Things I am Grateful on this Christmas Day

So many things...

I am thankful for my sanity after a shaky early life filled with, shall we say exploration and uncertainty.

I am very thankful for Beloved who has put up with me as I have put up with her for almost 19 years, through thick and thin, sickness and health, better and worse and all the rest but one...

I am so glad to get to know my the Godchild who grew up away from me, states away, but we have gotten to know each other a adults, both of us-as least she's an adult.

I am grateful for the cousins. When some of us are only children and some of are only by death or distance, I rely on them, also through the thick and thin, and when we get together we ague like the sisters most of us never had and Janet teaches how! And Michele, who I never, even knew as a child has become a great friend and who is full of surprises.

I am so grateful for the Brother-in Law, the best one a girl could ever want! Who knew I would ever have one! I hope he has a wonderful New Year...

I am grateful for my friends, who like the souvenir ruler that I got when I was on a trip as a child said should be "like books, few and well chosen." Well I get the second part, but not the first. Books, still over run me, thank God. Laurie, Maureen and Randi, Steve and Paul, Joni-who baked me Christmas cookies-Jim,Amy, Paula, Carmel, Carol Sally, John, Roe, Joe, Steve Paula, and the rest of you all know who you are...

I'm very grateful for the Revgals for giving me guidance, for being there when I was ill, for answering questions, for having fun.

I'm grateful to the NY State Education Department, Vocational Services for Individuals for Individuals with Disabilities for letting me keep my job in these hard times and letting be practice my skill and learn to be a better counselor every day, even the days that leave me tired and frustrated. More days leave me proud of what I do and that's good.

I'm so Grateful that my Aunt Julie, at 91 is still with us in mind and body and able to have fun with us.

I'm very grateful to Mary to help me to get here.

Thank you all and Merry Christmas.

Friday Five Christmas Traditons

Jan posted this Friday Five: "Christmas traditions vary from family to family and from regions afar. I've been pleased that my oldest son's wife AA loves to be with our family for Christmas, though I don't think we do anything out of the ordinary. It helps that DC has one brother and two sisters to liven up our home.

Since I finally decorated the Christmas tree and have started baking Christmas cookies, I am thinking of Christmas only being one week away.

So for this Friday Five, tell us five things about the traditions in your family. Think of:"

1.traditions you always do

We Celebrate Hannukahah. Since beloved in Jewish and this usually happens right before Christmas, we light the 8 little candles, one more each night. Tonight will be eight plus the shamus (the middle one, the one used to light the rest.

2. traditions you always cook or eat

Cookies have to be in there somewhere...

3. traditions you would like to start

Still looking for a home church for the main event...

4. traditions you would like to discard

Shopping, Office parties. Actually, since I moved my office to Brooklyn, I really like the office party. It was Tuesday and we had a great time! Hmm. Change can happen?

5.anything about your family Christmases

Well our family tradition involved my father drinking more than usual. The good part was my mother baking lots of wonderful cookies.

Ocho Kandelikas-Happy Happy Hannakah

Friday Five Do Nothing Edition

I'm trying to figure out the reason that the gay marriage bill failed to pass in NY by such a huge number this week? Or failed to pass at all!

1. I won't be doing much more shopping since most of mine is done.

2. I will be filling out more forms, since my mortgage banker at CHASE BANK informed us, moments after the gay marriage bill failed that our Canadian marriage would not be recognized and that we had to apply separately for our mortgage! I bought a house with a partner in 1978 and this didn't happen!

3. I won't be planning Christmas dinner, as we will be going out.

4. I will be wrapping the gifts for the gifts for homeless kids party that our Catholic Lesbians group is having tonight.

5. I will be lighting candles for 8 festive nights!

I cheated with will and won't. I will be taking as many naps as possible!

My Long Weekend-Happy Thanksgiving!

Today we're going to BL's aunt who usually has this shindig. This year she has moved into senior housing, a smaller apartment so it will just be BL and me, her two sons, the gay one and his BF, and straight on and his wife and two kids. Lots of vegetarian food and, oh yes, a turkey, a real one.

Tomorrow will be the shopping event with my godchild, the adult woman. First stop, my 8:00 am a.m. a.p. at the MAC store where I hear there are some special specials and I am lusting after a new power book or whatever they're calling them now will be my Christmas gift to myself. We'll just see. In the evening, it's dinner with the cousins, including my cousin from Florida who I don't see often. I love my cousins and it's always a treat to get together with them.

Saturday we'll be having dinner with our friends in Long Beach, our new home away from home. We're treating our friend, the lawyer who helped us with negotiations that helped us to get such a great price. I hope to stop at Costco on the way. (more shopping-there's no Costco in NYC yet.)

Sunday we rest. Perhaps I'll go the the Church of the Holy Apostles, the Episcopal Church that I'm currently interviewing.

Monday is my pass day. Itinerary to be determined.

Happy Thanksgiving to all my Friends

Friday Five Thanksgiving

Jan posted this Thankful Friday Five:
"Aunt Bert says
it's snowing there in Arkansas,
on Catfish Lane, and she hasn't been
able to walk out to their mailbox.
She's been suffering
from a bad case of the mulleygrubs.
The cure for the mulleygrubs,
she tells my sister,
is to get up and bake a cake.
If that doesn't do it, put on a red dress.

--Ginger Andrews (from Hurricane Sisters)

So this Friday before Thanksgiving, think about Aunt Bert and how she'll celebrate Thanksgiving! And how about YOU?"

1. What is your cure for the "mulleygrubs"?
A nap. Probably not the best...

2. Where will you be for Thanksgiving?
We'll be at Beloved's 82 y/o aunt who started eating meat again at the age of 80. The food is always... interesting, but always includes real turkey.

3. What foods will be served? Which are traditional for your family?
Well, There will be Turkey
We're making cranberry sauce and pie
The rest is a crap shoot, but you can bet on lots of vegetarian and vegan options because a good part of the family is one or the other.

4. How do you feel about Thanksgiving as a holiday?
I like it. The secularity, yet warmth and thankfulness of it. The coming together of families, mixed, pulled together, whatever. Last year we were at the same site, yet we had extended families from my family, a sister-in laws family, lots of different families.

5. In this season of Thanksgiving, what are you grateful for?
I'm so grateful to almost have a new home and more space!

Some trivia from FB

You\'ve been living for 60 years, 3 months, and 20 days.
You were born on a Monday.
Your date of conception was probably 1st November 1948.(Do I really want to know this?)
You\'ve seen 15 leap years.
Your Zodiac Sign is Leo.
Your Chinese Zodiac Sign is Ox.
Your Ruling Planet is Sun.
Your Birthstone is Ruby.
Your Birth Flower is Larkspur.
Your Birth Tree is Elm Tree.
Your Birth Number is 1.
Time till your next Birthday 252 days 8 hours 26 mins. (Hmmm, presents, presents?)
Your Lucky Color is Golden Yellow.
Your Lucky Day is Sunday.
Your Lucky Number is One.

