Getting up early!

I need a good alarm clock for this Saturday morning, when I have to get up at 5 am. I will be picked up my EFM friends to take me to the mystics talk in San Antonio, so I need to be ready by 5:45 am. (Going by myself, I would leave at 6:30) It will be nice to travel with some friends. The talk will be on Meister Eckhart, which I really want to hear.

Will of God

Often we anxiously seek the will of God,
as if God had gleefully hidden dreams for us
deep in unfathomable places.
As if it were God's intention
that our whole lives be spent
in endless searching for signs and directions
buried in obscurity.
The will of God is that which brings us
peace and fullness of life.
The will of God is the seed of our dreams
ever gestating with possibility
and longing to leap forward
scattering new and surprising blessings
in our gray reality.

~~Edwina Gateley

Source: A Mystical Heart

From Inward/Outward. Subscribe here.

Insomnia

Carve a pumpkin!

CARVE YOUR OWN PUMPKIN!

Hope--Hold onto the Hope!

From Inward/Outward today. I am touched and holding on.

"They were nothing more than people, by themselves. Even paired, any pairing, they would have been nothing more than people by themselves. But all together, they have become the heart and muscles and mind of something perilous and new, something strange and growing and great. Together, all together, they are the instruments of change."

~~by Keri Hulme

Source: The Bone People

From Inward/Outward. Subscribe here.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
AND did you know that on Monday Inward/Outward quoted one of Mike's posts from his Mercy Blog?

I voted!

I voted today in the early voting offered in TX. I'm glad to be done with it!

Still, I worry about these voting machines. Where is my vote stored? Also, that dial on the right is tricky to use; I hope it didn't slip for someone so that when he/she pushed "enter," the wrong choice was selected. There were various elderly people there who seemed confused. And now there's even people writing about malfunctioning voting machines.

Have to remember (and hope and pray that) "...All shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of thing shall be well" (by Julian of Norwich, 14th century mystic).

350 Still Images of John McCain's Anger Management

A friend emailed this to me, and I had to post it here:

Thanks to Andrew Sullivan again, here's a spot to visit. TPM (Talking Points Memo) displays various public figures, reporters, and newspapers with their latest opinions about Sarah Palin. Click on the person and his/her comments come up. Click: (and scroll down)

The Palin Effect

10 Reasons for Conservatives to Vote for Obama

Andrew Sullivan of "The Daily Dish" wrote TEN reasons for conservatives to vote for Obama!

10. A body blow to racial identity politics. An end to the era of Jesse Jackson in black America.

9. Less debt. Yes, Obama will raise taxes on those earning over a quarter of a million. And he will spend on healthcare, Iraq, Afghanistan and the environment. But so will McCain. He plans more spending on health, the environment and won't touch defense of entitlements. And his refusal to touch taxes means an extra $4 trillion in debt over the massive increase presided over by Bush. And the CBO estimates that McCain's plans will add more to the debt over four years than Obama's. Fiscal conservatives have a clear choice.

8. A return to realism and prudence in foreign policy. Obama has consistently cited the foreign policy of George H. W. Bush as his inspiration. McCain's knee-jerk reaction to the Georgian conflict, his commitment to stay in Iraq indefinitely, and his brinksmanship over Iran's nuclear ambitions make him a far riskier choice for conservatives. The choice between Obama and McCain is like the choice between George H.W. Bush's first term and George W.'s.

7. An ability to understand the difference between listening to generals and delegating foreign policy to them.

6. Temperament. Obama has the coolest, calmest demeanor of any president since Eisenhower. Conservatism values that kind of constancy, especially compared with the hot-headed, irrational impulsiveness of McCain.

5. Faith. Obama's fusion of Christianity and reason, his non-fundamentalist faith, is a critical bridge between the new atheism and the new Christianism.

4. A truce in the culture war. Obama takes us past the debilitating boomer warfare that has raged since the 1960s. Nothing has distorted our politics so gravely; nothing has made a rational politics more elusive.

3. Two words: President Palin.

2. Conservative reform. Until conservatism can get a distance from the big-spending, privacy-busting, debt-ridden, crony-laden, fundamentalist, intolerant, incompetent and arrogant faux conservatism of the Bush-Cheney years, it will never regain a coherent message to actually govern this country again. The survival of conservatism requires a temporary eclipse of today's Republicanism. Losing would be the best thing to happen to conservatism since 1964. Back then, conservatives lost in a landslide for the right reasons. Now, Republicans are losing in a landslide for the wrong reasons.

1. The War Against Islamist terror. The strategy deployed by Bush and Cheney has failed. It has failed to destroy al Qaeda, except in a country, Iraq, where their presence was minimal before the US invasion. It has failed to bring any of the terrorists to justice, instead creating the excresence of Gitmo, torture, secret sites, and the collapse of America's reputation abroad. It has empowered Iran, allowed al Qaeda to regroup in Pakistan, made the next vast generation of Muslims loathe America, and imperiled our alliances. We need smarter leadership of the war: balancing force with diplomacy, hard power with better p.r., deploying strategy rather than mere tactics, and self-confidence rather than a bunker mentality.

