Australian night.

My Australian friend has an Australian house guest and invited me to an Australian Indian curry dinner. It was delicious.

The HAIR!!!!

This morning before Mass the temple virgins - there were three of us for set-up - converged and one of them told the rest of us that someone had complained about the Rabbi's hairy leg or legs. The other one said that there was a small group of ultra-convervatives in our temple. All three of us thought that this was pretty ridiculous because at the most the Rabbi shows his ankles. I am near sighted. Don't know if his ankles have hair or no hair. The Rabbi came with socks today. I asked about his hairy legs but I don't think he was aware of the ultra-conservatives's comment. Rabbi Seligman will get a medical certificate that he needs to show his hair which will be available for transplant to any ultra-conservatives.....

And as he was offered up.....

The Rabbi was supposed to slaughter a goat this morning. He sharpened the knife and then.....stuck it by mistake into his knee. So they brought out the special ceremonial chair and lifted him up on to the altar. On the way down it was easier to just roll him into a Persian carpet and with a little push let gravity work. I should have been a playwright.

Web templates

All day I have been fooling around with web templates. I saw a nice template that I could redesign for "my" underground church. Downloaded the template but could get only half of it working and that not even they way they showed it on the company's web site. Now I have a headache. Tomorrow I will call and see if there is an answer. It would really make a nice church web site. Otherwise I will copy it and that will take much longer.

The Queen

Our temple queen sent me a nice but strange e-mail. "I am contacting you again...." Again? AGAIN? I have never had any previous contact with her. My antennae are up. Why would she pretend she had contacted me previously? Strange.

Ploughing

PREPARING THE SOIL FOR THE CROP Ploughing. The ploughing of the ground in Oriental fashion is quite primitive. The plough, which at best is a slight implement, can be carried if necessary two miles to the farmer's place of work. Of course by comparison with modern ploughs, it could be said merely to scratch the surface at the soil. The ploughman holds the one handle of the plough with one of his hands, while he carries the goad in the other hand, with which to prod the animals. JESUS said, "No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God" (Luke 9:62). He described the operation accurately in saying hand, i.e. one hand, rather than two hands, as is the case with a Western farmer. It would be fatal for the Palestinian farmer to look back, because his implement is so light that the worker often has to press down with all his weight upon it to keep it from leaving the furrow. The Eastern farmers will sometimes plough together, each man having his own plough and team of oxen, and one following close behind the preceding one. This sort of farmer's club is adopted as a protection from roving Bedouin robbers, and also because co-operation is desired when the wheat farms are large. Thus Elisha was found ploughing with eleven other ploughmen and a total of twenty-four oxen (I Kings 19:19).
Ploughing After Getting ready for ploughing. The farmer gets ready for ploughing after the first rain starts falling, if he has not already done so before. He will spend the time making sure that his plough is in good repair and ready for action. He may need to cut and point a new goad to use in prodding his team of oxen. He must also see to it that his yoke is smooth and fits the necks of the animals. An ill-shaped or heavy yoke would gall them. The LORD JESUS spoke of "the easy yoke" promised to His obedient followers (Matthew 11:30). When the ground has been softened sufficiently by the rain, then the ploughing can begin.

Feast Day

Today is the Feast of the three Archangels. My personal favorite is Gabriel. I often send my own guardian angel to remedial lessons with Gabriel. My own guardian angel has flunked GPS 101 so many times that I wonder if he is near sighted and needs glasses like myself. I think he is an interior spirit who does not like to drive in cars. Perhaps he gets car sick. I don't know. Other than that he is pretty good. When a person dies, does he or she still need a guardian angel? Is the guardian angel recycled? Did I get one from a different age? If mine was recycled and came from the horse and buggy era, that would explain a lot. What happens to the guardian angels whose charges end up in hell? They must be a depressed lot. Gabriel, Michael and Raphael - Happy Feast Day! Enjoy.

Project, project

I have this project to do for Steubengrille. Last week I drove to another country and talked to the DRE about what is going on in her church. I still want to interview a few people my own temple. All my catechetical programs will be entered on Microsoft Project. Each class will be color coded, followed up through the year. I still have two web sites. I will try to convert one to my St. Francis Church. I have blogged a lot but not done any web design for years. Frontpage does not even exist any more. That was a cool program then. Now it is Expression Web. The rabbi mused today that everyone on the Internet is a public document which could bite. I thought about how lucky I am that I don't have to care if it bites or does not.

Camelot

Yes, there once was a Camelot. Four women, carefree, meeting at the pool of the one who had a house on the water, eating fried chicken and fresh shrimp and listening to an Australian singer yodeling operas. I was the one who provided the music in case you wondered. We drank cheap wine by choice. Then the one with the house moved, her financial cushion vanished after she moved. The next one became ill and has been ill for so long that is is difficult to look at her and think there once was a healthy friend. She just had a stroke. The third one also moved but even before that became intolerable after the first one moved. The first one kept her in check. Camelot blew up.

The Queen gave the Rabbi's speech.

This Tuesday was Prinsjesdag for the Netherlands – the day Her Majesty Queen Beatrix gives a speech from the throne to officially open the Dutch parliamentary year. This day is also called Budget Day, as the Queen outlines the annual budget in her speech.

Click here for more recent photos of Queen Beatrix

Like so many other governments in the world, the Dutch have to cut back in order to preserve funds due to tough economic times, and that affects all citizens. Beatrix discussed that in her speech.

“The economic and social uncertainties are putting our stamina to the test,” the Queen told the politicians at Knight’s Hall in The Hague.

“The government is making an appeal to everyone to contribute to this — an appeal in this difficult period for everyone to build together a stronger society and a stronger economy in the best traditions of our country.”

But she spoke of hope and optimism during the difficult times.

“Our starting position is positive. The government is looking forward to an involved and open exchange of views. We would like to work with you towards solutions which are widely accepted.”

After giving her speech, the Queen and other members of the Dutch royal family, including Crown Prince Willem-Alexander and Princess Maxima, rode in gold trimmed carriages to Noordeinde Palace where they went out onto the balcony to wave to the many Dutch below.

The Netherlands’ budget cuts include raising the retirement level from 65 to 66 in 2020, and deep fund reduction to the social security system.

Source: Reuters, Radio Netherlands, AP

Two letters

I got two letters from my temple at the same time. One from the Welcome Committe with a list of the the ministries and contact information, one from the pastor inviting me to a welcoming brunch. I guess at the welcoming brunch I will drool over the food or the welcoming ministry will drool over me. It will be fun to meet the other newbees.

