What Have We Learned From History?

Not too much, evidently. Be sure to watch to the end. Ripped off from The Crescat.

Know Thyself ... From the Inside Out

YOU: THE OWNER'S MANUAL:
An Insider's Guide to the Body That Will Make You Healthier and Younger by Michael Roizen, M.D., and Mehmet Oz, M.D.

... we want you to think of your body as a home - as your home ... Your bones are the two-by-fours that support and protect the inner structure of your home; your eyes are the windows; your lungs are the ventilation ducts; your brain is the fuse box; your intestines are the plumbing system; your mouth is the food processor; your heart is the water main; your hair is the lawn (some of us have more grass than others); and your fat is all the unnecessary junk you've stored in the attic that your spouse has been nagging you to get rid of. If you can get past the fact that your forehead doesn't have a street number and that a two-story brick Colonial doesn't look all that good in a bathing suit, the similarities are remarkable - so remarkable, in fact, that we believe you can learn about how your body works by thinking about how your house does...

... we want you to take the same approach to basic body maintenance and repairs as you do in your home. You don't call the plumber if you have a little backup in your pipes. You try a plunger, lift the back off the toilet and fiddle with the floating ball, and try to remedy the problem yourself. You don't call the exterminator when you spot a fly in the kitchen. You don't call the electrician if a light bulb burns out. You rely on yourself for maintaining control over how your house ages - because you know that it's less expensive to prevent problems and treat minor ones than let everything deteriorate to the point where your house needs a major overhaul to continue functioning properly.

Ultimately, we want you to get comfortable enough with your own body so that you'll feel confident with basic body maintenance, so that you'll avoid the things that cause the most wear and tear and do the things that best maintain the long-term value of your body...

I wasn't interested in being either healthier or younger when I requested this book from the library. However, I'd heard it was a very easy to understand "how it works" book. No kidding!

I found this book both riveting in the use of simple explanations as well as inspirational in terms of why we should eat a healthier diet and incorporate exercise into daily routine. Using simple analogies, the authors cover every part of the body and explain not only how it works but what it needs for good health. As they mention Each section dispels myths (a good number of which I thought were true) has good illustrations to supplement the written info, and has a "Live Younger Action Plan." The whole "live younger" concept is to get your body's "real age" as good as it can get with moderate exercise, preventive living and a healthy diet. The idea is to make you healthy overall which is what they mean by "live younger." Let's face it, it is a rare American these days whose physical "age" is equal to or less than their birthday. Being overweight or sedentary takes an amazing toll.

They include an easy to remember cheat sheet for both daily exercise and eating guidelines. I, for one, have not been this inspired about physical health since the two day class that I took with Tom after he became diabetic. In fact, for my stretching sessions, Rose is going to begin teaching me yoga ... she is taking a year-long class in school and has the basics down now. That should not only help fulfill my body's need for stretching but also my brain's necessity to learn new things that I wouldn't normally. Oh, and I predict a lot of laughing and time with Rose. Three for the price of one ... not a bad deal at all. Highly recommended.

Here's a sample of one of the self tests that are scattered throughout the book.

Myth or Fact?
You can work out your brain with weights.

Try this self-test: Stand on one leg and close your eyes. The longer you can stand without falling, the younger your brain (fifteen seconds is very good if you are forty-five or older). That balancing act is just one sign of your brain strength. To develop better balance, you should use free weights -- that is, dumbbells and barbells -- because exercising with them works your proprioception (your ability to balance). Weight machines don't have the same effect because the weights re attached to a fixed surface, so you don't develop your balancing abilities as you lift them.

Rose and Tom had fifteen seconds each. I had thirteen seconds.

Tags: Catholicism, Christianity

The Golden Coin of Marriage

He [St. Josemaria Escriva] spoke often of the joys of married life. Nevertheless, he insisted that "marriage isn't just satisfaction for the heart and senses. It's also suffering; it has two sides, like a coin."

On the one hand, there is the joy of knowing that one is loved, the desire and enthusiasm involved in starting a family and taking care of it, the love of husband and wife, the happiness of seeing the children grow up. On the other hand, there are also sorrows and difficulties -- the passing of time that consumes the obdy and threatens the character with the temptation to bitterness, the seemingly monotonous succession of days that are apparently always the same.

We would have a poor idea of marriage and of human affection if we were to think that love and joy come to an end when faced with such difficulties. It is precisely then that our true sentiments come to the surface. Then the tenderness of a person's gift of himself takes root and shows itself in a true and profound affection that is stronger than death.

