Five gifts meme

Presbyterian Gal tagged me for this meme, and I'm finally getting around to it. It's pretty simple, really:

Name five of your all-time favorite gifts, either given or gotten.

5. A card signed by three of the students I tutored, before I left Boston. They were my favorites, and each of them had a quirky sense of humor.

4. The microscope kit that my great-uncle brought all the way from England when I was 6 or 7.

3. The telescope my brother gave me on his first visit home after he moved to the US.

2. The many, many books I received ever since I started reading, at age 3, but especially...

1. The Christmas gift I received when I was 5: The Treasury of Natural History, by Bertha Morris Parker.

I don't think I'll tag anyone specifically, since I haven't kept track of who's played already, but anyone reading this is invited to play. If you do, please post a comment here.

Musical Monday: Money for nothing

The craziness has begun...actually, it began at 4:00 a.m. last Friday. The shopping frenzy will continue, probably until Christmas Day itself (and, of course, then come the returns). There are few songs that stand out in my memory better than Money for Nothing, when it comes to consumer excesses:



There are also other things going on at this time of the year that give me hope. People give more to charity in December than any other month of the year (some of them trying to get in that last-minute tax deduction, but still...). With so many worthy causes, it can be an overwhelming decision.

However, I have never felt drawn to Toys for Tots, the Empty Stocking Club, and the like. Maybe it's because I grew up in a country where getting a toy for Christmas was the least of many children's problems--they would have been grateful just for a decent meal. There are still children around the world who die from hunger and malnutrition at Christmas, and every other day of the year.

And so, if your church has given to programs that provide toys in the past, I ask you to prayerfully consider donating to another cause in addition to (or in place of) your current one. Just spend a minute visiting World Vision, and your life (and your Christmas) may change forever.

Friday Five: Post-Thanksgiving Day

Here's the RevGals Friday Five:

1. Did you go elsewhere for the day, or did you have visitors at your place instead? How was it?
We stayed home, with no visitors. That's how we like it. In the past, we've invited people over, but we've grown more inhospitable in our old age...it's just too much work :)

2. Main course: If it was the turkey, the whole turkey, and nothing but the turkey, was it prepared in an unusual way? Or did you throw tradition to the winds and do something different?
No turkey. For the past three years, since we became vegetarians, we've had a different main course. This year was Shepherd's Pie, with tofu, mushroom gravy, and a mashed potato top. It came out really well (and yes, we have leftovers).

3. Other than the meal, do you have any Thanksgiving customs that you observe every year?
Not particularly.

4. The day after Thanksgiving is considered a major Christmas shopping day by most US retailers. Do you go out bargain hunting and shop ‘till you drop, or do you stay indoors with the blinds closed? Or something in between?
We don't like the insanity, so we opt out of the whole shopping thing. We did buy our current TV a few years ago, when the old one died, but that was online--much less hassle. Today, we went out to lunch (technically, it was my birthday lunch because I didn't get to celebrate on my birthday).

5. Let the HOLIDAY SEASON commence! When will your Christmas decorations go up?
Growing up, it was a big day, usually a couple of weeks before Christmas. That's changed since I moved to the US. This year, M insisted on having the tree up on Thanksgiving Day. It kept her busy for a while :)

Once again...Happy Smurfin' Thanksgiving

I was trying to be funny over at Songbird's blog, with a song that randomly popped into my head. It brings back so many memories that I thought I'd share it here:



If you're one of the few people on the planet who've never heard of the Smurfs, check out the Wikipedia entry.

Hope your Thanksgiving was filled with food, family, and fun.

Giving thanks

This has been another busy week, so much so that I didn't get a chance to post my usual Musical Monday. I think this is probably a busy week for many of us, for different reasons. I hope that each of us will get a chance to take a break, and spend a few moments giving thanks to the Creator for his creation. Happy Thanksgiving in advance, and safe travel.

Friday fun

Thanks to Sally:

Which classic movie are you?

What Classic Movie Are You?
personality tests by similarminds.com

This one, I haven't even watched (by choice).

Catching up

For my regular readers, I'm still trying to catch my breath...once I do that, I hope to catch up with your blogs :)

One of the casualties of my crazy schedule has been my daily Bible reading time. Tonight, I managed to make time, and realized how much I missed it. I'm still reading Psalms, and found that God was reminding me of his promises. Now I need to keep mine.

Musical Monday: The concept album

When the iTunes Music Store was introduced, there was some concern that the "album" format would perish, since people could now pick individual tracks rather than buying an entire CD. The truth is that the album had probably been dying for some time. There were few artists releasing albums that were worth buying in their entirety (Dire Straits and Mark Knopfler being two of the exceptions that I remember). And the biggest change was that hardly any artists were producing concept albums: these were the equivalent of a classical symphony, an album where tracks were seamlessly woven together around a theme.

There have been several concept albums that took prominent places in musical history (Pink Floyd's The Wall, Roger Waters' Radio K.A.O.S., and Meat Loaf's Bat out of Hell are some of my favorites). However, my all-time favorite concept album is probably extremely underappreciated in the US: Misplaced Childhood, by Marillion. This is truly a masterpiece of both songwriting and musical composition. A sample is posted here, but you should really listen to the whole album (the original release, not the later edition) to appreciate it.



