The Library

[bellamarie]

Barb, I know the verse well, I had it put on all my children and grandchildren's baptismal cakes.

Matthew 19:14 Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.”
If only we could all see the world through the eyes of the innocence.

The Bible is my North star in knowing God/Jesus is "the word."  Jesus was trying to teach us to look at the innocence of the children and protect them as in the book of James 1:27 "Pure, unstained religion, according to God our Father, is to take care of orphans and widows when they suffer and to remain uncorrupted by this world." Here James is telling us to protect the most vulnerable, knowing we would understand to protect all humankind.  Love is the true message... In the 1st Commandment, we are told to love God, and, in the 2nd, it tells us to love your neighbor as yourself.  Sadly, there are evil people who have preyed upon the very innocent and vulnerable.  I'll never forget the book titled Before We Were Yours by Lisa Wingate, how the rich used the orphans for their greed and gain.  I don't stand in judgement of anyone because I know it is not place to, but I do believe people like this will answer for their actions. 

Can you believe I watched It's a Wonderful Life for the very first time this Christmas season? I suppose it was no coincidence Clearance's last name of Odbody.  lolol  Oh, and I also watched The Bishop's Wife for the first time.   Not sure why it took me so long to watch these great movies.

Ciao~  Bellamarie   

[BarbStAubrey]

Bellamarie - your quote Before We Were Yours by Lisa Wingate, how the rich used the orphans for their greed and gain.  I don't stand in judgement of anyone because I know it is not place to, but I do believe people like this will answer for their actions.


What Arendt, a philosopher is saying - the evil is using orphans to satisfy their want, (more money) greed and gain and so those with no power are expendable however, this evil is made so ordinary the perpetrators do not see it as evil - that is what she is saying - the treatment of Jews during the Holocaust was not acknowledged for its horror because treating Jews badly was so ordinary, commonplace it was trite to think otherwise - like most evil that is repeated increasing in its perversion so that people committing the evil no longer can understand much less accept they have anything to answer for and will only act contrite if it protects them from further punishment.

When Arendt wrote The Banality of Evil Israel was up in arms - Her main argument was that amid the atmosphere in Nazi Germany, Eichmann could not have distinguished between good and evil. She was saying to all those who suffered there was no recognition by Eichmann or any of those in Germany who followed the traditional thinking that Jews were not expendable - those who were killed or freed from the camps were a people that was like the pan of dirty dishwater after a dinner wash-up that was thrown out the backdoor - it was the way of housekeeping before dishwashers, it was ordinary, commonplace. And so our sense of justice and the concept there will be some sort of comeuppance for what we see as evil does not register, get through to evil. 

We see it today - using drugs has become so commonplace among both those living in poor communities as well as recreational drugs among those who live well and so the idea of legal punishment has gradually decreased along with the acceptance of the behavior that comes with your facilities being altered by drugs so we have both the educated in positions of power as well as, the poor who out of desolation found an economy and the personal use for drugs both excusing behavior that to many of us is ignoring the law and the safety of the public - Acting under the influence of drugs has more recently become the successful defense used by attorneys in a court of law. Now I wonder if the exploitation taking place using the World Wide Web are drug induced or am I just trying to find something that can be blamed for people who act out evil.

Today acting, accepting others advancing with a child like heart is really a great act of courage, faith and yes, a willingness to feel vulnerable - the old song 'I Never Promised You a Rose Garden' reminds me, even the roses have thorns

Here is a really good article reviewing the affect of Hannah Arendt's Banality of Evil and how the floor dropped out from under the Jewish Community...

https://law.adelaide.edu.au/ua/media/584/ch10-alr-35-2-burdon.pdf

[bellamarie]

Barb, Thank for you this wonderful article.  In reading this I can honestly say I have some of the same views as Arendt.  The banality of evil if I understand her correctly gives the legal argument for possibly no conviction of the evil acts because they do not see their acts as evil, rather they see them justified, be it in following orders of the government, or their own personal views. 

Talk about a Pandora's box!  This has been the case in many legal situations of late.  The Snowden example was very enlightening, because while he thought he was doing a service to prevent harm to the public at large, because of public emotion and hatred for him and his actions, he ends up exiled.  Well, now forgive me for saying this, but it is almost Biblical, I mean how many were imprisoned or punished for speaking out?


I especially like this:

If we are reading Arendt for individual personal instruction, one lesson could be ‘to take action’,59 purposeful free human action. The importance of a personal lesson stands, regardless of one’s ‘good luck’ in being born in an ideal public and politically responsible Denmark or ‘bad luck’60 in being born in Italy. Regardless of your political circumstances, the personal response should be to act in whatever way you can.
 
Had Arendt not travelled, seen, observed, there is a real question as to whether she could have evoked the central thesis of her
work: the banality of evil. In her office, evil may well have remained powerful and ever present. She took action; Arendt was within the world observing it.

I do agree with her view on judgement:

Pg. 445 Arendt recognizes the necessity of strength of individual conviction, the strength of character that allows an individual to judge. She embraces and does not condemn the judge. She wrote in her notes: ‘For conscience to work, either very strong religious belief — extremely rare. Or pride, even arrogance. If you say to yourself in such matters, who am I to judge? You are already lost.’118

Arendt’s call for judgement is that of the individual. She does not shy from a situation where individuals make their own moral decisions as to whether they will comply with state regulation, exercising their own judgement on the overall direction of the state’s trajectory. The individual who fails to do so may receive the blessing of a particular legal regime, but the individual has fallen victim to the temptingly safe banality of evil.

IV Concluding Thoughts
In Eichmann in Jerusalem, Arendt poses a fundamental challenge to us as academics and intellectuals. Arendt invites us to be contrarian, to question social norms and assumptions, to confront taboo. Arendt’s actions and words urge us, by example, to use our position as academics to engage with the world and be unafraid to judge what we observe. However, not all criticism or questioning is brave. Arendt was unusually fearless in that she knew full well that she risked alienation from within her own community. This is an important test for the academic; if critique is only a means of enhancing professional reputation or cementing relationships within one’s discipline, then (while it may be valuable) it is not akin to the bravery of Arendt. Academic courage entails a willingness to take those risks that expose the academic to personal detriment, be it harsh criticism, social censure, ridicule or indeed hostility. It is a rare virtue. Arendt prompts us to examine our own scholarly lives, to reflect and consider whether our work lives up to our personal moral determinations. Beyond ourselves, she offers us a way to judge the actions of others placed in morally difficult circumstances, especially those who feel that they can no longer comply with existing law. In Eichmann in Jerusalem, Arendt challenged existing academic conventions on both form and substance, and so expanded the very possibilities of strong dialogue, dispute and even disobedience to law. 

When I said, I do believe people like this will answer for their actions.

I was referring to the final judgement, and with all due respect it won't matter the theory or philosophy of someone like Arendt testifying if Eichmann or others who engaged in horrendous evil acts were considered not inherently evil.  The banality of evil in the eyes of the law may excuse their behaviors on earth, but they will be seen and judged by our creator one day, based on scripture, which I am aware not all agree with.