Those conservatives who remain convinced, as I do, that Islamist terror remains the greatest threat to the West cannot risk a perpetuation of the failed Manichean worldview of the past eight years, and cannot risk the possibility of McCain making rash decisions in the middle of a potentially catastrophic global conflict. If you are serious about the war on terror and believe it is a war we have to win, the only serious candidate is Barack Obama.

Only nine days ago did I write about my daughter AE and her partner KA getting a little cocker puppy. Today on AE's blog was posted this darling picture of Morgan (the puppy) after her first bath:
Poor Morgan didn't like it. Isn't she cute?

Morgan is my third grand-puppy!

Remember Opie?

Maybe because it's my birthday and I am feeling nostalgic, but I laughed and enjoyed this video I found at Fran's featuring Ron Howard reprising his roles in "Andy Griffith" and "Happy Days." If you're old enough to remember those shows, watch this! (Even if you're not, the message is for Obama!)

See more Ron Howard videos at Funny or Die

Cheesecake Story

My children and friends know the story behind my annual cheesecake on my birthday. When CB was in grad school at Oregon State University in the 1970's, we were good friends with Steve and Gayla. Steve was in the chem department graduate program along with CB; Gayla and I were both elementary school teachers; and we all lived in married student housing. That's when I learned that Steve always baked Gayla a cake for her birthday! That seemed like a good idea, so I suggested it to CB, and for the past 34 years he has done this for me.

My cake of choice is cheesecake, and CB bakes the best one I've ever had. He follows Craig Claiborne's recipe as adapted by Maida Heatter (in Maida Heatter's Book of Great Desserts), and he has a few changes he's put in, himself. It is simple and GOOD:

2 pounds cream cheese, at room temperature
1 tsp. vanilla
1 3/4 cups sugar
4 eggs

Beat and add to springform (cheesecake) pan and bake at 350 degrees F. for 90 minutes.

All these years, I've been pleased and proud of my husband (with the children's help) making me a birthday cake every year. MJ came home from college last night and participated in this annual cooking event. I'm glad my children have seen their dad, my husband, make this effort, even during the times that our marriage was strained. What a gift to us all!
~~~~~~~~~~~

But what is really sad is the news I received from Gayla yesterday in a birthday card. (Our friendship has fallen to exchange of birthday and Christmas letters in cards every year.) She wrote to tell me that Steve asked for a divorce in the past year, and it is now final. She still sounds overwhelmed and confused. I'll be calling her today for the first time in about 30 years; she wrote down both her cell and (new) home phone numbers.

The Birthday (or Cheesecake) Cake story is still a good one, especially as CB continues the tradition. Even if Steve doesn't.

I feel ever fortunate, even though today I turn:

CROP Walk 2008

About 36 hours ago I learned that the Corpus Christi CROP Walk was scheduled for Nov. 9, and I knew nothing about it. I've walked in the annual CROP Walk for 13 years, since moving to Corpus Christi. Last year was the first year All Saints Episcopal Church participated in the CROP Walk, and we raised almost $3,000! In fact, I blogged about it last year.

However, NO ONE contacted All Saints or me about participating this year. I was very irritated about this until I realized that I've wondered off and on for several months when the CROP Walk would be, but did nothing about that. So I can't really blame everybody else. . . .though it does seem like the organization should care about including a church that was just beginning its participation to encourage persistence. . . ."Shoulda' - woulda' - coulda'!"

Finally, I contacted several people who arranged for walk packets for volunteers, posters, and info about the CROP Walk to be delivered to All Saints. As I wondered if there is enough time to get people involved, the only two people I've mentioned this to signed up to walk! The church secretary, who happens to be a Quaker, is helping me out with publicity and her enthusiasm. So the way seems to be becoming clearer. . . .

AND now if any of you blogging friends want to contribute to the CROP Walk, go here. In each area that a Walk occurs, 25% stays in the community and the rest goes to alleviate worldwide hunger through Church World Service.

Freecycle!

Freecycle: Changing the World One Gift at a Time

When I was in Canada, the daughter of my cousin Margaret (and thus my third cousin, I believe) NF showed me how she "freecycles." While I was there she picked up a stack of exercise books that were all pretty new on someone's porch, absolutely free! There were even duplicate copies, so she gave me one!

I am a clutter person and somehow have a hard time giving things away unless it is for the "right" person. That's very self-defeating, which is why I have so much junk, especially in my closets. Though I'll continue to drop off stuff at Goodwill and the Women's Shelter, this seems like an excellent idea for the uncertain items, like a rarely used onion chopper.

Go here for the history and background of the movement that was started in 2003 in Tucson, Arizona, and now its current numbers are:

Number of Freecycle™ Communities:	4,121
Number of Freecycle™ Members:	3,890,000

"The Freecycle Network™ is made up of many individual groups across the globe. It's a grassroots and entirely nonprofit movement of people who are giving (& getting) stuff for free in their own towns. Each local group is moderated by a local volunteer (them's good people). Membership is free. To sign up, find your community by clicking on the region on the left. You may then go directly to your local group by clicking on "Go To" or you may immediately joining by clicking on "Join." It will generate an automatic e-mail which, when sent, will sign you up for the local group and send you a response with instructions on how it works. Can't find a group near you? You might want to consider starting one (click on "Start a Group" for instructions)." From their "Welcome"

(This is one of their bumper stickers--sounds perfect for me.)

A World of Prayers

A World of Prayers

Written by Mark W. Muesse

"Belief divides the religions of the world, but prayer unites them.Across ages and cultures, prayers of Jews, Christians, Hindus, Muslims, and even non- theistic Buddhists have been strikingly similar in form, substance, and intention…apart from their names for the divine, people throughout the world pray for the same things and in much the same ways."

Various prayers are given as examples.

Read more from A World of Prayers

Palin on Federal Marriage Amendment

Tree of Progress!

I love trees. What a symbol of life and growth.

Via Border Explorer, I just found Watergate Summer, who has this poster on her sidebar. I vividly recall the "Watergate Summer," because that was the time that CB and I packed and moved ourselves from VA to OR so he could go to grad school at Oregon State University. Right before that we spent several days in the gallery of the U.S. Senate watching all the arguing about Nixon.
~~~~~~~~~~
I have since learned that this was a limited edition poster designed by Scott Hansen for the Obama campaign in May 2008. I do not know if it is still available, but this is what I could find out about it:

