Score one for the little guy!

How do you get one sheet of plywood to your home without your trusty van or pick-up? Who do you call to get it there in a timely fashion? What if there is no one available to make a run for you to get it? Suppose you don’t want to rent a truck from Home Depot or Lowes.
Several years ago, we opened an account at one of the local lumber yards. We were putting on a new porch and we were able  to get a discount and delivery on the $4000.00  or so worth of supplies. Not only that, but we didn’t even have to go to the place for any thing. It was all done by phone with knowledgeable associates who estimated our needs and arranged delivery for everything, from rafters to sheetrock, nails and screws to sliding glass doors. It all came when we wanted it. If there were leftovers, they were picked up, and credit was received. Over the years, this arrangement has been quite handy; forty bags of cement, huge metal roofing pieces; gallons of white shellac, and more.
Occasionally over the years, I would venture into Home Depot, but it is such a hassle. The stores are too big. Probably these stores are easily a couple of city blocks with long aisles and rows.You have to do all the loading, carting, paying by yourself, and then get it home. And if you order too much, you either store it or return it on your own time. Usually, that is a 60 mile round trip.
At the local store, you don't have to walk through blocks of merchandise. You don't even see the lumber unless you want to. Some of it stored in sheds around the premises or in warehouses nearby. All you do is walk up to the counter, tell the clerk what you are doing, and "Voila!" you are on your way to a completed project. If it is a small item in the store like a shower drain, the clerk will get it for you, and bring it to the counter. If you think it is not quite right, then  she will usher you to the rack where similar items are located, and you can choose what you want (usually the same thing brought to the counter originally.)
The other day, I needed a paper towel holder. There are two hardware stores in town, neither very busy. I immediately spy a clerk whom I have known for years. “What can I do for you?” “I need a paper towel rack.” “The end of aisle 18 on the right.” “Thank you!” Aisle 18 is 10 feet long; I am about 20 feet into the store. The paper towel rack is there; I pick one out, pay cash to the same clerk, and I go to my car which is less  than 10 feet from the front door. All done in less than 3 minutes! These little hardware stores are so easy, and the prices are not that different from the big box stores.
Now, as for that single sheet of plywood;I called my lumber yard at 3:30 p.m. and placed my order for a single sheet of sanded, half inch plywood. I knew full well that it would not come until the next day. Probably it would be dropped off by a huge truck making a  sizeable delivery somewhere else, and I would get to my project later in the day. No! that’s not what happened. Rather, at 7:30 a.m, a little flatbed truck with a single sheet of plywood backed into my driveway, and I was awake to greet the driver, who in turn put the plywood where I wanted it. I and all day to get to the project. So score one for the little guy who takes care of people. Score one for the little guy who has a manageable store. Score one for the guys who answer the phones and help you out. And score one for us who have been spared the hassle of going to the big stores, wasting time and energy, thinking we are saving something in that drudgerous process.

Winners all

Western Kentucky has made it to the big dance of the NCAA tournament this year with a record of 15 wins and 18 losses. I would venture to say that they have the worst record in the tournament, and will be one of the first teams to go home. They will have been a winner, regardless of the outcome, after all, since they made it that far with such a lousy record. It capped off a pretty dismal season, yet the memory of playing in the tournament will be so memorable… they won.

Winning can be defined in many ways. We like to define our own wins, whether they be on a field, gym, or other arena. I am thinking here of politics. Tuesday was “super” Tuesday for the republican candidates. All four of them declared victory: Newt, because he won his home state of Georgia; Mitt, because he swept New England, and almost lost, but didn’t, Ohio; Rick, because he almost had more votes in Ohio than Romney, and therefore he won there and in a few other states; and Ron Paul, that champion of democracy declared victory for his principles and democracy. All winners; all in it for the long haul. It is so good to be able to define your win, no matter what else happens.

One contestant was kicked off American Idol tonight. Did he lose? No! He was in the top 13 and survived until  tonight. He won, disappointed that it ended now, but someday the world will hear his recorded voice again and he will make a lot of money; a big winner.

And the rest of us, winners all. The victory today for me: a long walk along the highway, and I am still alive despite a hundred 18 wheelers that tried to knock me off. I am a winner.

So it helps to define what winning is in your own eyes, adjust to it; enjoy the ride or walk, and be a winner.

My mother and father were not snobs

My mother and father were not snobs.
Mom did not graduate from eighth grade. She began working as soon as she could to help support her family, attended part-time school, became the first woman merchandiser at Monkey Wards in the area, raised five kids, and aspired that all of them should enter college, and maybe achieve a degree. She was proud of all that we did, whether we were carpenters, teachers, nurses or college professors. I think she was happy to tell people about all of it though. But snobbery was not my mother. Proud, yes; snob, no.

And Dad, he graduated from high school, often joked that he had taken four years of Latin (Latin 1 for two years, and Latin 2 for two years…highly irregular!). He was determined that all of us should go on to some education beyond high school, and also aspired to have  all of us graduate from college. He was pleased when some of us did it in the short time of 4 years after high school.  He was far from snobbery.

Mom and dad were excited when one of us completed a one or two year certificate program. And they were so proud when some of us completed degrees later in life. Completion of college was welcomed and celebrated at any time.
Education was extremely important to my parents. They were a son and daughter of immigrant stock. Higher education was elusive to most of their generation. Secondary education was difficult enough, even elementary school.

They managed to assure that the proper home environment was available so that we could study. They engaged themselves in the process of schooling by sitting with us while we did homework. They made sure that we had library cards so we could continue reading  throughout the year. And they were present at school meetings and teacher conferences when they were held.

I was fortunate to have benefited from their aspirations. As a guidance counselor for over 25 years, I talked of college education to thousands of students, hoping to engage them in similar goals. The district where I worked had a mix of students ranging from those who wanted college to a group who never dreamed of darkening the doors of a college campus. As the years went on, the college going rate at the school rose from about 50% to over 80%. This was partially caused by the rise of community colleges, federal and state incentives (Pell grant, TAP, GSL, etc.), and a real change in the attitudes of the parents and students themselves. Some parents even entered community college the same year as their son or daughter. Aspirations became realities. And these hard working people were not snobs.

And now comes that sorry man, that candidate for the presidency, who calls our current president a snob because he wants people to go to college. He assails the aspiring parents of  college bound young people as being snobs. I wonder if his parents would be considered snobs because he was encouraged to pursue college. Give us all a break.

Encourage us to better ourselves instead of deprecating the ideals and efforts that have made this country great and have improved the lot of so many Americans.  Encourage us to embrace steps that will increase our earning power and make the significant contributions to our society we so desperately need.

I actually know an Oscar nominee!!

As the red carpet filled with motion picture personalities dressed so awesomely beautiful revealing shapely bodies and gleaming teeth, one stood out dressed in penguiny black and white (gleaming teeth, yes), and that was Mother Dolores Hart from the Benedictine monastery in Bethlehem, CT. She left a promising career in Hollywood to join the monastery.

That’s not very far from here, and I had the good fortune of meeting Mother Dolores in the late 1960s at the monastery. A friend and I would make an annual retreat to the abbey, participate in the Latin office, have simple meals in the guest house, and have a spiritual conference with Sister Dolores Hart. She was on one side of the grille, and we were on the other. I think we were allowed to shake hands. I can’t remember what our conversations were about. One may have touched on marriage. I ignored that tidbit and got married within a year or two after that encounter.

Mother Dolores had a singleness of purpose, with her vision solely on her Maker. Nothing was to deter her from that, not even her former fiance who remained her friend and visited her often at the monastery. (That had to be awkward.) The short documentary, “God is Greater than Elvis”, about daily life in the monastery was nominated for an Oscar.

I am glad I met her, happy that she has emerged on the red carpet (she is the only person whom I can say I know who did that) and happy that she is happy doing what she does. In the end, that’s what life is about. And most of  all, I am happy because at the time I met her, I was a man of singleness of purpose, deeply in love with the woman I was soon to marry, heedless of advice, and spend forty, still counting, or so blissful years.

Someday, I will return to Bethlehem, pray in Latin, shake hands, and be thankful for the red carpet of  life, that allows us all to stand tall and smile every day.

Reflection on WH

Nobody said “ Satan did it!” and the general understanding of all who were present or who witnessed the “going home”  of Whitney Houston on Saturday seemed to be that she was continuing her wonderful concerts before the Lord Almighty forever. I believe that Whitney went home, and not to a bad place. I don’t know what goes on there, and nobody does. Home could be rejoicing, or silence; it could mean hanging out with all your friends and relatives in some joyous medium, or the reverential silence of heads bowed in perpetual prayer, or just a cozy box where you become part of the universe along with all those you love who have gone before you and are yet to come.
The important thing is that WH was going home. No judgment, except that she had a great ride here while she lived, and the ride was too short, and stopped too suddenly. She was home.
The emphasis on the good part of her life from childhood to stardom, and influence and no memorable mention of how she transitioned to home shows a tremendous change in the theology of life and death. Probably, a change for the better. There is no fire and brimstone, no fiery pit or everlasting torment for those who escape this world with a sorry death. Rather, a warm welcome by the Father in the home because WH was so good for most of her life.
I hope that applies to all people. I hope we can realize that the Father is more merciful and understanding than any human could ever imagine. I hope we can understand that sin does not make us bad (I know this is a little fuzzy here), although there are things that would not be classified as sin that do. We can recover if people let us and lead us to recovery, and if we don’t, in the end we would probably have done what we could with the opportunities that have been presented to us, and we go home.

