Points to Ponder - Thanksgiving 2014 Edition

Here are some points to ponder...

1) "Don't Ever Buy a House"

That was my motto this past summer. Of course I was joking, somewhat. But one thing I always told Becca while we were still renters was that owning a house is great, but when something goes wrong it's usually a $4000 - $5000 bill.


2) Roof - Real men shingle their own roof.

I climbed up onto the roof to inspect where and how to repair some of the shingles. Our house inspector told us back in June that with some patch work we'd be able to get another couple of years out of the roof. But as I looked more carefully something didn't quite seem right. The shingles were nearly bare in many places.

I got some recommendations on local roofers from the Co-op manager and had one of them stop by. He took one look at the roof and told me that he would guarantee we'd be taking in water with the current roof, and that the whole thing should be replaced. Gulp.

That's a bit of a kick in the butt. Since I don't have time to do it, that meant we'd be paying mega bucks to have someone else do it. You know, a $4000 - $5000 bill. But it's most important to protect the house from the outside going in, and the roof was our last big outdoor project before interior projects could begin. So we had the roof done.

As it turns out, it was the right decision. He pulled out some heavily saturated plywood pieces. There you have it!

3) Christmas in October

In the sports world Christmas comes in October. We have the start of the NHL and NBA. Junior hockey is going strong. The CFL and NFL are on constantly, and the baseball playoffs top everything off. The problem is that a guy needs two or more TVs hooked up. I remember we did that once growing up. I assume my mom was away, but anyway my dad hooked up the smaller TV with the Montreal Canadiens game while the larger TV had the Yankees playing in the World Series. The only problem was switching back and forth with sound. I could have used that last night. Poor me, I was watching a CFL game where Toronto came back and scored two touchdown in the final two minutes to win the game. In the midst of this I was trying to flip over to the MLB playoffs where the Orioles were trying to get out of a tied-game, bases loaded, nobody out, jam.


4) Synod 

One thing that I can't stand is inefficiency. For instance, at work if I can teach an entire outcome of the curriculum in five minutes, I'll do it. To do otherwise would be to waste time and resources.

I'm getting the feel that the current Synod of the Family is an inefficient bureaucratic nightmare. Of course I'm not privy to everything that is going on, but what I do hear sounds rather monotonous. Apparently we need to speak better of the family and it's role in the world. We need to be more loving and open. We need new language... Maybe they should have re-titled the Synod as "Unpacking Saint John Paul II's Teaching on the Family." That would get to the point, spare us from all these nutjobs who are trying to change Church teaching, and bring some real fruit to the Church. Don't reinvent the wheel.


5) Burke

Throughout all the shenanigans in Rome these days, one light really has shone through. That being Cardinal Raymond Burke. He truly has been a visible rock for truth (and love) and is not afraid to stand up against stupidity (I'm looking at you Cardinal Kasper). Of course, as I said previously, he is getting demoted. As one commentator optimistically said though, that only means Burke will have more time to devote to writing and speaking up for the truth.


6 A Few Good Memes

How things seem to be these days.

That's right.

I'd buy 60 if I could afford it.

7) Thanksgiving

Let's face it. There is so much to be thankful for. Lack of gratitude is a sign of pride, a certain Fr. Mariusz once told me. Happy Thanksgiving (and go Riders).