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My kids like the dump; I don't know why.
They compete with each other to see who gets to go with Dad whenever we have a big load to get rid of. Nod-girl won the toss this time. I use it as one-on-one time with the Nodlings, so it seems special to them. As anybody in a big family knows, one-on-one time is better than gold.
The dump is a fascinating place: there's lots of big machines; people going in all directions; and, er, interesting smells. Our dump is not the real dump, but a Waste Transfer Station, where they collect the trash in huge dumpsters and then truck it to the landfill.
They recently redesigned the place, making it wide open and easy to navigate. Instead of going to the covered "Big House" you now back up to railings that you pitch your stuff into the below giant dumpsters.
For really heavy stuff you have to get weighed on the way in and then again on the way out. With all this old deck wood in my truck I dumped an even ton (2000 lbs)!
I don't think they would have picked that up from my curb.
Sunday, November 8, 2009
The Dump Is Fun?
Sunday Snippets--A Catholic Carnival #30
This week on Sunday Snippets, WBN presents All in the family: a jam-packed week of posts that cover the gamut of our Christian family, including the Saints, reuniting with our separated bretheren, field trips to great church architectures, some Shroud trivia, a dash of theology, and a rant against society's bias against big families.
- Upside Down Theology
- All Saints Are Family
- Anglicans Opt For Rome
- Sugar Coated Shroud
- National City Christian Church
- No Respect For Big Families
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Sunday Snippets--A Catholic Carnival is a weekly opportunity to share your best posts with the wider Catholic blogging community. To participate, create a post highlighting posts that would be of interest to Catholics and link to the host blog at http://rannthisthat.blogspot.com. Go to the host blog and leave a comment giving a link to your post.
Saturday, November 7, 2009
Thursday, November 5, 2009
No Respect For Big Families
Thought I might take a train trip up north and decided to check the fares. Putting in 2 adults and 5 Nodlings brought up this error from their Web site: Problem with too many children.
I find that kind of rude. I understand the need for a business to make a buck, and children's fares are discounted from adult fares, but still! Boo on Amtrak!
"Please correct the error(s) shown"? How would they like me to do that -- "selective reduction"? It's not like I'm trying to take the entire fifth grade to Concord.
It kind of illustrates a problem that our entire society has with "too many children". Five children isn't large. The Duggar Family, now that's large. Five kids just fills a minivan; I don't need special transportation to get them to and from places.
How can there be too many children? That is like saying there are too many flowers. --Mother TeresaIt used to be that people respected the family; a man with many children had his "quiver full". Justice demands that a man be paid a living wage.
It may not be fashionable to have large families, but let me just quote Paul's Law: If you want your values to survive into the future, there is no substitute for fertility.[Wikipedia] The living wage is a concept central to the Catholic social teaching tradition beginning with the foundational document, Rerum Novarum, a papal encyclical by Pope Leo XIII, issued in 1891 to combat the excesses of both laissez-faire capitalism on the one hand and communism on the other. In this letter, Pope Leo affirms the right to private property while insisting on the role of the state to require a living wage. The means of production were considered by the pope to be both private property requiring state protection and a dimension of the common good requiring state regulation.
Pope Leo first described a living wage in such terms as could be generalized for application in nations throughout the world. Rerum Novarum touched off legislative reform movements throughout the world eliminating child labor, reducing the work week, and establishing minimum wages.
- "If a worker receives a wage sufficiently large to enable him to provide comfortably for himself, his wife and his children, he will, if prudent, gladly strive to practice thrift; and the result will be, as nature itself seems to counsel, that after expenditures are deducted there will remain something over and above through which he can come into the possession of a little wealth. We have seen, in fact, that the whole question under consideration cannot be settled effectually unless it is assumed and established as a principle, that the right of private property must be regarded as sacred. Wherefore, the law ought to favor this right and, so far as it can, see that the largest possible number among the masses of the population prefer to own property." (#65)
Congratulations K-lo!
Congratulations to K-lo and her beau who just got engaged! We're all happy for you. This location might be in our near future, so we might want to get familiar with it come June.
Still Life WIth Cameraphone: Window Washers
Window washing always looked like a cool profession, rappelling down the face of buildings, spooking the office workers, squeegee in hand. Then I realized that it has two great, er, downfalls: 1) falling and 2) working outside when the weather is uber-crappy.
Still, great style points.
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Yo! Metro Girl!
It's people like you that roil people like me.
Get your sandal-wearing-open-coffee-mug-drinking butt off the train. You almost dumped that coffee in my lap and that of 15 other people. Leave it in the car. That's why everyone was giving you the Evil Eye this morning. Sheesh!
NO food or drink means NO food or drink.
