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2004/05/30
 
Next stop, the Appalachian Trail

Things to do before I die: 1)See Rush in concert; 2)Meet Geddy Lee.; 3) Meet Alex Lifeson.

Great concert, great seats...and they played Red Barchetta! Eternal thanks to Mr. Trinity for getting me backstage to meet two of the boys, too! It went by so quickly, though, that I can't recount the whole thing, but I introduced La Lively to them as Fiona, so I guess that's her name now. (Ged congratulated me, too, and asked when I was due.) Hope the pictures come out.





2004/05/28
 
He's got a point, you know.



 
T-minus 18 hours 'til the boys take the stage

Until then, let's welcome to the ring:

Chesaiah
me autem minui
Pax et bonum
Stormwatch

Rediscover Worship has the code up, but it's in a post. That needs to be changed before I can add it to the ring.

Also, Barbara made an interesting post about what kinds of authors would come speak at a Catholic writers conference. Did I mention I have three books coming out in the next two years?




2004/05/27
 
They probably won't induct Black Sabbath, either

There is an International Clown Hall of Fame. Yeah, I didn't know, either, until reading this article about how they inducted the wrong Bozo. Who could tell under all that makeup, anyway?



2004/05/25
 
I get my kicks above the waistline, sunshine.

So why is it I can remember the name of the guy who sang "One Night in Bangkok" but I can't name all the Supreme Court justices?



 
Found the new clubhouse. Gollum sold separately.


2004/05/24
 
Anybody else getting pop-unders appearing when they check their own blogs? Is this something Blogger is doing, or maybe I have some deeply ingrained spyware?



2004/05/23
 
Who's the patron of faulty floppies?

Or is it "floppys"?

Whatever. My home PC has decided not to read one of my disks. I have 12K words of a work in progress on it, and no backup. I really don't want to have to rewrite the damn thing. Let's hope the work PC will recover it.



2004/05/21
 
The halfway mark




This is at 19 weeks. Finally got the scanner hooked up again for pictures. Next ultrasound is June 1.



 
Did you wish Mr. T a happy birthday yet? No? I pity you, fool.



 
Reason No. 2112 why I'm a Rush fan, or, I paid a ticket broker two grand for this?

Madonna - who opens the tour on Monday in L.A. - doesn't skip a beat in making sure the $1 million-plus production is her most outrageous yet, complete with an electric chair, nearly nude pregnant women and plenty of lesbian love, according to reports out of London yesterday.

All at the same time? There won't be anything left for the encore, short of shooting a thong-spangled Sandra Bernhard out of a cannon while singing her ohsoawful version of "American Pie," which might not be a bad thing. The cannon part, I mean.

Is all this Kabbalah approved?



 
Headline of the Day

Stupid Crack User of the Day

As opposed to whom? An intelligent crack user?



 
Note to Self

The baby doesn't like knockwurst and kraut.



2004/05/20
 
The register grows

Welcome to the webring:

Catholics for Democracy
Domestic Excellence and Specialty Housekeeping
Herb Ely
Molly's Musings
Was not ever thus

And a reminder to potential new members, simply registering for the webring doesn't automatically get you in. You have to put your code in the blog template. I get e-mails from people wanting to know how to do this, and I find it amazing that they can put up tagboards and graphics and everything else but can't do this. It's really a simple cut and paste job. Really.


 
Bereft of life, they rest in peace

All statements to the effect that these parrots are still a going concern are from now on inoperative. That is all.



 
If you believe they put a man on the moon...

you might believe Andy Kaufman did come back from the dead and start a blog.

It's probably really Bob Zmuda.



2004/05/19
 
Finally got around to cleaning up the blogroll, deleting blogs that haven't been updated in a while. I know there's been quite a few new St. Bloggers come about, so if you'd like to recommend additions please do.


 
Just a gentle reminder, I've seen a number of registrations to the St. Blog's Parish ring of sites that are not weblogs. Take note this ring is for Catholic weblogs, not general sites.

That said, please welcome Queen of Angels Peace and Justice Blog to the ring.



2004/05/18
 
Six Feet Unger

In a 1998 interview, [Tony Randall] said he was somewhat perturbed by public debate over a man so old starting a family.

"I don't understand why they think it's their business, but that's not to say that they're wrong," Randall told Reuters. "Maybe I'm an old fool, but I can't look at it that way. I'm having the most wonderful experience of my life."