Ciao~ Bellamarie

[BarbStAubrey]

Well Bellamarie kudos - you may have been referring to the final judgement but here I thought the quote I had heard so often was saying here on earth they would receive their comeuppance - problem, as an adult I saw time and again people living into their old age with no 'comeuppance' and then I started to adopt the expression 'the rats win' - bit after reading Eichmann in Jerusalem: A Report on the Banality of Evil some years ago it was more than a light bulb turned on - all that I had observed made sense - and then the questions started - the realization that evil is so insidious that when it takes over the person has no clue - of course that started a review of all I thought I knew and how did confession fit and if they are not aware how does the soul know or does the Holy Spirit simply leave - on and on of which there are still many more questions and I'm not successful finding many answers and so I've been piecing together and doping out and referring to mostly St. John of the Cross, and more recently Pope Benedict 

Well onward to books - certainly gives a new slant to reading anything that is based on good guys and bad guys - especially westerns and I've had a different perspective looking at US and World politics. In most ways after reading Arendt she has confirmed my daughter and my observations - this is the topics of conversation we get into now and then... as to the many we see in the current legal environment not seemingly to be held accountable both of us have decided that crimes require putting people in an environment where they cannot hurt others which brings up a conversation about the conditions where criminals are separated versus punishment and how does someone get into the condition where they think their behavior is not evil. Well lots of questions...

I may just start my new hardback that I treated myself to a new copy - The Bullet Swallower: A Novel - what sold me was the description that says Cormac McCarthy meets Gabriel García Márquez - both among my favorite authors and so different from each other - raw reality meets magic realism that is anything but bits and pieces of reality with a whole lot of fantasy/magic

Actually I'm caught between starting The Bullet... which will be a serious read versus I had downloaded Blank: A Novel by of all names a Zippy Owens - whom ever is this Zippy there was a later novel that has a similar book cover called Bookends - about a mother who has little to no time to read however Blank sounds like fun - A wife, mother, and frustrated writer faces an impossible deadline for turning her life around in a hilarious debut novel

I may just start both... we'll see as I start to read if I can tear myself away to start the other book or not...

[bellamarie]

Barb, "if they are not aware how does the soul know or does the Holy Spirit simply leave"

Without imposing my beliefs on anyone, I can best reply to this as the Christian I am who from scripture knows God promises he will never leave us, and because I personally believe in the blessed trinity which includes God the Father, God the Son (Jesus) and God the Holy Spirit, three in one, I conclude that the Holy Spirit never leaves us regardless of our sinful acts.  Now, in saying this I must also add that the person must be a believer. 

As for confession... here again, we as believers know that God sent his begotten Son (Jesus) as incarnate in human form to teach us and to follow him.  God also sacrificed his only Son for the forgiveness of man, which brings us to contrition, a person who believes Jesus is our savior must have a contrite heart in order to receive forgiveness. 

So, if Arendt's philosophy and conclusion in the book Eichmann in Jerusalem: A Report on the Banality of Evil is thought through, then if a person is not capable of seeing their sinful acts, it would suggest they are not able to ask for forgiveness for such acts, leaving them in a state of sin to be judged by God.  I don't believe I have ever seen a caveat in scripture that leaves us to believe the unbeliever/unrepentant sinner is an exception due to their psyche, that is where manmade law and God's law differs. 

Yes, many times I too have felt as you put it, 'the rats win'.  But... then I have come to realize as upsetting as it can seem that evil prevails yet again with no 'comeuppance' I am at peace knowing that I personally will not let this alter my belief system or moral compass.

I too am ready to go on to a lighter book, but I always love how you challenge us to be critical thinkers.  My poor hubby, he gets so lost when I share these discussions with him.  Since we both are retired, we have our morning conversations as we eat breakfast and he always leaves saying, "I just love these table talks."  lol   

Ciao~ Bellamarie 

[BarbStAubrey]

Yes, I think you have hit on something because if we let evil go because the person committing evil in not aware then we are complicit - and that goes along with an earlier Pope saying something to the effect 'an error not resisted is approved and a truth not defended is suppressed...' don't remember the rest of the quote but the end was something about the disgrace of being a Christian coward.

Thanks your steadfast understanding and willingness to share your strong values is a gift...

Best laid plans and instead of either book I was going to start last night a freebee came along that caught my attention and is turning into a fun read - a cozy mystery... Thistlewood Manor: Murder at the Hedgerow 

[bellamarie]

Oh, a murder mystery, they are so fun to read. 

Has anyone read The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides?  I could not put this book down.  I'm really good at figuring the who done it before the end, but this one I was stumped and surprised to find out who it was.  I am currently reading Half Way to You by Jennifer Gold, a freebie from Amazon Prime.  I love holding a physical book but their free books for the month as a member. have proven to be pretty good reads.  In Apple ibooks it sells for $25.99.     

[BarbStAubrey]

ah a freebee - always nice isn't it - usually feels like a treat while reading...

As to this Thistlewook Manor: interesting - The typical country house before WWI during the time of the suffragettes and our heroine is called back home. after having spent 3 years living in their London townhouse, with strong instructions to marry someone the mother has chosen - For a mystery this is a very different kind of storytelling -  a third of the way in and no crime has been committed - it is all about laying out the foibles of each character almost as if the crime has already been committed and a review of suspects is in process however, in this storyline all the reviews are taking place before the crime - No hint as to who, why or how the crime will be committed and if it were not for the title I would never know I was reading a mystery but simply a tug of war between a daughter who appreciates the current generational social views versus the staid parents determine to live a proper nineteenth century lifestyle.  Now the cliff hanger is when will the murder occur... 

[Tomereader1]

Yes, BellaMarie, I've read The Silent Patient...actually twice.  Read it when it first came out.  Then last year, found a copy at the library book sale for .50 and bought it.  I actually didn't remember anything about it, till I got almost to the end, then it dawned on me, light-bulb moment, "ah, I've read this and I know who dunnit".  That's what happens when you read so much, you forget most of what you've read.  I do keep a list, on my computer, but rarely refer to it
I read stuff for Book Club, for myself, and stuff on Kindle.  I love those Kindle Freebies.  I have hundreds of them.  Basically most are pretty good, especially if you find one by an author you have read.  I've found some good ones by authors I've never heard of, and at one point, recently, I went so far as to order a box-set, and then another; I think $2.99 or so and I really loved them.  I'll go back and look up the author and titles on my Kindle since all the ones I've read are stored in the Cloud.  I am a big mystery fan anyway; detective stories, police procedurals, courtroom, etc.  Not much on "cozy" mysteries that a lot of folks love.  When I got my first Kindle, I downloaded a mystery, it was rather cozy, and did intend to read more of her, but in the interim I got a Kindle Fire HDX, and forgot all about it.  Now I can't remember author's name.  Amazon is set up where you can pull the titles off the old Kindle, and send it to your new one.  It is very time consuming, but worthwhile.  I spent about 6 or more hours doing that last year, but haven't gotten back to it since then.  I have several catagories in that old Kindle: Religious, Classics, Novels, some Cookbooks and a lot of Mysteries. 
My love of mysteries transmits to TV, and for that purpose I subscribe to "BritBox" for their British mysteries, which are much better than anything on U.S. tv (basically--but there are exceptions, i.e. Masterpiece Mysteries on PBS, which is where I got "hooked" on the Brit stuff. 

Well, that's enough of my blathering for now!  Have a good evening, and enjoy the Superbowl on Sunday, if you're so inclined!  I am!

[BarbStAubrey]

Wow The Silent Patient is some serious kind of mystery - nothing cozy sounding about her surroundings or the few characters introduced in the Amazon short bit - tempting those shoppng to buy and read the book... Interested to hear your Tomereader  take on various aspects of the mystery novel and thoughts from Bellamarie on the story - sounds like far more than a simple mystery of who killed the husband in such a brutal way - my gut says it was not the wife... but of course neither of you would want to tip the ending as it should be...

[Tomereader1]

BellaMarie, the boxed set mysteries I bought are by James M. Jackson, the main character is Seamus McCree, kind of a whimsical guy, who falls into a lot of stuff (he lives kind of off the grid, and tries to do good stuff, but never sees the bad stuff coming!  The first title (can't find it right now) was the one I got free or $.99.  There are two boxed sets, making 7 books altogether.  I binged them, as they were pretty calm, interesting, not a lot, if any, trash-mouth or sex. That's why I enjoyed them and read one after another.  Not great literature by any means, but for mystery, pretty good.   I will look up that first title, and let you know.You can see if it's still Free.