And I still have to take a Civil Service Test today, Sigh!

Friday Five- Friday the 13 on the 14th

Sophia posted this scary Friday Five: The fear of Friday the 13th is called paraskevidekatriaphobia, a word derived from the concatenation of the Greek words Paraskeví (Παρασκευή) (meaning Friday), and dekatreís (δεκατρείς) (meaning thirteen), attached to phobía (φοβία) (meaning fear). The term triskaidekaphobia derives from the Greek words "tris", meaning 'three', "kai", meaning 'and', and "deka", meaning 'ten'. the whole word means three and ten. The word was derived in 1911 and first appeared in a mainstream source in 1953. (Wikipedia)

With thanks to my dear spouse TechnoGuy for the great suggestion, it's a Friday the 13th Friday Five!

1. How is this Friday the 13th looking for you?
Sinus infection still hanging on, today, the 14th, I have a Civil Service test all day. I would have skipped it, but was gently encouraged by my boss/friend Laurie who reminded me that those promotions could go to less desirable "others." So I'm packing my lunch and sharpening my #2 pencils. The only redeeming thing is that the testing site is 6 blocks from my apartment!

2. Have you ever had anything unlucky happen on Friday the 13th?
Oh Yes. WAY Unlucky. When I went to the bad orthopedic surgeon on a Friday 13, (he was on vacation so I saw the shoulder guy) with severe exacerbation of my back symptoms. He scheduled me for surgery in two weeks. I ended up in the emergency room the next morning and had emergency surgery that day! And thus I am permanently disabled. I could have been a paraplegic if I had not known the symptoms to look for! I was in graduate school to be a rehabilitation counselor at the time. Ironic? I think so...


3. Did your family of origin embrace or scorn superstitions?
Eh, they went both ways. My father was a little more superstitious. My mother not so much.


4. Are there any unique or amusing ones from your family, region, or ethnic background?
My father was a big one for throwing salt over the shoulder when salt was spilled.


5. Do you love or hate horror movies like "Friday the 13th"?
Hate!

Friday Five-What's New

Imagine a brand new kitchen with sparkling appliances!

Songbird posted this NEW FF "Please share with us five things you like *especially* when they are new."

1. So, you have all been hearing about the PROJECT? Well I can't wait for a new refrigerator. I currently live in an apartment so whenever the refrigerator breaks I get a new, old, used in an apartment that has become a co-op fridge,

2. Well, a new co-op. With 2 bedrooms, a heated outdoor pool, a terrace, 2 bathrooms, all new appliances (as soon as we buy and install them) in our new kitchen. and several walk-in closets-on the ocean! We're officially-as of yesterday-in contract! Hooray.

3. Always new shoes.

4. A nice new pen, with gel ink, that writes smoothly.

5. I really need a new Mac. And the new ones have such nice bells and whistles. This one has been showing the beach ball a little too much. The genius tells me I need more RAM and a new battery.

Friday Five-Personal Flotation Device

Kathrykzj posted this lifesaving FF:

In honor of BE Three" I thought I'd offer up a Friday Five of lifesavers. I'm going on our cruise (are you?) because I am excited about meeting up with my blogging buddies again, I am interested in the speaker and because when I went on the first one my life was saved (okay, that may be a little over-dramatized but if you saw me getting on the boat and then the difference when getting off the boat you would know of what I speak).

I don't expect - or need - another life saving moment but I want to support the conference.

Of course lifesavers can come in all sizes and with far less drama. I would readily admit that I have considered a person (children's sermon substitute), the location of a bathroom, and a beverage (the last diet coke in the back of the fridge - score!) all to be lifesavers at one point or another.

And so today I ask you - dramatic or fairly common - what have been/are your lifesavers:"

1) Your lifesaving food/beverage.

It all goes better with a Coke, but Water fills the tiny refrigerator in my office
2) Your lifesaving article of clothing.

Since I missed the shoes chapter of FF, after my back surgery and subsequent disability, Rockport's and Teva's. The most comfortable shoes and sandals, and for Rockports, the ones that stay on, since my feet cannot grip anymore,
3) Your lifesaving movie/book/tv show/music.

As a youngish person, the books of Jane Rule who told me who I was and that it was quite all right. ( and who I later met.0
4) Your lifesaving friend.

Well, not quite a friend, but my therapist, who in two installments over 20 years has saved my sorry ass.
5) Your lifesaving moment.

So many

Women & Spirituality Event in NYC

Women and Spirituality


A Soulful Journey Among Ourselves

Four events
Dates: Nov 11, 13, 14, 15 Check below for details
Several locations in Manhattan

Co-Convenors:
Westina Matthews, PhD
Mark D’Alessio

With guest speakers:
Suzan D. Johnson Cook (Dr. Sujay), Rev. Barbara Cawthorne Crafton,
Amy Julia Becker, Rev. Katharine R. Henderson, Kathleen Kelley, Sumaiya Malik,
The Rev. Canon Anne Mallonee, Rev. Jeanne Person, and Rev. Beth Waltemath.

The profound experience of women’s spiritual quests are explored in a four part series presented by the Psychotherapy & Spirituality Institute in association with Auburn Seminary, General Theological Seminary and Trinity Church Wall Street.

Join us to explore how a broader spirituality can emerge from our deepest values. This will be a unique opportunity to learn and renew in a loving and supportive environment; and, you will leave with resources and suggested practices for supporting your faith walk.


Part 1 begins at Auburn Seminary and examines how the sense of connectedness that is uniquely feminine supports social practices essential for a just society.

Wednesday, Nov 11 6:30pm-8:00pm Auburn Seminary
3041 Broadway at 121st Street The Stewart Room

Guest Presenter: Rev. Suzan D. Johnson Cook (Dr. Sujay), (author of Too Blessed to be Stressed, TV producer and host, and Founder & Senior Pastor of the Bronx Christian Fellowship Church)


Part 2 moves to Trinity Wall Street/St. Paul’s Chapel and turns to the spiritual leadership of our invited guest panelists, reflecting on the inspiration they’ve gleaned from women prophets and saints (alongside the significance of “goddesses” and the Divine Feminine).

Friday, Nov 13 6:30pm-8:00pm St. Paul's Chapel
Broadway at Fulton Street

Guest Panelists: Amy Julia Becker (author of Penelope Ayers), Jeanne Person (Director of the Center for Christian Spirituality), Kathleen Kelley (Spiritual Care Director at the Hazelden Foundation), and Sumaiya Malik (founder of Good News Gazette)


Part 3 is a retreat day in the city at General Theological Seminary and is part of the Center for Christian Spirituality’s “Quiet Day” series – a time to come together and create a time apart that invites you to slow down, reflect, be still.

