Oh but how could I forget!

I forgot to blog that I've become a huge "Dancing With The Stars" fan. All season long I've been rooting for Drew & Cheryl and they actually won last night! They won my eternal vote with their Pasa Doble routine to "Thriller." It was amazing and after that, I was hooked. In fact, I am retaining that episode on my Tivo so when I get a DVD Recorder I can save it.

Honestly, it reminds me of the first time Torville & Dean did "Bolero" at the Sarajevo Winter Olympics. It was just memorable. OK, maybe not THAT incredible as Bolero but I honestly felt like it made the show for me. Particularly since I dislike dancing.

And, for the record, I know how incredibily arrogant I sounded in my last post. I soften it up by saying, I could be the next to fall myself. But I've never humiliated her in public the way she's tried to demean and diminish me. I can't help it if I feel a considerably bit vindicated at this stage of the game. I completely know how quickly the tables can turn.

Revenge is best served cold

I do try to not blog too much about work. But today was too sweet to resist making some mention of it.

This time last year when I took a different job in which I no longer managed and enormous staff employees, there was a manager who I worked alongside - she managed an entirely different group. She was very nice to me when I first started there (she's been with the company several years). But I soon realized she was very insecure and tactless. S he used to try to get me to reveal my salary to her, which is tacky but what made it even worse is she tried to manipulate our friendship (which was lukewarm at best) to get me to tell her. "C'mon help me out - I just need to know if what they are paying me is fair." Well, I told her how to find out if her salary was fair and left it at that. As time went on, I found her to be a vicious gossip and a remarkable cheapskate (she regifted our boss' Christmas present). Well, once I made the transition to my new role, she viewed it as a demotion for me. She treated me like I was a big nothing, flounced around the office like she was a queen, asked me if my lack of status "bothered" me. She treated me like I was forced into this because I wasn't good at what I did before. The fact is, it was a lateral move but would be a high profile change for me. That can be good or bad depending on how well you work.

Not long into my new role I realized just how high profile this change was. My exposure to officers of the company and being in the drivers seat for how we will operate a significant portion of our business turned what seemed like a non-event to a moon-shot career wise. As my new job has evolved, her performance in her job (along with portions of my old job that she acquired - they split my old job into three parts) is under major scrutiny. It turns out that she's one of those people at work who have absolutely no idea what's going on, has not the humility to admit she doesn't understand something and is looking every day like a floundering idiot.

My new role requires me to start dividing tasks among the managers so they can learn all about it and become "subject matter experts" on that area. I informed my boss that I though this manager is a complete flakenut and would screw up whatever she touched. They insisted she get involved and so I threw her to the wolves today.

She freaked out, when I backed out of a meeting (legitimately) at the last second so she had to lead it herself. She freaked out and tried to get help from my old boss but I happened to be there and the vain despot she is refused to ask for help in front of me. But I knew that's why she zoomed into our old boss' office - she was in a panic because she'd be running the meeting. She didn't do abysmally badly, but had absolutely nothing to contribute and it was obvious. She has no idea how to lead this effort, obviously doesn't understand the issues and let everyone else drive the course of the meeting. She never had control of it at all. It was hilarious, she looked, frankly, stupid.

I have no idea if she's a moron or not, she may be able to rise to the challenge eventually. But now she probably has a new respect for what it takes to do what I do as a mere daily task.

In other news, I made the most kick ass chocolate dipped strawberries tonight.

So, I'm off to work first thing in the morning tomorrow. I have a huge report due. I've worked on it all afternoon and night but it's still not done. So I'm going to get everything all sorted tonight and try to be at work before 7.

Oh weekend, hurry home!

Rainy Days & Sundays

This Sunday morning I finally slept in a bit (meaning, I slept beyond my normal wake up time of 5:30). Penny & Horace even both lounged on the bed with me, purring and getting along marvelously. My wrist is feeling much better after being in the brace most of yesterday and today as well.

