Why We Serve Champagne Year-Round: Reviewing "The Wine Trials 2010"

Several years ago one of my sisters-in-law introduced me to Domaine Ste. Michelle Cuvee Brut. It tasted delicious but, amazingly, cost only about $7.00 at that time. I began stocking it regularly since I'm a firm believer that champagne goes with everything and that everyone likes champagne. Plus it is so very festive and makes people feel extra special. This is a win-win. Gradually the price has risen to about $9 (less on sale) but there is no denying that it remains a fantastic deal and a delicious bottle of sparkling wine.

Hence, you can understand my glee and the necessity of reading Tom the first three paragraphs of the latest review book I received, The Wine Trials 2010: The World's Bestselling Guide to Inexpensive Wines, with the 150 Winning Wines Under $15 from the Latest Vintages. (Yes, a long title, but you are never left in doubt as to what the book offers.)

Dom Perignon, a $150 Champagne from France, and Domaine St. Michelle Cuvee Brut, a $12 sparkling wine from Washington State, are both made in the traditional Champagne method. Both wines are widely available at wine stores, liquor stores, and restaurants. Both are dry, with high acidity. The two bottle are more or less the same size and shape. So why are consumers willing to pay more than 12 times more for one than for the other?

The most obvious explanation would be that, to most wine drinkers. the liquid inside the bottle of Dom Perignon tastes better than the liquid inside the bottle of Domaine St. Michelle -- if not 12 times better, then at least somewhat better. However, that doesn't seem to be the case. Between fall 2007 and spring 2008, we conducted an experiment serving these two sparkling wines head-to-head in five different blind tastings, with the bottles hidden inside brown paper bags. And 41 of 62 tasters -- about two thirds -- preferred the Domaine St. Michelle.

In October 2009, we replicated the experiment on a smaller scale with newer releases of the two sparkling wines. This time, we served them to a group of professional chefs, certified sommeliers, and food writers, of which more than 70% preferred the humble $12 bottle to the famous $150 one. this time, we also threw in Veuve Clicquot, a popular $40 Champagne from the same luxury products group -- LVMH -- that makes Dom Perignon. More than 85% of the tasters preferred the Domaine Ste. Michelle to the Veuve.

Yes, I feel even more justified than before. Add in the fact that I feel I am splurging if I spend $15 on a bottle of wine and you can see that The Wine Trials is clearly a book to which I was receptive.

The first few chapters talk about wine critics, marketing, actual cost versus perceived values and such things. I was much more interested in the last part of the book which contains the 150 wines under $15 that beat bottles costing over $50 in brown-bag blind testings. Each has its own page, complete with a photo of the bottle, which discusses:

• cost
• type (Old World or New World, white or red, heavy or light)
• country
• vintage tasted
• grapes
• drink with (what foods it accompanies best)
• website for the producer
• commentary: this is sometimes about the type of wine or grapes, sometimes about the winery, and then always segues into the wine itself
• nose (always in understandable terms)
• mouth (again always in understandable terms) 
• design: a critique of the label and/or bottle. This is the iffy part to me, especially when you consider that sometimes a vineyard that has several bottles featured in the book will receive scathing remarks in one review for something which is completely glossed over or even called "cute" in the very next review. I think that a simple comment when the label is goofy is enough and they were pretty picky about labels. That is coming from someone who is pretty picky herself about graphic design ... so lighten up gang.

I definitely got a good feel from reading the reviews as to which wines I was interested in looking for and which would probably not appeal to my taste. This is an excellent resource and I recommend it to anyone who is more interested in good wine value and taste rather than impressing others by conspicuous consumption based solely on how much is spent on a bottle of wine.

Note: as I mentioned this is a review book. I'd recommend it even if I bought it myself.

Five Excuses You're Using to Avoid the Seminary

From Vocation Boom's blog ... these are good and the answers are even better.

Body (and practically everything else) by Victoria's Secret

In case we forgot the message of the infamous Dove evolution video (see below) here comes a story via Gadgetopia (thanks Tom!) about how much this Victoria's Secret photo was changed. Not only did a bag get clumsily erased but her skin color was lightened and various other features one would expect noticed at Victoria's Secret were altered as well. Find out here. (Note: the comparison photo which shows the model in a different photo and also much less covered up ... a la a scanty bikini in my estimation.)

I'll note that I didn't read the article as thoroughly as Tom did, but it seems to me that one thing missed by everyone is that the girl's other hand is held completely unnaturally for someone simply walking. She probably was holding something else in that hand also.

At any rate, when one sees the photo manipulation it is simply incredible. The girl is already a model, chosen because she is considerably better looking than the general population. Did they really need to do such extreme manipulation? I contend they did not.

Here's the Dove evolution video which is a good thing to review every so often.

How. Bout. Them. Cowboys!

Cowboys 34, Eagles 14

13 long years since a playoff game won. Until now. Against Philly.

Oh, how sweet it is.

Let's Talk Pro-Life March

It suddenly dawned on me that the annual Pro-Life March is in January.

Wait. This is January.

The March is on Saturday, January 16. Ok, time to get our game faces (and prayer) on.

Here is the website with Dallas info.

Here is a pdf with more detailed times and info.

I mentioned this to a friend who was instrumental in getting me to go to the March the first time. She said, "Oh, I might skip this year. It's so cold outside."

You know what?

It's colder if you're dead. Or if you're living with lifelong regrets. Or if one of the first people you meet after you die is the baby you killed before he or she was born. (I say this last with full knowledge that those who do so have been lied to and it is only the grace of God that kept me from similar acts when I fully believed the "morality" of secular society.)

I think I can take an hour or two -- especially since the media and the government don't count intentions. They only count numbers.

Last year, 5,000 prayed and marched for life. Bishop Farrell challenged everyone to “double it” in 2010 – so, “Bring a friend to make it 10 in ’10!” – 10,000 praying and marching for life on January 16, 2010!

Don't care about abortion on spiritual grounds?

Then let's look at it as a justice issue.

My dear friend Stevie introduced me recently to an excellent blog, Coming Home: Science in Service of the Pro-Life Movement. There is a lot of good scientific information there, especially about Margaret Sanger, the mother of Planned Parenthood and her agenda toward minorities.

And then we have that justice issue pithily presented in this video, which I got from Semicolon.



Tom and I will be there for the march, probably around 11:30. We'll take the DART down to the cathedral.

If anyone is interested in joining us, just let me know and we'll work out a meeting place. Hope to see lots and lots of people there!

Oh, Gosh!

A nice tangy libation to sip while reading about books ... or heck, while reading a book itself!

Manly Hobby #44

Knitting

Knitting? Knitting?! The thing that your grandma adores and your great aunt uses to make you a scarf for Christmas? Yes, knitting. Far from the sissy activity that many think it to be, men invented knitting, and it’s time we reclaim our place in its history. Men were the first professional knitters, plying their trade in Europe during the 16th century. And sailors were the other original knitters. They would make fishing nets and sweaters to keep them warm.  These days, knitting for men is making a comeback; it’s both useful and relaxing. My good friend Cameron learned to knit while on a mission in Bolivia ,and he was the only man in the knitting club at law school. And his manliness is unassailable. Be sure to watch this video about knitting and men and join your knitting brothers at Men Who Knit.

I like a blog that's not afraid to take one on the chin in pursuit of true manliness. Check out the other hobbies in The Art of Manliness's 45 Manly Hobbies.

If you are Catholic, have you encouraged or discouraged your child to consider the priesthood or religious life?

This is just the first of several questions that The Anchoress is asking you to answer in her polls (so easy, just click through the link and then click the answer, and click vote).

She awoke with the thought that “someone’s son has to be the priest; someone’s child must be the soldier, and the cop.” Which led her to become curious and create the polls.

I have to say that I always clutched my little girls a bit closer when the prayers of the faithful came to praying for vocations. I thought, "Not my girls, Lord, please." Then one day the stray thought came (and we all know where those come from when I'm in front of the Eucharist during Mass, right?) ... these children do not belong to me. They belong to themselves and to God. With that thought and a brief pang I was able to let them go. At first unwillingly and then, gradually, as I could see the great blessing that we receive from those in religious orders, more gladly and freely.