Changelessness

Since it was a warm but blustery day, I shortened my walk and dropped in on my neighbor and friend Bob to chat, talk about old things and of course people. He had lunch at Stewart’s today and ran into someone who recognized him, but whom Bob did not recognize until after the initial acknowledgement. About 30 years separate the two men in age.

I commented to Bob that I have the same difficulty recognizing people who were students of mine over the years. They have changed more than I have with beards, weight, and so on. All have matured, some more beautiful than others.

I realized in the course of conversation with Bob that one trite turn of phrase that we often use is “You haven’t changed a bit since ….”  I sometimes think that that is an exaggeration or a lie whenever it is spoken, and I must admit that I have used it in the past.

I remember visiting my aunt Fran several or more years ago and I said that to her. She called me on it: “What are you, blind?” She knew that she was different, had put on some weight, and had a difficult life including health issues.I think I was referring more to her movement which appeared as I remembered it, her joie de vivre, her casual, concerned, and light-hearted manner, despite all that she had endured in life. After a bout with cancer, suffering pain that could only be controlled with large doses of Advil, she continued to work in a classy department store, had a great outlook on life, ironed the t-shirts and shorts for her son in law, had a different wardrobe for summer, winter, spring or fall, despite the unending summer of southern California.

So there were a lot of reasons for me to say, “You haven’t changed.”

And then I said to Bob whom I have known for almost 40 years “If I say to you you haven’t changed, you would probably look at me and knowing what you looked like then, retort, “you mean I looked this bad 40 years ago? I’ve been like this for that long! Shoot me!’ “ We had a good laugh about that.

The qualities that are changeless in an individual are difficult to describe. I have noticed that beauty is more than appearances. To know and appreciate a person requires that you go deep to find the true changelessness.

My Picture

That's me with the pirate uniform on, at age two in the backyard of our house in Troy. Really cute. Some aspects of personality never change. My older brother is in the background. My younger sister is probably in the house, or nearby, because my mother is wielding the camera. The picture was taken with a fold out camera from the 1930s that accompanied my mother wherever she and we went in our early years together. It used 620 film, 8 photos to a rolls. It was dropped off at a local drug store and returned a week or so later, developed with negatives impossible to decipher.

The brick facade of our house was always in need of repair. Dad often pointed it up using his limited masonry skills, but I realize this wasn't his work. We still lived on the first floor, and rented from someone who probably did the patch job.

A Real Valentine or the Grinch who stole Valentines Day

A real valentine brings people together, especially lovers, on a level, honest playing field.

That being said, there has been a  bombardment of ads and features on TV, stores, newspapers, and the www, all purporting to know the perfect gift for your loved one, and they just happen to have it available. One perfect gift featured on a local program was a diamond studded bracelet for only $1000.  If you don’t give this to your loved one (usually a woman- wife, fiancee, girlfriend or lover), poof! goes the love. If she isn’t worth that much, then there is this beautiful watch with interchangeable bands for only $500; and if that is still to pricey for the one you love, get a Pandora bracelet for about $30, and the charms begin at $25 each. Of course if you do this, then you have an inexpensive gift available for next year provided you have the same lover next year. Of course the jewelry people tell you that nobody likes flowers anymore, and the florists have the perfect bouquet for about fifty bucks (forty if you go to the firehouse in Guilderland.)

At any rate, it appears to me that most of the ads pitch things that the man gives his woman so she will continue to love him, as if love can be bought. If it is so, and all this buying is necessary to maintain love, then Valentines day is not for lovers, but an opportunity to buy superficial affection, as if any woman would be fooled by such nonsense. Valentines day could be very, very divisive if the right gift is not given at the right price. Did I just hear the flapping of the cupid’s wings go out the door? That darn Grinch.

Personally, I am a firm believer in courtly love which has high expectations of lovers, especially in the areas of fidelity, longevity, for better or worse, etc. For me and my love, every day of our married life is Valentines day. Fortunately, we agreed on that early in our marriage. So where is the romance? Where is the love? If the world is really celebrating love on Valentines day, we will celebrate, and we do. We do not have outlandish expectations like we may have at Christmas. Rather, we have dinner together, something special in house, light some candles, music and enjoy the love we have. Some times, we will go out to dinner. We have a drink to our love, have a nice entrée, and a decadent dessert.  We are both happy, satisfied and have been deeply in love for over 40years. No avarice, no guessing, no stress. Viva l’amore.

CNN, You Tube and Crazy People

Saturday morning CNN seems like an effort on that network’s part to fill time with stories that are slightly above, no, similar to cartoons… except the cartoons were usually funny. Today we were treated to a sight downloaded from You Tube, ( a really reliable source for everything nutty going on in the lives of people who are trying to create a life for themselves), the sight of a young man firing a revolver at a laptop, not once but seven or so times. He did this despicable deed to teach his daughter a lesson, “She should not disrespect her mother on Facebook.” It shows the man sitting cooly in a chair, then the laptop on the ground, and then the steel revolver. He fires once, into the heart of the laptop, and another, and another, then one for the mother who was disrespected, and then a few more just to show that he emptied his clip on that worthless, evil, disrespectful machine. And the daughter was to pay for a new laptop, and the bullets. All this to teach her a lesson about respect.

I think one lesson she learned was that her father was crazy, and in so far as the mother thought what the father was doing was okay, probably the mother was crazy too. I think the world who saw this spectacle thought the same. And I wonder about CNN (and they are not alone) who brings this stuff to the foreground, and they say it went viral. Does it go viral before CNN and the other cable news stations put it out, or after it has been played dozens of times on the networks? They do this with political stories: Romney not caring about the poor, the $10,000 bet. There was a hate crime attack on the young man in Atlanta, and there is concern that such crime may be emulated by a series of one-up-manship type episodes from gangs around the country (world) all for You Tube and the cable news.

The commentary on this type of video is always done with a wink, like this is strange, but so what. It takes all types. If they are determined to bring these “cartoons” to the screen, into living rooms and breakfast nooks across the world, why not make a legitimate point about the idiot who is firing the gun -like- “Whatever happened to reasonable conversation among family members?” or “Talk to your kids.”  or even “Seek counseling before you go off the deep end.”

Most of all, don’t put a link to it on your website. People do not need that kind of encouragement.

Unknown- St. Blaise, who?

3 February

In the middle of all the hubbub of the holidays, Christmas, New Years, MLK, Groundhog Day, we have forgotten to pause for one of the great saints, a bishop who is venerated as St. Blaise. Perhaps that should be spelled Blaze, because the practice of throat blessings with crossed candles originated with him, sort of. Supposedly, he saved a boy, who was choking on a fishbone, probably with an old fashioned Heimlich maneuver. I don’t think crossed candles would have been effective. At any rate, this cave dwelling bishop from Armenia had been arrested for being a Christian, would not recant, and embarked on a career of healing and praying in prison. The persecutors tried to drown him, but they drowned instead, and finally he was done in by being beaten and torn with wool combs. I am not making this up… someone else did a long time ago. He has a long list of patronages: against coughs, goiter, whooping cough, and any other diseases of the throat. He also is the patron saint of wool combers and weavers… go figure. Just for perspective, he died about the same time as St. Patrick was born in the early 300s.

So the celebration of the feast of St. Blaise (or Blaze as I would imagine it spelled correctly) was important in our upbringing. On February 3rd, we paraded to church ready for a miracle or protection. Our sore throat was about to be cured, or we had health care from sore throats for another year. The priest came by each person who was kneeling at the altar rail, and said something in the universal tongue of Latin as he held the crossed candles at our throats. There was immediate relief, sort of like a tickle, and we would actually feel better after the ceremony.(If that didn’t work, we would be able to have a do over with a glass of Easter water in the spring.) With all that we swallowed, I guess we were pretty well protected.  Thank Blaise for that!

I wonder how come there are no hymns to Blaise like there are to Patrick. His throat idea seems far more reasonable than the lucky shamrock of Patrick. Probably because he lived, thrived and died in Armenia instead of Ireland, and despite his great work, dedication to prayer and steadfastness of faith, he remains virtually unknown. So let’s give a shout out to St. Blaise, and all the other unknowns who today live quiet, dedicated, and thoughtful lives. Some of them are true miracle workers.

