Lent is upon us. I have a few bags of chips and candy to plow through first, but tomorrow will be the start. The other day I stumbled upon a Canadian bishop's blog. That should be all you need to know. In it the bishop was talking about how for lent instead of giving up things, we should give up being fearful. I hear more and more of this. Catholics are like: "I'm going to give up yelling at my kids this lent," or, "I'm going to give up swearing for lent." So what, you're going to give up a certain sin for lent, but not the others? You can just give up a sin, but you've been waiting until now to do it? You're going to take up swearing and yelling at your kids as soon as Easter Sunday comes by?

I think such ideas are muddled and ill-thought out. They seem to be lacking in trust of the traditions of Catholics too. Or perhaps they signify arrogance? Either way, are people really looking for different lenten penances? So be it. I have an idea. Something that will either purify you straight to the unitive way, or break you into leaving the faith all together. But "if you never try you'll never know."

Presenting, straight from the Three-Days of Darkness (credit Fr. Z) religious education conference in L.A., here's Friday's concert celebrating the music of David Haas, Marty Haugen, and Michael Joncas. Dust off your hippy clothes. Take out your Breaking Bread hymnal. And, above all, pull out a pail to keep beside you always. I recommend no more than a few minutes a day. Any more might make you dream of felt banners and Dan Schutte. Or at the very least make you desire to learn how to play three chords on the guitar. Two to three minutes max. If you survive, well, rejoice and be glad... yours is the kingdom of God (1:28:00).

Happy lent.

I'll stick with my traditional penances, thank you. I'm only man.

Music Mondays: Oscar

No, not those Oscars from last night. I don't care about those. The most recent movie I've seen is the original Lego Movie. Before that? Toy Story 3. I'm talking about Oscar Peterson.

Joseph loves a certain book from the library called Oscar Lives Next Door.

It tells of how a young Oscar Peterson used to annoy his neighbours in Montreal with his trumpet playing (though secretly the neighbours liked it). However, Oscar got TB and, unfortunately, was unable to play trumpet anymore. So he took up piano. He got good at it. The rest is history. Perhaps the greatest Canadian musician of all time. Here's some Oscar Peterson to get you going this week. This is called Satin Doll.

The Week Off

My winter "break" is winding down. I use the word "break" with the scare quotes because this break is usually quite busy. Here are some of the things we've been up to.

Hockey

Joseph had a full slate of hockey. Along with a few practices, we just got back a few minutes ago from a game in Bjorkdale (25 minutes away).

There he is on the face off. He was cheating a bit by hanging over the other team's side.

Every kid gets a stint or two in net. Thankfully Joseph doesn't like playing goalie. I couldn't afford the equipment. On the other hand, he'd never have to pay for playing in any beer league when he's older.

The crowd. If you've never watched a game in small town SK, it's the equivalent to sitting in a freezer. But we love it! Joseph scored twice, and had five assists. He played great.

We talkin 'bout practice here.

S'toon

We took a day trip to Saskatoon for some much needed shopping.  It went smoothly, and we were able to visit with my sister and her family. The trip is tiring though. John Paul fell asleep on the way home with his juice straw still attached to his mouth.

Moving Day

My brother and his family finished their house. By finish I mean it's just good enough for them to move in. That's exciting! I'm sure it'll take years before everything is finished completely. So I took a day trip to Humboldt to help them move.

One of many trips.

Stuff starts piling in.

Their lovely kitchen. I hope Becca isn't jealous for it.

The day was very inspiring for me. After making dozens and dozens and dozens of trips carrying boxes up and down stairs I came home late and announced to Becca that we had to start throwing stuff out. It's too exhausting to move it all.


Hair-a-see

I finally gave Joseph a haircut. That means tub time after! Rub-a-dub-dub...

Yes, you can tell by the above picture that our tub needs new caulking. I was planning on doing it over the break, but something else came up...