I am not sure that other mothers would appreciate the fact that I have had a serious conversation with one young man about his consideration of the priesthood (boy, oh boy, that was a toughie to begin. Talk about stepping out in faith.). Or that I have given a serious book about discernment to another young man who was in a long process of doing that very thing. (As far as I can tell, he has not felt that call enough ... but that's just fine. The main thing is to be open if it comes.) Yet another young man is seriously considering joining the Marines and though I quake inwardly for his safety I also am proud to know that he is open to see where he is called.

Have I discussed becoming a religious with the girls? Honestly I can't remember. However, I think that both would tell you that they know Tom and I would be supportive of either a secular or religious vocation. God created them with a distinct plan and it is not up to us to get in the way of it or them. We can't look back ourselves on God's clear path for us and not know that the same path, of whatever sort, exists for our children as well.

Ok, that was way more than I intended ... just go answer the polls will ya?

It's All Downhill From Here ...

A little midweek humor for the Epiphany.

In a small southern town there was a "Nativity Scene" that showed great skill and talent had gone into creating it. One small feature bothered me.

The three wise men were wearing firemen's helmets.

Totally unable to come up with a reason or explanation, I left. At a "Quik Stop" on the edge of town, I asked the lady behind the counter about the helmets. She exploded into a rage, yelling at me, "You stupid Yankees never do read the Bible!" I assured her that I did, but simply couldn't recall anything about firemen in the Bible.

She jerked her Bible from behind the counter and ruffled through some pages, and finally jabbed her finger at a passage. Sticking it in my face she said "See, it says right here, the three wise man came from afar."

The Uninvited ...

... chapter 10 is now up and ready over at Forgotten Classics. Yes, just one chapter but it's chock-full of action and ghostliness!

Is it wrong to be so excited that Decent Films now has an RSS feed?

Of course not!

Any movie lover should know and value Steven Greydanus' thorough and thoughtful reviews, featured at his website Decent Films. If you're Catholic then that goes double as he always takes pains to look at films through a Christian lens, without making faith a necessity for a good film.

My only problem has been that I tend to forget to check his blog and until now there has been no RSS feed. Well, that is a problem no longer. The whole site has been redesigned and you can read here about the improvements.

"Brace for impact." "You must choose." Two voices, one epiphany: reviewing Flight of Faith

I looked out at the city skyline and then at the wing. The water was closing in. I squinted to try to estimate our altitude, and wondered what a river ditching would feel like. Into my mind flashed images of the crash of an Ethiopian Airlines 767 off the coast of the Comoros Islands. Not two months prior, I had seen a television documentary on aviation disasters, and I remembered how that plane had careened across the ocean and broken into several pieces, killing most of the passengers on board. A video camera, operated by a vacationing tourist on the shore, caught the crash in the last few seconds. It had been startling to watch, and now the scene played over and over in my mind's eye.

It is extremely embarrassing to be reading a book while riding an exercise bike and to be wiping away tears simultaneously. Even if the only witness is one's husband who I am sure would have merely asked what I was reading if he had turned his head and witnessed it. Granted, he would not have had to ask since I had been peppering him with quotations from the air traffic controller's conversation with the pilot of the famously miraculous safe landing of US Airways Flight 1549 on the Hudson River.

This slender volume is extremely well written and easily achieves its goal of taking us with Fred Berretta to the point where his presence as a passenger on that flight is instrumental in hearing and answering God's call when he is facing imminent death. The book begins with Berretta's daily routine on that fateful morning and then, through a series of flashbacks, shows us how his spiritual struggles, whether for better or worse, has primed him for being able to honestly consider death, eternity, and salvation in the very short time he was given. We know by then that Berretta is a pilot himself, having long been fascinated with flying, and well able to judge the danger in which everyone was placed when the engines were destroyed by a random encounter with a flock of geese.

The skill of the writing becomes apparent when one considers that we already know the outcome. The flight was landed safely, The passengers were all rescued. The crew performed their duties heroically and received accolades modestly. Berretta had a spiritual epiphany which he joyfully mentioned whenever given the opportunity. However, by interspersing Berretta's eye witness passenger testimony with the conversation between the air traffic controller and the pilot, tension is maintained as the increasingly incredulous and frantic controller struggles to offer options which the aircraft cannot achieve. We also are very interested in what Berretta will experience within his soul as his last moment reflections are gradually revealed to our anxious gaze.

As I mentioned, this is a slender volume, extremely slender in fact at only 36 pages of text with five additional pages of photos. I began to read thinking that $14.95 was surely too much to ask for so little. By the end I had revised my opinion, realizing that such an honest testimony would be worth that amount to someone who needed it.

However, there is one big problem with the book. Just at the moment when we are primed to hear a resolution, a conclusion to the adventure, the story ends abruptly. Had not the author survived to write the book we would have thought that he dictated to someone on the way down and died during rescue. At that point the reader is aching to know Berretta's further spiritual progress or realizations, what happened to the stout man of his acquaintance he greets earlier (otherwise, why bother mentioning him at all?), and, at the very least, about the landing of the plane. To simply drop the story at that point is a huge letdown.

I read a pre-publication proof of the book so am hoping that the publishers and author will consider finishing the story to which I would otherwise give a big thumbs-up. Certainly there is wiggle room in the page count versus the cost, tons of it. It is only that consideration which prevents me from giving it a "highest recommendation" rating. C'mon publisher, give us the rest of the story!

UPDATE
The publisher sez:

I will save you from your frustration and tell you that it was just the first five chapters – it is 12 chapters total. ;-) No worries – you will get the read the end!

It is not unheard of to publish advanced reader copies with only a few chapters as a teaser. Especially as we were hoping very much to publish this book by the anniversary of the crash, we had to move quickly to get the advance reader copies out.

If the galley said that anywhere it wasn't obvious. However, imagine my relief!

This 'N That

Leave Taking: Rose leaves today for Chicago. She planned a two week visit so she could go back and work at the job she so recently acquired. *sigh* The only good thing about this is that it is making her rethink her decision to only come home during the summer for a two-week visit, also planned around working.

Playing Around: We got a couple of games over the holidays that turned out to be tons of fun. Both keyed around how well one knew one's opponents. Loaded Questions has you read a question from a card (what wrestling name would you take? what two books would you want on a deserted island?). Everyone else writes their answers, which are read to you. You move a corresponding number of spaces to the number of people you correctly match with their answers. You'd think this would be pretty easy. Not so. Although the game says it takes an hour, we never finished it in less than 4. And we played it twice. With breaks. However, we clearly liked it (and laughed a lot) as we kept coming back for more.

GiftTRAP has you selecting gifts for the other players from a selection presented on cards (all in the same price range). Then you rank how desirable you find the gift yourself. Everyone else is doing likewise. Depending on how accurate their gift giving is for you and yours for them, everyone moves toward ... well, I can't remember what the game calls it but I call it winning. This was also well liked and had a lot of laughing involved.

Finished Reading: Free-Range Knitter by Stephanie Pearl-McPhee. An assortment of alternately interesting, insightful essays with goofy ones. I wound being largely unamused by the pieces clearly intended to amuse such as letters to a sweater and I was generally uninterested in the pieces about McPhee's children which analyzed them as knitters and took that into musings on their personalities in general (or vice versa). However, those are admittedly personal preferences as there are many who probably would like those essays.

Watched: It Might Get Loud - documentary chronicling the motivations and meeting of three virtuoso guitarists: Jimmy Page, The Edge, and Jack White. Most interesting to those who know or care about those artists or about their take on creativity as expressed through guitar playing. Mildly interesting to those who don't. I went in and out of being interested which is probably appropriate as that is how one reacts to extended bouts of story telling, which is what a lot of this was comprised of. (And, as I seem to stand alone in my disinterest, I'll mention here that I don't care about U2 one way or the other so that hook didn't necessarily grab me. They bore me.) 3 out of 5 stars.

The Cutting Edge - documentary about film editing, which despite being fairly interesting, had sloppy transitions (according to Rose, the film editing student) and seemed as if it could have been better edited (according to me). Worthwhile if you care about the subject and anyone who watches movies much probably does. 3 out of 5 stars.

