Saturday, December 30, 2017

Weekend Joke: Boudreaux and Thibodaux

One day Boudreaux and Thibodaux were watching TV. A good commercial about a movie came on and it said, "Coming To A Theatre Near You."

Boudreaux looked at Thibodaux and said, "Thib, how they know where we live?

Friday, December 29, 2017

Bright: So an orc, an elf, and a cop walk into a bar ...


In an alternate present-day where magical creatures live among us, two L.A. cops become embroiled in a prophesied turf battle.
So an orc, an elf, and a cop walk into a bar ... hey, this thing practically writes itself. And it didn't inflict half the pain on me that a recent viewing of National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation did. I guess I'm more suited to watching mediocre action better than broad comedy.

We saw this Netflix movie had 29% of critics liking it while getting an 88% audience score. So we got curious. Which set would we agree with?

After all, it's got Will Smith and Joel Edgerton. What could go wrong? Oh, if I had a nickel for every time I asked that question.

It had all the elements it needed to be good but what it lacked was focus on whether to be a cop story with elements of fantasy or a fantasy story with elements of real world cops. That lack of focus made it a mess, especially in the middle. So we are on the critics' side for this one.

It was interesting to me, personally, to see that Will Smith has finally crossed the line to where he looked like the older experienced cop because he looked definitely middle aged in a lot of shots. Not a bad look, just a new one to me.

We've got our fingers crossed for the TV version after the guys have retired ... they're running a detective agency, The cute elf is the secretary, and the Magic Case Feds feed them cases to solve. I'd watch that.

Thursday, December 28, 2017

Best of 2017 - Movies

In 10 words or less, my top picks from the movies we watched last year. As always, the movies may be old, but my viewing was brand new in 2017.


Night Train to Munich (1940)

Witty dialogue, spy suspense, and Rex Harrison as a hero. (My review here.)

The Cat People (1942)

Inherited evil, film artistry, simmering sexual tension — and cats! (My review here.)

Queen of Katwe (2016)

Family film with unusual subtlety, nuance, definite sense of place. (My review here.)

Arrival (2016)

Quietly absorbing and spectacular. (Discussed at A Good Story is Hard to Find.)

Train to Busan (2016, Korea)

Fathers, families, and more thoughtful than the average zombie movie. (My review here.)

The Founder (2016)

Leaves you pondering innovation and what "to invent" something means. (My review here.)

On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969)

George Lazenby + Diana Rigg + director (style, wonderful shots, timing) = wonderful. 

Lion (2016)

Well told tale of Indian street urchin — blew me away. (My review here.)

Colossal (2016)

Gloria and the monster. Impossible to describe without spoiling. (My review here.)

The Women's Balcony (2016, Israel)

Witty, good humored, intelligent look at men, women, and faith. (My review here.)

Wednesday, December 27, 2017

Best of 2017 - Books

In 10 words or less, my top picks from the books I read last year. You may find old books here but if they're on this list, then they were new to me!



The Green Jacket
by Jennette Lee
An unusual and winning female detective in 1917 ... and knitting! (My review here.)


How the Catholic Church Built Western Civilization
by Thomas E. Woods, Jr.
A terrific book, highly readable. I definitely recommend it.


Spook Street
by Mick Herron
Spy story with intricate plots, gritty settings, humor, and treachery. (My review here.)


Made in India: Recipes from an Indian Family Kitchen
by Meera Sodha
Global Indian food which works in an American kitchen — delicious!


Ender's Game
by Orson Scott Card
Engaging, easy read with beautiful ending — melancholy but hopeful.  


Terry Pratchett Books Read in Order
New favorites: The Watch series,  Interesting Times, and The Truth.


Leviathan Wakes
by James S. A. Corey
Suspenseful space opera/noir mystery with riveting cliffhangers throughout.
(My full review here. Discussed on A Good Story is Hard to Find podcast.)

Ivanhoe
 by Sir Walter Scott
Inventive plot twists, laugh-out-loud humor, and Rebecca. Recommended! (My review here.)


Black Bottle Man
by Craig Russell
A good deal-with-the-devil tale and historical fiction. (My full review is here.)

Friday, December 22, 2017

The Little Way of Terry Pratchett

An oldie (2015) but a goodie from Leah Libresco Sargeant. Via Will Duquette.
“There’s no grays, only white that’s got grubby. I’m surprised you don’t know that. And sin, young man, is when you treat people as things. Including yourself. That’s what sin is.”

“It’s a lot more complicated than that—”

“No. It ain’t. When people say things are a lot more complicated than that, they means they are getting worried that they won’t like the truth. People as things, that’s where it starts.”

“Oh, I’m sure there are worse crimes—”

“But they starts with thinking about people as things …”
Terry Pratchett, Carpe Jugulum
Reading that as an atheist, it was the first time I’d seen a definition of sin that didn’t sound like, as Francis Spufford describes our modern use of the word in Unapologetic, a kind of “enjoyable naughtiness” that seemed mostly to do with sex or very expensive chocolates.

But the kind of sin that Granny talks about isn’t an indulgence in something harmless, luxurious and secret. And it’s not the world-shaking evil of a monster or a murderer. It’s a seemingly small rejection of creation and the particular place our fellow people have in it. It’s not always choosing hatred; it can be putting aside love for indifference.
Leah Libresco Sargeant, The Little Way of Terry Pratchett
I have long loved Granny Weatherwax for all the reasons Leah Libresco Sargeant mentions in her piece, which you should go read. In fact, I included that quote in Happy Catholic for it's solid truth.