And yes, the rules DO apply to you!
Alternative Healthcare Proposal Unveiled
My comments inline.
The LA Times reports:
Now if we only had some leaders who would actually ACT on this...House Republicans offer alternative healthcare proposal
Reporting from Washington - After months of criticizing Democratic healthcare proposals from the sidelines, House Republicans this week began presenting their plan, an effort intended to undercut the portrayal of the GOP as the "party of no." [Where have you guys been? About time!]
Unlike the Democrats' strategy of trying to provide near-universal coverage and force other major changes to the insurance system, the Republican approach is an incremental one with a different goal -- controlling healthcare costs. [I think most people if they stopped to think about it would support this approach. I think a majority actually do. What's easier to fix or correct -- A one-time TRILLION dollar mistake that creates a bureaucracy that can't be killed and sticks it to us for 10 or 20 years, or a series of modest changes whose impact can be phased in and measured and adjusted?]
GOP lawmakers propose to do so through market-oriented measures that would limit medical malpractice lawsuits, expand the use of tax-sheltered medical savings accounts, let people shop for insurance outside of their own states and make it easier for small businesses and hard-to-insure people to get coverage. [These are things that real people want.] The ideas reflect conservatives' suspicion of sweeping new programs, federal spending and additional regulation. [That's because big sweeping programs hide lots of dirty little secrets.]
The GOP plan is, by design, a less costly bill with more modest ambitions. Its price tag, which is still to be determined, surely will be far less than the House Democratic bill. According to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, the cost of that plan would exceed $1 trillion over 10 years. [Almost anything else would be cheaper.]
Unlike the Democratic plan, it does not include subsidies or other provisions that would make coverage more affordable to people of modest means. [This is probably the only less than stellar part. Helping poor people get coverage = good, bankrupting the country to do it = bad]
"What we've learned over many, many years is that the reason people don't have insurance is that they can't afford it," said Drew Altman, president of the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, an nonpartisan health policy research group. "You can't make much progress toward helping the uninsured unless you help them buy it."
The Republicans' proposals long have been on their wish list, yet they were not enacted even when the party controlled Congress and the White House. [And paid a heavy price for it.] And they are being resurrected at a time when some Republicans warn that the party is in danger of being seen as guardians of an unpopular status quo in healthcare. [We'd like to think that this isn't just a partisan ploy for sympathy, but this IS Washington, and the 'Pubs didn't do anything when they held all the marbles under Newt.]
"Come campaign time, voters need to know what healthcare reforms Republicans have supported," said Whit Ayres, a GOP pollster. [Yup, partisan posturing.]
House Democratic leaders on Wednesday laid the groundwork for a Saturday vote on their massive healthcare legislation, after settling on a compromise to diffuse disagreement in their own ranks over how to restrict federal funding for abortions. [This is Pelosi trying to do an end run around the pro-life Democrat Stupak (since he's on bereavement leave) who's been a thorn in her side. Cowardly, Madame Speaker! ]
The proposal does not differ substantially from one in the original bill that required consumers to pay for any abortion benefit with their own money, rather than with federal insurance subsidies. Senior Democrats hope that by tightening that restriction further, they will be able to satisfy enough socially conservative Democrats to get a majority. [Your fake pro-life amendment isn't fooling anyone.]
President Obama is going to Capitol Hill on Friday to meet with House Democrats ahead of the expected vote, according to a senior Democratic aide who requested anonymity when discussing the volatile healthcare issue. [A little arm-twisting going on? You bet your Chicago brass knuckles!]
Republicans, who harbor no hopes of passing their alternative plan during Saturday's scheduled debate, have spent months criticizing the Democrats' plan as an intrusive, expensive government program [That's because that's what it is.] -- an argument with strong appeal for the party's conservative base. [Conservative yes, but I ain't your base -- nobody owns me.]
Rep. Bob Inglis (R-S.C.) said that in his solidly conservative district, he has staged all of his healthcare speeches in front of signs that read "16 Reasons to Oppose Obamacare." But this week, House Republican Leader John A. Boehner (R-Ohio) shifted the emphasis by unveiling the GOP alternative and launching a campaign to raise his party's public profile on the issue. [Posturing ...]
"This is an intentional strategic shift toward not being just the opposition party, but trying to be the alternative party," said David Winston, a Republican pollster close to the congressional leadership. [More Posturing ...]
The Republican bill lacks many major elements of the Democratic proposal: There is no expansion of Medicaid, no requirement that individuals buy insurance, no penalties for employers that do not offer coverage, and no subsidies to help the needy pay premiums. [What? No blank checks?]