As he knew from his own childhood, suffering is sometimes unavoidable. The failure of a business, the death of loved ones -- such events are impossible to predict and prepare for. No less wearisome is the daily grind of an underemployed man, working far below his station in life, for far less money than he needs. Still, these are the circumstances of countless ordinary families. To paraphrase the bumper sticker: suffering happens. What we do with that suffering, however, is what makes us either saints or very wretched people. It's our choice, but it's not a solitary matter. When we live in families -- or in any kind of household -- our choice affects all the people around us. We either parlay our suffering into happiness for others or multiply the misery in our own homes. On trying days, the greatest sacrifice might be to smile when we don't feel like smiling. "I've often said," noted St. Josemaria, "that the hardest mortification can be to smile. Well, then, smile!"

Ordinary Work, Extraordinary Grace by Scott Hahn

Wow. Truer words were never spoken.

Tags: Catholicism, Christianity

From Taye Diggs to Jayne's Hat ... a Photo Essay

Last night Rose and I watched the pilot of Day Break which I taped earlier in the week. Against all my expectations it was pretty good. If I didn't expect it to be too good, why did I tape it? Look at Taye Diggs' photo again ...



I was being driven crazy by the fact that I couldn't place the actor playing the scummy, sleazy cop, Chad. Thank heavens for IMDB ... Adam Baldwin!

No wonder he looked familiar ... and no wonder I couldn't place him. Somehow Chad and Jayne from Firefly just don't equate. Yeah, Jayne also was scummy and sleazy but you expected it and he was upfront about it in a refreshing way.

Rose was equally astounded and then told me, "Anna has found a pattern for Jayne's hat. That's why she wants to learn how to knit."




Not this hat ...



... but this hat which was so incredibly goofy but which bad-a** Jayne wore through an entire episode because his mother made it and mailed it to him. All you have to do is say "Jayne's hat" to Firefly fans and they know exactly what you mean.

Word is that Jayne's hat also was in Serenity if you are looking at the right time. I missed it ... guess I'll have to watch it again to see (tough duty, but someone's gotta do it...)


Turns out that there is more than one pattern out there for this hat and you'll also find photos of Serenity/Firefly fans wearing Jayne's hat to various conventions. You know, for a show that only aired 9 episodes it sure developed a hard core cult following.

Here's the pattern, which I will be printing out and keeping ... though from examining the photos I am fairly sure that Jayne's hat has orange ear flaps. I'm going to have to watch the episode again to check this out (again, someone's gotta do this tough duty and for my knitting I count it worthwhile...)

Tags: Catholicism, Christianity

Not Your Father's Bond

You know Casino Royale wants to be a different breed of Bond movie when Daniel Craig's 007 indulges his famous thirst for a martini. "Shaken or stirred?" asks the barkeep. "Do I look like I give a damn?" snarls the special agent. And there you have it. This isn't your father's Bond, and he's not shy about letting you know.

More grit and less cartoon? Yeah, I think I can handle it. Looks like our Thanksgiving weekend movie has been chosen ...

Tags: Catholicism, Christianity

Serving Others as an Offering to God

A love for the world enables laypeople to live and work with "naturalness" in any circumstance, without a distinctive dress or manner. All that should set them apart is their rectitude and their charity. If we must be set apart in some other way, let it be in the excellence of the work we do -- in the service of others, as an offering to God. Secularity means behaving in a way that is consistent with our place in life, which is the very place where God has called us.

It would be unnatural for us to draw attention to ourselves with public displays of piety, just as it would be unnatural for my wife and me to draw attention to ourselves with excessive public displays of affection. My affective reserve -- whether in piety or in kissing -- does not mean I am ashamed of my status as a Christian or as a man married to Kimberly. Nor does it mean I am observing any kind of excessive secrecy. It is merely the reserve that's proper for the world -- or at least for the particular corner of the world where I live.

In a similar way, our homes need not be decorated like medieval churches in order to be sanctified. They should be identifiably Christian, of course, but they should also be distinctively homes and not cathedrals.

Nevertheless, secularity, like any good thing, can be overdone. In our zeal to laicize our piety, we shouldn't leave people guessing whether we're Christians...

"Live as the others around you live," St. Josemaria said, "with naturalness, but 'supernauralizing' every moment of your day."