The Guild, season 1 - a web video series about a "guild" of online role playing gamers whose obsession leaves them very small interaction with real life. I received the dvd with the first two seasons for Christmas. Each episode is extremely brief and the first season lasted only about an hour. It was hilarious. Hilarious. At least to those who have ever been obsessed with a computer game of any sort. Baldur's Gate (Shadows of Amn) anyone? It also has plenty of language and content issues which will be problematic for the sensitive viewer. Not being one such, I found it brilliant. Hannah has yet to watch it although her boyfriend saw it with us. She knows she must watch it so that she gets the context when he hugs her tenderly and murmurs, "Shut up. Just shut up." in her ear.

The Flight of the Conchords, season 1 - Hannah owns this and luckily brought it home. We wound up watching most of season 1 so far. We'd heard it praised by several friends but not having cable we hadn't come across it or bothered to find the dvd yet. For the few who don't know The Flight of the Conchords is the story of a couple of New Zealanders who bring their rock duo to New York City to try to achieve success. They are largely clueless but sweet and surrounded by other clueless characters as well. Each episode features a music video as well which is worked into the context of the show and has equally clueless songs (diabolically clever in their cluelessness). How they do it, I don't know. But this is a seemingly aimless series that grows on you and is really funny.

New Year's Resolutions - Updated

Hmmm, I have long rejected the New Year's resolutions concept. This has gone hand-in-hand with the fct that I seem to renew or refine my personal goals on a biweekly or monthly basis.

I have been painfully aware as many podcasts and blogs pointed out recently that thinking about achieving goals is not the same as doing what is necessary. Especially to the point was Roy H. Williams' 7-Step Secret of Success post and Forging Habits of Steel: 7 tips on making and breaking habits from The Art of Manliness that have been rolling around in my mind.

So what the heck? In for a penny, in for a pound.

1. Daily prayer time.
   Yeah, I know. This is a constant renewed resolution for me. You'd think that was a no-brainer, right? Ok, it is a no-brainer. Want to love God more? Hey, spend some face time with Him daily just like I do with my family. Except I don't do it. I intend to, but somehow that time is always spent somewhere else. For the last couple of weeks though I have been fairly regular by dint of riding the exercise bike each morning and praying/reading the Bible (right now, the fantastic and eye opening translation of Genesis by Robert Alter). Thanks to Jen's reminder that "you pray before battle" and that every day is important in our spiritual battle, I hope I can realign my priorities and improve on my morning routine to the point where the prayer/reading is a non-negotiable "must" for each day.
   
   
2. No book buying for a year.
   Actually, this is just from curiosity to see if I can do it. To see what it feels like to be able to only buy a book if absolutely necessary for the book club (my one allowed exception). It isn't as if the Dallas Public Library doesn't have a gigantic selection, complete with new books coming in every day. I actually feel giddy about this one.
   
   
3. Return to making a weekly meal plan. And to picking a recipe from a different cookbook each week.
   Why I quit doing this last year I don't know. Well, except maybe because I was seduced by those many cooks who just waltz through their market and come home with a gourmet meal inspired by what they picked up on the way. Now, this has never been my style. I'm a planner. Not all that flexible. Well, wait, I am flexible about meals in that I may not follow my meal plan at all and do my improvising after I get it all home. In fact, I actually may improvise while buying groceries. But first I have to be switching from the plan I had to begin with. I just don't work well from ground zero on the run.
   
   
4. Spend dedicated time every evening to writing.
   I've got bulletin inserts to write, am constantly behind on book reviews, and there are various other irons in the fire that I've promised to this or that person. Also when mulling over these projects is when God does some serious tapping on my soul. This is reflection and, I suppose also a sort of prayer, that I'm not gonna get any other way as I have recently realized. Eventually it comes out as something that must be written down in some form, whether review, insert, or post. However, if I don't set aside some dedicated time to just write all this ain't gonna happen. I have to be working toward that goal for all the thinking to matter. And then, why not write it down? Just as with the prayer, I often find excuses not to do. That's gotta stop.

Ok, that's plenty. How about y'all?

UPDATE
Oh the irony! Shortly after I wrote this yesterday, Rose and I went to Half-Price Books with two bags of books to sell. However, I (wo)manfully strode right past the books to the DVD section. Since the main point of the resolution wasn't to save money I felt justified ... and came away with three movies for $6 each that I'd been wishing to watch again but didn't have the forethought to have rented whenever that impulse came to mind. Lady in the Water, A Knight's Tale, and Die Hard.

Oh, and I scored Season 6 of The Simpsons ... which Zoe the Intense and Wash the Destructor (you must say this as "Destruct-or" is said at the end of Ghost Busters) had strewn over the back yard some time ago, complete with deep scratches.

Avatar: The movie so green it recycles the plot

Studio Exec: Hey, James Cameron, do you think we should change it up at all? Maybe add some unexpected twist or unique character?
James Cameron: No, if it worked for Pocahontas and Dances with Wolves, it will work for us!

Studio Exec: But do you think people will notice that we ripped off a bunch of other movies?

James Cameron: I already set it on an alien planet which I've cleverly named Pandora! What more do you want?

Studio Exec: Touche.

Rose's review from The Girl's' Tent

I haven't seen Avatar although I have read many reviews for it, especially enjoying Scott Nehring's savaging as he is quite clever and always amuses me even if I disagree (though I do not necessarily do so in this case, not having seen the movie). I also have heard many heated conversations in the last 24-hours with Rose (thumbs down) sparring against Hannah and Matt (two thumbs waaay up).

Rose also set off a firestorm of comment on her Facebook page when she changed her status to: Rose Davis has seen Avatar in IMAX 3D. Really James Cameron? You started directing again for this? Really?!?

I will say that Rose gives the film its due, saying that the graphics are worth a viewing and that the movie was entertaining, if you don't thnk too much.  However, she says so, so much more. Go read it.

Sherlock Holmes: and now for something completely different

There has been a great deal of nonsense talked about the new Sherlock Holmes movie not being a faithful presentation of Holmes and Watson. In actuality, Jude Law is one of the great Watsons, adding to the virtues of his acting a face straight out of the Paget illustrations. It was eerie. Downey did a miraculous job of playing Holmes without playing any of his actor predecessors in the role. With help from the script, he even managed to convince one that the one factor that neither Holmes nor he could alter — height — was meant to be shortness, not tallness. It was a great pleasure to see him go to work, or rather, to see Holmes emerge, fully formed, from Downey. Downey and Law made a great team, a faithful depiction of the young Holmes and Watson having adventures.

Aliens in This World wrote a lengthy review/response to nitpicky critics of the newest Sherlock Holmes movie. I also enjoyed reading this as it echoed my own first thoughts on seeing the trailer and reading initial reviews. Primarily among those were that Doyle wrote Holmes for money not art, much preferring his own historical novels, and that my own love of Without a Clue which also twists the Holmesian legend. At any rate, it is worth reading.

New Year's Eve

Signing off to go prep the celebratory feast for tonight. Don't forget that tomorrow is a Holy Day of Obligation ... which is why our church's vigil service at 6 p.m. looks like Christmas Midnight Mass, or so I'm told. We go to the 10 a.m. on the day itself.

However, until then ... here's a little bubbly from that maestro of the paintbrush, Edward B. Gordon.

"Did you say, 'enough?' You have perished."

I've been trying to find a little time here and there to go through past years (waaay past) and toss some of the detritus that accumulates. Old quizzes, pointers to blogs that are now long gone, that sort of thing. I only bother because Blogger will only allow you access to your most recent 5,000 posts. Yes, I said only. At one point I had over 8,000 posts. I'd like to be able to label and sometimes repost the really old Bible study posts from 2004 and suchlike.

At any rate, I was bemused when coming across this back in the early months of the 2005 archives. It expresses perfectly a subject that arose at Sancta Sanctis where Enbrethiliel was musing about cradle Catholics versus converts, simultaneously bemoaning the loss of Catholic culture to those who acquire their Catholicism mostly through book larnin'. Or something like that. The comments, to which I was also an enthusiastic party, have been lively.

So you can see why this really spoke to me when I read it.

We must never allow ourselves to think we have had sufficient formation. We must never be satisfied with the amount of knowledge about Jesus Christ and his teaching that we have so far acquired. Love always seeks to know the beloved better. In professional life, doctors, say, or architects or lawyers, though they may be good at their profession never think they have finished studying once they have qualified: they go on learning -- always. And so it is with the Christian. We can apply Saint Augustine's maxim to doctrinal formation: Did you say "enough?" You have perished.