Basement Renovation

A couple of weeks ago we were hanging out in Nipawin. We were talking with my brother Stephen and he was mentioning how he had a few days available with nothing much to do. Becca then opened her mouth and said: "Like doing our basement?" "Sure!" he replied. Huh? What? You mean our basement reno that we were planning on tackling this summer? Our ugly basement with water damage (it's all good), lousy painting, and 60s wet bar? As we drove home that night we talked about it. I usually like to plan, and over plan, such projects. But, the whole thing was pretty straightforward... And, I had an upcoming week off to finish things... And it sure would be nice to free up some time this summer for things I want to do like building knick knacks and things... and a trip to the beach.. and.. why not!

So we prepped and cleared things during our evenings. Then Stephen came and started doing the dirty work of ripping out carpets, cabinets, and removing our old wet bar area (the old carpets that were glued down... better him than me). We chipped in at night time, and of course when my week off finally came. We all worked together.

I mean everybody...

Most renovations hit a snag. Ours occurred when the bar area was removed. There was a little section that had some 9x9 vinyl tile underneath. This tile may or may not contain asbestos. Floor tile asbestos is safe, unless of course you're trying to remove it. The way it was installed, there was a chunk of plywood over top that couldn't be taken out without disturbing the tile. We had a problem. What to do? Get the tile tested? Nuh uh. Open up that part of the room to the furnace room? Nuh uh, not without moving electrical and furnace stuff. So Becca and I lay in bed awake. Late at night. Talking and talking. There would be little sleep that night. Not without a solution. And then, as sure as Donald Trump is president of the United States of America, it hit us!

That's right. We decided on building a wall using that plywood as part of the base for storage within the wall. To quote someone else: "We're gonna build a wall. I think it's a great idea." The only problem was how to get our neighbours to pay for the wall. Ok, that wasn't a consideration. Nevertheless, we built a wall. Here's where we're at right now:

John Paul's anxious to show you. But first things first. I finally put some decent trim on the one side of the door. Now I can use my chin up bar downstairs instead of hauling it upstairs when needed.

For now it's basically a workout room. Hey, it's what we like to do (yes, even the boys).

 We found an old heavy mirror kicking around in our furnace room. I built a frame for it using wood from my old tree house I built when growing up (clearly the tree house didn't stand the test of time). Now I can stare at myself in between workout sets. That or check my posture from time to time (good excuse, hey).

We still don't have all our books up yet. We bought a heavy duty workout mat from Costco. It's been great. Also, we purchased a google chromecast on sale. This means we can play a workout video from Becca's ipod (which we do frequently) and play it over the TV (my grandpa's old one). It basically works out to be a poor man's version of a smartTV. Pretty nifty.

Finally I get to use my chin up bar!

 The boys love the space for playing ministicks.

 Weights and my punching bag. I want a Rocky poster there, but I gotta ask my wife first.

 And yes, there's our beautiful wall. The plan is to build a sliding barn door in front of it. But first I have to tear down a shed at my parents place, and figure out a DIY rolling system (they're $160 at Home Depot!). At least I'll have something to do this summer.

I built some quick shelving in the room. We'll fill it up when we're done going through our stuff (and hopefully throwing things out).

Long story short, it was a busy week off. It was nice to get the main part of this reno out of the way now, especially before Lent. You know, when renovating your house there is a lot of focus spent on how to make things look nice, do a good job, and have something you're proud of. This is good. But let's be honest, it's not like we end each sentence with "for the greater glory of God." For instance, "I will try and build a farm door to add a rustic touch to our basement.. for the greater glory of God." No, there's a bit of materialism that is hard to avoid with renovations. But we can be done with it for now, and focus on what really matters...

Joseph's hockey.

Just kidding. Time to focus on what really matters.

Have a great Lent.

Music Mondays: Wuv, Twue Wuv

Tomorrow is St. Cyril and Methodius Day. Men celebrate it by buying chocolate and flowers for their special someone. I'm not sure why.

On a lesser liturgical note, it is also traditionally the feast of St. Valentine. St. Valentine, in earning the triumph of martyrdom, was beaten, stoned, and beheaded. And so I offer the following song for Becca to help celebrate. The song is a little messed up. It's somewhat surreal, though mostly just bizarre. It comes from Coldplay's Ghost Stories album. At first I hated this album. But the more I listen to it the more I've grown to like it. In fact, it might be my favourite album by Coldplay. It reminds me of how at first Becca used to hate me. But then slowly she grew to like me. And now, I might be her favourite.