Ordinary man- Joe Estabrook, Bishop

Joe Estabrook and I had worked together at St. Vincent's in Albany for a few years. On rare occasions, our vacation times overlapped in the summer. One year, we decided a camping trip to Canada would be good, so with borrowed tents and sleeping bags, we set out for the North. We arrived somewhere north of Montreal, near nowhere in particular. Joe thought a good way to see the country was to go horseback riding, Until then, my experience with horses was on TV and merry-go-rounds, but Joe insisted...give it a try.  The horse managers assured me that my horse was not too spirited, and it was safe, and the horse was not spirited at all. The horse brought up the rear of the party of four and had to be coaxed and kicked the whole way. He was actually more reluctant on the journey than I was. Joe got a spirited horse, and he handled the beast well, until something stung the horse in the back area. The horse laid down in the middle of the trail to scratch its back, send Joe scurrying off, nimbly to safety. After the horse was becalmed, Joe mounted his steed and the journey continued. The horseman showed us a good place to camp in the back country. After the ride, we returned there, set up camp and decided to have a party with the horseman. We bought steaks, potatoes, corn, dessert, and beer. It went well, lots of stories, well into the night. The next morning we broke camp, but had  a bag full of garbage to dispose of. Amazingly, we drove about 20 miles, and could not find a refuse container anywhere, not even at a gas station. we picked up some kids who were hitchhiking, and who spoke only French. Where can we put the garbage I asked. They looked at us, dumb. I used all my French ability. I shouted "Gar-bage'!" and Joe was laughing, barely able to keep the car on the road. I then used the word "refuse" and Joe reached back and opened the bag to show them the trash. The boys had us drive a little further, drop them off, and pointed to a place down the road where we could dispose of our precious cargo. It worked. All in all, it was a good vacation. Adventurous, and fun, thanks to Joe's common man attitude and sense of adventure.
I have known a number of bishops in my life, each of whom had his own particular style. Probably all of them came into their bishopric because they were in the right place at the right time, having played some kind of game to get where they got. It was for the most part an old boys' network, extending as far as the Vatican, and with reaches into the various seminaries the future bishops attended. Special attention was paid to those men ordained from North American College in Rome or Catholic University of America. There were exceptional men who had attended Mt. St. Mary’s in Emmitsburg, Md. or St. Bonaventure's in Olean, NY. 
Bishop Joseph Estabrook was one person who became a bishop who  was a good friend of mine. He was a little younger, and died a few days ago after a bout with pancreatic cancer. He was a bishop in the US Navy, having served as a chaplain in that branch for almost 40 years, and as a bishop for maybe the last 6 or 7 years of that service.
I never met anyone whom he ministered to, nor have I met any of the chaplains who have served under him while he was bishop. Actually, I only spoke with him a few times during the past year, all since he was afflicted with cancer. He was very optimistic about his chance of surviving for a long while. He said he had the rare form of pancreatic cancer that plagued Steve Jobs, and the chances of living longer were better with that. He went through some rounds of chemo, always with hope, to live another day in service to God and country. He was stunned by the cost of chemotherapy. “How can anybody afford it?” He  did okay under the circumstances, but succumbed to the cancer, probably as he would say, according to God’s plan.
The great thing about Joe: he was ordinary. He went to St. Bonaventure’s in the seminary. He worked with me at St. Vincent’s in Albany where he loved the people, and made an impression on the young people there. He also did pre-Cana work, and fostered the program in the Albany area so that married couples, not just celibate priests, actually assisted in the preparation of young couples for the married life. And many of the couples who participated in the program became his friends. I have heard that he used this same effective humble style as he supported the spiritual needs of military men, women and families in his service. For this work, he was made a Bishop, probably breaking the circle of the old boys' network.
I know he enjoyed smoking a pipe, driving a camaro, and nice clothes. He enjoyed talking with people, and always looked for a different angle in situations. “I wonder!” “What if…”
An ordinary man, exceptional in his ordinariness, and he didn’t need a title, but he became a Bishop. Wow!

Winter wonder… I Wonder!

In October of 2011, AccuWeather predicted a snowy period here in the Northeast beginning in December and lasting through January. Say what! Probably that is the prediction every year, and we get what we get. AccuWeather was probably correct for the winter of 2010-11. I wonder how they can go so wrong as it seems to be this year. Nevertheless, I will forgive AccuWeather. There are so many time that they have been right on, especially in the short term forecast.
There have been other mild winters that stick in my memory. 1979-80 was mild, I think. I remember it because I had back surgery in December of ‘79. There was a little snow before Christmas. Phyllis, Dan and Meg went out to cut the Christmas tree while I lay on my back recuperating. It was a great tree, and Dan showed his stuff at age 6 as he severed the tree just above the ground with a little pruning saw. And after Christmas, winter seemed to stop. My therapy for the back surgery began with walks along the roads. The first walk was about a half mile, which exhausted me. I collapsed on a neighbors sofa, and summoned Phyllis to drive me back. Eventually, I worked my way up to 3 miles a day- the therapeutic target, and kept that up until April. No snow. Great walking. Lost 20 pounds. Recovered.
Another mild winter, or possibly just snow free was the winter of 1987-88. We had 22 inches of snow on October4. School was closed for a week because of downed power lines in many areas of the district. Dan had a beat up snowmobile then. He took a lot of pride in it, but it needed lots of work. He tinkered with it the first day off, got it running. It was fun as he raced south through the fields and trees, and past the school house and church, and somewhere down there, it coughed, sputtered and died. We brought it home in our station wagon. Dan enjoyed fixing that the rest of the week; took it for a few spins around. And that was it for meaningful, measurable snow that winter.

There were several more winters without the snow, and when I questioned the value of snowmobiles before a dealer one day, he said “You have to go to Old Forge; there’s plenty of snow there, and trails.” We didn’t go to Old Forge. Dan waited, and tinkered with that snowmobile almost forever. He also invented an ice-cycle during those years with ice skates instead of a front wheel and a studded tire on the rear. Talk about winter wonder! He continues to spark wonder in me as he appeared last winter with his snow varmint, a power driven machine with a chain driven studded drum in the rear. He likes doing things like that.

The sophisticated Snow Varmint

I also remember a relatively snow free, mild winter in 2001-02. There was about 2 feet of snow on Christmas day, and maybe another storm in January, but it was relatively mild. That year Phyllis and I made many trips to Albany to deal with health issues. I parked the car in the driveway and rarely had to clean it off. I wore a light Old Navy jacket most of the time, rarely resorting to my standard winter coat. It was a good winter, and we resolved  a lot of the health issues for several years without the stress of dangerous winter driving.
I love winter. It is a wonderland here with or without snow. And it helps my spirit when it is not too cold.

What’s in a Name?- Saul Alinsky

What do John F. Kennedy, Martin Luther King, Sargent Shriver, Saul Alinsky, Dorothy Day, Mother Teresa, Desmond Tutu and Lech Walesa have in common?  All of them had a passion to change the world in which they lived to a more just, more peaceful, more equal society. All did their share to alleviate poverty, injustice, and inequality. And all of them and several Bishops, priests, and politicians from around the world were awarded the Pacem in Terris Award.  The description of this award from Wikipedia is:

"The Pacem in Terris Peace and Freedom Award is a Catholic peace award which has been given annually since 1964, in commemoration of the 1963 encyclical letter "Pacem in Terris" (Peace on Earth) of Pope John XXIII. It is awarded "to honor a person for their achievements in peace and justice, not only in their country but in the world."[1]
The award was begun, in 1963, by the Davenport Catholic Interracial Council[2] of the Diocese of Davenport in the U.S. state of Iowa. Since 1976, the award has been presented each year by the Quad Cities Pacem in Terris Coalition. In 2010, sponsors of the award were the Diocese of Davenport, St. Ambrose University, Augustana College, Churches United of the Quad-Cities, Pax Christi, The Catholic Messenger, the Congregation of the Humility of Mary, the Sisters of St. Benedict, the Muslim Community of the Quad Cities, and the Sisters of St. Francis.[3]"

So when Catholic Newt Gingrich rails against President Barack Obama for being a follower of Saul Alinsky's radical politics, I would urge the Speaker to learn and know that a strong contingent of Catholics, from Iowa of all places, has awarded Mr. Alinsky, a Jewish man, this prestigious award, and he should also know that the President was only 10 when Alinsky died, and hardly a follower of him. Probably, many of the policies that President Obama has put into play and wishes to enact would also be in line with what the Pacem in Terris awards committee deems meritorious and worthy of award. So why not call President Obama a Pacem in Terris radical? Probably because just the name Saul Alinsky sounds so foreign and a little scary for a name, sort of like Barak Hussein Obama (or even Newt Gingrich.)

