Rhododendron

 We have two Rhododendron plants--two in the front yard and two in the back.

I didn't say "bushes" though the ones in back are. But the two in front could as easily be called 'trees'--they are that tall.

Bumblebees love the blossoms--not so much honey bees.

It's the state flower of West Virginia where Bern and I grew up.

So, it reminds me of my once home from time to time--a place I'll never visit again.

They soothe me, not just with memories, but with present pleasure.

I love them and am glad to share the earth with them.

Two in a row

         Today is full of sun, a slight breeze, temperatures in the 70's and not a cloud in the sky.

    Yesterday was the same. Two lovely mid-Spring days in a row.

    All is well in Cheshire.

    But not in our country.

    Some of the idiots we sent to Congress want to block the debt ceiling rise.

    Whether they are right wing Republicans or left wing Democrats they should be drawn and quartered for opposing the debt ceiling rise.

    Don't they understand what going in default would mean for Americans and the whole world?

    Bern and I wouldn't get our Social Security checks.

    The stock market would crash putting my pension--which comes from stocks--in danger.

    But we have enough savings to be ok.

    But lots of folks wouldn't be. Welfare checks and food stamps would dry up. Medicaid and Medicare would not pay. Money from the government for unemployment benefits and payments to children in poverty would go away. Retired vets and active military would not be paid.

    It would be a world wide disaster since the world economy relies heavily on the U.S. economy.

    Don't they understand that this could put the US and much of the world back to Depression-era situations?

    How do you work in Congress and not realize what I realize?

    Has our country become so divided that we are willing to put our civilization at risk?

    God help us all if the debt ceiling isn't raised....

 

The TV writers strike...

 ...is ruining my YTube viewing.

Most days I watch Steven Colbert, Seth Meyers and both Jimmy's monologues and none of them are doing shows.

Doesn't leave me a lot of viewing time.

On another subject: the U.S. needs to severely limit AI.

I did watch on You Tube a scene of four police officers tackling and handcuffing the former President.

I'd like to see that if it were real--but it was created by Artificial Intelligence. 

AI recreates voices as well.

Chris Murphy, one of CT's Senators played and AI fake of his voice on the Senate floor.

I would have thought it was him.

This could get out of hand real fast.

It needs to be closely regulated if not banned.

(Just AI me typing....)

I haven't blogged...

...because I've been in the hospital.

(I'll spare you the details by coping and email I sent to Trinity, Milton when I got home today.)

 

Dear All--I fell on Sunday and fractured cracked two ribs. It didn't hurt enough the first two days (and I didn't know the ribs were cracked!) but by Tues. I was in such pain I went to urgent care. They send me to Mid-State in Meriden by ambulance because my blood oxygen was 84. They found the cracked ribs but don't handle such cases and sent me by ambulance to Central CT hospital in New Brittian. Which I obviously can't spell!

They did great work and by this morning the pain was controlled, my blood oxygen was 97 and the fluid in my lungs (too painful to cough before) was gone.

So, Bern and I got home at 3:30.

Please let everyone know on Sunday that I'm on the road to recovery.

Also let them know I am not to exert myself for 2 weeks, so, I'm sorry that I can't be there on Wed. 31 at noon.

Steve has the next two Sundays anyway--So that's good for the parish.

We're supposed to be in N.C. June 3 to 10. I won't go unless a Dr. says ok.

That's my tale of woe, but the tale is looking better starting right now.

Shalom, Jim

 

Church today

Today we at Trinity, Milton, honored the mother of Roni, one of our members.

Roni is a drama teacher and she acts in plays around the state.

Instead of the sermon I wrote, I used the piece from this blog, "When people die" and Roni's brother said a few things and I said a prayer to God to receive "Sue" (Roni's mother) though that was not her given name but the one people called her.

Sue had 10 children. The first one died before the second was born. Several of them were there today.

Roni sang the 23rd Psalm to the St. James Aire--a lovely song.

People were deeply moved by the service--and many told me afterwards.

(Part of it was Eucharistic Prayer C--my favorite--that I think they are coming around to embracing.)

But the biggest part was remembering someone none, outside her family, had ever met.

People are moved by remembering the dead.

We all want to be remembered after we die--I know we do.

 

Trying to stay with the weather

After a nice, warm late-spring day yesterday, today was chilly and windy.

Bern even brought in all the plants on the back deck because it could get to 30 tonight.

I went up to Milton, in the hills, and it was even chillier there.

In our Wednesday classes we are alternating between books in the Bible and chapters from my novel The Igloo Factory.

We'll see how that goes.

Bern and I fight over the thermostat--she likes 65 and I like 68. I go to bed later so I always get my way at night.

We're going to Oak Island, NC on June 3rd for a week. Mimi,Tim and Eleanor and three long-time friends go with us. It's always a blast.

 Don't expect any posts that week--I only have a desktop computer, so I can only type right here.

Be well and stay well, Umfandusi.