It is interesting seeing how influential Terry Pratchett's insistence on human worth can be. Certainly it is one of the reasons I loved his stories. He doggedly and continually defends the value of each human. And the clear-sightedness of what sin really is. Whether he called it sin or not.

Thursday, December 21, 2017

Listen Up: Christmas Past podcast

Christmas Past tells the stories behind your favorite holiday traditions. Each episode is 10-15 minutes long, and features interviews with experts, archival audio, and Christmas memories from listeners.
I discovered Christmas Past a couple of weeks ago and have been thoroughly enjoying them. Brian Earl has a soothing, friendly voice and gives a thorough history of topics ranging from Santa (of course) to Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer to Eggnog to Wrapping Paper.

There are still a few days left until Christmas so I wanted to give you a chance to hear them. (iTunes link, website link)

Wednesday, December 20, 2017

Thank you Joanna R.!


This book was indeed a long-shot when I put it on my Amazon wish list. But I really am a sucker for illustrated manuscripts and I liked the author's conceit of treating each section almost as an interview with the manuscript itself. It is costly and somewhat obscure and so mostly there as a reminder for when I could afford a splurge.

So you can imagine my surprise when I opened an Amazon box this morning, wondering what gifts I'd forgotten would need wrapping. I thought I'd gotten everything in.

This lovely book was there with an even lovelier note from Joanna. Thank you so much — this is going to provide hours of enjoyment!

Friday, December 15, 2017

“Lead us not into temptation”: Digging deeper into the Our Father (Lord's Prayer)

On a morning walk, my husband said that Pope Francis had mentioned maybe a retranslation of the Our Father was needed because the phrase "lead us not into temptation" sounded as if God would actively tempt us.

Anyone who's pondered the Our Father is familiar with this little puzzle.

My first reaction was "no way, Jose!" Then I recalled that coincidentally (or perhaps providentially!) I'd just that very morning read about that specific line in Seeking Jesus in Everyday Life. (Yes, I read my own devotional. It was, after all, compiled for me first!)

I realized that if I needed three quotes to show the complexity of the Greek verb in the original, then perhaps a retranslation might not be a bad thing.

See what you think.
Lead Us Not Into Temptation ...

It is difficult to translate the Greek verb used by a single English word: the Greek means both “do not allow us to enter into temptation” and “do not let us yield to temptation.”*
Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2846

We are helped a further step along when we recall the words of the Gospel: “Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil” (Matthew 4:1). Temptation comes from the devil, but part of Jesus’ messianic task is to withstand the great temptations that have led man away from God and continue to do so.
Joseph Ratzinger, Jesus of Nazareth:
From the Baptism in the Jordan to the Transfiguration

“Lead us not into temptation” often means among other things, “Deny me those gratifying invitations, those highly interesting contacts, that participation in the brilliant movements of our age, which I so often, at such risk, desire.”
C. S. Lewis, Reflections on the Psalms

++++

I never could understand this. I couldn’t reconcile God as “all good” with someone who would “lead me into temptation.”

Pope Benedict XVI (Ratzinger) led me to read the Book of Job where temptation is allowed on a massive scale. Those examples have helped mightily with my own trust in God when temptations arise, especially the temptations that I am not equipped to handle.

+++

Prayer: My hope is in you, dear Father.

* Cf. Mt 26:41.

There's more where that came from. Seeking Jesus in Everyday Life is about growing closer to Jesus and sometimes (as it turns out) helping figure out how I feel about the latest news from the Vatican! It makes a great Christmas gift!

Thursday, December 14, 2017

Which Literary Villain Uttered Each of the Following Quotes?

"My revenge has just begun! I spread it over centuries and time is on my side."

How devious and devilish are you? Test your knowlegde of all things evil by identifying which villains spoke the literary quotes below. Be sure to read carefully—these literary villains are tricky!
I'm clearly not devilish enough. I only got 1 right and that was by a blind guess!

Take the quiz at Writer's Digest.

Worth a Thousand Words: A Touch of Winter

A Touch of Winter, by our favorite - Remo Savisaar

Well Said: When we attempt to avoid suffering, we drift into emptiness

We can try to limit suffering, to fight against it, but we cannot eliminate it. It is when we attempt to avoid suffering by withdrawing from anything that might involve hurt, when we try to spare ourselves the effort and pain of pursuing truth, love, and goodness, that we drift into a life of emptiness, in which there may be almost no pain, but the dark sensation of meaninglessness and abandonment is all the greater. It is not by sidestepping or fleeing from suffering that we are healed, but rather by our capacity for accepting it, maturing through it and finding meaning through union with Christ, who suffered with infinite love.
Pope Benedict XVI, Spe Salvi (In Hope We Were Saved)
This is a truth I know but that I forget. And then I have to be reminded when I run into that wall because I'm trying to avoid it. No one can live their lives and avoid suffering. The Catholic teachings and Christ's reality and example are what give my life (in good times and bad) full meaning.

Wednesday, December 13, 2017

Worth a Thousand Words: The Yard and Wash House

Carl Larsson, The Yard and Wash House, 1885
via Arts Everyday Living

Well Said: Cities crumble and people go on

"... Sentimental speeches like this ... at Balkh, of all places?"

Her words were forceful and they made me stop. I looked at the undulating graveyard of the great city and saw, in my imagination, the rise and fall of Balkh - Balkh of the Flying Pennants it had been called, as if the city were proud to advertise its accomplishments, temporary though they proved to be - and I sensed some of the meaning behind my mission. I said, "I don't accept your view of Balkh. Cities crumble and civilizations vanish, but people go on. And damn it all, they eat and make love and go to war and die according to certain hopeful rules. I accept those rules."
James A. Michener, Caravans

Tuesday, December 12, 2017

Well Said: What you do not need and what you do need

You do not need to know precisely what is happening, or exactly where it is all going. What you need is to recognize the possibilities and challenges offered by the present moment, and to embrace them with courage, faith and hope.
Thomas Merton
Yes, perfectly put and a good reminder. Via Scott Danielson.

