Facebook

I enjoy Facebook and I also feel so limited by not being able to post a complete thought. Seriously - is it meant only for the verbally challenged - I know it isn't but for me with verbal diarrhea well it is a tad frustrating.

I had thought of using this cow for my picture, but thought that maybe it wasn't a wise or prudent choice.

Speaking of choice. I have been posting videos of abortion survivors - honestly, I didn't know that was even possible giving the heinous procedures. But it is true. Here are two young women who are living proof.

Gianna Jessen
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cg_zhEIpTjs

Brandy Lozier
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eEeU-Flwfgo

This a pro-life video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iRL99YnfKO0


I hope that these pro-life videos are watched some day

Jack Russells In Action

Jacks are curious, cute, energetic, silly, party hard and sleep deeply. They bark - they were bred to bark, be independent, and did I mention bark?

They are fiercely loyal and persistent predators, dirt is wonderful and none have met a hole they didn't like. They like to dig and be in the middle of where you are digging.

Life is good and playing is very important. They will take on any other animal at times and can be down right stupid about it.

They love to cuddle and be close to their families - they may not like anyone coming near their family - but they love to be in laps, up close and personal, and sleep on our clothing. Our Jack, Rory, loves to sleep in the dirty clothes basket in the basement. She also thinks certain blankets and polar fleece were made for her princess butt.

I love my Jack - but one must have great commitment to this dog. They need a job or they will choose on that you probably won't like. Our dog's job is to make us laugh. She is a clown and loves to do tricks. She loves clicker training and will stand on her head to get a click - metaphorically speaking.

St Paul with technology

If Saint Paul had been a computer techie, he would have:

- Sold tents to buy a personal computer.

- Networked the seven churches mentioned in Revelation.

- Made sure his spiritual armor included a virus checker.

- Sent his letters to all the churches using Mail Merge.

- Used "Find" and "Replace" to change his name from Saul to Paul.

- Used mapping software to make his Missionary Journeys more efficient.

- Created a "Heresy Check" macro for his Word Processor.

- Made Software Piracy a sin.

- Told us to "Compu$erve one another."

- Replaced "Christ is the vine, we are the branches" with "Christ is the Network Server, we are the nodes."

The Year of St. Paul

St. Paul's

Chain Letter

To The Corinthians

1. The Chain Letter of Paul the Apostle to the Corinthians. With charity all things are possible. This epistle comes to you from Philippi. Grace be to you and peace. Spiritual gifts will be delivered unto you within four days of receiving this letter - providing you in turn send it on.

2. This is no joke. Send copies to whomsoever among the Gentiles or superstitious peoples of other denominations you would comfort in all their tribulation. Do not send material things. Charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up.

3. While visiting the household of Stephanas, a Macedonian proconsul received the epistle and was greeted by his brethren by a holy kiss.But he broke the chain, and now he is become as sounding brass or tinkling cymbal.

4. Gaius bestowed all his goods to feed the poor, and gave his body to beburned, but it profited him nothing. He failed to circulate the letter. However, before his death, he received the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

5. Do note the following: Crispus had the gift of prophecy, and understood all mysteries, and all knowledge, and had all faith, so that he could remove mountains. But he forgot that the epistle had to leave his hands within 96 hours, and now he is nothing.

6. In A.D. 37, the epistle was received by a young Galatian woman who put it aside to copy and send out later. She was plagued by various problems: thrice she was beaten with rods, once she was stoned, and thrice suffered shipwreck. On the last day of these occasions, she spent a night and day in the deep. Finally, she copied the letter. A Trumpet sounded, and she was raised incorruptible.

7. Remember: Believeth all things, hopeth all things. The chain never faileth.

St. Paul

Whore of Babylon?

Hunting

the

Whore of Babylon

Some anti-Catholics claim the Catholic Church is the Whore of Babylon of Revelation 17 and 18. Dave Hunt, in his 1994 book, A Woman Rides the Beast, presents nine arguments to try to prove this. His claims are a useful summary of those commonly used by Fundamentalists, and an examination of them shows why they don’t work.

#1: Seven Hills

Hunt argues that the Whore "is a city built on seven hills," which he identifies as the seven hills of ancient Rome. This argument is based on Revelation 17:9, which states that the woman sits on seven mountains. The Greek word in this passage is horos. Of the sixty-five occurrences of this word in the New Testament, only three are rendered "hill" by the King James Version. The remaining sixty-two are translated as "mountain" or "mount." Modern Bibles have similar ratios. If the passage states that the Whore sits on "seven mountains," it could refer to anything. Mountains are common biblical symbols, often symbolizing whole kingdoms (cf. Ps. 68:15; Dan. 2:35; Amos 4:1, 6:1; Obad. 8–21). The Whore’s seven mountains might be seven kingdoms she reigns over, or seven kingdoms with which she has something in common. The number seven may be symbolic also, for it often represents completeness in the Bible. If so, the seven mountains might signify that the Whore reigns over all earth’s kingdoms. Even if we accept that the word horos should be translated literally as "hill" in this passage, it still does not narrow us down to Rome. Other cities are known for having been built on seven hills as well. Even if we grant that the reference is to Rome, which Rome are we talking about—pagan Rome or Christian Rome? As we will see, ancient, pagan Rome fits all of Hunt’s criteria as well, or better, than Rome during the Christian centuries. Now bring in the distinction between Rome and Vatican City—the city where the Catholic Church is headquartered—and Hunt’s claim becomes less plausible. Vatican City is not built on seven hills, but only one: Vatican Hill, which is not one of the seven upon which ancient Rome was built. Those hills are on the east side of the Tiber river; Vatican Hill is on the west.

#2: "Babylon"—What’s in a Name?

Hunt notes that the Whore will be a city "known as Babylon." This is based on Revelation 17:5, which says that her name is "Babylon the Great." The phrase "Babylon the great" (Greek: Babulon a megala) occurs five times in Revelation (14:8, 16:19, 17:5, 18:2, and 18:21). Light is shed on its meaning when one notices that Babylon is referred to as "the great city" seven times in the book (16:19, 17:18, 18:10, 16, 18, 19, 21). Other than these, there is only one reference to "the great city." That passage is 11:8, which states that the bodies of God’s two witnesses "will lie in the street of the great city, which is allegorically called Sodom and Egypt, where their Lord was crucified." "The great city" is symbolically called Sodom, a reference to Jerusalem, symbolically called "Sodom" in the Old Testament (cf. Is. 1:10; Ezek. 16:1–3, 46–56). We also know Jerusalem is the "the great city" of Revelation 11:8 because the verse says it was "where [the] Lord was crucified." Revelation consistently speaks as if there were only one "great city" ("the great city"), suggesting that the great city of 11:8 is the same as the great city mentioned in the other seven texts—Babylon. Additional evidence for the identity of the two is the fact that both are symbolically named after great Old Testament enemies of the faith: Sodom, Egypt, and Babylon. This suggests that Babylon the great may be Jerusalem, not Rome. Many Protestant and Catholic commentators have adopted this interpretation. On the other hand, early Church Fathers often referred to Rome as "Babylon," but every references was to pagan Rome, which martyred Christians.

