A New Year Has Begun

Let me begin this post by extending a Happy New Year to all of you and your families. I truly hope that whatever you were lacking in the previous year, or had been vexing you in 2010, will emerge or leave your life hastily, never to return.

Some times I get a bit apprehensive about the new year. I think of it as a long, untraveled road with sporadically hidden and unforeseen surprises. As you know, these surprises aren't always good. But what really puts me on edge is WHERE these surprises are hidden, ready to spring up and reveal themselves at the last moment or when it's already too late. My grandmother, in her kind and infinite wisdom, would have no such worries. When I was very young, I encountered a very frustrating moment and, amid the frustration and despair, uttered the famous grown, why me? To which she responded, "Why not you?" I don't think my grandmother knew anxiety like I have known it, nor did she ever worry about things that were beyond her control.

I have decided to take spring semester off from school. My plate is full and adding more to it for the sake of an accelerated completion just isn't worth my sanity. I hope resume my studies with greater clarification and focus during summer session.

May Christ be with you, protect you, guide you, and bless you and your families this new year and everyday of your lives. Amen.

Merry Christmas!!

Oh shameful, shameful me. I've neglected my blog for a whole month! O.K., so that has to change. In the meantime, I'd like to wish you and your families a blessed and Merry Christmas, and may the incoming New Year bring you all good health and prosperity.

Who is not hungry at Thanksgiving?
The turkey, he’s already been stuffed!

Why did Johnny get such low grades after Thanksgiving?
Because everything is marked down for the holidays.

Okay, enough with the stupid jokes. But I would like to wish you and all your loved-ones a

Happy and blessed Thanksgiving!

Mixed Signals??

So the big news circulating in some Catholic and non-Catholic media outlets is that Pope Benedict has approved the use of condoms in certain circumstances. Asked if the Church has had a shift in principles, Pope Benedict answered:

"She of course does not regard it as a real or moral solution, but, in this or that case, there can be nonetheless, in the intention of reducing the risk of infection, a first step in a movement toward a different way, a more human way, of living sexuality." Read full article here.

I find this story, which, again, is spreading through the internet like wildfire, somewhat unreliable. But if true, I can see former critics singing his praises and current supporters feeling somewhere in between confused and outraged.

CNS provides a piece that seems to clarify Pope Benedict's stance on the use of condoms. Read here.

It's Here!

My blogger friend, Terry, has fired the first official Christmas salvo here. I'm going to fan the flames by posting favorite Christmas carols, followed by more Christmas music and many other Christmasy things.

The BEST Advent piece (advent is right around the corner!) ever composed.

(Turn your volume up.)

Hacked

I think both my Blogger and Facebook accounts were hacked into recently. I'm wondering how these little cyber monstrosities get inside places they're not suppose to when I'm pretty tenacious about protecting my passwords, accounts, and about the places I visit online.

Could you PLEASE notify me if you've gotten any spam emails from me on Blogger or on Facebook? I'd feel so embarrassed if one of my Blogger or Facebook friends received from me any spam or emails or messages or Lord knows what else happens when your system is hacked into.

If this is the case, I sincerely apologize to any of you, my Blogger friends, ahead of time.

Elections Tomorrow

Vote these losers OUT!
Republican or Democrat, party affiliation is inconsequential.
These two are BAD for the country.

Does anyone remember this spectacle?

I never thought I'd defend Juan Williams, but the day has indeed arrived.

These are the comments Williams made during an interview with Bill O'Reilly that got the dipsticks at NPR all fired up, and ultimately cost him his job at NPR: "I mean, look, Bill, I'm not a bigot. You know the kind of books I've written about the civil rights movement in this country," Williams said. "But when I get on a plane, I got to tell you, if I see people who are in Muslim garb and I think, you know, they're identifying themselves first and foremost as Muslims, I get worried. I get nervous."

I hope enough NPR enthusiasts take issue with the station's conduct and withhold their donations during the station's pledge drives.

SNL's Royal Deluxe II

One of the funniest SNL sketches/ commercials ever!

Old News

The depravity of Father Marcial Maciel is beyond comprehension to me. How was he able to seamlessly reconcile the significance of the priesthood with a behavior that was nothing short of barbaric? Was he mentally ill? Did he suffer from some kind of undiagnosed neurological disorder that no one knew about? Did he think the filth hidden in his rotten, private life would would always remain concealed?

I know Maciel is old news and the shock of his debasement has diminished. But went I think of the troubles the Church has experienced in resent times, his face inevitably is one of the first to surface.