Impulsive

Hello. My name is Donn. I am a Wal-Mart-aholic.

Today we went to my favorite store, Wal-Mart. I just went in to buy some flouride rinse and hair gel. Ended up spending over $50. I bought a padded vinyl toilet seat for $8.88. This actually doesn't sound like a very good thing to sit on, but Marisa really wanted it. I also purchased five bottles of Elmer's glue. We didn't need them, but they were only 20 cents each! I bought a couple bottles of cheapo $2 wine. I got carded. That's another reason why I like this store.

As I have stated in a previous post, it is probably a good time for you to buy some Wal-Mart stock.

Teen Chooses Life After Seeing Bumper Sticker

From LifeSiteNews.Com - A bumper sticker saved a baby’s life. Pro-lifers Dave and Mary Labun of Millinocket, Maine came out of the house to their parked car to find a handwritten note in a plastic baggy on the windshield thanking them for their “Abortion Stops a Beating Heart” bumper sticker. The note reads as follows:

Hello,
This might be very weird, but I wanted to thank you. I’m not sure what you believe in, but I’m a strong believer in God, and right now I am 17 and pregnant. And on my way to school one day, I was really wondering what to do – I was really thinking about abortion, because I was scared. As that thought came to mind, I walked past your car, and happened to look over and saw your bumper sticker, “Abortion Stops a Beating Heart.” My heart dropped. I believe God was talking to me, through that sticker, and I also believe I will never think about it again. I’m going to keep my baby, and I’m not that scared any more. Thank you so much for helping me make the best choice of my life. God bless – a very happy mother-to-be.

See the scan of the actual letter here.
Purchase the bumper sticker here.

I believe that this is a true story. I have not seen this story refuted on the Urban Legends and Folklore or Snopes.Com websites.

August 14

Significant Events in History on This Date:

1935- Social Security Act Signed Into Law
1941- Maximilian Kolbe Dies In Concentration Camp
1945- Japan Surrenders Ending World War II
1947- Pakistan Gains Independence From United Kingdom
1959- Earvin (Magic) Johnson Born in Lancing, Michigan
1993- The Marriage of Lisa and Donn in Honolulu, Hawaii
2005- Helios Airways #522 Crashes in Athens Killing All 121 Aboard

Thud!

That is the sound of the door closing on the Cubs' hope for post season play. Gee, it came later than usual this year.

Nope, Not Addicted

I am glad to say that while we were on our little vacation to Kansas, I did not even think about playing poker. Eight days without seeing one 'flop'. I have wondered if I was getting addicted to online poker. I suppose that this is a good sign. It was actually nice to take a break. Hopefully I will remember how to play.

Sonic

My new favorite fast food chain is Sonic - America's Drive-In. We've eaten here three times while in Topeka, Kansas. They are everywhere. There are probably just as many Sonics as there are McDonalds. It is a 'car-hop' restaurant. You order from your own stall in the parking lot (you can eat inside or drive-thru), and they bring the food out to your car, sometimes while on roller skates. They have the best milkshakes and malts I've ever had, period. Not like the ones at your typical fast food joint where the shakes are half air and half milk product. Sonic has very fast and friendly service.

I checked out their website, and for some strange reason, the nearest one to me is in Anaheim. Now I would need to travel 45 minutes to get my Sonic fix. You would think that in Southern California, where everything revolves around ones car, that there would be a lot more of these types of restaurants. I want to find about what it takes to become a franchisee.

I have a couple of theories why Sonic has not penetrated this area yet. Perhaps they need a bigger sized lot than your normal fast food place to accomodate the extra automobiles. And with land so scarce here it would probably be a little more cost prohibited. Another reason that came to me is their workers. It seemed that it was staffed by a very eager and energetic group of teenagers. I really don't believe that on the whole, the teens here would be as enthusiastic with their minimum wage job as those in the Heartland. A very different culture.

I am eagerly awaiting the arrival of Sonic to the area. Or, we'll just have to take more trips to visit the in-laws.

