Next Stop, Colorado Springs?

A line from Fr. Ray's homily on Sunday promted me to write the following. He said something to the effect, "God is full of surprises for us, and they are all good."

For a week this past August, we took a little trip to Colorado. The first half of the week we spent in Denver, visiting with my brother and his family. The second half, we spent in Colorado Springs, visiting Lisa's friend from high school and her family.

The Holy Spirit did something to us in Colorado Springs. We were there for only three days. We fell in love with the place. It was a very spiritual (and life changing) experience, though those exact words were never spoken between us. For some reason, unknown to us at the moment, the Spirit is drawing us there.

The bottom line is we are VERY, VERY seriously thinking about moving there to raise our family.

Things are already in motion, seemingly without much effort on our part. Which is another reason why we feel like this is what we are supposed to do.

It may or may not happen.

We have no time table, we have no deadline, and we have no idea when this will happen. But we do ask for your prayers: that what we are doing is all part of God's plan, and we ask for God to give us the strength, courage, and faith in this transition period of our lives.

Thank you and God Bless!

-Colorado Springs
-Colorado Springs Government
-Colorado Springs Visitors Bureau
-El Paso County, CO
-Catholic Diocese of Colorado Springs
-Home Listings
-Money Magazine: Best Places to Live, Best Big City (#1)
-Cleanest U.S. Cities For Pollution (#18)
-Men's Fitness Magazine: Fittest City (#6)
-Most Literate City in America (#19)
-Inspiration for 'America the Beautiful'

It Made Me Seethe With Rage

(An article reprinted from the front page, of the September 10, 2006 edition of The Daily Breeze about Hugh Dougalas' reaction to September 11, 2001. Also, see Hugh's blog: Defending Purple Mountain Majesties for his explaination on how the article came about.)

Both had thriving careers when engineers Hugh and Jan Dougalas made a deal. She would go to the office, and he would work from their Redondo Beach home, where he could care for their two small children. But when Hugh turned on the radio to catch the latest sports news that morning, everything changed. Within hours, after dropping 5-year-old Lilly off at school, he headed to a recruiter's office. With his 1-year-old son, Glenn, on his lap, he joined the Army Reserves. Called up for service earlier this year, he is now stationed in Iraq. Dougalas is 44 years old.

At first, I thought what I was hearing was some kind of Orson Welles "War of the Worlds" radio drama. But when I switched to several news stations, I realized what was going on. It was no radio drama, and it made me seethe with rage. Think of the first lines of Homer's Iliad: "Rage. Sing, Goddess, of the rage of Achilles." Like that, only angrier.

I was 40 at the time and everyone told me I was too old to enlist -- the Marines, the Navy, the Air Force, the Coast Guard. The Army recruiter also told me that I was too old but said that he would keep my resume on file and talk to a few people.

I called and wrote letters for more than two years, just to let him know that I was still interested.

In 2004, I received a call from the Reserve Component of the Army Medical Corps. The recruiter tried to explain a complex formula that I still don't understand which allowed him to count my time as an undergrad in ROTC as prior service and stated something to the effect that the fact that I had an advanced degree allowed him to waive the age regulations and that because he's dealing with the Reserve side of the house, the regulations are different.

Bottom line: I was in. I was commissioned as an officer in the Medical Service Corps and sent to Fort Sam Houston near San Antonio for training.

I began serving as a typical reservist would, one weekend a month, in February 2005.

In January 2006, I received orders to active duty. I would be deployed to Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom for 18 months.

In April 2006, I reported to McGregor Range near Fort Bliss, Texas, with the rest of the 310 Military Police Battalion for predeployment training.

We left Texas on July 6, spent some time in Kuwait for additional training and arrived in Iraq on July 19.

An MP unit, our mission is detainee ops, running a large internment/resettlement facility at Camp Bucca in southern Iraq, near the port city of Umm Qasr. We are southwest of Basra, the biggest city in the area.

Most of the MPs are New York Police Department and corrections officers in the civilian world. Being from New York, as you might expect, this unit is filled with guys who knew someone who died in the attacks of Sept. 11. In fact, this place is named after a New York City firefighter who lost his life in the World Trade Center -- Ron Bucca. All of this is very personal to them.

Though I'm not from New York, it is to me as well. I am proud to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with these men and every one of us supports the president in his decision to invade.

My job here is to provide preventive medicine services -- clean drinking water, safe food, proper sanitation, to monitor air quality, to take care of any pests (ants, mice, rats, we have jackals running around here!), etc. I firmly believe that in doing this job and serving in the Army, no American will ever again feel the rage that I felt that morning -- September 11, 2001.