I think, Barb, I've had enough of "The Silent Patient" and won't indulge in any discussion.

[BarbStAubrey]

Tomereader 

[bellamarie]

Tome, two times around for Silent Patient, wow I am impressed.  That book stayed with me for a while. 

Barb, I think you would like it, I mean come on who doesn't like a good suspenseful mystery.  I got so much into the phycological aspect of the patient and other plot twists that I missed some obvious clues along the way.  But then again isn't that what the writer intended the reader to do?

Tome, I love a series set of books, can't wait to hear the titles. I stumbled across an author Kay Correll online who writes series of books that take place in Nantucket.  They are short, love stories, which I like reading for light reads.  She used an elder couple meeting a special someone later in life and an elder lady who is the owner of a cottage resort who is dealing with handling the day-to-day business and has to accept help from her niece to manage some aspects of the business.  I enjoy these books because the basic characters are in the series.   

I began keeping a log of all the books I have read and for some reason I stopped.  Good idea to keep it on the laptop.  Mine was in a notebook so now I'm going to have to go searching for it.  I started out ereading on a Nook, and then bought a nice size iPad and use that for my digital books. The only drawback in when I want to sit outside to read it's so difficult to see the screen.

Okay another good thriller my 27 yr. old granddaughter Kenzie, let me borrow was Local Woman Missing by Mary Kubica.  Have any of you read this one?  Ohhhhh... it drove me crazy!!!  Some parts had me wanting to not continue reading, but I didn't want to disappoint my granddaughter, so I finished it.  All I will say is trusting people who are always there for you can be a huge mistake.

Not sure if I am going to watch the Super Bowl.  I am a Cleveland Browns fan, and my second team is Detroit Lions.  We'll see.

Ciao~ Bellamarie

   

[BarbStAubrey]

So much hoopla with the NFL and now even politics has been added and so I just skipped the entire Football season - I've found a few British mystery series on tubi that have kept me occupied - the one especially has 9 seasons - 4 retired police in a special unit solving cold cases - they are in their late 60s and 70s. Well known British actors but not super stars although the one did perform in the original Les Mes

Almost finished my Thistlewood... mystery novel and really enjoying it - more than I expected... usually these light chit chat type books, even the light cozy mysteries, authors barely pass muster as skilled writers but this one is nicely written with smart sounding sentences. The whole thing clicks along like the sound of high heel shoes on a marble floor...

Author is Eliza Montagu - Oh for heavens sake - thought I'd look for a bio and couldn't find any however, this one name kept popping up - turns out Eliza Montagu is a pseudonym - this author, Fiona Grace, has written many series mostly mysteries - she has a nice website and a page on facebook.
https://fionagraceauthor.com/
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100063649866089&sk=about

[Tomereader1]

Barb, the British series you mentioned is "New Tricks".  It is awesome.  So funny.  Good mysteries, characters you can't help but love.  I think it's on BritBox, but may be streaming elsewhere too.

[Tomereader1]

BellaMarie, here is the first Seamus McCree title, which I got for -0- on Kindle.  I copied this from the Amazon website, with a description of this first book; the listing of his other titles is at the bottom

Ant Farm (Seamus McCree Book 1) Kindle Edition
by James M. Jackson (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition
4.4
4.4 out of 5 stars
    414 ratings   4.3 on Goodreads   296 ratings
Book 1 of 7: Seamus McCree
   
 
Meet Seamus McCree, a single dad, amateur sleuth, champion of the little guy against those who abuse their power. In this page-turner, police can’t figure out why someone murdered thirty-eight retirees at a Labor Day picnic. They enlist Seamus, a financial crimes consultant, to follow the money, taking him from behind his computer to the front lines to help investigators ask the right questions.
As Seamus untangles a web of financial chicanery, those threatened hire a hit man who calls himself the Happy Reaper to take out Seamus. He'll risk his own life to bring justice, but Seamus must overcome his deepest fears when his actions endanger his son.
A protagonist written in the tradition of Robert B. Parker, John Sandford, and William Kent Krueger: Seamus is a good guy willing to pay a price to bring justice to the world.
Download your copy and join Seamus in his fight to save lives, including his own.
The Seamus McCree Series Reading Order: Ant Farm, Bad Policy, Cabin Fever, Doubtful Relations, Empty Promises, False Bottom, Furthermore (a novella), Low Tide at Tybee (a novella)

[Tomereader1]

Tome, two times around for Silent Patient, wow I am impressed.  That book stayed with me for a while. 

Barb, I think you would like it, I mean come on who doesn't like a good suspenseful mystery.  I got so much into the phycological aspect of the patient and other plot twists that I missed some obvious clues along the way.  But then again isn't that what the writer intended the reader to do?

Tome, I love a series set of books, can't wait to hear the titles. I stumbled across an author Kay Correll online who writes series of books that take place in Nantucket.  They are short, love stories, which I like reading for light reads.  She used an elder couple meeting a special someone later in life and an elder lady who is the owner of a cottage resort who is dealing with handling the day-to-day business and has to accept help from her niece to manage some aspects of the business.  I enjoy these books because the basic characters are in the series.   

I began keeping a log of all the books I have read and for some reason I stopped.  Good idea to keep it on the laptop.  Mine was in a notebook so now I'm going to have to go searching for it.  I started out ereading on a Nook, and then bought a nice size iPad and use that for my digital books. The only drawback in when I want to sit outside to read it's so difficult to see the screen.

Okay another good thriller my 27 yr. old granddaughter Kenzie, let me borrow was Local Woman Missing by Mary Kubica.  Have any of you read this one?  Ohhhhh... it drove me crazy!!!  Some parts had me wanting to not continue reading, but I didn't want to disappoint my granddaughter, so I finished it.  All I will say is trusting people who are always there for you can be a huge mistake.

Not sure if I am going to watch the Super Bowl.  I am a Cleveland Browns fan, and my second team is Detroit Lions.  We'll see.

Ciao~ Bellamarie

   

P.S.  I was rooting for the Detroit Lions in that playoff game (don't even ask me why, no ties to Detroit, but just liked the way they were coached and the way they played).

[BarbStAubrey]

Tomereader - found it... it is a freebee tra la...
https://www.amazon.com/Ant-Farm-Seamus-McCree-Book-ebook/dp/B0749QYX14/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2AAM7EQFCAULD&keywords=Ant+Farm+%28Seamus+McCree+Book+1%29+James+M.+Jackson&qid=1707524579&sprefix=ant+farm+seamus+mccree+book+1+james+m.+jackson%2Caps%2C477&sr=8-1

[BarbStAubrey]

Hmm bellamarie - found the author however, it appears she has two series that take place on a beach -

Magnolia Key  https://www.amazon.com/Saltwater-Sunrises-Magnolia-Key-Book-ebook/dp/B0CSZM4D6D/ref=sr_1_4?crid=3TEQ9PNS44AKF&keywords=kay+correll+books&qid=1707524774&sprefix=Kay+Correll%2Caps%2C357&sr=8-4

Blue Heron Cottages   https://www.amazon.com/Memories-Beach-Blue-Heron-Cottages-ebook/dp/B09VW3MMPH/ref=sr_1_6?crid=3TEQ9PNS44AKF&keywords=kay+correll+books&qid=1707524968&sprefix=Kay+Correll%2Caps%2C357&sr=8-6

[bellamarie]

Barb, yes Kay Correll has a few series.  I am reading the Charming Inn Return to Lighthouse Point series.  There are 6 in the series: 
One Simple Wish
Two of a Kind
Three Little Things
Four Short Weeks
Five Years or So
Six Hours Away

Tome, thank you for the series and look, Barb has provided the link!  I'm going to check it out.