Worth a Thousand Words: In Sunrise Colors

In Sunrise Colors by Remo Savisaar

Julie and Scott go for a day trip in the desert. With no water. And no horses.



With this sort of talent for planning you'd think seven years of podcasts would be impossible. Somehow they pulled it off!

Scott and I discuss that rarest of all movie genres, the western Christmas story. 3 Godfathers (1948) is the subject of Episode 173.

Monday, December 11, 2017

Well Said: Reading and Meditating

Seek by reading and you will find by meditating.
St. John of the Cross
This has been how I have gotten a lot of my spiritual progress, for wont of a better term. So when my spiritual advisor mentioned that reading can be prayer I felt a great surge of recognition.

Yes, God reaches me in many other ways, through Nature, friendship, my family, and the liturgy. But most reliable is the "prayer" in which He surprises me through books and I meditate upon it for some time afterwards.

Nice to know I have that much in common with St. John of the Cross since his poetry leaves me cold.

Worth a Thousand Words: Abbey Bible Illuminated Manuscript

Abbey Bible, 1250 to 1262
via Getty's Open Content Program
I really love illuminated manuscripts. Hey, we all love a Bible with pictures, right? They enhance the whole thing.

You can find more information about this at the Getty link. Here's a bit:
The illumination and marginal vignettes of the Abbey Bible are remarkable for their liveliness and delicacy. Sensitively depicted facial expressions, rare among Bibles of this era, and dynamic compositions, reveal the artist to be a skilled storyteller.

While filled with amusing figures and spirited pen flourishes, the Bible was nevertheless intended for serious use and study. The text contains many edits, corrections, and amendments, suggesting a university origin for the manuscript. The book appears to be made for a Dominican monastery and devout Dominicans and Franciscans appear prominently in its imagery.

Tuesday, December 5, 2017

Off to Florida!


Luckily I won't have to lift any couches but I will be helping my mother move ... and, more importantly, helping my sister and brother-in-law who are doing the heavy lifting (get it? heavy lifting?) on the whole thing.

They take such good care of Mom in every way and I'm so happy to be able to help, even a little.

Until then I've got a few prepared posts for the ongoing novena and suchlike but I won't be back "in person" until I get back next week.

Monday, December 4, 2017

Worth a Thousand Words: Gifts

Geschenke (Gifts) by Edward B. Gordon

Black Bottle Man by Craig Russell

Forced to move every twelve days, what would happen to your life?

It’s 1927. Rembrandt is the only child in the tiny community of Three Farms and his two aunts grow desperate for babies of their own. Hope and Hell arrive in a mysterious black bottle, and on a moonless night a dark spell is cast. The devil seeks payment, and a dangerous wager is made. Until they can defeat him, Rembrandt, Pa, and Uncle Thompson must embark on the journey of their lives, for if they stay in one place for more than twelve days terrible things happen. But where and when will they find a champion capable of defeating the Black Bottle Man?

Time ticks.

Lives change.

Every twelve days.
What a treat to be almost at the end of the year and read a book that instantly leapt to the top of my 2017 favorites list. I finished it and wanted to give a copy to everyone I knew who loves a good folk tale, a good deal-with-the-devil tale, good historical fiction, or (most of all) a story that speaks to the reader on several levels.

As we learn the story of the deal with the devil and how Rembrandt, his father, and uncle take on the task of saving souls, we are also taken on a trip through American history with special emphasis on the Great Depression. Rembrandt's voice is strong and vivid. I felt I knew this boy as we traveled together seeking redemption for those he loves. The scenes on farms, in factories, and in small town America were also vivid, as were the present day scenes when we flash to 90 year old Rembrandt.

Any story where someone is dealing with the devil opens the door to considerations of faith and that is handled both honestly and delicately in this book. The insights and observations throughout the book underlie the main story in a way that lends itself to considerations of gratitude, mercy, selfishness, sacrifice, and much more — all without being too obvious for those who just want to read a great story. There's also the fun of trying to figure out just how one can outsmart the devil in a deal that seems unbreakable.

It is is marketed to teens but I'm not the first reviewer to mention that label is too limiting because it is also a great read for adults.

I can't adequately describe this book but it is simply wonderful. Get it. Read it. And give it to those who love a wonderfully told good story.

Friday, December 1, 2017

Heroism and Genius by William J. Slattery


'But my home, such as I have, [said Aragorn] is in the North. For here the heirs of Valandil have ever dwelt in long line unbroken from father unto son for many generations. Our days have darkened, and we have dwindled; but ever the Sword has passed to a new keeper. And this I will say to you, Boromir, ere I end. Lonely men are we, Rangers of the wild, hunters — but hunters ever of the servants of the Enemy; for they are found in many places, not in Mordor only.

'If Gondor, Boromir, has been a stalwart tower, we have played another part. Many evil things there are that your strong walls and bright swords do not stay. You know little of the lands beyond your bounds. Peace and freedom, do you say? The North would have known them little but for us. Fear would have destroyed them. But when dark things come from the houseless hills, or creep from sunless woods, they fly from us. What roads would any dare to tread, what safety would there be in quiet lands, or in the homes of simple men at night, if the Dúnedain were asleep, or were all gone into the grave?