In addition, the GOP proposal does not include one of the most popular elements of the Democrats' plan -- a ban on denying coverage to people with preexisting medical conditions. [Meh. Fix that.]
But the Republican plan has adopted some of the more modest Democratic provisions. It too would make it easier for young adults to remain on their parents' health policies. [Not too bad.] It also would end the controversial insurance practices of imposing annual or lifetime limits on benefits and of canceling coverage after a policyholder becomes sick. [One of the worst and greediest ideas. Evah.]
And rather than give more power to the federal government to address the nation's healthcare problems, the Republican plan looks to states, market forces and individuals. [Powers not expressly given the Fed are delegated to the States. Where have we heard that before?]
Their bill would provide aid to the states to form "high-risk" insurance pools that would cover people -- including those with preexisting conditions -- who cannot get coverage through their jobs or in the individual market. The GOP bill also would provide incentive grants for states that reduce premiums and the ranks of the uninsured. [Better. And practical.]
Small businesses would be encouraged, but not required, to cover their employees under provisions that would make it easier to band together to get group rates. [Incentivize without mandating ... sounds like freedom.]
To curb costs through increased competition, the GOP plan would make it easier for insurance companies to sell policies across state lines. [Yes!] And it would impose new curbs on medical malpractice lawsuits [Yes! Yes!] -- on the theory that healthcare inflation is fueled by defensive medicine and the rising cost of malpractice insurance. [Not entirely, but a healthy percentage. I've heard maybe up to 25%.]
To increase incentives for individuals to control their own health spending, the bill would expand the use of tax-favored health savings accounts. [Encourages personal responsibilty] And it would allow employers to provide steeper discounts in insurance premiums to employees who adopt healthy lifestyles. [Ditto.]
janet.hook@latimes.com
Noam N. Levey in the Washington bureau contributed to this report.
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Sugar Coated Shroud
Found this over at ShroudOfTurin4Journalists.com:
The shroud is sugar coated. A clear polysaccharide residue coats the outermost fibers of the cloth. In places, that residue has changed to a caramel-like substance. That brown substance forms the images.Interesting read if you have the time. It takes you through all the questions and arguments, pro and con.
Photomicrograph of fibers from a warp segment of carbon-14 sample. Chemically, it is unlike the rest of the Shroud. In 2005 an article appeared in a peer-reviewed scientific journal Thermochimica Acta, which demonstrated that the carbon 14 dating was flawed because the sample was invalid. It turns out that the corner from which the sample was taken for carbon dating had been mended. As a result, the sample included a significant amount of newer material.
Madder root dye and gum on fibers. This is clear
evidence of careful mending intended to be imperceptible.
GOP Sweeps In Virginia
So far the conventional wisdom that the party out of the White House wins the following year election holds. All in all, not a bad thing for balance; maddening for everybody else. Nobody should get a lock on governance -- not your rascals, not their rascals.
Now that your boys are in -- don't screw it up.
Monday, November 2, 2009
National City Christian Church
Designed by prominent architect John Russell Pope in Neoclassical style, the National City Christian Church is a sight to behold. Located in Washington DC at Thomas Circle, NW.
More info and background at Architect Design. Built in 1930 and finished in the 1950s. Prominent Presidents LBJ and Garfield were members here. They even have their own stained glass windows. A little unorthodox perhaps, but beautiful.
Full immersion baptistry. They accept infant baptism, but don't practice it; they usually wait until the "age of consent".
They Looooooove their organ. This whole place is one big organ showplace.
Very impressive white stone exterior. Very. Tall.
Two Percent?
So the Democrats in the House want to put us $900 BILLION dollars in debt to cover 2 percent of the population? That's $900,000,000,000 dollars in case you've got number fatigue.WASHINGTON (AP) - What's all the fuss about? After all the noise over Democrats' push for a government insurance plan to compete with private carriers, coverage numbers are finally in: Two percent.
The danger is that even if this enormously incompetent plan passes, it is just a seed from which the Hydra grows.While a government plan might start out modestly, insurers fear that Congress could change the rules later, opening it up to all people and setting take-it-or-leave payments for hospitals and medical providers, instead of negotiating, as the House bill calls for.
Oh, you bet they will. Tell you what, Congress: give up your Gold Plated Plan and then come to the table. Until then talk to the hand -- the voting hand.
Sunday, November 1, 2009
Ut Unum Sint
The Big News (maybe more than it should be) that has gotten the religious and anti-religious crowds all a-twitter is the recent announcement of the "personal ordinariate" which smooths the way for Anglicans to convert en masse to Catholicism.
