I don't like pets

And while Splaish has grown on me in the same way the algae tends to grow on his tank, it was I that had to ascertain which little shrivelled piece of matter in the sink, alongside bacon, onions, and noodles, was the unfortunate little fellow that had leaped out of his little bag in the transfer to his new condominium.

Yeah, add Coast Guard to the long list of hats I have to wear as a mother. Where was his mother? Oh, she was the one squealing and giving her father a heart attack.

May I suggest the pretty little net that most civilized people use when transferring fish? I'm sure it won't break the bank.

The excitement over, and the fish doing whatever it is that fish do, we settled back to admire his new digs.

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Stay tuned for the serialized adventures of Splaish, and his new girlfriend, Splish, who is currently a little undone by the whole experience. They are living in separate homes until the courting period is over and she is introduced into the condo....

tomorrow is Jaime's big day!

That countdown to the right of this blog has been counting down to his ordination in the morning. I'm sure it's been an incredible journey for him. It's a pretty irreversible commitment that he's making, and so, the lengthy process of discernment comes to an end, and in less than 24 hours he'll be starting a whole new one.

LOL, isn't that life? We get out of one pickle in time to jump into a whole new pickle.

I am confident that he will do his best. Best wishes and always, always, prayers.

Check out these Men in Black.

it's all about me!

Not one for gratuitous self-promotion...ok, now that the laughter has died down...check out Wency's blog "Let's Go...Slaho." It's funny and entertaining, and best of all, dedicated to me today.

Yeah, give the guy some traffic, post a comment or 10, give him some love. Anybody with a name long enough to get two nicknames deserves the attention.

After all, his name is Wenceslao.

Don't ever make a snide comment about my name.

today's crass moment brought to you by...

The Missing One, who is technically not quite missing, i.e., she's living at home. She's still The Missing One, because between working late, and living the Late Night Vida Loca (public admission from me: not as late as she'd like as she is trying to be considerate of the whole family dynamic thingie) but still late for me.

Well, hell, anything past 7:30 pm is late for me....

I digress--we were discussing crass comments. Those of you easily offended, or too curious to back away, here's the story, unedited: we tend to call breasts around here, well, breasts. Not boobies, not ya-yas, and certainly not that other word that interestingly enough offends the eldest to the point of anger. Strange issues, but I'm digressing again.

Anyway, vocabulary now being established, we can move to the scenario this evening. Those of you who know the three women in this household may have delicately, if discretely noticed that we are not wanting in the breast area. Oh sure, delightful when the ladies are young, but I...sorry...I do seem to go off on tangents today....

Anyway, back to the story at hand. Being an affectionate family, we do tend to hug an awful lot. The physics of the situation require a bit of forethought in order to execute a hug that actually resembles a hug, instead of one of those awkward "kindof" hugs, and as a result the middle one and I have taken to calling a position, top or bottom, for the placement of ...well, I think you get the picture. What can I say? It entertains us, and serves a practical purpose after all.

Today, as the tallest went to hug the shortest, I heard from afar that there was no need to call it.

"I have the Alpha-breasts. I'm always on top."

You can't say I didn't warn you.

Another episode of That Catholic Show!

Can't begin to tell you how much fun this is...check out today's episode. Ever wonder why Catholics have statues and icons? For the same reason you carry around a picture of your sweetheart or kids.

Oh, and pay close attention to the Holy Land Paparazzi. Ha!

reason #1,742 for why I love my kids

They make me laugh, especially when I need it most.

I got nuttin

But it gives me a great deal of pleasure to connect with you guys, reading this goofy post.

Hi!

Meanwhile, I'm not up to anything at all. Ate a filling, if totally forgettable dinner, and I think I'm going to go to bed early. Maybe I'll pop in a movie and watch a director's commentary. I know, it's a weird thing to like, but believe it or not, I really enjoy listening to the creative process as explained by these people--I especially like the writers. The one thing they all have in common is their discussion of the number of rewrites.

In a small way it gives me a big validation. Phew--I'm not a loser, everybody does it.