Saturday, Nov 14 10:00am-3:00pm General Theological Seminary Entrance on W. 21st Street bet. Ninth & Tenth Avenues

Faciliator: Westina Matthews, PhD
Guest Presenter: Rev. Julia Kristeller (Director of PSI’s Muslim-Arab Women’s Project & Interfaith Minister)

Part 4 closes our series and returns to Trinity Wall Street where we will share experiences on how women everywhere are seeking a broader, life-affirming spirituality in response to the needs and opportunities of the age.

Sunday, Nov 15 1:00pm-2:30pm Trinity Wall Street
74 Trinity Place 2nd Floor

Guest Presenter: Barbara Cawthorne Crafton (author of Jesus Wept and the celebrated Almost Daily eMos from the Geranium Farm)

Come to one part of the series, or come to all.
Our speakers will have their books available for purchase and signing.

$45 for full series
If purchased separately, Parts 1, 2, 4: $12 each,
Part 3 Quiet Day: $20 (includes lunch)
No one will be turned away for lack of funds.
CEU credits available.

For reservations or other information,
please contact Mark D’Alessio at 212-285-0043 x11
or mark@psi-mindspirit.org

Friday Five

Songbird posted this FF "On this Friday before Reformation Sunday, let's talk about music. Share with us five pieces of music that draw you closer to the Divine, that elevate your mood or take you to your happy place. They might be sung or instrumental, ancient or modern, sacred or popular...whatever touches you. Some of us even love hymns. (Well, I do.)"



Hmm well, In the catholic church we called the protestant revolt, which I realize is really revolting!



I don't really listen to music. I listen to music very much which I realize makes me a little unusual. During the day at work, when I'm not meeting with a client, I usually have Public Radio (talk) on. And for relaxing, I read or watch TV. I have an iphone which has a built in music function and I have music downloaded, but I have never listened to what I have on there except for the meditation stuff I have from Jon Kabat Zinn's book, which I really don't listen to very much any more. I meditate without it. I like the quiet better.



Sometimes I like music. I love musical comedy, and go to Broadway as often as I can, but only to thing that I think I will like. I loved West Side Story!

And when I saw the opening of Oprah's show with the Black Eye Pea's I loved that song and dance. And I loved Will I Am when he did the Obama thing before the election.



I love the music of the early 70's sometimes, James Taylor from then, "Heart of Gold"- I found it very romantic at the time, Carol King.



I go to the ballet, but the music is secondary to the dance.



I guess, I like the quiet better than the sound, though I used to love to drive and listen to the radio when I was in my 20's before I moved to this very noisy city.

The Project: They Accepted the Offer, but...

The Guest Bath-Dontcha just love that wallcovering? The full bath has foil too, but Geometric!

Ok, so I've been a little slow giving you the updates on our palace in the sky. We gave another offer, 2.5 thousand more than the last offer-7 weeks ago. We waited.

Two weeks ago we were having dinner in the local Chinese Restaurant and I checked my voicemail. "Hey, Bridget (our realtor) called" twice! BL said call her back after dinner. By that time I had already dialed. Bridget said, are you both there? I said yes. She said Congratulations. They accepted your offer! Still lower that we expected to go.

We had it inspected last weekend. In addition to a new kitchen, and new bathrooms, we need all new air conditioners and new outlets.

Other than that, it's in great shape!

Oh, yes, they're still holding open houses until we sign the contract. "You know how the real estate market is these days!"

Yikes!

Please send the Revgal Design Team soon. Thank you.

Friday Five Special Days

The First Wedding

Sophia is being ordained this weekend and has posted his thoughtful Friday Five:"This has me thinking of the special rites of passage in our lives which we participate for ourselves or in which we support and bless others: baptism, confirmation, marriage, ordination, graduation, funerals, etc. Such important days, so exciting and joyous, but also sometimes anxiety provoking or deeply painful....So, this week, please share five memories of such sacred moments with God and her holy people from your life and the lives of those you love."

1. I have vague memories of my first communion and confirmation, as when I had those rites I think I was in the 2nd grade? I know I wore a wedding type dress and had to choose a confirmation name, No memories of my baptism at all as that happened shortly after I was born, but I still have the shoes!
2.I remember my weddings, both of them. Since I'm a lesbian, the first, at my partners synagogue, was not legal. It has also been the cause of great discord over the years as, even though it was held at Congregation Beth Simchat Torah (they rented us the space), the largest lgbt shul in the world and the only one in NYC (and my wife's spiritual home) the head rabbi and the assistant rabbi would not marry us because I am Christian.
The second one was in Toronto and is legal in Canada. We still don't have the 1000+ legal rights that heterosexuals married in the United States have. This is made all the more apparent as we are buying a new place now and have to put in place all kinds of protections in case one of us predeceases the other (that leagalese for die,) sigh.
3 My cousin, Becky's funeral. She was 40 and the first of my generation to die. She had type one diabetes.
4.My godchilds wedding. It was in London, Ohio. So she can say she was married in London.
5.My graduation from Hunter College with a Masters Degree in Counseling. It was a part of the city colleges of NY. After they served popsicles! It was great!

Church History in 4 minutes

Thanks to Chris for this heads up. And I had to have 12 years of Catholic School...

The PROJECT Hook'd on a feeler

If you have been following this story, as I have (been living it-that is) the last post was where we were asked for and then put in our 'best and final offer', then were countered with a counter offer. It has been five weeks since that time. We have seen at least 6-7 other places, one, owned by ambiguous Pat, that we really liked and made an offer on , but Pat would not come down in price and he/she had put a lot of money into the beautiful place and had to get his/her money back. Sigh.

This is like another job as Long Beach is a is about a 50 minute drive for us-which may not seem like a lot to you regular folk, but to us public transportation riders, well it's a lot. Then in and out and taking pictures and talking to people and etc. And no weekends, it seems like. Let me rant for awhile.

So we asked our realtor to put out a feeler if we went up a bit would they accept and not keep us hanging for another month or two into the deep winter. All over this beach town, prices are dropping as the fall develops, but these sellers seem not to notice.

Friday Five-Fall

Singing Owl Posted this melancholy-for me-Friday five:
Let us fear the LORD our God, who gives autumn and spring rains in season, who assures us of the regular weeks of harvest. Jeremiah 5:23b

The Autumnal Equinox has just come 'round again. I took a look back at our Friday Fives and noted that it always seems to make the Rev Gals and their Pals think of changes.


There is something so nostalgic about this time of year, at least in the Northern Hemisphere. The nights grow cooler, crops are harvested, for some of us the leaves are beginning to change colors. The scent of smoke is in the air, pumpkins are in the stores (or on wagons, or in roadside stands for those of us in the country). I'm thinking of putting away my summer clothes and pulling out the sweaters. And I have a tub of Fall-themed items that my husband just lugged up from the basement. I'm looking for my scarecrow.


