Emergacy Preparedness Part I

I had been meaning to do a post about emergency preparedness last month since September was National Emergency Preparedness month. Obviously I didn't get around to it, but I hope to do a couple within the next week or so. Given the recent fires in the news it would be a good time to talk about it.

This article from Time Magazine was very interesting. It talks about what one would save from a fire if there was only ten minutes to spare. It also lists some useful things that Katrina refugees wished they had had such as kitty litter for humans to keep the mess and smell down.

If you don't have any emergency preparations made at all, or any supplies on hand a good starting place would be to read the Time article and make a list of what to take for yourself and family should the need arise. I made a list like that around the time of Katrina, but have never done anything else regarding any sort of emergency. From personal experience (however slight it may be - but that's in a future post), I know I need do much more.

Bella

Well, I jumped on the Catholic bandwagon and went to see the much-hyped-in-the-conservative-Catholic-subculture movie Bella. It was the first movie I have seen in the theaters since The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe.

When I first heard about Bella I wasn't interested in seeing it, but the more I heard about it the more I wanted to see it. Another reason I wanted to watch the movie was because I had heard that it was clean and pro-life. Those are two rare virtues in movies nowadays and I wanted to support the movie for that in hopes that more movies will be made with such virtues.

So what did I think about it? It was very, very good. It seemed a little Christian but mostly secular and I think that is a good thing. Movies that are ostensibly Christian tend to alienate non-Christians, but the movie's Christian qualities were all very subtle. I hope that the seeds of being open to life will be planted due to that.

Bella was one of those movies that cause the viewer to run the gamut of emotions. At one point I was crying from sadness and at another crying from how beautiful the scene was. Although this was by no means a comedy, there was also a little laughter as well.

At the movie's end I had a lot to think about. During the movie I was wondering what the fuss was about. Why did everyone say this movie was so good? But once it ended, I could just tell that its goodness just was. Why is it good? It just is. That probably doesn't make any sense, but I can't do any better than that.

Go see it for yourself.

A Beautiful Concert

Last night my husband and I attended a wonderful concert. It was beautiful and funny and far better than anything at Carnegie Hall.

The concert was performed by Happy Boy. He pulled out a little toy bowl and used it as a guitar to sing various songs that we have been singing to him. It was enlightening because we had no idea how many of words to the songs he was retaining. Of course he couldn't sing all the lines to all the songs, but for some of them he knew parts of multiple verses, which we found amazing.

Children's minds really are like sponges: we need to take care that they absorb wholesome things instead of the dirt the world tries to leave for them.

Brrrrr!

When I wrote about this, I knew it would be just a teaser for autumn. But now, the either the real thing has arrived, or Mother Nature's playing a practical joke on us.

Yesterday it rained all day and was in the fifties most of the day. It was 57 in our bedroom both when I went to bed and when I woke up. Reeda would fuss every time I put her down because her bed was too cold, so she ended up sleeping with a hot water bottle. It was also one of the first nights that Happy Boy actually slept with the covers on instead of kicking them off. And today when my husband went to work it was only 45.

Yesterday was the first day my husband made hot chocolate. We also had chili and cornbread. I am looking forward to having many more soups, stews, and crockpot meals now that the weather is cooperative.

Love2learn at the Movies

There is a new blog which reviews movies appropriate for families. I have already requested from the library three movies that Love2learn at the Movies has recommended, so it looks very promising.

New Cardinals

Yesterday the Catholic blogosphere was all abuzz at the news that the Pope has named 23 more cardinals. What is so noteworthy about that is that the Archbishop of Washington got passed by in favor of the Archbishop of Houston.

Archbishop DiNardo,
Bishop of Houston

I was very pleased to hear that because the cardinal sees have always been disproportionately in the Eastern United States. Up until now there has only been one cardinal see west of the Mississippi River. Although most Catholics used to live in the East, that is not true anymore, especially with the increase of Hispanic immigrants. Houston is the best choice for a cardinal, given that it is the fourth largest city in the country and one of the largest dioceses in the western half of the country.

Tea Meme

Over at my cooking blog I did a tea meme. This was a fun one, Mrs. Bear!

Confession

Recently I have seen several articles about an increase in the rate of people going to confession. I was very glad that someone is finally acknowledging it.

For years people have complained, "Before Vatican II the lines of people going to confession were very long, but now no one ever goes." This statement always drives me crazy because it hasn't been my experience at all.

The city in which I live has three parishes. No matter which one I go to I always wait in line at least 45 minutes. That is, unless I arrive 20 minutes before the scheduled time and then I only have to wait 25 minutes. During Lent, my husband and I were able to get someone to watch Happy Boy so we could go together for once instead of on different days. We got there right at the start of the scheduled time and there were already more than 20 people in line. We knew from experience that we wouldn't be able to get in to the confessional there so we went to a different church. There were already more than 20 people in line ahead of us even though we got there more than twenty minutes early. By the time it began there were at least 15 people behind us as well.

I know it is a good thing that there are such long lines for confession, but I wish that the priests had enough time to schedule more. I also wish that the anti-Vatican Two-ers would open their eyes and see how many of the faithful take advantage of this wonderful sacrament.

A Thank You Can Work Wonders

Yesterday we had guests over for dinner. In preparation I was rushing around like a mad woman trying to do all the cleaning that I considered necessary. I had repeatedly tried to encourage Happy Boy to pick up his toys, but all he wanted to do was watch me clean.

My temper and frustration were rising as the minutes ticked by. Then, as Happy Boy watched me clean the kitchen floor, he said, "Thank you for cleaning the kitchen, Mama." And then he said it again. My heart melted and I was able to relax a little and smile. What made it even more special was that he had never said anything like that before. As we picked up his toys together I had a song in my heart.

Lost

I have recently heard several people talking (or blogging, as the case may be) about the television show Lost. While we don't watch TV, we are not opposed to TV shows.

We decided to check the first season of Lost of of the library and found it enjoyable. When we finished the first season, I went online to request the second from the library. I was disappointed to find out that three of the discs for the second season are lost or damaged, including the first one. Now that they have hooked us into becoming fans, we are left suffering from our addiction.