"The official Barack Obama store commissioned another great campaign poster, this time by Scott Hansen (aka ISO50). It is a massive 23″ x 40″ lithograph, has an edition of 5000, and is $70. If this one is anything like the Shepard Fairey version, the large edition will do nothing to detract from demand on this."

An Election Guide

I am taking the second year of EFM where we end each session with a TR (Theological Reflection).

Today's reflection was suggested by the two leaders, who are each strongly in favor of different candidates for President. They felt that the column by Joan Chittister from Sept. 2, 2004 was apolitical and could apply to either political party.

Were we all surprised when one member of the class kept hammering at the rest of us with points from the column that she said were biased:

"The truth is that there are more than enough poor that we as a country no longer count: The unemployed who drop off the welfare rolls, the underemployed who get no benefits, the children without health insurance, the fetuses being disposed of for the sake of convenience, the Iraqi civilians being killed for the sake of macho, the elderly who are facing even more poverty in years to come as Social Security fizzles in the wealthiest country in the world while we go on investing more money in death these days than we do in life?

"I think we better listen, as well, to the cries of the poor of other countries who, because of our economic or foreign policy plans, get poorer every day, fear us more every day and hate us more every day.

"The list goes on and on. Tell me again, who is "pro-life"? Where is the morality of saving life at one end only to starve it in mid-flight or kill it off cavalierly at the other?"

What's funny is that when I read the entire column, I liked it so much that I thought I would post the entire "guide" on this blog. Instead, I realized that I did not consider it to be a biased writing until I heard this other member of our class pick it apart. Since I agreed with Chittister's conclusion that one should vote for someone who has positions supporting the poor, I had not realized other people would feel differently. An "a-ha" moment!

The conclusion is:

"If you want to cast a moral vote, print out one of the many comparative lists of the issues espoused by each candidate. Ask yourself the question, "Will this proposal, this position, affect the poor of this country or the world positively, negatively or neither? Ascribe to each of the items in the platform or on the proposed legislative agenda a plus, a minus or a zero. Now count up the pluses. The program that will bring the most aid to the poor is the moral position. That is the way you and I are really expected to vote this year.

"How do I know? Easy. You see, what God says to Moses at the burning bush after "And I mean to deliver them" is this: "So I am sending you to pharaoh to say, 'Let my people go.' "

"That's the most direct election guidance I've seen so far -- including what we're getting from bishops and campaign committees.

"From where I stand, sending that message to pharaoh is the only real reason to vote."

After four more years of war and worsening economic conditions, this column is even more relevant than it was in 2004.

Go here to read the column!

The Sound of Silence

Non-Duality Cartoons

Before the Goldrush

Jiff posted this at her blog An Orientation of Heart:

"Happy Art" by Caroline Blum

Jiff writes:
"I'm in love with the music on a new project called "Before the Goldrush".
It's a project to benefit Teach for America. New artists with wonderful talent cover songs from artists such as James Taylor, Jim Croce, the Beatles and more.
You can learn more about this terrific project here."

I went to look at the link and am so impressed with the repertoire and it benefiting Teach for America that I wanted to order it, but am discouraged because I do not have an MP3 player, though all my children do. . . .