Last night I went to a christening. My friend that we call "Ol Ouiser" (from Steel Magnolias) is the Godmother and she threw a big party at a local Italiano restaurant. It was mostly people from work and a friend of mine was the only "connected via mutual friends only" person there and she said to me, "You're very lucky. It's more like an extended family than just a group of friends." And it really was. The kids had pizza and played outside - like a big group of cousins. The babies were walking up and down between the tables, some adults were having small food and flower fights and everyone knew each other's stories as they were relayed to others. Lots of hugs, kisses and handshakes, it was a beautiful party and it really did feel like one big family. And I got big compliments from a hairdresser on my hair (he grabbed it and said "Oh, so beautiful!" which was good cos I had it in rollers for almost an hour) and got to speak in French last night as well and it was so nice.

Italian seems to be the name of the game this week. Yesterday whilst nursing what feels like an unmotivated virus, I watched Giada's Italian Holiday and started craving Proscuitto and Parmesan cheese. Next pay day I'm going to Fresh Market and buying a wedge of really good Parmagiano Reggiano cheese because a little goes a long way but more to the point, I want some Parma curls with proscuitto. Then she went to the world famous Harry's Bar in Venice (where I think I bought some Prosecco, but am not really sure) and had a Bellini Cocktail (of which I could make today but can't be bothered) and the Croque Monsieur sandwich. It's a slightly different take than the French Croque Monsieur which normally has ham, bechamel on buttered bread that is broiled or grilled (not unlike a grilled ham & cheese sandwich). It has a puree of swiss cheese, egg, dry mustard and wocestershire sauce, with boiled ham in the middle, cut into strips and then fried in olive oil. Oh mon dieu.

So I found the recipe on the Cipriani website and made it for brekkie this morning since I had a sliver of leftover swiss cheese and ham from my parents visit. It was literally sinful. I'm going to try to make it with Italian bread next time because the regular white bread I used this time absorbed a TON of the olive oil. I don't think there's anything bad about eating that much olive oil but I think a sturdier bread would be better. I plan to mix Parmesan with the swiss next time. I ate it venetian style as well, wrapped in a folded paper napkin. It was quick to make, but I need to work on it more to reduce the amount of oil. You literally cannot eat a whole sandwich it's so rich.

This makes me sad, Don Knotts died. He's one of those actors who seem suspended in TVLand and never seemed to get older or younger. I loved The Andy Griffith Show and Three's Company so I'm sad as yet another year passes and the living past begins to become the legendary past.

Today the weather here is cooler than it's been all week (high will be in the mid 60's but dropping to the 50's early today). It's raining and cloudy so my plan to go to the Farmer's Market via bicycle is foiled. I don't mind riding in the rain except when I get back on the bike, the seat will be wet (which is the worst feeling) and the route to town includes a lot of boardwalks which are extremely slick when wet. So it will just be me and the car today. I'm making Guacamole and Chipotle steaks for lunch. I got a guac mix from Frontera Grill ("just add avocados and fresh cilantro") - I hope it's nearly as good as what you get in Rick Bayless' Topolobampo Restaurant. My sister and I ate there over Christmas and it was the best experience and reasonably price considering it's a Celebrity Chef establishment.

My wrist is now getting sore so I'm off to figure out what to do today. Probably more relaxing and loafing. It's well deserved and needed, methinks.

Apricotine Jam

I've jammed my wrist. So this will not be a long post.

How did I jam it? I was trying to make this delicious Almond-Orange-Apricot crescent roll recipe from 30 Minute Meals. When I went to open the jar of marmalade, my wrist snapped in a weird way. It hurts only in certain types of movements so I doubt it's sprained. But I've been wearing my brace which makes me type very s-l-o-w-l-y.

The recipe turned out fantastic, as it should considering there were casualties.

I'm off to a dinner/reception for my friend's nephew's christening. All my girlfriends will be there so I'm looking forward to it.

Chronology - The Early 1980's

I'm seperating the 80's into two parts because that was really when I started really enjoying music and developing an interest. The 80's here covers what I call the "Winter Park" years. Once our family moved to Satellite Beach, my musical taste diverged from what was influenced by my parents and more influenced by my friends. I became an official teenager in 1985 though I was well on my way to Valley Girl land by 1984..well, if Valley Girls were gawky and poor.