'And yet less thanks have we than you. Travellers scowl at us, and countrymen give us scornful names. "Strider" I am to one fat man who lives within a day's march of foes that would freeze his heart or lay his little town in ruin, if he were not guarded ceaselessly. Yet we would not have it otherwise. If simple folk are free from care and fear, simple they will be, and we must be secret to keep them so. That has been the task of my kindred, while the years have lengthened and the grass has grown.

'But now the world is changing once again. A new hour comes. Isildur's Bane is found. Battle is at hand. The Sword shall be reforged.'
— J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings
They had me at Aragorn. This quote launches the book's introduction and gives you a sense of the spirit of the work.

The subtitle really tells you what the book is about: How Catholic Priests Helped Build — and Can Help Rebuild — Western Civilization.

This book looks at priests' roles in building and maintaining Western civilization. The author begins with modern historians' assessments and then goes on to tell the stories of some of these remarkable men. I was impressed with the lengthy list of historians who recognize the Church's pivotal function throughout much of Western civilization.
The Catholic historian cannot empty his heart when he writes about the Church; he has the eyes of a lover, enchanted by the beauty of his bride, and they remain the eyes of a lover even when she has been dressed in rags by treacherous men; he will always chronicle as a builder who wants to learn from history how to renew the institution he loves.
I especially enjoy William Slattery's romantic style of writing, which we don't see very often any more. It conveys the passion he feels and the romance of the faith and the Church. It would seem over the top, perhaps, except that it is grounded in solid understanding of the faith and of human nature. Slattery looks at history with the eyes of a realist but also with the eyes of someone who knows we can again be great as our forefathers were. Here's just a bit more...
Hence the purpose of this book is not lionizing and nostalgia, a yearning to live in some mythical "good old days," an attempt to find excuses to handcuff progress to obsolete standards. Instead, it is a shout to contemporary priests—"Remember!"—as they stand at a crossroads of history and confront the Western civilization of the past and the dictatorship of relativism of the present: Remember who you are and what you once achieved; recall the crucially important social consequences of your priesthood; remember that the priest, by being truly teacher, sanctifier, and shepherd, changes society and builds Christian civilization—that he simply cannot fail to change the world by being an authentic priest of Jesus Christ!
The book covers the course of history in Western civilization including the Dark Ages, Chivalry, Romanticism, and Free-Market Economics, among other topics. Slattery also never lets us forget that for every important name, there were hundreds of anonymous priests laboring for their flocks. I enjoyed the heck outta this. Now go get this book and enjoy it for yourself.

Worth a Thousand Words: Roar!

Roar!, Remo Savisaar

Thursday, November 30, 2017

Wednesday, November 29, 2017

A History of the Church in 100 Objects - Mike Aquilina and Grace Aquilina

The history of the Church didn't take place shrouded in the mists of time. It actually happened and continues to happen through things that we can see and sometimes hold in our hand.

This is the Christian answer to Neil MacGregor's New York Times bestseller A History of the World in 100 Objects.
This is a brief history of the Church, complete with pictures of the items which serve as touchstones for bringing up important historical events. The items include the Christian things you might expect but also range into seemingly non-Christian things like Islamic coins, an Egyptian boy's math notebook, and a medieval science beaker.

Two or three pages of brief yet comprehensive commentary accompany each item. It is easy to read and even-handed, yet never dumbs it down. At the end of each entry, there are two recommended books listed for those who would like to pursue a topic in greater depth. That was a thoughtful feature I really liked, even as my reading list grew and grew.

I especially enjoyed the way the authors fleshed out our understanding of events, often with thought provoking questions or comments. For example, in the instance of the Islamic coin, we see that the Roman emperor may have given their subjects reason to see Islamic conquerors as a decent governing option.
All these people had suffered persecution under Justinian and his successors. And they had been taxed heavily to support Justinian's wars in the West. Is it any wonder that some welcomed the Islamic Arabs as liberators? And is it any wonder that some chose to submit to Islam?

The conquered didn't turn Islamic all at once. In some places, they were given a stark choice: convert, submit to the tax, or die. But the Umayyads were more tolerant, recognizing the value of Christians and Jews as a steady tax base.
This allows us a more nuanced picture of history than we're often given. And it opens the door for questions of how the modern world tempts me to let my Christianity wither slowly away under gentle pressure. The authors do this again and again. A wedding ring brings considerations of how Christian marriage differed from pagan marriage. Armor brings a consideration of how Pope Gregory gradually moved warrior culture from waging war to knightly behavior.

There are also nuggets of information I'd never heard. I didn't know that Napoleon kidnapped Pope Pius VII from the Vatican. Or that Pius VII later gave shelter in the Vatican to members of Napoleon's family. I knew Cardinal Cisneros was a stalwart defender of American natives but not that he cooperated with the expulsion of Muslims and Jews from Spain. In almost every entry there is something showing that history is more complex than we realized.

In essence, what one learns reading this book is that "The Church on earth is always in motion. Catholic doctrine and devotion are always developing. And every age presents particular challenges with require a creative response." As earthly pilgrims heading toward heaven, we can draw inspiration and strength from where the Church has been on that same road.

I've got more pages marked in this book than you've got time to read. So just go get this book and read it! It made a great devotional for me. I read an entry (or two or three) daily and found it invigorating and centering as a start to the day.

Worth a Thousand Words: Aisle of Tintern Abbey

Aisle of Tintern Abbey, Roger Fenton
via Getty's Open Content Program

The Form of Emptiness

Tomorrow begins the novena leading up to the solemnity of Mary's Immaculate Conception. This is a good place to begin.

That virginal quality which, for want of a better word, I call emptiness is at the beginning of this contemplation.

It is not a formless emptiness, a void without meaning; on the contrary it has a shape, a form given to it by the purpose for which it is intended.