Flip-flopping

Flip-flopping means changing your expressed ideas to match the mood or sentiments of a given group in order to gain their adulation and support. ( I made up this definition, but I think it is accurate.) It is used often of politicians in pursuit of high office to deride their change in positions, or actions taken that were different from what they have expressed. Any deviation from a previously held position is looked upon as a traitorous flip-flop.

I do not like to use such a derisive term for anyone, unless it is apparent, and transparent that such is the case.

I like to leave room for growth through thoughtful reconsideration. I would not like to be held to the ideas which I held at any other stage of my life, other than the present. Some of my ideas from ages past are still valid, some are vastly changed. I believe those which have changed are steps toward growth; those which are still valid have been refined; all are subject to future refinement through thoughtful reconsideration.

Here are some unembellished examples:

Might makes right-I remember writing a composition about this for the English regents examination in high school. I justified a strong military with the notion that USA could do whatever, as long as we had the might to do it. Simple, yes; also unprincipled and naïve. I no longer believe that. I have grown and changed my mind. I now question the use of the military in almost all circumstances, and would welcome diplomacy as the ultimate source of peace in the world.
Catholic education should be the rule for Catholics, and it should and will be supported no matter what- Throughout the years, I have come to realize the value of a public education as I participated in that as a teacher and guidance counselor over the years. For all the good  of the Catholic education that I had, I have come to realize that there are huge benefits that come through the public process, and that is important to support.
Martin Luther King- When he first opposed the War in Vietnam, I thought he was overstepping his  boundaries. Within months, I had changed my mind about his stance on the war, and realized he was right on.
Divorce- It was a huge no-no when I grew up, but over the years, I have come to understand why it happens, and why it is necessary at times to save individuals involved in a bad situation.

There are many other thoughts, attitudes, ways that have shaped the me who is writing and living now. Thank the source of life and love for that.

I think that is the way with most people. We should never judge; but listen. Listen for the grown up; listen for the now person; listen to understand. Who knows what tomorrow will bring.

Scott and Sheila

Man keeps Death Penalty in Focus

 http://www.registerstar.com/articles/2012/01/10/news/doc4f0bc08d000ec408406526.txt

This article in the local paper from last week is about two friends of mine who have dedicated themselves to speaking the truth to power under very difficult circumstances. Being an advocate for prisoners, whether in our prisons in North Carolina and Texas, or offshore in Guantanamo,  Afganistan, or the "black sites" mentioned in the article, requires thoughtful commitment, inspiration, and fortitude that is over and above where most of us are in our thoughtful lives. We rarely think of the prisoners because of the reputation they have, and our own cynical attitudes... "If they are in prison, they must be bad, or have thought about being bad to us or others." The imprisoned managed to get a call out from Jesus in the sermon on the mount, mentioned in the beatitudes, of which there are only eight.

Righting wrong, crying out for justice and against injustice, is what the gospel is all about. Giving people rights such as trial by jury, speedy adjudication, and freedom from cruel and inhuman punishment is part of what our Constitution is about.

I think Scott and Sheila have it right in the cause that they pursue so ardently. We should support them in any way we can if we are not on the front lines of this movement to assure rights for all people, even those we usually look upon as most despicable. When rights are eroded in any way, it is like the shoreline of our great beaches after a hurricane, and the sands shift quickly, leaving other rights in the balance.

Go Scott and Sheila!

The Great Compromise (or why we have all these idiots in Congress)

I have watched with great dismay the ugly battle in congress over he debt ceiling increase. I realize that issues are complicated, and solutions are elusive. The real losers in this debate is of course the American citizens who have lost almost $3 billion in interest and in taxes in the debt ceiling battle in the past three weeks, not to mention loss in stock value and other things such as prestige and mental health. Compromise has become a dirty word, as one side decided it was more important to remain faithful to a pledge kept in a vault and not give any ground than to remain faithful to their constituents and the voters' concerns.

It was the Great Compromise that allowed the USA to have so many representatives in the first place. Perhaps there never should have been a compromise in 1787 that allowed for a bicameral congress. Maybe there are not enough statesmen(women) available to have 535 people in the congress, so there is an opening for idiots. There has been a plethora of "leaders' who have tunnel vision, one issue, without regard for the broad issues that affect all Americans, and the real solutions to the problems.

Perhaps our founders had it wrong. One house in congress, only two representatives per state (the Senate) or maybe one house with the number of representatives based only on population may have been simpler. Of course, there had to be the three fifths compromise which allowed for the slave states to pad their population totals by counting slaves but not as equal to non-slaves. Then there was the compromise of 1850 which allowed California to enter the union as a free state, as long as fugitive slaves could be returned to their owners.

Compromise does have its difficult side, and brings about the general welfare at times;  but it has its rough edges that really hurt at other times. I guess the bottom line is  who gets screwed in the final analysis, the rich or the poor, or all of us.

Doomsday! I don't think so.

So this is doomsday. What rubbish! For years, centuries, religion has been hijacked by fringe elements in society. These elements use any "holy book" to justify the craziest and often the most deadly hateful actions. From crusades to jihad, Jonestown to polygamous slavery in the beautiful Rockies, bombing of health clinics to stoning women for adultery.

When will we realize that the "holy books" justify nothing but good behavior toward each other, that life is more important than death or inflicting such on others, and we ought to judge no one.

The books were written in a time and place for a people living in that time and place. Some of the items in the books present us with timeless truths in an easy to recall format: blessed are those who hunger and thirst for justice, for example. Usually, the more recent writings offer corrections on the older writings, and indeed, there are things written in the books which have been corrected by great teachers and society since then: refinements on marriage that have freed women from slavery to a husband, same sex relationships, and more. We are a living breathing society, ever striving to come to grips with the world in which we live. We take time honored truth and apply it to our times, with nuances that adapt to our time.

Most of all, it is not at all helpful for "prophets" or "clergy" to twist the truth contained in the "holy books" to manipulate people who depend on them for leadership.

Holy Saturday- get ready for tomorrow

Holy Saturday is always an odd day in the calendar. Sort of like, everything happened that could happen last week, and now we wait. Of course in this scenario, we know the happy ending of resurrection. Life is similar to Holy Saturday. We live it to the hilt, everything happens, and fortunately, there is resurrection in the form of relief, new challenges, and new life.

An easy example is the transition from one job to a new one in another city. What happens in between! There is relief that one phase is over. There is a feeling of accomplishment that one job has been done well. We will miss the close contacts and immediate support of friends made over the years. We also remember the pain of growing into that job and the battle to maintain ourselves in our position despite the machinations of those who would undo our successes.

Then the new job comes. It means severing ties and moving to a new venue. The job description seems okay and doable. The new digs are yet to be determined. Relationships have to be built. There is time for buyers remorse. Ghosts and chasms pop into our minds as we wait for the next phase, that of resurrection.

Resurrection takes the same grit and attitude that worked in maintaining ourselves at the previous job. It is not easy. There are boulders to be moved to escape the comfort of the tomb and get on with the readjustment  necessary to stand up and accomplish  great things. It gets done by doing.

The example of job transition is used here, but apply this to any transition phase of life, and see the similarities as we go from work to retirement, healthy unassisted living to disability, spouse to care giving spouse, life to death. Attitude, respite, reset make life liveable.

So, the Holy Saturday phase of life becomes the time of mental adjustment, a brief period to move on from the old ways, take care of ourselves, and get ready for the resurrected life of tomorrow.

Simply a magazine

It seems so simple. Pick up a Martha Stewart Living and start paging through it. feel the pages, caress them a bit, squeeze them to separate them, the aroma of ink, get a close up. Stop. That looks interesting. Maybe start at the back. Hard to find a table of contents or even page numbers. Neat ads. full page, lots of color. Spring flowers, "unhidden gems", chef's special, "tarts from the heart". The latest from Kitchen Aid, Coldwater Creek, Chase or Chanel. Just by turning the pages. Enjoying every moment.

And when she has exhausted that one, there's Time on "Why we're still fighting the Civil War" with a teary Abe Lincoln on the cover, an article in Style about the upcoming royal wedding, a hot ten questions to Robert Redford ; McDonald's, Pringle's, and Direct TV ads. Still the feel of the friendly page. No pressure, no buttons to go back or forward. A fanciful excursion into other worlds.

And then there's Bon Appetit- the Italian issue. This is another world. "Cook like a real Italian." "Text after marriage"- hmmm! what's that about?

 There was nothing to turn on. No reason to feel technologically challenged. No frustration. Just a normal brain pattern, learned in childhood. Then it was Collier's, Saturday Evening Post, Life and Look. It was          then and still is pure pleasure. 

Budget- part 2

I heard the republicans presenting the idea to cut the budget immensely over the next several years, and they pull at my heart strings when the claim is made to hand over a debt free situation to our grandchildren. They deserve to be debt free.