Yes, he was 84 and his children are seven and five. You know what, though? If he hadn't had the children he probably would have died at 84 anyway. At least this way he had the opportunity to enjoy the last seven years of his life with two people he loved very much, instead of sitting in his apartment alone waiting for David Letterman to call and goad him into another cameo appearance. Yes, he was 84, but children have lost much younger parents, too. RIP, Felix.




 
I'm not one for repeating gossip, so you better make you listen close the first time.

Hee-Haw is coming to DVD. Would it be too much to ask for a commentary option with Buck and Roy?



 
There's a joke comedian Tim Wilson tells about how banks contribute to the sorry state of the world. "I'm just doing my job," he mocks in an Aunt Bee accent. "Well, you suck at it!" is his response.

After what we went through today, we realize ol' Tim isn't far off.

As if I wasn't already feeling lousy, I've come to learn something about the maternity fashion industry. If you're a petite mom-to-be, you have an entire arsenal of cutsy-poo outfits with bows and widdle bears, and people coo at you and tell you how you're glowing.

Whereas the tall or full-figured mom-to-be can expect to find clothes in black, white, and some horrid combination of horizontal stripes and squares that makes one look like the Partridge Family bus. Damn you, Susan Dey!



 
If I ran the Silver Diner, I would remove "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" from the jukebox. I hear that song at least three times every time I come here to eat. I hate that freaking song. Satan wrote it.

I actually wrote that on a comment card last night after dinner, and put it in the box. In truth, the song came on four times: as we entered, twice during dinner, and as we were leaving. The very second we hear that dee dee dee-dee Malc cringes. It isn't wise to make a lifetime member of the NRA cringe, even if he doesn't have a gun right there. They find other ways.



2004/05/17
 
Get five bucks off Domino's Pizza every time Michael Waltrip finishes in the top 10!



 
Coming soon to Amazon.com





Here's the final draft of the Pithed cover, due in July. Credit Cimerone Design and Mundania Press.

Malc thinks I should hold a "Name the Frog" contest to launch this book.




 
And then...nothing

Shellynna of And Then? has inexplicably left the blog, and blogs4God. If she wrote a farewell I didn't get to see it, and you won't either, because the whole thing is gone. Very sorry to see her go; hopefully she'll make a return.

Which means I'm going to have to update my blogroll. Long time coming anyway.



2004/05/14
 
Reading something like this would be enough to spur me to pay more attention to politics. In terms of voting age, I am still a relative youngster - this will be only the fourth presidential election for me, though I have a pretty good idea what the two candidates think of abortion, etc.



 
And after La Lively is born, I'm going to Curves to take off the baby weight.



 
The anti-Passion?

Danny Schroeder, author of Hollywood Must Be Destroyed and The Lies That Bind, sends this article about a new film called Saved, "a sad, bigoted, anti-Christian movie that mocks the Christian faith."

Gee, like this has never been done in Hollywood before. With Frasier gone and the Tour de France coming up, I won't be seeing many movies anyway.




2004/05/13
 
Trippy, man





"For What it's Worth" is one of Malc's favorite songs, BTW. Interesting to see how the boys cover it. I still think they should have covered "My Wife," though I like "The Seeker."


 
Duh


Mystery
You're a Mystery writer!


What kind of writer are you?
brought to you by Quizilla


On the book front, a cover artist for Pithed has been assigned; I'm hoping for something similar to what I have on the main website. Meanwhile, I'm close to cracking the 50K word mark on my latest... a (gasp) romance. I had meant to start Deliver Us From Evil, but this first trimester wiped me out, so it will have to wait a bit.

Via And Then? and Ob. House and everybody else.




 
Now all we need is a name

As mentioned before, we had a boy's name ready for years, and now we can't use it, at least not now. We've narrowed it down to five. I still like Fiona, as do many of my co-workers. Malc is leaning toward Janis (I'll concede only to this spelling), but I think he's still hoping something will happen with the next ultrasound. He was telling me yesterday that when the wife of the journalism professor had her ultrasound they were told it was a girl. They went out and bought every pink thing they could find, and during the next ultrasound their daughter had grown a penis. I don't go back until June 1, so we'll see if we get to use Ian after all.