For this week, let's share some memories along with some hopes and expectations.


1. Share a Fall memory.
Fall is a time of going back to school. I always hated that, but when I went to Graduate School-1991 or so, all of that changed. I really liked what I was studying. I had a computer and that made writing papers so much easier than using a typewriter (in the 60's and 70's) I had a sense of self. This is a bad made good memory of fall
2. Your favorite Fall clothes--(past or present)?
Tweeds forever!
3. Share a campfire story, song, experience...etc.
When I was growing up, we had a big backyard and outdoor fireplaces-2. During the summer we had many cookouts with my uncles famous steaks, but after we kept the fire going and sat around the fire telling stories and talking. This went on into the fall.
4. What is your favorite thing about this time of year?
I like the moderating temperature's and less humidity, I don't like the shorter days.
5. What changes are you anticipating in your life, your church, family...whatever...as the season changes and winter approaches?
Well, we are in the middle of our end of FFY-end of Federal Fiscal Year at work. This means that we prove that we are doing our jobs by showing how many people with disabilities we have placed in employment and they have stayed in employment for 90 days. So, I have been ragging on my unit of counselors to comb through their files to find "rehabs." Rehabilitated consumers that we can show the Feds. We do this twice a year as we get funding from the state and the feds. It's over next Weds cob. Sigh

Happy New Year-L'Shana Tova

This was an e-mail from a friend and I thought I'd re-publish it here:
"L'Shana Tova U’Metukah Tikatevu
May you be inscribed and sealed for a good year!
שנה טובה כתיבה וחתימה טובה
May your hair, your teeth, your face-lift, your abs, and your stocks not fall .

And may your blood pressure, your triglycerides, your cholesterol, your white blood count and your mortgage interest not rise.

May you get a clean bill of health from your dentist, your cardiologist, your gastroenterologist, your urologist, your proctologist, your podiatrist, your psychiatrist, your plumber, and the IRS.
May you find a way to travel from anywhere to anywhere during rush hour in less than an hour, and when you get there may you find a parking space.

May this Yom Tov, find you seated around the dinner table, together with your beloved family and cherished friends, ushering in the Jewish New Year ahead.

May what you see in the mirror delight you, and what others see in you delight them.

May the telemarketers wait to make their sales calls until you finish dinner, may your checkbook and your budget balance, and may they include generous amounts for charity.

May you remember to say "I love you" at least once a day to your partner, your child, and your parent(s). You can say it to your secretary, your nurse, your butcher, your photographer, your masseuse, your seamstress, your hairdresser or your gym instructor, but not with a "twinkle" in your eye.

May we live as intended, in a world at peace with the awareness of the beauty in every sunset, every flower's unfolding petals, every baby's smile and every wonderful, astonishing, miraculous part of ourselves.

Bless you with every happiness, great health, peace and much love during the next year and all those that follow"

Friday Five Stairs

Jan posted this thoughtful Friday Five:

"Halfway down the stairs

Is a stair
Where I sit.
There isn't any
Other stair
Quite like
It.
I'm not at the bottom,
I'm not at the top;
So this is the stair
Where
I always
Stop.

Halfway up the stairs
Isn't up,
And isn't down.
it isn't in the nursery,
it isn't in the town.
And all sorts of funny thoughts
Run round my head:
"It isn't really
Anywhere!
It's somewhere else
Instead!"

— A. A. Milne
“Halfway Down,” When We Were Very Young

Thinking of your childhood as a stairway, when did you feel (and how did you feel then)

1. at the bottom?

When I was very young I grew up in a home with no stairs except the ones to the basement. So I grew to know stairs in the home of the women who took care of me when my parents worked. I used to 'butt' up and down. She had three much older daughters and even though I felt like a member of the family for my young life, I guess you could say, I was at the bottom rung.

2. at the top?

No, in my young life, I never felt powerful. I lived with an alcoholic father and an angry mother which left me pretty much...out.

3. halfway?

No.

4. At this point in your life, where would you place yourself on your own stairway?

I'm still climbing those stairs. I have a career that I like, and that I have worked for, a happy relationship. I'm sober for 23 years, I have friends and I'm close to my small family. Actually I'm pretty close to the top compared to the people I see every day! I'm a lucky girl.

5. Identify a place for you that "isn't really anywhere" but "somewhere else instead."
When I meditate, Mindfulness Meditation, I go there.

A Good Idea to Support the American Nuns

Last January, the Vatican launched an apostolic visitation of institutes of women religious in the United States.

Now is the time for those of us who have been served by or served with women religious to stand in support and express our gratitude for these women who have given us so much.

Letters in support of women religious will be posted here throughout the month of November and sent to Mother Mary Clare Millea, Cardinal Franc Rode, Cardinal Francis George and Pope Benedict XVI as well as leadership teams of communities of women religious in the US.

Submit your letter today.

September 16, 2009

from Kate Child Graham of NCR

All are invited to write letters in support of women religious which will be posted atwww.thankyousister.com and sent to Mother Mary Clare Millea, Cardinal Franc Rode, Cardinal Francis George and Pope Benedict XVI as well as leadership teams of communities of women religious in the US. In these letters, you are invited to share personal stories about how women religious have impacted your “quality of life,” express messages of gratitude and/or convey general messages of support.

As November is the month of giving thanks, the letters will be posted on this site throughout the month of November, but please start writing now.

Here are the steps to contribute your message of support and gratitude:

1.Go to http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/thankyousister/ to make your commitment to write a letter.
2.Write your letter in 700 words or less.
3.Send to thankyousister@gmail.com before November 1, 2009. Please include your name, city and state in the message or indicate if you would like your message to remain anonymous.
4.Forward this message to ten friends or post the following message as your Facebook status:
“Last January, the Vatican launched an apostolic visitation of institutes of women religious in the United States. Join me in supporting these women who have given us so much. Write a letter of support and gratitude and send it to thankyousister@gmail.com. Visit www.thankyousister.com for more details.”
5.Read your message and messages from others at www.thankyousister.com from November 1 through November 30, 2009.

If you have any questions or comments, please contact Kate Childs Graham at thankyousister@gmail.com.

Friday Five: Pajamas

1. What was your favorite sleeping attire as a child? And did you call them pjs, pajamas (to rhyme with llamas), pajamas (to sort of rhyme with bananas), jammies, or ???
Being old school, pajamas (to sort of rhyme with bananas), then night shirts, when they came into style in the 60's.

2. Favorite sleepwear put on your own little ones, or perhaps those you babysat? (Bonus points if you made it)
Un, no answer for this one,.

