Please Pray For Samantha

Dear Grandmere Mimi,

I am requesting prayers for my dear Samantha, a.k.a. Sammy Cat. In the period of just four to six weeks she has lost 30% of her body weight. Two weeks ago she had blood work and x-rays which showed no abnormality. She is eating, but continues to lose weight. She was weighed again this morning and lost an additional fourteen ounces in just two weeks. She will go to the vet tomorrow, Dec. 15, for more blood work and then will most likely have an ultrasound once her doctor sets up an appointment with a radiologist.

Sammy is only six and a half years old and is a most special cat. I am devastated at the possibility of losing her. Her vet is very concerned.

Thank you so much for all the good work that you do.

Sincerely,
Whiteycat

Isn't Samantha a beauty? And from what Whiteycat says, she is as good as she is beautiful, like a princess. Of course, many prayers.

WHAT IS A GRANDPARENT?

(Taken from papers written by a class of 8-year-olds)

Grandparents are a lady and a man who have no little children of their own. They like other people's.

A grandfather is a man, & a grandmother is a lady!

Grandparents don't have to do anything except be there when we come to see them. They are so old they shouldn't play hard or run. It is good if they drive us to the shops and give us money.

When they take us for walks, they slow down past things like pretty leaves and caterpillars.

They show us and talk to us about the colors of the flowers and also why we shouldn't step on 'cracks.'

They don't say, 'Hurry up.'

Usually grandmothers are fat but not too fat to tie your shoes.

They wear glasses and funny underwear.

They can take their teeth and gums out.

Grandparents don't have to be smart.

They have to answer questions like 'Why isn't God married?' and 'How come dogs chase cats?'

When they read to us, they don't skip. They don't mind if we ask for the same story over again.

Everybody should try to have a grandmother, especially if you don't have television because they are the only grownups who like to spend time with us.

They know we should have snack time before bed time, and they say prayers with us and kiss us even when we've acted bad.

A 6-YEAR-OLD WAS ASKED WHERE HIS GRANDMA LIVED. ''OH,'' HE SAID, ''SHE LIVES AT THE AIRPORT, AND WHEN WE WANT HER, WE JUST GO GET HER. THEN WHEN WE'RE DONE HAVING HER VISIT, WE TAKE HER BACK TO THE AIRPORT.''

GRANDPA IS THE SMARTEST MAN ON EARTH! HE TEACHES ME GOOD THINGS, BUT I DON'T GET TO SEE HIM ENOUGH TO GET AS SMART AS HIM!

It's funny when they bend over; you hear gas leaks, and they blame their dog.

Send this to other grandparents, almost grandparents, or heck, send it to everyone. It will make their day.

I send it to you through the intertubes.

Thanks to Robert.

"A True Story"

Our son, who now has his PhD in blowing sand and dirt, was not a standout English student in his undergraduate days. He was given a D in freshman English by a professor who was apprehended (later convicted) as a chainsaw murderer, soon after the close of the semester in which our son was his student. The son, being enterprising in ways other than English, applied to the department to have his grade quashed on the grounds of his teacher's spectacular fall from grace. His appeal was found to be without merit on the grounds that chainsaw murdering has nothing to do with proficiency in judging English skills. There are still some sacred things, one of which is a professor's grade.

Jim Wilson

For the most part, I believe this to be the case in the universities with which I have been associated.

From Ann.

Congratulations, Annise Parker!

Belated congratulations to Mayor-elect Annise Parker on her election as the first openly gay mayor of a major American city.

When Parker finally appeared at 10:30 p.m., resplendent in a gold pantsuit and pearl necklace, the room at the George R. Brown Convention Center jammed elbow-to-elbow with supporters erupted with a deafening cheer. Some were newcomers to political waters. Some had been with her a dozen years ago when she claimed her first City Council seat.

“Tonight the voters of Houston have opened the doors to history,” she said. “I acknowledge that. I embrace that. I know what this win means to many of us who thought we could never achieve high office. I know what it means. I understand, because I feel it, too. But now, from this moment, let us join as one community. We are united in one goal in making this city the city that it can be, should be, might be, will be.”

Once again, I look forward to the day when the election of a lesbian or gay person to an office in the realm of civic life or the church will not be big news. Barriers are falling, but there's no room for complacency, because we have a long way to go.

From the Houston Chronicle.

A Day Out And A Day Off

Yesterday, I took a day off from church and from blogging to take a walking tour of historic houses in the Garden District in New Orleans. Eventually, I'll post pictures and tell you about the tour. We planned to go on Saturday, but heavy rains and spotty flash flooding, both here and in NO prevented the trip. We headed out nearly on time (the time set by Grandpère) in his truck, because I did not feel like driving, and I don't want him driving my car in New Orleans.

Not long after we left the interstate and were driving on Highway 61, a state trooper pulled out and flashed his lights for GP to pull to the shoulder. If you recall, GP received a citation for speeding a few months ago, which resulted in a large fine. You'd think he would have learned his lesson. He was clocked at 16 miles over the speed limit of 45 mph. When the trooper appeared at the window, I put my hand over my mouth, because I was laughing, and I was not sure how the trooper would react to laughter from the passenger seat. I know how GP reacted to my laughter. He didn't care for it, but he couldn't help joining in just a little.