Yes, Dorothy, We Are In Kansas

Heredity Is A Powerful Thing

It is amazing to me some of the things that come naturally to my children that I never have to teach them. I discovered one of these innocuous things recently.

Alex will not use a public urinal that does not have dividers between them. On our vacation, we have had to use a lot of public rest rooms. I found out about a dilemma that Alex had at the airport when we went to use the rest room before our flight. We went in, and saw that the urinals are lined up for 'miles'. However, they were not divided by any sort of partition between them. So for fear of having someone straddle up next to him, he went into one of the stalls to take care of his business, standing up.

This is what I naturally do. But I do not think that I have ever done this while he was with me. I have this fear and loathing of urinating in public. I can do it if there are dividers, otherwise I will use a stall or just wait until I can find a better place to pee. Even if I drank a super mega giant big gulp of Coke, I would have a strange type of stage fright and would just stand there without anything happening if someone came in and stood right next to me without a divider between us. The floodgates would open up as soon as he stepped away. Don't even get me started on those public rest rooms that just have a big tub that the male humans will gather around to relieve themselves. Dodger Stadium still has these primitive things. They lose concession sales from me because of this fact.

Isn't heredity is a funny thing?

Midwest Airlines

We traveled from LAX to Kansas City on Midwest Airlines. We ended up using this airline because when I booked the flight, it was the cheapest one out there. I actually had never heard of the airline before. We had a great flight. This was the first time that we ever traveled to Kansas without having to stop in another city. Total time in the air was just under three hours. In the past, when we had to stop in Salt Lake City or Denver, it would take about five hours from the time we left L.A. until touch down in Kansas City. Another great feature of the airlines was the wide leather seats. We had a big 8-10 inch arm rest between the seats which were only two on either side of the aisle. Even on this short flight, they served food. I really liked the idea of having to pay for your food on your flight. This gives the passenger the option to have food on the flight or to take care of meals on their own. For breakfast, we had the option of either a $5 or a $7 meal. Since you have to pay for it, the food was a lot better quality than your normal 'free' meal. And since soft drinks are complimentary, you probably end up paying a lot less than you would in the airport.

Midwest Airlines is based in Milwaukee and flies to many cities from coast to coast. I highly recommend this airline to you.

Stem Cells, Diabetes, and Iacocca

Lee Iacocca is determined to find a cure for diabetes, and has put up $1,000,000 to fund promising non-embryonic stem-cell research. He's asking America to pitch in the other $10 million needed to run a clinical trial. Iacocca said, "One of the researchers we have supported for over a decade cured type 1 diabetes in mice. I’m not going to wait for the government or the pharmaceutical industry to decide to get the human trials going."

From the grant guidelines---
The foundation does not make grants for:
1. Projects not on diabetes
2. Buildings or capital improvements
3. Embryonic stem cell research
4. Hospital and university general fund drives
5. General operating costs of hospitals, research institutes, buildings, clinical care clinics, etc.

The Iacocca Foundation was founded in 1984 by Lee Iacocca in memory of his late wife, Mary K. Iacocca, who died of diabetic complications in 1983. Our primary purpose is to fund innovative and promising diabetes research programs and projects that will lead to a cure for the disease and alleviate complications caused by it.

If you want to ethically contribute to finding a cure for diabetes, this looks like the place to do it.

Thanks to Papa-Lu for this catch.

I Agree With J-Lo

It is rare when I agree with celebrities on the issues of the day. Especially those issues that deal with the family. So when it does happen I suppose that I should give it some blog space.

Singer/actress Jennifer Lopez is considering quitting her music and movie career to become a full-time mother. She is (rumored to be) two months pregnant with her third husband, Marc Anthony. She believes you can't be a successful traditional mother and wife and have a full-time job. So she's prepared to give up work to devote herself to her family. J-Lo eloquently explains, "Either you are going to be a bad mom and be a really good career woman and wife, or a good mom and career woman and bad wife, or a good mom and a good wife and your career is going to suck."

Not exactly Shakespeare, but I think you get the point.