The album is actually a break up album. Martin had just split from his wife, Gwyneth Paltrow. Celebrities live apart and then break up because their relationships aren't normal. When will they ever learn? Nevertheless, the music world eagerly anticipated a good old fashioned break up album. And he delivered. The song True Love, which is featured today, is a haunting melody of being unable to let go. Consider the line: "Just tell me you love me. If you don't then lie, oh lie to me." Poor Martin. It's a beautiful song. I sing it to Becca some times." She tells me to stop. The beauty is too much for her I suppose. Now for the video:

What was that? How does the video fit the song? Is Martin trying to distract the world from his breaking heart by adding a strange video storyline? Is he trying to prove that even morbidly obese individuals can have true love? Is the video demonstrating that love overcomes all obstacles, and that secretly he wants Paltrow back? Either way, I dedicate this to my true love. May we grow old, and possibly fat, together.

LOTRandom

Lord of the Rings again brings the Gospel to life. From today's Gospel (Mt. 5):

"And whoever says, 'You fool,' 

will be liable to fiery Genenna."

Kid Quotes: Potty Mouths

A few recent quotes

While saying our night prayers. Daddy: "And what do you want to thank God for, John Paul?"

John Paul: "Thank you God for my pooping and peeing in the potty."

- - -

John Paul: "Now I can get my gitch!" *huge smile*

Picks out new gitch and has it put on him...

John Paul: *cries* "I don't want to wear my new gitch!" *more tears*

- - -

John Paul: "I pee with the bum because I sit down on the potty."

- - -

John Paul: "When is summer?"

Becca: "Not for a long time; after your birthday and Easter..."

John Paul: "Yeah, and after I go on the potty."

Becca: "Yep."

John Paul: "That's going to be fun!"

Becca: "Summer?"

John Paul: "No, potty training!"

- - -

John Paul: "Mom, don't for-you-get to do up the button!"

- - -

Joseph: "I have to go pee. Come on John Paul. You have to go pee too."

They both run to the bathroom.

- - -

Becca, after week one of potty training, sincerely: "I'm so proud of John Paul, the way he just poops and pees."

Other things...

John Paul: Look mom, you have girl hair. That's why you're a girl."

- - -

John Paul: "Joseph, how about you be St. Pope the Baptist and I'll be the pope."

- - -

Daddy walks into the room, dressed for work.

John Paul, still in his pajamas: "Daddy, you're smaaaaart!"

Daddy: "You're smart too."

John Paul: "No, no, people who wear onesies are not smart!"

- - -

John Paul, looking out the window at the snow: "When's summer!?!"

- - -

Daddy breaks a bowl (we're very short of bowls)

Joseph: We can't have two more kids... we don't have enough bowls!"

John Paul: Maybe we should go to the bowl store?"

- - -


The boys love watching Mass on ETWN. They especially love to check to see if the "altar grandpa" is serving Mass that day.

While at our own Mass the other day, an older woman went up to serve at Mass.

John Paul loudly: "Look, it's an altar grandma!!!"

Saying Mass

Eating Food

Music Mondays: Te Deum

Begin by letting the music play. This is the Te Deum, with Pierre Cochereau playing the spectacular organ at Notre Dame in Paris.

First, I love spectacular organ music. There is nothing in the world that compares. This piece has it.

Second, the Te Deum. This hymn has found its way into the Divine Office of the Church. It is a hymn of praise to God. Often it is sung spontaneously when something great happens. For instance, during the Hundred Years War it was sung whenever St. Joan of Arc and her army made a triumphal entry into a town.

The Te Deum was composed by St. Ambrose for the baptism of St. Augustine which took place at the Easter vigil in 387AD. If you believe authour Louis de Wohl from his book "Restless Flame," an unscripted Ambrose, moved by the Holy Spirit, broke into this hymn of praise as he was overwhelmed with the greatness of the moment. The baptism of Augustine by Ambrose is one of the great moments of the Church. "Te Deum Laudamus / We praise Thee O God."