And if not, we'll just call her Janis Ian. Please somebody get that joke. Nobody has yet.



2004/05/11
 

It's a girl!



 
Not the best news I wanted to wake to this morning: one of the Wings authors passed away after surgery. Fran Priddy wrote as Fran Keighley, and had a number of mystery titles to her credit before succumbing to a sudden illness. I'll always remember her, however, as the person who recommended to Wings that Saints Preserve Us be published. For that I will always be grateful to her, even though I don't believe I ever showed my appreciation to her. Now I will never have that chance, but the one thing I can do is dedicate Pray for Us Sinners to her, which I will.

Please pray for the repose of her soul. His will be done.



2004/05/10
 
Grrr. This new Dashboard thingie is going to take some adjustment on my part.


 
Nihil Obstat, report to the beach

Seen on a sign: Coming soon, Northshore Condo's!

Er, Northshore Condo's what? Yes, apostrophes are nice things, but there's a time and place to use them, and a large sign advertising Northshore Condos is not the place, especially if you want to attract residents who don't think the developer is illiterate.

Sorry, this is just pet peeve No. 1 for me when I'm editing other works. It's like Elaine Benes with the exclamation point, some people have to have them everywhere.



2004/05/08
 
Twelve minutes and counting

The Ocala Star-Banner was to have run an article in their Faith and Values section today about religion and the Internet, and I was quoted. Article's not on their website, am hoping to find the actual paper. If you're in Ocala or thereabouts, drop me a line.



2004/05/07
 
Letters, I get letters...

Andrew Greeley opines on the Senator Kerry/Eucharist debacle, sent by my brother.

Morning-After Pill can't be sold over the counter, sent to me by John Mallon. John also wishes to extend his sincere thanks to everyone who posted the initial warning on their blogs and wrote to their congressmen.





 
Next Week: Dr. Stranglove?

The Shining in 30 Seconds, reenacted by bunnies.



2004/05/06
 
All seats covered in rich, Corinthian leather

The joke was on Fark.com, but you know it's older than the hills: The Ricardo Montalban Theatre is now open for business. I was going to link the Catholic Answers radio interview with Mr. Rourke, but I can't find it. They must have taken it down. :-(



 
From John Mallon

John would like to get this information on as many St. Blogs as possible.



Urgent! ******* Urgent! ******* Urgent!

Stop the Morning-After Pill! Over-the-Counter approval to be decided by the FDA May 21.

No age limits, no medical supervision, no parental involvement!

Spread this far and wide! Time is of the essense! Call the White House, contact your Senators and Congressmen!

For instructions on how to email the FDA directly with an email link go to this page of the PRI Website. More info below.


From the Population Research InstituteWeekly Briefing:

Dear Colleague:

There is still time for pro-lifers to call the White House
(202-456-1414)
and urge the President to assure the American people that the mega dose "morning after pill" will not be sold "over the counter."

Also contact your U.S. Senator or Representative to urge leadership from Congress that will protect women and babies from this new chemical assault weapon.

Toll free: 1-800-648-3516 or 1-877-762-8762.

The abortion establishment is going all out to urge their followers to lobby in favor of making this chemical killer available over the counter. Their mailings include the lie that so-called "emergency contraception" does not cause abortion and does not work if a women is already pregnant. Over the counter approval of the "morning after pill" will be a public
health disaster.

Steven W. Mosher
President

PRI Weekly Briefing
12 May 2004
Vol. 6 / No. 17

Stop the Morning-After Pill!

Press reports suggest that the FDA is teetering on the brink of approving the so-called morning-after pill. As past PRI Weekly Briefings have made clear, there are terrible risks in making this powerful drug available over-the-counter with no age restrictions or parental involvement.

€ The progestin-only hormonal contraceptive in Norplant is the same active ingredient as Plan B. Norplant is no longer available for use in the United States because it is so dangerous. Known risks include significant weight gain, ovarian cyst enlargement, gallbladder disease, high blood pressure and respiratory disorders.

€ Among teenagers, some of these common side effects could result in increased rates of bulimia, anorexia, or clinical depression. Also, an increased risk of ectopic pregnancy has been associated with use of Plan B-type emergency contraception.