1. Country Roads, John Denver - The honor of this song in my record collection is all owed to my mother who seemed to really like him. It was played in our house in Winter Park a lot, I think she got it for Christmas around 1981 or 82
2. 9 to 5, Dolly Parton - If we were good in the 3rd grade class, we could listen to either Grease or 9 to 5. For some reason 9 to 5 usually won out.
3. Dancing Queen, Abba - Though this might have been a song from the 70's, it reminds me distinctly more of the early 80's, riding in the car on Summerfield Avenue picturing myself in a fluid dress spinning on a disco floor.
4. Physical, Olivia Newton John - I had a really annoying friend called Oriya. She loved this song and we listened to it obsessively at her house, along with the video which was absurd in a way I couldn't pin point.
5. Forever In Blue Jeans, Neil Diamond - If Kelsey's was an intitution for us in the 70's, then Pizza Inn was an institution for us in the 80's This song always seemed to be on in the restaurant and I can always taste the "Special" and the smell of my dad's Erlanger beer
6. Lost In Love, Air Supply - How can I forget swimming at Sam's house and hanging out in her living room listening to an Air Supply record
7. Believe It Or Not, Joey Scarbury - Better known as the theme from The Greatest American Hero. Get the suit, Ralph.
8. Sam, Olivia Newton John - Ironically, this reminds me of my friend Sam :-D
9. Weekend In New England, Barry Manilow - OK, you know he had to show up here somewhere. But for reasons inexplicable, my sister and I loved playing this 45 and singing along to it. When I hear this song, I can see her bedroom in all it's overly yellow and puke green glory.
10. Queen of Hearts, Juice Newton - This also reminds me a lot of Pizza Inn
11. Rhymes & Reasons, John Denver - Again, heavily played. Usually at night.
12. Diamond Girls, Neil Diamond - For who knows what reason, my sister and I would wear our bedspreads as capes and twirl around like maniaces to this song, zooming up and down the furniture. Diamond Girls, indeed
13. Magic, Olivia Newton John - Nothing bar none reminds me more of Orlando Fashion Square mall than this song.
14. Angel of the Morning, Juice Newton - My sister loved..LOVED Juice Newton and we always had to listen to this song when it came on the radio. Usually going to Cocoa Beach for the day.
15. Run For the Roses, Dan Fogelberg - I always thought about succes with this song - the Black Stallion or the Olympics.
16. Xanadu, Olivia Newton John - This was the last ONJ song I loved and probably the most loved song of my childhood
17. Billie Jean, Michael Jackson - The first time I heard this little number was in Mrs. Palmer's music class. I had never heard of Michael Jackson (as is no surprise I'm sure when reading my playlist)
18. Say Maybe, Neil Diamond - My sister and I pantomimed this song too. We were ridiculous.
19. Key Largo, Bertie Higgins - I'm reminded of our weekends to the beach, Burger Chef and having way too much sand in my bathing suit
20. Beat It, Michael Jackson - More of the same
21. The Sound of Silence, Simon & Garfunkel - This oddly reminds me of the first years we had cable and HBO. Their concert in Central Park was aired and I stood on the fireplace watching it
22. Dream Away, Frank Sinatra - Speaking of the fireplace, this was the ultimate family time for us. We had a fire lit and this song we'd play over and over
23. Do Ya Think I'm Sexy, Rod Stewart - My mother humiliated me by dancing and singing this song. No one was around but it was utterly utterly humiliating.

Up next is the last six years of the 80's. You think this was bad, heaven help us all when I tackle 1984!

Chronology - The 1970's

I know probably no one else is interested in this but me. But, in my further work on my iTunes playlist I'm creating a Mac Daddy playlist called "Chronology" which essentially will compile every song on my playlist in the order I recall being introduced to them and they stuck in my memory.

