Beating The Drafts December 31, 2008

I would say that, judging by this page from weather underground for Dec. 31, 2008, it’s officially winter here. (don’t bother to look in a few days, ok?) It said, for those of you who come late, that the official temperature for this date at 11 am or so, it was -21F.

One of the strengths of Alaskans is their ability to endure. Weather conditions here are so far from perfect that we couldn’t survive otherwise. This kind of cold, coupled with even a light breeze, is bone-chilling, and probably means that most stores will have a somewhat slower day than yesterday, when it was only about 7 below.

Alaskans think of all kinds of ingenious ways to cheat the cold. Thank goodness, in this area, we do have a couple of mitigating factors. We are closer to the ocean than Fairbanks or Northway, so we get a bit of a respite when the patterns shift. And, the mountains are far enough away from Wasilla that they don’t shade us like they do in Valdez, for instance, where the mountains are virtually within the city limits. (An aside: Valdez gets incredible winds in the winter, thanks to its geography. When there is a strong high centered in the Interior and a weak low in the Gulf of Alaska, Nature, abhoring a vacuum, sends that high screaming down to the Gulf to fill up that low, and Valdez, located in a giant Venturi tube, experiences gale-and-hurricane force winds on a regular basis. The only tradeoff is that it doesn’t get as cold there as it does here. So, I guess dodging one bullet in one place is balanced by dodging a different bullet elsewhwere.)

So, if there can be any “upside” to living here in the winter besides the usual winter sports things that are first to spring to mind (and there are hardy souls who will try it when it’s cold, but not like this. This is NOT snowmachine weather) , it is probably this: “wait a few days, and it will moderate.” But January and February are the coldest months here, and we all plan and prepare for it. Woodstoves and space heaters help to keep our spaces as cozy as we can make them during these days. This kind of cold can be very depressing if one feels as if it can’t be coped with. So we keep ourselves sane by plotting, planning and devising new and inventive ways to beat the drafts. :o) (sorry, I just couldn’t resist.)

There are all kids of materials available for chinking cracks, the most modern of which is 2″ transparent tape. A good draft-dodger is still the little tube of sand, sawdust, or whatever that one lays in front of an exterior door. For drafty windows and doors in the “olden days,” a blanket was suspended, hung by nails driven into the window frame. But new houses today don’t have trim around the windows, so this is not much of an option for those owners. Clear plastic window covers are incredibly effective and inexpensive enough that one can cover all the windows in the house. It says to “shrink” the plastic with a heat gun, like a blow-dryer. Beating the drafts can be done. Just takes an extended period of concerted thinking, and we get a lot of time for that when the bottom falls out of the thermometer.

From The Archives (And Elsewhere) December 30, 2008

An oldie but a GOODIE from 2006. Enjoy!

A tasty tidbit from Giovanni’s World. More enjoyment!

And, ta-daaaaa!! The world’s BIGGEST gigapixel picture Now, THAT’S a church!! Takes time to download. Be patient.

then, there’s THIS great little piece, also from Giovanni.

2010: Spankin’ Time December 28, 2008

My kids were all raised knowing that they were responsible for any messes they made. The Democrats thought it would be fun to f**k up the country so Bush would go down in history as a miserable failure. They didn’t figure on the Law of Unintended Consequences, or the fact that all the economies in the world are tied to America’s in ways the Democrats can only have nightmares about.

Now, they have fulfilled their destiny–they have truly managed to screw up the WHOLE WORLD because they want to give W a black eye in front of all their suck-up buddies around the world.

George Bush is going to go home to Crawford and hang out on his ranch cutting brush and driving a big pickup truck, while the lefties are going to be stuck in Washington, trying to deal with the consequences of their shortsighted prank, including dealing with the governments of the countries they have managed to include in their reckless destruction. Nobody, apparently, thought to tell them that sometimes those kinds of messes can get out of hand very easily and take on a “life” of their own. Law Of Family Life #4 is this: The guy that makes the mess cleans it up.