 

Going to granddaughter's show

 Eleanor McCarthy is my daughter, Mimi's daughter. She'll be 7 in August and this weekend was in a kids' production of Alice in Wonderland.

The show was in a theater in upstate NY in a town I'd never heard of.

We met Eleanor and Tim and Mimi before the show.

Eleanor played the White Bunny and the March Hare. (She plays rabbits really well!)

She was the youngest kid in the show and did well. Even got to sing a little as the March Hare--she can really sing!

It is definitely not Broadway bound--but was worth the 124 mile/2 hour drive both ways.

Eleanor is a star!

Mother's Day is tomorrow

My mother died when I was in college.

She was 63 and I was 23.

When my father called me to come 'home',  I went to see the Episcopal priest because I wasn't sure I could drive the 190 miles without God's grace.

He put on full vestments and gave me communion and healing oil and I made it home.

She lived another three days but passed away without ever meeting her grandchildren who were born after her death.

And my Dad was forever changed. He barely noticed his grandchildren or even me after that.

Then he called me one night and said 'my friends' were going through his house and he had his gun out. I asked him to get one of 'my friends' to talk to me and he couldn't, because it was all in his mind.

I flew down the next day and brought him to New Haven after clearing out his house, including all my mother's clothes.

Mom, I miss you so.

Happy mother's day wherever you are....

 

I probably posted this before

but it deserves to be read again. A poem by a friend of mine in college.

WHEN PEOPLE DIE

          When people die

          It’s like a bird flying into a window

                   On the coldest morning of the year.

          When people die

          It’s like the bears have escaped from the zoo

                   And are eating children on the street.

          When people die

          It’s like a maniac has taken over the power station

                   And the lights go off and on and off

                   And on and off.

          When people die.

 

So it begins....

The Jury took only 3 hours to return a verdict on the former President's case on the sexual abuse and defamation of E. Jean Carroll.

They awarded her $5 million in their verdict.

This is the beginning of the former President's legal challenges.

The January 6 case, the case about finance in NYC and the charges in Georgia about election tampering are still on the burner.

Things could get very dicey very quickly for him.

Running for President in the face of all that takes a special kind of megalomania.

Stay alert and stay tuned.

The train started down the track today.

 

Gun control vs. abortion

Republican law makers in states all over America are passing laws against abortion, but they will do nothing about gun control.

I've said before and will say again: I don't like abortion.

But as a white man in my 70's, I have no voice in the matter.

It is a woman's right to choose abortion.

I stand by that and regret what Republican states are doing to women and doctors to prevent abortion. Including denying women can pass stay lines to have the procedure. That is against our Constitutional rights.

Yet gun violence is rampant--rampant--in the U.S. and Republicans seem unable to do anything to stop it.

Texas has been the site of two mass shootings in the past week and their Republican lawmakers and governor have stated publicly that you don't need a permit in Texas to carry a gun on you in public.

 Something is screwed up about that--and you can figure out what it is.

I don't need to tell you.

Do what you can to change gun laws.

 

Can't do it this week

 I like to send out my Sunday sermon on the blog--but I can't this week because I am so computer stupid that I couldn't save it and I am too lazy to type it out again.

Alas for me.

It's about faith and doubt.

I really believe 'doubt' is a part of faith--consider 'doubting Thomas' who becomes the first person besides Mary Magdalene to declare Jesus 'my Lord and my God'.

The first three lessons this week are full of faith without doubt.

But in the Gospel of John, Jesus is telling his closest friends what is going to happen to him and that he goes to prepare a place for them.

Thomas (God love him) says "we don't know where  your going, how can we know the place"

Then, a few sentences later, Philip says, "show us the Father and we will be satisfied."

Jesus replies that he and the Father are one.

So, if Thomas and Philip can have doubts, so can we.

"Doubt is on the road to Faith."

That's my message this week.

Looking to his future with glee

The former President is in lots of deep-deep-shit.

How many of his cases--from the federal case of the storming of the Capital to his case in Georgia about trying to steal votes to his rape case that should end next week--are going to result in penalties, including Jail?

I personally think he will be convicted in the rape case, since his lawyers aren't presenting a defense at all.

He said in Scotland that he would testify.

His lawyer said in court, he would not.

His disposition was horribly damaging to him.

I can't wait for all this to play out and for him to run for President from jail somewhere!

Stay tuned for updates.

 

A poem from 13 years ago

 

       Giving with the Wind

 

Standing on the deck of my good friend’s house,

loaned for the week, I watch the tall, tall trees

give with the wind.

                              Tall, tall--a hundred feet

or more, sparsely branched, swaying to and fro.

 

It is Vermont in May. Today it snowed.

The wind swept up the mountain from below

and those ancient pines, moving several feet,

gave with the wind.

                               I smoke and drink white wine,

Watching them bend and bow and almost dance.

 

Ageless wisdom, planted in dark soil:

“Resist not. Cling not. Do not rigid be.”

 

Give with the wind. Sway deeply. Bend and dance.

The storms of life, blow as they might, pass on.

 

jgb

5/9/10