Happy St. Patrick’s Day!!

http://www.prayerfoundation.org/st_patricks_breastplate_prayer.htm

Prayer Upon Arising.  Psalm 5 may added.

I bind unto myself today
The strong Name of the Trinity,
By invocation of the same,
The Three in One and One in Three.

I bind this day to me for ever.
By power of faith, Christ’s incarnation;
His baptism in the Jordan river;
His death on Cross for my salvation;
His bursting from the spicèd tomb;
His riding up the heavenly way;
His coming at the day of doom;*
I bind unto myself today.

I bind unto myself the power
Of the great love of the cherubim;
The sweet ‘well done’ in judgment hour,
The service of the seraphim,
Confessors’ faith, Apostles’ word,
The Patriarchs’ prayers, the Prophets’ scrolls,
All good deeds done unto the Lord,
And purity of virgin souls.

I bind unto myself today
The virtues of the starlit heaven,
The glorious sun’s life-giving ray,
The whiteness of the moon at even,
The flashing of the lightning free,
The whirling wind’s tempestuous shocks,
The stable earth, the deep salt sea,
Around the old eternal rocks.

I bind unto myself today
The power of God to hold and lead,
His eye to watch, His might to stay,
His ear to hearken to my need.
The wisdom of my God to teach,
His hand to guide, His shield to ward,
The word of God to give me speech,
His heavenly host to be my guard.

Against the demon snares of sin,
The vice that gives temptation force,
The natural lusts that war within,
The hostile men that mar my course;
Or few or many, far or nigh,
In every place and in all hours,
Against their fierce hostility,
I bind to me these holy powers.

Against all Satan’s spells and wiles,
Against false words of heresy,
Against the knowledge that defiles,
Against the heart’s idolatry,
Against the wizard’s evil craft,
Against the death wound and the burning,
The choking wave and the poisoned shaft,
Protect me, Christ, till Thy returning.

Christ be with me, Christ within me,
Christ behind me, Christ before me,
Christ beside me, Christ to win me,
Christ to comfort and restore me.
Christ beneath me, Christ above me,
Christ in quiet, Christ in danger,
Christ in hearts of all that love me,
Christ in mouth of friend and stranger.

I bind unto myself the Name,
The strong Name of the Trinity;
By invocation of the same.
The Three in One, and One in Three,
Of Whom all nature hath creation,
Eternal Father, Spirit, Word:
Praise to the Lord of my salvation,
Salvation is of Christ the Lord.

Not our righteousness; Christ’s.

This is exactly how I feel most of the time. I love this comic!!!

Living In A Perfect World

“The truly humble soul must sincerely desire to be despised, derided, persecuted and falsely accused. How else can he better imitate Jesus Christ? Oh! how wise he will one day be acknowledged who on earth was happy to be regarded as unworthy of the approval and even the good opinion of others!”
~St. Teresa of Avila~

I would say the weather report sounds like a broken record, but that would really be dating myself, wouldn’t it? I don’t think my youngest child even knows what a “record” is, much less what the term “broken record” means! Anyway.  This winter has been amazing.  We’ve lived in North Carolina for fifteen years, and have never seen anything like this!  There has been snow on the ground for two months!  I am starting to entertain fantasies about jumping in my car and driving down to Miami in search of warmth, but it is such a long drive, and my Spanish still needs some work. . .

I have been working on my genealogy today, and that has been fairly rewarding.  In particular I have been trying to learn more about the Estes branch of my family.  We are descended from David Shipton Estes (1776 – 1861).  I have some very old photographs from my great-aunt Bobbie’s “Adams Album”, that are simply labeled “Estes Family Members”, but nobody knows who they are.  So I am hoping to find names for the faces.  I will post them here, because who knows?  Stranger things have happened!  They are scanned from the original tintypes.  If anyone researching Adams, Estes/Eastes or even Freeman families sees these and recognizes them, please let me know who they are!!