Saying it's a soundtrack to your life is a bit inaccurate because that lends one to believe that it speaks something about you. In this case, it doesn't speak anything to me but rather is what transports me back to a time and place in my life - a memory. The tough part, of course, is doing this in order!

1. Baby Won't You Please Come Home, Frank Sinatra - This was my lullaby. Still works.
2. Rhinstone Cowboy, Glen Campbell - I know I was four years old and I sang this jumping up and down on the bed.
3. Sugar Town, Nancy Sinatra - This was a 45 of my mom or dad's and we played it to death on the little record player my grandparents bought us sometime in 1977. At least until my sister broke the needle for a second time.
4. Y.M.C.A, The Village People - I actually asked for this 45 and more remarkably my mother bought it at Sears.
5. How Deep Is Your Live, The Bee Gees - There probably is no more definitive song of my childhood than this one. Played often on the jukebox at Kelseys Road House in Barrington, the 70's in all its Travolta glory and happy, happy memories.
6. Short Grass, Ian & Sylvia - I have incredibly fun memories of dancing around the living room with my dad to this song. I think we thought it was rock music.
7. Wooden Heart, Elvis Presley - I can actually sing this in German. This was another dance favorite in the house, this time the polka.
8. Early Morning Rain, Ian & Slyvia - Memories of laying on the couch falling asleep or even being in bed and hearing it downstairs. It always made me sad and I remember thinking, "I'd rather be on the plane than crying on the ground."
9. Circle of Steel, Gordon Lightfoot - This song probably was no more played in the house than any other Gord tune but I always liked this one a lot.
10. Please Mr. Please, Olivia Newton John - When I was allowed to play records on the big stereo without supervision, this song was a big hit. Later on in the early 80's my sister and I would do pantomime to this song much to our mutual hilarity.
11. Sundown, Gordon Lightfoot - Nothing reminds me more of the red carpet we had in the house than this song. I contemplated the movement of sunlight to this song. Really.
12. The Rainbow Connection, Kermit The Frog - This was a big hit with me in 1979. It continued to be a musical force through the early 80's as well. Ha!

They say it was influenza

I don't think I have the flu, but I have been feeling quite pokey the last few days and extremely tired. I feel like I can't sleep enough which is unlike me. Normally I barely need sleep. Everyone around me at work has fallen ill to some virus or influenza itself so I wonder if I'm fighting a virus and that's wearing me down.

I'm a bit disgusted with the weather this week. It's in the 80's which is nice but also very foggy, ergo humid. Further to that, I was hoping to go to Satellite Beach on Saturday but there's a 70% chance of rain which means not only would going to the beach be pointless, it also means doing yardwork at home is a wash. Literally.

And in further Florida news, I found a frog in my coat. Thankfully my dad was able to shake it out for me. Ugh.

Matrix Mixes

I've had houseguests for pretty much the last several weeks and for some reason, I get an enormous sense of clarity and get an amazing number of things done when I take small breaks away. Maybe I think better under pressure, I'm not sure.

Anyway, I made 3 CD's recently to play in the CD player of my new Matrix and I love them much. I call the CD's "Matrix Mix." But I found I was getting a bit bored with only 160 minutes of tunes at my disposal (especially when I commute 400 minutes a week). So I created two more today that are little junior editions - what we might say are the "essence" of my favorite bigger iTunes playlists. In the full iTunes list for my Euro playlist, I have 66 songs. In my Romanza playlist I have 85. So narrowing these lists down to what will fit on a CD-R was a big task. But I'm pretty chuffed with what I came up with.

My Euro Matrix Mix is not neccessarily European music (though I believe all of it is) but rather things that remind me of being in Europe over the last ten or twelve years.