Our Visit With Bupa

We went to Sacramento to visit my 94 year-old grandfather (we call him Bupa) who was in the hospital after taking a bad fall at home. Before Bupa went to the hospital this last time, he had a "do not resusitate" order on his living will. Well, before the hospital staff knew this, they resusitated him when his heart stopped. He had a temporary pacemaker attached. However, because of his advanced age, they thought that a permanent pacemaker was out of the question and the temporary may have been putting too much strain on his heart. So my parents decided to have the temporary removed. But they wanted to keep it on so that we could go up to see him, which we did this past week.

Miraculously (in my opinion), Bupa seemed to get stronger when the pacemaker was removed. We visited him every day. Because of the amount of care he needed, my parents had to find a nursing home for him, which they did. However, Bupa had always said that people are put in nursing homes to die. So while he may be physically getting better, he has been a little depressed since being placed in the nursing home. If he can accept the fact that he is in the nursing home for his benefit, I believe he could live to see 100.

Your continued prayers for Bupa and my parents would be appreciated.

Focus On The Family Address

I was looking through Dr. James Dobson's Focus on the Family website and thought it was fairly amusing that their mailing address is:

Focus on the Family
Colorado Springs, CO 80095

Notice anything strange? I suppose that they have a big presence there in Colorado Springs.

Colorado Vacation

We went to Colorado for a week. We visited and stayed with my brother in Denver and with Lisa's friend from high school in Colorado Springs. The thing that stuck out the most from our vacation was the incredible 'draw' we felt while in Colorado Springs. You can view some photos here.

All cities have their positive and negative qualities. Lisa and I agreed that there were considerably more positives in Colorado Springs than any other place we have lived. The scenery reminded me a lot like Kauai, especially the mountains. The air and water was very clean and clear. The homes were beautiful and reasonably priced (compared to the crazy real estate market of southern California). There are seemingly unlimited number of things to do outdoors. Great weather. No traffic. A very family-friendly community. Perhaps one day...

August Poker Winnings

As per the updated resolution that I made on my June 26, 2006 post, I have withdrawn my goal of $500 from my poker bankroll this month. I have also taken out an extra $100. YTD=+$4,900. '05-YTD=+$2,400. My next withdrawal of $500 is due by September 30, 2006. Please continue to wish me luck and keep me accountable.

The Pope on Life

"Consequently, everything is connected: the deepest option for the Crucified Christ with the most complete option for life, from the very first moment until the very last. To me this also seems in some way the nucleus of our pastoral care: to help people make the true choice for life, to renew their relationship with God as the relationship which gives us life and shows us the way to life. And thus, to love Christ anew, who from being the most unknown Being whom we did not reach and who remained enigmatic, became a known God, a God with a human face, a God who is love." (Pope Benedict XVI, March 2006 meeting with priests)

Absolutes

I tend to believe that there are absolutes in the world. I am one who believes that there is such of a thing as right vs. wrong, or black and white (ie no grey areas).

If anyone says to me that there is no such thing as absolutes in life, I will politely ask, "Are you absolutely sure?"

Audio CDs Wanted For Hugh

This is a copy of my latest post on Defending Purple Mountain Majesties for those interested in helping out a soldier-

I received this excerpt of an email from Hugh to Jan:

Maybe you could look into recordings of the radio shows that I like (Hugh Hewitt, Dennis Prager, Jim Rome) and see if CD are available. You could get them and send them to me and I could listen to them here. Also, the computers here are S L O W. If it works out, maybe you could download Cardinals games in MP3 format and e-mail them as attachments. I don't know. It looks like there is nothing to do here but go to the gym and watch movies. I guess Amazon will deliver so it's reading that I'll be doing to maintain sanity. Though, darn it, I know baseball on the radio is available on Armed Forces Radio and Television Service!! I'm frustrated.
-Hugh

Within the next few weeks or so, I will gather a bunch of audio discs for Hugh. I going to send some stuff I already have and I will download some Michael Medved radio shows (the best radio show for mental exercises). He has an iPod, so he could easily transfer into it from his computer. I will try to organize a bulk shipment to Hugh. To make it easier for Hugh to receive things, I will find out if it would be OK to post his mailing address here on the blog. If OK, I'll post it in the sidebar of this blog.

Seems like this will help Hugh pass the time better in Iraq.

Dad's Brownies

A father of 3 teenage kids had the rule that they could not attend PG-13 or R rated movies. His teens wanted to see a particular movie that was playing at local theaters. It was rated PG-13.