Ordinary Work, Extraordinary Grace by Scott Hahn

We had a newly ordained priest assisting our pastor many years ago. In his zeal, he couldn't talk to anyone about anything, even something as simple as the weather, without telling a "real life" story that would link the conversation to Jesus. It was painful to watch him talk to children especially. They would come up to him and try to talk to him and his tone would grow patronizing and he would answer questions like, "Did you play baseball when you were little?" with something like, "Yes, I did and God likes to see us growing strong ... as long as we play it like good Christians."

He left our parish after a short time ... our pastor had even less taste for such platitudes than our family did. However, I never forgot the sterling example he provided of what not to do, and which we are reminded of so well in the excerpt above.

Tags: Catholicism, Christianity

I've Never Been Into Pinup Calendars ...

... but I would make an exception for this one! Via American Papist.

Tags: Catholicism, Christianity

The 2006 Weblog Awards - Nominations Open

This has to be the most comprehensive blog awards ever ... just take a look at those categories. I found several very good blogs through the nominees' and winners' links last year so I'll let y'all know when they've sorted through everything and have the voting open.

I seem to remember that last year The Anchoress was nominated and also Flos Carmeli. And if not, well, they should have been!

Tags: Catholicism, Christianity

My Signal Graces Today

I can't remember where I read about "signal graces" and now that I have gone looking around the internet I can't find a definition. As I understand it signal graces are sent by God to help us to make the right decisions in life. And my understanding is that they often appear in threes. I often think of them as those little markers to help keep us on the right path ... and I need three just to get my attention!

I've been so busy lately making hay while the sun shines on our little graphics farm that I haven't had the brain power to read anything but fluff. Now, I do try to make it good fluff, which is why I'm in the middle of Grace Will Lead Me Home, which is the third in Katherine Valentine's series of the Mitford gone Catholic books.

[Signal the first] This morning I was struck by one of the characters who began to pray about someone's car trouble, saying that there was no detail of life that God doesn't care about. Of course, I know this, but knowing and living something can be very different. I took it to heart, thinking of how tired and stressed I felt ... knowing that I can't be perfect but not wanting to take it out on those around me ... trying to live in the here-and-now instead of worrying about not making the deadline after Thanksgiving, about possibly having to work on Thanksgiving weekend when Hannah will be home for the first time since going to college ... and all that jazz.

Thinking back now, it strikes me that on the way to drop off Rose and the carpool gang at school I asked my guardian angel to give me some tips, give me a lift ... help me through the day.

As always, after they were dropped off, I turned on today's episode from pray-as-you-go. My mind kept drifting and I had to keep turning it back so I'd actually focus on the prayer instead of the long list of things that kept popping to the fore. I'm certainly glad I made the effort because [Signal the second] the final words told me to talk to Jesus, to tell Him whatever was on my mind, whatever was making me happy or worried. I suddenly thought of what I had read earlier and thought of all that work, stress, worry. So I told Him all those little details ... and asked for grace to live in the moment more. And then I moved on with my day.

Suddenly, my day was going better. An extra person had a lull and was able to help with some of the catching up ... I am not so tired now and the stress is gone ... not a small part of which I attribute to anybody who has seen my mention in the prayer request list and offered a prayer (which I so appreciate).

So I had a few minutes at lunch and was crusing a few blogs (man cannot live by work alone you know!) and [Signal the third] saw what Owen wrote.

... I can't tell you about the nature of it but know this, if you are needing a reminder that God cares for you in the smallest of details, please, let this be that reminder.

Eureka! That was the tap on the head that pulled it all together for me ... and I could see in my mind's eye the humorous smile that God was giving me with this one.

Once again I am so thankful for a God who cares about the smallest details and will go to such lengths just to get me to come to Him with my needs. Not to mention my guardian angel who is always with me and always looking upon God ... here to help us along.

Now ... I'm back to that hay field. This big project should be over in a couple more weeks ... I have numerous commentaries about books, tv, movies, etc. but they'll have to wait ...

Tags: Catholicism, Christianity

Poetry Thursday

We pause in the weekly presentation of Rose's poetry to present one of her very favorite poems by another author.

The Female of the Species
By Rudyard Kipling

WHEN the Himalayan peasant meets the he-bear in his pride,
He shouts to scare the monster, who will often turn aside.
But the she-bear thus accosted rends the peasant tooth and nail.
For the female of the species is more deadly than the male.

When Nag the basking cobra hears the careless foot of man,
He will sometimes wriggle sideways and avoid it if he can.
But his mate makes no such motion where she camps beside the trail.
For the female of the species is more deadly than the male.

When the early Jesuit fathers preached to Hurons and Choctaws,
They prayed to be delivered from the vengeance of the squaws.
'Twas the women, not the warriors, turned those stark enthusiasts pale.
For the female of the species is more deadly than the male.