Do Or Die Time For Cubbies

The Cubs' record right now is 54-54 with 54 games left. The time is now for them to start making a move. Winning the division has been out of the question for quite a long time now as the Cardinals are 28 games above .500. Their biggest wildcard competition comes from the Nationals and the Astros who are 8 and 10 games above .500 respectively. The Cubs probably need to go 36-18 (.667) the rest of the way in to have a chance at making the playoffs. This basically means that they have to win every series the rest of the way in. As hard as that may sound, it is possible now that a healthy(?) Nomar is back and with Kerry Wood coming back soon, possibly in a role coming out of the bullpen. Let's go Cubbies. I believe!

Pope Benedict XVI on Respect for Life

"[The Pope] must not proclaim his own ideas, but rather constantly bind himself and the Church to obedience to God's Word, in the face of every attempt to adapt it or water it down, and every form of opportunism. Pope John Paul II did this when, in front of all attempts, apparently benevolent to the human person, and in the face of erroneous interpretations of freedom, he unequivocally stressed the inviolability of the human being and of human life from the moment of conception until natural death. The freedom to kill is not true freedom, but a tyranny that reduces the human being to slavery."

--from the homily of Pope Benedict XVI at the Mass of Possession of the Chair of the Bishop of Rome, Basilica of St. John Lateran, Saturday, May 7, 2005.

It's Official: I'm No Longer A Daddy

Well, it's over. Marisa announced today that she is too big to call me 'Daddy'. She will now address me as Dad. This follows the devastating pronouncement by Alex a little while ago about his desire to stop calling me Daddy.

I told her that she would not get a Happy Meal from McDonalds today if she called me Dad. She called my bluff and said, "You're just kidding, Dad." She was right, we went anyway. I really need to work on my poker face.

I have a funny feeling, though, that she will pull the 'Daddy card' some time in the future when she wants something from me.

Democrats and Pro-Abortion Groups Ready for a Change of Rhetoric

(from LifeSiteNews.com) - Since the crushing defeat of the Democrats in the last election, the party’s spin doctors have been crafting a new approach to abortion without making any moves to abandon their basic premise that babies can be killed at will.

Democratic think tank, the Third Way, billing itself as a “strategy center for progressives” attempting to reverse the social tide in the US towards traditional values, says that the Democrat party and abortion groups need to change their rhetoric.

The think tank is focusing on abortion with “a series of briefing papers on abortion, with policy and messaging that will help progressives win the war of ideas.” Newsweek has obtained a brief from the Third Way that shows the country is locked into polarized positions but that most of the public falls into the undecided category which the brief calls, 'grays'. “We've now gotten locked in a frame and policies for 30 years that speak to the polars but don't speak to the grays,” says Third Way president Jon Cowan.

With the retirement of the key swing voter on the US Supreme Court, Sandra Day O’Connor, the aging forces of abortion support in the US are gearing up for a new fight. This stage will be one in which the subtleties of linguistic manipulation will be a key weapon.

Even Planned Parenthood is attempting to move away from its militant image. “We've gotten a little far away from talking with people very much from the heart,” admits Karen Pearl, interim president of Planned Parenthood.

Last month, Party chairman Howard Dean met with the group, Democrats for Life, an organization of Democrats attempting to move the party away from its support of abortion while returning it to its pre-1960’s roots. Dean told the party's national finance board that though he did not want to change the party’s position that abortion should always remain available. He did, however, want to “reframe” the issue to make it more palatable. Former DNC head Steve Grossman said, “He said he wanted to take 'abortion' out of the political lexicon.”

Read the Newsweek report here.

The Next Black Belt

Lisa started taking Karate today. She said that it was fun, yet technically difficult. What is interesting to me is that there is a certain hierarchy within the class. The class stands in a line from low to high belt rankings. So since both Alex and Marisa are higher ranked yellow belts, they stand at a higher position. They are also expected to help out the lower ranked white belts, which now include their mother. They are both very good teachers.

There is an increasing amount of pressure to get their father involved. I have not given in to the pressure. Yes, I know, I am a party pooper.