They asked friends & some members of their church to find out what was offensive in the movie. They made a list of pros & cons about the movie to use to convince their dad that they should be allowed to see it. The cons were: it contained 3 swear words, the only violence was a building exploding (& you see that on TV all the time), & you actually didn't "see" the couple in the movie having sex, it was just implied sex, off camera. The pros were: it was a popular movie, a blockbuster. Everyone was seeing it. If they saw the movie then they would not feel left out when their friends discussed it. The movie contained a good story & plot. It had some great adventure & suspense in it & some fantastic special effects. The movie's stars were some of the most talented actors in Hollywood. It probably would be nominated for several awards. Many of the members of their church had seen it & said it wasn't "very bad". Therefore, since there were more pros than cons, the teens said they were asking their father to reconsider his position on this 1 movie & let them have permission to go see it.

The father looked at the list & thought for a few minutes. He said he could tell his children had spent some time & thought on this request. He asked if he could have a day to think about it before making his decision. The teens were thrilled thinking, "Now we've got him! Our argument is too good! Dad can't turn us down!" So, they happily agreed to let him have a day to think about their request.

The next evening the father called in his 3 teenagers, who were smiling smugly, into the living room. There on the coffee table he had a plate of brownies. The teens were puzzled. The father told his children he had thought about their request and had decided that if they would eat a brownie then he would let them go to the movie.

Like the movie, the brownies had pros & cons. The pros were that: they were made with good chocolate & yummy walnuts. They were moist & fresh with chocolate frosting. He had made the brownies with an award-winning recipe & by his own loving hands. The brownies only had 1 con: He had added a little bit of dog poop. But he had mixed the dough well; they probably wouldn't be able to taste it & he had baked it at 350 degrees so any bacteria or germs had probably been destroyed. Therefore, if any of his children could stand to eat the brownies which included just a "little bit of crap" & not be affected by it, then he knew they would also be able to see the movie with "just a little bit of smut" & not be affected.

Of course, none of the teens would eat the brownies & the smug smiles were gone. Now when they ask, permission to do something he opposes, he asks, "Would you like me to bake some brownies?"

--Author Unknown (hat tip: Sandy)

Abortion and Contraception

(taken from the Priests For Life site):
"It is noteworthy that as acceptance and use of contraception have increased in our society, so have acceptance and use of abortion. Couples who unintentionally conceive a child while using contraception are far more likely to resort to abortion than others. Tragically, our society has fallen into a mentality that views children as a burden and invites many to consider abortion as a "backup" to contraceptive failure. This is most obvious in efforts to promote as "emergency contraception" drugs that really act as early abortifacients.


"With Pope John Paul II we affirm that contraception and abortion are "specifically different evils," because only "the latter destroys the life of a human being," but that they are also related (The Gospel of Life, no. 13). It is important to remember that means that are referred to as "contraceptive" are, in reality, sometimes also abortifacient. An end to abortion will not come from contraceptive campaigns but from a deeper understanding of our human sexuality, and of human life, as sacred gifts deserving our careful stewardship” (2001: US Bishops’ Pastoral Plan for Pro-life Activities: A Campaign in Support of Life).

July Poker Winnings

As per the updated resolution that I made on my June 26, 2006 post, I have withdrawn my goal of $500 from my poker bankroll this month. YTD=+$4,300. '05-YTD=+$2,100. Please continue to wish me luck and keep me accountable.

A Consistent Ethic of Life

(taken from the Priests For Life site):
"A wide spectrum of issues touches on the protection of human life and the promotion of human dignity. As Pope John Paul II has reminded us: "Where life is involved, the service of charity must be profoundly consistent. It cannot tolerate bias and discrimination, for human life is sacred and inviolable at every stage and in every situation; it is an indivisible good" (The Gospel of Life, no. 87).


"Among important issues involving the dignity of human life with which the Church is concerned, abortion necessarily plays a central role. Abortion, the direct killing of an innocent human being, is always gravely immoral (The Gospel of Life, no. 57); its victims are the most vulnerable and defenseless members of the human family. It is imperative that those who are called to serve the least among us give urgent attention and priority to this issue of justice” (2001: US Bishops’ Pastoral Plan for Pro-life Activities: A Campaign in Support of Life).

Barnes' European Blog

Our friends from church took a nice vacation to Europe. They have a small blog with entries written by their children. Interesting perspectives. Europe Through a Child's Eyes

Three New Posts By Hugh

OK. I promise I will starting putting entries into this blog. If Hugh can write three entries from Iraq, then I should be able to write a few from the comfort and safety of my living room.