#3: Commits Fornication

Hunt tells us, "The woman is called a ‘whore’ (verse 1), with whom earthly kings ‘have committed fornication’ (verse 2). Against only two cities could such a charge be made: Jerusalem and Rome." Here Hunt admits that the prophets often referred to Jerusalem as a spiritual whore, suggesting that the Whore might be apostate Jerusalem. Ancient, pagan Rome also fits the description, since through the cult of emperor worship it also committed spiritual fornication with "the kings of the earth" (those nations it conquered). To identify the Whore as Vatican City, Hunt interprets the fornication as alleged "unholy alliances" forged between Vatican City and other nations, but he fails to cite any reasons why the Vatican’s diplomatic relations with other nations are "unholy." He also confuses Vatican City with the city of Rome, and he neglects the fact that pagan Rome had "unholy alliances" with the kingdoms it governed (unholy because they were built on paganism and emperor worship).

#4: Clothed in Purple and Red

Hunt states, "She [the Whore] is clothed in ‘purple and scarlet’ (verse 4), the colors of the Catholic clergy." He then cites the Catholic Encyclopedia to show that bishops wear certain purple vestments and cardinals wear certain red vestments. Hunt ignores the obvious symbolic meaning of the colors—purple for royalty and red for the blood of Christian martyrs. Instead, he is suddenly literal in his interpretation. He understood well enough that the woman symbolizes a city and that the fornication symbolizes something other than literal sex, but now he wants to assign the colors a literal, earthly fulfillment in a few vestments of certain Catholic clergy. Purple and red are not the dominant colors of Catholic clerical vestments. White is. All priests wear white (including bishops and cardinals when they are saying Mass)—even the pope does so. The purple and scarlet of the Whore are contrasted with the white of the New Jerusalem, the Bride of Christ (Rev. 19:8). This is a problem for Hunt for three reasons: (a) we have already noted that the dominant color of Catholic clerical vestments is white, which would identify them with New Jerusalem if the color is taken literally; (b) the clothing of the Bride is given a symbolic interpretation ("the righteous acts of the saints;" 19:8); implying that the clothing of the Whore should also be given a symbolic meaning; and (c) the identification of the Bride as New Jerusalem (Rev. 3:12, 21:2, 10) suggests that the Whore may be old (apostate) Jerusalem—a contrast used elsewhere in Scripture (Gal. 4:25–26). Hunt ignores the liturgical meaning of purple and red in Catholic symbolism. Purple symbolizes repentance, and red honors the blood of Christ and the Christian martyrs. It is appropriate for Catholic clerics to wear purple and scarlet, if for no other reason because they have been liturgical colors of the true religion since ancient Israel. Hunt neglects to remind his readers that God commanded that scarlet yarn and wool be used in liturgical ceremonies (Lev. 14:4, 6, 49–52; Num. 19:6), and that God commanded that the priests’ vestments be made with purple and scarlet yarn (Ex. 28:4–8, 15, 33, 39:1–8, 24, 29).

#5: Possesses Great Wealth

Hunt states, "[The Whore’s] incredible wealth next caught John’s eye. She was ‘decked with gold and precious stones and pearls . . . ’ [Rev. 17:4]." The problem is that, regardless of what it had in the past, the modern Vatican is not fantastically wealthy. In fact, it has run a budget deficit in most recent years and has an annual budget only around the size of that of the Archdiocese of Chicago. Furthermore, wealth was much more in character with pagan Rome or apostate Jerusalem, both key economic centers.

#6: A Golden Cup

Hunt states that the Whore "has ‘a golden cup [chalice] in her hand, full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication.’" This is another reference to Revelation 17:4. Then he states that the "Church is known for its many thousands of gold chalices around the world." To make the Whore’s gold cup suggestive of the Eucharistic chalice, Hunt inserts the word "chalice" in square brackets, though the Greek word here is the ordinary word for cup (potarion), which appears thirty-three times in the New Testament and is always translated "cup." He ignores the fact that the Catholic chalice is used in the celebration of the Lord’s Supper—a ritual commanded by Christ (Luke 22:19–20; 1 Cor. 11:24–25); he ignores the fact that the majority of Eucharistic chalices Catholics use are not made out of gold, but other materials, such as brass, silver, glass, and even earthenware; he ignores the fact that gold liturgical vessels and utensils have been part of the true religion ever since ancient Israel—again at the command of God (Ex. 25:38–40, 37:23–24; Num. 31:50–51; 2 Chr. 24:14); and he again uses a literal interpretation, according to which the Whore’s cup is not a single symbol applying to the city of Rome, but a collection of many literal cups used in cities throughout the world. But Revelation tells us that it’s the cup of God’s wrath that is given to the Whore (Rev. 14:10; cf. Rev. 18:6). This has nothing to do with Eucharistic chalices.

#7: The Mother of Harlots

Now for Hunt’s most hilarious argument: "John’s attention is next drawn to the inscription on the woman’s forehead: ‘THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH’ (verse 5, [Hunt’s emphasis]). Sadly enough, the Roman Catholic Church fits that description as precisely as she fits the others. Much of the cause is due to the unbiblical doctrine of priestly celibacy," which has "made sinners of the clergy and harlots out of those with whom they secretly cohabit." Priestly celibacy is not a doctrine but a discipline—a discipline in the Latin Rite of the Church—and even this rite has not always been mandatory. This discipline can scarcely be unbiblical, since Hunt himself says, "The great apostle Paul was a celibate and recommended that life to others who wanted to devote themselves fully to serving Christ." Hunt has again lurched to an absurdly literal interpretation. He should interpret the harlotry of the Whore’s daughters as the same as their mother’s, which is why she is called their mother in the first place. This would make it spiritual or political fornication or the persecution of Christian martyrs (cf. 17:2, 6, 18:6). Instead, Hunt gives the interpretation of the daughters as literal, earthly prostitutes committing literal, earthly fornication. If Hunt did not have a fixation on the King James Version, he would notice another point that identifies the daughters’ harlotries with that of their mother: The same Greek word (porna) is used for both mother and daughters. The King James Version translates this word as "whore" whenever it refers to the mother, but as "harlot" when it refers to the daughters. Modern translations render it consistently. John sees the "great harlot" (17:1, 15, 16, 19:2) who is "the mother of harlots" (17:5). The harlotries of the daughters must be the same as the mother’s, which Hunt admits is not literal sex!

#8: Sheds the Blood of Saints

Hunt states, "John next notices that the woman is drunk—not with alcohol but with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus . . . [cf. verse 6]." He then advances charges of brutality and killing by the Inquisitions, supposed forced conversions of nations, and even the Nazi holocaust! This section of the book abounds with historical errors, not the least of which is his implication that the Church endorses the forced conversion of nations. The Church emphatically does not do so. It has condemned forced conversions as early as the third century (before then they were scarcely even possible), and has formally condemned them on repeated occasions, as in the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC 160, 1738, 1782, 2106–7). But pagan Rome and apostate Jerusalem do fit the description of a city drunk with the blood of saints and the martyrs of Jesus. And since they were notorious persecutors of Christians, the original audience would have automatically thought of one of these two as the city that persecutes Christians, not an undreamed-of Christian Rome that was centuries in the future.