So that's all that's happening. I am totally going to enjoy the fact that I have no looming deadlines (excluding anything that slave-driver Greg comes up with...)

PSA's and other writing

So, after a rather low key weekend spent in gastronomic Father's Day pursuits, I'm ready to get back to the business of slacking off during the week. I've got a few things to finish off before new projects can be started, and most of it is merely the inconvenience of decluttering. Oh, well, we did paint the deck some more, and it looks a lot better. Unfortunately, the unpainted portions are really glaring at me now, though. John got one of those neat little compression air brushes--we'll see how that works between the wood slats. Alas, the work is never finished.

There was a lovely article on Greg and Jennifer (from Rosary Army) in the Rockdale Citizen this weekend, and I even got a little mention in there--it's pretty amazing to see the attention we're getting for That Catholic Show, and it's especially fun to be so behind the scenes that I retain anonymity--I don't think I could hide my disappointment if somebody trashed the show, but that anonymity has gotten me some very nice comments! Awesome!

And so, I posted a Monday Musings over at the HQ page of Rosary Army, and wonder at the internet's role in evangelization, plus give a plug to SQPN. Here's a blurb from today's post:

Those diligent monks who copied and illustrated Bibles and other tomes were the
first Xerox machines. The epistles, especially from St. Paul, were the first mass mailings, intended for a large group as he reached out to newly-formed Christian communities. Can you imagine what Paul would do today with an email address book? Bishop Fulton Sheen, too, used the communications medium of his day to reach millions of people, first with a weekly radio broadcast in the 1930’s, and later with two long-running television shows, in the 1950’s and then again in the 1960’s. He even won an Emmy!

It’s no surprise that our beloved Pope John Paul II should declare that we “enter into this modern and ever more replete communications network with realism and confidence … convinced that, if it is used with competence and conscientious responsibility, it can offer useful opportunities for spreading the Gospel message.”

Anyway, that's part of what I'm doing lately that has occupied what's left of my free time. Maybe I'll be adding some new stuff here in the next few weeks.

Happy Father's Day

Here are random shots of the men in my life--I love you all.

Lest some of you question the pecking order, it's random. I did it that way on purpose. You know who my favorite is [wink wink].

The term is over and while I can't exactly say I have a bunch of free time on my hands, it does release me from the teaching and grading duties, so I hope to be able to pursue some writing over the course of the next couple of weeks. I've really neglected any significant posts here even though there were more than a few bloggable moments (such a cheesy thing to say, sorry).

Anyway, let's look at some really cool stuff that is happening around here. First, take a look at the countdown on the right side of this entry. Jaime will be ordained in 16 days. Sixteen days! How great is that? Yay, Jaime!

Next, of course, is the exciting release of Season One of That Catholic Show. It's available on YouTube, so you definitely should check it out. I'm working on a couple of scripts now, and it's the most writing fun I've had in a while. We'll be filming a scene this afternoon, so if you want to be in an episode, we sure could use the "extras."

Check out the links:
Episode One: Sit, Stand, and Kneel
Episode Two: Candles and Light
Episode Three: Night of the Living Catechism
Episode Four: Charity and Mercy

We've started painting the deck in the back yard, and that has turned into a mission. It's finally raining around here--not enough, but things are wet. Can't paint a wet deck. Sheesh. Yet another unfinished home project. I'm going to give it another try this evening, since it won't get dark for a while (unless of course, we get another thunder storm).

This weather reminds me of the way things were in Miami--a brief and violent thunder shower in the middle of the afternoon that soaked everything, and then--voila, out comes the sun and everything is back to the oppresive searing heat and sun of summer. Sometimes I get nostalgic about that, so I take a stroll down the produce aisle at Publix. There's no lightening, and the thunder is always the same, but I appreciate the light misting.

Well, that's all for the moment. I gotta go to a faculty meeting. I'm sure there's nothing significant to be said there; I suspect it's a headcount to make us come to work. Tee-hee.

June 12 of 12 v.2

Off to work. That right headlight seems a little weak. How come I never noticed that?

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See that stack of papers in my arms? Those are final exams that I still need to grade.