The Pope in Germany

The Pope came for an official state visit. That means coming into a very Protestant area - like Berlin. The Protestants and many Catholics thought that he would bring a "guest present." What they expected was approval for joint communion. That he could not and would not do that, many Catholics and Protestants did not understand.
Here are some of problems with Protestant groups:
Female pastors
Artificial Birth control (Yes, Catholics can practice birth control - just not the artificial kind)
Abortion
Homosexuality
Difference of transubstantiation versus consubstantiation. Look it up.
Belief of some groups that communion is a Happy Meal.
Divorce and remarriage. (Possible with Catholics but not a revolving door).
So my dear others if you are willing to give up all of the above the Pope will certainly give you a "guest present" next time.
No Pope will change Catholic morals, ethics and dogma for any group. That is why it is still ONE church under ONE Pope.

Sunday

On Sunday it was damp and that means the fleas jump out of the grass. Either I brought one in or there was one in the temple because during the homily in the temple I started to scratch my ankles. Any flea would find me. No, I could not flee either.

The Temple at Sunrise

Went to the temple this morning. Found a jacket that belonged to me and that the Rabbi wanted to sacrifice at the altar. Over my dead body. We fought over it. I won. Noticed that the Rabbi's ears are very close to his head. Looks very good, especially from behind. Why does one see that kind of stuff when one should be concentrating on God? He won't be riffed after all. They realized that a Jack in the Box would not cost any money but the person turning the crank has to be kosher and must have a degree from a rabbinical school and is VERY expensive. A Rabbi is cheaper. They made a contract with him. The Rabbi will work as gardener in his off time. Very fitting and very biblical. When I left the temple they were aerating the lawn. Very good lawn management.

Wow, wow, wow

I am so busy now that all the programs are restarting. Our Rabbi will be riffed and there will be a Jack-in-the-box instead. I am not sure who will turn the handle. I can't keep up with all the news. I will get a handicapped license. My knee and ankle have sinus problems and have a semi-permanent headache. My brain however is ageing gracefully. The only part - and the invisible part of course. Everything else is starting to wrinkle or sag or sprout something. Today I have a Third Order Black Hood meeting. Won't be home until late. Tomorrow I am teaching Revelation....Lost much of my retirement stash again. Same boat as most people. It is sickening. That is the wonderful Sunday news.

Walking with a Purpose

Great, great morning. Nice people. More a study how to get closer to God than a specific study of one of the books in the Bible but very interesting and very nice. Young mothers. Not very bible literate. The one next to me said she came because her daughter is in Catholic school and she can't answer the daughter's questions. Yet, she said she was a catechist once! I had to laugh because last weekend in our retreat we discussed how parents were Catholic illiterate and had to be re-evangelized by their children and here a perfect example sat next to me. God has a sense of humor.
Funny discussion about heaven. One young woman wanted to swim under water without fear. One wanted to fly around. Most wanted to see their loved ones and that included dogs etc. I think we will neither swim or fly ...... or remarry as Jesus said.

Aging Crazefully

This seminar is not for me. Nice people but I am going nuts. Next time I bring my knitting. Pulled my chair back today and pretended to take notes on my I-pad, made sure the sound was off and played Peggle, a computer game. I am good at it. I am beating every six year old.
I just don't need this kind of advice, if it is advice, whatever it is. How do I back out gracefully? Perhaps it will snow every Wednesday night pretty soon.

Chastity to Chaz

Chastity Bono is now Chaz Bono. Female to male. Does that mean he could become a Catholic priest now?

Mother Superior

Mother Superior, the mother of the nun, had an ice cream sundae last night. She is an iddy biddy thing. Half way through she stopped eating. Said she was full. After about ten minutes she began eating again and finished the sundae. On the way out she wanted to know if we had heard her passing gas. Apparently passing gas relieved her of her fullness and that made it possible for her to finish her sundae!

Holy Moses

I have about 18 blogs under one e-mail. All except this one are more or less inactive or are rarely used or updated. Leave it to the Rabbi to find the one with the heading "Victoria's Secrets." Not only that but he knew who created the blog - me! Actually I was VERY restrained in my comments because some of these guys are really stupid if not rotten. I have to add Chucky to the list one of these days.

Having fun

The nun is coming with her mother and we are going out to the Diner. I have a million things to do but this is more fun. Her mother has never been with us. The old lady is blind and obsessed by her weight but I really like her as I like most old people. I call her Mom. She does not mind. Very different from my own mother. That would take 10 blogs to explain.

Questionable

I think the only program that I might not really like is the "Gracing agefully" program. I don't have time to think about it and I don't feel that old yet and I don't listen to my body anyway. Tomorrow is another jam session. However, there is nothing wrong with the program itself if you are waiting to be cremated momentarily. Getting old is the reverse of Hurry up and Wait. We wait and wait and wait growing older and then we go up in smoke in a real hurry.
(Pearl of Wisdom by Lara)

Change in weather

I guess it was the change in weather today but I have been limping. My bones are getting creaky.

Mice headaches

The mice are nice BUT occasionally they do give me a headache. The group last night wanted to continue with my class (basic basket weaving) but did not want to go to a class which would have exposed them to advanced basket weaving with an internationally known basket weaver. In a way flattering but now I can't go myself and I would have loved to go. Have a deacon mouse in my class. He blesses all the finished baskets.

The Harem

Rabbi Seligman took his harem to a restaurant at the Pacific. He is like King Solomon: 300 wives and 700 concubines or was it the other way around? Anyway myriads and myriads of women. I had not been at this particular restaurant ever but regularly would pick up Fr. Valeria and take him to another restaurant a little bit further down the road. It was a sentimental journey.

Sleeping

There are days when I cannot sleep and days when I sleep through wind and hail and thunder. At the retreat the woman I shared a bathroom with got up at 5 a.m. I could not sleep any longer. I got up after her and at 6 a.m. we both read in the breakfast room. We were the only ones. The next morning she got up at the same time and I slept right through until 7:30 a.m. In Toronto some years back when the Pope visited I was the only one who slept at night through music and prayers and everything else until the rains came and I was literally in the mud. The people around me were crying because they could not sleep. The stewardess said to me at the airport going home: "Madam, YOU were here?"

