Ireland to decide entire fate of EU?

Yup, it's true.  European commissioners got sucker-punched with their so-called "constitution" and have learned the hard way to push it through legislation rather than votes.

Unfortunately, one nation has a legal obligation to vote on the Lisbon Treaty.... Ireland.

When will they ever learn?  I just can't stop laughing...

My act of stupidity for the year...

Lawnmowers are dangerous... I have this speech to a 'T' which I deliver to my children.  If only I took my own advice!

Last evening I was mowing as dusk was settling in.  Since we had rain recently, the grass was super thick.  My lawnmower was churning on something so I turned it off and reached under to grab a clump of grass.

Oy vey!  Cuss cuss cuss cuss....  My fingers are on fire!

Fortunately, no missing phalanges, no cuts, no broken bones - but my lord it hurts.  Right index and middle finger were struck by the (still turning, although comparatively slowly) blade.

Dumb dumb dumb....

Noonan Nails It

I haven't enjoyed Peggy Noonan's work in a couple of years. Every once in a while, she publishes a zinger.

"Sex and the Sissy" definitely qualifies!

It is prissy. Mrs. Clinton's supporters are now complaining about the Hillary nutcrackers sold at every airport shop. Boo hoo. If Golda Meir, a woman of not only proclaimed but actual toughness, heard about Golda nutcrackers, she would have bought them by the case and given them away as party favors.

Noonan invoked one of my heroes.

I vividly recall watching a Golda Meir biopic on tv as a child. Living on a kibbutz has been attractive to me ever since :)

As for Hillary, God bless 'er. She's a mess!

Egg Chicken Chicken Egg

Ran across this while doing a little pre-doctor-visit research.

Lots of folks, my Mom and Nana included, would say, "You didn't know that?"

What we know intellectually and how we become accustomed to living can be so far apart at time as to cause despair.

I've had trouble sleeping at night since I was little.

After a traumatic event as a teenager, I could not sleep.

Add to this my beloved career in passenger service, when I was scheduled for late-night shifts.

Even after I left that career, I had become so accustomed to not being able to sleep til 2 or 3 am that it seemed "normal."

I met a lot of "normal" people along the way, too.

Didn't help (or hurt) that I married a man who's company name was "Nocturnal Networks." LOL

Long story short, I am trying very hard to live with enough sleep.

It feels weird, even selfish, because I had become accustomed to doing housework after the kids fell asleep.

In light of this "well, no kidding!" article, I have hope this might be a piece of the restorative puzzle.

G'nite!

The Wood Song

"The Wood Song"

The thin horizon of a plan is almost clear
my friends and I have had a hard time
bruising our brains
hard up against change
all the old dogs and the magician

now I see we're in the boat in two by twos
only the heart that we have
for a tool we could use
and the very close quarters
are hard to get used to
love weighs the hull down with its weight

but the wood is tired
and the wood is old
and we'll make it fine
if the weather holds

but if the weather holds
we'll have missed the point
that's were i need to go

no way construction of this tricky plan
was built by other than a greater hand
with a love that passes
all our understanding
watching closely over the journey
yeah

but what it takes to cross the great divide
seems more than all the courage i can muster up inside
but we get to have some answers
when we reach the other side
the prize is always worth the rocky ride

but the wood is tired
and the wood is old
and we'll make it fine
if the weather holds

but if the weather holds
then we'll have missed the point
that's where i need to go

sometimes i ask to sneak a closer look
skip to the final chapter of the book
and maybe steer us clear
from some of the pain that it took
to get us where we are this far

but the question drowns in its futility
and even i have got to laugh at me
cause no one gets to miss
the storm of what will be
just holding on for the ride

the wood is tired
the wood is old
and we'll make it fine
if the weather holds

but if the weather holds
then we'll have missed the point
that's where i need to go

Overwhelmed with love

Very rarely, my beloved must travel. It is times like that when I realize how very blessed we are.

Despite everything, we are together, all the time, which is what cursorily my illness requires, but more importantly, what my heart desires.

Blessed, I say again. Thank God for great graces.

We've asked big, with nothing but hope to keep us going many, many times.

No one should fear asking for the graces they need in life.

If nothing else, we are proof that, "With God, all things are possible!"

Keep us in your prayers, please :)

Rare Delicacies

What happens when you let your 5 year old watch "Stump The Chef"




Stump the Chef is a show where a chef is giving only 3, usually incompatible, ingredients.
The chef must then prepare a gourmet-looking meal.

Chef Joey's creation this fine afternoon:

Lemon butter, kiwi, broccoli tortillas



PLEASE NOTE: THIS IS A TOP-SECRET RECIPE FROM PRODIGY GOURMET, JOEY
Use at your own risk of, er, copyright infringement :)

Squeeze 1/2 lemon into melted butter
Spread a thin layer of lemon butter onto a corn tortilla
Peel, thinly slice then cut kiwi into small squares
Place kiwi atop lemon buttered corn tortilla
Add one little tree of broccoli for garnish
Ask Mama to place assembled delicacy onto gas burner, set at medium heat.