#9: Reigns over Kings

For his last argument, Hunt states, "Finally, the angel reveals that the woman ‘is that great city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth’ (verse 18). Is there such a city? Yes, and again only one: Vatican City." This is a joke. Vatican City has no power over other nations; it certainly does not reign over them. In fact, the Vatican’s very existence has been threatened in the past two centuries by Italian nationalism. Hunt appeals to power the popes once had over Christian political rulers (neglecting the fact that this was always a limited authority, by the popes’ own admission), but at that time there was no Vatican City. The Vatican only became a separate city in 1929, when the Holy See and Italy signed the Lateran Treaty. Hunt seems to understand this passage to be talking about Vatican City, since the modern city of Rome is only a very minor political force. If the reign is a literal, political one, then pagan Rome fulfills the requirement far better than Christian Rome ever did.

NIHIL OBSTAT: I have concluded that the materials presented in this work

are free of doctrinal or moral errors. Bernadeane Carr, STL, Censor Librorum, August 10, 2004

IMPRIMATUR: In accord with 1983 CIC 827 permission to publish this work is hereby granted. +Robert H. Brom, Bishop of San Diego, August 10, 2004

Thanks to Catholic Answers http://www.catholic.com

Who is like God?

Saint Michael, the Archangel

defend us in battle.

Be our protection

against the wickedness and snares of the devil.

May God rebuke him, we humbly pray;

and do Thou, O Prince of the Heavenly Host

- by the Divine Power of God -

cast into hell, satan and all the evil spirits,

who roam throughout the world seeking the ruin of

souls.
Amen.

Mont St. Michel - a place where he appeared in all his glory.

On Sunday April 24th 1994, Pope John Paul II recommended this prayer be used by all Catholics as a prayer for the Church when he said:
'"May prayer strengthen us for the spiritual battle we are told about in the Letter to the Ephesians: 'Draw strength from the Lord and from His mighty power' (Ephesians 6:10). The Book of Revelation refers to this same battle, recalling before our eyes the image of St. Michael the Archangel (Revelation 12:7). Pope Leo XIII certainly had a very vivid recollection of this scene when, at the end of the last century, he introduced a special prayer to St. Michael throughout the Church. Although this prayer is no longer recited at the end of Mass, I ask everyone not to forget it and to recite it to obtain help in the battle against forces of darkness and against the spirit of this world."'

Seeking Grace and a strong defense of our faith,
Denise

Warning - Mom Whining Alert!

School is almost out and I am a bad, bad mom. I am one of the who dreads the summer months. Sad but true. The boys are getting along a little better, but... there is a lot to be desired. Also the younger one is just gasoline and I am fire when I let him get to me - like a hundred times with school in session. Sigh!

We went to the swimming pool for the first time. Even the younger one seemed to have a good time. He was in the water way longer than I expected. I was the one to decide to go home - the shoulder thing that I have been living with was getting too painful so I had to go home find some ice pack and some Arthrotec.

On the plus side, I had my mP3 player and the music I wanted - the geeky stuff from Weird Al - great summer silliness from my perspective.


And of course I felt this lovely in my swimsuit, but hey, I am not the only portly person in the world.

Sorry for the complaints but I am just weak soul sometimes.

Still seeking grace and so much more,

Denise

Behold the Spam of God

Here is another post by a wonderful Catholic Apologist - Mark Shea - http://markshea.com/

Almost every other day it seems, I will (like thousands of other Catholics) open my email and get something like this specimen (culled from my “delete” file):

Dear Mark,

just came from your Website and have some questions. It sounds like you were a “Protestant” before becoming a Catholic? I don’t know which church you were in but I have to question whether you were ever taught the Word of God there? If you had been in a church which taught the truth concerning Baptism according to the Word of GOD and not the “traditions of men” you would have learned that not only does baptism NOT save nor “grant justification” but it is ONLY for those who ARE BORN-AGAIN by the SPIRIT of GOD by placing their faith in the LORD JESUS CHRIST! It is to be symbolic of the new birth ALREADY ACCOMPLISHED by GOD as Romans 6 clearly teaches! PLEASE READ the Gospel of John and pray asking GOD to show you HIS TRUTH - HE LOVES THE WORLD and DESIRES TO SAVE the LOST - which we all are apart from the New Birth which IS FREELY offered to ALL ! Please read and be saved! I will be praying for you in JESUS Name. Carolyn

You have to wonder what is going through the minds of people who write such stuff. What do they think they are accomplishing?

One is terribly tempted to reply:
The Word of God? What’s that? Never heard of such a thing. Is that, like, the Bible? We used to read something called a “Bible”, I think, at our old Church. But that was an awfully long time ago.

Boy, thanks for setting me straight. I have never ever ever heard before that Jesus Christ loves me and desires to save the lost with his free gift of grace! I always thought that I had to perform magical rituals to make God love me. But now that you have so thoughtfully set me straight, I see clearly that when that big black book we used to read in my old church-that-never-taught-me-the-Bible says “Baptism now saves you” (1 Peter 3:21) what it means is “Baptism does not save you.”

And thanks also for explaining that when Romans 6 says, “All of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death” and “We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life” this absolutely has nothing whatever to do with Baptism. I really appreciate you setting me straight on that as well.
And finally, thanks for making me see that all that stuff in John 3 about being born again of water and the Spirit really means water and the Spirit are complete opposites.

Golly. It is so good to finally —after all these years—have somebody who really teaches the Word of God clue me in. Who would have thought that all those years of studying…. what’s that big black book called again? Ah! Yes! “The Bible”.

Anyway, who would have thought that all those years of studying the Bible could have left me so totally ignorant of what Scripture really means? Thanks ever so for enlightening me.

Do these people who write Evangelical converts to the Catholic faith honestly believe that they are the first people in the universe to ever suggest reading the Bible? If not, then what are they thinking?

I wonder this even more when I get Godspam from people who assure me they are “writing in Christian love” and then proceed to send me a farrago of raving nonsense and/or documentable lies about what the Church teaches. When you write them back and refer them to biblical and catechetical sources which show a) the fact that Catholic teaching comports with biblical teaching and b) their lies about Catholic teaching (”Mary worship!” “The Pope is sinless!” “The Mass re-sacrifices Jesus!”) are bunk, they write you back with that gooey smile of condescending “Christian love” and inform you (and I quote) “I am not interested in discussing truth issues with Catholic apologists.”

The sheer hermetically-sealed Pride is both astonishing and (as is the doom of Pride) hilariously funny. And the pride is very widespread in the ranks of anti-Catholic types who write in “Christian love”. I discovered this when I posted “Carolyn’s” note. One Catholic reader commented with his tongue firmly planted in cheek:

When I converted to Catholicism, it was the statue worship that appealed to me the most, but banner worship has its appeal as well. Historians have been able to show that pagans also worshipped primitive banners so either one has authentic Catholic-pagan connections.

I also liked that I didn’t have to read the Bible any more and that I would have to earn my way to Heaven. Besides that, I really appreciated the fact that I could check my brain at the door and blindly follow the leaders.
A really cool part of Catholicism is that now I can commit all of my favorite sins and then go to Confession right before I go out and do them again!! Actually, while I was Protestant, I guess I did that too, but without the Confession part. But sitting in that little room just feels so holy, especially with the statues nearby.

