Jul 06 2012

7 Quick Takes Friday, Vol. 179

Category: 7 Quick Takes Friday,Catholicism,Entertainment,Life,Memes — Lindsay @ 12:47 pm

— 1 —

Nickelodeon has rebooted Figure It Out. This sounds like a good idea, except that they’ve apparently done the same thing CTW did to Sesame Street. I haven’t watched Sesame Street since I was about seven, but I’ve heard that the old-school “How to Get to Sesame Street” song has been changed to a ten-second spree of colors and a super-fast song.

Among the problems:

  • I am definitely old, because I have no idea who most of the panelists are. I want Danny Tamberelli and Amanda Bynes back, man.
  • There is a definite lack of Summer Sanders.
  • Each round is supposed to be the same length. It’s not fun if the panelists don’t win every now and then; it just seems fixed. I want kids to win prizes, but I also want to watch a good game.
  • The set is so busy. There are colors and funky shapes all over the place. Bring back Billy the Answer Head!
  • The prize announcer and sound effects are loud, and the kids aren’t super interesting.

I know I’m not their target market, but if you’re going to reboot a classic, at least do a good job. The 90′s Are All That has been so successful! Maybe Figure It Out just needs to be hosted by Stick Stickly.

— 2 —

To celebrate Independence Day, I went with some friends down to Auditorium Shores to watch fireworks against the skyline. There was an amazing reflection off the mirrored windows of the closest skyscraper. I didn’t take any photos of the fireworks themselves, because no camera is as good as my eyes (with glasses), but I had a great time hanging out with friends and getting a bit of fresh air and sunshine.

This blue color was incredible!

— 3 —

On a related Instagram note, IG has redesigned the individual photo pages. They are much more useful now. Check out the page for that skyline photo, and if you’re on Instagram, follow me!

— 4 —

This probably should have been number 1, but today is the feast day of St. Maria Goretti! She is my favorite saint for a number of reasons. I wear holy medals every day, and the only one with an individual saint (besides Mary and Jesus) is one of her. I pray four novenas every year, and I just finished the one to her yesterday afternoon. (I missed a day somewhere, but I caught up, which is my usual novena pattern anyway.) If you’ve never heard of her, you’re missing out. She is one to know for chastity advocates everywhere.

— 5 —

I discovered this week that two of my real-life friends who I didn’t know had blogs… well, do. Brittany at Miss Communication writes about her life as a slightly sarcastic but very lovable counseling professional (the lovable is my assessment, not hers, but it is still true. Pomeranian Catholic writes about the life of faith and his experiences training to become a Camaldolese Benedictine Oblate and as a young adult Catholic living with disability.

— 6 —

I would like to second Jen’s observation that midweek holidays are disconcerting and toss in a vote for weekly Wednesday holidays. Unfortunately, I also have to add the bad news that Halloween is already scheduled to fall on Wednesday. Which weekend do you throw your party: the one that’s clearly too soon or one that will feel too late because it’s several days into November?

Furthermore, Christmas Day is on a Tuesday. UT final exams end exactly one week earlier. When should I plan to fly home? If you’re a Christmas Eve pageant Massgoer, do you go two days in a row (the Fourth Sunday of Advent and then the very next day)? If you go to an actual Midnight Mass at midnight, does it feel like Christmas lasts for three days? (It actually lasts for eight, but that’s a different deal.) If you wait until Christmas Day, what do you do with that odd Monday in the middle?

This bunny and I have similar expressions when our wonderfully comforting patterns get disrupted.
(photo by sgrace)

Leap Day, you are a cute novelty, but why did you ruin the calendar for the rest of the year?

— 7 —

I participated in Hallie’s love song linkup, and then I realized that, aside from admitting to “Love You Like a Love Song,” I left out any other silly choices. Although I’m not big on “Silly Love Songs,” by Wings, I do like silly love songs. I also like some of the super-angsty ones like “Iris,” by the Goo Goo Dolls, even though that will always be associated with someone from my past. This sounds like a follow-up post to me!

For more Quick Takes, visit Conversion Diary!

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Jun 29 2012

7 Quick Takes Friday, Vol. 178

Category: 7 Quick Takes Friday,Catholicism,Entertainment,Memes — Lindsay @ 7:21 pm

— 1 —

I’m always a little miffed when a solemnity sneaks up on me. I made a Catholic calendar for Google; you’d think I’d actually read it sometimes. The problem is mostly that I have prayed the incorrect day of Night Prayer.