What will life be like for these grandchildren? First of all, they will have had an inferior education in overcrowded class rooms and deteriorating schools. Now that's something to leave them with. They will be able to grapple with how to rebuild schools, and reduce class loads for teachers. They will have the opportunity to determine how to afford a college education for their children. They will feel the sting of jobs moving abroad because that is where the industries have decided is the better trained and less expensive labor force is. It is cheaper to do business because of the favorable tax situation in those countries. The grand kids will have the chance to solve these problems.

Now how about the roads, bridges, cities, and parks. The infrastructure for all of these  is presently on the way to depletion. How will our grandchildren travel? How will goods and produce be shipped? There will be longer and round about ways of doing this, causing higher prices for everything. Fortunately, they will not have to visit the national parks, because they also will be in a state of disrepair. The grand kids will have the opportunity to decide how to rebuild everything for their grandchildren. Why  deprive them of these opportunities? At least they will not be saddled with our debt, some of which might have given them some decent roads, cities, parks and bridges.

And  we can reduce medicare and medicaid. This really helps the grandchildren. It guarantees that there will be plenty of sickness to go around. It assures them that they will have less of a chance of getting the health care they need. Well, maybe not all grandchildren. Just the ones who happen to need this kind of support because they cannot afford any other health insurance. This situation will give that generation the opportunity to do what the grandparents were too fainthearted to do, solve the health care issue.

America will indeed be the land of opportunity for our grandchildren because we have left them the problems instead of the debt. Now that's quite a gift!

I am in favor of the proposal made by Obama's non-.budget committee becoming the working document for reform.

Phone service, make that call!

Just a strange thing. Fairpoint, our phone and internet provider, had sent me and thousands of other customers a brochure offering to save me $20 a month for a year. I figured it was not worth my time because I was already getting one of their best deals. I could use up to 150 minutes a month long distance. No additional charge for local. There   was call waiting and voice mail. It was bundled with  internet access. What more could you ask from a provider that has no competition  in our area. They are in the driver's seat on this. No Verizon tower near enough for wireless, and no internet without Fairpoint either. I decided to waste my time and a call one more time. "Hey, ya never know!" as the lottery ad touts.
Come to find out, they don't even offer the plan I was on any more. I had what I had, yet they were not selling it any more. But surely, if I exceeded my 150 minutes, I would be nicked for .10 a minute over that. Yet, they were not going to simply change me to a new plan unless I called them first. Just keep paying the old price, and the old penalty.
So the new plan is $20 less, unlimited long distance (almost everything is long distance from here.) After a year, the price goes up $10. If I quit them, the only provider of service here, before the year is up, I have to pay them $99.
Funny, of all the useless calls I get from all sorts of nutty companies, one from Fairpoint would have been most welcome. And I urge all of you to check out the phone plans that were good five years ago to make sure they are still the deal they appeared to be then. No one is watching out for you except yourself. Caveat emptor!

March Madness: Notre Dame, what happened?

As "March Madness" envelopes the land, I try to rise above the fray. There are no teams or coaches that I particularly care about. Jimmer Freddette from Glens Falls, NY is one whom I like to keep an eye on. I sometimes look at the conferences to see how many teams from each make it into the sweet sixteen. There are two big east teams left, from a record number of eleven teams in the final 60 or so. Maybe that is the correct proportion. I would follow it more carefully for the first round if Siena made it to the big dance.
 
But I like Notre Dame, a big east competitor. Phyllis' Uncle Bart was a ND graduate in 1930 something. He watched and taped every game possible and often returned to his alma mater for a football game. He remembered the great ones, whom I have forgotten. The night he died, in his nineties, he watched ND win a close basketball game. I had  the pleasure  of watching the first half with him in the hospital. Phyllis and Pat were with me, and when it was time  to go home, Pat said to him "Do you mind if we leave/"  And he looked at them and then at me and said with a twinkle in his eye "He can stay." Of course that was not possible. So I guess I watch Notre Dame sports in his memory, knowing that where Bart is sitting now, he can do a lot more for his team, sometimes.

So I decided to watch Notre Dame enter the sweet sixteen for 2011. I think Bart fell asleep. I think the whole team did. The ball seemed to bounce into FSU players hands  whenever ND had it. The hoops seemed to elevate a foot or two whenever they attempted an inside shot, and beyond the circle.while the ball was in mid-air, magically, the hoop moved back a couple of feet producing an air ball. FSU jumped higher, shot way better, and outplayed the only team I was interested in (except Jimmer's team BYU). I lasted until one minute was left in the first half, and joined Bart in sleep. Maybe I was mad.

UN, Libya, US, quo vadis?

In the early 1960s, while I was living and going to school in Washington, DC, I happened to stumble into a Senate hearing at which Adlai Stevenson was testifying. It could have been a confirmation hearing for Stevenson to assume the ambassadorship to the United Nations. It was easy to get into hearings in those days. I was not fully aware of all the politics that were going on then. Some of those in the hearing included Senator Everett Dirksen and Senator Edward Kennedy. It was Stevenson who was in the lime light, and he relished it. He gave lots of reasons for maintaining membership in the UN and supporting the organization. Among the reasons were the police actions the UN had accomplished in many countries around the globe which were broadly supported by member nations, and which actions would have been impossible if the United States had attempted to do them alone. Participation in the organization made interventions possible because of the shared vision, workload and costs.

Today, the UN has endorsed an action in Libya to safeguard the citizenry there from the threatening vengeful ruler, Khaddafy. We can only hope that the benefits enunciated by Ambassador Stevenson many years ago hold true today. No one wants the USA involved in another war. People here and abroad are tired of America interfering in many other nations' affairs. Here, we ask, where does intervention stop? Why not march into other rebellions- Iran for instance? Do opposition leaders expect USA support and protection? Why Libya, and not another place? Who pays for it all? What guarantees a good outcome for the US?

I think I am glad for the UN to take up the cause of the Libyan people.I am sad that it comes down to arms as a method of solving the problem. I want the people to win, and live in freedom. I worry when bluster replaces real diplomacy. I believe in the latter. There are so many questions and concerns which result in confusion and uncertainty, and  I would like to see the US, the UN, and all parties get back on the right track.

Rah rah, St. Patrick!

Yesterday, I broke  open the box that contained decorations for "Holidays other than Christmas" and placed a few statues of leprechauns around the room, some candles with shamrocks and similarly enhanced napkins and paper plates on the table, and then began hanging some strings of shamrocks on the beams of the porch. It was a beautiful sunshiny March 16, and I began singing what amounted to St. Patrick's Day carols.

"Hail glorious St. Patrick, dear saint of our Isle,
on your dear sweet children bestow a sweet smile..."

Something like that. I looked around and Phyllis was laughing at my antics, and I realized that her experience in catholic schools was way different from mine. She went to Immaculate Conception School, whereas I was  privileged to go to the school named after the greatest saint of all, Patrick.

St. Patrick rocks. He drove the snakes out of Ireland, he tamed the heathen by picking a shamrock and explaining the inexplicable doctrine of the Trinity. But he probably did his share of tippling at the pub, might have tossed refrigerators or microwaves out the window to get rid of those evils. He was our hero, head and shoulders above others. He inspired raucous songs that bring people together and help us unite in the wearing of the green. What a guy!

What can you do with Immaculate Conception, or if you were unlucky enough to go to St. Peter's, or Paul's, or any of the others? Maybe look with wonder and envy as the real saint is honored, and his revelers rejoice!

Rah! Rah! St. Patrick!

Teacher, Unions, and Budget

With all the hubbub about breaking unions as the way to fiscal balance, and teacher unions in particular; with notions that these unions are protecting the weaker members; movement to eliminate the last in first out protection for long term employees;  I am glad that there are teachers' unions.
Good teachers are also protected by unions, and I would say there are more good ones than bad ones. Many good teachers stay for years in the same school district   because they were rightly evaluated and found to be competent and effective and granted tenure. They continue to grow and improve with age. They have built up a wealth of understanding about what makes kids tick. They have developed and continue to develop methods that help students learn. These teachers are often in the middle or near the top of the pay scale.
Without protection, they could be eliminated, replaced with new teachers, and the cost of education plummets, until these new teachers get up onto the pay scale in a couple of years, and they in turn could also be fired. The students would have been denied the expertise of the seasoned teachers, and would be in the hands of the untested, inexperienced group.
Administrators seem to indicate that tenure is unbreakable, and so incompetent teachers cannot be fired. That is not true. It can be done if the administrators make the case and follow the procedures. Is it easy, no. Is it possible yes. Perhaps instead of berating teachers and their unions, it would behoove the people in charge of education to do their jobs as they evaluate, grant tenure, set standards, and exercise other responsibilities in helping our students to learn. 
Add to the list on which everyone is evaluated, administrators, board members, teachers, students- did he or she encourage and support or try new ways to teach and to learn. That is the bottom line we should be looking for in our schools.