Volunteering

Seems to be a four letter word. We are ministers. Be this as it may, I have not heard from anyone through the official channels. All the contacts I have made have been my own and that went well. Have had no contact with the Queen. Perhaps that is good. I opened the bulletin today and they have a Khazakistan Feast Day coming up in October: A roasted goat, stuffed with a turkey, stuffed with a chicken, stuffed with a pigeon, stuffed with a starling......Ought to be very good as long as they leave the eyes in the goat. That is a special delicatessen.

Kiddie Mass

Our Kiddie Mass went well. It was very adorable. I think the children behave better when the parents are not around. The children are very small, have the attention span of a mosquito. Considering that it was just loverly.

Revelation

I am starting to teach this class tonight but we are oversubscribed and had to turn people away. I am not happy because if I could teach in my home, I could accommodate more people. This is at a friend's house. Oh, Chucky you are such an ox.

Parents and catechists and the retreat

We all agreed that parents needed to be more educated concerning Mass and especially needed to be encouraged to teach their children. Apparently this comes from the generation which were taught that Mass was a Happy Meal. When I go to a Jewish Temple I see much more reverence in dress and behavior by all. Rabbi Seligman you really have your work cut out for you. Perhaps some religious kiddie things could be made available before Mass like little Mass books. The kids need to re-evangelize the parents in the future.
Catechists are another problem. Their training is dismal. If  Catechist Nothing teaches nothing what do you get?

Silent

This was a silent retreat. I loved it. I found a book in the library on Pierre Teilhard de Cardin and could not put it down. These were his letters home from Cairo from 1905 to 1908. I learned more about Cairo than I could have learned from any history book. I could read during all the meals and did not have to make small talk. The last small talk was at Friday evening's dinner and I could have killed the woman opposite me. She claimed that Social Security is falling apart because of abortions. It was so stupid I did not have an answer.

Pulling in lay people

We had a 70+ altar server at Mass who obviously had never done this or had not done it for 60 years. It turned out to be absolutely comical. He confused water with the wine, brought things up and took them away in the wrong order etc. etc. It was a funny to watch. He had white hair, wore a white alb, had on white slacks and wore white shoes. He gave the impression of a mental warden in a 1930ies hospital and acted just like one. Who said the Mass was boring?

The retreat

Went to a wonderful retreat this weekend. The black and white hood retreat master came from New York and explained the changes in the Mass coming up. Not just the changes but he went into much detail about what the Mass is. Really fantastic. Best I have heard so far. He emphasized the heavenly aspects of Mass and therefore the usage of a more heavenly language. Well, it is growing on me.

Retreat

I have a black and white retreat coming up today. No black and white ball, a retreat. Dinner and prayer tonight, follow the schedule tomorrow, and come home after Sunday's Mass. I will read Revelation and the Gospel of Matthew, time permitting, because that is what I need for my various activities right now. There are also some 20 pages of Rules and Regulations in black and white by the Black and Whites. So no blogs until Sunday evening.

Dyslexic

Yes, folks I am. It is very difficult for the likes of me to proofread my own scribbles or to read out loud without reading something else into the text. In my times one called it inattentiveness. As St. Paul would say: I am supplementing in my mind what I have missing in my body.

Who is the culprit?

Our Rabbi was ticked this morning because someone is leaving Novenas in the temple: If you pray nine days this prayer, the Bishop will be raptured up. Well, that could be VERY dangerous. We would all cry, wouldn't we? We are to destroy this kind of prayer if we see it. I don't like this kind of prayer because they only give you half of the directions. For this prayer to be effective one has to go nine days around the Catholic Center with Alpenhorns and THEN the walls will come down and the Bishop will go up. I have only seen this prayer work once and it takes a Cardinal to pray it. He went around a building for nine days with Alpenhorns and the building came down and a prayer garden sprung up. I was told one gets this power through ordination.

Bible Class at the Temple

I went this morning to Bible Class at the Temple. It was just an introduction today. It reminded me more of Vacation Bible School and Pep Talk. It is first and foremost for young(er) mothers - and is very successful as these things are. There was a woman who gave a reflection on prayer and she was very good. There is definitely a place here for other study bible classes. I have gone so long to John Bosco in Steubenville where I have learned the pedagogy of presenting bible classes that the shortcomings are noticeable to me but would not be noticeable to anyone else. I plan to continue to learn more about this particular bible class. This one looks more like a spiritual growth journey for women. Well, we all need that. I will be in a 101 class starting next week. Starting Monday night I will start teaching my own course: Revelation.

Smart Bulldogs - Great Video

http://www.youtube.com/watch_popup?v=cqxTUxzOceE&feature=youtube_gdata_plaJ

Voting

Promise to myself:
I will not vote for anyone who will not bring our troops home. We have no business in Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan all the .....annies. I read foreign newspapers every morning on my I-pad. We are becoming the laughing stock of the world. If I were to get my master's degree in Germany for example, I would pay zero tuition. ZERO. Our power goes off when it rains because we still have above ground power lines which do not exist any longer in most western countries. Our public transportation system is a joke. Someone said to me that our only friend is Israel. Yes, at a tune of 3 billion a year and the size to what? Maryland perhaps. Pour 3 billion into the Maryland economy and I will be your friend, too. My father once told me that one does not give away more than what one owns. Our treasury does not own anything but we still give away. Charity begins at home. Create jobs, provide food and shelter for the poor.

$24.00

I won the lottery. A super grand total of twenty-four bucks! Lord, where are the extra zeros? The nun said the Lord gave me the extra zeros but after the decimal point. Ouch!

Gladiolous

Gladiolous saw the Chucky tombstone (a sign of erection and resurrection) today in the sunroom and wanted to know what it was. "Oh," I said offhandedly "it's my Halloween decoration." Not sure she recognized the picture. She probably thought it is one of my many friends who died. Gladiolous does not think much of Halloween. Her group prays intently on Halloween because "there are so many black masses celebrated on that day." They practice a mixture of religion and superstition. They all belong to the Church of the Seven Flags. The Big Herod still comes once or twice a year from Canada and does Healing the Family Tree Masses. Yep, monkey sits on top of the tree and shouts to the dog below: "Heel baby, heel!"

Condo

Miss Hitchley-Fritchley just came and brought back the keys to the condo. I wish her well. I will try to rent the condo again. Too bad her boss screwed her with his attitude towards me but she may have very much initiated his bad behavior. Don't know and at this point do not care. I miss the people, not the management.