The quality of the instrument -- for that is what we all are, instruments in God's hands -- can improve, it can develop new possibilities. Each day we can love a little more and give better example. But we will not achieve this if our understanding is not continually nourished by sound doctrine. I cannot say how often I have been told that some old Irishman saying his rosary is holier than I am, with all my study. I daresay he is. For his own sake, I hope he is. But if the only evidence is that he knows less theology than I, then it would not convince him, because all those rosary-loving, tabernacle-loving old Irishmen I have ever known ... were avid for more knowledge of the faith. It does not convince me, because while it is obvious that an ignorant man can be virtuous, it is equally obvious that ignorance is not a virtue; men have been martyred who could not have stated a doctrine of the church correctly, and martyrdom is the supreme proof of love: yet with more knowledge of God they would have loved him more still. (F. J. Sheed, Theology for Beginners)

The so-called plain man's faith ("I believe it all, even though I don't know what it is") is not sufficient for a Christian in the world who is confronted each day by confusion and a lack of light regarding Christ's doctrine -- the only doctrine that saves -- and is daily encountering ethical problems, both new and old, at work, in his family life, and in the environment in which he lives.

In Conversation with God: Ordinary Time Weeks 1-12

Top Discoveries of 2009: Blogs and Fiction

Once again, in no particular order, just as I came across them and added to my list ...

Blog Discoveries

• Do You Write Under Your Own Name?
  Martin Edwards is a British mystery writer who writes informatively and entertainingly about mysteries he's read, his own writing, and, to a lesser degree, about his craft in general. I've picked up several interesting book tips there and am awaiting delivery to my local library of a couple of his books to try.
• Mexico Bob
  As the name indicates, Bob is in Mexico. He's an American expat who writes about learning Spanish, Mexican customs and daily life, and also about his Catholic faith every so often. He's always interesting and has a big heart as anyone who has read about the time he agreed to let a gaggle of local school children interview him or about the stray dogs he feeds. Yeah. I'm a fan.
• Betty Duffy
  I discovered Betty Duffy via Darwin Catholic's frequent references. She's a no nonsense gal who constantly considers her life through that lens of faith which I so enjoy reading. She's not a wimp and she can take a shot in the comments boxes as I discovered when objecting to ... oh, I don't remember ... something. She totally disarmed me by responding, "Julie D, You've called me out! What fun!" I like her.
  
• Roman Catholic Cop
  The name pretty much says it all. Jamie's been a cop for 14 years and reading his thoughts about his faith while looking at the world he sees in law enforcement is an insightful ride along.
• The Art of Manliness: a blog dedicated to uncovering the lost art of being a man.
  Written by husband and wife team, Brett and Kate McKay this fantastic blog is not really for men only. True, in their search for the lost art of manliness, the blog features articles on helping men be better husbands, better fathers, and better men. However, tucked among articles about falconry, 3 feats of strength, and early 20th century battles every man should know are things like how to write a thank you note and what a manly man can expect from women (which is not bad for women to read either).
• Why I Am Catholic
  Recently begun by Webster Bull in response to the many puzzled people who kept asking about his conversion, this blog soon became a staple of my daily blog reading. Webster writes movingly and intelligently about his conversion and what he has found to love in the faith. Frank recently joined the blog so there are now two viewpoints about what there is to value in our faith.

Top Fiction

•  Grimspace by Ann Aguirre
  From an Amazon review: Sirantha Jax is a jumper, an individual with a rare gene that allows her to access GRIMSPACE and therefore speed up space travel. She finds herself trapped in a psych unit cell, accused of somehow killing the entire crew of her last assigned ship. Everyone... including her pilot, lover, and friend, Kai. The bond between pilot and jumper is sacrosanct and Sirantha can't fathom how or why she would have caused such a crash. Unfortunately, she can't remember what went wrong. A man named March enters her cell and offers to rescue her. But what does he want in return? What will be the costs of this rescue?
  
  My comments: I can tell you that this is space opera at its finest. Tough, hard bitten characters with hearts of gold waaaaay down below the surface, romance, terrifyingly creepy aliens, a mystery to solve while on the run from the authorities. This book has it all. I was pretty disappointed that the sequel didn't match up to the original.
• Anatomy of Fear by Jonathan Santlofer
  From the book description: From the smallest clues—an off-hand comment, a brief flash of fear in a victim's eyes—Nate Rodriguez is able to create an uncanny likeness of the assailant. Now Detective Terri Russo needs his help to solve a particularly shocking series of murders, perpetrated by a psychopath who enjoys drawing pictures of his crimes before committing them. Nate is being asked to enter the dark, twisted mind of a monster—to re-create a face that no one has lived to identify. But as a portrait slowly begins taking shape in Nate's mind and on the page, an electrifying game of cat and mouse reaches an unexpected new level—as a brilliant killer uses his own unique talents to turn the investigation in a terrifying new direction...
  
  I especially enjoyed Santlofer's artistic knowledge, Nate's grandmother who practices voodoo to help protect her grandson, the mystery from Nate's background that keeps popping up to haunt him, and ... of course ... guessing who was committing the crimes. I read lots of mysteries but somehow this one grabbed me enough to make me interested in the entire series and I'm still not tired of Nate.
  
• The Death of a Pope by Piers Paul Read
  A thriller that keeps you on the edge of your seat. Oh, with lots of Catholicism. That too. My review is here.
• The Uncommon Reader by Arnold Bennett
  A sweet and charming tale of Queen Elizabeth II suddenly being overtaken by reading every book she can get her hands on. My review is here.
• Eon: Dragoneye Reborn by Alison Goodman
  This story set in a mythical China where real dragons control the weather, among other things, captivated not only me but Hannah as well. My review is here.
• Way Station by Clifford D. Simak
  From SFFaudio's review: This story spans more than a century, but most of the ‘action’ takes place in the middle of the 20th century, over a couple of months. See, a friendly alien recruited Enoch Wallace to become something of a galactic station master shortly after the American Civil War. Now, with his neighbors generally accepting his mysterious eternal youth, Enoch has a curious and unseen visitor watching him from the woods. Enoch is lonely, with his only friends being a completely deaf and mute young woman and his kindly mailman. Will the visitor in the trees learn the truth? Will Enoch help guide the Earth to its ultimate destiny?
  
  I really enjoyed this story which also sparked quite a debate about the nature of fiction and storytelling between Jesse from SFFaudio and me. (Dang, I think those comments are lost at the moment thanks to Haloscan's bugging out.) This story makes you think of what it means to truly be human, the nature of conflict (and not just between Jesse and me), and also made me love and appreciate nature more than ever.
  

So I'm Betting I Won't Be Finishing Any More Books This Year ...

... which will put my yearly count for 2009 at 123. Funny how podcasting and blogging and other writing projects cut into one's reading time. I still have several reviews to get out (Mark Shea's Mary trilogy, Lorraine Murray's spiritual bio of Flannery O'Connor) which I am going to try to do in the next week, but that's really my problem and nothing that anyone else really cares about isn't it?

I began using GoodReads this year as an alternative to keeping a list by hand. My "2009" list is below:

My New Year's resolution in reading is to jot at least a line of comment for each book with current impressions as I'm reading or in summary since for me that is the most interesting part of looking at anyone's "read" list. I don't care so much if someone has read a book as I do about knowing what they thought of it. Clearly I've been remiss in that area. I always have a link in the sidebar showing what I'm reading currently.

My attempt to begin as I mean to go on may be found in my newly updated "reading list." Click through to see current comments on books I have cracked open at the moment (yes, all over the house so I'm never without reading material wherever I go ... except, now that I think of it, in the bathroom which is the more "traditional" place to have a little something for those extra few moments of seclusion.)

Top Discoveries of 2009: Movies and Audiobooks

I couldn't resist, especially since I've been making notes for these categories since the beginning of the year. So I dodged back in to drop some of them on y'all (oh, how I've missed doing that in the last few days). These are not necessarily new as of 2009 but things that I discovered in 2009.

Click through the links for reviews. Where there are none I made a few notes which, admittedly, are brief, but it is this or nuttin'.

So here goes ... with no particular order within the lists, except chronologically I suppose.

Top Movies
In a year in which we watched fewer movies than ever, these were the stand outs.