What does it take for GP to learn a lesson? Even when he pays attention to speed limit signs, the rules of the road seem not to apply to him. He asked the trooper, "What about all those other drivers who were speeding?" How many times do troopers and police hear that question? For a good part of the rest of the drive to Trinity Church in New Orleans, GP bitched and moaned about the ticket, until I said I'd had enough.

I know that some of you will ask me if I'm sure that GP should still be driving. For one thing, it's not my decision to make, and, for another, I must say that outside of New Orleans, I am quite comfortable driving with him. He doesn't usually speed. He doesn't tailgate or take risks in passing other vehicles. However, Hwy. 61 is quite familiar to us, since we travel the road frequently to get to my daughter's house, and he should definitely know better. It's just that GP didn't make the adjustment in speed from the interstate to the road through a rather heavily-traveled industrial district with a 45 mph speed limit in good time. What can I say?

The houses were lovely, with beautiful Christmas decorations. Today, my poor knees ache from walking the many uneven brick sidewalks in the Garden District, but still, I love the bricks. Where I grew up the banquettes, as my grandparents called them, were paved, but there were occasional patches of brick, which made skating interesting, as we suddenly went from smooth concrete to the uneven clack-clack and jolting of skating on bricks.

In spite of the speeding ticket and the hurting knees today, I'm glad that we did the tour. GP says he is NEVER going back to New Orleans. Heh, heh.

Update On Wolf

For the blog, I wanted to report that my friend's brother, Wolf, came through the procedure to put in a stent, TBTG, and he will probably be going home on Tuesday or Wednesday. He himself is a doctor, though, and the archetypical bad patient, so prayers for his continued healing, and for the lifestyle changes he needs to make, are still in order.

Aitchellsee

We prayed earlier for Wolf.

Fort Worth - Bye-Bye ACNA?

In an interview conducted by Michael Heidt and David W. Virtue, Bishop Jack Iker said that the Diocese of Fort Worth may withdraw from ACNA if women are ordained bishops.

Bishop Iker:

We have begun formal conversations with the local dioceses of both the Orthodox Church in America and the Roman Catholic Church. At the present time, these dialogue committees involve only priests and their bishops as participants, but we hope to include laity at some point in the future. Our initial approach is to define "what we have in common and what differences continue to divide us."
....

Essentially the ordination of women as priests and bishops is schismatic. It continues to be the major cause of division among those who consider themselves to be orthodox Anglicans. As long as the ordination of women continues, we will be in a state of impaired or broken communion. It is a barrier to unity.

Posted without commentary.

Google "iker withdraw acna women ordained" for the link to the entire interview.

Thanks to Lapin for the link which I did not include in the post.

Please Pray For My Friend....

...my friend of more than 50 years, one of my closest friends in high school and college, still a friend. Although we don't live that far away from one another, we don't see each another as much as we'd like, but we keep in touch.

Last night, she called me with sad news. She recently had surgery for colon cancer. The surgeon removed two-thirds of her colon. She has not seen her oncologist yet, so she does not know what sort of further treatment she will undergo.

I was devastated when I heard her news. I could hardly take in what I was hearing. However, my friend is a person of great faith, full of courage and hope, and after we spoke for quite a long time, I felt better. She was strong enough for the two of us. She believes that she will be fine, and by the end of our conversation, I agreed with her. She will be fine.

My friend has many admirable qualities, but one especially stands out in my mind. She will not gossip. When the conversation veers in the direction of gossip, she either goes quiet or tries to steer the talk into another direction. I confess that on more than one occasion, she made me ashamed that I joined in.

My friend, no doubt, faces difficult times ahead. Please pray that she will continue to be strong in faith and hope and that the treatments will not take too heavy a toll on her. This request is close to my heart.

Update from Ann:

Wes and Laura Shields, he was recently rector of St Andrews in
the Pines, Pinedale, WY have experienced a tragedy. Their new
baby girl, born Oct 1, died Friday in her crib. Her name was
Matty Mae. Please pray for them.

They are in the Diocese of Maine now.

What a terrible tragedy for Wes and Laura. May Matty Mae rest in peace and rise in glory. May God give comfort, consolation, and the peace that passes understanding to Wes and Laura and all who love Matty Mae.

Big Daddy Went To Sleep

Big Daddy has not been well for quite a while. My son was to take him to the vet tomorrow to be put down, but he died last night. His mother, Sweet Babs, died a few months ago and BD was very much a mama's boy. I'm not surprised that he did not linger long after her passing.

Pray for my son and his family. Only Trigger is left of the Basset trio.

Christmas "Must Haves"

 

I like the idea of wine glass holder, but the arrangement seems a bit risky, unless you don't mind wine spillage on your clothing.

 

Back to the store with this one.

 

Perhaps some years ago....

 

Pretty scary in the middle of the night and first thing in the morning.


Thanks to Doug.