Of course, we all know they won’t. And it will be up to the grownups on the Right to come in and undo what can be undone, to clean up and straighten things out one more time. If there was ever a time that illustrated the immaturity and childish, destructive behavior of the left, it was 2008. They lied, cheated, and stole to get themselves back into power. The only problem is, that like little kids who never get disciplined, they will, as they have always done, misuse and abuse the power they have usurped, undermine and unravel all that has made America such an attractive prize for them, and keep jumping up and down and tearing things up until they either get bored or distracted, or until the grownups come back and put a stop to it.

But the Republicans in Washington are not much better than their immature Democrat playmates. They, too, participated in lying, cheating, and stealing in the hopes of gathering to themselves whatever they could to insure their positions in Washington and fatten their retirement packages. So, many of them will have to be disciplined along with the incorrigible brats on the left. 2010 is the soonest it can be done, unless catastrophe intervenes. In that time, the right can spend its time selecting and perfecting the spanking stick that will be used to discipline those babies.

And, another thing: When did we stop letting countries fight their battles? Of all the nations on the earth, we should know Israel is capable of cleaning up the juvenile, spoiled-brat destruction made by Hamas. But it’s not going to be long before we dispatch Condoleeza Rice to tell them to pull their punches and not to hurt the poor Jihadists or punish them, but to just let them continue to bomb, murder, and destroy, in the hopes that they will suddenly grow up and behave themselves. I don’t suppose we could stay out of it until Israel ASKS us to come in, could we?

Eye Candy December 27, 2008

One of my weaknesses is movies. I’ve mentioned before on the Sourdough how my sister and I grew up in front of the big screen, every weekend, every month for nearly fifteen years. We developed a great love for the movies we saw. When Leonard Maltin’s first movie book came out, I actually read it. After that, the subsequent editions were simply too fat, so I was reduced to simply ticking off the movies we had seen. I can still remember “arguing” with Maltin’s assessment of a movie I either loved or hated, and pencilling in my own star-rating.

There have been some good movies in the last year or so, although I am sure that the Gawd-awful turkeys that manage to squirm their way into the theaters to be cheered by adolescent boys of all ages are still just as forgettable as ever. Some of the movies that have impressed me in the last four or five years are here:

THE FALL **** R Lee Pace, Catinca Untaru. Pure eye candy. A beautiful, fantastical fairy tale too intricate to be described with accuracy. Two convalescents at an infirmary in the 1920′s; a young American movie stuntman and the little girl with the broken collarbone he befriends and regales with long and detailed stories of an imaginary hero and his band of friends who try to rescue the princess held captive by the evil “Emperor Odious.” The “R” rating is for some violence, but the film is worth every minute you spend looking at it.

HERO **** R Jet Li, Ling Xiong More GORGEOUS stuff to fill the eye. A martial-arts film with a difference. Even better than CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON. Any of the recent Jet Li movies will be worth your time, even if you don’t care for martial-arts movies.

GET SMART *** PG13 Steve Carrell, Ann Hathaway, Alan Arkin, The Rock Absolutely nothing like the old TV series, and much better for not trying to recapture that craziness. Just a lot of fun, well done, with goofy chases, improbable plot twists, and enjoyable cameos, including one by Bill Murray. Just enjoy it. Don’t try to analyze it.

KUNG FU PANDA *** PG Jack Black, Dustin Hoffman, Lucy Liu, Angelina Jolie, Jackie Chan. Animated. Lots of fun. The secret is there are no secret ingredients. Just a pudgy panda called to be better than he thought he could be. Just plain enjoyable.

MEET THE ROBINSONS *** 1/2 G Animated You can never have too much fun when you combine a superbly well-done animation technique with a juvenile time-travel plot involving orphans and a magical bowler hat named “Doris.” Strong story. Well-done. If I tell you to just ENJOY this one, too, take my word for it, ok?

ROBOTS **** (extra star for technical excellence) G Animated Ewan McGregor, Mel Brooks, Robin Williams, Halle Berry. More animated perfection. It is amazing to see what the CGI teams in the big studios have been able to produce and accomplish in the last few years. The story is a funny fable about following your dreams and not letting the big guys push you around. This is one you can even watch with the sound turned off, because the images are so ravishing and perfectly detailed.