• In Bruges
• Lagaan
• Star Trek
• JCVD
• Gran Torino
• Stranded
• Spaced: ok, not a movie but whatever. This is the television show that Edgar Wright and Simon Pegg (Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz) did before their movies. Somewhat slow moving it is nonetheless hilarious. Chock full of sci-fi, pop culture, and video game references, it chronicles the adventures of a guy and girl who pretend to be a couple in order to fulfill the rental requirements for a decent flat. You either will like this or you won't. We all do except for Rose who prefers to ignore it while doing soduku. But 3 outta 4 ain't bad!

Top Audiobooks

• The Adventures of Jimmie Dale by Frank L. Packard (free from Librivox, click through for full story description): done by various readers, one of whom read two or three chapters evidently to practice his English which was excruciating to listen to. However, this tale of dashing adventure from the turn of the century set in New York's gritty underbelly took no great harm from my skipping those couple chapters. This story made me a Frank L. Packard fan.
• Lamentation by Ken Scholes (reviewed for SFFaudio): not just the best audiobook I heard, but very possibly the best science fiction I "read" all year. Wow.
• The White Moll by Frank L. Packard (free from Librivox, click through for full story description): the White Moll, an angel of mercy in the New York slums, is falsely accused of a terrible crime. She must now use her intelligence, grit, and knowledge of slum gangs to outwit both her accusers and the police. This story made me a fan of narrator Rowdy Delaney whose low key style proved addictive.
• Giants of the Frost by Kim Wilkins (reviewed for SFFaudio): just when you think this is a typical romance story (enough already of the whining girl protagonist) it takes a very interesting turn for the better into Norse mythology.
• The White Company by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (free from Librivox, click through for full story description): surprisingly Doyle considered his historical novels to be his best and I must say this book makes a strong case. A story of knight errantry, wooing a fair lady, and learning the ways of the world during England's Hundred Years War with France.
  

The Thoughtfulness of Pope Benedict XVI

Back in the day when the Pope was Cardinal Ratzinger, Pete Seewald did a series of interviews which give us great insight into the way our Papa thinks. And I like it. Here's a great example directly swiped from Webster at Why I Am Catholic. Tge non-italicized words are Webster's commentary. Go there to read all of his post.

In the interviews that became God and the World (Ignatius Press, 2002), German journalist Peter Seewald asked then-Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger:

In the course of two thousand years of Christian history, the Church has divided time and again. In the meantime, there are around three hundred distinguishable Protestant, Orthodox, or other churches. There are way over a thousand Baptist groups in the United States. Over against these there is still the Roman Catholic Church with the pope at her head, which claims to be the only true Church. She remains at any rate, and despite every crisis, indeed the most universal, historically significant, and successful Church in the world, with more members today than at any time in her history.

This question asked by a skeptical young journalist, no Catholic at the time he asked it, might seem to be what Frank would call a “fat pitch.” Did Ratzinger, in his answer, knock Protestantism out of the park in a grand slam of triumphalism? No, the cardinal laid down a thoughtful bunt single—then stole second, third, and home:

I think that in the spirit of Vatican II we ought not to see that as a triumph for our prowess as Catholics and ought not to make much of the institutional and numerical strength we continue to enjoy. If we were to reckon that as our achievement and as our right, then we would step outside the role of a people belonging to God and set ourselves up as an association in our own right. And that can very quickly go wrong. A Church may have great institutional power in a country, but as soon as faith is no longer there to back it up, the institution will break down.


Perhaps you know the mediaeval story of a Jew who traveled to the papal court and who became a Catholic. On his return, someone who knew the papal court well asked him: “Do you realize what sort of things are going on there?” “Yes,” he said, “of course, quite scandalous things, I saw it all.” “And you still became a Catholic,” remarked the other man. “That’s completely perverse!” Then the Jew said, “It is because of all that that I have become a Catholic. For if the Church continues to exist in spite of it all, then truly there must be someone upholding her.” And there is another story, to the effect that Napoleon once declared that he would destroy the Church. Whereupon one of the cardinals replied, “Not even we have managed that!”


I believe that we see something important in these paradoxical tales. There have in fact always been plenty of human monstrosities in the Catholic Church. That she still holds together, even if she groans and creaks, that she is still in existence, that she produces great martyrs and great believers, people who put their whole lives at her service, as missionaries, as nurses, as teachers, that really does show that there is someone there upholding her.


We cannot, then, reckon the Church’s success as our own reward, but we may still say, with Vatican II—even if the Lord has given a great deal of life to other churches and communities—that the Church herself, as an active agent, has survived and is present in this agent. And that can only be explained by the fact that He grants what men cannot achieve.

Letter to the Editor

From the peerless Dr. Boli, of course.

Sir:

It is patently obvious to the most casual observer that our nation is not ready for the year 2010. Where are the orbiting space resorts and commercial interplanetary liners? Where are the extraterrestrial races with whom we ought to have established contact years ago, and with whom we should now be enjoying a flourishing trade? Where is the universal liberal democracy we were promised? Where is the end to hunger, poverty, and disease that was so confidently predicted?

There is no gentle way of putting this: we have fallen behind. Worse, we are in danger of becoming a nation of cynics because of it. We have a great deal of catching up to do if we are to restore the faith of the public in the year 2010.

I therefore urge your influential publication to put all its weight behind supporting the bill currently before the United States House of Representatives, commonly called the Catch-Up Act of 2009, which would postpone the beginning of the year 2010 until after December 3683, 2009, at which time a Special Committee would evaluate the nation’s preparedness and decide whether to extend the month of December for a further 3652 days. I also urge your editorial staff to refrain henceforth from facetiously referring to the bill as the “Catsup Act,” as we have had quite enough of that already from the opposition in Congress.

Sincerely,
[Name Withheld by Request],
Speaker of the House of Representatives,
Washington, D.C.

I value this holiday message as much as the excellent reading I know I will hear

Download the Life of Our Lord here.

We Are the Beggars Music Review: Solid Praise and Worship

This debut album from Ike Ndolo is an interesting mix of quiet, passionate praise and worship songs spiced up with the occasional rock song. The lyrics tend to be simple but that is not necessarily to their detriment. After listening to the CD several times I found, to my surprise, that the louder rock anthems I originally liked best were not what grabbed my mind's ear as I would catch myself humming some of the straight forward songs. This is despite the fact that, although the album is well produced, it tends to be a bit conventional in places with musical changes predictable to anyone who has heard much praise and worship music. This is not the case in every song but it is there.

Ndolo's talent is obvious and although the album is being marketed to the youth group demographic there is much here to recommend it to all ages, especially considering that older listeners are usually well attuned to appreciate the passion of an electric guitar.

My personal favorite was Wade in the Water which instantly went into my God Mix playlist. An adaptation of an old spiritual, this song broke the more conventional sounds of the other songs and the hint of banjo in the background speaks to Ndolo's self professed love of bluegrass (which we share). My interpretation is that this might be more to Ndolo's personal taste and I hope that future albums will see the producers let this talented young artist break free from convention a bit more and trust his own musical inclinations.

Tom's pronouncement: "Solid." High praise indeed from someone who is all about the music and not moved much by praise and worship music unless it is good music in itself.

Definitely recommended. It is a bit late to get this for Christmas unless the local Christian store is lucky enough to have it on hand. However, it would be a great way to spend that Christmas cash if you are looking for a way to lift your heart in praise of God. (Although now that I think of it, you can download the mp3s instantly. I tend to forget that, preferring to have an actual CD in my hands.)

You can hear samples and order the album here. I received this CD as a review piece but would give it the same rating regardless.

My Christmas Wish: That More People Would Make This Their New Year's Resolution

This all boils down to the need for more tolerance – not of other cultures, but tolerance of being offended. Instead of taking every word or phrase as a personal attack on a policy, creed, or preference, we should invoke that age-old rhyme regarding the sticks and the stones. I’m not sure when nit-picking language became a crucial part of our culture, but it needs to stop if we ever hope to be able to communicate the things that are really on the hearts and minds of the American people.

From an article at Curator magazine.

I suppose this gives you some idea of what our household is really like ...

... when I tell you that we were decorating the tree, the whole family together, conversation flying since all four of us hadn't been together since April

Then it happened. We suddenly ran into a wall over something that we just could not agree on. The uncomfortable pause while searching for a new subject, that point we didn't want to go past or it would get ugly ... came when considering whether Stephen Hawking's motivations for coming up with string theory were because he just was pursuing a great scientific idea or was actively searching for ways to avoid any hint of God in how the universe was created.