The cannibalism aspect, I have to admit, grosses me out a little, but I comfort myself by knowing that it is a false doctrine anyway and so it is only really bread.

This cracked me up and

I replied :
I know exactly how you feel. For me, it’s the chance to worship Mary and adore her as the Creator of Almighty God that is so appealing. And, of course, I really love knowing that salvation is completely up to me and my righteousness apart from the grace of God. Also, the deep pride I feel in the Church’s many Inquisitors, cold-blooded killers, persecutors, perverts and criminals was a big draw. Some people think this is a problem, but I frankly have no idea what they are talking about. I am aware of no commands of God against these things because, of course, I never read the Bible.

Which reminds me: I just love adding absurd human traditions, myths and legends to the pure word of God. Also, I get a real kick out of enslaving myself to little rules and regulations so as to chain myself with fear and cut myself off from the love of God.

If you’re an ignorant benighted Catholic like me, feel free to add your favorite spiritually crippling legend, lie, or practice to the pool. The more the merrier! That’s what makes enslavement to the traditions of men and blindness to the saving gospel of Jesus Christ fun!

The response was volcanic. In a combox thread that ran to a couple hundred posts, readers vented very wittily on all the Godspam they’d gotten over the years from anti-Catholics writing (and re-writing and re-writing) in “Christian love”. Some of the choicer bits included:

I like the fact that I don’t have to really talk to God- I can just repeat prayers by rote thousands of times over to earn my way to heaven.
It’s also cool that I can have a man forgive my sins- I don’t even have to ask God!

I especially like the vain repetitious prayers of the Rosary and the sacrilegious practice of calling priests “Father.”

Yeah, having to constantly make up my own prayers as an Evangelical was a real drag. I love being able to mindlessly repeat rote prayers all the time; it makes me think for myself less so I’m easier for the Vatican to deceive and brainwash.
But for me, the best thing about being a Catholic is calling the Holy Father “Lord God the Pope” and worshipping him. That and being able to acknowledge Mary as the Fourth Member of the Trinity. You have no idea what a drag it was worshipping that all-male God of Evangelicalism

I can’t get over the sense of history, what with all the witch-burnings, Crusades, Inquisitions and pox-carrying missionaries to celebrate.

Being a part of the corporate machine that sells salvation is the biggest reward for me. Especially since I get such a big cut of the profits.

Hopefully our next Pope will start another cold-blooded massacre like the Inquisition or the Crusades, and I can earn my justification based on my “score” of how many Protestants or Muslims I kill. I’ll “stand before God” … ATOP A PILE OF SKULLS!

You people forgot the best part about being Catholic. The priest gets to kill and re-sacrifice Jesus over and over again at every Mass, because His death on Calvary was entirely insufficient. Granted, that’s not what the Council of Trent actually said, but we all know that underneath that’s what they were really thinking.

I like sending money to Rome, which just adds it to the billions of billions they’ve collected over the millennia. So what if it makes me a sheep, at least I’m being fleeced for God!

Oh, and don’t forget those magnificent buildings in Italy built by underpaid and unappreciated workers and filled with art by artist who never got their due. All for the greater glory of the bishops who lived like kings off the sweat of their flock. It’s great to be a part of all this!

My favorite part of being Catholic is praying to dead people. Why should you pray to God alone when you have so many different go-betweens that all have their own specialties!!!

Christopher is the expert at travel, Francis in dealing with animals, and Anthony for finding things!

God is just so busy Himself that these “helpers” allow him more time to directly answer Protestant’s prayers.

Being a male chauvinist, what finally drew me to the Catholic Church in 1999 was the infinitely wise and completely arbitrary subjection of women in every aspect of their lives. I love the male-dominated doctrines of telling women what to do with their bodies, not “allowing” them to be ordained, etc.

Oh, yes and believing that sex is evil but that we also must have as many babies as humanly possible! But that makes sense since of course we’re the Antichrist and therefore we want to be as evil as possible!

And I also love how we unnecessarily make the simple Gospel stultifyingly complex, what with bored logic-chopping monks and friars having nothing to do all day but sit around making up abstruse theological questions with which to confuse people.

I like knowing I don’t really believe what I say I believe.
I like being afraid of science and logic.
I like our plan to put cameras in everyone’s bedroom.
I like the new church the Masons invented for us in 1962.

Once in awhile, I really enjoy whipping up in myself a nice raw sense of guilt. Generally, it is about nothing in particular.

Where else can a poor girl like me hope to grow up to be a saint and be worshiped by millions?

I like the clothes they give us to make us go to heaven. Even though we betray Christ’s message by thinking non-Christians, actual CATHOLICS can only go to heaven if we wear brown cotton patches.

Today, a first Friday, reminds me that I love all of our superstitious traditions. All I have to do is go to 9 First Friday Masses and I’m home free!

I like how Catholic, crypto-paganism connects me with ancient Egyptian and Babylonian religious practices. I mean, talk about continuity!

I also love the fact that we as Catholics secretly worship “Bel-Marduk” the sun god of Babylon…then we erected a giant obelisk in front of St. Peter’s in his honor! I was always a big fan of the sun, so I thought… why not just worship it?

And don’t forget how we conveniently renumbered the 10 commandments so that we did not have to obey them. Who wants to go to church on Saturdays anyway? We found it more convenient to go on Sundays in direct violation of God’s sabbath commandments…the bonus is all the idol worship that comes with it

Yeah, I also love the fact that we can go to church on Saturday, so we can just go get drunk afterwards and party all Saturday night long. Having to get up on a Sunday morning is such a pain when you’re so hung over.
I’m so glad they made this rule for us drunkards. Thank you, Catholic Church!

I like how the IHS on the Host actually stands for Isis, Horus, and Set (SET especially) and that my priest has a human skull in the tabernacle as well!!!

I actually love it that the Pope is truly the anti-Christ…I mean, we’ve all seen that upside-down cross above his very head in that “throne” of his. Of course it has nothing to do with St. Peter (first pope - yeah, right!) being crucified upside down; it’s the sign of Satan. I can prove it to…didn’t you see “Rosemary’s Baby”? Well, then.

I also like the arguments about how many angels can (liturgically) dance on the head of a pin.

It never fails to cheer me up thinking that when I get married my parents will have to sell all their worldly belongings and go live on the street to pay the priest to perform the wedding, thus keeping the Pope in all those solid gold diamond-encrusted vestments he wears.

What strikes me about all this is how so much “Christian outreach to Catholics” appears to be—judging from its utter failure to elicit anything but exasperated mockery from its educated targets—entirely ordered toward the self-medication of the witness and utterly uninterested in the actual human being who is the ostensible object of the “love” of the “evangelist”. The Catholic who dares to do anything other than be the passive object of the “gospel” being thrust at him by the anti-Catholic is, by turns, an enemy, a deceiver, a dupe, a stumbling block, and a rebel. He is never a person. He has no place in the alleged “relationship with God” which is allegedly being proposed to him.

Which, of course, leads me to wonder if and when I act the same way. God save me if I do!

Protestant Praise of Mary

O, most mediocre mother!

O, somewhat meritorious [former] maid!

We hail thee, most OK, though no better than us.