It is emptiness like the hollow in the reed, the narrow riftless emptiness which can have only one destiny: to receive the piper's breath and to utter the song that is in his heart.

It is emptiness like the hollow in the cup, shaped to receive water or wine.

It is emptiness like that of the bird's nest, built in a round warm ring to receive the little bird.

The pre-Advent emptiness of Our Lady's purposeful virginity was indeed like those three things.

She was a reed through which the Eternal Love was to be piped as a shepherd's song.

She was the flowerlike chalice into which the purest water of humanity was to be poured, mingled with wine, changed to the crimson blood of love, and lifted up in sacrifice.

She was the warm nest rounded to the shape of humanity to receive the Divine Little Bird...

It is the purpose for which something is made that decides the material which is used.

The chalice is made of pure gold because it must contain the Blood of Christ.

The bird's nest is made of scraps of soft down, leaves and feathers and twigs, because it must be a strong warm home for the young birds...

The material which God has found apt for it is human nature: blood, flesh, bone, salt, water, will, intellect.

It is impossible to say too often or too strongly that human nature, body and soul together, is the material for God's will in us...

Think again of the three symbols I have used for the virginal emptiness of Mary. These are each made from material which must undergo some experience to be made ready for its purpose.

The reed grows by the streams. It is the simplest of things, but it must be cut by the sharp knife, hollowed out, and the stops must be cut in it; it must be shaped and pierced before it can utter the shepherd's song. It is the narrowest emptiness in the world, but the little reed utters infinite music.

The chalice does not grow like the flower it resembles. It is made of gold; gold must be gathered from the water and the mud and hewn from the rock, it must be beaten by countless little blows that give the chalice of sacrifice its fitting beauty.

The twigs and fluff and leaves of the bird's nest are brought from all sorts of places, from wherever the brave careful mother alights, with fluttering but daring heart, to fetch them, from the distances and explorations that only the spread wings of love know. It is the shape of her breast the moulds the nest to its inviting roundness.

Thus it is with us -- we may be formed by the knife, pared down, cut to the least, to the minimum of our own being; we may be marked indelibly by a succession of strokes, blown from the gold-beater's hammer; or we may be shaped for our destiny by the love and tender devotion of a devoted family.
Caryll Houselander, The Reed of God
I don't know why no one has ever mentioned Caryll Houselander among all the wonderful Catholic writers that are quoted so often. I have seen her mentioned only in Magnificat and every time that I have read an excerpt it has spoken right to my heart. If I had let myself go I could easily have put the entire book on this site. I had to stop myself from underlining practically everything in it. It is a wonderful contemplation of the Virgin Mary and, through her as always, we get a clearer and better look at her son, Jesus. The excerpt above says better than I can what sort of a writer and thinker she was. It is simple but provides many opportunities for our own contemplation.

Monday, November 27, 2017

Interview on Catholic Mom

Nancy Ward interviewed me after Seeking Jesus in Everyday Life came out. It is now featured on Catholic Mom! It was great fun talking with Nancy and I really appreciate the publicity for the book — which makes great Advent reading or a Christmas gift!

Well Said: Say It Again

Say what you have just said, but in a different tone, without anger, and your argument will gain in strength and, above all, you won't offend God.
St. Josemaria Escriva

Worth a Thousand Words: Two Swans

Two Swans (Farbiger Holzschnitt Zwei Schwäne), Otto Eckmann

Friday, November 24, 2017

Well Said: Peter the rock and Peter the denier

We have grown accustomed to make a clear distinction between Peter the rock and Peter the denier of Christ — the denier of Christ: that is the Peter as he was before Easter; the rock: that is the Peter as he was after the Pentecost, the Peter of whom we have constructed a singularly idealistic image. But, in reality, he was a both times both of these... Has it not been thus throughout the history of the Church that the Pope, the successor of Peter has been at once Petra and Skandalon — both the rock of God and a stumbling-block? In fact the faithful will always have to reckon with this paradox of the divine dispensation that shames their pride again and again.
Pope Benedict XVI

Worth a Thousand Words: Red Squirrel

Red Squirrel, Remo Savisaar

Wednesday, November 22, 2017

Worth a Thousand Words: Kid's Breakfast

Kid's Breakfast (Kinderfrühstück), Albert Anker

Well Said: Judas

Judas is neither a master of evil nor the figure of a demoniacal power of darkness but rather a sycophant who bows down before the anonymous power of changing moods and current fashion. But it is precisely this anonymous power that crucified Jesus, for it was the anonymous voices that cried, "Away with him! Crucify him!"
Pope Benedict XVI

Artemis by Andy Weir

Jazz Bashara is a criminal.

Well, sort of. Life on Artemis, the first and only city on the moon, is tough if you're not a rich tourist or an eccentric billionaire. So smuggling in the occasional harmless bit of contraband barely counts, right? Not when you've got debts to pay and your job as a porter barely covers the rent.

Everything changes when Jazz sees the chance to commit the perfect crime, with a reward too lucrative to turn down. But pulling off the impossible is just the start of her problems, as she learns that she's stepped square into a conspiracy for control of Artemis itself—and that now, her only chance at survival lies in a gambit even riskier than the first.
This was a huge disappointment as Andy Weir's first book, The Martian, was a real favorite of mine and I was really looking forward to seeing how he did with a different sort of story. Unfortunately, for me the new book is something of a cross between a YA book and an engineering manual featuring aluminum manufacturing. If this sounds like an awkward mixture, it is because it is.