Matrix Mix 4 - Euro

Rotterdam (Or Anywhere) - The Beautiful South
Sunshower - Chris Cornell
You Gotta Be - Desree
Sand in My Shoes - Dido
Crickets Sing For Anamaria - Emma Bunton
Virtual Insanity - Jamiroquai
En Csak AZT Csodalom - Marta Sebesteyen
Sex Bomb - Tom Jones & Mousse T (I swear this song is on every playlist I make)
Don't Look Back In Anger - Oasis
69 Police - (don't know who)
Via Con Me - Paolo Conte
Pure Morning - Placebo
Like A Friend - Pulp
2 Become 1 - Spice Girls
Move Over - Spice Girls
Desert Rose - Sting

My Romanza mix I took a slightly different take. They are all songs that I think are very romantic and evocative. But I organized them in order of oldest to new, though I will not confirm this is the order they were released. I clumped them by era more accurately and then arranged them in an order I felt would be more aesthetically pleasing. The first song dates to the 1920's and the last one is the early 2000's.

Matrix Mix 5 Romanza

Parlez Moi D'Amour - Lucienne Boyer
Muzsikas Szerelem Szerelem - Marta Sebesteyen (actually this isn't old but was recorded to be old)
Cheek to Cheek - Fred Astaire
At Last - Etta James
Wonderful - Johnny Mathis
Smoke Gets In Your Eyes - The Platters
I Only Have Eyes For You - The Flamingos
Theme from a Summer Place - Percy Faith
Sometime In The Morning - The Monkees
I Got You Babe - Sonny & Cher
For Emily - Simon & Garfunkel
Rhymes & Reasons - John Denver (really)
Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow - Roberta Flack
Just When I Needed You Most - Dolly Parton (again, really)
Fade Into You - Mazzy Star
Cowboy Romance - Natalie Merchant
Viva Forever - Spice Girls
Come Away With Me - Norah Jones

Earth Below Us..

Feb06_0306
Originally uploaded by minnaloushe232.

We went to Kennedy Space Center today. It was actually quite amazing and I found it to be well worth the price of admission and then some. By far the most impressive thing to see there is the Saturn V rocket - the most powerful and complex piece of machinery in the world so they say. And so one believes when you find out there are 2 million independent systems on board (seriously) and check out the size of these five engines.. It's one helluva ride, that's for sure.

Word of the Moment

The word of the moment, at the moment, seems to be "Benign". I've been using it a lot lately.


Other than that, not much to say.

The Great Myth of Florida

For alllll the people who give me a hard time about having gone "soft" and that I live in warm sunny Florida, and the winter here is a piece of cake.. I say, put this into your stove and smoke it:

You can smoke both ends of it, in fact, because 29 - by any standard - is cold. Maybe not horribly cold, but it is in fact cold. But lookit what we get on Saturday! Bwahahaha! Hmm, should I go to the Cape, St. Augustine or Sarasota? SO many to choose from!

The coming week

SO many things this week coming up at work, how shall I do it all?

My sister arrives tomorrow which is a good thing. She'll probably be grouchy because it's cold out (36 degrees the thermometer says right now and will be colder even still tonight/tomorrow) and has to sleep in the front room which is about as insulated as a sun porch. It's got huge windows and very little can stop the cold from entering and the heat from leaving.

Penny is completely acclimated now as well. Horace is in her little round bed now, which she loves, and Penny is perched on my bed as always. This is how it was for years and I'm glad they have each other for company. I still worry about my clumsy Penny - you never know what he will get into - but it's cool having a loving cat. Last night he put his chin on my arm and fell asleep - too damn cute!

Today's Accomplishments

If you weren't here you wouldn't believe it. Here's what was accomplished today:

1. Full Sunday breakfast, cooked
2. Watched Tivo'ed Survivor episode
3. Mounted organizer inside linen closet door
4. BJ's Wholesale shopping - kitty litter, coffee and a car charger for MP3 player
5. Target - Cat food, paper towels, prepaid phone shopping for parents
6. Home Depot - Hardware for new pantry shelves purchased on Friday and wood glue for broken kitchen shelf
7. Smoked chicken wings and drumsticks, finished with slather of Bono's BBQ sauce
8. Put together utility shelf for garage, cleaned and organized garage further
9. Pruned all crape myrtle (sp??) trees and sawed/smashed down the trimmings
10. Pruned Magnolia tree
11. Mounted new pantry shelves
12. Cleaned spice cabinet out and filled up new pantry shelves
13. Cleaned out pantry
14. Rearranged all dishware and pots and pans (3 double size cabinets worth)

I'm literally exhausted and it's only 6:45 in the P.M. I also went on Expedition Everest yesterday which scared the living hoo ha out of me. It's one amazing roller coaster and incredibly, incredibly intense. It was worse than I remember it being, but that might be because I had a six year old riding with me and I was worried he was going to freak out and start crying. The Yeti scared him but other than that I think he had fun.