AARP calling

I got this automated call from AARP. They left a recorded message that I am getting closer to the doughnut hole. How close is close anyway? That means my prescription drugs will not be covered for a while. I assume that after I spend a godless amount of money out of pocket I will be covered again. That is how the system works. Last year I fell into the doughnut hole in December. The solution was to wait a few weeks and not to take the drugs in December because in January of each year one is automatically covered again. I need to invest in a bike! It is more important that I should exercise than worry about drug intake. The pills cost a few pennies but are being sold to the people for hundreds of dollars. Over my dead body.....

How many bible classes are enough?

Tomorrow, one starts in my own temple and I have signed up for it. Monday nights, if not listening to Fr. Matera three more times, I will teach Revelation to a group from the Church of the Head Dwarf. Tuesday mornings I am at the Church of the Crucified where I have been a facilitator or co-facilitator for years. So the Gospel of Matthew, Revelation and James are currently covered + whatever my own church does. I could not be happier.

After breakfast

After breakfast I went to the post office to send some books to my son in Kazakhistan. Son belongs to the black and white hoods and needs prayers. Then stopped by the nun and dropped off some material for the ageing that I had picked up at my parish recently. With two elderly parents living in her house now, she needs all the help she can get. She again said that the 9/11 service in our temple was absolutely wonderful. She said that most churches just said a little prayer during Mass. Ours was special. It indeed was.

Finding the right dog model

This morning I took the Rabbi around the countryside trying to find the proper stray dog who could model for us. I am in need of a small plaster cast model of a dog to go along with my small architectural monument of a tombstone honoring Chucky. Dog and monument go together. Once our building committee has approved the monument, I will build it 70 feet high in my backyard. We never found a proper dog model but there will be other times to conduct searches.

Halloween

I don't decorate for Halloween. Just don't have the time and my religious Gladiosus would have a fit. She is from south of the border and she'd be attacked by demons if I did. However, today I was in the craft store looking for something else and I found the perfect little do-dad for Halloween. It is a R.I.P picture frame and I put Chucky's picture in it. Now if I only could find a little dog figurine that I could put against this make-believe tombstone, raising one leg, I would be in heaven.

Abortions in Liechtenstein - Long live Prince Alois!

Over the weekend, Hereditary Prince Alois of Liechtenstein warned his people that if they vote to allow abortion into their tiny Alpine principality, he would veto the law, forbidding the procedure to take place. This means when Liechtenstein votes next week, their votes may mean little.

Click here for more images of Prince Alois at Daylife.com

“We think fewer people will vote because they’ll ask themselves, what’s the point? It really is an attempt to actively influence the referendum,” said Helen Konzett, who helped gather the 1,500 signatures necessary to call the vote, set for Sunday, September 18th.

Many voters in Liechtenstein are angry at Prince Alois, who seems to have inherited his father’s – Prince Hans Adams II – staunch Roman Catholic views.

During National Day last month, Alois made a speech in regards to allowing abortion into the country. He said doing so would lead to late term abortions for a fetus with a disability. “Until now we have been proud to support people with disabilities in our country. The proposal would discriminate against such people and allow them to be eliminated in the womb,” he said.

Currently, any woman in Liechtenstein who gets an abortion could face one year in prison, unless her life was in danger or she was younger than 14 at the time. She could even face imprisonment if she gets the procedure outside of the country. Because of the risk, many women are afraid to discuss abortion in the principality.

As for the doctor who performs it, that person could be in prison for three years.

If Prince Alois vetoes the law, he would be the first Prince of Liechtenstein to do so since his grandfather, Prince Franz Joseph II, blocked hunting laws in the 1980s.

While many monarchs worldwide have been losing their powers over the years, the Princes of Liechtenstein saw theirs increase in 2003. That was when Prince Hans Adam II pushed for a constitutional amendment allowing sovereign Princes more power.

Source: Scotsman News

Gospel of Matthew

Last night I went to the first of four lectures given by Fr. Frank Matera on the Gospel of Matthew. Superb. We had gone through the Gospel of Matthew in Steubenville and I was most interested to compare. Fr. Matera divided the Gospel differently and I got new insights again. Also he called gospel reading akin to being occupied with "his lover." Similar what I picked up recently that the Bible can be looked at as a person whom one loves dearly.
I will be teaching Revelation to a group from the Church of the 12 Dwarfs and told them to come to this as well. Most of them could come and we almost had a large table for ourselves. Actually I should not call the Church of the 12 Dwarfs that way. It was the Church of Lovely People with a Head Dwarf. I should call it the Church of the Head Dwarf. Sounds like Church of the head lice. Fits as well.
Fr. Matera will be retiring next year and it will be a loss around here. He is nationally and internationally famous for New Testament studies and his specialty is St. Paul. There were way over 100 people at the lecture.

Morning temple service

Our Rabbi announced that he had nothing but rain on his vacation in a foreign country. Same here. The Rabbi should have gone to Las Vegas. It does not rain there or rarely.
This morning a lady pulled me aside after temple services and asked if she should go to her doctor who is a Buddhist. Would anything demonic attack her by going there? I assured her that nothing would attack her because he/she is a Buddhist. She also said that she turned down a potential tenant because he professed to be a Buddhist and wanted to chant in the morning. I would draw the line there as well. Who wants an early morning chanter in the house. Bad enough the dogs bark.
I told her to sprinkle some Holy Water around in her house but NOT by the bucket. Just a little. She liked the idea. So we left it at that. OK Rabbi Seligman - here is a nice person, charismatic, who has no place to go with her concerns. Down the line a little charismatic prayer group would not hurt. No, you don't have to supervise. There are others who can.

Mercy

This is a Jewish view on the attributes of Mercy. I always get a lot out of Jewish explanations to enrich my Catholic faith.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thirteen_Attributes_of_Mercy

Little gifts to give away

In my old parish, the pastor gave away little crosses to people visiting. As soon as the pastor left the parish, the Mrs. Hitchley-Fritchley stopped it. Don't know why because we still had a lot of crosses left years later. I always liked the idea of giving something away to visiting or new parishioners. Yesterday the nun went to listen to one of her former tenants who just happens to be a preaching minister. In his church they also gave away little trinkets and both of us thought that it was a nice gesture. Now I am in a temple with a great Rabbi. Perhaps we could give away something again? Think about it dear Rabbi Seligmann: a scroll with seven seals? A vial of Holy Water? A bag of sea water from the Pacific? A salmon? A small beer barrel? The possibilities are endless.