Weir obviously loves engineering and how our lives depend on it, often in ways we don't think about. In the The Martian the story drove our need to know about engineering so the hero could survive. In the case of Artemis, our need to know is not obvious as the heroine engages in a shady deal to score 1 million slugs (lunar currency). However, the story often pauses to point out how aluminum provides more than enough oxygen to keep humans supplied and so forth. By the end, we do indeed need to know details about aluminum manufacturing, however I am fairly sure I needed to know less than half the information which we stopped so often to absorb.

Enough of the engineering side. But what of the story itself? It is a heist tale with tendrils that sink into the seamy underbelly of the lunar economy. Unfortunately it is told to us by Jazz, a young woman who has the virtue of being a genius and very stubborn but who otherwise has almost no personality. She has a secret — why does she need a million slugs? But we are told so little about it that I soon forgot she had a secret at all. And I never cared about it or her. I don't mind YA, or as they used to call them in Robert Heinlein's day, juvenile stories but this had little of Heinlein's skill which always told the story about engaging characters first and filled in details/science only as necessary to keep things rolling along.

In fact, by the time the final big plan was being laid out for the assembled gang, I had become so bored that it was only by a sheer effort of will that I finished the book at all.

That isn't to say that the book doesn't have good points. I thoroughly enjoyed the worldbuilding. Artemis and the way citizens lived was really interesting. The letters between Jazz and her penpal were wonderful at giving us information briefly but evocatively. If more of the book had been like that, it would have been much more interesting. There was one sequence which grabbed me when Jazz was doing a job for a local mob-boss on the lunar surface. Obviously one of Weir's authorial skills is creating high tension moments and making readers care about their outcome. Unfortunately this book only pulled that off once for me.

I appreciate that Weir is trying something different and it has to be insanely difficult to follow up a first novel that was also made into a big movie. More than anything this book makes me interested to see how his next book turns out.

Tuesday, November 21, 2017

Worth a Thousand Words: Doggy!

Doggy!, Karin Jurick

Well Said: Trouble

Trouble is so hard to bear, is it not?—How can we live and think that any one has trouble—piercing trouble—and we could help them, and never try?
George Eliot, Middlemarch

Listen Up — Wolf 359, Gone with the Wind

As I mentioned, I've been working on a big project lately. Luckily, it's the sort that lets me listen to podcasts and audiobooks while I work. Here are one of each that have been the backbone of my listening.

Wolf 359 is a radio drama in the tradition of Golden Age of Radio shows. Set on board the U.S.S. Hephaestus space station, the misfit crew deals with daily life-or-death emergencies, while searching for signs of alien life and discovering there might be more to their mission than they thought.
Early episodes begin as Communication Officer Matt Eiffel's audio diary, broadcast into space at large to break up his boredom. He's a slacker, but an entertaining one and we learn about the crew and life aboard an out-dated space station. Day-to-day activities are more wide ranging than you'd expect and the growing sense that something sinister is intended from the employers on Earth keeps things jumpy — especially as star Wolf 359 begins acting unpredictably.

I'm hooked on this and have been binge listening, only slowing down in the last week or two as the suspense began to get to me. I've been especially impressed with the way that the show can take you from loathing to liking ... and sometimes back to loathing ... particular characters with each new revelation of backstory.



Gone with the Wind was on my parents' bookshelves when I was growing up and, as happened with so many classics, at some point I picked it up and devoured the whole thing. I've probably read it three times during my lifetime, enjoying it more each time.

Having been written in 1930 by a Southerner, some of the characters have attitudes that were unpopular when I was growing up, much less during these cracklingly divisive times. And that includes the author who will break out in little asides occasionally for commentary about the South. That's when it turns into a look into the mind of those who lost the war. At least, that's what I remember. It must have been 20 years since I've read this.

No matter what, it remains a wonderful story. I had just finished listening to the audiobook of Kim and it immersed me me in an exotic place and mindset. I missed being in such a different world. Since I'd heard several people recently mention they were listening to Gone with the Wind, it somehow seemed like it might fill that gap. And it did. I'd forgotten how many details Mitchell put into her novel and every time I felt as if I couldn't stand Scarlett for one more second something would happen which would pull me back into the story.

I'm about halfway through since I'm taking it slowly but if you've never tried this book I encourage you to pick it up. If you have read it, you'll discover, as an acquaintance said recently, "Every time you read it you find something new there."

Saturday, November 18, 2017

Apologies for my absence!

So sorry I haven't been around much lately. It's my annual crazy time doing layout for the Worthington Direct catalog. 162 pages this year, my part takes about a month and a half with intensity increasing as we go. It will go to the printer the week after Thanksgiving so lately I've been working nights and weekends to make sure I'm keeping up my end.

I really enjoy the work but it does take its toll on available time and also memory! I meant to post this apology last weekend!

I'll be back to normal soon, hopefully getting us back to normal around here next week.

Thanks for your patience!

Tuesday, November 14, 2017

Worth a Thousand Words: Forest Wilderness

Forest Wilderness, J. E. H. MacDonald

Well Said: What do you want me to do for you?

Jesus said to him in reply, "What do you want me to do for you?"

The blind man said to him, "Master, I want to see."
Mark 10:51
We all relate to the blind man. It's the common condition. Where am I blind? I want to see.

But take a second and look at Jesus' question. That is considerate and gracious. It is the question God asks us, even though we don't stop to think of it. He met us more than halfway by becoming human and dying for us. And here he is, "What do you want me to do for you?"

It's a question I ponder when I begin my morning prayer. Considering the asker makes me both shed the small stuff and yet also bring the small stuff to him. He's asking. He wants to know. What will we say?

Julie and Scott just spent hours filming a pre-podcast training montage.