Yes, the Super Bowl has taken quiet a twist this year using Taylor Swift and the Kansas City Chiefs player Travis Kelce's relationship to spur on younger people to watch.     

Ciao~ Bellamarie

[Tomereader1]

What happened?  Posting was moving along great, and all of a sudden, no one is coming in to post.  The weather?

[BarbStAubrey]

For Valentine's Day a couple of Shakespeare quotes without the satire or sarcasm that his quotes so often include. 

“Doubt that the stars are fire, Doubt that the sun doth move his aides, Doubt truth to be a liar, But never doubt I love” (Hamlet)
Hamlet wrote these words in a letter to Ophelia to try to reassure her that he still loved her, although he recently “put on an antic disposition” by acting crazy. The question as to whether the sun moved around the earth or vice-versa was not a clearly resolved issue in Shakespeare's time.

Towards the end of the play Beatrice tells Benedict “I love you with so much of my heart that none is left to protest” (Much Ado About Nothing)

Looked it up and found there are many legends behind Saint Valentine. One is that in the 3rd century AD it is said that Valentine, who was a priest, defied the order of the emperor Claudius and secretly performed Christian weddings for couples, allowing the husbands involved to escape conscription into the pagan army. By some accounts, St. Valentine was a Roman priest and physician who was martyred during the persecution of Christians by the emperor Claudius II Gothicus about 270.

My best memories of Valentine's day was as a child we used whatever paper was available, often cut opened envelopes that we removed the stamps and using what used to be called school scissors - blunt and small for a child's hand - we folded the paper and made cuts so that when it was opened it had decorative holes that made the paper look somewhat like lace and then if we had red paper we glued it on, sometimes it was a paper napkin or even brown paper wrapping and mom usually had a bit of red ribbon or red wool from a recent knitting project - glue was home made flour and water - often we found pictures in an old magazine that we cut out and used to decorate our cards - for classmates we purchased a pack of usually 50 tiny cards that were single cards about 3 inches by 4 that came with envelopes that we, my sister and I wrote the names of each classmate so we could drop the card on their desk.

With my own children I remember carrying on the creative task of making cards only for sure there was red and white construction paper, paper doilies, all sorts of scrapes and ribbons from my sewing, real Elmer's glue and even extras like glitter - by this time the classroom Valentine card exchange was organized so that they were dropped into a large decorated box and cards, all store bought, were distributed during a party of cupcakes that mothers sent - seldom anything to drink - no one wanted to risk an accident of spilled liquid. I don't think grade school age children make cards for the various holidays any longer. In fact I doubt cards are still exchanged in that everything is now online - no imaginative creativity involved...  sad...

[bellamarie]

Tome, I got a bit sidetracked with my ancestry research friend and when we go down that rabbit hole, we spend endless hours online and on the phone with each other. 

I did go through my bookcase and found my list of books I have read.  I also had a page titled Reading Goals: This year books I want to read. Sadly, I found some book titles on the list our dear Jonathan and others no longer with us had recommended and I put them on my TBR page.  Just a few from our dear friends from Senior Learn:


hats                           The Painted Kiss by Elizabeth Hickey
                                           Gilea
Jonathan,           Rules of Civility by Amor Towles
                                    Come Be My Light by Mother Teresa
                                   1001 Gardens You Must See Before You Die
PatH.,                Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Houston
                                    No Time to Spare by Ursula K. LeGuin
nlhome,             To Die But Once by Jacqueline Winspear
RosemaryKaye,  The Crops Look Good by Sara DeLuca
Frybabe,            The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood
Barb,                 Behemoth
Ginny,                Charlatans by Robin Cook
Me,                    The Clock Maker's Daughter by Kate Morton

There are more but just seeing these names and titles brings back so many memories of our fellow members who are no longer with us.  We sure did have some great discussions along the years. Of all the titles I can say I did indeed read The Clock Maker's Daughter and really enjoyed it.

Barb, describing the making of your valentines and decorated boxes reminded me of how excited I would get to get those small size valentines from my classmates.  I never decorated a shoebox, but I did help my daughter make some pretty gorgeous boxes.  Flour and water to make paste, oh how I forgot all about doing that back in the days. 

My hubby and I still give each other cards and he gives me flowers.  We went to Mass for ashes and then went to the casino for some slot play and dinner.  Met up with my son, his wife and my granddaughter and also bumped into a couple of dear friends we had lost touch with. I hope you all had a wonderful Valentine's Day! 

Ciao~ Bellamarie

p.s.  I'm up way past my bedtime due to so much excitement today and getting home late, now trying to wind down. Sorry for the unbalanced book list, not sure how to space that to align.  Grrr...   
 

[Frybabe]

Is that a jab to get me posting again, Bellamarie? I am still here, but I have not been reading lately because I am still trying to move the rest of my stuff from the house by myself, mostly, and doing all the other things like address changes, that come with it. This week I spent a total of 10 hours over three days at the Xfinity Store trying to get my new Xfinity Mobile to work. It would port over my net info, but not the old phone number. Finally, I said just give me a new number and the heck with the discounts and offers that came with porting your old phone number. Well, that didn't work either. Yesterday, the in store sales rep/tech finally got a hold of someone who knew enough that they needed to kick it up to a higher level tech, that one kicked it up to a third. Finally, they cleared the hang-up, and after the unsuccessful first attempt at giving me a new number, they tried a second with the newest area code (just opened up very recently). It works now, just fine.

The cats seemed to take the move in stride, but this last two or three days, they have started to knock things off onto the floor, chewing on wires, and are trying mightily to get me up at 3am. They have gone from a two story house with a back enclosed porch to a two bedroom apartment with about 900 square feet. Also, I think the all the outside lighting that seeps in through the blinds has them confused about the time

[bellamarie]

Frybabe, "Is that a jab to get me posting again, Bellamarie?"

Oh, heavens no!  I was more referring to those who have passed on rather than those who have not posted lately.  Please accept my apologies if it sounded differently to anyone.  Days seem to just fly by and before I realize I too have not posted.  I thought when I retired, I would have this leisurely life and wonder what on earth I'd do to keep busy.  On the contrary, it seems I look forward to days to wonder what to do.

Aren't cats just the best pets with the most curiosity especially when their lives are disrupted in any way?  Do you suppose that is where the saying "Curiosity killed the cat, satisfaction brought it back."  originated from?  Oh, and don't get me started on technology and phones.  I am so sorry you've had to go through getting a new number.  When I decided to do away with my landline and use only my iPhone that meant circulating my cell number after having a landline number for over 40 years.  It seems I do way more texting and messaging than actual talking on my phone now.  What a world we live in.  I wish you the best in your new apartment.

Ciao~ Bellamarie

 

[BarbStAubrey]

Catching up to do... Bellamarie fun to see the book titles that you saved. I'm thinking hats Gilea is Gillead and I know I have the book someplace on these shelves that was all the rage a few years back.

Sounds like your've moved out of a lot of unused space frybabe - and yes, lights, lights, lights - so many now use all sorts of lights at night - they've been sold on safety - had a police officer tell me some years ago back in Austin that lights only light the way for those wanting to do harm - that even with a camera it is no longer a priority for the police and so the better thing is to make it dark with a few things placed so they trip over them and you hear them and also to plant thorny type bushes below your windows but if you live near retail or commercial or probably large apartment buildings there is other safety issues for the extra lighting.