I have heard several folks say that all of this snow and ice is from El Nino, and try to convince me that “Global Warming” is still very real.  While El Nino does affect weather to some degree, it is not as reliable a predictor as most of us think.  There are simply far too many variables at play, and weather is a very cagey thing!

Stu Ostro, Senior Meteorologist at the Weather Channel has written some great articles about El Nino.  The following excerpt is from “Oh no, it’s El Nino!” which he published on September 14, 2006:

WHAT EL NINO IS

-A climate phenomenon that influences weather patterns. It specifically refers to above-average sea surface temperatures (SSTs) in the central and eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean (such as those highlighted in the recent map above).

-The opposite of El Nino (below-average SSTs in that portion of the Pacific) is known as La Nina. When SSTs are near average, that is called the “neutral phase.”

-El Nino and La Nina are related to both SST changes and the natural ebb and flow of trade winds across the tropical Pacific. The associated fluctuation in atmospheric pressure is known as the Southern Oscillation. The whole oceanic/atmospheric process is known as ENSO (El Nino/Southern Oscillation).

WHAT EL NINO IS NOT

-A storm. A flood. A drought. A hurricane. A weather event or pattern. (At times when its influence is particularly strong, such as when a very active southern jet stream and storm track are present during winter, that is sometimes referred to as an “El Nino pattern,” El Nino being a descriptor of the related, predominant weather pattern. However El Nino itself is not a weather pattern per se.)

-Abnormal or bizarre. Both El Nino and La Nina are a natural part of our world, and have likely been so for many thousands of years.

-The sole cause of individual weather events or the sole influence upon seasonal weather patterns. (The water/land/atmosphere/sun climate “system” is very complex.)

-Something that necessarily increases the amount of weather and climate calamities. There are certain locations that do typically experience specific kinds of impacts such as drought or flooding, but plenty of extremes and disasters of all kinds occur around the world when El Nino is not present. El Nino just tends to shift them around.

WHAT EL NINO DOES

-El Nino has a direct effect upon the atmosphere over the tropical Pacific.

-It has an indirect influence upon weather patterns in other parts of the world, including in and near the United States. The strongest influence in North America is during the “cold season,” i.e. from late autumn through winter and into early spring.

-The degree of this influence at any given time and place depends in part on El Nino’s intensity, which can vary, and on other weather and climate factors.

One of my favorite ways to “escape”, especially in the dead of winter, is to play with my blog.  So, after spending a couple of days searching for cool new Wordpress Themes, I finally found one that I actually like.  Most of the time Wordpress themes are too clinical for me.  Occasionally they are too teeny-bopper.  It’s rare for me to find one that I think conveys the mood I’m looking for in my blog.  But, this one caught my eye, and I think it will do for now.  For a while!  If you like it, would you please leave me a comment and let me know?

Meanwhile, in other news:  it’s supposed to snow again tonight, but only an inch or so.  We used to get so excited about the possibility of an inch or so of snow.  Now, not so much.  I am so looking forward to warm weather!

We had a major snow storm in December, which resulted in snow on our back deck until January.  The snow finally melted, just in time for the next major storm to hit last weekend.  We got 11.5″ of snow.  So now, while we are still digging out from that storm, an ice storm has hit us.

The sounds we hear inside the house are disturbing.  Popping. Crackling. Crunching.  But stepping out onto the porch is downright terrifying.  Our yard looks like a war zone, and it sounds like one, too.  Every time a big branch or tree goes down, it snaps and sounds like gunfire.  The dogs are so frightened they won’t come out of the basement.  I don’t blame them.  I just saw a small branch, a stick, really, fall to the ground. After bouncing back and forth off of a few branches, it broke free from the tree and hurled itself to the ground with dizzying speed.  Had there been any living creature where it landed, it would have impaled them.

Our driveway is an obstacle course, but still navigable.  I have some doubts about it staying that way all night.  We have friends who are prepared to bring a chain saw over and dig us out, but not just yet.  It’s too dangerous for any real clean-up to begin.