I wish to add to this un-improvised recitation of the Te Deum for another purpose. That being the accreditation of Our Lady Seat of Wisdom (Academy) which they received notice of on Jan. 28 (feast of the great St. Thomas Aquinas).

I spent three years learning at OLSW. For the serious student who puts in the effort, there really is no comparison for how your mind will be formed in the truth. This won't get you a job, unfortunately. You'll still have to go about in search of a career (along with additional post-secondary training). But once you do get a job... watch out!

The accreditation of OLSW is far more amazing to me seeing as I worked there for two years as registrar. Here's a dirty little secret, OLSW was right on the brink. There was a time when I was convinced it wouldn't last the week. I left one meeting more or less thinking I'd be needing to pack my bags in a day or two. The fact that it is still moving forward, to the point of accreditation, deserves a wholehearted Te Deum to God. And it deserves a series of Aves to Our Lady, Seat of Wisdom. And yes, knowing what I know, people need to give a big old "thank you" to one Dr. Keith Cassidy. Indeed, knowing what I know, let's just say there would be no OLSW today without him. He must have the worst retirement job ever. But someday his retirement to the next life will be far more wonderful thanks to his sacrifice. And thanks to the sacrifice of all the teachers/staff there too. I still smile when think of sitting in a class with Meenan, Schintgen, Fr. Kennedy and the like. Keep it going.

"Te aeternum Patrem omnis terra veneratur. / 

All the earth doth worship Thee: the Father everlasting."

TV for Young Catholics

The other day I was watching Living Right with Dr. Ray on ETWN. Though the production value was extremely low, the content of the program was as good as it gets. This is common with EWTN, there are some good ideas, but they often lack the money to implement them to the high standards of other stations. But what if there was enough money to cover the cost? What if EWTN was able to start creating shows with the quality of the secular world, but with a Catholic twist? I can only imagine...

Fixer Upper: Church Edition

Move over Chip and Jo, you have competition. Fixer Upper: Church Edition. Or this could work as any restoration show, really. A crew would go to various Catholic churches and fix them up to look great. Perhaps restore a falling apart beauty. Or take a modern nightmare (there's no shortage) and put a traditional touch to it. Think of it: "Father Pius. Deacon Athanasius. Are y'all ready to see your fixer upper?"

Pros: Many. People love these shows (as do I). It would be a hit. Heck, I bet this type of show would sell on a mainstream HGTV style network. Also, so many churches could get fixed up and renovated to be beautiful.

Cons: None. Except for the liberal heart attacks over the fixed up modern churches.


Coach's Corner

Or Cardinal's Corner. Or Clergy Corner. Or whatever. The idea being you find some guy who is getting old and crotchety, but who knows his stuff and isn't afraid to offend people when saying the truth. I could see Raymond Arroyo being Ron Maclean. It would be fantastic. Saturday night. Five minutes long.

Raymond: "So, about the latest from the Bishops of Malta..."

Catholic Cherry-fill-in: "Aww shut up and let me talk! About those Malta Bishops, those whiny Europeans, they don't know nothing about the faith. They're sell outs. I've seen more brains in an octopus thrown on the ice in Detroit! I remember once going to Mass. There was this guy who was divorced and walking up with another girl. He says he's going to Communion. I says aww toughen up there. You made your own mess I says."

Raymond: "But isn't that a little harsh because..."

"Shut up I said! No, it's a tough world, be a man! Unlike those Europeans over there."

Pros: Finally we'd get to hear the truth without any tiptoeing around people's feelings.

Cons: People's feelings would get hurt.

 

Maybe there used to be such a combo?

American Pickers

This show is pretty fun. A couple of guys go to all these old places and buy old signs, cars, trinkets... whatever from the owners. So we have a Catholic edition. All these old churches and convents. They find them and try to buy old religious items.

Mike: "How much do you want for the holy water font?"