Sounds like a big adjustment for your cats and you also... Been years since I've had a cat in the house, my son growing up had a couple of cats plus we always had a dog but once my children flew the roost I did not get an animal - I am the worlds worst training them and all the years I was working it was a job without set hours - I could be writing up a contract at midnight in some all night cafe or meeting a surveyor at some ranch at 5:30 in the morning and a few times back to back so I would then crash for a couple of days - animals would not put up with that kind of irregular schedule.

Frybabe are you still in the same area of town or has that also changed - in other words will shopping be at a familiar location? Frybabe there are so few of us why not pop in every so often regardless if you have a book to share - just 'hearing' your voice is lovely...

Joanne how is the pollen where you are... being a bit south of you I may be experiencing it before you have but oh oh oh - I finally just picked up several filters for the heat/AC and have to change them after 2 days - the air is thick and do not know what to call it - not a scent but not a smell either - hardly can take a breathe - at night I've had to drape an old Tshirt over my face in order to breath - now the trick will be to avoid a sinus infection from all of this... always something. 

Instead of going for another light mystery I bumped into a couple of books that were only translated from Polish to English and published in the last couple of years by Karol Wojtyia (Pope John Paul II) - Forgot he was  successful writer before he entered the priesthood - The one is a play he wrote The Jeweler's Shop and the other two books are a pair - each chapter is written by a different artist that summarizes their part in a Seminar Pope John Paul II did while he was Pope for artists to delve into 'God is Beauty' - He is captured by a phrase from a famous 16th century Polish play that he returns to as do the others who contribute “A stream of Beauty flows through you, but you yourself are not Beauty.” - Wojtyla, Karol. God Is Beauty: A Retreat on the Gospel and Art

The shared contention is that through-out our lives we are always looking to make our lives and the lives of others better and more beautiful and that yearning is our seeking God through beauty. Of course all sorts of examples are used and all sorts of issues like, what is good and the purpose of Lent - why we need the beatitudes as well as the 10 commandments - on and on - some of it I plowed through - shocked at how in my lifetime the way we cut through and get to the point expressing ourselves is much faster then when these words were originally penned back in the 60s - however, the biggie for me was learning about this play that the sentence "A stream of Beauty flows..." is included and this play is basic to Polish thinking - Evidently it is studied by all High School students in Poland - found a copy but will wait till I finish these books before I get a copy that was made available as a Classic Reprint in 2018 - The Undivine Comedy by Sigismund Krasinski

Then (I like having a side read that is fun that I can laugh especially when I'm reading more serious subjects) I found the most fun reading
Candies from Heaven by Gil Hovav - Written about growing up in Israel back in the 50s and what we would call Poor but Proud - always seeing how you have something to give because there are others poorer than you that are overlooked by those who do not live in the poor areas and what you give must be shined and in top condition and if giving small coins always look the poor in the eye and say 'thank you' to them, on and on. The fun is the various simple daily ways, example, all the expressions of what a child thinks when told to do things like scrub their hands - but the over-riding comfort and feeling loved these expectations, stories and bits of wisdom from a grandparent gave to the child - Each chapter mentions a meal being cooked or eaten and the end of each chapter the recipe for the food mentioned is given - all very Jewish and a joy - better than Fiddler on the Roof... 

[Frybabe]

Bellamarie, yes and no to the new location. I lived near Mechanicsburg for years, before I got married. A lot has changed, but a lot has stayed the same here. I am about 25 minutes from the house which is in Enola. I lived in Enola since 1993. As much as I wanted to stay in Enola, I couldn't find an apartment in my price range that wasn't in a house as old or older than mine which is around 120 years old now. Where I am now is on the other side of Mechanicsburg from where I grew up. The Weis Market, Giant Food Store, tons of small cafes and restaurants, the Simpson Library, a CVS, a Sheetz (and about three other gas stations), and the main post office are all within a one or two miles from me. The cats Vet is about the same distance from me now as it was at the house. I am close to Rt. 15 but not as close as before, just as easy to reach though.

I am looking for a new microwave, one a little smaller than the one at the house. The bathtub is smaller than the one at the house and the toilet is lower. Makes me feel like they were made for a child. I feel like getting a booster seat for the toilet. The laundry appliances are tiny. I got a total of two pair of jeans and one or two sweatshirts (depending on heaviness) into the washer before it was full. What a come down from the huge ones I have at the house. Those I could get a full size bed blanket/cover into. The dryer barely dries, so I end up finishing that off by hanging them in the bathroom. Well, that is something to look into once I am fully in and regain some of my equilibrium.

My sister made off with a mini book haul today. She took Uncle Tom's Cabin, and The Hunchback of Notre Dame home with her from my cull stack. And she held up People of the Book, so I let her have that too. I had mentioned it to her several times over the years, so now she is going to read it.

It is to snow again overnight, so maybe I get a little reprieve to relax and maybe stock my several bookshelves again, look online at the new microwave ovens with air fryer and/or grill/broiler functions and start gathering the stuff I need to do my taxes. Oh, and look for that darn printer cable that disappeared.

Stay toasty and safe.
 

[BarbStAubrey]

Too bad we live so far apart frybabe - I have out in the garage the really good microwave I brought from Austin not remembering there is a built in microwave here - sounds like you may also be in for a new washer and dryer - part of doing that though means you'll have to find a place to store the one that came with the apartment grrr - enjoy your snow day... we get some cold tomorrow but nothing that cold - looked Mechanicsburg up on the google map - appears like a nice small town - love the statues of the boy and girl in front of the Library - hope you can make your new apartment a happy place for yourself...

[BarbStAubrey]

Tomereader - have you watched the later ellipsoids of New Tricks after Jack left - I'm thinking of not only the one that is two parts in Gibraltar but the next one where Brian gives the mother of Anthony who was killed while in custody the tape where the guy responsible says as much... this 10th season is so different than the earlier seasons - I bet it is a new writer - instead of police type work its more like MI 6 but still not as shoot em up, less thinking and the speeding cars of an American police type series. 

[Tomereader1]

No, I have not watched any episodes when "Jack" left.  I think I'm about 2 seasons behind.  I have so much catching up to do on All of my streaming channels; Netflix, Prime & BritBox.  In fact, I just made a list of some of the "older" Netflix series that I have either started and didn't move onto the new seasons; as well as some "new" ones that I'd like to watch...this includes on BritBox and Prime.  As of last night, I am just about finished with "The Crown" and it is primarily about the boys, and Harry, even in Uni was a real (I won't use the words that come immediately to mind) but a self-centered, "all about me" jerk, as if he was the only one of the two who lost his Mom.  Perhaps he WAS the one that got blamed for everything and Will was the good, smart, perfect son.  They both did a lot of drinking.  Anyway, I'm about one episode from the ending.  Up until now I have loved the Series, but when they get into the antics of teen/young adult men, it kind of deteriorated.  Still love the main characters casting. Oh well, I watch too much TV as it is, but that and reading voraciously are my two entertainment addictions.  Can't afford live theatre, live concerts and do not wish to go out into the evenings with so much malfeasance going on.

[BarbStAubrey]

Ouch hate that I gave out a spoiler - you've got a lot of great episodes ahead - Did not watch The Crown - those tell all make me feel rouchie in my chair - don't know why except maybe a childhood thing where you don't hang out your intimates on the line for all to see - ha thinking about it you didn't - they were always hung between the folded sheets or inside the pillow cases.

Been watching a couple of episodes of New Tricks on those evenings when there is nothing on PBS and then one episode of this long documentary on the history of Barcelona - did not realize it only became part of Spain in the 18th century and the people still use their native language Catalan when possible and there is a movement to break away from Spain.