Priest Shortage

I saw a consequence to the current shortage of priests in the Catholic Church. We went to Mass last night, and for some unknown reason, there was no priest. I still don't know if it was an oversight or if there was an accident. Parishioners were looking all over the priests' residence. Calls were made to neighboring parishes. The cantor went over and above the call of duty to lead the people in song. After about 25 minutes, Mass had to be canceled. There were other options that were available, but there were not enough consecrated hosts for a communion service. And no one wanted to lead a prayer service. So everyone just got up and left. This may have been a peek into the future if there is not an increase in vocations. It is also a wake up call for the laity (especially me) to get more involved in the workings of our parishes to help ease the pressures of our over-worked priests.

This Old Cub - Ron Santo

I just watched the documentary film This Old Cub. It is the story of legendary Chicago Cubs third baseman Ron Santo. It is a very inspiring story about his career, his battle with diabetes, and the loss of his legs because of the disease. I really did not know that much about him or his struggles with diabetes. My favorite Cub during his era was his infield mate Don Kessinger, who makes an appearance in the film.

Part of the movie documents his hopeful induction into the Baseball Hall of Fame. It features many guest appearances by a broad spectrum of baseball personalities, all saying why Ron should be there.

The movie brought back all kinds of memories for me from the 1969 Cubs. This was the year of the 'Miracle Mets'. Another one of those heartbreaks that we have gone through. Part of the soundtrack included songs from an album that was produced that year that featured the vocals of many of the Cubs on the team. I had that album at one point. I need to see if my parents still have it around somewhere.

Whether you are a Cubs fan or one of the 20 million people in America with diabetes, this is a very good movie to see. A portion of the proceeds from the sale of this movie benefit the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. The film will be shown again on Superstation WGN, August 20th @ 8:30pm PT.

Operation Air Conditioner

This seems like a great organization. It goes to show that in most cases, private enterprise is a lot better and more efficient than the government. Please continue to pray for the safe and speedy return home of our troops.

Here is text from the Operation AC website on what they do. Do what you can in support of those who are sacrificing for us overseas:

What we do is send 240V 50hz air conditioners to our troops in Iraq from our supplier in Kuwait. You might think this is a stupid thing to send, but I can assure you when you are wearing 20 pounds of gear and body armor and the temperatures get up to the middle 100s - air conditioners are a lifesaver. A donation of $203.00 buys a 9,000 BTU AC Unit and it is $30 to have it delivered to Iraq. Our supplier is a Sears authorized distributor and we have gotten the support of this company from Sears. We have been at this since June 2003 and we have adapted to the needs of our troops. We send them items they are low on in supply and just are a help to them. Please adopt a soldier or marine serving and help us with our effort.

We send troops anything they email us and ask for. Our soldiers are humble people and they only ask for what they need like the boots we send, the socks and glove kits, morale raising items and mostly matching them up with an American who cares about what they are doing. Our troops are volunteers and they are still serving in the same place - do not forget them. Many of the ones going back now are from OIF 1 and remember me from when we started. I'm still here and I promised I would not quit till the last one comes home. It is my hope that we make their existence in Iraq during their deployment as safe and as easy on them as possible given the job they are there to do.

July Poker Winnings

As per the updated resolution that I made on my June 27th post, I have withdrawn my goal of $300 from my poker winnings this month. I have also taken out an extra $200 for July. YTD=+$2,100. My next withdrawal of $300 is due on August 31st. Please continue to keep me accountable.

Cardinal Arinze - No Communion for Pro-Abort Politicians

(from LifeSiteNews.Com) - Speaking at a dinner in Pittsburgh over the weekend, Francis Cardinal Arinze responded with his usual wit to the question, "Should Catholic legislators who support legal abortion 'be refused' Communion?"

The Cardinal elicited laughter when he rejoined, "I ask you, do you really need a cardinal from the Vatican to find the answer? Are there no children from First Communion to whom you can pose the question and receive the answer? You do not need a cardinal to answer that. Because it is a straightforward matter."

The Cardinal, moreover, is speaking not from his personal opinion but from the Church's Code of Canon Law which states, "Those who…obstinately persist in manifest grave sin are not to be admitted to Holy Communion."