3. How about today-do you prefer nightgown, pajamas, undies, or au naturel?
A t shirt, preferably gotten for free, advertising various computer companies, by beloved. Or depends on the occasion!

4. Silky smooth or flannel-y cozy?
Summer and Winter

5. Socks or bare feet?
Winter and Summer.

A New York Story

I was shaken and scared....

I had a busy day, brunch with a group of friends, then a long walk, shopping at the Strand bookstore, a walk through a street fair etc. We took the cross town bus across 14th street-the traffic was heavy. BL wanted to go the the Chelsea Market for fresh vegetables for tomorrows party-for the grill. I was tired- and had had enough walking and just wanted to go home. So, I walked to the Market with her and then grabbed a cab. I got in, barely hitting an Explorer with my door. As I was closing the door, someone was holding the door. "You damaged my car!" said an irate blond middle aged woman with a Germanic accent and two children in the car. I looked and there was a small mark-not a dent, not a scratch just a ". She was holding the door and demanding I get out, speaking in a loud and angry voice. I refused. If you drive in NYC, you expect these little marks. She was insistent. Holding the door and reaching for me until BL came back and said 'don't you touch her.' I was at a loss. I felt that I had done nothing wrong. Our is full of such little marks and dings. As a pedestrian I have no insurance against making little marks and felt she was about to get violent. I was exhausted and just wanted to get home. A crowd was gathering. One man came up and said 'you have your rights, stand firm. BL finally suggested she call the police, so she did. While she did that, I also did and explained my situation. While I was on the phone, she got in her car and drove off. I was shaken and exhausted.

Street drama in NYC.

Charged Friday Five

Sally posted this bracing Friday Five" A few weeks ago my lap-top battery died, suddenly I found myself looking at a blank screen and was rather relieved to find that it was only the battery and not the whole computer that had failed. This morning a new battery arrived in the post, and suddenly I am mobile again!After a week with what feels like wall to wall meetings, and Synod looming on the horizon for tomorrow I find myself pondering my own need to recharge my batteries. This afternoon Tim and I are setting off to explore the countryside around our new home, I always find that walking in the fresh air away from phones and e-mails recharges me. But that is not the only thing that restores my soul, so do some people, books, pieces of music etc....So I wonder what/ who gives you energy?

1. Is there a person who encourages and uplifts you, whose company you seek when you are feeling low?
My Beloved, or myself.

2. How about a piece of music that either invigorates or relaxes you?
I like the sound of silence...and not the Simon and Garfunkel one...

3. Which book of the Bible do you most readily turn to for refreshment and encouragement? Is there a particular story that brings you hope?
Uh, no.

4. A bracing walk or a cosy fireside?
I'll go for either one based on my mood, but really give me a good book and that fireside

5. Are you feeling refreshed and restored at the moment or in need of recharging, write a prayer or a prayer request to finish this weeks Friday Five....
Actually, this morning, this agnostics subway prayer was "Dear God, please resolve the condo-co-op Project issue soon, hopefully in a positive way, if you see fit and if it seem right to You."
How about that?

The PROJECT seems to be stalled

My Aunt and her grandchild my godchild.

Alas... the best and final offer seemed to be a ploy to 'jack up the price." The sellers relator came back with another offer expecting another offer to us. Sigh. So for the moment we're sitting on things.

No, not what did I mean? Sitting? We hosted the little family during the last rainy weekend!

We rented a wheelchair and took buses all over NYC with my 91 y/o aunt, cousin Michele and her friend Jonie and godchild Elaine. And at various times Beloved and cousin Janet. It was a traveling carnival. We had a great time, but I learned how difficult it is to navigate NYC in a Wheelchair.

Friday Five: Rules

Jan posted this interesting Friday Five" After a family vacation with our four children and three additional "partners," I am more aware of rules, spoken and unvoiced. Expectations are not always clearly expressed, but are still expected. . . . unbeknown to all unless one is not fulfilled! So how about writing about rules in your families and workplaces? Choose one or more for each category, especially if one seems odd or funny to you now."

1. Formal rules in family of origin.
When I was young, always call if you're going to be late as someone was always picking me up. Later on the same. I was an only child and I don't remember many formal rules.

2. Unwritten and unspoken rules in family of origin
I grew up with an alcoholic father so I'm copying Jan's response here with:
Don't talk
Don't trust
Don't feel
Which are so true in these situations.

3. Formal rules in current family or workplace
Two adults in this family so rules are not so important. At work-for the state government as a counselor-lots of ethics guidelines/rules. Some rules about what to wear which are very loose. A lot of rules about confidentiality as we are dealing with issues of disability and mental health and HIV, things we had to sign and have notarized to on employment. Actually endless rules that change endlessly, now that I think of it. If you want to read them go to:
http://www.vesid.nysed.gov/current_provider_information/vocational_rehabilitation/policies_procedures/000_index.htm
Go ahead, knock yourself out! It helps with insomnia, but I spend a lot of time looking endlessly for answers in there.

4. Unwritten rules in current family or workplace
At home, call if you're going to be late or I'll worry. Talk to me about how you're feeling. I need to know
At work, if you're going to be late call me directly-I'm the manager of a unit of counselors- Let me know in writing when you're taking time off. I'll pay for holiday parties, but you have to take collections for birthday parties. Try not to piss anyone off because I have to answer for it.

5. When was a time that you became aware of different rules in different places/families than your own?
When my family moved to a suburban neighborhood and I became friends with kids not related to me. One kid got "spankings" with the cord from the electric coffee maker. I was horrified and I was 11. My friend across the street's mother treated her like a maid.

The PROJECT Your Final Offer!

Dangling the keys above our hands...

We have been going back and forth with offers and counter offers, advised by a friend who is a corporate lawyer. What she has predicted will happen, has happened almost word for work =0 How do they do this. Play hardball? I have had more Excedrin Migraine, Maalox, Ginger ale and other misc. home remedies for the last two weeks (that have felt like two months.) I am now ready to offer almost anything to get this over with. Fortunately Beloved and I process almost constantly- when awake and when asleep...did I say asleep, did I say fortunately?
Yesterdays offer from them was 20,000 above what we are willing to pay, but with a coda, "But they want your final and best offer and they think that the seller will go for under XXX,XXX." Huh? this is 20,000. less than their last offer,
This is all so confusing.