Across the street, a smallish branch fell onto one of the power lines, causing some pretty serious sparks and smoke for almost an hour.  It seems to have gone out now.  We still have power, and internet, which amazes me.  I am grateful for that.  Especially since USA Network is starting an NCIS marathon at 6:00 tonight.  Hate to miss out on that!!

Anyway, am posting some pictures.  Since Gaylon got me that wonderful new Canon EOS Rebel Xsi camera for Christmas, I absolutely must document everything that happens around here!  And, while I’m thinking about it:  special thanks to Kyle P. for changing the settings on my site so that I could upload larger files!  The pictures from my new camera are really clear and the files are much larger than my old camera.  My site was set to only allow uploads of 2 mg or less.  Kyle set it so I can upload pretty much any size file now. Yay!

They are calling for yet another winter storm this weekend.  I think there has been one week since December 18th that we have not had several inches of snow on our back deck.  We had to pay to have the driveway scraped this past weekend (and it was worth every single penny!!).  And now, they are calling for more snow.  Alex is supposed to go snow skiing this weekend with Father Winslow and all of the altar servers from St. John’s. They are going to Sugar Mountain.  Now, it’s looking like that may bet cancelled.  Oh, man, he is going to be miserable to live with if he doesn’t get to go snow skiing. And Faith has Achievement Night for 4-H tomorrow evening, too.  Arrgghh.

I remember as a child fantasizing about snow like this.  As a teenager and young adult I always hoped for snow like this, because it meant the ski slopes would be amazing!  But now, I really can’t find a good reason for it.  It’s cold, it keeps us homebound, and when it finally does melt, it is really muddy!

Snow On Our Back Deck

I’ve made a lot of cracks about Global Warming, and how I think it’s ridiculous.  At this point, I think I might actually clock anyone who tries to tell me that it’s real.

Oh, and one more thing: they are calling for more snow next week, when I go pick Gaylon up in Charlotte at the airport.  I am really praying that it doesn’t happen.

Seriously? Freezing fog?? I checked the Weather Channel online and they had a “Severe weather report” regarding Freezing Fog?? Good Grief!!!

We are in the middle of another major winter storm, and have already gotten what looks like about three inches of snow.  They say there is a lot more coming, too.  But, before it started snowing, Faith went across the road to feed our neighbors’ dogs and discovered the most delightful, delicate little flowers. So, she picked one and brought it home. I suggested she put it in water, to see if it would open up, so she did, and it opened almost immediately.

It is such a delicate little thing, and really lovely.  I took some pictures, and wanted to share.  I’d never seen anything like it before.  Lishi told me it was a “Snowdrop”, which I think is the perfect name, since it’s snowing today!  How wonderful of God to create little flowers, just for the snow. I’m impressed!  (I am posting a couple of pics of the snow, too.)

A potentially crippling winter storm is expected along I-40 from New Mexico to North Carolina through the weekend.  ~weather.com~  1/27/2010

Yeah.  Just what I wanted to hear.  Our Christmas party was canceled due to a blizzard that left over eight inches of snow on our back deck until the rain finally washed it away about a week ago.  Now they are predicting another storm, which will probably force me to cancel my “Catholic Homeschool Moms Night”.

Frustrating.  Very, very frustrating.

“Even though you can’t see or hear them at all, A person’s a person, no matter how small.”
~Dr. Seuss~

Today is the annual March For Life in Washington, D.C., in protest of the 37th anniversary of Roe v. Wade.  I am happy and amazed to report that this is also Alex’s third time to go.  He is passionate about a great many things, but one of the things about which he is most passionate is the right to life.

He has traveled to the March with our youth group from St. John the Baptist Church, and one of the most exciting parts of his “pilgrimage” is that he will be attending Mass this morning celebrated by Cardinal Rigali, who was one of the religious leaders who presented the Manhattan Declaration back in November!  Then, Alex will get to serve at the special North Carolina Mass with both Bishop Jugis from our own Diocese of Charlotte and Bishop Burbidge, from the Diocese of Raleigh.