Apparently, however, the bishops do need a Vatican Cardinal to tell them. The US and Canadian bishops, with only a handful of exceptions, far from endorsing this requirement of the Church law, have evaded the issue or remained silent.

In book-length interview with journalist Peter Seewald, the future Pope Benedict XVI said of bishops whose first instinct is to avoid conflicts, "Peace is not the first civic duty, and a bishop whose only concern is not to have any problems and to gloss over as many conflicts as possible is an image I find repulsive."

My New Wal-Mart Store

We went to the brand new Wal-Mart in Torrance. Hooray! I Like Wal-Mart. I have to admit that there is not a better feeling in the world than to walk into a Wal-Mart, let alone a spanking new one. Okay, I am a little weird. Sorry Target and others, but you will be losing some business to my favorite store. It is time for you readers out there to buy some Wal-Mart stock.

Just Because

It seems that we give or receive gifts only for a special occasion. Like a birthday, anniversary, Christmas, or other celebration. We went out today and bought Marisa a skateboard and Alex a new bicycle. Just because. It was a pleasant surprise for them. They were really excited about their gifts. We went to the park to try them out. It was a fun time for all. Marisa even wants to sleep with her skateboard tonight. Just because.

Ten Most Common Liturgical Abuses

And Why They're Wrong.

As I have become more aware of the reason why we do things a certain way during the Mass, I sometimes wonder why some parishes do things differently from one another. I thought all things are supposed to be uniform. There are a few other abuses that I often see, but they are not listed here. I hope and pray that I am not letting these things affect me during the Celebration of the Eucharist.

1. Disregarding the prescribed text of the Order of Mass.
2. Interrupting the Mass.
3. Omitting the penitential rite.
4. Replacing or omitting the homily.
5. Dictating posture.
6. Dictating the manner of reception of the Eucharist.
7. Ignoring rules for reception of the Eucharist.
8. Holding hands during the Our Father.
9. Performing liturgical dance.
10. Closing the holy water fonts at some seasons.

The full text with references can be found in this article written by Kevin Orlin Johnson on the Catholic Answers website. I highly recommend all practicing Catholics to take the time to read the essay.

See also:
--General Instruction of the Roman Missal
--Changes in the Mass
--Appendix To The General Instruction of the Roman Missal For The Dioceses Of The United States

Derrek Lee Triple Crown Watch

Batting Average: .371 - 1st in MLB
Home Runs: 31 - 1st in MLB
Runs Batted In: 79 - 1st (tied) in NL

This may be the only thing Cubs fans have to root for this year unless they can get their act in gear. Management needs to pull the trigger on acquiring some help. Trade deadline is July 31st.

Harry Potter Controversy

I have seen all kinds of articles about the Harry Potter series that seems to put it into a bad light. See The Problem With Harry Potter for a good listing of these articles. Even Pope Benedict XXVI has supposedly said that he is not a fan of the books. See, Has the Pope Condemned Harry Potter? Since Alex has been engrossed in all of the books the past few months, I thought that I had better take a better look into it. I decided to reply (in red) to the following ten arguments against Harry Potter that were responded to positively in letters by Cardinal Ratzinger.

Ten Arguments Against Harry Potter - By Gabriele Kuby author of Harry Potter: Good or Evil

1. Harry Potter is a global long term project to change the culture. In the young generation inhibitions against magic and the occult are being destroyed. Thus, forces re-enter society which Christianity had overcome. This really sounds like a wacky conspiracy theory. You don't really believe this, do you?

2. Hogwarts, the school of magic and witchcraft, is a closed world of violence and horror, of cursing and bewitching, of racist ideology, of blood sacrifice, disgust and obsession. There is an atmosphere of continuous threat, which the young reader cannot escape. To escape this world, slowly...put...the...book...down.

3. While Harry Potter appears in the beginning to fight against evil, in fact the similarities between him and Voldemort, the arch-evil adversary in the tale, become more and more obvious. In volume five, Harry is being obsessed by Voldemort, which leads to symptoms of personality disintegration. We all must fight the evil that is within us. Hopefully in the end, we choose the good.