Highlights include Scott's one armed editing and Julie's flawless pronounciation of the director's name. Join us for episode 171 of A Good Story is Hard to Find as we discuss Rocky (1976).

Friday, November 10, 2017

Worth a Thousand Words: Outside the Embassy

Outside the kitchen entrance of the Russian Embassy in Berlin…
Edward B. Gordon

Lagniappe: The mention of ourselves being naturally affecting

"But you can't take your own time to die in, Brother," began Mrs. Waule, with her usual wooly tone. "And when you life speechless you may be tired of having strangers about you, and you may think of me and my children —" but here her voice broke under the touching thought which she was attributing to her speechless brother; the mention of ourselves being naturally affecting.
George Eliot, Middlemarch

Roasted cougar anyone? It's food-on-the-go for anyone stranded on a snowy mountain.

Unless you forget to take it along with you.

I watched The Mountain Between Us with Hannah and Rose and can attest they are telling the absolute truth about this bad movie in their More is More discussion.

Thursday, November 9, 2017

Well Said: The speck of self

Instead of wondering at this result of misery in Mr. Casaubon, I think it quite ordinary. Will not a speck very close to our vision blot out the glory of the world, and leave only a margin by which we see the blot? I know no specks so troublesome as self.
George Eliot, Middlemarch

Worth a Thousand Words: Dinornis Elephantopus

Dinornis Elephantopus, Roger Fenton, photographer, 1854 – 1858
J. Paul Getty Museum

Thank you for the gift!


I've had my eye on this for some time.  I really love the whole Catholic Commentary on Sacred Scripture series so it is natural that this book would be on my Amazon wish list. Imagine my surprise and delight yesterday when I ripped open an unexpected package and found this!

Not only do I have the delight of a new Bible study but it is so thoughtful of the giver. Since the advent of Facebook and Twitter, any long time bloggers can tell you that comments have gone way down. It's not a big deal in and of itself, but it does make things different than they used to be. Lately I've gotten some wonderful feedback which is priceless in itself.

A tangible compliment like this is delightful on a lot of levels. My sincere thanks to whoever went to the trouble and expense to give me this gift!

Wednesday, November 8, 2017

Worth a Thousand Words: Sunset

Felix Vallotton, Coucher de Soleil, 1918
via Arts Everyday Living

Genesis Notes: The New Covenant is Fulfillment of the Old

We're at the end of the Genesis study and amidst all the stories there has been a clear thread for us to follow — God's covenant with us.

Watching from the beginning of creation to the establishment of God's family through covenant  has given me a much better understanding of how the old covenant was achieved in the first place ... which then leads to a better understanding of how the New Covenant completes the old.

First Day of Creation (from the 1493 Nuremberg Chronicle)
The New Covenant in which we live is not a different covenant but a fulfillment of the Old. God still is a Father who makes and keeps promises and who is building His family by covenant. The New Covenant is all the promises of the Old, wrapped up in one and sealed by the sacrament of Christ's death and resurrection. In it God promises:
  1. To restore creation: not just turn back the clock to Genesis 2 but to replace the old with new life, His own life, a life that is greater than anything we could have hoped for without the Fall.
  2. To defeat Satan, the Serpent who started the whole problem in Eden;
  3. To save us from sin, as He saved Noah from the wickedness of the world before the flood;
  4. To give us not just a homeland on earth but an eternal home in heaven;
  5. To make us not a powerful earthly kingdom but a kingdom of priests, a royal nation that will encompass the whole world and be a blessing to all nations.
Best of all -- these are not only promised, they are offered together with the power we need to keep our part of the covenant, which is to love God with all our hearts and love our neighbor as ourselves; to be holy as He is holy. Only the divine nature flowing through us can accomplish that.
All quotes from Genesis, Part II: God and His Family. This series first ran in 2004 and 2005. I'm refreshing it as I go. For links to the whole study, go to the Genesis Index. For more about the resources used, go here.

Tuesday, November 7, 2017

Worth a Thousand Words: Top Dog

Top Dog, Karin Jurick

Ryan Gosling and Papyrus


From the SNL premiere comes a piece that could have been tailor-made for our household. Remember, we're the people who loved the documentary Helvetica.

Well Said: Religion, Prayer, and Bubbles of Protection

This quote has been coming to mind repeatedly as one violent act after another are committed upon innocents. I am emotionally reeling and the worst thing is that I last posted this quote in July 2017 for the same reason. However, it continues to give me much needed perspective. He is with us through everything.
Only bad religion promises that if you pray enough, give enough or serve enough, God will put a bubble of protection around you ... That’s what got virgins thrown into volcanoes and it’s what gets TV preachers rich. It’s still a lie, though, no matter how loudly or piously you say it.

What good religion teaches instead is that there is a Power at work in the world that is greater than the power of the world. It’s a power that renews and restores. It heals ... It gives life ...
George Mason, Lakewood Advocate
George Mason is the pastor of Wilshire Baptist Church which is only a few blocks away from my house.

We never miss reading his column in our area newspaper, The Lakewood Advocate. As Tom says, this man preaches to every Christian with his common sense, sensitivity, and understanding of living Christian faith. Believe me when I say that Tom doesn't bestow that praise lightly or often.

Click through and read the whole piece for a sample of why we like him so much.

Monday, November 6, 2017

Worth a Thousand Words: Windy Autumn

Windy Autumn, by Remo Savisaar

To Light a Fire on the Earth by Robert Barron and John L. Allen, Jr.


Secularism is gaining influence and increasing numbers of people see religion as dull and backward. Robert Barron wants to illuminate the beauty, intelligence, and relevance of the Catholic faith.