Anti-Catholic and irreligious groups clearly Don't Get It (TM). So-called news stories and opinion pieces say things like:
- "[CM] Pope Benedict's latest bid to expand the conservative wing of the Roman Catholic Church" and
- "[DR] Progressive policies within churches often result in some of the faithful changing denominations, but this move is unprecedented, primarily because it relaxes some doctrines deeply held by Catholics."
- and even the AP: "designed to entice traditionalists opposed to women priests, openly gay clergy and the blessing of same-sex unions."
The Pope and the Vatican aren't "fishing in other people's ponds" as some have claimed. These Anglicans, especially the TAC, came knocking on the door for several years asking to be let in en mass. The Church's job was to find a way to make that happen.
The claim that the move "relaxes some doctrines deeply held by Catholics" is bogus. These people wouldn't know a doctrine if it bit them in the rear. Doctrine, dogmas, and disciplines of the Church are 3 very different things.
Most of these yahoo pundits have only ever encountered the Latin Rite (the largest) and so don't realize that the Universal (i.e. Catholic) Church has many expressions and traditions, but only 1 set of beliefs. Other rites allow married priests, etc. Nobody is getting a pass on transubstantiation, sacraments, male-only priesthood, Marian theology, salvific grace or any other "deeply held belief". These critics are mistaking the icing for the cake.
The clear and obvious fallacies stem from an understanding of religion as a political action, social movement, or mere preference. They view it from a mindset of a means to power. It is power they love, and only power they understand.
Jesus prayed that we might all be one. This just helps that happen after so many years of division. That is what ecumenism means: we don't "dialogue" until we come to a compromise, the Catholic Church just helps you understand what the Truth actually is, so that you can accept it.
For more practical insight into the real difficulties facing potential Anglican converts, go have a look over at Father Longenecker's blog, since he IS a married Anglican convert and Catholic priest.
Grasshopper Pie
The family birthday celebration was scrumptious, as usual. We had three ice cream cakes in order to go around for everyone, each a different flavor. But the winner hands-down from all the Nodlings was the Grasshopper Pie. Chocolate mint chip ice cream over an Oreo crust - yum!
My question: Is it made from real grasshoppers?
No matter.
All Saints Reminds Us Of Family
After all the trick or treat candy has been gobbled down, after the costuming craze has come and gone, just when most people are turning their attention away from the Halloween event -- now comes the real feast: the Feast of All Saints.
The Saints are our family both figuratively and literally, mystically and actually. When we celebrate the Mass the communion of saints is present with us all around. Jesus is present on the altar, and the angels and saints are where He is. In the pews are our brothers and sisters -- saints in training.
Today I did not have my immediate family with me; circumstances conspired to drive us to separate Masses. I must confess I'm at a bit of a loss when they aren't there. It should be an opportunity to focus more completely on the Mass without distraction. However, at this point in my child rearing, I find it distracting when they are absent.
There is a reason that the Mass is made for community; it is after all an act of public worship, the agape love feast with the Bridegroom. God Himself is a family of persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. He imprints that family on our physical selves: Fathers, Mothers, children.
Just as He is a family, He gives us family, now and to come. The saints are our family. We are all descended from the first Adam and we are all reborn in the new Adam. We were meant to be together.
All you holy saints, ora pro nobis.
Upside Down Theology
We all know what life is like, for we have lived it. Yet none of us has seen what lies in store for us in the heavenly kingdom, or even really what living here is really like. We think that things are a certain way, but really God shows us that they are upside down.
For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways, says the Lord. (Isaiah 55:8)Fr. Bill said an interesting thing at Mass today on the Feast of All Saints: "Wanting what the saints have isn't envy because you don't want to take it away from them, you just want to share in it."
That got me to thinking about other "upside down" facets of our theology.
- 1 Corinthians 14 says: "Pursue love, but strive eagerly for the spiritual gifts" yet it is not gluttony
- In Mark 8 Christ says: "For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and that of the gospel 9 will save it."
- In eating Christ's body and blood in the Eucharist, we do not kill Christ; instead we live more fully
- And in giving away all of our love, we end up with more of it than we started
Sunday Snippets--A Catholic Carnival #29
This week on Sunday Snippets, WBN presents: Subsidy or Subsidarity? Musings on health care, catholic teaching, and teachable moments.
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Sunday Snippets--A Catholic Carnival is a weekly opportunity to share your best posts with the wider Catholic blogging community. To participate, create a post highlighting posts that would be of interest to Catholics and link to the host blog at http://rannthisthat.blogspot.com. Go to the host blog and leave a comment giving a link to your post.
Still Life With Cameraphone: Baton Rouge
Seems this guy is a bit far from home: I saw this Baton Rouge Police SUV at the top of Vienna Metro the other day. Can't imagine what he drove up here for.