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Check it out! I used up all the ink. All of it. I usually lose the pen before that happens. It was a long and tedious session, believe me.

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I think McDonald's might have been healthier than this Philly Cheese Grease in a bun ready to soak up any grease that might have escaped my arteries. It was good.

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Wanted to include The Boy in my pictures. We had a nice chat about fishing and letting his little cousin beat on him. I had a conversation simultaneously with a few other people, including Jennifer--the caricature on my computer is actually her. In the shameless plug department, you should go check out That Catholic Show.

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Running errands. Is that Kathryn?

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Look Ma, no hands. I promise I was at a stop light.

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The obligatory commute. Isn't my neighborhood green?

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These lovely ladies put up with my abuse and never threw me out. That is the championship VBS team of all time. Wah-Hoo!

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Because I did not sufficiently clog my arteries at lunch, I decided to whip up a batch of empanadas. Yummy.

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Job applications or something. I dunno. She seemed happy enough to pose.

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This isn't a secret at all, but I am always intrigued by the turtles that perch on this log in the middle of our lake. Doesn't it look like a gator?

Edited on June 13: Thanks everyone for the comments about the turtles. I feel it necessary to make a full disclosure here, since the picture is getting so much attention (cool!). Christy (in the orange T-shirt above) took it while we were crossing the causeway home. Go Christy--I want credit to go where it should!

_______________________

For Danny: Gators!

Check this out!

Check this out. We're broadcasting live from the Eucharistic Congress! I'm sure you'll get a glimpse of my big old butt. Mom, call me and I'll go over and wave.

If you're not familiar with what I'm doing today, go check out Rosary Army. Click on the litle video picture and you'll see us working!

"We'll always have Paris"

So I'm thinking how incredibly clever I am to utter that famous quote from Casablanca, and somehow apply it to the obnoxious Barbie in the news ALL THE FREAKIN' TIME, but it turns out every blasted journalist in the universe has used that phrase in relation to Paris Hilton. Especially when she dated that guy named Paris. How weird is that?

Anyway, poor little rich girl went to jail, got out of jail, and seems to be headed back to jail.

Whatever ever happened to celebrities who had talent?

Even George Hamilton, lately known for his freaky orange skin and apparently nothing else, has a pretty decent filmography. What does Paris have? Nothing more than the media's attention.

I'll throw in the towel if she ever gets her own square on Hollywood Squares.

update: She was sent back to jail screaming and crying. Read the circus here.

it's that time again

I'm getting all jittery and there's a sense of expectation and dread as the term ends. I love the closure of it, the sheer joy of knowing I'm not going to have to do any more grading for several weeks until the process starts all over again. Which of course will bring me back to this place.

Anyway, here I am in "that" now, and getting just a bit agitated by the looming deadline and the unfinished stack of papers. Oh, plus I collected term papers today. That was my fault, lousy timing and all that, but I still have to do it.

Naturally, there is a multitude of other stuff that requires my attention, so here I am...blogging instead of doing it. Ah, the joy of passive-aggressive procrastination.

You can't make me do it. You can't make me do anything.

I'm going to play Spider Solitaire.

Just another not-so-manic Tuesday

Really, I have nothing to contribute to the world of blogging in this post (or any subesequent one, I suppose). Initially, I wrote for myself, but when I get complaints from people that I am not updating enough, I have to wonder just what it is that I'm doing here.

As my brother Danny would say, "I got nuthin."

And so, it is nuthin that I share with you today. Perhaps we can revel in that?

That Catholic Show #4

You should go to iTunes and vote for it. It's not Princess Leia, but it's not Merry Medal, either[wink].

Why I love Rachel D.

This is what she has on the back of her car. I want one.

Happy Birthday, my "not so petit" chou

I was looking for a picture that would appropriately represent his Quinces, but then remembered that I had this one from his stint as a waiter at the Night in Paris Coffee House. He is le der des der (my baby--the last one). Those of you with a little high school French will know that it translates to les dernier des derniers, or, the very last one.

Feel free to make a literal translation of it.