80 Year old Sr. Lucy: "Oh heavens, I think $100."

Mike: "But the cross is chipped on the side, and I'd need to get the bowl refurbished... I'll tell you what, you give me the statue of St. Francis for $450 and I'll do the $100 for the font."

Sr. Lucy: You got yourself a deal!" *quietly adding: "sucker..."*

Pros: These are interesting shows. Viewership would be high. We'd get to meet some crazy characters too.

Cons: Isn't the buying and selling of sacred items Simony? This would get them in the 8th circle of hell according to Dante.


Jeopardy

Not much needs to be said here. Instead of money, though, maybe they could play for indulgences.

Contestant: "I'll take Saints Named John for 500 days indulgence."

Alex: "This St. John is often pictured with his finger over his mouth."

"Contestant: "St. John Nepomucene."

Alex: "You didn't say: Who is first."

Pros: People would learn an awful lot. Plus it would be easy to set up the show.

Cons: The indulgence thing might not go over so well.



Others Shows...

The Creation Theory

Canon Law and Order

The Divine Office

Saved by the Church Bell

and, of course...

Everybody Loves Raymond Arroyo

NFL 2017 - Bad Lip Reading

What I look forward to every year! The latest edition of NFL2017 - A Bad Lip Reading of the NFL

The End of Happiness: Getting Techne-cal

Time for a public shaming. I came across this the other day. Evidently a student at our K-5 school left it behind at his/her computer. Sigh.

Things that are wrong:

1. It was left behind, with no name on it. Absent minded.

2. It tells a Christmas story. Teachers assign Christmas stories around Christmas time. Very late.

3. Numerous grammar mistakes. Although truth be told this is one of the better writing jobs you'll see nowadays.

4. You guessed it, this student is obsessed with video games and Youtube videos.

It is an epidemic. There are teachers I know who have stopped the usual Monday morning project of: Write about what you did this weekend. The reason is that they are sick and tired of reading how students sit at home and play video games all weekend. This is becoming more and more common. No wonder so many people promoted Pokemon Go. "At least they're playing their games outside... right?" The same way feeding your child chocolate bars for supper is good because: "at least he's eating!" What next? "I'm ok with my child doing marijuana because at least he's breathing!" I'm not simply bashing technology. The shocking truth of the matter is that I'm writing this blog using a computer. And you're reading it on some technological device (unless my grandma is reading this... I sometimes print off posts for her... because she hasn't suffered enough in life already). Well, technology can be good. But as sure as eating chocolate can make you fat, technology can turn on us too.

Oddly enough, technology comes from the Greek word techne meaning art, skill, or craft. It meant the ability to work with your hands and fashion and create worthy human achievements. Sort of the opposite of sitting in front of a screen for 12 hours a day. In book six of his Nicomachean Ethics Aristotle defines techne as a "rational faculty exercised in making something... a productive quality exercised in combo with true reason." Productive quality... true reason... I like that. The other part of technology is logos, the word, or truth, or logic.

So going back to the story I found.. how does this relate to productive quality and true reason?

"I never went outside for 4 day I just played on my phone, and played on my laptop. I was so happy that I was on YouTube all day and night watching videos. I played lots of games on my computer..." 

How sad that technology is now working against its very roots.

What really bothers me, however, is the line: "I was so happy." No you weren't. Only in the same way that someone who eats chocolate for supper is temporarily happy. Or the person who smokes marijuana is temporarily happy. Soon things will turn on you. Because you are not properly ordered. Not properly ordered to your right end.

The 'end'. Let's end with the words of the great St. Thomas Aquinas: "[m]an's last end is the uncreated good, namely God, Who alone by His infinite goodness can perfectly satisfy man's will" (I-II, Q. 2, Art. 1). A child who thinks watching YouTube videos is what brings happiness is a child who is stunted. The child is missing the pleasure of meaningful techne work. The child is closed to the higher calling of his or her soul: True happiness. All the chocolate, YouTube, marijuana... whatever, in the world will not satisfy. Only a properly ordered life to God, my young friend. Only that. If only I could get that through to you. Whoever you are.

Maybe I will make a YouTube video about it.