by jphilo | Dec 26, 2007 | Current Events
We didn’t have much wrapping paper to throw away this Christmas because the presents were quite small. With a daughter in college, we’d planned a low key Christmas. When the furnace went out, we downgraded to frugal. The day before Christmas when Hiram’s chain saw breathed its last breath we ramped lower, to practical gifts only.
There were advantages to such a Christmas. Expectations were low. Like I said before, there wasn’t much mess to clean up after we opened gifts. I don’t need to buy paper or bows next year because there are plenty left. And all three of us paid more attention to stocking stuffers that made practical gifts.
Anne wandered through the house last week hunting for fingernail polish remover. We didn’t have any, at least until she emptied her Christmas stocking. She couldn’t find a Sharpie marker either, so guess what Hiram and I got? When Anne’s at college, Hiram’s constantly asking me to read the fine print on packaging which I can’t see any better than he can. So the magnifying glass that caught my semi-blind eyes as I searched Target for cheap, practical gifts ended up in his stocking.
Hiram remembered our last bout without power and the mad scramble to find flashlights, none of which worked. So he got me two new ones, complete with batteries. That’s a pretty neat trick. When we have working flashlights we don’t lose power, so we’re set for the rest of the winter.
To prove that we have flashlights, Anne snapped this picture of me on Christmas morning. Which brings me to the last practical gift possibility. Between my expression and bed head, anybody who reads this blog has potential blackmail material which could fund future Christmases. But you might as well wait to blackmail me until after the bills are paid. Unless, of course, you need flashlights. Then you can contact me right away. I’ll fork over the flashlights and get directions to your house so we can move in with you when our power goes off.
Don’t worry, we’ll make ourselves useful reading all your fine print. The magnifying glass is already packed.
by jphilo | Oct 17, 2007 | Current Events
This fall, we’ve had more rainy October days that I remember ever having before. It’s pouring now, though for a few hours this morning we enjoyed a blue sky and sunshine. I grabbed my camera before my walk and took a picture of our neighbor’s glorious maple tree.
That tree takes my breath away when I pass by, and it makes me think about a mystery I once read. One of the main characters, a good guy married to the amateur sleuth, was an agnostic scientist. He believed in Darwin’s survival of the fittest theory and was a strong proponent of evolution. Within the confines of his utilitarian, scientific beliefs there was no room for beauty. The theories he subscribed required only characteristics that enhanced survival, such as speed, strength, adaptability, and easy reproduction.
But every time he looked at the brilliant October blue sky and the blaze of autumn colors, beauty smacked him in the face and assaulted his carefully constructed beliefs. Beauty forced him to acknowledge that the existence of a beautiful God would explain the existence of beauty.
When life gets hard and doubts about the existence of God overwhelm me, I think about that book. I don’t remember what the mystery was or how it was solved. All I remember is the agnostic scientist and his question.
What about beauty?
by jphilo | Oct 2, 2007 | Current Events
A friend of mine sent me the funniest video this morning. She said when she watched it she thought of me. She said “it smacked of my writing,” but I thought it smacked of every mom and every teacher I have ever known. And it made me want to send the video to my daughter at college and my son in the monastery, to get their reactions. Do monks watch youtube videos?
If you’re curious now, go to the link below and watch for yourself. And be prepared to laugh – but not with your mouth full. Your mother wouldn’t like that.
HTTP://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OzZJO3ZRNCo
by jphilo | Sep 16, 2007 | Current Events
I can’t believe this blog is up and running. I worked on it day after day, spent most of a weekend on hold with various tech support people and finally this afternoon all systems were pronounced go. So I tried to publish the site. No go.
After another hour on hold, a patient support person worked with me until we discovered something was wrong with the blog. Once it was deleted, I was able to publish. Except of course the blog. I had to start it completely over. So here I am, up later than I like to be, typing my first entry. After days of waiting and waiting, things are moving way too fast.
And that made me think of a camping trip my husband and I went on a month ago. It was a hot August weekend, so hot the only place we wanted to be was out on the boat. And after watching the teenagers cool off while being pulled on the tube, I decided to take the plunge. I plopped down in the tube and floated slowly as the boat idled while the skipper moved the ropes into a safe position, I told the pilot, “Tim, this is fast enough. I’d like the whole ride to be this speed.” Tim grinned and took off, full throttle. I held on for a wild ride that was way more fun than my leisurely float.
I’m thinking that’s what this blog will be like. I want a slow float but could be in for a wild ride. The only way to find out is to plop down and get started.
