, with our whole heart and our whole strength, we have nothing worthwhile to bring to the public debates that will determine the course of our nation. Pluralism in a democracy doesn't mean shutting up about inconvenient issues. It means speaking up -- respectfully, in a spirit of justice and charity, but also vigorously and without apologies. Jesus said that we will know the truth, and the truth will make us free. He didn't say anything about our being popular with worldly authority once we have that freedom. In the end, if we want our lives to be fruitful, we need to know ourselves as God intends us to be known -- as his witnesses on earth, not just in our private behavior, but in our public actions, including our social, economic and political choices. If pagan Rome could be won for Jesus Christ, surely we can do the same in our own world. What it takes is the zeal and courage to live what we claim to believe. All of us here tonight already have that desire in our hearts. So let's pray for each other, and encourage each other, and get down to the Lord's work.

Today in the Comics

Fred Bassett gets off the cushy chair.

Thanks for the Memories ...

doning an alb and delivering a homily at weekday Mass when a visiting priest didn't show

filtering all of father's email and phone messages

promoting tablecloth vestments

Rainbow Coalition

missing cornstalks

tie-dye as a liturgical color

flowers that couldn't move

altars that always moved

(and an altar that mysteriously moved ;-)

You truly solidified our positions as liturigical jihad, and for that we thank you. Have a blessed retirement. Our prayers weren't answered in the way we thought they would be ... but it's probably better this way.

Inaugural Post

It only seems fitting to start with something edifying, so from today's Office of Readings from a sermon given by Saint Charles Borromeo:

Would you like me to teach you how to grow from virtue to virtue and how, if you are already recollected at prayer, you can be even more attentive next time, and so give God more pleasing worship? Listen, and I will tell you. If a tiny spark of God's love already burns within you, do not expose it to the wind, for it may get blown out. Keep the stove tightly shut so that it will not lose its heat and grow cold. In other words, avoid distractions as well as you can. Stay quiet with God. Do not spend your time in useless chatter.

If teaching and preaching is your job, then study diligently and apply yourself to whatever is necessary for doing the job well. Be sure that you first preach by the way you live. If you do not, people will notice that you say one thing, but live otherwise, and your words will bring only cynical laughter and a derisive shake of the head.