IRON MAN R **** (extra star for lots of laughs) Robert Downey, Jr. Jeff Bridges, Gwyenth Paltrow The comic book come to life. Great fun, lots of cool technology and special effects. Gwyenth as a redhead. Hmmm…

So far, I have’t had an opportunity to view these films on a digital screen, but I can just imagine what a large LCD screen is going to do for any animated movie. I can hardly wait. I’m really excited about watching “Lord of the Rings” trilogy on a bigger, more advanced screen. (Whee! I’m getting myself all excited now…)

These are the most memorable movies that came to mind while I was writing, but they are by far not all the movies on my “Don’t Miss This One!” list. All the comic book superheroes had movies this last couple of years (except Captain Marvel and Wonder Woman, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see those in the works).

As you can tell by my choices here, I’m not too impressed with dramas. The “olden days” produced dramas in black and white that were worthy of the crumpled tissues I sogged up and the cogitation they earned while my sister and I trudged back home, up the long hill, discussing and speculating, and comparing handsome heroes. Nowadays, most dramas are chickflicks or twisted psychological thrillers that leave me wishing for the good old days of “African Queen,” or “Casablanca.”

So, don’t expect to find a lot of “weight” on my movie list. I learned a long time ago that curling up with the grandsons with a bowl of popcorn and a dvd of “Meet The Robinsons” can be a great afternoon, a good way to impart some truth to young minds, or just a good chance to try out the new corn popper. Don’t miss a great slice of movie magic by bypassing animated movies just because they are animated, or “made for children.” We really are all just big kids at heart.

P.S. I get a lot of my movies from Netflix. The monthly subscription for three movies at a time, as often as you want, is about $16.50, and you can keep the movies as long as you like. No late fees. As soon as you return your movies, the next ones in your queue are automatically shipped. Fast and simple. Go for it. And, ENJOY!

The Morning After The Night Before December 26, 2008

9:00 am this morning

This is usually the day bargain-hunters mob the stores once more after Thanksgiving, to strip the stores of Christmas-related booty and stock up for next year. I don’t know about your neck of the woods, but I don’t think the six inches of new snow that fell througout the day yesterday here will stop the most dedicated shoppers. Snow all day on Christmas Day! What could be prettier? There’s just something about seeing snow falling while there are Christmas trees in the picture.

One grandson got to spend the night, and while he was helping Hellboy quell the bad guys on television, he ran into the kitchen just in time to see a black shape moving in the darkness in the back yard. Ashen faced, he reported to me, and at first I thought it was a dog. But the trail through the snow didn’t match a doggish trail. Moose feet would be the ones to break a similar trail through the knee-deep snow. Sure enough, the moose had jumped over the low fence (their legs are about 4-5 feet long) and broke into the yard just in time to scare the stuffing out of Joseph. We saw it down the street this morning, warily circling an overflowing garbage toter.

Now that the main festivities are over, we can begin the countdown to the new year. We have some interesting times ahead, to be sure. I hope you all had a joyous and beautiful Christmas, and that you will stay with me for the coming year. Blessings!

The Gift Of The Nativity December 24, 2008

The Nativity of the Lord is one of the favorite subjects of iconographers, who love to write (they don’t call it “paint”) about the sublime event. With this in mind, I give you a couple of renditions. Please enjoy the beauty of these gorgeous pictures.

The Nativity is often called the Incarnation, although the true Incarnation occured at the time of the Angel Gabriel’s announcement to the Virgin Mary (below).

In the icon of the Nativity, you see the Virgin Mary on a bed of childbirth, with the swaddled Child laid in the manger alongside her. The black cave behind her symbolizes both the cave of the stable and the tomb of Jesus after the Resurrection, as well as the netherworld. In most icons, the Infant Jesus is also depicted elsewhere in the image, being bathed and cleaned by the women who would assist at a birth. In the lower corner, we see a sleeping (or drowsing) St. Joseph, being tempted by “the Old Man,” or the flesh. In the upper part of the image, angels gather, their hands covered as a sign of humility, symbolizing that they do nothing without the Will of the Father. At the top, we see the Trinity, and a sharp streak of Grace pointing down to the Babe in the manger, to show us He came down from Heaven. On the left, we see the three Kings, who come to offer their gifts and honor the Newborn King.