Budget reduction beginning at the top- Part one

I believe that people should be compensated justly for what they do, however in these difficult times, sacrifices must be made. Congress should put everything on the table, including their own salaries and other officials who eventually get rich doing whatever they do. According to my calculations, simply by paying 80% of salary to our senators, representative, and federal judges, we would cut the federal budget by  $120,000,000. The congressional part includes all 535 senators and congress persons base salaries. The judicial part include approximately 3000 federal judge positions. Include the supreme court justices and another $400,000 can be added. I looked at the 182 ambassador positions, but their compensation at between $130-170,000 may be okay. Perhaps we don't need an ambassador to Fiji, since we seem to do without them in countries like Iran.

Maybe this could be looked upon as nickel and dimeing a budget that is way out of control, but that seems to be an approach that some would like to take, so let's go for it.

Letter to Senator Gillibrand

We have been retired from public school teaching for about 12 years now. We  have pensions from the NYSTRS and Social Security. This year we filed our 2010 tax return, and holy cow, our taxes actually went up $288. Our return indicates substantially the same income figures as last year. We had ordered with held the correct amount to cover the taxes. What changed? The standard deduction was lowered by $1000. (Our itemization indicated that this was the best deduction to take.) Our taxes went up, contrary to what had been loudly proclaimed over the past couple of months. There is an injustice here. And it probably extends to all who must take the standard deduction. Perhaps the richer among us should not be able to itemize deductions, but  take only the standard deduction.
And a final note... there was no social security cost of living increase nor lump sum rebate as was given in previous years.
We old folks are paying for the tax cut to the rich. Please share this with your colleagues on all sides of the aisle, and the president.

Guns and snow

About five feet of snow has fallen so far this winter around here. It seems like a lot, but nothing can prevent the vicissitudes of mother nature. Our second major snow fall is winding down with blustery winds, and about 2 feet od snow overall. The snow is beautiful but could be dangerous if a person combines that with a trip to the store, as one exercises a privilege to drive.
As for guns, I do not think that tragedies associated with guns only happen at a distance from these hills. Several times in my lifetime around here, I have been touched by gun violence, at Chatham High and at Simon's Rock to name two.
I have heard much about second amendment rights. I wonder if it is not time to look at the second amendment and repeal it. It is outdated. We have changed the Constitution many times to allow for the direct election of senators, ensure equal rights for all, provide for income tax to be assessed, limit the terms of our presidents, allow for succession in the event of the medical incapacity of a president, and many others. There have been proposals to amend the constitution to prohibit flag burning and gay marriage and other things.
It seems to me that the Constitution deals with God-given rights, which come to us with birth, and provisions for governance.
The second amendment is an aberration, suited to a particular time period after the war of revolution. It has no relevance in today's society. Repeal it.   The feds can then regulate what is necessary to secure the overall public safety. Further gun regulation would then become within the power of the states as a power not assigned to the federal government. Treat gun ownership as a privilege, as we do driving (in the snow?).
I have not fully worked this through, but why not look at this?

Summer passing

It has been a while since my last post. We have enjoyed our back porch more than ever this summer. Beautiful sunny days, plenty of heat, shade under our awning; birds, deer, pleasant conversation as recovery continues...seems like an endless process...we will get there...as summer passes and fall begins.

Spring forward

I just did a 2 mile walk as far as Van Altynes and back in 30 minutes.I have decided that I would eventually like to do 4 miles in one hour, which is almost to the Hillsdale line south of here. I could then reach Great Barrington in 3 hours or Chatham in 2. Wow!

The big news this spring is that Phyllis continues to progress in rehab, and will then join me in her own way on these jaunts. She was a cheerleader, after all. The promise of the crocus, still hiding beneath the snow takes on reality with the fragrance of fresh flowers sent by well wishers and delivered to her temporary "home".

There is much anticipation. The resurrection has taken on new meaning as we spring forward, clear the cob webs, bake some Easter bucellatte and get ready for the homecoming. I offer this poem from William Wordsworth. My rainbow is Phyllis, and my life began anew when I met her

My Heart Leaps Up
by William Wordsworth

My heart leaps up when I behold
A rainbow in the sky:
So was it when my life began;
So is it now I am a man;
So be it when I shall grow old,
Or let me die!
The Child is father of the Man;
And I could wish my days to be
Bound each to each by natural piety.

Checking on Spring

Today was the day to check out the progress of spring. A windswept partially cloudy sky that let in a lot of sunshine brought the temperature to nearly fifty degrees, if you walked south, and probably about 35 windy degrees as you walked north. The neighborhood was busier than usual: a father and his son splitting wood in the field behind the post office; a mother and two of her children collecting sap from the maple trees, and generally a softening of everything as the snow melted gently onto the back roads. There are little red buds on some of the smaller tree and bushes, and the birds seem more active. The firehouse marquee reminded all to turn their clocks ahead next week, and more importantly, change the batteries in your smoke detectors. Spring is making inroads all over the place.

My spring this year will see Phyllis smiling face monitoring the bird feeders, the spring planting, the early mowing. She will see the plants sent to her in rehab gently placed into the earth for rebirth another year. I think this part of spring will occur before the calendar spring, and certainly before the snow is gone.

Phyllis is making great progress. Rehab has been as good as it gets. Come on spring! We need your brightness, sunshine, and lullabies.

It's been a while since I have had the time or energy to post anything. Sometimes, life takes turns that require more steering, and often crashes happen despite the best of caution. This sounds ominous, and it is. I don't like to write about the bad things that happen, the crashes. I prefer the good times, so here goes.

Phyllis is recovering from a hip fracture. As she progresses toward recovery in rehab, I am confident about her prognosis, although I am aware that a walker will inevitably be a part of our lives forever. We can deal with that.

Phyllis has a smile and way that wins hearts and minds. This is unchanged. Dozens of cards with get well wishes have been sent her way. She is loved by many, and she is grateful for all.

We hope to be a household again in a couple of weeks. Healing is so indeterminate. It will work, on time for spring, alive with robins, magnolia, crocus, and a fresh garden, and a refreshed Phyllis.

Summer toil

The garage is virtually empty after a great tag sale last week end. A few last minute touches (paint the interior of the doors and windows, install the garage door opener, wash down the work benches), and we have our garage back. It was quite a summer. I learned a little about how insurance works (don't be shy about claims), about cleansers (some actually do clean soot better than others), about craigslist.com (you can really sell things there, but there will be a lot of junk mail beginning with "I too was down and out and had to sell things, and now I have some advice for you at www----"), about tag sales (no way to make a living, but a great opportunity to meet the neighbors). Soon, I will finish my original summer project- painting the house. I have an area the size of a coffee table to do. Where will I go on vacation?

Mower burns in my Garage

What a mess! I thought I had only lost a mower, but that was only a small part of it. The garage had to be emptied, power washed, sprayed with shellac. Much of the contents had to be tossed. It is a labor of love, and it has ocupied my life for the last two weeks, and probably the next two. More on this later... I am going out to the garage.

Easter Time,present and past

Yesterday, we drove through the Hoosick Street area of Troy to get to Schaghticoke where Jean and Bill now live. Our purpose was to deliver Bucellate, a traditional Easter bread that members of our family have made for the past one hundred years or so. The recipe changes with time. It came from my Italian grandmother who measured everything in handfuls, and pinches, and small amount, or a little bit, un poco. My mother sat at a table in her mother-in-law's kitchen and wrote down the recipe as it was being made.

Mom became the expert and we became addicted to the process and the tradition. We saw lots of eggs, flour, sugar, yeast ending up in a huge amount of batter that mom pounded and kneaded and tossed in our faces as we lined up along the edge of the kitchen table where she worked. The eggs were blown out, and the intact shells were colored to add to the array of hard boiled Easter eggs. The bread was distributed to relatives and friends, and lots of it was eaten by us.

Mary and Jean still make the bread using the time honored recipe, with a few tweaks. I, on the other hand, make the bread using a recipe that I found in a bread book. As I was growing up, I could not figure out how to spell the name of the bread. It always came out as "oogellah". None of my Italian studies permitted me see this combination of letters. Did it start with an "o" or a "u", or both. One Sunday afternoon, when Mom and Dad were visiting us at our home in Austerlitz, NY, we were showing off our new bread book. Dad leapt from his chair as were were riffling through the pages and cried out "Buccelad!", and there it was. The mysteries were solved: how to spell it and how to make it!

Driving up Hoosick Street further jogged my memory. When we were little, probably up to age ten or so, often on Sunday afternoon, Dad, George and I would walk from our house on River Street to Grandma Palladino's house on Sixteenth Street. It was up a hill, over a railroad bridge, past Clay Mountain, and a few more blocks to the house. We were always welcomed there. A pot of sauce was always on the stove. Dad's brothers and sisters were around. They always offered us ginger ale that tickled our nose, and they made much of us. But one thing about those visits that sticks in my mind was the way we dressed, always in our best, always handsomely, and at Easter time, we wore Fedora hats with a feather. We were so cool!