[Tomereader1]

Didn't consider it a spoiler, so don't let it bother you.  I have watched "The Crown" since its inception, and consider it one of the most beautifully filmed, thoroughly documented, superbly cast TV series I've ever seen.  Now think twice, are not most, if not all, historical fiction movies or books "tell alls".  I can handle that via movie or TV much better than I do in a book (now don't ask me why that is!) If the series wasn't up to my standards, I certainly would not have waited a year or more for each season to run.  Basically, I did not like the episodes with Diana and what's his name (not Charles).

[bellamarie]

Yes, Barb, I think you are correct the title of hats book was probably, Gilead

Novel by Marilynne Robinson
Gilead is a novel written by Marilynne Robinson published in 2004. It won the 2005 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and the National Book Critics Circle Award. It is Robinson's second novel, following Housekeeping. Gilead is an epistolary novel, as the entire narrative is a single, continuing, albeit episodic, document, written on several occasions in a form combining a journal and a memoir. Wikipedia

Author   Marilynne Robinson
Series   First of a tetralogy
Publisher   Farrar, Straus and Giroux

It sounds interesting, I loved the epistolary style in The Guernsey Potao Peel Pie Society. 

So according to this police officer lighted yards are not a safety measure?  I did daycare for two police officer's children, and they said the best protection against burglars or break ins are barking dogs and lighted yards.  They also said keep bushes low and trimmed so they are not good hiding places.  I feel safe with lights outside, not to mention with the letter carriers working into the dark now it gives them a lighted path to the porch. 

Pope John Paul II was one of my favorite popes.  I have a book he wrote, and I'll be darned if I can find it.  I hope I did not give it to the new used bookstore when I was cleaning out my bookshelves this past summer.  Anyway, I have to say I really do NOT like this recent Pope Francis.  There is a false statement going around on social media sites such as Facebook that he said:

“Eat whatever you want for Easter, the sacrifice is not in the stomach, but in the heart. They refrain from eating meat, but don’t talk to their siblings or relatives, don’t visit their parents or bother them to attend to them. Don’t share food with the needy, forbid children to see their father, forbid grandparents to see their grandchildren, criticize other people’s lives, beat their wife, etc., A good barbeque or beef stew won’t make you a bad person, just like a fish fillet won’t turn you into a saint. Better seek to have a deeper relationship with God through better treatment of others let’s be less arrogant and more humble at heart.”

Fact checker says no where in his Lenten address is this quote found, and says:

Vatican News, the official news portal of the Holy See under the Vatican Dicastery for Communication, has a published article on the Pope’s message for Lent in 2024. The Pope’s fake quote is also nowhere to be found in that article.

Ho Hum... Mea culpa, mea culpa, grande mea culpa for my opinions on him.  I try to stay away from this topic.  As for Lent, it's purpose as the Homily today said is to become a transformed person throughout the 40 days.  It's more about giving and doing for others than giving up something. 

Tome, you are truly giving me so much insight with sharing your moving experience with us.  Downsizing not only in sq. footage, but the bathtub, washer and dryer etc.  I know my hubby and I will eventually be faced with the decision of a smaller home and I am paying close attention to all who have and are presently dealing with this new phase in their lives.

I too enjoy The Crown on PBS.  I have not gotten as far as you have.  I think the last episode I watched was when Queen Elizabeth II finally gave into Philip's demanding a title after she found out he had been cheating and drinking heavily. After consorting with Winston Churchill and other prominent leaders, she decided to give him the title of His Royal Highness The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh   For some reason I stopped watching and haven't gotten back to it since.  I agree the actors for these characters were perfectly played.  I have had an interest in the royal family ever since Diana and Charles married.  I read many books and watched her interviews and my heart hurt for her.  She was so innocent and young, and truly believed she had her fairytale happily ever after when she married him, only to realize on their wedding night he spent it with Camilla on the telephone, and wearing the cuff links Camilla had given to him to remember her as he took his vows.  Diana was only chosen because she was young, beautiful, healthy and from a well-established family to bear Charles heirs to the throne.  I think Harry got his father's bad genes and William got his mother's good genes.  Now don't get me wrong, after a while Diana decided to live her life and had her own affairs, but those two boys were her world.  Okay, end of rant. 😂 lol Seems you and Barb just happened to touch on two men I really don't care much for.

I've never heard of New Tricks, I have been binge watching Million Dollar Listings New York.  I'm at the time period where real estate is beginning to flounder, interest rates going up, and the houses are plentiful. So, unlike today where houses are scarce.  Not sure if I mentioned earlier, we sold my deceased sister in law's house in 4 days.  One of the first persons to walk through bought it, hoping to close in a week or so.  We expected it to go fast but this was so unexpectedly fast.

Okay must get off and get ready for nighttime tv.  I keep my tv off throughout the entire day and then watch recorded shows on my DVR at night.  I simply hate commercials. 

Ciao~ Bellamarie



   

[Tomereader1]

Bella, it is Frybabe, not Tome who is completing her move!  Heaven forbid if I had to downsize and move.  Told my daughter if I passed, and hadn't downsized most of my "junque", just hire a dozer to come in and scoop it all up, and trash it.  I have nothing valuable, other than my books and record/CD collection.  Lived a very frugal life in same house for nearly 60 years, never desired to inherit or collect antiques, just furnishings from local furniture stores, as well as Sears.  We did re-do sofas, dining sets.  Remodeled once in 1990 something, new appliances, carpet, flooring, painting.  All that needs re-done now, but not in fiscal/physical position to attempt it.
 Joanne (Tomereader)

[BarbStAubrey]

That is what I'm trying to do Joanne - get rid of more and more - I'm not using so much of what I brought but when I was moving it was like part of who I am and going to a new area it was a security blanket - Need to get rid of things like shoes - I only use a couple of pairs of moccasin type shoes that are easy to slip in and out of and one pair of shoes for going someplace - don't think I will ever use these tennies and then all the sweatshirts and silk blouses and even some of the Tshirts - finally facing I will never cook like I did however, the cookware I figure the grandboys can divvy up amongst themselves, I've some really good German knives a good French pots however, I doubt they will use any of the special baking pans etc - and I really need to cull the books much further - that is the hardest - for some reason the books are like getting rid of a favorite pet - and I finally accepted I will never knit up all the wool yarn - I'm not sure how to get rid of it - hate that it just goes into a dump - some of it was good expensive wool or a combo yarn with silk.

Where have you been getting rid of your books and other things? I think I remember you saying your library accepts books - I wonder, have to call to find out if the library here will accept donated books - in Austin they did not but Half Price had several location and 3 of them within 15 minutes of where I lived, each in a different direction.

Bellamarie haha funny two opinions from the police no less... although that Austin policemen did say it was different for commercial locations and so I would think a Day Care or School would be different than a residential home on a residential street. And yes, Gilead by Marilynne Robinson sounds like the one - cannot remember it but I know I have a copy - need to re-read it because as I recall it was an enjoyable read. Thinking back I could be mixing hats up with another but one lived on the east side of Houston where as I am now northwest of Houston - Oh and don't get me started on Pope Frances - but then from all I've read he is only the tip of the iceberg so to speak - what we see now has been creeping in, spreading and being accepted by many for years - Some predict it may not end with Pope Francis - it may take awhile to root out what has happened before we can get back to having leadership that practices what Roman Catholicism is all about.

I think you are right Joanne that all 'tellalls' are really like a gossip page with special personalities - at least though the historical tellalls are so tied into history that the dalliances etc. had actually effected history but the more recent - since I would say Woodrow Wilson the tellalls are to me just being salacious with no other purpose much like the gossip pages in newspapers - ah so and from reading even Popes did it with priests and Bishops still doing it... only read recently there is an organization with world wide attendance at regular area meetings within nations of all the grown children born in secret whose, mostly father's were Catholic clergy... sheesh!!??!!