4. The human world becomes degraded, the world of witches and sorcerers becomes glorified. Not unlike the angels and saints.

5. There is no positive transcendent dimension. The supernatural is entirely demonic. Divine symbols are perverted. Have you even read the books?

6. Harry Potter is no modern fairy tale. In fairy tales sorcerers and witches are unambiguous figures of evil. The hero escapes their power through the exercise of virtue. In the Harry Potter universe there is no character that endeavours consistently to achieve good. For seemingly good ends evil means are being used. Huh?

7. A (young!) reader's power of discernment of good and evil is blocked out through emotional manipulation and intellectual confusion. Another leap. I have more faith in a young reader's ability to know the difference between good and evil. With the help and support of a caring adult, many great lessons can be learned from the books.

8. It is an assault upon the young generation, seducing it playfully into a world of witchcraft and sorcery, filling the imagination of the young with images of a world in which evil reigns, from which there is no escape, on the contrary, it is portrayed as highly desirable. Again, have you read the books? They are out on video too! How about books-on-tape?

9. Those who value plurality of opinion should resist the nearly overwhelming power of this peer pressure, which is being accomplished through a gigantic corporate and multimedia blitz--one which displays elements of totalitarian brainwashing. Oh, now I understand where you are coming from, you are an anti-capitalist (socialist?).

10. Since through the Potter books faith in a loving God is systematically undermined, even destroyed in many young people, through false "values" and mockery of Judeo-Christian truth, the introduction of these books in schools is intolerant. Parents should refuse permission for their children to take part in Potter indoctrination for reasons of faith and conscience. Don't you think that parents should help the child learn and grow through discussion and discernment instead of through unnecessary censorship?

This Seems Harsh, But...

Perhaps this is why I like and admire this priest so much. He says what is on his mind. There are many times when I want to say the same thing.

Father Frank Pavone, national director of Priests For Life made the following statement responding to a recent press release from the misnamed group 'Catholics for a Free Choice' that claims "faithful practicing Catholics" are not obliged to "follow church positions on issues like abortion, contraception, access to reproductive health services, end of life decision-making, the death penalty, and gay rights."

"Our response is simple. Nobody is forced to be a Catholic, but if you don't subscribe to Catholic teaching, have the honesty and integrity to say that you are no longer Catholic. But don't try to have it both ways. That's a game children play, not adults."

Why John Roberts Is Right

Literally within minutes of the official statement by President Bush, I heard a representative from the National Organization for Women (NOW) say that they oppose the nomination of John Roberts to the Supreme Court because he is someone along the lines of Justices Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas. Wow! This is the only thing that I know about this nominee, but I will support and be an advocate for this man.

Lisa's Grades

Lisa received her grades from her final semester; the one where she took two classes instead of one. She had been resigned to the fact that she would not get better than a grade of B for each class. She received an A in Advanced Technology and Practice Aspects of Amplification (eh?) and a B+ in Disorders of Hearing. She was very excited with these grades that exceeded her expectations. Great job! Your hard work and sacrifice paid off. Thanks to everyone for their encouragement, support, and Prayers For Lisa. Only one more requirement needs to be completed before she can be called Dr. Lisa. Coming soon.

Happy Birthday, Lisa!

The first song that we had played at our wedding reception was (Everything I Do) I Do It For You performed by Bryan Adams. I heard the song today and the lyrics mean more today than they did in 1993. I am blessed to have met you, Lisa. Happy Birthday.

Look into my eyes - you will see
What you mean to me
Search your heart - search your soul
And when you find me there you'll search no more
Don't tell me it's not worth tryin' for
You can't tell me it's not worth dyin' for
You know it's true
Everything I do - I do it for you

Look into my heart - you will find
There's nothin' there to hide
Take me as I am - take my life
I would give it all I would sacrifice
Don't tell me it's not worth fightin' for
I can't help it there's nothin' I want more
Ya know it's true
Everything I do - I do it for you