Icons tell the story of the image depicted. Sometimes, we have to contemplate them for some time before the story is revealed, but if we are faithful and open, it will come, even if it is “only” a portrait of a single saint. Nothing in an icon is incidental. Or accidental. The iconographer fasts and prays in preparation, before he even begins the image. The work can take years, but the writing of an icon is not a hobby, it is an act of prayerful faith.

The Nativity of the Lord is God’s gift to the world. I offer these icons as my gift to you. May your Christmas be holy and blessed, and may the contemplation of these icons bring you peace and consolation in the coming year.

May you all be blessed.

Merry Christmas To All! December 23, 2008

A few little things from my picture file to get you all excited about visiting one of these days!

A few winter shots…

The only time we get to see sunsets is in the winter. And, we have no idea what the summer constellations look like!

Of course, Winter sunrises are pretty spectacular, too.

These last two are the same trees, dressed in different winter outfits: one white, one pink. Nice, huh?

A Christmas Card December 23, 2008

Ok. Get ready, all you lovers of big familes. Here is YOUR Christmas card!!

12 Myths Catholics Should Be Able To Answer Without Trouble December 21, 2008

The myths, for reference:

1. “There’s no such thing as absolute truth. What’s true for you may not be true for me.”
2. “Christianity is no better than any other faith. All religions lead to God.”
3. “The Old and New Testaments contradict one another in numerous places. If an omnipotent God inspired the Bible, He would never have allowed these errors.”
4. “I don’t need to go to Church. As long as I’m a good person, that’s all that really matters.”
5. “You don’t need to confess your sins to a priest. You can go straight to God.”
6. “If the Church truly followed Jesus, they’d sell their lavish art, property, and architecture, and give the money to the poor.”
7. “Dissent is actually a positive thing, since we should all keep our minds open to new ideas
8. “Properly interpreted, the Bible does not condemn homosexuality. Rather, it weighs against promiscuity — whether homosexual or heterosexual. Therefore, we have no reason to oppose loving homosexual relationships.”
9. “Catholics should follow their conscience in all things . . . whether it’s abortion, birth control, or women’s ordination.”
10. “Natural Family Planning is just the Catholic version of birth control.”
11. “Someone can be pro-choice and Catholic at the same time.”
12. “People’s memories of their past lives prove that reincarnation is true . . . and that the Christian view of Heaven and Hell is not.”

The Ten Commandments are not multiple choice. Some things are immutable.

1. “There’s no such thing as absolute truth. What’s true for you may not be true for me.”
This is so silly and specious that it almost can’t be answered. It’s like saying, “If God can do anything, can he make a rock he can’t move?” Relativists love this one. They think they HAVE us with this (to them) unanswerable question. They think this means God is helpless, toothless, and useless. It gives them leave to behave in any manner they choose without fearing any consequences. Of COURSE there is absolute truth. Does the sun rise in the morning? Do fish need water? Care to step off a cliff and test that theory? Ridiculous. Brush this one away like a fly.

2. “Christianity is no better than any other faith. All religions lead to God.”
Oh, really? Does the maker of this statement really believe Islam, for instance, really leads to God? You can know a tree by the fruit it produces. Do all those other religions produce goodness and truth? Produce positive changes in people’s lives? Promote mercy and justice? Provide hope for a life after death? Judeo-Christianity is better than “any other faith,” regardless of how long that “other faith” has been around. Anybody who thinks about this with their whole brain for more than a second or two will realize it.

3. “The Old and New Testaments contradict one another in numerous places. If an omnipotent God inspired the Bible, He would never have allowed these errors.”
Ah. Another attempt to sound smart. The speaker apparently knows all about the Nature of God, and can state what He would NOT do. The Bible was written by men. They wrote of what they knew at the time. They were inspired by the Spirit of God to write what they experienced. And, the speaker apparently hopes to be able to toss this baby out with the bathwater.