OK, I'm off to pass out now.

Just want to see if this works

Torino 2006

I watched most of the Opening Ceremony of the 2006 Olympic Games last night. I know the United States packs a stellar show when we host but Italia did an utterly beautiful job. It seemed like a magnificent yet intimate affair. I did feel like a night at the opera (not least of all for Pavo's Nessun Dorma finale) but everything was spectacular and beautiful.

As with all Olympic ceremonies, I have a propensity and history to cry through them. When I watched the glitzy portion (the "American Style") bit where Yoko Ono showed up to recite some familiar lines and then Peter Gabriel began to sing Imagine, I was a bit impervious to the emotion. But then you looked out at the Olympian's and saw them all shoulder to shoulder swaying and singing the words, "You may say I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one.. I hope some day you'll join us. And the world will live as one." Then I gushed.

I suppose that's the beauty of the opening and closing ceremonies of the Olympics. It allows the entire world to see what could be possible, that at least some of us can get a long and be united despite all our cultural, religious and political differences.

Though I doubt somewhat that Denmark was cosying up to any of their Lebenese counterparts.
Can I say with absolute recognition of how selfish and shallow this sounds - but I'm so glad it's the Danish that are in the hot seat. Takes a little pressure of us for about five minutes.

Now what makes you think I'd buy this?

Feb06_0260
Originally uploaded by minnaloushe232.

Clearly, Piracy was Kellogg's only option in the fierce cereal market.

I saw this at the local Wal Mart this week and promptly freaked out in the aisle. For a mere $2.50/box, you can look at Cap't Jack Sparrow over your coffee at your own breakfast table. Or, even, bring it up into your office and set it underneath your desk lamp...er..

It's actually quite good cereal and lovely to see the marketing effort starting already.

I wonder if Johnny Depp had any idea he's be on the cover of a cereal box some day? Good thing he lives in France, savvy?

Penny's Home!!!

Feb06_0256
Originally uploaded by minnaloushe232.

Horace and Penny seem no worse for the trauma of having met. They stared at each other through the french doors and then hissed when face to face. But, Horace is already relaxing, Penny is exploring and they don't seem to be too bothered by each other's existence.

It's a lot of work having another cat, but, all in all I'm glad Penny is finally home.

Post Script - Horace started hissing at Penny and ended up engaging a hairball. LOL!

Oh the times they are a changin'

I'm working from home today. My friend Sarah brought my cat Penny to me. Penny has not actually been with me for the better part of the last three or four years. He's adjusting very well and is a little bit 'concerned' with his new environment. I have him taking residence in the study so he can see us through the glass doors but not actually get into a scrap with Horace (my other less high maintenance cat).

So I also got an interesting visit from one of the C-Level officers of the company yesterday. Apparently I'm an asset to the company and it was expressed that I'm one of selected group who they would like "ensure" is retained through our merger. Now that I've been given a reason to stay - and I'll be honest that an officer of the company personally delivering that message was just as meaningful as any incentive - I guess I should stop whinging about my job. But we all know I won't :-D

Feeling Groovy (ish)

What a difference a higher barometer makes! I woke up free of pain this morning, thanks to Tylenol PM at bedtime and a motrin right after my breakfast. It's cold but very sunny out. I need to take the car to get it washed (I am not sure if they waxed the car before they gave it to me, so I want to get it washed and the protection put on it since it's taken a lot of big hits of rain and road debris in the short time I've had it).