Rather than trying to draw a spiritual parallel this week, I'll let you enjoy the music and make the connections yourself. Concept albums and God--what does that say to you?

I will survive

No, I'm not going to post a Gloria Gaynor video...

I made it through the first week of my new job without getting fired! It's been a week of mixed emotions...there's all the usual downsides of corporate dysfunctionality and turf wars in this job, but it will definitely feel good to get that first paycheck. And so far, I seem to have found a few decent coworkers (and happy hour on Fridays helps).

What requires a bigger adjustment is getting my schedule ironed out and my energy levels to a better state. D and M have helped a lot by taking on more household chores, but this week, I haven't even had the energy to play the Friday Five, which is actually about taking care of body, mind, and spirit. Part of this is the overlap between winding down my business and starting the new job...it's led to longer hours, but that should change soon.

Meanwhile, I need to focus on carving out some time for prayer and Bible reading...and walking the dog regularly in the mornings before getting ready for work.

Poetry invitation: The Burning Door

Christine at Abbey of the Arts is hosting the usual poetry invitation. This time, I'm too tired (mentally and physically) for the demands of a sonnet, but you'll find my contribution below. My mom used to have Catholic "comic books" on the lives of saints that I read as a child, and this image evoked an instant and powerful memory from one of them.

The Burning Door
The door conceals the terror, yet leaks
An eerie glow. John Bosco waits
and hears the screams of boys
being tortured. They are trapped
by their humanity, betrayed
by their flesh.

He wants to save them from
the wrath of God. He sees the devil
ensnaring them. They are swallowed whole
by the ravenous mouth in which
fire burns eternal. This is God's
will, he thinks.

He reaches out to touch the door
and heat singes flesh. He cries out
in pain, and wakes to find himself
in bed. His hand still burns. Is this the
reality of hell? Or is it just a dream
for Catholic boys?

(Read more about John Bosco for the context.)

Musical Monday: Finding inspiration

Since this is the first day of my new job (and a major life change, at that) I thought I'd post about a song that relates to work. There were several that came to mind, but what really stuck was something else: the opening sequence of a movie. I can't quite define what made it stand out, but it's a combination of excellent cinematography and a great song. It's probably the best opening sequence I've seen, but sadly, I couldn't find it online.

While I was searching for the video, I found other posts from people who had been inspired by both the music and the movie. A lot of them were changing jobs, or interviewing for one, and they mentioned how both the movie and the song had made an impact in some way. So if you want to see the original, you'll have to watch Working Girl for yourself.

Meanwhile, as a substitute, here's the music video of Let the River Run, by Carly Simon. (This is not the same as the movie opening, but it does have a few clips from it.) To really enjoy this song, you have to play it loud :)

Friday Five: Interviews

Since this may be the last Friday Five I get to play at a reasonably early time, and since I just accepted a job offer, I thought the topic was especially appropriate.

1. What was the most memorable interview you ever had?
I was the interviewer, rather than the candidate...Many years ago, in my first job, we interviewed someone for a position similar to mine. He was possibly the most entertaining candidate that we'd ever interviewed. He answered highly technical questions by diverting the conversation to his current pursuits of making concrete lawn animals and lava lamps, among others. Sadly, he didn't get the job.

2. Have you ever been the interviewer rather than the interviewee? If so, are you a tiger, a creampuff, or somewhere in between?
I've probably interviewed a lot more people than being the interviewee. I always try to make the person comfortable, especially if I see that he/she is nervous, but I don't hold off on asking some hard questions that are directly relevant to the job.

3. Do phone interviews make you more or less nervous than in-person ones?
I don't get that nervous for either one, but I prefer the in-person interaction.

4. What was the best advice you ever got to prepare for an interview? How about the worst?
Best advice: be yourself and don't claim to have accomplished anything that you haven't actually done...it will come back to bite you in the butt sooner or later. Worst advice...hmmm...imagine the audience naked?

5. Do you have any pre-interview rituals that give you confidence?
Not really. I like to arrive early so I'm not stressed out from wondering if I'm going to be late.

I like Mike... (Warning! Political ramblings ahead...)

Mike Gravel, that is...too bad he stands about as much chance as I do of being elected. In particular, I like some of his views on the current state of health care (from onthe issues.org):

• Universal coverage with guaranteed equal care. (Sep 2007)
• Reforms fail because pharma companies control Congress. (Sep 2007)
• Everybody should have the same health care. (Sep 2007)
• End subsidization of the insurance companies. (Jun 2007)
• Doctors do a lot of testing today to cover their backsides. (Mar 2007)

Health-care coverage is a big issue for me, in terms of its impact on microbusinesses and the self-employed. As much as I detest insurance companies, I have to admit that they're just one part of the problem. Bill Maher does a good job of summing it up in this clip:



As I mentioned earlier, I try to steer clear of politics on this blog about my spiritual journey. But there's a connection on this particular issue. If the body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, doesn't it make sense to do what we can to keep the temple clean? I'm not saying it's easy, but it's better than worshiping at another temple--that of Big Pharma and the medical gods.