€ Since the drug precludes parental involvement, it is likely that teenage girls who buy Plan B at the drugstore then experience abdominal pain may not confide in parents so that a physician could diagnose if a life-threatening ectopic pregnancy had occurred. Over-the-counter approval would mean that young people would be free to purchase and use (abuse) this powerful hormone without supervision or follow up.

€ The drug was approved for over-the-counter use on January 1 in Australia. Already there are reports in the Australian press of 13-year-old girls buying the pill several times a week to the alarm of local pharmacists who are not able to give proper counseling to these girls on the many risks involved. The Australian Medical Association is already questioning the wisdom of making this risky drug so easily available without restriction. (The West Australian, 4/4/04)

€ If over-the-counter availability of this drug is approved, we may also expect that rates of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) among teens will skyrocket. Adolescents age 15-19 currently represent 46% of all cases of Chlamydia in the U.S. 1 in 4 sexually active teenagers contract an STD at some point. In Washington State and in Sweden, where emergency contraception has been made widely available, rates of STD infection are skyrocketing.

€ We can also expect an increase in the rates of sexual violence committed against adolescent girls. The easy availability of this drug over-the-counter will make it more difficult for teenage girls to resist pressure to have sex, and will trivialize the act of rape.

€ Over-the-counter availability of the morning after pill will lead to an increase in the pregnancy rate among teenagers. Studies have shown that increased rates of pregnancy occur among teens with increased use of "emergency contraception." Another showed that teenagers whose pregnancies ended in induced abortion were more likely to have used the drug before
conception, and that teens who use the drug were more willing to engage in "risk-taking" behavior.

Please take time to call the White House or, better yet, jot a note to your Senator or Congressman regarding the morning after pill. If it goes over-the-counter as scheduled on May 21, then anything goes. Lives will be compromised and families further undermined. A sample letter follows:

May 6, 2004

Dear Senator ____________ (or Congressman _____________):

I understand the FDA is set to decide whether or not the
morning-after-pill (MAP) will go over-the-counter on 21 May 2004. I believe that pressure from you and your colleagues could stop this dangerous drug from being made available to very young girls without medical supervision or parental knowledge. Would you please advise the FDA to cease and desist? If MAP is approved, then it won’t be long before
the FDA makes the birth control pill available over-the-counter. This will further compromise the sanctity of life and the integrity of the family.

Thank you.

(Signed)
Your name
Address
City, State. Zip
Phone

© 2004 Population Research Institute.

Permission to reprint granted. Redistribute widely. Credit
required.



2004/05/05
 
That's great, it starts with an earthquake, birds and snake and airplanes...

Everybody was more disappointed than me to learn the ultrasound had been delayed. It's like the night before the Oscars around here. But I can stand to wait a few more days, it's the actual event that's making me nervous now. While I think Malc would be happy with either a son or daughter, I know deep down he wants a boy. He's an only child, as is his father, and there is a need to perpetuate the name. My mother-in-law told me how nervous she was with Malc; back then they couldn't find out in advance, and every time Malc's grandfather visited he'd ask "how's that boy doin'?" She nearly dreaded the birth in case "something wrong" happened.

One of the nurses the other day told me expectant fathers had even stormed out of the ultrasound room, furious with the results. Well, whose fault is that?

Me, I'll be happy with ten fingers and ten toes, and everything else in between normal.





2004/05/04
 
Maybe they will play "Fountain of Lamneth"

For all you California Rush fans, there's a big party happening. Wish I could go, I love tribute bands, but at least my tickets for the real thing arrived in the mail the other day.

One of the founding members of RushCon, and a very active member of the Rush on-line community, Open Secret, is graduating college in a few short weeks. Bay Area Rush Fans are giving her a sendoff to her new home in Toronto the best way we can. Have a party!!! It's close enough to the 24th of May to make Geddy smile! May 22nd.

The really cool thing is that we are having a Rush Tribute Band playing the show! The Rush Project!!! So, if anyone from the Bay Area, Northern California, Southern California, or anywhere on planet earth, can make it out for our party, you are more than welcome to come on over!!! If you can make it, email Draco at ken@rushmessageboard.com, and he'll send you the address, directions, map, etc. BARFs only ask that you bring some booze, and if you feel so inclined, some food for everyone. Hope to see everyone at Chez Draconator!!!




 
More ringers

Mallon's Media Watch - yeah, he's been around a while, but he finally joined the One Ring!