Happy Easter!

April Fool's

Crocus in bloom- the brave soldiers of spring...

Our house birthday corresponds with April Fool's Day. Thirty five years ago on this date, we closed on this handy man's special. The Twiss family had moved out that day; we checked constantly to make sure they were gone, and about 4:00 pm, we brought some blankets, clothes, baby crib, and our son Dan into our new c.1780-1800 house, lit a fire in the fireplace and declared we were home.

The neighbors on the hill almost called the fire company when they saw the smoke encircling the house, but thought better of it when they realized the plume was coming from the chimney.

Dan and Meg knew this as their home and playground until college claimed them. The fields were lush with grass, the meadows burgeoning with tall tansy, goldenrod, and sapling spruce trees. A hike through the forest to the big rock was a thrilling summer or fall afternoon. A ride down the toboggan slope in winter followed by hot chocolate kept us alive and joyful even in the bleak winter days. Summer gardens provided a plethora of fresh flowers and tomatoes. Tasty homemade pies came from the Northern Spy apple tree, the elderberry bushes, and the rhubarb patch. Red and black raspberries were consumed at picking when we were able to beat the birds to the snack.

We have enjoyed these years hosting dozens of family reunions at Christmas and the Fourth of July, neighbor parties, friends old and new. There were teachers who celebrated monumental moments of retirement or moving on to better jobs, and some who came to our screen house to plan educational revolution at Chatham High School.

And now we are warm in our house, content with where we have been. We continue our journey in life. Soon we will be the longest occupants of the house since the day it was built. Today we will plant the tomato seeds indoors. Tomorrow, we will till part of the garden and hope for some spring turnips, peas, and kale; and of course a few rhubarb pies.

We are April's fools.

St. Patrick's Revisited

"Hibernia's champion saint all hail, this day your, glory sounds;
The offspring of your ardent zeal, this day your praise shall sound.
Great and glorious St. Patrick, pray for thy dear country.
Great and glorious St. Patrick, hearken to the prayers of your children."

We sang this with such gusto as we celebrated his day as children at St. Patrick's School in Troy. The Saint's likeness was and still is portrayed in stained glass above the altar of the church, and a larger than life sized statue graced the hall way at the entrance to the school auditorium.

Why did we really celebrate? St. Patrick was a hero for the many children of Ireland, and the millions who had come to America. We held him in high esteem as the greatest person ever from our heritage, a personal symbol of power, faith, and resurrection for a poor and down- trodden people.

Proudly, we embraced him and we celebrated his legendary accomplishments, and hoped for continued miracles in our day. I don't think we have been disappointed, but he (we) still has a lot of work to do.

And this is the first year that the songs will not be sung in St. Patrick's. The church was closed last June. It still was the place of worship for many, old and young. But the needs of the large suburban areas overcame the exigencies of the Catholic Church's presence in the inner city, and the parish was closed along with the others in the city. We are left with memories, a heritage, and the songs will be sung in places far and wide because of the universal presence of our favorite St. Patrick. 

Hang in there!

If a bank re-values a mortgage because it is upside down (the value of the house is less than the principal), should the bank re-value the mortgage when the principal is less than the value of the house? If a person bought a house, it is only worth less if an owner must sell for less.
If a person pays the mortgage on time, and the equity starts to build because of improvements, or better home values in an improved market, then the owner will be happy.
There is something wrong headed about re-valuing mortgages.
I bought a house twenty years ago at top dollar, $73,000. Because of the city it was in, and the possible progression of urban decay, it was later valued by the bank at about $50,000. I was trying to get out of an adjustable rate mortgage into a fixed rate at the time. I had to, and was able to come up with several thousand additional dollars to make it worthwhile for the bank to do this change. At no time was the bank ready to forgive any of the principal.
Some constraints required me to hang on to that property through a severe downturn in the home market. Eighteen years later, the market had turned around-property in that section of the city had become desirable; a few improvements had been made; and the house sold for $95,000. I had excellent use of the property through those years, had a tax and interest deduction on my income tax throughout, made some people happy, and in the end made a small profit.
So, the moral is, hang in, hang on, and relax. Tough times usually yield to better times.

Tom, Tim, Taxes

The tax problems of Tom Daschle and Timothy Geithner are being treated as curable issues that do not interfere with their credentials to hold positions of trust in the Obama administration. They paid their back taxes, yet I wonder about all of it.

Consider this the tip of the iceberg. These two fine, scrupulous men tried to get away with about a quarter million dollars between them. They probably would not have been caught if they had not been nominated to such high offices. Most likely, there were others who have been vetted along the way who had similar tax difficulties. There are still others who withdrew early from the running because they had issues that they did not want to come to light. We are not talking Bernie Madoffs here, just outstanding public servants who love to serve their country and uncounted others across the spectrum of American life. Tom and Tim may be peerless in their expertise, and therefore the very best persons to fill the positions for which they have been selected.

How many more scrupulous, dedicated, American, public and private servants have failed to pay their required taxes because of "honest" mistakes? (Apparently, their accountants- which most Americans do not have- are either very unscrupulous or very bad.) How much tax revenue has the federal treasury lost because of the "honest" mistakes of "decent" "law-abiding" people like Tom and Tim?

Please note that we are not talking tax loopholes that should be plugged. We are not talking about the potentially thousands of unscrupulous entrepreneurs who are deliberately ripping off the federal government with many devious schemes ranging from creative tax computation to overcharging the government for everything from nuts and bolts to airplanes and toilets.

Tom and Tim represent the responsible citizens whom President Obama has called upon to bear their share of responsibility to get America back on the right track.

How can Tom create a health care program with congress after he is confirmed when practically every vote for his confirmation is cast by a senator to whom he would then be beholden.

I would love to see a tax holiday where those who owe big like these two saintly men could pay the share they owe for say the past ten years (yes, this is beyond the IRS statute of limitations), without further penalty, or a greatly reduced penalty, or even a ten percent reduction of what is owed. I think this would help out our treasury, our deficit, our debt. It would also provide us with a list of people to watch out for so they are not nominated to positions of authority without serious rehabilitation. And then have the IRS under the direction of Tim, who knows the mistakes that people make, go after the unscrupulous characters who have truly screwed our country in many ways.

Inauguration-Yes!

It is wonderful to see Barack Obama as he ascends to the presidency to serve as our president. It is only a part of the dream. Getting the country really together is the real thing which I hope will happen in the next few years.

As I look at the sea of people attending this inauguration, the security, preparations, etc. reminds me of the inauguration of President Lyndon Johnson in 1965. I happened to be in D.C. at the time, in the seminary at Catholic University. We were able to take a city bus to down town, walk the mall freely. We were able to stand within eye sight and hearing range of the inaugural proceedings, and after that, we walked the two miles to a grandstand seat near the reviewing stand (someone had given a bundle of tickets to the seminary rector). It was thrilling, it was simple, and fun.

But it wasn't that memorable. LBJ was voted in by a landslide. He was an incumbent president, who succeeded the popular JFK upon his assassination. (JFK seemed to achieve popularity after he assumed the presidency winning by a handful of votes that swung Illinois into his column in 1960.) Barry Goldwater with his conservative ideas and agenda did not impress the American electorate, and was badly trounced by LBJ. But Lyndon Johnson did not really capture the minds, hearts, and imaginations of the people. It was not a change time, but a time for when the people wanted stability and security.

We probably got more from Johnson than we ever could have hoped for: civil rights legislation, medicare and medicaid, and the unfortunate deeper involvement in the Vietnam. By the end of his four years, civil rights protests morphed into marches and demonstrations against the war, violent government reactions, and the assassinations of Martin Luther king, Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy.

We greet Barack Obama with tremendous enthusiasm, and a prayer for the great change that we anticipate. Yes!

Happy New Year

The official New Year began a few days ago, with little fanfare. One resolution I have made is to use all the flour, yeast, and other ingredients that have been laying around here unused for the past year. Out with the old, in with something fresh!

Maybe the world, the country, and all of us ought to think in this mode. Out with the old clothes, in with the new. Out with the old ideas, in with some fresh ideas. Out with the old prejudices, in with some openness to other viewpoints.

It's amazing how freeing it is to let go, start over, refreshed and ready. It is not giving up the roots, or the memories, or practices. These are important to maintain our identity. Rather it is adding something to ourselves, growing to be stronger, more open, to the sky above, and the earth below.

Out with the old, in with the new! Happy New Year!

Christmas

The mystery of Christmas opens my mind to the many possibilities in life. I think of the humility portrayed in the Christmas story contrasted with the coming of the three kings of power and might. I think of the story of the flight into Egypt when King Herod was so totally outwitted by the humble Joseph. I am reminded of one part of scripture that we had to memorize, the line from the Magnificat, Mary's song, "He has put down the mighty from their throne and has exalted the humble."