Though thou wert the form from which Christ took flesh,

verily, any of us could have done it,random choice of the Father.

Though the Ark of the Covenant was so holy

death was dealt to unworthy wielders,

for it contained the Staff of Aaron, Law of God and Bread of Heaven;

Yet thou art still of small account, and nothing special,

though the Word willed your womb be His dwelling.

Therefore, though God grew a baby in thy belly,

we dutifully ignore thee,

and chafe at those who sing thy praise.

Racism

We are adoptive parents. Our children have darker skin than us. They aren't from Guatemala so they get picked on for being black - at least my older son does.

Now they go to a very small Catholic school which prides itself on being sincerely and truly Catholic. Except they have way looser standards for behavior than we do in our home.

Name calling isn't allowed within earshot, etc.

However, at that school we have experienced more racism than any where else we have gone.

I may have been raised by racists, but I never said any thing negative to a black person regarding their skin color or because of their skin color. Each person is a child of God and that means that I don't have a reason to think they are less than me.

So, my son is at the age where he, evidently has to stick up for himself and not have me intervene with parents. At least that is what my husband says. I did call the teacher because she is on watch at the times this happens and should be disciplining it.

Or perhaps I have just found a school where racism is prevalent and I will have to pull my kids out to put them in a more appropriate school.

I am going to contact the school administration and ask them to address this problem. They already think I am a pain in the posterior for demanding appropriate behavior from the students earlier this year. I don't think I can be put in a lower position than I am already in.

Seeking grace and more,

Denise

Moral Relativism and Judmentalism

If I don't face it, it isn't real.

Here is a gift from Patrick Madrid of Envoy Magazine.

http://envoymagazine.com/ or http://surprised/ by truth.com

Pat's Top 10 Favorite Moral Relativistic Comments

10. I can't stand being around intolerant people , and I refuse to waste my time listening to their arguments.

9. Isn't cool being non-judgmental? I'd sure hate to be like all those hypocritical yahoos who go around judging everyone else. What a bunch of losers.

8. I'll bet I could make you tolerate me, once you got to know me.

7. If you don't like abortion, don't have an abortion. But you have no right to tell me that I can't have one. And it's my right to tell you so!

6. Intolerant people and their intolerant thinking must be stopped!

5. It's immoral for you to try to force your morality on me.

4. If you want me to accept you, you better change and learn to accept me just the way I am.



3. People for diversity and against conformity, unite!

2. It's not fair for you to appeal to an objective standard of morality. You shouldn't do that.

1. You can't tell me what to do. I won't tolerate that, because it is judgmental and intolerant.






Hmmm.... I bet many moral relativists, AKA progressive, reasonable people, wouldn't even see the contradictions in those statements. I guess atheists don't realize their angst against all Christian religions is actually a religion of it's own and they are more intolerant and mean spirited than we Roman Catholics are.

I don't spit on people for disagreeing with me. I don't reject homosexuals or consider them to inferior. I don't go around seeking confrontations - but I do show my faith and pro-life stance and think that I have a right to do that.

I have been flipped off and hastily passed by other drivers because of my rolling pro-life bill board on the spare tire of my Rav 4.

I am looking forward to a world that values unborn babies as much as they honor spotted owls.

Save the Unborn Humans!

Mainline Catholicism

Is Mainline Catholicism considered mislead Catholicism?

On Fox Network it seems that pro-life advocates are being portrayed as hostile and unwanted by many people at Notre Dame (Our Lady) and those who refuse to believe that we all started off as a clump of cells and choice.

The Choice was God's that we are born at the right time in the right place and for a very real reason to good in the world. God the creator and we made in the image and likeness of Him. That is premise of being pro-life.

Am I just a Pre-Vatican II Catholic? No, I am a Roman Catholic who has actually read many Papal documents and some of the stuff from Vatican II. The truth is that Vatican II has become bastardized into the Spirit of Vatican II and that is a very far cry from the truth.

There are many people who have been led to wear only skirts and dresses in reverence - I live in denim. There are those who think my chapel veils are insane and others who think it is reverent. These are issues that can prevail without being outside the Truth of the faith.

Excommunication is considered a dire and cruel judgement of the Vatican. That is such a major joke. Catholics excommunicate themselves regularly - by committing particular sins that are considered of a serious nature. There is a component of mortal sin where we know it is a sin and make a conscious choice to commit it. A lot of us humans have a propensity toward at least one of the seven mortal, or deadly, sins. Of course, supporting a politician who is extremely pro-abortion is also considered grave.

If you are going split hairs and wonder about particular situations - that is why we have the teaching of the church to help us petty mortals.

This another problem with us mainline Catholics - not only do we venerate Our Lady (that image is Our Lady of the Eucharist) we believe the body, blood, soul and divinity of Jesus to be truly present in the Holy Eucharist. It isn't a symbol and we aren't cannibals. We are just people who take the Gospel of John chapter 6 literally. Pretty weird for us Catholics, eh? Seriously we do take the bible more literally than our separated brethren would lead us to believe.

The supreme guardian of the Church's Truth and teachings. Really. We who are accused of never having known the Holy Spirit if he came up and smacked upside the head with a 2 x 4 - is our guardian. Wild isn't it? Downright radical since we are supposed to misogynistic, down trod, mislead and ignorant Catholics.

Actually I am quite happy to say I am a knee-jerk, blindly faithful, papist. Me the proud, sinful, and suffering servant of God is still striving to be a better Catholic - hence person.

Still seeking Grace and and zeal for defending the faith,

Denise

Fun Pictures

Ave Maria

Ave Maria

The month of May is devoted to the Blessed Mother. May crownings are a regular part of honoring Mary.

Before someone may get their hackles raised - Catholics honor Mary - we don't worship her. Their are three terms that define how we worship - the holy Trinity are given our love in a form called latria. Latria is reserved for our holy triune God alone.

The relationship with we have with the Saints is more like asking our friends to pray for us. The formal word for our relationship and honoring of the Saints is called dulia. Again, we just ask them to pray for us. We don't pray to them as the one who answers us but those who beseech the Lord on our account.

The honor we give to the Mother of God is called hyperdulia. A great difference from latria and a notch higher than dulia. When ask the Blessed Mother to pray for us - again it is to gain the ear of Christ.

Who hasn't felt that their mother doesn't listen to them more closely? Jesus and His Mother were incredibly close and she has been given many gifts that God would give to one so highly favored - as in full of grace.

Our Lady was taken to heaven body and soul to show us His promise to us to be fully restored in Heaven. While I love my Lord deeply I also honor His Mother just as he told us to when He was dying on the cross.

Catholic Jokes

Warning - Catholic Jokes

Two men considering a religious vocation were having a conversation. "What is similar about the Jesuit and Dominican Orders? " the one asked.The second replied, "Well, they were both founded by Spaniards -- St. Dominic for the Dominicans, and St. Ignatius of Loyola for the Jesuits. They were also both founded to combat heresy -- the Dominicans to fight the Albigensians, and the Jesuits to fight the Protestants." "What is different about the Jesuit and Dominican Orders?" "Met any Albigensians lately?"