9/11 Remembrance

I went with the nun to a 9/11 remembrance last night at my temple. It was unbelievable beautiful. The Rabbi was there, also a baptized Minister of some sort. The music and the liturgy was just wonderful. I had told the nun about our queenly Queen and she identified her without me having to point her out. Funny. She gave a very nice reading. Oh, yes, it was quiet and the choir showed up in more subdued colors fitting for the occasion. Oh, yes, one of our Deacons was there as well. The short one.

Today is September 11

Yes, it changed us. Since then we have been in endless wars, killed more innocent people than there were ever killed in New York, bankrupted the nation and are considered a third world country by many nations that once looked up on us. Our infrastructure is non-existent, the lights go out, the trains don't run. We will fix it by eliminated the government (Tea Party) which means we will eliminate the government for the poor and hungry. Yes, we had our own revolution during the last ten years. A revolution of madness and like all revolutions they never turn out with the good intentions with which they are started.

Sunday at the Zoo

I wasn't at the zoo but that is how it unfortunately felt like this morning at Mass. I messed up and ended up at the 9:30 instead of the 8:00 o'clock Mass. It used to be that the parents controlled their children. Three strikes and you are out. No more. The mother in front of me helped her five year old finish a dinosaur puzzle, the three year old was hushed every minute or so by either father or mother who did not mind hushing the child but were oblivious of the effect to the rest of us. Then on my right it got even worse. A father smiled vapidly as his two small daughters thought this was play time. The two girls in front of me decided to use the pew for acrobatics. Nothing like sharing the antics of small unruly children in church. We were not perfect either but my father would have given me ONE look and that would have quieted me for the next two hours if needed. Can't imagine that the Rabbi was happy with this. The sound of the choir was nice - first time I heard them. Dress code? Oy-vey! I don't care if they come in bathing suits if they are out of sight but if they are half naked in front of you that's a bit much. What happened to plain white blouses and black skirts and slacks? That would be a more reverent picture. Well, it was not a good morning - I guess you can tell.

Morning prayer

I attended two morning prayers with two different Miss Hitchley-Fritchleys this past week. The first one was the Youth Minister. I was pleasantly surprised. Nice woman, also gave a little reflection. Then on Friday another Miss Hitchley-Fritchely entered. You could tell that it was the Queen who ruled and reigned. I guess Queens have to do that. It was not quite the egalitarian atmosphere as before. No reflection either. Don't know what to think. Too early to make up my mind.

The Temple

I went to a bible class this morning at the Church of the Crucified. One of the facilitators told me that she recently attended a Sunday service at our temple. Apparently the tall Deacon's robe opened and there he was with his shorts exposed and his bare legs visible. Gasp! She did not think it was an appealing sight. She did not say that more was exposed - I was all ear at that point. God said to Moses that the priests had to wear britches during temple service. Are shorts britches? Not enough if your robe opens. I assured her that in due time the Chief Rabbi will take care of all abuses etc, etc. She was satisfied - for right now.

How does one age gracefully?

I went to a meeting on Wednesday night. It was nice but rather dull (for me) and the subject was "how to age gracefully." I hear it all the time but I never really thought about it and I came to these conclusions:
a) that I really don't have time to think about aging. I am too busy.
b) that I will forget that I will have gotten Alzheimer's when the time comes.....Now THAT is ageing gracefully!
c) that physically it is an impossibility unless you got some great genes.

Dear Rabbi Seligmann

Someone from the Church of the Seven Flags asked me months ago what we did at the temple of Dwarfs concerning communications. I told him what you had started (weekly e-mails of readings and comments + news as well as survey) and obviously he took our discussions back to them and they ran with it. You might want to look at their web page. They added a few more things. You would come over better on video but the idea is not bad. Their overall design is not that good as they are trying to push new elements into a mediocre web page.

New Hybrids

We are not only getting new car hybrids but also new fruit hybrids. Plums and Cherries make a Pleurry. Peach and Nectarine make a Peacharine. I picked up something speckled the other day and I found out it is a Pluot - a Plum and Apricot jointed together. Actualy it was very good. I wonder what a Pluerry, Peacherine and Pluot would make - I guess just a Plot.

Morning prayer on Wednesday

Today is Wednesday. Went to morning prayer. One of the Miss Hitchley-Fritchleys led it and did a very nice job. She is the youth minister at our temple. Spoke to her afterwards and she is interested in letting her youth group go up to Canada to hand out soaps and socks.
Oh, I forgot. The fire department made a show in front of the office this morning. Was told that the dry walls drying set off the fire alarm. Yesterday the sprinklers were going. Our Rabbi has a water fetish, so water does not surprise me, fire alarms do. Of course the seniors refuse to pray in choir today. "It does not matter, the prayers are being prayed." This group digs in! Went to have a cup of coffee afterwards with the seniors. Sent off of my 10 page paper to my advisor in Steubenville. Now I have to start working on my project....scary

Poor in America

This is a true e-mail from a friend who is barely making it. I guess they call it the middle class now. This friend is trying to get her nurse's licence reinstated. It costs money. She does not have it. Her husband has a minimum wage job and is suffering from liver cancer. Yes, they could have insurance but can't afford it. When are we going to take care of our own people?

Hi Lara,

Just got your note.  I am waiting to hear on my grant (to reinter the nursing profession), it may take up to 6 months and I just got a letter indicating that they have run out of funds for the 2011/2012 year. So even if I do get it, I cant sign up for the renewal class until 1012/2013. I know it seems like a long time, but I will not give up hope and allot can happen between now and then:-) In the meantime, I am looking into a job with the kaiser Foundation. Some one told me that they will pay for your renewal course if you sign up to work for them for a certain amount of time. I heard this from an elderly person at one of my prayer groups, who heard it from someone else? I have not been able to find anyone at Kaiser that knows what I'm talking about! But I will keep trying!

Richard is working full time and we are eligible for insurance starting October 1st, I don't think we will be able to get it this time around and we will have to wait until next October
our cost will be 449.00 per month! We can barely make ends meet with what he brings home now!!! I am looking into a major medical plan for a lot less, at least when I have a heart attack they might pay for a by-pass! My toe is doing great, my toe nail fell off and the infection finally cleared up after I was able to clean it and soak it. With the toe nail on, I couldn't get to the infection site. It was one of the most painful experiences to date! I just couldn't bring my self to go to the emergency room for an ingrown infected toe nail! Its a good thing I don't have diabetes or I would have lost my leg! My problem now is I am going to need a root canal. Its not bad now, but I know only to well what it feels like to need one of those!!!!! I wont be able to stand the pain!!!! I talked to western dental last week about a payment plan, but we don't qualify because we don't make enough money to pay our living expenses and make a payment to them. Its okay cause the interest rate was almost 30%! I have a couple of other dentists I am going to call, see what happens! I could have it pulled but its in front right next to my front tooth! I am so vain!!!!! I have to be careful with that because of my history with infection I got in the sinus cavity, I ended up losing that front tooth and almost my eye!