On the bright side, I realized that it’s a Friday solemnity. That means it’s Meatday again! This is the last one until the Friday after Christmas, so enjoy your Church-approved bacon!

This is like the Friday after Easter! (Click for full size.) (image from Slightly Orange)

— 2 —

Next on the list of things I’ve nearly forgotten, I am now three days into the Novena to St. Maria Goretti, my favorite saint. She’s my favorite saint, so I was super embarrassed to forget to start it on the correct day (Wednesday), but I prayed two days’ worth yesterday, so it’s all good. (And I already did today’s, so hooray!)

— 3 —

I have discovered the benefit of pre-meetings. Get-It-Done Guy has recommended pre-meetings for ages (under “Meeting to Make Decisions”), but I never attempted to actually have one until now. (Sure, that was because my boss/priest asked me to, but that totally counts!) Instead of trying to hash out a plan with six interested parties all at once, I’m trying to meet with four of them individually and use the big group meeting to combine and summarize all our ideas. I’ll let you all know how it turns out.

— 4 —

I try not to turn Jen‘s Quick Takes into mine, but she is going to write about “Somebody That I Used to Know” next week, so I had to watch her recommended covers and share the “five people, one guitar” one I posted here. So, here’s Ingrid Michaelson playing ALL THE INSTRUMENTS!

— 5 —

I did a lot of evening traveling this week. In addition to my usual Monday night holy hour and my new Wednesday night Bible study, I went to a happy hour straight from work yesterday.

On Tuesday, a coworker drove us all the way to Temple straight from work. We had to leave at 5:15 to get there just before 7 p.m. (oh, Austin traffic), but it was worthwhile. I got to see Bishop Joe in his non-Mass fancy clothes (purple cassock and surplice) and to support our student who received the Lumen Gentium Award. It’s an annual diocesan award to the person or couple in each parish who has best been a “light to the world” (as in the encyclical Lumen Gentium, which I am coincidentally reading right now).

— 6 —

I also “traveled” to the eye doctor this week. It’s been five years, so I figured it was time. I have also finally realized that squinting against the summer sun is not a good idea, so I’m going to need sunglasses, and it would be silly to use a five-year-old prescription for them. To my delight, my eyes haven’t changed very much. Frame shopping is always tricky; if I could see how I looked, I wouldn’t need them! My new plan is to take iPhone photos of myself and evaluate that way. We’ll see how it goes.

— 7 —

Here’s some great music as you slide into however much time you get off for Independence Day. Amazon MP3 is offering 20 summer songs (classic and 2012) for 25 cents each! One quarter for “Call Me Maybe” or The Fresh Prince’s “Summertime” (featuring DJ Jazzy Jeff)! (They also have 50-cent Linkin Park songs. Those are less seasonal, but some are equally catchy.)

For more Quick Takes, visit Conversion Diary!

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May 15 2012

Jesus Had Battle Scars, Too (Review: “My Peace I Give You”)

Category: Catholicism — Lindsay @ 8:00 am

Remember, Christ was a healer. (image by Amos)

Some things are difficult to talk about. There’s an adage that some things should never be discussed in mixed company: sex, politics, money, and religion. Well, I work in religion, and this is a Catholic blog, so brace yourselves. Now that the Church is ten years from the horror of the public revelation of the priestly sexual abuse scandal and just over a year from the beatification of the man who enlightened so many about the truth of human sexuality, Blessed John Paul II, I think we’re ready to talk about recovery. Realizing that you have a problem is only the first step. Fixing the problem can be the journey of a lifetime. Now that we know sexual abuse is part of our Church’s history, we need greater resources to deal with this tragedy. Dawn Eden has taken a significant step toward a solution in her brand-new book, My Peace I Give You: Healing Sexual Wounds with the Help of the Saints.

Read the rest at Austin Catholic New Media.

P.S. The book only officially came out today. I got my review copy by way of Dawn Eden herself!

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Apr 03 2012

God Has a Problem: It’s You (Review: “Sinner”)

Category: Catholicism,Life — Lindsay @ 9:29 am

I struggle a lot with my faith life. Many people think that I am somehow better or holier because I work for the Church. Correction: I am not. If anything, being so closely connected to the inner workings of my sort-of parish makes me more aware of how much of a mess I am (and how much work and money it takes to run the place). As I write this review, I am barely through breakfast and have already been reminded by God that he does not make my life stressful. My choices do. It’s my choice to return to him and stay faithful to him that makes all the difference.