A man walked up to a Franciscan and Jesuit and asked, "How many novenas must you say to get a Mercedes Benz?" The Franciscan asked, "What's a Mercedes Benz?" The Jesuit asked, "What's a novena?"

A Dominican and Jesuit were debating which order was the greatest. So, they decided to ask for a sign from God. This is what they received falling down from heaven:
My sons, Please stop bickering about such trivial matters, Sincerely, God, O.P.

Two Jesuit novices both wanted a cigarette while they prayed. They decided to ask their superior for permission. The first asked but was told no. A little while later he spotted his friend smoking and praying. "Why did the superior allow you to smoke and not me?" he asked. His friend replied, "Because you asked if you could smoke while you prayed, and I asked if I could pray while I smoked!"

A rabbi, a priest and a minister walk into a bar. The bartender looks up and says, "What is this, a joke?"

A Jesuit, a Dominican, and a Trappist were marooned on a desert island. They found a magic lamp, and after some discussion decided to rub it. Lo and behold, a genie appeared and offered them three wishes. They decided it was only fair that they could each have one wish. The Jezzie said he wanted to teach at the world's most famous university, and poof, he was gone! The Dominican wished to preach in the world's largest church, and poof, he was gone! Then the Trappist said, "Gee, I already got my wish!"

A little boy was listening to a long and excessively boring sermon in church. Suddenly his eye the red sanctuary lamp caught his eye. Tugging his father's sleeve, he said, "Daddy, when the light turns green can we go?"

Jesus was walking along one day, when He came upon a group of people surrounding a lady of ill repute. It was obvious that the crowd was preparing to stone her, so Jesus made His now-famous statement, "Let the person who has no sin cast the first stone." The crowd was shamed and one by one began to turn away. All of a sudden, a lovely little woman made her way through the crowd. Finally getting to the front, she tossed a pebble towards the woman. Jesus looks over and says, "I really hate it when you do that, Mom."

The Pope goes to New York. He is picked up at the airport by a limousine. He looks at the beautiful car and says to the driver, "You know, I hardly ever get to drive. Would you please let me?" The driver is understandably hesitant and says, "I'm sorry, but I don't think I'm supposed to do that." But the Pope persists, "Please?" The driver finally lets up. "Oh, all right, I can't really say no to the Pope." So the Pope takes the wheel, and boy, is he a speed demon! He hits the gas and goes around 100 mph in a 45 zone. A policeman notices and pulls him over. The cop walks up and asks the Pope to roll down the window. Startled and surprised, the young officer asks the Pope to wait a minute. He goes back to his patrol car and radios the chief. Cop: Chief, I have a problem. Chief: What sort of problem? Cop: Well, you see, I pulled over this guy for driving way over the speed limit but it's someone really important. Chief: Important like the mayor? Cop: No, no, much more important than that. Chief: Important like the governor? Cop: Wayyyyyy more important than that. Chief: Like the president? Cop: More. Chief: Who's more important than the president? Cop: I don't know, but he's got the Pope driving for him!

Scene: New York City, man is going to jump off the building. Up rushes good Irish cop. Cop yells up to the man "Don't jump! Think of your father" Man replies "Haven't got a father; I'm going to jump." The copy goes through a list of relatives, mother, brothers, sister, etc. Each time man says "haven't got one; going to jump." Desperate the cop yells up "Don't jump! Think of the Blessed Virgin" Man replies "Who is that?" Cop yells "Jump, Protestant! You're blocking traffic!"

A Jewish couple has a son who is a holy terror. When he gets to be of age, he's kicked out of every school they put him in. Finally desperate, the father goes to the Rabbi for advice and the Rabbi says put him in the Catholic school. Shocked, the father asks if the Rabbi sure. "Yes" is the reply, so the father takes him to the nuns and leaves. An hour goes by, then two hours, lunch time and finally at three the son comes in says "Good afternoon Papa, good afternoon Mama," goes to the table and starts on his homework. The father is amazed and finally ask why he stayed in school all day and why he is behaving so well. His son looks up and says "Papa when you left, the Mother Superior told me that they did not allow rowdy boys, then she took me to my room. Papa they mean business! They've got a Jew nailed on a Cross in every room!"

A nun at a Catholic school asked her students what they want to be when they grow up. Little Suzy declares, "I want to be a prostitute." "What did you say?!" asks the nun, totally shocked. "I said I want to be a prostitute," Suzy repeats. "Oh, thank heavens," says the nun. "I thought you said 'a Protestant!'"

Muldoon lived alone in the countryside with a wee dog that he loved and doted on. After many long years of faithful companionship, the dog finally died, so Muldoon went to the parish priest: "Father, my dear old dog is dead. Could you be saying a Mass for him?" Father Patrick replied, "I am so very sorry to hear about your dog's death. But, unfortunately, I can't say Mass for the poor creature..."Muldoon said, "I understand, Father, I do. I guess I'll go to this new denomination down the road; no tellin' what they believe... Do you think $500 is enough to donate for the service?" Father Patrick: "Why didn't you tell me your wee dog was Catholic?!"

Late one night, a burglar broke into a house he thought was empty. He tiptoed through the living room but suddenly he froze in his tracks when he heard a loud voice say: "Jesus is watching you!" Silence returned to the house, so the burglar crept forward again. "Jesus is watching you," the voice boomed again. The burglar stopped dead again. He was frightened. Frantically, he looked all around. In a dark corner, he spotted a bird cage and in the cage was a parrot. He asked the parrot: "Was that you who said Jesus is watching me?" "Yes," said the parrot. The burglar breathed a sigh of relief and asked the parrot: "What's your name?" "Clarence," said the bird. "That's a dumb name for a parrot," sneered the burglar. "What idiot named you Clarence?" The parrot said, "The same idiot who named the Doberman Jesus."

A pair of Irish ditch diggers were repairing some road damage directly across the street from a house of prostitution. They witnessed a Protestant minister lurking about, then duck into the house. "Would ye look at that, Darby!" said Pat. "What a shameful disgrace, those Protestant reverends sinning in a house the likes of that place!" They both shook their heads and continued working. A short time later they watched as a Rabbi looked around cautiously and then darted into the house when he was satisfied no one was looking. "Did ya see that, Darby?" Pat asked in shock and disbelief, "Is nothing holy to those Jewish rabbis? I just can't understand what the world is coming to these days. A man of the cloth indulging himself in sins of the flesh. T'is a shame, I tell ya!" Not much later a third man, a Catholic priest, was seen lurking about the house, looking around to see if anyone was watching, then quietly sneaked in. "Oh no, Darby, look!" said Pat, removing his cap and crossing himself, "One of the poor girls musta died...."

A priest and a bus driver both died and went to Heaven at the same time. They get to the pearly gates where Pope St. Peter greets them. He motions to the priest, and they both hop in a jeep and go out the back door. There are about 50 acres of rolling hills with a little cottage on the knoll. St. Peter turns to the priest and says "This will be yours for eternity. A perfect little cottage, right next to lovely pond, a lush little garden, and a library full of books." The priest says, "Thank you so much. This I shall enjoy!" St. Peter drops off the priest, goes back to the pearly gates and motions to the bus driver. They hop in a stretch limo and go out the front door. There are about 500 acres of land, with mountains and lakes and rivers. There is a huge 200-room castle on one of the mountains, and a wishing well that makes wishes come true. St. Peter says "This will be yours for eternity. You can live in that castle with servants to wait on you hand and foot, and you can have everything you want." The bus driver looks and St. Peter and says "Well, now, don't think I'm not grateful, but why am I getting so much more than the priest?" St. Peter just laughs and says "You brought more souls to Heaven! When the priest preached, everyone fell asleep. When you drove your bus, people prayed!"