Serve on a geometrically patterned plate to all who love trying new food.

Bon Appetît!

Contemplating Derailment

So, I became a weary traveller on the information superhighway tonight. This is the perfect addictive medium for people like myself. I know it's a struggle because I like to keep connecting dots in the hopes of this elusive thing called clarity. The moniker "Communication Junkie" is not a joke. Heh.

In any case, I made my way to the story of a band of madrigal singers turned dark goth or whatever the heck it's called these days. I wondered why I hadn't heard of them before. The answer became obvious when I read of their journey. Although I was many things in my younger days, I am so blessed to say I never lingered in the truly soulless realms. Sure, I visited one or two, but never set down roots in seriously polluted soil. This particular band's story is one of touching a toe to quicksand, and falling in, with only the head above the quagmire.

Providentially, an excerpt from a book called Lukewarmness-The Devil in Disguise by Francis Carvajal appeared in our parish bulletin this very day. Here's the quote:

[from page 19, 20] “Lukewarmness leads to discouragement and sadness. The Soul is drained of its inner resources. The former desire for the things of God is diminished. Whenever possible, the Soul avoids dealing with God. IT TRIES TO SPEND AS LITTLE TIME AS POSSIBLE WITH GOD..."

‘We do the very same thing. When we see that people are NOT listening to us, and do NOT give us their attention no matter how much we ask them for it, then we decide to shut our mouths. If we were to continue speaking, we would only make them more inattentive. Yet when we happen to find someone who is willing to listen, we are immediately drawn to him so that we might share all that we have..."

"The life of the Soul demands that we keep ourselves open to new Graces. If we struggle to correspond, the Holy Spirit will go to great lengths to assist us. But when our struggle lags, then we become incapable of receiving the Graces which the Lord wants to send us. This is a classical principle of the interior life: 'He who does not advance, slides back.'"

Now, this is interesting to me on many levels.

Primarily, I can say, if no other truth was revealed to me during my illness, it was this:

God is present and at work in all places, at all times. Grace is in constant flow, even through the most startling conduits.

In the end, if one ignores or rejects the Holy Trinity's action in the world, one risks becoming derailed. Being derailed is not an apocalypse in the popular sense, which is a dooms-day scenario where most people fear being held accountable for their flawed humanity.

Derailment does, however, have the potential of being an Ἀποκάλυψις in the classical sense: lifting of the veil.

Long story short, the more I read about the "world," the more I plunge into this sadness that so many talented folks find themselves swathed in veils of dis-grace, literally, lack of grace.

In the words of many a mother, "Saints Preserve Us!" May our study of ordinary humans achieving a measurable level of holiness assist our perseverance in our struggle against getting too far off track. Perhaps even more importantly, may we always be mindful of the reality of the Trinity at work in all places, with grace flowing at all times.

My "Babies" aren't babies anymore

Sigh....

The twins turned 3 years old yesterday.

Where have the years gone?

Apparently to feeding, fetching, changing, and catching.

They are now both very independent, very talkative, and very sweet (almost always!)

Cyrus photos frustrate parents

Well..... DUH

I am sick, sick, sick of these little girls being trotted out as role models, only to take a walk on the wild side.

Stunning to parents who seem to still (?!?&#$@) trust Disney. Confusing for kids.

Now, we are very very careful about what our kids watch.

Our oldest gets it, to the point she did not pitch a fit when told she could not go to what is widely considered to be a Christian concert. If all of our children live with that level of trust in our attempts at wisdom, I will be a most happy Mama.

Maybe AP Language and Comp did me in. Everything has a point. Watch it!

Raise your hand if you've had enough of this crap.

(raising hand! Pick me! Pick me!)

Interest Rates lowered again...

In an effort to stimulate investment, the Fed has again lowered rates.   I'm still wondering why though...

Liquidity has been holding steady thus-far, and inflation seems to be growing.  Growth is measly, but supposedly holding positive - at least according to our pointy-haired overlords.

Here's what I see happening though... this newfound investment credit isn't going to build new capitol.  It's not going towards real-estate, manufacturing, and I'd venture to guess that little of it is going overseas.

No, it's going into commodity markets.  Oil, grain, pork bellies, milk.  Yeah, exactly.  In other words - our supposed bailout is only going to exacerbate inflation!  Investors don't care, and honestly what choice do they have?  If I had 50 million sitting in the bank, you'd bet I'd be playing commodities and currencies.

It's time for [insert person in charge] to do the handout I'm afraid.  Yeah, it'll look weasel-y and "corporate friendly" - but honestly it does work.  Time to give away the capitol improvement tax credit.  Time to spur labs making cars, computers, and everything in between.  Do it on the cheap with big credits and small funding - and you'll likely drive the US into another boom 5-10 years from now.

Until then... every-time you buy a 2 dollar loaf a bread and a 6 dollar gallon of Milk, you can thank Mr. Investor and his friend Uncle Fed.   Break out the Caviar!