Yes. I know.

Can you spell "geek?"

We sure can.

The Uninvited, chapters 8-9

Now playing at Forgotten Classics as well as a source for ghost stories (of a sort) for Christmas. Ghost stories for Christmas, you may ask. If you have to ask, then you have to listen to get the answer. To the first few minutes of the podcast at any rate.

The Book of the Shepherd: Gnostic Twaddle Disguised as a Sweet Fable

I was asked if I'd like a review copy of The Book of the Shepherd: The Story of One Simple Prayer and How It Changed the World. The email commented, "... we believe this story of one simple prayer and how it changed the world does a superb job of examining the role of personal action in making the world more peaceful, and how peace on earth should begin with me."

My response was, "I must admit that I am dubious about this book, having read the first few pages at HarperCollins' site and also having just heard the first part of The Pilgrim's Progress. The Book of the Shepherd seems much of a muchness with that 300+ year old book.

However, if you believe I am wrong, then I am willing to read the book to see for myself."

Frankly, if I'd been them, that would have been enough to check me off the list. However, I received the book late last week and read it over the weekend.

My short review: the fable presented in this book is one of the biggest loads of sweetly simpering twaddle that has everything about 2/3 right. It should be avoided by all literature lovers and all practicing Christians.

I kept thinking that something was off as I read it, kept thinking "gnostic gospels?" but hadn't read any gnostic gospels. I got to the end and it turns out (Bingo!) that one of the author's sources was The Gnostic Gospels by Elaine Pagels which puts orthodox Christianity on trial as being formed from political and social reasons. Add to that her grateful credit to Philip Pullman's The Golden Compass and my sense of something being "off" proved completely justified.

The author wrote the story to illustrate the Prayer of St. Francis of Assisi that most of us know relatively well.

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace,
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
where there is sadness, joy;

O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console;
to be understood as to understand;
to be loved as to love.

For it is in giving that we receive;
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.

However, the author forgets what St. Francis never did. As praiseworthy as that prayer is, St. Francis's words are not gospel in themselves. He never would have urged us to interpret them without having Jesus Christ in the heart and center of them. This book is missing that heart and center.

I generally do not give bad reviews, especially to review books, preferring simply to ignore them. However, in this case, I felt my warning to the publisher was enough to justify setting that policy aside, especially as I feel this book is potentially dangerous to those of unformed faith. In fact, I had to scrape off the coffee grounds from this book after I plucked it from the trashcan in order to give you the dubious sources the author quotes. That is how much I care, folks. Avoid this book.

My advice is that excellent advice for how to live is found in the Gospels. If you want another source, then pick up a true classic, The Pilgrim's Progress. If reading it seems daunting, then this version on audio (both dramatized and a straight reading) is excellent. There is also this version at Librivox, free for the downloading. I admit I haven't heard it so can't comment on the quality of the reading. However, the point is that there is plenty of good material available without having to resort to The Book of the Shepherd.

Hi Matt ... and Tell Kirby Hi for Me ...

It's a small world thanks to the Internet and I find it out more all the time.

One of my very best friends, Joan, tells me that her lovely eldest daughter's boyfriend (who I hear is a heckuva good guy) told her about this great new blog he discovered.

Yep, we come full circle. And to think I can remember the days when I volunteered to be the Cookie Mom (yes, I'm also stupid) for the Girl Scouts which Joan headed up.

Matt, if you're ever in Dallas be sure to let me know. I'd love to meet you. (And now you know that your good reputation has preceded you!)

In the News ... Catholic Edition

Just a couple of things that I wanted to highlight more than in my Google Reader feed (sidebar). Both via the indispensable New Advent.

Pope John Paul II and Pope Pius XII Declared Venerable
Which is official recognition of their heroic virtue. They and nine others now qualify for the title "Venerable" and may be beatified with the approval of a miracle. That isn't all. Go read the list here of people who obeyed God with their all in all in those special vocations for which he created them. May their lives inspire in us the desire to do the same.

Bishops to Government: We're Not Backing Down on Abortion. Period.

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops is demanding that Pres. Barack Obama’s health-care revolution not include subsidized abortion — and the bishops are demanding honesty on the issue.

At a high-level Washington, D.C., insider dinner recently, a fellow Catholic made a highly cynical, harsh, and scandalously inaccurate accusation: that in the current debate, the bishops’ conference would trade abortion for immigration. That’s simply not true. As many disagreements as I might have on prudential matters with some of my fellow churchmen who are bureaucrats — and bishops! — on issues like immigration and health care, I recognize that their message on abortion is clear and unmistakable. As Francis Cardinal George of Chicago, president of the conference, has put it: “No one should be deliberately killed.” Even if some Catholics serving in Congress don’t accept that defending the most vulnerable human life is a matter of human rights and a moral imperative, the bishops’ official teaching is that abortion is a non-negotiable: We can’t have taxpayer funding of abortion, period.

Read it here. Lend them your support in prayer and in contacting your elected officials to join your voices with theirs.

A Cradle Catholic, A Convert, and An Atheist Walk into a Christmas Party ...

... and come out with a glittering truth in defense of the Church.

“There’s need and there’s truth. Truth is truth, regardless of what man’s needs may be. If there is a diamond in the middle of the road, it doesn’t matter what anyone is doing in the road. The jewelers can be corrupt. The diamond merchants can be guilty of horrible abuses. And people can lust after the diamond or they can ignore it altogether. It’s still a diamond.”

Read what led up to it and what happened after this statement at Why I Am Catholic.

It's About Babies. And, Yes, You Will Like It.

The trailer anyway. If the opening vignette doesn't grab you, then nothing will. And the ending shot is priceless.


Via DarwinCatholic with whom I must agree when they point out:

Pay close attention to the first rock-pounding sequence and reflect on St. Augustine's assertion that the effects of original sin are quite obvious in babies, who are pretty selfish by nature.

"It is good that you exist."

Man is that strange creature that needs not just physical birth but also appreciation if he is to subsist . . . If an individual is to accept himself, someone must say to him: “It is good that you exist” – must say it, not with words, but with that act of the entire being that we call love.

This is just a tiny bit of an excerpt from Pope Benedict that The Anchoress quotes in a searching and insightful post. She travels from seeing President Obama as a rather chilly, off-putting individual to looking beneath the surface to his "I" as Pope Benedict would put it. To seeing the person behind the surface elements.

This is a hugely important reminder to us all, especially in the last days of Advent. It is easy to talk the talk, but when it comes to walking the walk ... well, politics and personality and history and every other element that make us different individuals can rise to the surface and make us forget that we are to love one another as we love ourselves.

In this, The Anchoress leads us to consider where to turn in following Mother Teresa's command:

Find your own Calcutta.

It isn't as far away as you might think.

It is in the in-laws who interfere and don't appreciate our beloved family members.

It is in the teacher who picks on our children.

It is in the checker in the grocery store who doesn't smile and isn't nice and won't accept our coupon. Or who chats too much and wants to be our friend. (Depending on my mood ... because it's all about me isn't it?)

In fact our Calcutta is within ourselves. As we struggle to live the command to love one another no matter how unlovable those "others" seem to be.

Read The Anchoress's piece and let us ponder it in our hearts. We must ask where we are being called to love until it hurts ... to show them that "It is good that you exist."

"I am curious. Why do you list those for whom you privately pray?"

In case anyone else has this question about The Basics.

1. So that others may pray for them also.
   I am continually surprised and pleased at just how many people do that very thing.
   
   
2. So that we may praise God together when a prayer is answered
   (Hint: check the prayer list from the link above ... and see what I mean)

Thank you for asking!

Mouth Wide Open ... for Bagna Cauda

A little something about a traditional Italian peasant dish that is perfect for cold weather ... from John Thorne's Mouth Wide Open at Forgotten Classics podcast.

As well as a couple of Christmas podcast highlights.

Enjoy!

Evolution Going Great, Reports Trilobite

"It's a wonderful time to be alive," said the tri-lobed creature, its protruding feelers and antennules twitching spasmodically with anticipation. "To be born during this, the Cambrian Explosion—why, I couldn't imagine a better period, really. It's all happening right now! I mean, if things keep going the way they're going, what with evolution taking off and everything, pretty soon we'll have huge, towering reptiles roaming across the earth."