Years ago in Ireland, there was a priest who was very anti-British. Every Sunday he would blast them from the pulpit. He became so notorious that the Pope himself summoned the priest to Rome for an audience. "Father," said the Pope, "I want that there should be peace between the British and the Irish. You're not helping matters at all. I want you to kiss my ring and swear by the Blessed Virgin that you'll never so much as mention the British in public again." "But Your Holiness, I - I - " the priest stammered. "No buts," said the Pope. "Swear it here and now or there'll be trouble!" Aye, Holy Father," sighed the father. "All right. I swear it." The very next Sunday just happened to be Easter, and the priest was back at his pulpit in Ireland, giving his annual Easter sermon. He got to the part of the Easter story where Jesus said, "And one of you shall betray Me." The priest continues: "Saint Andrew jumps up and says, 'Is it I Lord?' and the Lord says, 'Nay, Andy darlin', it's not you. Sit down now and dunna worry. Eat your supper.' Then Saint John the Divine gets up with tears in his eyes and cries, 'Is it I Lord?' And the Lord says, 'Nay, Johnny me boy, it's not you. Sit down now and dunna fret yourself. Eat your supper.' "Then that dirty dog Judas Iscariot slowww-ly rises to his feet. And he looks the Lord right in the eye and says, 'Blimey, Mate. Ya think it's me?"

A Catholic boy and a Jewish boy were talking and the Catholic boy said, "My priest knows more than your rabbi." The Jewish boy said, "Of course he does, you tell him everything."

An elderly man bursts into a priest's study and says, " I've got to tell you this. I'm 90 years old and for the seventy years I've been married I never cheated on my wife. Then this sweet thing moved in next door and since then --wow!" "How long has it been since your last Confession ?" asks the priest. "I've never been to Confession. I'm Jewish" "Then why are you telling me this?" "I'm telling everyone!"

Lost on a rainy Friday night, a priest stumbles into a monastery and requests shelter there. Fortunately, he's just in time for dinner and was treated to the best fish and chips he's ever had. After dinner, he goes into the kitchen to thank the chefs. He is met by two brothers, "Hello, I'm Brother Michael, and this is Brother Francis." "I'm very pleased to meet you. I just wanted to thank you for a wonderful dinner. The fish and chips were the best I've ever tasted. Out of curiosity, who cooked what?" Brother Charles replied, "Well, I'm the fish friar." Father turns to the other brother and says, "Then you must be....""Yes, I'm afraid I'm the chip monk..."

After the Baptism of his baby brother in church, little Johnny sobbed all the way home in the back seat of the car. His father asked him three times what was wrong. Finally, the boy replied, "That priest said he wanted us brought up in a Christian home, but I want to stay with you guys."

Not so very long ago, an old German man was feeling guilty about something he had done, so he decided to go to Confession. He said, "Bless me, Father, for I have sinned. I feel terrible because during World War II I hid a refugee in my attic." The priest said, "But that's not a sin! I wouldn't feel bad about that if I were you!" "But I made him agree to pay me 50 Marks for every week he stayed." The priest said, "Well, I admit that certainly wasn't the most noble thing to do, charging the man to save his life -- but you did save his life, after all, and that is a good thing. Don't worry about it too much; God forgives." The man said, "Oh thank you, Father, that eases my mind. I have only one more question to ask you -- Do I have to tell him the war is over?"

Q. Why can't Anglicans play chess? A. Because they can't tell a Bishop from a Queen.

A man suffered a serious heart attack and had an open heart bypass surgery. He awakened from the surgery to find himself in the care of nuns at a Catholic Hospital. As he was recovering, a nun asked him questions regarding how he was going to pay for his treatment. She asked if he had health insurance. He replied, in a raspy voice, "No health insurance." The nun asked if he had money in the bank. He replied, "No money in the bank." The nun asked, "Do you have a relative who could help you?" He said, "I only have a spinster sister, who is a nun." The nun became agitated and announced loudly, "Nuns are not spinsters! Nuns are married to God." The patient replied, "Send the bill to my Brother-in-law."

Cardinal Ratzinger goes running into the Holy Father’s office and is quite beside himself. “Holy Father, Holy Father!” “What is it my son?” the pope responds. “I have some good news and some bad news. Which would you like to hear first? “ “The good news”, responds the Holy Father. The Cardinal says “OK. The good news is that the Lord Jesus has returned as He promised!” “Alleluia, Alleluia. Praise be to God!”, the Holy Father responds “So what’s the bad news? “ Ratzinger responds “He in Salt Lake City.”

A man walks into a monastery and says “I want to be monk.” The abbot replies “Great! But you realize we are not allowed to talk except every ten years.” The man replies “Fine.” Ten years go by and the man goes into the abbot’s office. The abbot asks, “Well my son what have you to say. The man replies “Bed’s hard.” The abbot remarks, “Is that it?” The man says, “Yes”. Another ten years go by and the man goes into the abbot’s office and says, “Food stinks!” The abbot asks, “Is that it?” And the man says “Yes.” Another ten years goes by and the man goes into the abbot’s office and says “Water’s cold. I quit!” And the abbot replies, “Figures! You’ve been complaining ever since you got here!"

The 98 year old Mother Superior from Ireland was dying. The nuns gathered around her bed trying to make her last journey comfortable. They gave her some warm milk to drink but she refused. Then one of the nuns took the glass back to the kitchen. Remembering a bottle of Irish whiskey received as a gift the previous Christmas, she opened and poured a generous amount into the warm milk. Back at Mother Superior's bed, she held the glass to her lips. Mother drank a little, then a little more and before they knew it, she had drunk the whole glass down to the last drop. "Mother," the nuns asked with earnest, "please give us some wisdom before you die." She raised herself up in bed and with a pious look on her face said, "Don't sell that cow."

There are 3 fundamental truths about religion: Jews don't recognize Jesus as the Son of God, Protestants don't recognize the Pope as the Vicar of Christ, and Baptists don't recognize each other at the bar on Saturday nights.

An Irish priest is driving down to New York and gets stopped for speeding in Connecticut. The state trooper smells alcohol on the priest's breath and then sees an empty wine bottle on the floor of the car. He says, "Sir, have you been drinking?" "Just water," says the priest, fingers crossed. The trooper says, "Then why do I smell wine?" The priest looks at the bottle and says, "Good Lord! He's done it again!"

New Computer after death of previous 'puter

Yep, the other computer died and I lost everthing. I didn't see it coming and the pic kind of tells the story. I have learned to back up this data online. Sigh!

I have been prowling the web and working to restore my lost files of pictures, etc. I find it amusing that some of the Catholic art that I find is from anti-Catholic sites. Strange how that works. I guess they use the art to prove how satanistic or warped or what ever the mistake du jour is.