And, of course, he will get to march.  We are still free here in the United States, and we can still protest peacefully.  I am so proud of my son that he wants to participate and make his voice known, because the smallest members of our society cannot yet fight for themselves.

WooHoo!!!!  Coakley conceded, and R-E-P-U-B-L-I-C-A-N Scott Brown took over Ted Kennedy’s seat in the Senate!  It is almost too good to be true. . . I feel like I am dreaming . . .

America *is* still awake!  We are fighting back!!  Oh, I hope all those other Senators and Representatives are absolutely quaking in their boots up in their little ivory towers.  What a powerful message the voters of Massachusetts have sent tonight!  And just in time for the March For Life in D.C. this Friday (which Obama will undoubtedly ignore, since it opposes his culture of death).

Oh, I am so happy, and finally, just a tiny bit hopeful.

I am a headline news reader.  I rarely bother to read the whole story unless the headline really, really grabs me.  I think I am, sadly, typical.  But in my defense, I have to say that the headlines have been screaming doom and devastation for so long that it’s very difficult for me to summon up the courage to look past them, into the actual articles.

Tonight’s headlines on Yahoo! illustrate my point perfectly:

Haiti hit by largest earthquake in over 200 years
AP sources: Employer health mandate may be dropped
AP Exclusive: Obama wants $33 billion more for war
Cold weather and growing sales mock death of fur

Okay, I actually read the article about the earthquake in Haiti.  Those poor, poor people!  As if their very existence was not suffering enough.  My heart goes out to them.

The healthcare thing has begun to sound like a permanent droning in my ears. “Obama” wants this and that (yet they keep showing pictures of Pelosi. . . ewwww) and they keep changing their minds.  At first, I was really concerned.  Now I’m beginning to think they’re going to carry on for years, and accomplish nothing.

Obama wants more for the war.  Of course he does.  He totally lied about getting our military home.  Change?  Yeah. Sure.

Now, the “death of fur” thing is funny to me.  All of those self-righteous people who condemned others for wearing fur must have forgotten about how furs were one of the key ingredients to surviving  winters all over the globe throughout history.  And, when people get really cold, they want what works best.

So, I’ve come to the conclusion, yet again, that the world has gone mad.  I just hope everybody else can see it, too.  Sometimes it gets a little old being the only one to proclaim that the emperor has no clothes!

I have been running a relatively high fever since Sunday evening.  And, pretty much, that is my one and only symptom.  So, I did break down and call the doctor’s office, but haven’t heard back from them yet.  Maybe they can get me in tomorrow.  I just feel rotten, and am so ready to feel at least “human” again.

In other news, Faith’s cat went into heat, and that was a very disturbing ordeal.  Mom and Faith took her to be spayed this morning, and Dr. Angel allowed Faith to sit in the OR while she performed the operation.  Faith was apparently quite fascinated, which doesn’t surprise me.  She watches all that stuff on Animal Planet that is definitely NOT for the faint of heart.  Or me.

Because I haven’t really felt well enough to do anything else, I’ve been doing a lot of crocheting, and playing on the internet. You might notice that I put ‘widgets’ on my blog for Facebook and Twitter.  I am not a huge Twitter fan, but I learned over New Year’s that companies “Tweet” things like discounts, specials, and even job postings.  So, I thought it might be useful to me after all. And of course there are various news updates.  Although lately, it’s all so depressing I am not sure I am interested!!

We are going to try, again, to sell our house in a few weeks.  Although, I seriously am not sure it will work, because the market here is still so awful.  But, with God, all things are possible.  I may as well remain hopeful, I sure don’t like the alternative.

There is more snow coming tonight.  But, it shouldn’t be as bad as it was last time.  I hope not.  I still have 8 inches of snow on my back deck that’s been there since December 18th.