My reading this lenten season is all over the place - really enjoying a quick download of a book I saw the movie years ago and so glad I downloaded the book that goes into so much more before Babette prepares the feast and now sense why a friend I correspond with using email reads it every year at the start of lent - She is Lutheran and lives in Norway and the tradition of reading Babette's Feast at the start of Lent has to do with the proverb --

The disciples had expressed disapproval for a woman's extravagant act of anointing Jesus with oil (Matthew 26:6–9). "Why this waste?" they asked. The price of the ointment was nearly a year's wages, assuming the description in John 12:1–11 is of the same event. Why not sell the ointment and feed some hungry people? This is not a completely unreasonable concern; the disciples are aware of the poor around them and Jesus' commands to care for others.

Jesus has corrected them for attempting to rebuke the woman. He calls her act of devotion "beautiful" (Matthew 26:10) thing. It's not that giving to the poor is not important. Instead, Jesus emphasizes that His time with them in person is short. This is the only opportunity she will ever have to make this specific gift.

He adds another detail to the meaning behind this bold anointing. Whether this woman, likely Mary (John 11:1), understood it or not, the ointment she poured over Jesus has served to prepare Him for His burial. Anointing the body of someone who has died was an important part of the burial custom of the time. Jesus knew He would soon be crucified, as He had repeatedly told the disciples. More was going on in this anointing than extravagant hospitality. This woman was participating in the preparations for the Messiah's death and burial.


Thus we have Babette in act of selflessness and generosity using her winnings to prepare this feast for people who live simply and do not add any extras to their life lived in a remote area of Denmark - Babette could have used the winnings to return to France but instead she uses her resources, her winnings and her knowledge, training and skill to bring joy and pleasure to the people around her. I have not yet reached in the story where she wins and how she orders and prepares this feast - had no idea there was so much to the story before we get to that place - I'm enchanted with the story and for lent it is another way of honoring and loving by using our skills to make something special for others versus focusing on denying which is often the focus. Now it makes sense why growing up during Lenten season we saved and both gave the savings to the poor at church and we purchased gifts for our family members - not cousins, aunts and uncles or friends like at Christmas, just our immediate family. 

Also learned, surprise-surprise, Isak Dinesen (Out of Africa)is the pseudonym of Karen Blixen, born in Denmark in 1885, author of Babette's Feast.

[bellamarie]

Oh Joanne, forgive me, I guess it shows I should have retired for bed instead of attempting that post.  60 yrs. in the same house!  We are going on 41 yrs., and even though we've tried keeping up with the repairs I have a longggggg list of to be done.  Sometimes I have to give myself grace and go on and not think about it, even though I know they are not going away.  We paid for private school education for all three kids, some college for them, three weddings, down payments on their houses and did free daycare for all six grands while having my daycare business, so now that all the kids and grands are on their own, we have to begin slowly attacking the need to be done first repairs.  Having a guy to come out today to unstick our garage door which is a NEW unexpected expense.  Grrrrr....

I have been slowly getting rid of things over the past 3 yrs. We just had to clean out my sister in laws house and were lucky an area Catholic church came with 4 trucks and 15 people to load up all her items that were in very good condition but none of us family members could use.  That was AFTER we had close friends/family come and take whatever they could use.  She was in that home for about 50 yrs.  After her hubby died and she fell and broke bones she just couldn't keep up anymore.

I do have to admit I have been a collector of Ashton Drake dolls, Precious Moments, Saraphine Angels, Dickens Heritage Village, Kitchen Fairies and a bit of coins.  My daughter is NOT interested in any of these and does not hold sentimental value to items like I do.  My sons will check on eBay and see if they can sell them.  lol They found a couple of my Barbie dolls still in the box unopened going for $800 and I think I paid $80 at the time.  I say go for it!!  I have enjoyed them all these years and so once I am gone, I can't expect anyone to care about them as I have.  My Princess Diana dolls I hope the granddaughters will keep. 

Barb, there is nothing more I could learn that would surprise me with the behaviors of the church.  My consolation is that I am no one's judge and that one day the one who is will.  I've come to know that inside every religion/church there are sinners and I myself am one, so in knowing this I go on with my faith and teach Catholicism to my students in the spirit of faith, hope and love. 

I seriously get so much enjoyment teaching CCD every Sunday.  I walk out of class thanking God for allowing me to teach these sweet innocent little children and pray I've touched their lives in some way.  This past Sunday at the end of class I stood talking to my one student's father about how Grace said she was tardy because they smelled smoke in their house and realized their neighbor's house was on fire.  The Dad who also teaches said, "Yes, we were all concerned for this family."  Grace's brother who is a couple years older (5-6th gr.) with Autism who has interrupted my class before dismissal a few times, came up to me and hugged me and said, "Thank you for caring about my sister and teaching her about God."  Now mind you I know he is not a hugger, he usually sits far from other students.  I was moved to tears at his act of such emotion and words of kindness. It's these moments that I know which I have had over the years of teaching that shows me its all about LOVE.  I came out, sat in the car for a few seconds and my hubby asked if I was okay and I said "Just taking it all in."  My instructor told me over 30 yrs. ago when I doubted myself teaching religion that if I touch just one child's heart, I have pleased God.  She is gone now, passed away during covid and I came across a letter she had written just the other day and it prepared me for Lenten season.

Yes, the anointing was in preparation of Jesus's journey to his death and resurrection. The woman was as the Bible says probably Mary of Bethany, Lazarus's sister. Also known as the "woman with the alabaster jar." The disciple questioning her using the expensive oil was Judas Iscariot the betrayer.

John 12:4-8
4But Judas Iscariot, one of His disciples, who was intending to betray Him, said, 5“Why was this perfume not sold for three hundred denarii and given to poor people?” 6Now he said this, not because he was concerned about the poor, but because he was a thief, and as he had the money box, he used to pilfer what was put into it. 7Therefore Jesus said, “Let her alone, so that she may keep it for the day of My burial. 8“For you always have the poor with you, but you do not always have Me.” 

Judas truly was not concerned about the waste of the oil or the poor, he was more concerned about how much that oil could bring in denarii because he knew he was going to profit off of his betrayal.  Jesus knew Judas was going to betray him and knew his intentions for his questioning Mary wasting the oil, he points out to him "but you do not always have Me." And yet Judas proceeds to betray for the silver.   Jesus is pointing out that Mary is devoted to him, loyal and reveres him, and Judas is not!

Oh, how we think we can hide our evil intentions.  Huge lesson here!

I'm still slushing through my ebook and am wondering if it will ever end!  I can't check how many chapters it has because there is no table of contents.  I refuse to give up on it so onward I go.

Ciao~  Bellamarie

p.s. Barb, yes, I do think area could make a difference in police giving us advice on protecting our home from burglars.  We live in a cul da sac but a main artery with businesses is just at the opening of our subdivision. 

 

[Tomereader1]

About three weeks ago, I noticed my street light was out.  Since I don't wander outside at night, no telling how long it had been out.  So, I did the on-line thing with the City where you report what's wrong, and they acknowledge your email and give you an expected date for correcting the problem.  Within 5 minutes they had given me a date, and another 5 minutes, they said this was not a City problem, I needed to call Oncor, the main electric provider.  Could not get the call to go through, though I re-dialed several times.  Being frustrated is not something I need to experience, so I decided I'd wait till next day and tried their main on-line site, found another number, which I got through on and reported the outage. They said a week, but lo, and behold, (I didn't check every night) must have been two days and I had a lovely, working street light.  The difference in what one can see with the streetlight working is amazing.  I have two neighbors (recent move-ins) who absolutely do not use a porch light, although they have them.  If I turn my porch light off several houses are deeply in the dark.  One of the neighbors has a permanently "on" light (LED bright) for their back yard, although it's on the side of the house.  It shines in my bedroom window, bounces off my dresser mirror and keeps me awake.  The majority of the neighbors, further down from me, have dusk-to-dawn lights, as do I on my security lights. I am a great booster for lighting around your home. 