Man's timid heart is bursting with the things he must not say,
For the Woman that God gave him isn't his to give away;
But when hunter meets with husbands, each confirms the other's tale—
The female of the species is more deadly than the male.

Man, a bear in most relations—worm and savage otherwise,—
Man propounds negotiations, Man accepts the compromise.
Very rarely will he squarely push the logic of a fact
To its ultimate conclusion in unmitigated act.

Fear, or foolishness, impels him, ere he lay the wicked low,
To concede some form of trial even to his fiercest foe.
Mirth obscene diverts his anger—Doubt and Pity oft perplex
Him in dealing with an issue—to the scandal of The Sex!

But the Woman that God gave him, every fibre of her frame
Proves her launched for one sole issue, armed and engined for the same;
And to serve that single issue, lest the generations fail,
The female of the species must be deadlier than the male.

She who faces Death by torture for each life beneath her breast
May not deal in doubt or pity—must not swerve for fact or jest.
These be purely male diversions—not in these her honour dwells—
She the Other Law we live by, is that Law and nothing else.

She can bring no more to living than the powers that make her great
As the Mother of the Infant and the Mistress of the Mate.
And when Babe and Man are lacking and she strides unclaimed to claim
Her right as femme (and baron), her equipment is the same.

She is wedded to convictions—in default of grosser ties;
Her contentions are her children, Heaven help him who denies!—
He will meet no suave discussion, but the instant, white-hot, wild,
Wakened female of the species warring as for spouse and child.

Unprovoked and awful charges—even so the she-bear fights,
Speech that drips, corrodes, and poisons—even so the cobra bites,
Scientific vivisection of one nerve till it is raw
And the victim writhes in anguish—like the Jesuit with the squaw!

So it comes that Man, the coward, when he gathers to confer
With his fellow-braves in council, dare not leave a place for her
Where, at war with Life and Conscience, he uplifts his erring hands
To some God of Abstract Justice—which no woman understands.

And Man knows it! Knows, moreover, that the Woman that God gave him
Must command but may not govern—shall enthral but not enslave him.
And She knows, because She warns him, and Her instincts never fail,
That the Female of Her Species is more deadly than the Male.

Tags: Catholicism, Christianity

Infinite Greatness Through Small Things

The smallest tasks can take on infinite value when we offer them to God, when we carry them out as works of God. Holy ambition strives for greatness even in little things, but it is content with the earthly results that God wills or permits.

Thus, we can live with holy ambition even if our professional prospects are few. In holy ambition, there is none of the anxiety, disappointment, and dissatisfaction that cling to men and women as they strive to climb the corporate or social ladder. Holy ambition hopes for great things, but contents itself with whatever God wills. St. Josemaria urged Christians: "Do not lose that holy ambition of yours to lead the whole world to God, but ... remember that you too have to be obedient and work away at that obscure job, which does not seem at all brilliant, for as long as God asks nothing else of you. He has His own times and paths."

Ordinary Work, Extraordinary Grace by Scott Hahn

The Bible is full of examples of this very thing, culminating in the Holy Family's example. God uses holy garbagemen, store clerks, toll road workers, etc. just as much as He ever did a carpenter and housewife from an obscure town. The question is, as I suppose it always is, can we be holy in our places through the small things as were Mary, Joseph and Jesus?

Tags: Catholicism, Christianity

Jeremiah, tell me 'bout the fire ...

... come stir up these coals in my soul, in my soul
till it burns out of control

More info is in the comments box.

Tags: Catholicism, Christianity

A Sweet Story of Love for Christmas

CHRISTMAS TURTLES by Sara Ann Denson

This is a charming book about a grandmother's love for her grandchildren told from the children's point of view. The children experience the annual magic of having "Christmas turtles," (the candy) show up in the freezer. Is it made by elves? By Santa? As it turns out, the candy is made by Grandmother and as the children watch how it is made they come to realize how much she loves them. The book comes with a recipe and a wooden spoon so you can get to work on your own holiday turtle tradition after reading it.

I happen to know that if we had this book when the girls were younger we'd have been making Christmas turtles every year. As it is, a certain young lady of my acquaintance will be receiving this book for Christmas (get that apron on, Little John!).

Highly recommended.

Tags: Catholicism, Christianity

Let's Get Real

It's the little things that count, even for God. For in our attention to little things, we imitate Him most perfectly. Our God is the master of the universe, whose mind and power are evident in the formation of the Himalayas, but also in the movement of subatomic particles. And He doesn't move mountains without moving a whole lot of electrons in the process!