Check out his latest three entries here: Defending Purple Mountain Majesties

A Short Hiatus

I am taking a small break from blogging until the 15th of July. Posts are in the works. Please stay tuned.

Free Movies!

The Regal Cinema chain shows family-friendly movies for free during the summer. They show one G-rated and a PG-rated movie at 10:00 AM every Tuesday and Wednesday. The movies are not new releases and most are already out on DVD.

Today we went to see Madagasgar. We had already seen it in the theaters. And we have it on DVD. But you can never get the full 'theater experience' at home. We got there about 15 minutes before showtime and we could practically have any seat in the theater. By the time the show started, it looked to be about 50-60% full. OK, we spent spent $10 for 1 medium popcorn and 1 medium drink. It was still worth it on the hot and humid day we had today.

To see the free movie schedule at the Regal near you, click here.

The Dixie Chicks' Big Mistake

I used to love the Dixie Chicks. I bought every album and DVD that I could find. I still think that their music is good, but now I get a bad taste in my mouth whenever I listen to a Chicks song or see them on television. I have no incentive to go out and buy the new album. I cannot believe that they wanted to alienate their core audience because of their political views. Of course, I give them credit for speaking out on their point of view, but they practically killed their 'sky is the limit' income potential. I guess they were content with what they had. I recall an interview that Michael Jordan (a staunch Democrat) gave early in his career where he was asked if he would openly and actively support Democrat causes and candidates. He astutely (for financial reasons) replied, "Republicans buy shoes too."

Failure To Re-Launch the Dixie Chicks
U.S. Ticket Sales Slow
Dixie Chicks Tour Struggling
Dixie Chicks Still Fighting Bush On New Album
Dixie Chicks' Chart Wings Get Clipped

June Poker Winnings

As per the updated resolution that I made on my November 22, 2005 post, I have withdrawn my goal of $400 from my poker bankroll this month. I have also taken out an extra $300. YTD=+$3,800. '05-YTD=+$1,600. Starting next month I will confidently raise my monthly goal to $500. My next withdrawal of $500 is due by July 31, 2006. Please continue to wish me luck and keep me accountable.

The Media and Respect for Life

from Priests For Life:

“An important and serious responsibility belongs to those involved in the mass media, who are called to ensure that the messages which they so effectively transmit will support the culture of life. They need to present noble models of life and make room for instances of people's positive and sometimes heroic love for others. With great respect they should also present the positive values of sexuality and human love, and not insist on what defiles and cheapens human dignity. In their interpretation of things, they should refrain from emphasizing anything that suggests or fosters feelings or attitudes of indifference, contempt or rejection in relation to life. With scrupulous concern for factual truth, they are called to combine freedom of information with respect for every person and a profound sense of humanity” (John Paul II, “The Gospel of Life,” n. 98).

Valedictorian's Speech Unplugged Because of the Mention of God

The name of Christ is so offensive to modern secular ears that Clark County School District officials, who knew it was coming, cut off the microphone during a valedictorian address before they or anyone else could hear it.

Brittany McComb is a Christian and a top student graduating from Foothill High. She knew that her valedictorian address would probably be cut short, but was determined to go ahead and mention the one name that is for her above every other name.

"I went through four years of school at Foothill and they taught me logic and they taught me freedom of speech," McComb stated. "God's the biggest part of my life. Just like other valedictorians thank their parents, I wanted to thank my lord and saviour."

Please go to the MSNBC's story and watch the video from the Today Show. Wow, I hope my children will grow up and be just like Brittany.

PG Rating for Christian Theme

from Capital Resourse Institute:

The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) has decided that the movie Facing the Giants, produced by a Baptist church in Atlanta and scheduled to be released nationwide in theaters this fall, should be rated PG for being “too religious.”

In Facing the Giants a losing football team is turned around after the coach turns to God. There is no sex, violence, or raw language in the movie, which would typically warrant a PG rating. Instead, the movie is rated PG because of its Christian message – the Gospel is mentioned and the coach has several conversations about Christ.

Read the complete story here.

2006 Mud Run Results

Lisa ran the World Famous Camp Pendleton Mud Run again this year. She beat her time from last year by about one minute. She ran it in 1:17:45 and she placed 17th out of 102 women in her age bracket! It was at least 10 degrees hotter than last year. The amazing part of it to me was that she did not train for this event in any special way. She only ran one time (on Friday) during her lunch hour at work.