"Can you imagine it? Reptiles!" the trilobite added. "I'm not even sure what those are!"

The top story of The Onion's Top 10 Stories of the Last 4.5 Billion Years (warning: site often contains explicit content).

Tom's personal favorite was "Sumerians Look On In Confusion As God Creates World."

Members of the earth's earliest known civilization, the Sumerians, looked on in shock and confusion some 6,000 years ago as God, the Lord Almighty, created Heaven and Earth.

[...]

"The Sumerian people must have found God's making of heaven and earth in the middle of their well-established society to be more of an annoyance than anything else," said Paul Helund, ancient history professor at Cornell University. "If what the pictographs indicate are true, His loud voice interrupted their ancient prayer rituals for an entire week."

Not every story hits the mark for me but most are truly hilarious, as are a lot of their runners up.

The first steampunk on TV ... of course, Wild Wild West!

I don't know why this never occurred to me before, but when Amy H. Sturgis discussed steampunk and Wild, Wild West in her fact article on StarShipSofa podcast (it is the first thing up, by the way, in case that is all you might care to hear) I was thunderstruck.

Because to anyone who loved that show the way I did, it is obvious once it is pointed out. (Robert Conrad's physical perfection, which Amy acknowledges, is largely what drew me to the show, but I stayed for the clever plots and steampunk-ish elements ... though we didn't have a name for them at the time.) When I mentioned it to Tom, he instantly got it too.

Which is what led to the fact that I just got the notice from the library that my request for the complete first season dvd set is ready to pick up. I am really curious to see how this stands up ... or if my love for the show will blind me to imperfections.

So Haloscan is being replaced ...

... and I'm thinking I'll just switch over to Blogger comments.

I know I'll lose the old Haloscan comments but I can live with that.

Any ... ahem ... comments on that?

Books for Beginners on the Catholic Basics

Note: I have added "beginners to the header for this. As a reader pointed out, Peter Kreeft's Catholic Christianity is a great book on the basics. However, I wouldn't throw it at anyone who is tentative about Catholicism. It is as intimidating as the Catechism in sheer size alone, although not in tone. It does belong on a list of solid basic books that would include the Catechism thought.

Like many other dioceses around the country, Dallas is also promoting the Catholis Come Home idea. I like it. Our parish has a group, headed by our stalwart Deacon Ken, who are working hard to have a series of witnesses and talks during January for those who have questions or problems they are working through in coming back to the Church.

One question that has arisen is what would be good book recommendations to give?

Well, I'm not working on the campaign (being overextended everywhere in my life right now), but that never stopped me from giving my opinion about good basic reading about Catholicism. So I'm sharing with y'all a few trustworthy books that I recommend which are not as intimidating to newbies (or even old timers, sometimes) as the Catechism.

BOOKS ON THE BASICS

• Pocket Guides
  I can highly recommend the Pocket Guide to Confession and also the Pocket Guide to the Mass. In fact, I take the Confession guide out for a spin when preparing for that sacrament and then it comes with me to the church.These are $6.95 each so again this is a fairly inexpensive resource. Our Sunday Visitor has these.
  
• The Complete Idiot's Guide to the Catholic Catechism
  my review here


• Catholicism for Dummies
  I haven't reviewed this but looking through my archives it turns out that I have used it extensively. You can check out some posts that feature quotes from the book.


• The How-To Book of Catholic Devotions
  I haven't reviewed this either but it is by Mike Aquilina and that is enough. He's entirely reliable. Also I read it and kept it. I don't have book room to waste on something I don't trust.


• Why Do Catholics Do That?
  I can't believe I haven't done a review of this book because it is one that I actually keep extra copies of so I can give it to people who have questions. I will put the Amazon review here as it already says what I think:

  Why Do Catholics Do That? by Kevin Orlin Johnson assumes nothing and tells all. As such, it's not only an ideal catechism companion but also a source of infinite wisdom for students of art history, politics, literature, philosophy, and pretty much any other subject connected with Catholic history. In a voice refreshingly free of condescension (and full of humor, witnessed in chapter titles such as "Saints: How You Get To Be One"), Johnson defines and expatiates upon hundreds of topics, including the Mass, the rosary, the cross, the eucharist, and the pope. Why Do Catholics Do That? is destined for the all-time top 20 list of indispensable desk references. Whether your interest in Catholicism is devoutly religious or defiantly secular, you'll be glad Kevin Orlin Johnson has fulfilled his vocation so faithfully. --Michael Joseph Gross

• Compendium to the Catechism
  Hopefully a lot of people know this one. A greatly simplified version of the catechism that does not look as intimidating and has the scoop ... but which may lead those who are afraid of the Catechism into investigating further as well.

UNUSUAL BOOKS THERE MIGHT BE NEED OF
Ok, these are not orthodox BUT it occurs to me that these would be very handy in case a Catholic who wants to come home is grappling with issues with a Protestant spouse. Links go to my reviews.

• The Lure of Saints - about why venerating saints is ok


• The Rosary: A Journey to the Beloved --- obviously, about the rosary and why Protestants should take up this form of prayer

I do NOT advise Sweeney's book about Mary (Lure of the Saints author) as it has a couple of chapters where he gets kinda wonky.

What We Do ... At Work

Here is a site we just finished for a local musician. He is a highly talented violinist whose cds we enjoy at home, often during dinner, believe it or not. A talented designer we know did the concept work and we brought it to life via code.

And, for those who want to see more, here is our business web site.

Sometimes I get well intended emails from folks wanting to send some business our way. Thing is, because we work in graphics, they have the impression that we are actually printers.

We actually do graphic design and layout. If one can apply the term layout to web sites, which I don't know why not. As well, we do design and layout for jobs going to an actual printer ... ads, catalogs, books, and the like. Hopefully, you can tell that from the site ... or we're not doing our job very well.

The Man Who Invented Christmas

In a literary sense and a more surprising way, you may find ... is featured in some lagniappe over at Forgotten Classics.

For more Christmas listening, of a wordy sort, you may want to check out my Huffduffer feed (RSS, iTunes) where I'm posting podcasts that are talking about Christmas traditions, history, stories, and things that may help you this year (such as tips on holiday party small talk).

Finally, an audio version of A Christmas Carol that Tom would love ... read by Tim Curry

That pretty much says it all. It is being offered free by Audible right now and you must have an Audible account. But it is free.

Read more about it here.

Get it from Audible here.

The Top 50 Movies of the 2000's

Scott Nehring at Good News Film Reviews is blogging again (WOOHOO!). He steals a march on those end of year countdowns with his end-of-decade countdown of the top 50 movies.

Scott and I have a continual disagreement over various movies yet I am one of his biggest fans. He brings a thoughtful Christian perspective to movie viewing ... and he's funny. Which as we all know is the spice of movie reviews, not to mention life (my life at any rate). I mean to say, this comment about Avatar gives you a taste of what I love about his commentary:

The question I'm left with is this: am I the only one struck by the irony that Cameron had to blow $500,000,000.00 in order to remind us the superiority of primitive cultures - you know, the kinds that don't have the technology to watch his stupid movies in the first place?

He nails it. Is there anyone who has watched a couple of the trailers and doesn't get that point?

Go see if you agree or not with his top 50 list. I haven't read it yet thoroughly but didn't want to make y'all wait until next week. Enjoy his snarky movie review goodness now ... as an early Christmas gift.

I didn't expect this sort of wisdom from Jeff Bridges

WSJ: You've been married to the same woman for 32 years. Rule No. 1 for staying together in Hollywood?

Jeff Bridges: Don't get a divorce. That will keep you together, you know.

In an interview about Crazy Heart.

Looking for Some Good Podcast Listening?

B-Movie Catechism has a nice variety listed, keyed to interests which include Catholicism and, well, B-movies.

It ranges from Peter Kreeft on screenwriting to The Flicks That Church Forgot which I seized upon with delight. Many thanks also for their inclusion of my own reading of The Uninvited which is the book du jour at Forgotten Classics ... nothing like a good ghost story to interest B-movie appetites!

And Now for Something Completely Different ... Granola!

Just so you know, Tom and I not only enjoy cocktails, I also have been grooving on this home made granola which I've been making for the last couple of months.