Thus, there is a hidden grandeur in the most ordinary things. St. Josemaria saw this, and he had little patience for those would-be saints with romantic inclinations who saw ordinary life as merely an obstacle to true greatness. He called this attitude "mystical wishful thinking." We should not sit around whining: "If only I hadn't married; if only I had a different job or qualification; if only I were in better health; if only I were younger; if only I were older." Instead, St. Josemaria said, we should "Turn to the most material and immediate reality" -- and get to work.

Ordinary Work, Extraordinary Grace by Scott Hahn

The desire to wish "if only" is one that is so easy to fall prey to. If you have as active an imagination as I do it can slow you down to doing nothing. I think that some of the best advice I ever read (and followed) was to rein in my imagination and focus on the here and now instead of indulging my imagination thinking about possible bad things that could happen or wishing my life away on things that were highly unlikely to occur.

Tags: Catholicism, Christianity

Advent Reading Suggestions?

Yes, it's a bit early to be thinking of this. However, I am trying to think of something for our Catholic women's book club to read during December. I have some ideas but am specifically looking for something:

• Short enough to be read in a month.
• Widely available so everyone can pick it up from a major bookstore ... or something that we can access online.
• Suitable for Advent reading

We may wind up simply beginning a larger work that will be discussed over a few months but I thought I'd see what ideas anyone out there has.

By the way, if any local readers are interested in coming to this book club, they are welcome. Just email me for the information (julie [at] glyphnet [dot] com).

Tags: Catholicism, Christianity

Kent Brockman here ...

... with the best one line election summary yet. Via Dom.

Tags: Catholicism, Christianity

Poetry Thursday

Parents

Walking contradictions
Never making sense
"Because I said so"
In their defense
The statement spreads all over
Appearing like a cancer
Weren't they ever told?
"Because" isn't an answer!

Rose Davis

I read this and looked at Rose who hastened to say, "You never used that answer ..."

Dang right we never did ... for that very reason.

Tags: Catholicism, Christianity

Screwtape on Pleasure

Our Catholic women's book club is reading The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis. I read this long ago when I was in high school and, although I recognized it as being very cleverly written, since I wasn't a Christian the full meaning was appreciated but not felt If you know what I mean.

I am now struck by Lewis' depth of perception and really think that all Christians should read this book every year or two as it is so full of good insights about how to live our every day lives as Christians.

In the following excerpt, keep in mind that this was written during World War II as a series of letters being written by a senior demon advising his nephew on how best to gain souls. Therefore the perspective is topsy-turvy. For example, "The Enemy" is God and "Our Father" is the devil.

... Never forget that when we are dealing with any pleasure in its healthy and normal and satisfying form, we are, in a sense, on the Enemy's ground. I know we have won many a soul through pleasure. All the same, it is His invention, not ours. He made the pleasures: all our research so far has not enabled us to produce one. All we can do is to encourage the humans to take the pleasures which our Enemy has produces, at times, or in ways, or in degrees, which He has forbidden. Hence we always try to work away from the natural condition of any pleasure to that in which it is least natural, least redolent of its Maker, and least pleasurable. An ever increasing craving for an ever diminishing pleasure is the formula. It is more certain; and it's better style. To get the man's soul and give him nothing in return -- that is what really gladdens Our Father's heart...

Tags: Catholicism, Christianity

Secretary of Defense ... Gig 'Em!

Robert M. Gates, 63, a national security veteran, family friend and currently president of Texas A&M University, would be nominated to replace Rumsfeld.

AP Wire

My reporter in the field got first hand information on this in the form of an email from Gates.

By the time you read this, the President of the United States will have announced that he will nominate me to be the next Secretary of Defense. I am deeply honored, but also deeply saddened.

As most of you know, almost two years ago I declined an opportunity to become the first Director of National Intelligence. I did so principally because of my love for Texas A&M and because much of the program we had initiated to take A&M to a new level of excellence had only just started...

Tags: Catholicism, Christianity

Mac and PC Ads

I keep meaning to bring this ad campaign up.

They're pretty entertaining and make the point in a low key way ... looks like Mac is finding a way to capitalize on iPod's coolness. These are some of the very few ads that we will back up the VCR to watch when we're fast forwarding past commercial breaks ... and we watch everything on tape ya know.

And, as long time Mac users, we knew they were cool the whole time ...

Tags: Catholicism, Christianity