I think the kernel of Christmas is exactly that, and the mystery lies in anticipation that it can and will happen again, not another Jesus birth per se, but the raising up of the lowly.

My soul glorifies the Lord, *

my spirit rejoices in God, my Saviour.

He looks on his servant in her lowliness; *

henceforth all ages will call me blessed.

The Almighty works marvels for me. *

Holy his name!

His mercy is from age to age, *

on those who fear him.

He puts forth his arm in strength *

and scatters the proud-hearted.

He casts the mighty from their thrones *

and raises the lowly.

He fills the starving with good things, *

sends the rich away empty.

He protects Israel, his servant, *

remembering his mercy,

the mercy promised to our fathers, *

to Abraham and his sons for ever.

Merry Christmas!

Let it snow!

We survived the ice storm on December 12th. Power was lost for only one day, Friday, (off at 1 a.m, and back on at 5 p.m.). We were lucky. The people in the back hills were out until Wednesday. The Austerlitz post office, which is close to Route 22 continued without power through Tuesday also, despite its proximity to us. Apparently, there were a number of trees and lines down on East Hill Road beyond the post office, and the switch for power to East Hill Road covers the post office. The same situation applied to the Fire House which sits off Route 22 on West Hill Road.

A key to survival for us was the wood stove in the kitchen. We fired it up at about 8 a.m., kept close to it all day, and cooked coffee,lunch and pop corn on it.

Being prepared for emergencies is an odd phrase. I think the best way to prepare is to have available options which are not too unusual, for instance, the wood stove. We use it at other times of the year just to conserve heat, or for spot heating. I have two kero-sun heaters in the garage, but I never thought of using them, because they are buried too deep in the garage, and I did not have any kerosene. I could give them a more prominent place in the garageand have them ready for emergency use every four or five years, but then the kerosene would probably have evaporated, and I would be out of luck in the emergency. there must be a better way to prepare for the heating part.

Water is another issue. I used to put a couple of milk jugs with tap water in them under the sink. By the time an emergency arose, they would taste like plastic, and were useful only for flushing the toilets, or washing hands. I have found that the water system itself, with the tanks that have a liner will provide several gallons of water before they stop producing water. For drinking, it makes sense to purchase pints of spring water ahead, using it for drinking while working around outside during the spring, summer, and fall, and replenishing it for the winter just in case.

And then there is lighting. Batteries are important to have around, and charged flashlights if available. Batteries power radios for communication with the outside world. Candles help to see each other in the dark. If there is reading to be done, do it in the daylight, and go to bed early after darkness.

We find it good to go out after the emergency is passed, sticking to the main roads. The car is so warm, and the contact with people who have gone through the experience is invaluable. It's fun exchanging "war" stories, and when you realize how little you have been inconvenienced compared to other neighbors, you count your blessings.

Now a new storm has appeared on our doorstep, with predictions of up to 14 inches, before it ends in the early morning hours tomorrow. The snow blower stands ready.

We will continue to get ready for Christmas, which will come after a third storm on Sunday, and perhaps a fourth storm on Christmas Eve. I think that spring will arrive early; after all, winter did.

Family Christmas Party

Left: Santa delivers coal to Uncle George.
Below: the sing-a-long


About 60 people, including 25 children, came to the 35th annual family Christmas party on Saturday. We were graced with bountiful food, our traditional carrot soup, and great desserts like carrot cake, cheese cake, pan forte, fruit, and gianettes. Santa came to deliver gifts to the children... huge teddy bears for those three and under, which was about 11 of the group... and a special gift of coal for Uncle George. The sing-a-long was merry and robust with full participation... Pat on the piano, and many people with tambourines and other rhythm instruments. We are resting this week, and enjoying the many fine breads (banana, pumpkin, zucchini) that we were given from our family. We save Mary's torte for Christmas morning. Wow!
Theresa and George sent me this note:

Hi, Phil and Phyllis,

We are still reminiscing about Saturday's gathering at your warm, loving home. The family certainly has expanded so beautifully.

Thank you for everything that you did to have so many people roaming about the house. Santa was perfect. The picture which you sent was a little blurred, but, it did bring back fun memories of that moment. I know who the clown is in the family and his name is Pete. haha

Thanksgiving

As we celebrate the American holiday of thanksgiving, I am mindful of the people who have made my life so complete. They include not only my loving spouse, and children, but the people with whom we have shared this day throughout the years: family members, college friends, friends from our children's colleges, their parents and siblings, fellow workers. There is always one above all, and that would be my parents who taught us how to celebrate these times at their magnificent dining room table, that seemed to extend forever from room to room. There was bounty, welcoming, laughter, and stories from everyday life.

There were five of us children who grew up together. Invitations to another person's table were rare. So we had our feast, and Dad would invite his co-workers from Montgomery Ward to share our good time. It was fun, special and inspiring. Sometimes, it was Mom's relatives, or Dad's siblings.

The common thread was the love, the laughter, and the bounty, all for which we gave, and continue to give thanks.

Thank you and Happy Thanksgiving!

Bail out the consumer

The Federal government is taking its time producing an impact on the world economy, so I offer some "what ifs" for those in charge.

If it is important to help homeowners stay in their home, why not require banks to sit down with people who are in danger of being foreclosed upon, and renegotiate the loan so that it is affordable to them, by lowering the interest rate and extending the term. If the house is still unaffordable, then reality may require either steps to make it affordable, maybe an additional low interest loan from the feds would be in order; and maybe it will continue to be unaffordable, at which time the bank might become the property owner, and and contract with the owner to become the renter in a rent to buy arrangement.

The other banking crimes that should be addressed are interest rates and penalties on credit cards. There are some who buy things on credit that they cannot and need not afford. Maybe a penalty is in order, but not necessarily an interest rate hike. The whole point of credit cards is to keep people buying, not to drive them into the poor house which is counterproductive.

Credit card interest should be capped at between 12 and 15 percent (my arbitrary numbers, so I don't sound like I am too anti-bank). The interest should be able to be calculated easily over a period of time, and statements from the credit card companies should reflect not just the minimum payment due, but the advantage of paying off completely or in larger installments. Same as cash options should become a rule rather than an exception.

So these are my two "what ifs" for the feds to consider. Neither would cost much to them. People would be happy and the economy would have the cash needed to carry on.

• Keep people in their homes by renegotiating mortgages.

• Cut interest rates and penalties on credit cards.

The country would be a better place.

What if Osama bin Laden is dead!

Osama bin Laden is probably the most hated man in America's eyes. He is to be pursued unto death. Yet, no one has heard from him since 2001. There was a report on CNN today that said, if you talk to the intelligence community, about half of those in the know think he is alive, and the other half think he is dead.

What if our policies reflected the opinion of the half that think he is dead. What if we declared him dead, "mission accomplished", and with a wary eye to the alternative possibility, went about a different agenda for America.

Perhaps we could focus on the Taliban, and its influence in Afghanistan, and other Muslim countries. Probably we could stop dropping missiles into the huts on the hillsides of our allies, and prevent loss of more innocent life. Maybe we could build positive relationships with the nearly one-third of the world which calls itself Muslim, and assist those people as they try to move forward into a modern society. Surely our resources would not be so strained and wasted as we pursue an illusive, if alive, foe. And there is a possibility that the world's most wanted would venture out of his cave when the heat is off, and suffer the consequences of his folly.

I don't know the answer, but perhaps declaring victory, and remaining vigilant would free us from the demons of hate which have possessed and consumed us for so long.

The Constitution

I have posted a link to the United States Constitution on this Blog. As I realized the number of propositions which were on the ballots of states across the country, I was curious about the actual safeguards for all people in the constitution. Somewhere I had read that "the rights of individual citizens shall not be abridged. " And there it was, article 14 which reads: All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.

This is and amazing concept, which has huge ramifications for all of us, and which will always be the subject of debate. This is part of what men and women have fought and died for, and what is missing in those parts of the world where there is no democracy. It applies to all people in the United States and subject to the laws of the U.S. "Equal protection" is what makes America great. Some of the propositions which were voted on will be overturned because of the 14th amendment. The propositions "abridge rights".

It's also rather good to know that the propositions were on the ballots because of the constitution.

Amendment 2: Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

What a great country!

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Election Look

As I thought about the elation I feel about the election of Barack Obama, I have no illusions about the road ahead. I realize that a large part of my good feelings come because we probably have already been through one of the roughest periods in American history since the great depression, namely the two terms of George W. Bush. This election has been more about that than any one or any thing else. I do think that the promise and unifying message of Barack Obama has uplifted the dialogue and will set us on a path to recovery. If his candidacy was an uphill climb, the road ahead for America is also steep.

Election Day- Hope returns

Since Robert Kennedy was campaining for president in 1968, I have not been filled with the hope that I have today as America stands on the verge of electing Barack Obama. He will not handle everything. He is not a miracle worker. But I think he will try to solve problems instead of just managing them. I think he will be a great president.