4. “I don’t need to go to Church. As long as I’m a good person, that’s all that really matters.”
Right. Define “good person.” This one might work if people actually did act like “good people.” But they don’t, and that’s why they need to be in church. This is just another excuse to sleep in on Sunday, do whatever they want (as long as they don’t “kill somebody or rob a bank,” of course), and continue without changing their lives. Like they said, Good people. So, what’s wrong with being HOLY people? Isn’t that what God has called us all to do? Church shows us the way to holiness of life. Of course, it’s a difficult way, with lots of temptations and obstacles, and most people simply don’t want to do the work involved in getting holy.

5. “You don’t need to confess your sins to a priest. You can go straight to God.”
In the first place, a priest is ordained by a linear “heir” of the first Apostles, and the power imparted to him is real spiritual power. Don’t sell his office short. It is ordained. The man may be a sinner, but his Orders are holy.

Churches have requirements for behavior. Sinful acts generally go against these requirements. And, besides, Confession to a priest is going straight to God. Priests are called and ordained specifically to comply with Christ’s orders: “Whose sins you shall forgive shall be forgiven them, and whose sins you shall retain shall be retained of them.” This really does indicate a priest’s role in forgiveness. Picture a brick wall. Now, take out one brick at a time. It won’t be long before that wall collapses. Same way with sins. When we sin, we pull a brick from the wall of the congregation. The priest, by virtue of those Holy Orders, replaces those bricks properly. An oversimplification, of course, but remember that you won’t be speaking to Great Brains.

6. “If the Church truly followed Jesus, they’d sell their lavish art, property, and architecture, and give the money to the poor.”
This one is usually the killing slice, the coup de’ grace. Everybody KNOWS that rich, nasty ol’ Catholic church sits on all the money in the world! The Vatican Museum is a MUSEUM. Those treasures belong to the world, and everybody with a wit knows it. So, ok. Let’s say the Church sells all that stuff. Maybe realizes a couple billion dollars or so. Then what? How long will that amount feed all the poor in the world? “Give the poor the money?” How many poor people does this questioner think there are in the world?? Two billion dollars would buy maybe a week’s worth of food, then the money would be gone. Same with just handing it out. The treasures in the Vatican museum are in the safest possible place, and anybody in the world can come and see them any time. The Vatican museum is open to the public, and this is another silly, specious, unthought-out phony argument, made by SELFISH leftists who wouldn’t give a personal cent to the poor, but demand that the government step in and give my tax dollars freely. Figures.

7. “Dissent is actually a positive thing, since we should all keep our minds open to new ideas.
More relativism. This just means, “I want to rebel against the rules of the Church, against the Laws of God, and against anyone who says I can’t do what I want.” Typical relativistic “thought.” I’ll bet these are people who have never had to do a single thing they didn’t want to do, or a thing that was difficult (like obey), or to deny themselves a single physical satisfaction.

8. “Properly interpreted, the Bible does not condemn homosexuality. Rather, it weighs against promiscuity — whether homosexual or heterosexual. Therefore, we have no reason to oppose loving homosexual relationships.”
This is blasphemy. These people know a “proper interpretation” of the Bible, I take it. What they really mean is, “carefully twisted and parsed…” The Bible repeatedly and vehemently opposes and condemns homosexual behavior in men and in women. This myth is just more relativism: More people who don’t want anybody to tell them there are lines that must not be crossed. What part of “Thou Shalt Not…” do they not understand? More people who just want to go to hell in their own special fashion, and take as many like-minded folks with them as possible.

9. “Catholics should follow their conscience in all things . . . whether it’s abortion, birth control, or women’s ordination.”
More relativistic twaddle. The Church tells us to form our consciences PROPERLY, and “properly” implies compliance with certain absolute norms. This means that a good conscience conforms to the Laws of God. This one is related to the lie regarding “dissent,” above. These people could very easily go out and make their own church. It’s being done every day, by many people. But they don’t want that. Their aim is simple–to destroy the Catholic Church. Building their own denomination isn’t part of their plan. Women can’t be ordained in the Catholic Church because it doesn’t have the authority to do so. There were no women ordained in the early Church, so there are no historic grounds for tradition regarding women’s ordination.