Also,
Barefoot and Pregnant
Basia me, Catholic sum
Belesarius queritat hic
Benedictus qui Venit
The Falcon's Roost
The Grist Mill
Inklings
The Julian Calendar
Mental Pompeii
Nicholas Jesson
Out of this Furnace
Quid et veritas?
Working it Out

We're going to need a bigger church. One like my current parish of Blessed Sacrament in Norfolk, though that building is going to seem much emptier in the next month. We have learned that after numerous threats and rumors, we are losing Fr. Metzger to another church in Richmond. It was inevitable, as Fr. Joe is quite young (a few years older than Malc), and did so much to improve our parish -- new building, amazing increase in membership -- that it makes sense for the diocese to want to move him to bigger and better things. And we get the impression Father is not going to be a parish priest for the rest of his life. He will be moving upward, which is good because we need more priests like him in higher positions.

The drawback to this is, we don't know who we're getting as a replacement. Malc and I personally are dreading it. We have been to nearly every Catholic church in the Tidewater area before deciding on Blessed Sacrament. It is because of Fr. Metzger that we drive for thirty minutes past two churches to attend Mass. If you're not from this area, you might not be aware that the Tidewater area is not exactly conducive to the faith, what with the various influences of Pat Robertson and Edgar Cayce. We got the droning priest in Portsmouth, and the "George Carlin" priest in Virginia Beach (that's what Malc calls him) whose sermons make me shudder. For a while a Ghent church had a "pastoral assistant," a woman who delivered sermons that had nothing to do with the Gospel, while some guy in the back held a pyramid in his open palm and stared into space. I'm not kidding, in a Catholic church.

So, we'll have to wait and see what happens. I really don't want to have to switch churches, but I won't be surprised if our Sunday commute gets longer in the next few months.








2004/05/03
 
False Alarm

Ultrasound wasn't set up today. I go back next Monday. But they checked the heartbeat and it's fine, louder.


 
Welcome to the ring

Fiat Mihi
tsunamiat


 
Ultrasound this afternoon. Hopefully we'll know what we're having today.




Only some random number days until Genny goes to college.

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::quizzes::

20th Century Pope: JPII
Aqua Teen: Frylock
Barbie: Harley
Beatle Album: Magical Mystery Tour
Beatle Era: Hamburg
Beatle Film Character: Paul's Grandfather
Beatle Kid: Dhani Harrison
Beatle Song: "Yellow Submarine"
Brady Bunch: Greg
Brideshead Revisited: Lady Cordelia Flyte
British: 32.5%
Boy Band: Beatles
Canadian: 33%
Cartoon Dog: Snoopy
Catholic order: St. John Bosco
Cheers: Norm!
Christmas Carol: Silent Night
Cocktail: Bloody Mary
Dante's Inferno: Purgatory
David Bowie: late 60s/early 70s
Decade: the 60s
Disney Princess: Belle
Drew Carey Career: Human Resources
Edward Gorey: Gashleycrumb
Elvis: 50s
Evil: 18%
Foreign Language: Italian
Founding Father: John Adams
Ian McKellan: Just Ian
Inner Sexy Cartoon Chick: Wilma Flintstone
Internet Addict: 45%
Iron Chef: Chairman Kaga
Jane Austen: Elinor Dashwood
Jedi: Knight
John Cusack: John Kelso
Journal Rating: PG-13
Led Zeppelin song: Whole Lotta Love
LifeSaver: lemon
Lone Gunmen: Byers
LoTR: Legolas
M&M: blue
Madonna: Soul
M*A*S*H: Hawkeye
Monkees: Micky
Movie for Me: Forrest Gump
Muppet: Fozzie
Music god: Sting
Narnia: The Magician's Nephew
Old Movie: Citizen Kane
Parrothead: True
Peanuts: Linus
Retro Girl: Seductive Pin-Up
Rugrats: Angelica
Simpsons: Disco Stu
Star Trek: Spock
Star Trek race: Human
Store to Loot: Mega Grocer
Three's Company: Janet
Tolkien Beliefs: Conservative
Ugly Prom Dress: 80s
US City: Atlanta
VW Beetle: Black
Whose Line?: Colin Mochrie
Wife of Henry VIII: Anne of Cleves
Willy Wonka: Veruca
Wodehouse: Bertie Wooster
Wrestler: Stone Cold
Writer: Mystery


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