Persistent faithfulness is the underlying theme of the recent book by Lino Rulli, the Catholic Guy from Sirius XM satellite radio’s Catholic Channel. Its full title is Sinner: The Catholic Guy’s Funny, Feeble Attempts to Be a Faithful Catholic. I’m not that funny, but I am feeble, so I can relate. In the grand tradition of St. Augustine, Rulli offers stories from his spiritual journey, some of which put him in a decidedly negative light. It’s our bad choices, truly and unfortunately, that build our character and inspire the good choices that follow. In this holiest of weeks, as we approach the joy of Easter, we walk toward our personal Calvary with sorrow, but also in the hope of the Resurrection. As we read along with Rulli’s faith journey, we share a companion on that road.

Read the rest at Austin Catholic New Media.

—
This review was written as part of the Tiber River Reviewer Program. I received a free copy of the book in exchange for this honest review of it. For more reviews of Catholic books, visit Tiber River. To purchase Catholic products of all kinds (not just books), visit Aquinas and More Catholic Goods.

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Nov 01 2011

Real Role Models (Review: “Saints Behaving Badly”)

Category: Catholicism,Entertainment — Lindsay @ 11:47 pm

This church looks about right for those saints. (photo by mamasuco)

Saints are pretty awesome. The idea of a host of people too numerous to count who do nothing except worship God and pray for everyone who’s not in heaven definitely gives me comfort. When you’re too busy to pray, ask the saints to pray for you. When your prayer needs an extra boost, ask the saints to chip in, too. When you wander astray, ask for the help of the saints who had the same problems.

Read the rest at Austin Catholic New Media.

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Jan 15 2008

Catholic Carnival 152

Category: Catholic Carnival,General — Lindsay @ 10:09 pm

Here’s my notes on the Christmas Catholic Carnival, number 152, hosted at A Catholic Mum Climbing the Pillars.

Heidi at Mommy Monsters Inc. (love the title!) offers a reflection on Mary’s and Elizabeth’s feelings during the Visitation. How did Mary feel after consenting to be the Theotokos? How can we compare Mary’s situation to modern times? It’s hard to analyze our Blessed Mother. I run into the same problem with her that I have trying to ponder Jesus during the hidden years of his childhood and early adulthood. In Bible study sophomore year, Maura, Tim, Jim, Ali, and I discussed whether Jesus would have ever dated. Fact notwithstanding that young Nazoreans didn’t date like people do today, it’s an interesting idea to ponder. He would have been incapable of lusting or any sin again chastity, of course, but even though he knew he would die without marrying, would he have gone walking by the well with a nice Nazorean girl?

Sr. Edith Brogue, OSB, shares a reflection presented to her sisters about St. Joseph’s role in the Holy Family and the Nativity, in light of this year’s Vatican nativity scene. St. Joseph gets left out almost all the time. It’s sad that in a world where fatherhood isn’t valued or popular, the greatest earthly father we have gets pushed aside as well. When I finally worked out a personal method of praying the rosary, I was proud to add “St. Joseph, pray for us” to my daily prayers.

Christine, of Domestic Vocation, recounts yet another harried health scare. Despite the challenges that come with being human, she managed to survive with a good outlook on redemptive suffering. I can relate.

Erin of Bearing Blog, who I also enjoyed in Carnival 151, offers a post I read last week about responding to rude questions about the size of your family. It’s none of their business how many children you have! A few weeks ago, when I went to replace my broken holy medal chain at the Shrine, I saw a woman with 5 small children, one of whom was carrying the second-smallest. In another part of my life, I would have shaken my head in pity, much like my mother would to this day. This time, I smiled, though with a worry in the back of my mind that the girl carrying her sister might not be holding on quite tight enough. Holiness takes time.

A different Heidi, of Streams of Mercy, wrote a beautiful story about how her understanding of evangelization (and evangelism) has changed over the course of her conversion to Catholicism. I believe that lifestyle evangelization is very important. If people can’t relate to you, they’ll never pay enough attention to see Christ in you. They won’t hear the Gospel if they’re not already willing to listen. I really must get around to reading that CDF document. Maybe, just maybe, I can squeeze it in before winter break ends.

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Jan 15 2008

Remainders on Faith

Category: General — Lindsay @ 9:35 pm

I will start off 2008 by recapping all the faith-oriented articles I meant to write about over the past few weeks. In the spirit of blogging superstar Jason Kottke, these are my remaindered links.

I read a heartbreaking and disturbing AP article about the upsurge in paid surrogacy in India. This completely perverts the concept of parenthood and birth. Children don’t deserve to be outsourced, and these women definitely shouldn’t be renting their bodies. The ability to bear children is precious. The fertility and abortion industries are already examples of the way this has played out in our world. Don’t add surrogacy to the dismal picture.