I also have been looking for new pro-life art. I have posted some photos of aborted babies before - if you think what I posted was gross - not compared to some of the new stuff I found and didn't save. I have dissected critters and don't consider myself that easily grossed by such stuff, but those pics were even hard for me to look at. It could be that it was because they were little humans and not some reptile or lesser mammal that it bothered me so much. Guess that is part of what kept me from becoming a physician.

Here's to new methods of saving data and my new little Toshiba laptop.

Still seeking grace,

Denise

Defying Ambien

Ihave to be in bed soon. I just wanted to say hey there. Sigh! I take this med and a pleasant few hours of dreamland await, So that is hwere I am,

In between all the other stuff - I want to sleep

Still seeking grace and cooperative bangs

Ambien, Trip and more

I haven't slept like I do with this med for many years soundly and oblivious to pain

Thanks be to God!

Back when I was just starting to exhibit fibromyalgia symptoms, my usual sleep like a log pattern started to change. My husband said that everyone wakes up several times a night, except I hadn't really except when ill. Now, I am so well rested and grateful a good night's sleep. If it will help with other stuff, that would be wonderful, too.

Even though I should be doing much more important stuff, we are leaving on a trip to Cabo San Juan on Thursday. No kids, we are spending someone else's money (the trip was sales bonus for hubby) and enough time to realize we are supposed to be relaxing.

I thought I would post to say where I was and what was going on.

Still seeking grace and a nice trip,

Denise

Depression not so bad - At least most of the time

This is pretty much how I have felt for many months - or more. But the diligent application of Lamictal and therapy has helped - most of the time. Except when I let myself get bummed out by the DH. He can cut me down way to easily.


Not that I am real into cats, but I have had a good time starting back to Mad Science and I dress up colorfully -no, not that much - but close. This picture just caught my fancy and made me smile, hope it does for you, too.

I get to try Ambien CR tonight. I didn't get Valium, bummer, eh? Not really, but I am tired of tensing up so much. Maybe a deep sleep tonight will do much to help me. The dog may not appreciate my sleep tonight. She and I have been sleeping together for the past several nights. I tended not to tense up so much during sleep while sleeping my recliner - just like the Old Fart I am becoming.

I might not be so accommodating of her pushy princess ways. Then again, I may be so sleepy that I won't notice if she is hogging the blanket.

I warned my husband that some odd night behaviors might happen, sleep walking, fixing and eating food (a great excuse for a second dessert, eh?) or even driving while asleep. DH said that if I woke up with a lot of bruises it would be because I fell down the steps. He is still the twisted man I fell in love with.

Well, off to do my homework for the marital counselor. She likes her forms and her structured method of dealing with things. Structure is not my best skill.

Still seeking grace less muscle pain,
Denise

It began with an off-hand comment

I do know the Beatitudes - those painful reminders that being blessed comes from life's trials. It doesn't mean that I endure those trials with wisdom and the view of eternity in the future.

Today was one of those days when I just had enough of the belittling comments from my husband. The older son has a real knack for clogging the commode. I had been at with a plunger for over 15 minutes. Finally my husband came upstairs and I got distracted and the ended up overflowing - fortunately is was "clean" water by then.

I ran to get a bunch of paper towels and he wasn't happy that. His next comment was "You have a big puddle in here." It wasn't "There is" or even "It is a big puddle in here." No, it was my puddle and my fault.

There were some tense words between us as I ran to get some "real" towels. I shouted to him my intention. Later on the son what did the clogging comes down and asks if he is in trouble. We assured him that it was just the nastiness of the job and the great frequency of it. Then I piped in with "Dad and I just don't work well together anymore."

I know I probably shouldn't have said that, but I wanted to explain my shouting and the tense communication between us. I had to leave the room to cry though. It is just too ironic. We used to work together before and after we were married. We managed that fairly easily for over ten years. We worked in close proximity of each other and rather enjoyed it. Over and over we had heard people say they couldn't ever work with their spouse and I wondered what kind of marriage they had. Now, I maybe know why they said that.

It was just so noticeable to me today that the little comment about the puddle was a representation of the usual comments from my husband any more. He thinks that I have developed a victim attitude - but I am trying to stand up for myself and not take all that garbage anymore. I do feel like a martyr for not being accepted as I am, for being judged harshly about my limitations, and just plain unloved.

I get to go see the therapist for our marital counselling on my own next week. I hope that I can let her know how awful it is be constantly criticized and rejected.

As I reflected on some stuff earlier of how he sneered at a gift I made for our older son's birth mom and how much she like it. He thought the brush holders were just ugly. I knew that she was into black and silver. I knew that she is an abstract painter. I also know she likes unusual stuff. So I made these brush holders from some porcelain lined cans and covered them with black, white pearl, and metallic silver polymer clay swirled together. The had a smooth yet an uneven surface. She loved them and now that her vision is going bad because retinitis pigmentosis - she really appreciates the texture and weight of the holders since she could knock them over or just plain not recognize them otherwise.

DH just doesn't see where his comments are mean or anything worth apologizing for. I am trying not to apologize for everthing - especially things that aren't my fault. I guess the pendulum might shift if I stop and he becomes aware of his need apologize more.

I guess I will dry my tears and go back to being a slug in front of the TV. He really hates that too.

Still seeking grace in a major way,
Denise

Tension - tense muscles, anxiety, etc

I love my life - kind of

The hubby and I have started couples therapy - it is not fun at all at this point. In fact, I was so bummed by the experience that I just wanted to cry for awhile.

Except I didn't have time. I had to pick up my supplies for a Mad Science class that I found out I was teaching at the last minute.

Then I had an appointment with my therapist. I am so fond of him. He was wondering why I looked so sad, so I got talk about the tortuous couple's therapy a few hours prior.

I got into my Dr. Eureka persona - pig tails with colorful hair fussies, glittery make up, fancy ear rings and bright pink shirt to stick out of the collar of my lab coat. It cheers me up to do that usually. I have good time with the kids and really try to let them discover and learn without realizing it.

My hubby was a tad nicer since the therapy session. He didn't agree to a date night even though the therapist insisted that is was important. He did his usual tight lipped, clam up thing.

I had seen the psych the day or so before. I mentioned to him my unconscious and continual muscle tensing. He ignored it. I mentioned it to my therapist and he was sure that it was anxiety from all the times that I have and do get criticized and belittled by the hubby. Not to mention the great strain that I feel with the radish (aka younger son) and his behavior.

I realized that the muscle thing is affecting my fibromyalgia pain the other night when a winter storm blew into town. I felt pain in places that I don't usually feel pain in - but the usual places where I do aches and pains were being exacerbated by the muscle tensing. It was conundrum that I kept trying to address - but I find myself tightening my shoulder muscles while typing. Gluteal and hamstring muscles while sitting and supposedly relaxing. I tense my hands and arms while I sleep. I also tend to tighten my shoulder and neck muscles - front and back.

What gives - me or the doc or just a lot of practice? I really was ticked off the other night when I had enough pain already and to have it added to unnecessarily was not pleasant. Of course my frustration didn't help with relaxing muscles. Oy Vey!

I will see what tomorrow brings - if the doc will actually call me back or not. I did ask the therapist to petition for me to the psychiatrist. Perhaps something will be done.