P.S. Obviously none of those two neighbors noticed, or cared enough to report the streetlight outage!

[bellamarie]

Tomereader, I'm so glad they repaired your streetlight for the neighborhood. I agree with you, I need streetlights to peek out the window and just check to see if everything is okay at night.  I do use one of those porch lights where it comes on at dusk and goes off at daybreak.  I don't have to remember to switch it on or off.  In my backyard I have two huge spotlights for when we have to let our dog out at night to go potty since we have all sorts of creatures that roam around in the dark.  I asked my neighbor if they bother her and she said no, if anything it makes her feel safer since she is alone. 

Well, I can't believe I figured out how to find the page number of my eBook!  I was so frustrated wanting to know how many chapters were left and started messing around touching places on my iPad screen and lo and behold up popped smaller pages with the numbers.  Still no table of contents but it did show I am halfway through the book, which means I have about 250 pages to go.  I would have never imagined this would be over a 400-page book.  It's getting to the good plot, so I don't mind.  Off to get a few pages read.  I need a distraction my granddaughter has been snapchatting me about having to put their family pet down today.  I knew it was coming and our little great grandson is going to be so confused as to where Daisy is when he wakes up from naps and comes home from day care and does not see her.  When we take him for the day on Fridays on our way home, he always says, "Go home and see Daisy and Mommy."  She's a French Bull dog and is the gentlest of dogs around little 18-month-old Haze.  Gosh it's so difficult saying good-bye to your pets they are a part of your family and such an emptiness when they are no longer with you. 

Ciao~  Bellamarie

[BarbStAubrey]

You are both living in areas with Street lights and I had to think back to when I ever lived in an area with Street lights - even in Austin what would be close in but not quiet downtown Austin there were no street lights - none here - none where we lived in Kentucky - I had to go back to where we were living when I was ages 4 to 12 where there were street lights - I even remember as children we had to go home when the street lights came on where as my children came home when I rang a very loud cow bell -

In Austin for awhile I used to take a walk before bed but always took a flashlight with me - not so much to use but in case there was a particular dark patch or I could tell something was on the street - few lights is probably why we had so much wild life - there was deer and foxes and possum and of course raccoons - Here I am too close to busy roads so the animals started to disappear when Magnolia started to have an increase in population about 5 years ago - but the residential side streets are all still quiet and yes, dark... interesting - now the big problem here is there is hardly any zoning and so the streets with growing traffic have commercial sites and they do use security lighting that yes, shines into nearby back yards and even windows - everyone nearby is growing whatever they can that will be tall enough and thick enough to block out these lights. 

Bellamarie sounds wonderful to have a history of guiding children and the satisfaction of knowing you added to their lives and your collections remind me of my mother's collection of Hummel figures - my brother inherited them and promptly sold them - my sisters and I were aghast but we never said a word - they were his and like all gifts, once it is given it belongs to whom ever receives the gift to do with as they think best.

That concept seems to be harder for more people to wrap their head around than I realized - recently did my will and the lawyer could not understand why I did not put as a caveat suggesting how any financial inheritance should be used - I was shocked at the idea and laughed thinking it was like controlling from the grave - but after a minute of thought, I could put my thinking ins words and said no, it is up to them to make that choice and if they spend it all in one place and loose it all as a result they will have learned something - however, her suggestion allowed me to realize more people want things to happen in a way they understand and approve without allowing self-learning and yet, more so today, self-learning is full of dangers many of which I never had to face growing up - the entire internet is a road full of the unexpected which circles me back to you Bellamarie as you provide them with a flashlight so to speak as they travel the streets of the internet. 

Joanne your being directed to call Oncor reminds me of so many utilities that they are all being handled by different companies - the water is paid to one identity and the waterlines are another and the water company that is in charge of getting water into the lines is another and the same with the electricity - pay one, the poles is another, the lines along the poles is still another - on and on it goes... I'm hearing from my grandsons who are renting apartments and they too have no clear path to requesting a repair - we researched and learned for tenants every service is now a LLC so that no one is able to help except the one designated to do certain jobs and if the job is out of their area of expertise then finding who in the chain can do the task is a huge time consuming deal - from what I understand every aspect of business is now so broken up and protected in every why they legally can from direct contact. One issue prompting all this is saying the wrong words brings about a huge legal battle -  I guess we have finally caught up with the European nations - it was the complex legal system that was the basis for so many of the stories/novels we read that take place mostly in the courts during the eighteenth and nineteenth century.

[bellamarie]

Barb, from birth until my 18th birthday I lived in a small rural town and my mom owned acres and acres of land with one small house she used for a rental and the large house we grew up in.  Not a streetlight to be found and rarely did what few neighbors there were leave porch lights on, that would have been considered wasting electricity and money.  We never worried about burglars or crime because it really was uncommon, plus in our little town everyone would know my stepfather owned many guns for hunting, so trying to break into our house or even come onto our property would be a huge risk to take.  Now living in a busy, big city I love having the security of streetlights.

Barb

recently did my will and the lawyer could not understand why I did not put as a caveat suggesting how any financial inheritance should be used - I was shocked at the idea and laughed thinking it was like controlling from the grave

Oh, how I can relate to your statement about controlling from the grave. We need to redo our Last Will and Testament now that all our three kids are grown and married.  My hubby's sister who recently passed left us a generous sum of inheritance and now we must make some hard decisions.  My daughter was diagnosed with bipolar manic depression after she married.  Part of this illness is obsessive compulsive spending without any rhyme or reason causing her husband to put all accounts, car and home in his name.  Our dilemma is he is a controlling person who does not allow her to have even more than two pairs of shoes, no friends or relatives and he even decides the meals.  He treats her more like a child than a wife and we have learned his drinking is out of control.  They are broke before he gets his paycheck and are in enormous debt due to his awful financial decision making.  We've spent thousands of dollars helping them out and finally put a stop to it about 15 yrs. ago.  We cannot ever see her leaving him.

I learned from my brother-in-law an accountant who has a similar situation with his son about how you can set up an inheritance trust to where she can only withdraw interest and we can name her brother as the trustee, who will also be the executor. He said we can request if she were to pass before him the remainder would go to who we name rather than her husband. I said your very words today to my hubby as we were discussing this for the umpteenth time... I do not want to seem to be controlling from our graves, but I want to protect her from her husband spending her entire inheritance in a few months' time and then should anything happen to him she would have nothing to fall back on. They have received large accident settlements and spent it so fast even though I tried to encourage them to put it in some form of CDs or IRAs for their future retirement. 

She is not capable of holding down a job and she is not entitled to SSI.  He has NO retirement due to leaving jobs constantly. We are convinced he married her and has stayed with her for money opportunities rather than love.  So, I'm not surprised why your lawyer asked if you wanted any caveats added to the will.  We did a will years ago when the kids were minors and now, I dread having to redo one, but it is necessary to appoint a new executor and protect our daughter.  Life aint it grand!  lol

My granddaughter let me borrow two books she just finished reading and thinks I will like them.  One is: Too Late by Collen Hoover and the other is: The Perfect Child by Lucinda Berry.  Have any of you read either book or author?  She let me borrow Local Woman Missing by Mary Kubica and it was fantastic!  All three of these are mystery trillers.

Ciao~ Bellamarie