Wild Animal Friday Five

Mompriest who actually has wild animals in her life posted this wild FF "For this Friday Five, share with us a wild animal story from your life. Or if you've never had such an encounter share with us your five favorite animals, and why. Bonus for videos and photos!"
Ok, so I'm at work and I found some great photo's of the three animals that I have found in my apartment, but not often and not recently but I can't post them until later:
1.The millepede. I was reading one day and I glanced up. There was this long, hairy thing walking across the wall right at eye level. I was alone in the apartment, naturally! Which meant I had to cope with it. Beloved and I have this deal, she gets the bugs and I get the 'rodentia.'
So, I rolled a newspaper and snuck up on it and swatted and what I was left with was like grey powder. Strange. It has been alive. I was relieved. I don't like the bugs.
2. The cockroaches. Early on we had a few, but boric acid and that was that. In former, less 'elegant' digs, well they were more of a problem. And coming from Ohio where bugs were strickly outside, it was really shocking! I learned to deal, but was never really comfortable and was always well armed with the latest poisons.
3 The Mice-I've had two or three in the current apartment, but before there were able to get caught in my non-pain-free traps, they moved out. When I had a house in the country, they would come in when the weather was getting cold. One year they got into the flour and left little footprints all over the kitchen.
When I worked for NOW-the Founding Chapter in NYC, the loft space was rife with them. We lost more volunteers that way. I would catch them in wastebaskets and carry them out into the street.
Pictures to come...maybe.

I Believe

Gay & Lesbian Civil Rights... Now. from Jeffery Hammerberg on Vimeo.

The PROJECT Heats Up

Tantalizing View from the Terrace

Yesterday we made an offer. Then we found out we had to be pre-qualified for a mortgage. I was pretty sure we needed this, but BL said no, not. I only did this, buy a house, once before and that was a LONG TIME ago. BL-who has lived in rentals all of her life-seemed to think the this was unnecessary. She was wrong.

So I got on the phone with my bank and the mortgage broker was still there-at 5pm, I gave her the info, and things are in motion.

Keep your fingers crossed and keep us in your prayers.

We are hysterical.

PS...Did I mention it's 1,200 sq ft. My idea of heaven on earth. Hm I wonder if that includes the terrace?

A Sporting Friday Five

Matriarch Aunt Julie with Joanna and the Beloved at Rehoboth Beach, DE. where I did not swim in the Ocean but did swim in a swimming pool-and celebrated my 60th birthday! I'm the one on the left back.

Sally posted this wonderful Friday Five "The first picture is of Wildgoose, the second of an Albacore, at first glance there might not seem much difference apart from the sail colours, but there is much more room for my long legs in the Albacore!
So why all of this boaty information? Well because sailing is a family passion, we love the water and the wind, and take delight in the fresh air and quiet, but also in the competition, striving to do our best!
How about you?"

1. Is there a sport/ hobby that is more of a passion than a past-time for you?
When I was younger ( I didn't just say that! And had a house by the ocean, I sailed, too. I had a partner who had a 19 foot O'day Mariner (this is important information to sailors) and we would take day trips in the Great South Bay to the Hamptons and around Shelter Island. Often we would meetup for picnics with groups of women who boated from various places on a remote beach on the island. I wish I had pictures.
Now I swim, but I do not compete

2. Outdoors or indoors?
Then outdoors, but now both

3. Where do you find peace and quiet?
In the water

4. A competitive spirit; good or bad, discuss...
Neither, just not for me.

5. Is there a song a picture or a poem that sums up your passion ?
See the swimming song in a previous post.

Glitch in the PROJECT

As I was sitting in my 7-yes- 7 hour meeting today, my iphone started boinging. This is the designated call for my overactive beloved. I excused myself and answered. "There's a problem." she said. What, I said-I was in the middle of this meeting. I seems that the co-op beach house cannot be rented-an important feature if we should want to retire someplace else and cannot sell it.
Thank God we're seeing our therapist on Saturday. Mine is in Brazil for the month!
Stay tuned...

Update on the latest PROJECT!

Illustration Joanna and Beloved getting ready for work in their new Beach Palace

Beloved and I have been looking for a weekend place to supplement the tiny, 500 sq. ft."hut in the sky" where we currently live. To give you an update, we were perfectly happy, well not perfectly...but we lived-not together in two seperate states until for about 12 years, 6 years ago when we got married for the first time (another long story.) We had been looking for a place in NJ and in NY, but had been been unsuccessful (another long story which will go untold unless you come to NYC and have-at least coffee with me.)

On the virtual eve of our first wedding, I opened my big mouth and said, "well, why don't you move in here until we find a place." As I saw those words floating out of my mouth I wanted to grab them back and stuff them where they came from, that romantic part of my brain, just about to get married, for the first time, but not the last, although to the same person. Since that time, things have been, well...crowded.

About a year ago, I was talking to my therapist about how this introvert was feeling so dissatisfied and spending a lot of time in the bedroom with the door closed-read L of the L shaped studio made into a bedroom. How there was no relief from sound of smells-BL loves to cook smelly food, loves to talk on the phone, loves to do lots of big things that match her big extroverted personality that I love.

So into couples counseling we went and hence starting searching for a supplemental/ beach/weekend, yet commutable place. We would keep our hut as our main residence.

I think we may have found one.

Friday Five: Childs Play Edition

Today’s Friday Five celebrates the spontaneous child in all of us… ar at least the one that we admire in someone else:

1) On a scale of 1-5, with 5 being I can’t do this now I am about to jump into a pit of plastic balls at the mini-mall and 1 being I can’t do this now until I can get all of the fonts on my blog to match – where are you?
-Lots of things I can't do since my proprioception went, but lots of things I can and do. I've never stopped playing and acting like a child

2) What is the silliest/most childlike thing you have done as an adult?
-Dancing to the cadence of the copy machine. In my office. I do this often. I may think of more later...

3) Any regrets?
-Never

4) What is the silliest thing you have ever seen another adult do on purpose?
-Hmmmm? BL often dances while waiting for the light to change.

5) What is something you wish you did when you had the chance?
-Bungee Jump, absolutely! But I never had the chance.
-Zip line through the jungle. however that included going to the jungle and spending a lot of long sweaty time in the jungle, which I preferred not to do.

!

Facebook is What Happened

I see it's been awhile since I've been blogging. Actually I went on vacation and the house I rented did not have computer access as promised. I have a lot to say about that. Maybe this weekend.
But I have found that since I logged on to Facebook, and made friends with the Revgals, discovered all my old friends, learned to play computer games, discovered what my various names are- trailer park, historical badass woman-you get the drift, sent birthday cards to friends that I barely know, solicited birthday gifts from friends that I barely know, reposted news items that I think you should read... well I've been VERY busy!
Facebook is a very funny thing. I'm not very social in real life. I have my wife, a few close friends, work and that's about it, but on FB-see, we're so close we have nicknames, I feel free to comment on anyones post, even people I have never met in real life.
I've even had to censor myself.
So, excuse me. I have to go check to see if anyone wants farkle chips-what are those/

Physical Fitness Friday Five

Sophia posted this wonderful FF: "I just got back from an 8 mile bike ride down the beach boardwalk near our home, and was struck with the number of people out enjoying physical activity. Runners, other cyclists, surfers, swimmers, dogwalkers, little kids on scooters....