Well enough bad stuff............ How are things going??? We are all alive, praise God. The kids are all working and pulling their weight. Richard has been sick with a cold or the flu, being around kids does that to people. How about your new parish? Any eligible rich catholic men??? Just kidding:-)

Just heard my name called, my mother must be done with her infusion. We came early today because its going to be 105 today and I don't want to be on the road in the heat!
write soon and tell me what your thinking and reading these days, I love you very much and you are on my mind and in my heart always, God Bless and Keep You,
E

Lunch and Dinner

I am innundated with lunch and dinner invitations. This week some of the meetings and classes start again as well. I will have to make myself a time line and stick to it. Otherwise I won't be able to graduate from Steubenville next year. Today we went to a little German deli for lunch. The food was good. The menu was limited because of hurricane Irene. Why this should be so, I don't know. Perhaps, all the cows drowned. I would have liked to eat a Schnitzel. They did not have any German beer either. I don't think that had anything to do with Irene. They probably don't have a liquor license. We have another German restaurant in the area. Good beer and a millions different ones available but the food is lousy and expensive. There really are no good German restaurants in the area. We do have an Irish reataurant close by - it is very good. The lastest addition is a Cuban restaurant in the area. Not shabby either.

Year 2050 - Final Installment

Master Knight Bald Edwin had a change of heart and after giving thanks to the poor Franciscan friar for taking care of his horses, he opened his horse order to ALL. It did not cater exclusively to the rich any longer. Noblesse oblige went out of style. The Franciscan friar was the first poor person to join the order. He refused a horse and rode a mule. He lead them to Bethlehem which was difficult because of the wall. They came in and went out the back way bypassing the Big Herod. In Bethlehem they saw a little girl and they also offered her a sandwich - surprise, surprise she took it. They had found their second Catholic in the Holy Land. Upon their departure from Bethlehem they saw the beggar woman again from Jaffa. She had followed them. They had one more ham and cheese sandwich left and it was starting to smell. They offered it to the beggar woman and the woman grinned and took it. They had found the third and last Catholic in the Holy Land. The Master Knight decided to forgo all riches and give up his mansion in Rome. (You see why this is might be a fairy tale). Knights and the Ladies also gave up their possession and decided to be called the Order of the Mule from now on and live in voluntary poverty.
"And if they have not died they still live today." (Brothers Grimm)

Morning prayer

This am we prayed morning prayer with the short Deacon. He explained the Liturgy of the Hours to us which was very nice. When I pray alone, I obviously don't pray to myself back and forth. The turnout was pretty good, too. Better than it was last time I attended. Tomorrow one of the staff people will lead the morning prayers. I am really anxious to be there - see how good she is. Our Rabbi is visiting his great-grandmother in never never land this week. It is rained here this morning and the sprinklers sprunkeled.

A little bit of history

In the wake of World War II, the work of German-run missionary associations, including the Augusta Victoria Stiftung, were transferred to the care of non-German organizations. LWF became the owner of the Augusta Victoria property, which was then being used as a hospital. LWF-Jerusalem was one of the first projects of the Lutheran World Federation Department for World Service.

LWF-Jerusalem was known then as “LWF-Middle East Office” and worked in Syria and Jordan as well as the West Bank. Over the years, the organization and the people whom it serves have weathered over a half century of conflict.

In 1898, the German Kaiser Wilhelm II visited Jerusalem. For this visit, the wall of Jerusalem’s Old City was opened at Jaffa Gate so that the Kaiser and his entourage could process into the Old City on horseback with raised banners. Today this is the opening which cars drive through at the Jaffa Gate. After the Kaiser’s visit, he commissioned the construction of Dormition Abbey and the Augusta Victoria Guesthouse for German Pilgrims.For the construction of the Augusta Victoria, all building materials besides cement, stone, and water were imported from Germany. In the 50-meter high church tower there are four bells, the largest of which weighs six tons. When these bells were transported between Jaffa and Jerusalem, the road had to first be widened and repaired. The resulting cost was more than double the cost of transporting the bells from Hamburg to Jaffa. When the building was completed in 1910, it was the most modern construction in Jerusalem. It was the first building in the Holy Land to have electricity (provided by its own diesel generator).

Augusta Victoria was originally a pilgrims’ hospice on the Mount of Olives. The building, which was named after the Kaiser’s wife, the Empress Augusta Victoria, only served as a hospice for four years before its destiny was altered by a major conflict. At the beginning of World War I, the Ottoman Army used the building as a headquarters under the leadership of Jamal Pasha.

In 1917 the British Army took control of the building under the command of General Allenby. The Augusta Victoria Stiftung served as British Army Headquarters, and it was there that the documents for the surrender of Palestine were signed. Subsequently, the British High Commissioner used the Augusta Victoria Stiftung as a Headquarters. At this time the Transjordan Emirate was created.

Abdullah, the son of Hussein, the Sherif of Mecca, was called to the Augusta Victoria Stiftung, where Sir Winston Churchill, General Allenby, and the British High Commissioner met with him. The story goes that after keeping Abdullah waiting, and then blowing cigar smoke in his face, the British delegates pointed at him and proclaimed “You take Transjordan.”

During World War II, the British Army used the Augusta Victoria as a 1,400 bed hospital. Some of the barracks built over this period still exist on the property. Another sign of British occupancy can be seen in the 20 Lebanon cedars on the campus which had their tops removed and were used as Christmas trees.

With the end of the British Mandate period and the creation of the State of Israel in 1948, the International Committee of the Red Cross, under the leadership of Count Folke Bernadotte, established Augusta Victoria Hospital (AVH) for the Palestinian Refugees displaced during the war of 1948. The Red Cross rented the hospital from the Lutheran World Federation, into whose ownership it had recently been transferred. In 1950, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) took over responsibility for the Palestinian Refugees, and the Lutheran World Federation took over the operation of AVH from the Red Cross, with major financial support from UNRWA. At the time AVH, with 485 beds, was the largest hospital in Western Asia and more or less the only hospital in Jordan.