A Great Ronald Reagan Website

I found a great site about Ronald Reagan. Please take the time to browse and see things about (arguably) the greatest President of the 20th century. I came to the conclusion after looking around the site, that Reagan was a visionary leader when it came to the Conservative point of view on the political spectrum. Reading a few of his speeches from the 1960's and 1970's, I was able to see how consistent he was in this vision. He layed a nice foundation, which we need to get a little closer to today.

President Bush Visits Iraq

President Bush made a surprise visit to Iraq today. He made a great speech to the troops serving there. You can read the text of the speech on The White House website.

Here are a few excerpts from the President Bush's speech in Baghdad:

"I understand long deployments are tough -- they're tough on you and they're tough on your families. And so the first thing I want to tell you is the American people are incredibly grateful for what you do, and I bring their greetings and their thanks for the sacrifices you and your family make. "

"These are historic times. The mission that you're accomplishing here in Iraq will go down in the history books as an incredibly important moment in the history of freedom and peace; an incredibly important moment of doing our duty to secure our homeland."

"You know, right after September the 11th I knew that some would forget the dangers we face. Some would hope that the world would be what it's not -- a peaceful place in which people wouldn't want to do harm to those of us who love freedom. I vowed that day, after September the 11th, to do everything I could to protect the American people. And I was able to make that claim because I knew there were people such as yourself who were willing to be on the front line in the war on terror."

"I told you earlier we were laying the foundation of peace for generations to come, and we are, because we go with confidence knowing that liberty is the desire of every soul. When Iraq succeeds, reformers and people who desire to live in a free society will see such a hopeful example, and they'll begin to demand the same rights and the same conditions and the same hopeful society."

"And that's why I tell you what you're doing is historic in nature. People will look back at this period and wonder whether or not America was true to its beginnings; whether we strongly believed in the universality of freedom and whether we were willing to act on it. Certainly we acted in our own self-interest right after September the 11th; and now we act not only in our own self-interests, but in the interests of men, women and children in the broader Middle East, no matter what their religion, no matter where they were born, no matter how they speak."

"This is a moment -- this is a time where the world can turn one way or the other, where the world can be a better place or a more dangerous place. And the United States of America and citizens such as yourself are dedicated to making sure that the world we leave behind is a better place for all."

Longboard Lager

I happened across a great tasting beer. It is called Longboard Lager. It is brewed by the Kona Brewing Company. I bought the beer on a whim. The first taste that I took was great. It is definitely in my all time top 10 (possibly top 5) tasting beers of the world.

I was looking at the Kona Brewing Company pub locations. It just so happens that there is one in the Koko Marina Shopping Center. Only about 1 block from where I lived during high school and college. If you look at their map, you can see exactly where I lived on Anapalau St. Look for the 4th 'A' in the street name Anapalau Place and you are looking right on the spot of my old home in Hawaii.

I found this beer at Marukai. But you can buy the beer online at the Hi-Time Wine Cellars website.

Today's Respect Life Message

from Priests For Life:

Praise the Holy Trinity

Some truths, like the very existence of God, can be known by human reason alone. Other truths, like the fact that God is One in Three Persons – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – can only be known if God reveals them to us. We could never conclude on our own that God is a Trinity. Today’s Feast is not only an opportunity for thanking God for telling us more about himself. It is an occasion to take courage as we strive for deeper unity within the human family. God reveals himself to us in order to make us more like himself – not just as individuals, but as families, nations, and an international community. We grow in unity as we give ourselves away to one another, just as the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit give themselves to each other completely.

The Political View of Google

In a not too subtle dig at President Bush, Google is making their political views known. I don't know how long it will work (it has worked for at least the last three months), but go to Google (not the advanced search) and type in the search word: asshole. Then hit the "I'm feeling lucky" button right below the search.

The result is, well, more perfect than you could expect. The site that Google takes you to shows a slide show that describes all the major players in the Bush Administration as the 'search word'. Very ugly.

Don't forget that you really don't have to use any Google services. There are many other choices out there.

I Need To Start Posting More

I have been busy this past week. So I haven't had the initiative to post anything to this blog. There are so many things that I could write about. Really.

When a military person (Hugh) who is busy training in the desert before being deployed to the Middle East can post more often than me, well that is probably good motivation for me.

He wrote a very powerful post about Memorial Day on the Defending Purple Mountains Majesties blog. Please take the time to read it and wish him well.

New Post By Hugh

There is a new post by Hugh at my other blog: Defending Purple Mountain Majesties. He is getting closer to leaving for Iraq. Last I heard, it will be by July 1st.