It's easy to lose track of my physical self-care in the midst of flurried preparation for a final on-campus interview Monday for a college teaching position in the Midwest (prayers welcome!) and the family move that would accompany it. But each day that I do make time to walk or ride my bike it is such a stress reliever that it is well worth the time invested!

So how about you and your beautiful temple of the Holy Spirit?"

1. What was your favorite sport or outdoor activity as a child?
When I was a kid we had a huge backyard and all of our activities took place there. I liked riding my bike on the streets of my small town, playing games with my friends in the backyard-cowboys and Indians-I had a Davey Crockett hat and cap gun and holster!

2. P.E. class--heaven or the other place?
I went to Catholic School, 6 periods per day and one was religion, so if you took band (and I did just to avoid gym for 4 years) you didn't have to take gym. I didn't know I was a lesbian then, but the thought of undressing and showering with other girls just undid me. Little did I know, I would be undressing and dressing in band uniform in the tiniest of rooms with all the other girls in the band virtually the first day!

3. What is your favorite form of exercise now?
I love to walk around the city that never sleeps. I also swim, not very well, in my gym.

4. Do you like to work out solo or with a partner?
I like to walk along because I can walk at my own pace which is considerably slower than my friends, cane and all. I'm also easily distracted by sales, bookstores and various things to take pictures of.

5. Inside or outside?
Both, see above.

Happy 4th

And on a Lighter Note

Friday Five It's all about the look

Sally posted this excellent FF: "In readiness for my move in 6 weeks time I spent almost all of yesterday morning sorting through my wardrobe ( closet, I am so British :-) marvelling at how I had accumulated so much stuff! The result is three large sacks full of clothes to be given away. Some came into the category of " what was I thinking", some too big now ( at last), and others I will never shrink into again. Some are going simply because I want to streamline my wardrobe."

So how about you:

1. Are you a hoarder, or are you good at sorting and clearing?
I let things go in my closet until it really gets too crowded, then I clear things out and send stuff to "Housing Works" the local HIV housing thrift shops. They also get the books that overflow my apartment. We, just this year, got a storage place, two blocks away.

2. What is the oddest garment you possess and why?
I have an assortment of odd hats and DID have an alligator head that I made for a costume-it was really nice, but it got lost.

3. Do you have a favourite look/ colour?
Since my 12 years in Catholic schools, I tend to be a little tailored. That uniform look carries on way too long.

4. Thrift/ Charity shops, love them or hate them?
Love to give to them and buy books and sometimes small furniture to them, although the Stressless lounge chair and ottoman I'm currently sitting in came from Housing Works-quite a buy!

5. Money is no object, what one item would you buy?
I would buy a tailor to make all my clothes, so that I would never have to shop for clothes again-except shoes which I like to buy!

Gay Pride 1972 NYC

My first Gay March was in 1972.
That was the year I moved to NYC. Since the Stonewall riots were in 1969, that would have been the 4th year after the stonewall riots. I was a member of the Gay Activists Alliance a group that met at an abandoned firehouse in SOHO before it was fashionable. That year we marched from Central Park to Washington Square Park in the Village. Later I'll scan some pictures I took and post them. Not time now. At that time I was working for SR Rosenberg LTD a store planning company making $100. per week, no benefits and lived in a sublet with 2 men. The person I was renting from was a dancer who was working for the summer stock company I just resigned from. I was thrilled and scared to be living in NYC. I was poor but free at last to be living as myself an open lesbian. It was a heady time with women's liberation really going strong and the gay liberation movement lively. I was in love for the first, but not the last, time.

Welcoming in Pride Week

I'm reprinting this most excellent article by Kate Childs Graham on Jun. 18, 2009 Young Voices from the National Reporter to Welcome in Lesbian and Gay Pride Week in NYC. Thanks Kate.

"June is lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) Pride month around the country. After a great weekend of Pride celebrations in our nation’s capitol, I began to reflect on the word pride; after all, its connotations can be both good and bad, especially for those of us who are practicing Catholics.
Pride, or hubris, is one of the seven deadly sins. In fact, it is considered by scholars to be the original and most serious of the sins. It separates one from their community and from God. With pride, one cannot recognize God’ grace. Thomas Aquinas said that pride is "inordinate self-love…the cause of every sin ... the root of pride is found to consist in [hu]man not being, in some way, subject to God and [God’s] rule."
This is certainly not the pride I saw this weekend. The pride I saw this weekend was an expression of love and survival. It was a pride that brings people together, gay or straight. It was a joyful, and at times rowdy, pride. And though not a spiritual celebration, the grace of God was certainly present in these celebrations.
Every year, there are a few moments in the Pride parade that move me. As the parents of LGBT folks march with their signs reading “I love my gay son” or “Relationships are precious,” my heart swells with, well, pride. As those who have served in the military solemnly march in uniform with US flags, my eyes fill with tears. As people from religious congregations of every stripe, including Catholic, march and declare their stance that God is love, my spirit sings.
Now, there are obvious reasons why, for me, these are the moments that move me. I am lucky to have a family that accepts me. I am lucky not to work in a profession in which I must hide myself. And I am lucky to have found a church community that does not demonize me for my sexuality, although the church hierarchy continues to do just that.
I am proud that our country and church have come so far so that I can feel so lucky. There is no doubt, however, that our country and church still have a long way to come. And, in certain instances, one may even argue that pride interferes with some people’s ability to overcome their prejudice in order to grant equal rights to all people.
Take, for example, the U S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. The bishops'' position on same-gender relationships is widely known -- so I won’t go into that. However, what is perhaps less well known is how this position shadows the other good work they do.
Rep. Mike Honda, D-Calif. introduced the Reuniting Families Act (H.R. 2709) on June 5. This bill is a big step towards comprehensive immigration reform. This legislation would free immediate relatives of U.S. citizens from the bureaucratic nightmare that currently plagues families separated by borders and provide these family members with an easier and faster way to be with their families.
One would think that the bishops, with their historic and astounding support for the rights of immigrants, would be among the first to support this bill. Unfortunately, this is not the case. While the bishops have endorsed and pledged to work for the enactment of the Senate version of the Reuniting Families Act (S. 1085), which Sen. Robert Menendez, D-N.J. introduced last month, the bishops wrote Honda to tell him that they couldn't support the House version. You see, the bishops have decided not to lend their support to this bill because it includes provisions for same-gender couples.
To me, it seems that the bishops are letting pride get in the way of supporting important legislation on immigrant rights. Their pride is so vast that they refuse to revise their teaching on same-gender relationships in light of today’s world and modern knowledge. Their pride is so great that they believe that their views on same-gender relationships must be imposed on all people. As a result of this pride -- while I hope this bill will pass with or without the support of the bishops -- families may indeed suffer. I hope that one day the U.S. bishops are able to push their pride aside for the good and equality of all.
So, is pride good or bad? I suppose it can be both. The pride I saw this weekend was certainly good. It was loving and inclusive. The pride of those who maintain prejudice and discriminate based on race, gender, sexual orientation, age and so on is not good. This pride is exclusive and destructive.
Let us all work to end prejudice and discrimination for all people, including those of us who are lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender. Let us all free ourselves of our pride that makes us unable to recognize the grace of God in same-gender relationships. When we do so, we can truly be proud of our church and society."
Read what Rep. Honda has to say about the Reuniting Families Act (honda.house.gov/rfa/#summary) and read the bishops letter to the congressman (www.usccb.org/mrs/mrp.shtml).