1967 was a disastrous year for AVH. The Mount of Olives was strategically important at the time for the Israelis, as a high ground looking over Jerusalem. During the war AVH was in the direct line of fire, and the top floor of the hospital was destroyed by shelling. The number of beds was reduced to 107. Rebuilding the hospital was not possible for a long time, and the roof was only rebuilt in the mid 1980s.

In recent years the hospital has faced financial challenges due chiefly to the political dynamics of the region. After the signing of the Oslo Accords, Palestinian institutions in East Jerusalem were cut off from their West Bank clientele as the authorities struggled over the fate of the Holy City.
Historically, Jerusalem has been the location of most secondary and tertiary care facilities for Palestinians, but with restrictions on movement in place, the East Jerusalem hospitals found themselves cut off from their natural client base and utilization dropped.

Despite these difficulties, AVH is now thriving. The hospital offers many specialized services, and the number of patients seen at the hospital is growing every year. Despite the difficulties of traveling to Jerusalem, West Bank residents are constantly arriving at the hospital in search of high-quality care and professionalism at prices they can afford.

Year 2050 - no 5

The crusaders of the Knights of the Horses finally made it to Jerusalem. There was a problem they had overlooked. They had made reservations at the Notre Dame hotel in Jerusalem. It is run by the Legionnaires of Christ and they had not forgotten or forgiven the Master of the Knights, Bald Edwin, how he had treated them in Bald-imore. A runner came through the Dung Gate to give them the message that there was no room at the inn. The Knights and Ladies however were in front of the Golden Gate and wondered how to get into the city. This gate has been bricked up for centuries. And how were they to enter into the city if they did find an open gate? On horseback? On foot? Trade in the horses for mules? It all was so complicated and weighed heavy on them. Finally they entered through the Jaffa Gate. Pretty soon they got lost in the Arab quarters and could neither go forward nor go backward. An Arab vendor approached them to sell rosaries. All dismounted and prayed the rosary. The Blessed Mother heard their plea and finally they found themselves in front of the Holy Sepulcher. They wanted to see the empty tomb. A toothless Orthodox priest asked for a buck to enter. They had arrived at the center of their spirituality. They were greatly moved. When they came out all their horses were gone. Bald Knight Edwin was not amused. He had to go over to the Notre Dame hotel and apologize and ask for help to find the horses. The horses were nibbling around the Garden of Gethsemane. A Franciscan friar took care of the horses. He also took a ham and cheese sandwich. Success, the first Catholic had been found. Only he did not want to be rescued. Where would they find the two others. Stay tuned!

Installment no 6 will follow.

I attend many meetings. This woman certainly came prepared.

New interface

This blog came out with a new interface. I am not much for interfaith. Have to stick to my own. So here I am back with the old interface.
I am finishing up a paper about my Steubenville experience. Ten pages.  My eyes are cross eyed from proof reading. Something I just cannot do. Time for a break.

The Good News

I opened my current e-mail from the parish and I had to read Sirach 27:30-28:7
I think the Lord sent me a message. I deleted a blog I wrote earlier today.

Year 2050 no 4

The Knights and Ladies were on a Liberty ship heading for Jerusalem. Each night they sang hyms and played Monopoly. There was a big discussion how one could easily identify the three Catholics in the Holy Land. It was decided to form a Ladies' Auxiliary which would make Ham and Cheese sandwiches which were to be offered to all the people in the Holy Land. Everyone rejecting a Ham and Cheese sandwich was deemed not to be Catholic. Thus they were determined to find the last three Catholics in the Holy Land. Knight Edwin the Bald gave his blessing. Upon arriving in Jaffa they disembarked. Out they came with their horses and all the Knights and Ladies and Master Knight Edwin the Bald at the head of the procession. Right at the harbor they saw a very old and poor woman.She held out her hand. She could not possibly be Catholic. No Ham and Cheese sandwich was offered. On they marched to find the local Mufti. Could he help them, they wondered? They knew better than to offer him a Ham and Cheese sandwich but did offer him some wine. The best French wine they had in their possession. He could not drink it - at least not with them or in front of them. They gave him 10 shekels to give them a guide for 10 days to take them to Jerusalem. He told them it was a very arduous trip and wanted 20 shekels for the guide but they refused. The local Mufti gave them a blind guide for 10 shekels. So they wandered around the wilderness for 40 days. The ham and cheese sandwiches started to smell and were given to the goats. The Knights and the Ladies started to grumble: "Why did you take us from Baltimore where we had cucumbers and onion and brought us here to the wilderness to die?" Knight Edwin the Bald prayed to God and every day they got a fresh ham and cheese sandwich delivered. The horses got hay. The guide disappared one night. Finally someone remembered that they had a GPS in their pocket. The Lord had answered their prayers! After forty days they saw Jerusalem in the distance.

Installment no 4 to follow

Bad Hair Day?

I think I was depressed today. Came out in my blogging. I blog for myself. Some people might have had different experiences from mine. You are so lucky.

Universal Salad/Universality

Rabbi Seligman gave a wonderful homily today about our Universal Salad. Told us that the Sacramentary will change in November to accomplish this. As a famous German philosopher once said: "Das juckt mich nicht!" That does not scratch me. My priest friends are divided among themselves if this is good or bad. English is a business language. Not some poetic Latin language. We are trying to get a square peg in the proverbial round hole. I will have my Mass card in front of me probably for the rest of my life. So be it. In the meantime we will supposedly say the same thing in English, French, German, Kazakhistani or whatever. If I don't speak any these other languages how useful is it? Is there a temple police? The English version was fine by me. Now we are trying to frou-frou it up. Make it more poetic. Oh-la-la! Next will come liturgical dancing and we will do the Cancan. Some might say in the Catholic Church one goosesteps already. Will the choirs of the Catholic Church march in in Lederhosen? Ah -  what a wonderful Universal Salad.