10. “Natural Family Planning is just the Catholic version of birth control.”
They can call it whatever they like. NFP is submitting one’s sexual identity to God. What IS “birth control?” If they mean “contraception,” then they are 100% wrong. There is no “contra-” about NFP. Every act of intercourse is left open to the possibility of life. Don’t want a baby right now? Don’t have intercourse. But, of course, this means having some discipline, and denying oneself a momentary pleasure for three or four days. Such a BURDEN! Pathetic spoiled brats have to have their fun NOW. Behaving like adults is so much like work.

11. “Someone can be pro-choice and Catholic at the same time.”
Isn’t it interesting how many of these false assumptions have to do with sex? One would think sex was the most important thing in the world. Well, in the minds of a lot of relativists, it probably is. Unable to control their sex drives, they make up plausible-sounding platitudes to cover up the fact that they just can’t keep it in their pants/panties. “Pro-Choice” means “pro-ABORTION.” No ifs, ands, or buts about it. If I say that my choice was LIFE, I will be attacked and calumniated. Pro-”choicers” believe that it is okay to slaughter a child in its mother’s womb simply because it exists inconveniently. The Catholic Church has always stood strongly against all forms of humans playing God: In-vitro fertilization means forcing conception out of season. Artificial insemination, the same. Abortion supporters believe that unborn children are part of the mother’s body, when in truth, the baby is its own person–half the time, a different sex, often a different blood type, with a life not theirs to take. These people want unfetterd, indiscriminate sex whenever they want it, with no hindrances or consequences, especially children. The ugliest, most brutal form of selfishness.

12. “People’s memories of their past lives prove that reincarnation is true . . . and that the Christian view of Heaven and Hell is not.”
LOL! Anything, as long as it removes their responsibility to God. Jesus says it is given to man to die once, then comes judgment. There really are no do-overs, no second chances. I guess people who want what they want when they want it will be expecting extra lives in which to get what they didn’t get in the life before. Whatever. Some people will believe anything, as long as it doesn’t involve believing in Jesus Christ, His ministry, His crucifixion, and his Resurrection, and the responsibility that comes with faith. I have something to tell them: “Good luck! I hope you like warm climates.”

Here Comes Christmas December 20, 2008

Oh, jinkies! It’s Christmas time! For those of you who say Christmases are always the same, may I only reply, “I envy you!”

Our first Christmas in Wasilla was brown. It came on the heels of some record heat (“hot” to an Alaskan is around 80 F. Except in Fairbanks, where it really gets HOT, like in the 90s, to balance out its minus 50 winters) which we got to enjoy for a few weeks after arriving. The next Christmas was snowy, and bitterly cold, down into the -20′s. This one, so far, is promising to be a mild, snowy version. We already have a foot of snow on the level. For Wasilla, that’s pretty good. For Valdez, on the other hand, it’s baby stuff. Valdez regularly “enjoys” winters with fifty feet of snowfall.

But, I digress. This year is different because we have to celebrate it early. The daddy of the clan has been called back to work, and will leave on Monday, and will be there for two weeks, so we are going to have Christmas before he goes. Of course, some things just can’t be re-scheduled, so there will be another celebration on Christmas day. The kids should love that.

it’s hard to believe that St. Nicholas has already visited the parish and talked with the children. We will celebrate the Liturgy of the Vigil of the Nativity on Christmas Eve. Then, Father, that lucky guy, will get to drive back to Anchorage to celebrate it once more, at a more traditional hour (closer to midnight) for the main parish there. And, once again, it will be all over, and the letdown will set in. The kids will have most of their gifts destroyed or mangled, the grownups will be casting rueful looks at the bathroom scales, and where before, we were dreading putting up the tree and decorating, now we are confronted with taking it all back down and putting it away for another year. And, the routine will settle back to “normal.”

But, next year, Christmas will be just as different as it was this year. And we will all prepare, celebrate, and enjoy it just as much as we ever did. The more things change, the more they stay the same.