A Doozy of a Conversion Story

For some reason my conversion story has been brought up to me a lot lately. The most vivid example is that I was in a meeting about something else entirely (well, ok it was at church, it was with Christians, but it was not about sharing those kinds of stories) when I was asked point blank to tell how I became Christian. Demurring, I looked down the table and saw so many eager, questioning faces that I was forced to believe they really wanted to hear it.

Retelling the story made me realize afresh how many "coincidences" there were and that this experience of "coincidences" happens more than we would think, if we are just paying attention. This was a point dwelt upon by everyone at that meeting also.

Therefore when I read Mary Karr's interview about her recent conversion to Catholicism what really resonated was her fellow recognition of those coincidences, as well as those moments of experiencing God that just cannot be adequately communicated to those who do not believe. Here's an excerpt and here's the whole thing.

I had a needle biopsy once during a very dark spiritual time. I went in as scheduled, and the guy who was supposed to do the biopsy was in surgery and couldn't do it, and they tried to reschedule it. Normally I would have been very upset, but I just said OK and rescheduled it. As I rounded the corner, I ran into someone in the hall. He said, "Do you remember me? You coached my daughter in Little League." It turned out he was an oncologist and he could do the biopsy.

That's the kind of experience I have now. If I had been yelling and screaming at the nurses, I wouldn't have run into him. Then, when I was lying on the table, I really just had such a sense of the presence of Christ. I was so peaceful. When I had come in for the biopsy, when the woman took my blood pressure, I started crying. I remember telling a girlfriend about it, who isn't Christian. She said, "Oh, you just had the feeling that you know you don't have cancer." I said, "No, I had the feeling that whether I had cancer or not, I wouldn't be alone."

Interview via Conversion Diary.

Not that all Tom and I do is drink on the weekends ...

... but I realize it might look that way from the preponderance of cocktail recipes I've been featuring lately.

What can I say. They're easy to make and we know how to pick good ones to try ... apparently.

With that out of the way, get ready to meet last weekend's hits: Garnet and X.Y.Z. Cocktail.

Just a little more Twilight

Mrs. Darwin's hilarious commentary on New Moon and paper cuts, invariably makes me recall the only other thing I know about this series (aside from the werewolf versus vampire choice that Bella must make) ... which is "sparkly skin."

That all takes me back to Cleolinda's Movies in 15 Minutes where you will see an absolutely hilarious send up of Twilight. I didn't enjoy her New Moon send up nearly as much, although I generally acknowledge Cleolinda to be a genius. Perhaps because there's not as much "there" there for her to work with.

I'm reposting this bit to whet your appetite. It's emo-tastic.

(For this, one must know the context that the real reason vampires don't go out in the sunlight is that their skin sparkles and that would give them away. Bram Stoker is busy turning in his grave right now ... oh, right and here is the obligatory warning that you may see some explicit something or other at her site, so don't click through if that is problematic.)

EDWARD: I AM VAMPIRE. HEAR ME TWINKLE.

BELLA: Oh, wow, I spent like $60 at Sephora trying to get sparkle like that. What is that, Urban Decay?

EDWARD: NO!

BELLA: Oh, so it's a drugstore brand?

EDWARD: THIS IS THE SKIN OF A KILLER, BELLA!

BELLA: FINE. WHATEVER. But the lipstick, that's gotta be Cargo, right?

EDWARD: *FLOUNCE*

It's All Downhill from Here

A little midweek humor from Dr. Boli.

Go to Joseph

I have been reading a really wonderful little book called Go to Joseph by Fr. Richard W. Gilsdorf.

The book description leans heavily on "easy to read meditations," "like going on retreat," "warm and contemplative" and so forth. None of which prepared me for the sharp, discerning mind that Father Gilsdorf brings to bear on what we know about Joseph both through what is said and unsaid in scripture. I didn't pick the book because I expected it to be simple but because I like Saint Joseph and go to him for my husband and also for us as a couple.

This book is unusual in many ways, one being that it was found among Father Gilsdorf's papers after his death. In fact, there are so many little introductions from a variety of people marveling at this sort of fact, that I would advise skipping them. It is the book itself that is a real marvel. Small as it is, this book is chock-full of fascinating insights and the scholarly, patient following of themes, all well within the bounds of Church teachings and tradition. The footnotes are extremely clear and have interesting references which the author urges readers to explore further for themselves. Although the chapters are short, each has a lot for our consideration.

This book is so unusual but I have enjoyed it so much that I am going to seek out Father Gilsdorf's other book which I had heard of but not cared about until now, The Signs of the Times: Understanding the Church Since Vatican II. I actually believe the ad now when it says the book is "Part history, part Bible study, part apologetics manual, part Marian devotional, part catechism..." If anyone could pull that off, it would be Father Gilsdorf.

However, back to the book at hand. I highly recommend Go to Joseph. It has a modest price and would be a great gift for a man seeking greater holiness, or indeed for anyone with that goal.

I will be sharing excerpts from the book beginning tomorrow for anyone who is interested in a closer look.

I received this book courtesy of The Catholic Company's review program. Read more about the book and order it at the link above.

Update:

• You may read an excerpt of Chapter 1 here .
• The Curt Jester has an equally enthusiastic review here.
  

This Almost Made Me Want to Read "Pride and Prejudice and Zombies." Almost.

“How nicely we are all crammed in,” cried Lydia. “I am glad I bought my bonnet, if it is only for the fun of having another hatbox! Well, now let us be quite comfortable and snug, and talk and laugh all the way home. And in the first place, let us hear what has happened to you all since you went away. Have you seen any pleasant men? Have you had any flirting? I was in great hopes that one of you would have got a husband before you came back. Jane will be quite an old maid soon, I declare… [She goes on and on in this fashion, which I omit for the sake of brevity.] … We had such a good piece of fun the other day at Colonel Forster’s. Kitty and me were to spend the day there, and Mrs. Forster promised to have a little dance in the evening; (by the bye, Mrs. Forster and me are such friends!) and so she asked the two Harringtons to come, but Harriet was ill, and so Pen was forced to come by herself –”

Elizabeth presently drew her Katana and cut off Lydia’s head, which fell into the open hatbox.

All Manner of Thing reviews the book.

Alex Reads Twilight: chapter 2

For everyone like me ... who finds Twilight more hilarious than anything else (warning: a little bad language in here). This made Tom laugh out loud.



Via Rose. I see that chapters 3 and 4 are up now also.

Be Still My Heart! Unabridged "Nine Princes in Amber" Read by Roger Zelazny

From SFFaudio comes the news:

…two Roger Zelazny audiobooks … have become available in unabridged form on CDs – Nine Princes In Amber and A Night In Lonesome October as originally read by Roger. You may know about these (and future Zelazny unabridged titles to finally be rereleased) but I just happened on the news. If you don’t know, the company is Speaking Volumes. I got the news from the newsgroup alt.books.roger-zelazny on Google. According to Chris Kovacs on this group, the releases will include Roger’s readings of Blood of Amber and Knight of Shadows which were not released in unabridged form on cassettes.”

Now if that doesn't make your little heart go pitter-pat ... then you've never read Nine Princes in Amber and I say, "Hie thee to the library ..."

Reflections on the Joyful Mysteries ... and Bearing Christ to Others

The Visitation

Mary conceived; and shortly thereafter she went to her cousin Elizabeth, to assist her in the final months of her pregnancy. Just so, when Christ is conceived in our hearts he calls us to bear him to others in service as Mary bore him to Elizabeth.

Will at The View from the Foothills has been fruitful in contemplation. Go read and see if it strikes you the way it did me.

I like the way that there was a constant theme of bearing Christ to others ... except in the first mystery which made me reflect upon the fact that often Christ is being borne to us in ways we do not expect, sometimes from people we dismiss for some reason. And so we must be watchful ...

Advertising and Advent

This isn't exactly what you might think from the title.

Our pastor used a very good analogy in his homily about Advent and all the Christmas advertising that we see. He said that advertising works by making us dissatisfied with what we have and makes us long for something newer and better.

He then pointed out that "advertising has taken our Advent gig" because that is the feeling we should have during Advent: dissatisfied with what we have and longing for something better. Which is Christ.

It made me realize that we can then use Christmas ads to our advantage for Advent contemplation. If that analogy makes me divert my attention to Christ and the longing I should be feeling even half of the times that I see advertising ... then it is a job well done! And that's what I'm going to try to do.