Cry 'Woof'
Because I need a lift, and because Johnny Cash is always good, here’s an unusual way to bring home a Cadillac: Read more
Because I need a lift, and because Johnny Cash is always good, here’s an unusual way to bring home a Cadillac: Read more
I ran across this meme on Facebook a couple of times recently, and as so often I asked myself, “Well, OK, it’s affirming; but is it true?” I’ve written elsewhere about the ambiguity inherent in aphorisms, and the same can apply to memes. Ms. Occelli meant something by it; the people who shared it on Facebook meant something by it; but as I’ve no context from any of them, I can’t say how precisely or generally they understood it. All... Read more
I followed him out, along the hall, and into a room that one glance told me would suit my wife fine if I ever had a wife, which I probably wouldn’t because she would probably want that kind of room. — Rex Stout, The Final Deduction Read more
St. Michael’s Old Peculiars is the name given by long custom to the Brothers of St. Michael, who form the bodyguard of the Archprefect of S’Mary’s World. The Old Peculiars existed from the colony’s earliest days; its initial members were drawn from the security force carried by the colony ship Our Lady of Loreto. (The reasons for the inclusion of such a large force on the Loreto are unclear from the historical record.) The name “Peculiars” derives from the force’s... Read more
Old General Fentiman has a ticktock life. Every morning he rises and goes to the Bellona Club, where he sits in his particular chair by the fire—his chair not by purchase or reservation, but by long custom. And there he sits, nearly motionless, until it is time to return home that afternoon. Someone jokes that he could die right there in his chair, and it might be hours before anyone would notice. And then, of course, Colonel Marchbanks goes to... Read more
Last week I wrote about Friendship Evangelism, a technique for evangelism that I was taught in college lo these many years ago, and that is still around. I was prompted by a wiki page on fifteen steps to persuade a Christian to become an atheist, a page I found kind of creepy; but my point wasn’t to criticize the atheists involved, but to reflect that if I find it creepy when they do it, they probably find it creepy when... Read more
There was a time maybe ten years ago when most of the spam I got was pitching internet pornography. I didn’t want any, but at least it was making an appeal to my worser self. Now I get spam for credit checks and political FUD, which don’t appeal at all, in any way, no how. And people are making money doing this? Read more
I’m going to step away from the Divine Office for a moment, and talk about something else. The interior life is a life of learning to love and be loved by God. After all, we are supposed to love Him with all of our heart and soul and mind and strength. This makes the interior life sound kind of selfish: like it’s all me and God, and other people can go hang. Nothing could be further from the truth: in... Read more
This was first posted in December of 2003. As Christians, Jane and I are a tad ambivalent about the whole Santa Claus thing. It’s not that we’re afraid that our kids will confuse Santa Claus with Jesus Christ—not in the short run, anyway. It’s just that we don’t want our kids to class Jesus Christ with Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, and the Tooth Fairy in the long run. At the same time, Santa Claus is a Christmas tradition of... Read more
“When the King’s son came along, He called us all together, Saying, ‘Brave hieland men, Will you fight for my father?’ I will go!” I know very little about Scythian, but this one song keeps coming across my Pandora and I always have to stop and listen. It’s a Scottish tune, heavy on the drums with pipes in the background; but the focus is on the vocals, which tell the story of the men who left the Highlands to fight... Read more
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