Busted Halo is always a good place for me to read about faith and Catholic issues from a wider perspective than, say, the National Catholic Register (which I also love). A few weeks ago, they featured an article by a Mormon woman decrying stereotypes about Mormons and offering her opinions on Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign. I can relate to so much of what she writes because I feel the same way about the state of Catholicism in America. “Changing the popular perception of a cultural or religious group is a social study of enormous proportions,” she says. Maura’s always insisting that the Catholic Church needs a good marketing campaign. I think Archbishop Wuerl’s “The Light Is On for You” program (which he repeated during Advent and will be continuing this Lent) and For Your Marriage are excellent steps in that direction.

I’ve also been catching up on ZENIT news since I was at FOCUS Conference and doing my last-minute GRE studying. To my great delight, the Holy Father has restarted his Wednesday audience reflections on the saints with St. Augustine. I love St. Augustine! I was even born on August 30, a mere two days after his feast day.

I was also greatly encouraged by the news that, since the Tridentine Rite motu proprio, some anti-Novus Ordo schismatic groups are petitioning for reconciliation with Rome. Jesus prayed that the Church would be one; this is a tremendous step in the right direction. B16 is a very different pope than JPII was, but he’s still doing amazing things for the Church.

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Dec 23 2007

Making Up for the Past

Category: Catholicism,General,Life — Lindsay @ 3:09 pm

My Catholic past is rather checkered. I was baptized Catholic as a baby in the church where my parents were married. My dad’s family is not Christian; my mom’s has been Catholic for generations. I went to a (non-Catholic) Bible preschool, then on to public elementary school. I attended Sunday School until my mom got tired of dragging me out of bed to catch the bus every week. I went to all the CCD classes I needed before my First Communion without ever setting foot in the church until First Penance and the rehearsal.

When we moved to Germany and it was time for my sister’s First Communion, my mom discovered that I had to attend 7th grade CCD before I could join the 8th grade Confirmation class. Luckily, I was in the 7th grade at the time. We started to attend Mass again (always the Saturday Vigil, because we’ve never been morning people). On my Confirmation retreat, I went to confession for the second time–ever–and fell in love with God again.

When we moved back to the U.S., we stopped attending Mass. I missed going to church, but not enough to do much about it. In the year before Ryan’s First Communion, I started college. I did a lot of stupid things during that time, including wholly unworthily receiving the Eucharist at the Mass where Ryan (whose name means “little king”) played a king during the Gospel pageant. That same year, my dad joined RCIA.

Being in church again reminded me of the peace I’d felt there before. Jesus started calling me out of my relationship with my boyfriend and back to him. It took months, but on Ash Wednesday during my freshman year of college, I recommitted myself to chastity, received an absolution that was four years overdue, and returned to Holy Mother Church.

When I hear about people who’ve been to Mass every Sunday of their lives except the one where they had chicken pox, dads who left seminary to marry moms, and families who celebrate name days with special dinners, my heart aches. I wish so much that I could have had that kind of spiritual upbringing. I don’t blame my parents, per se. It really was an ordeal to wake me up on Sunday mornings before I started sacrificing that for the Lord. So now, I have to make up for lost time. I have to learn prayers for the first time that my peers have known since grade school. I have to wonder whether my family even bothers going to church when I’m not home to make them feel obligated (which, of course, they are).

There are signs, though, that my catch-up efforts aren’t in vain. I don’t know much about the saints at all, for example. I love St. Cecilia, my Confirmation saint and the first whose story I really got to know. St. Frances of Rome, my first annual patron saint, is buried in the Church of St. Cecilia in Rome. My middle name is Nicole; I used to live in Germany, where St. Nicholas is widely venerated. My birthday is August 30, the old-calendar feast day of St. Rose of Lima, my second annual patron saint. And finally, next year’s annual patron, St. Wolfgang, is another beloved German saint who was a noted teacher. Even after all this time, God’s sense of humor still amazes me.

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Dec 04 2007

Cellular Saints

Category: General — Lindsay @ 10:41 pm

I came across a Reuters article about a service that sends images of saints to cell phones. An Italian bishop thinks it’s crass and irreverent. I think it’s pretty cool. Instead of ordering pornography via cell phone, you can get a holy reminder. I have Our Lady of the Streets on my phone, and the stained glass window of the Holy Spirit from St. Peter’s Basilica is my wallpaper. If holy cards are fine, why not holy text messages?

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