Touching on everything from Jesus to prayer, science, movies, atheism, the spiritual life, the fate of Church in modern times, beauty, art, and social media, Barron reveals why the Church matters today and how Catholics can intelligently engage a skeptical world.
I loved this book. It's a quick read that left me enthusiastic about spreading the faith and inspired in my own faith. In fact, within one day of beginning to read I was quoting it around the house and changing my own actions based on the inspirations. I expected to learn more about Barron's life and ministry but not that it would begin to change me.

That's the quick take. Here's the longer version.

I'm a fan of Bishop Barron's homilies and his Catholicism documentary series which was shown on PBS stations around the country. But what he's really known for, and where he got his social media start, is his YouTube videos where he talks about everything from baseball to movies to Catholic doctrine. This has drawn an audience ranging from faithful Catholics to angry atheists. So he's a pro at discussing the beauty and truth of Catholicism with a diverse crowd.

This book looks at both Barron's life and his philosophy behind "proclaiming the Gospel in a secular age." It is the result of twenty hours of interviews conducted by John L. Allen, Jr., who is an acclaimed Catholic author and journalist. I was really looking forward this book — and it lived up to my expectations. As you can see from my opening paragraph here.

Barron discusses leading people into a "space where they may be ready to hear and embrace those truths" by remembering that what you're trying to do is introduce them to friendship with Jesus. He talks about the fact that his enthusiasm is because he's trying to bring something positive into people's lives - that he's so on fire about the truth of Catholicism that he can't stop from sharing it because he wants everyone to have the goodness he experiences. He talks about finding the role God has designed for us in life, much as a character in a novel finds they are key to the plot even if they aren't a "main" character. And there is is love of Scripture, of how beauty shows truth, and much more.

All these things resonated with me and some of them were vivid reminders at times when I needed a pick me up or a good point in a discussion with a friend.

I think you'll find those things in here too. Highly recommended.

What do we do in the face of great evil?

Like everyone, I was shocked and distressed at the massacre at the church in Sunderland Springs. I can't get it out of my mind.

There have been so many killings lately it not only boggles the mind but leads to serious questions of the sort Job threw at God when he suffered disaster on every front. "What the heck, God? Are you there or what? Because I could use some explanations here." (Generously paraphrased.)

Like Job, we receive no clarifying answer because maybe God can see the causes of evil, but we can't. And we certainly have no control over it.  Jesus' death on the cross shows he understands our pain and bewilderment and suffering more than we know ... and that he can use it to bring about victory over evil.

But, that's hard to see from our human standpoint.

So what do we do?

We help directly if we can.

We remember that those victims were received by Jesus at the moment of their death. He has conquered death and they are his sheep. Their lives were cut cruelly short but they are now in the place we all hope to be in the end.

We pray, always. For the souls of the victims, for their families and friends in the midst of shock and grief, and even for human soul who did evil's work. (That last is a hard one, but necessary for my own soul. I don't know how God metes out justice but I know that I'd be terrible at it. So that prayer is necessary for me to be able to trust God with it.)

We live our own lives fully and with confidence in Christ and for Christ. Every ripple for good we make in our own bit of the world helps Jesus enter the world with healing, making lives whole again. And it helps defeat evil.
Saint Michael Archangel,
defend us in battle,
be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the devil;
may God rebuke him, we humbly pray;
and do thou, O Prince of the heavenly host,
by the power of God, cast into hell
Satan and all the evil spirits
who prowl through the world seeking the ruin of souls.
Amen.

Friday, November 3, 2017

Well Said: I have been bent and broken ...

Suffering has been stronger than all other teaching, and has taught me to understand what your heart used to be. I have been bent and broken, but - I hope - into a better shape.”
Charles Dickens, Great Expectations
No wonder I love him. He tells the truth. This isn't one we want to think about in our own lives, but when we've gotten done hearing Dickens tell it ... we understand that truth a little better.

Worth a Thousand Words: Bullfinch

Bullfinch, Remo Savisaar

Wednesday, November 1, 2017

Genesis Notes: The Significance of Numbers

GENESIS 46
Jacob is moving the entire clan to Egypt and Genesis stops here for another of those endless lists of who is going along. Except, that it isn't so endless when you realize the significance of the numbers ... then it becomes very interesting.

Joseph and family moving to Egypt
The author of Genesis takes the occasion of this move to Egypt to record a list of all the descendants of Jacob. To the Hebrews, 70 was the ideal and complete number: it is the number of descendants of Noah after the flood, corresponding in the ancient world to the 70 nations of the world; it's also the number of elders of Israel and of the disciples of Jesus...

Not long ago, the family was just Jacob and Rachel and Leah. Now they are 70: the number of completeness, suggesting a complete development in God's plan. Why is this list here? This is the rootstock of the nation of Israel. As there are 70 nations in the world, there are 70 tribal units in Israel. Later on when Moses records all the family groups of the new nation, no one is mentioned who is not on this list. God is accomplishing His plan to form a nation, and we see here that the foundation has been laid.

[To come up with 70, the author takes out Judah's two dead sons (vs. 12) and adds in Joseph and his two sons already in Egypt and Jacob himself. He ignores the entire third generation except for Joseph's sons, who will become heads of two tribes in Joseph's place. The total is not "the descendants of Israel, who came into Egypt (vs. 8)" on that particular trip, but all the family who ended up settling in Egypt.]
All quotes from Genesis, Part II: God and His Family. This series first ran in 2004 and 2005. I'm refreshing it as I go. For links to the whole study, go to the Genesis Index. For more about the resources used, go here.

Worth a Thousand Words: Chase

Chase, Remo Savisaar