Friday Five-Life is a Verb

"Jan posted this thoughtful FF Jennifer recommended this book, which I got because I always value Jennifer's reading suggestions. The author of Life is a Verb, Patti Digh worked her book around these topics concerning life as a verb:
Say yes.
Be generous.
Speak up.
Love more.
Trust yourself.
Slow down.
As I read and pondered about living more intentionally, I also have wondered what this Friday Five should be. This book has been the jumping off point for this Friday.

1. What awakens you to the present moment?
When a client/consumer is at the front desk creaking a rukus and I'm the (only) supervisor in the office! I have my days when I can talk to people and be with them so that they can feel satisfied, sometimes not.

2. What are 5 things you see out your window right now?
Fog, the backs of big buildings, backyards, trees, sky, people walking,

3. Which verbs describe your experience of God.
Imagine
Disapprove
Wonder
Ignore
Behave

4. From the book on p. 197:
Who were you when you were 13? Where did that kid go?
I was a freshman in a Catholic HS, Ursuline HS. I was really in the wrong place and it was my choice. I was unhappy and I didn't know it. I'm glad I'm not there.

5. From the book on p. 88:
If your work were the answer to a question, what would the question be?
Do I love my job? Usually.

Bonus idea for you here or on your own--from the book on p. 149:
"Go outside. Walk slowly forward. Open your hand and let something fall into it from the sky. It might be an idea, it might be an object. Name it. Set it aside. Walk forward. Open your hand and let something fall into it from the sky. Name it. Set it aside. Repeat. . . ."

Obama and Gay Civil Rights

Which  side of side of his face is he speaking out of today?

Friday Five-Trader Joe's

Sophia posted this quirky FF: "Gals and pals on the West and East coasts, and a few spots in between, may know of Trader Joe's--a quirky, well-stocked, well priced semi-gourmet store that attains near cult status among some. I discovered it through my Aunt Judy, who always brought a couple of their desserts to holiday parties....The best was a chocolate ganache torte that had my four year olds begging for it (and among the only four year olds on the planet to know what ganache is, presumably).


My family has happily Trader Joe'd in southernmost California, up to the Northwest, and back down to southern Cal. And now we're really excited because today a brand new Trader Joe is opening up across the street from our apartment. Wahoo! There are sure to be lots of tasty free samples on opening day and from now on we can just walk across the street to get a lot of our shopping done. I have a new spiritual directee coming tomorrow and she has already mentioned that she'll be stopping in on the way here, leaving me to be jealous cause I'll be spending that noon hour like, praying and preparing and study-vacuuming and everything, and won't be able to stop in till the afternoon.


So in honor of the new Trader Joe's, this week's Friday Five is all about food shopping."


1. Grocery shopping--love it or hate it?
I might like it if I had a car and could load all of my groceries in the trunk and take them home, but as I have a cart) and have to go to one store for the organic things (Fresh Foods) and another for the regular stuff (Gristedes,) well it's a real drag- in the literal sense. Note: I'm always surprised when I shop outside of the city, how little I pay for the same things, NYC is so expensive!


2. Who is the primary food shopper in your household?
We share the wealth, although I tend to get the necessities and BL tends to wander to the farmers market, go to Intergral Yoga (for things she likes) and Whole Foods (she's the one who insists on organic.)


3. Do you have a beloved store like TJ's which is unique to your location or family?
No. BTW our Trader Joe's is great, but always really crowed and I have seen lines that have gone all the way from the checkout around the store, right to the door! :-( Don't go there much.


4. How about a farmer's market, or CSA share, as we move into summer? Or do you grow your own fruits/veggies/herbs?
We have a wonderful farmers market that is in Union Square. I took my aunt there, the one who is now 91. She used to have her own store and live in an orchard and she saw things she had never heard of!


5. What's the favorite thing you buy at the grocery store?
The last thing on my list!

Maddow on takes on Obama on DADT

Moving Friday Five

Moving and Changing Friday Five

Sally posted this FF:

"The theme of change is dominating my thinking at the moment, this morning my husband Tim has headed off for an interview in Sheffield. The West Sheffield Methodist Circuit are looking for an Evangelism/ Mission Enabler, in may ways this would be Tim's ideal job, but we wait on God... ( if you can spare a prayer today we'd be grateful)

...Sheffield is a commutable distance from my new post as Minister in Sherburn-in Elmet and some of the surrounding villages, before Tim gets home I will have left to join the Leadership team there for an away day on Saturday, I'll be staying the night with the current Minister in Sherburn to talk over some of the practicalities of the post.

ALL IS CHANGE.... and although I am looking forward to it, it is not without a sense of trepidation, as change always brings challenges.

Changing location also means packing, so next month will be a month of clearing and sorting, deciding what comes and what gets left behind...

So with change in mind I offer you this Friday five; ( if you've never moved here's a chance to use your imagination)"


1. A big move is looming, name one thing that you could not possibly part with, it must be packed ?

BL and I are looking for space-the final frontier. After living together for 6+ years together in what was my little home in the sky (500 sq. ft.) we feel the need to supplement that, so with the help of 1) a couples counselors and 2) a financial planner, we are looking for a weekend and sometimes during the week place. It will be commutable and by the beach. It's a process. The one thing I could not part with, my yard sale find, $25. broken down rocker.

2. Name one thing that you would gladly leave behind...

The huge round dining table, oak, classic, taking all bids.

3. How do you prepare for a move

See 1.

a. practically?

See 1.

b. spiritually/ emotionally?

See 1. But actually I seem to have dropped into a depression which I am prone to. Don't know if it is the move or what, but I do have supports and I'm still going to work etc.

4. What is the first thing you look for in a new place?

Sufficient space.

5. Do you settle in easily, or does it take time for you to find your feet in a new location?

If it's right, I'll settle easily. But it's been awhile since I've moved.


The bonus for today; a new opportunity has come up for you to spend 5 years in a new area, where would you go and why?

I'd like to try Italy. I've vacationed there and when I came back I read online about American retirees who lived in this little town we visited. It sounded like heaven. On the Amalfi coast.