Year 2050 - no 3

The Liberty ship with Knight Edwin the Bald and all of his entourage took off from Baltimore harbor. Several weeks later they arrived in Venice. Venice had always been a staging area for crusades and the knights and the ladies wanted to get advice from the Doge. "How do we rescue the three remaining Catholics in Jerusalem?" they wanted to know. "You will have to buy them from the Mufti," the Doge replied. "Perhaps you will have to dodge, too, if you get attacked by the infidel dogs." "This gets very complicated," Knight Edwin the Bald replied. "Too many d's! Can you give us an f word? Like fortune?" "We do not play Wheel of Fortune here," the Doge replied. "Each Catholic will cost you 30 shekels of silver." The knights and the ladies went sightseeing in Venice and saw all the treasures that previous pilgrmages had brought back to Venice and thought that a 90 shekels of silver would be a good investment and the returns would be a thousandfold. All the knights and ladies knew about smart investments. That is why they belonged to the Order of the Horses to begin with. They passed one of their cloaks around and in no time had they collected watches, necklaces and hearing aids worth much more than 90 shekels of silver. They also discussed what treasures they would bring back from Jerusalem for their grandchildren. Perhaps they could bring back the empty tomb. Well, it was an idea.  They said good-bye to the Doge and with much cheering and encouragement continued their journey to Jerusalem. As this point nobody had any idea how they would find the three remaining Catholics in Jerusalem. How would they look like? Where would they be?

Installment no 4 will follow

Year 2050 - no 2

So Bald Knight Edwin sent his town criers all over the land. "Hear me, hear me!" they cried. "Our Bald Knight Edwin has been made Knight of Knights of all the horses in Christendom!" The people were worried and wondered what this night of nights could be. It was already very dark because of global warming. But the people were very trusting and at least they would see Bald Knight Edwin off as he departed. Everyone gathered their belongings and a long pilgrimage wound itself towards Baltimore. There, Bald Knight Edwin had gathered all of his Knights and their Ladies and what a sight it was! All were on horseback in their finest attire. The homeless of Baltimore had never seen anything like it. They thought they, too, could come along but only the wealthy riff-raff was invited not the homeless. However, the homeless were given palm branches and they waved them all along the route: "Good luck to our Bald Knight Edwin," they shouted. The procession wound its way toward the waiting liberty ship. Yes, it was a crusade, yes, it was a holy war. "We will rescue the three Catholics in Jerusalem," shouted Bald Knight Edwin until he was red in his face and everyone cheered heartily in approval. Slowly the horses were taking onto the ship. The knights and ladies settled down in first class. The Bald Knight Edwin got the premium upgrade first class cabin with balcony which a very wealthy Lady had paid for. How could he resist? It was all for a good cause. Everyone was so excited. The horses slept on water beds and got massages. The Knights and Ladies got spiritual counseling about being on a pilgrimage to the empty tomb of Christ. Christ had mercifully departed a long time ago but they wanted to see for themselves. Everyone was in a festive mood as the ship slowly went out to sea.

This is installment 2. Installment 3 will follow.

The Year 2050

It was the year 2050 and Pope Innocent XXV had sleepless nights - dark and cold and moonless nights - wondering how to start another crusade to support the three remaining Catholics in the Holy Land.
Aha - he thought. I will send Pepito to the Bald Knight Edwin. He is my last hope.  So Pepito undertook this long journey by sailboat and arrived finally at the Baltimore harbor and went to Wendy's. Then he asked for direction to see the Bald Knight Edwin. "Ware isse de Bald Knight Edwin?" Everyone understood him and he was soon under the window of the Bald Knight Edwin. "Bald Knight Edwin" he shouted, "opene de window." The Bald Knight was still asleep and finally looked out to find out what the commotion was all about. "Der Popa sent me," Pepito shouted. "You are to gather your men, lieges and all riff-raff that is wealthy and healthy and start another crusade. You will be the Master of the all the horses in Christendom." Bald Knight Edwin thought about it for a minute and realized he could leave his Camerlengo Chucky behind whom he did not like and agreed to go - strictly out of obedience. "What about my domain here?" he wondered out loud. "Do not worry," said Pepito. "You will be better off than the lilies in the field and you will still be the administrator of your domain and people will continue kiss your hand."
------------
Next installment will follow soon

Some statistics.......

Equestrian Order

of the

Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem

North-Central Lieutenancy

Vol. XXVI
ISSUE
IV
Summer
2011

Dear Knights and Ladies,
In eight short weeks when we convene our 2011 Investiture we will
have the pleasure of welcoming 70 new members and to congratulate
72 promoted members. Our Lieutenancy membership number is closing
in on 1300 Knights and Ladies. On the global scale during 2010
our Order achieved three “firsts” ie the largest number of members
in history: more than 28,000; the largest amount of donations ever
received: $13.7 million; the largest number of jurisdictions: 58 with new
ones in Brasil Russia,South Africa and Italy.
Our contributions allow the Latin Patriarch to accomplish a great deal
of significant work by a very small but dedicated staff of priests ,nuns
and laymen whose success impacts and motivates Christians moving
forward in our faith.Their challenges in life in the Holy land remind
us that our day to day blessings are a gift from God who provides
us with all we need. Our faith, our members and our charity are the
cornerstones on which the foundation of our Order are built.
The Holy Land has a special signifigance for Christians, Jews and
Muslims. The Christians however face tremendous difficulties because
of their minority status which brings about ever increasing alienation
and injustice. One can ask “Will our Church continue to exist there
or will the holy places become just a mere Christian museum?” The
answer depends on each one of us expressed by our generosity and
prayers.
Please keep Cardinal Foley in your prayers. He has been a special
grace to the Order and he will be sorely missed.
It is an honor to serve as your Lieutenant.
Charles H. Foos, KC*HS

Hair

I went to my hair dresser today to get a hair cut. My hair dresser said that I had a growth spurt. When mother had her heart valve replaced in 1982 I was so much under stress that my hair came out in bunches. I thought it would grow back. No such luck. However, what grew back, grew back with kinks and twirls everywhere. I keep it short because I look like some homeless person when it grows longish. Why is it that women look old when their hair thins and men look sexy? Bald men do look sexy. The worst look with men are comb-overs. Oh are they ugly. See above. Hair seems to be important in politics. I need not worry.

Here is my dream car

I know someone when you mention "junk car" to him he gets animated. I always wanted a junk car and decorated with indoor/outdoor carpet. Then put a little garden fence around the top.

The Smartbike

The people who made the Smartcar are making the Smartbike. Sleek but is it good and how much?

The Forzo bike - it's electric!

It's just looks too male - all black but it is electric. I wonder if 20 miles would get me back and forth from the Diner?

The Shadow E-Bike

Does that not look great? I wonder if there is a wind you get pushed into the oncoming traffic? It is wireless electric. Built into the wheels. How do you brake?