Despite feeling wobbly and weird, I did manage to finish cleaning my office yesterday. I even cleaned up the hornets nest of electrical cords that made my office look like a clinic in fire prevention course. Now I have to tackle the guest room before my Dad arrives.

Speaking of cars, I should add that I've seen many, many charcoal grey Matrix's and only one Cosmic Bloo. Guess I'm glad I didn't get the grey one like I originally wanted.

A Broad (Band) New World

Despite the miserable weather, the ensuing migraine headaches et al, I've entered the world of broadband phone. I signed up for Vonage, et voila, I have unlimited long distance, voicemail, caller ID - all the good stuff. I even have a virtual phone number for my friends up north to call me on free o charge.

Anyhoo, I was feeling OK around 2 or 3 today. But after the flurry of activity that is setting up the vonage router and other good stuff, I've lost my funk and I'm getting tired and ready for bed soon. I wanted to go see a movie but think that would be a better thing to try to accomplish tomorrow.

Oh my poor aching brains

I went down for the count yesterday with a completely horrific migraine. I ended up being sick all day with nausea and vomiting. My friends at work had to drive me home, in fact.

So, I'm much better this morning and hoping to resume my weekend as planned. I'm weak but that's because I've eaten nothing for near 24 hours. I'm not hungry still and respecting that. I am afraid to eat anything for fear of throwing up and the mere suggestion of food no longer makes me want to hurl. So, it's getting better.

Lots was on the agenda this weekend but the atrocious weather we've had (and the likely culprit of the mega migraine) may step in and screw that up. Besides the usual errands, I wanted to drive out to say good bye to my aunt before she goes home, I need to go to Disney to get a mouse hat for a friend of mine and a birthday present for my friend's kid. Then I wanted to see Match Point, the new Woody Allen film that's not a Woody Allen film.

So, rain rain go away.

The Invisible Scarlet Letter

I'm not a Catholic, nor do I play one on TV. I could be a Catholic by Osmosis if only because I a) grew up in Chicago and b) virtually all of my closest, oldest friends are Catholic. My friendship base is predominantly Italian Catholic and Polish Catholic, I've been to CCD class (I had to go with my friend while her mother was taking care of me and my sister while my dad was in the hospital), one of my best friends teaches CCD and all are fairly involved in the Catholic church and its teachings.

I say this because I don't want it to be construed that I am passing judgement on the Catholic faith because I dare not pass judgement. What I am about to say is an expression of observation, concern, confusion and hopefully misunderstanding.

I have three girlfriends, all of whom have at least contemplated an adulterous affair. Two are devout Catholic and those are the two who have engaged in adultery. Because I rarely attend church and have my own views on faith that I might be seen by my less close friends as fairly godless, soulless, amoral or whatever so perhaps they think that I would put a stamp of irrelevant acceptance on adultery. This journal entry is not about me, however, but I will say that they could not be more incorrect.

Here is the observation. Both that are in an adulterous affair are not married themselves but divorced. Their partners are married and have children at home. Many people who are not catholic say that the reason Catholics cheat is because they go and get forgiven at confession. That may be true, least of all because you ask for forgiveness with the intent and committment to not do it again. But it's my observation that leads me to believe they are cheating because they broke a sacrament when they got divorced so why not do whatever you want?

I've heard this from divorced Catholic women many times - they can't receive communion once they are divorced. Murderers can receive communion. The only way they can is to get an annulment which costs money (a revenue source for the Church) and most won't do that if they have children resultant from that marriage. So during Mass, everyone gets up for communion including their own children, but they must sit there and have everyone wonder what sacrament they broke. This is your parish and your neighbors swarming around you, and you must sit there with this invisible Scarlet Letter contemplating your decision that parked your butt on that pew.

The inability to divorce in the Catholic church has turned out an interesting breed of women who will continue to "sin" because they have nothing to lose anymore. If my friends could divorce, I suspect they would not be having affairs because in all other respects of their life they are "good Catholics" and would not spread their sadness into other people's marriages.

I wonder, without judgement, but rather with sadness when their heads are bowed in prayer at Mass..what do they pray for?