Horrifying, Grateful Memory

Do you ever have a moment when you suddenly remember something (trivially) awful from your past that you're so glad isn't happening anymore?

That just happened to me, as I closed the fridge.

It's amazing the impression some kinds of pain can have on you.

Probably almost 25 years ago, my family went to the beach. (That wasn't the bad part; we loved that beach.)

But this particular time, in this particular house (and I don't actually remember which one it was) the fridge was an appliance from HELL. It was very subtle, mind you, but it was from HELL.

The door was too close to the floor. And by too close, I mean it would SMASH your toes in a PINCH that hurt like the DEVIL if your foot was in its path as you closed it. I still can't believe how much it hurt.

And insanely, though you'd think one smashing would be enough, it wasn't our normal fridge and closing the fridge was not something we were used to having to approach carefully. So, it being the beach and us usually being barefoot, we all got our toes SMASHED a lot that week.

So much so, that I'm closing my fridge here tonight, still flinching but grateful that my fridge is not from hell. Thank you, Jeebus.

Extreme Times Call for Extreme Measures

So the New York Times editorial board is now calling on the Senate to use archane budget reconciliation tactics to pass health care reform with a simple majority vote. Because, of course, there is simply no way they're going to pass a bi-partisan bill that would be worth the paper it was written on.

This will certainly be seen as below-the-belt and extreme and unfair and blah, blah, blah.

I would point out that they weren't the ones who started extreme. (Nasty lies about killing granny anyone?)

But the other odd thing is that it's even considered "extreme" to use a simple majority rules decision-making process. The filibuster used to be considered archane and extreme too, but it's so abused now that we've convinced ourselves that every bill should have to get 60 votes to pass. That is a sure path to tyranny of the minority. (And this is a particularly tyrannical minority at the moment!)

I say, it's time for the Democrats to start acting like they won the election. Because (surprise!) they did.

Freaky Weirdness

Okay, this is seriously strange. In Prattville, Alabama, there is a broom that stands up all by itself. It has a favorite spot in the room, and won't usually do it except in that spot, but it can be pushed and will right itself.

I do not really know what else to say about this. There is so much we don't understand.

Poem on Poetry

When I was young
I did not like poetry.
I was not a fan.

I found it tedious in its ponderousness,
self-important in its insistence on open ends,
coy and smirking.

Confusing clarity with honesty,
I accused it of duplicity.

As I age
the mystery of life,
of the impact of a daffodil,
or just my own brain,
make clear
that sharing the view seen through a glass dimly
is more honest
than marketing the crisp picture painted on its surface.

Maira Kalman on our Nation of Immigrants

Because I love her work, here is Maira Kalman's latest art blog from the New York Times.

It's funny. I haven't really, except in the technical sense*, spent any time in New York. And yet, it is impossible for any American whose had significant exposure to our mass media and our popular culture to not be familiar with New York at some level. And most of them have a reaction to that knowledge: either they find NYC an exciting place they'd like to go, or they consider it a scary place to be avoided full of people anxious to corrupt them.

This piece makes me wonder: Could it be that there are two definitions of what being Americans means in this country? One is the America subtly defined in this piece, a "celebration of multi-culturalism" view of the nation, New York as microcosm of the country. And the other is the "pockets of purity" definition, that pulls up the ladder after itself and says "American is me and my family and anything different doesn't qualify." The microcosm here is a stereotypical small town that until 10 years ago didn't even have any ethnic food, let alone any people of color.

These two different definitions of what we're about here could explain the polarization of our nation. But the way the lines keep getting increasingly blurry gives me hope. I have met a few people who absolutely have no interest in eating anything but "classic" American cuisine (meat and potatoes). I do not understand these people, and they make me sad. But I've met a lot more people who enjoy having their horizons broadened. Inasmuch as they are parochial, it is merely from lack of exposure, but when they get the chance to experience new things, they do so and enjoy it heartily.

The truth is that it's our humanity that brings us together. We all eat. We all love children. We all enjoy music and color and celebration. Culture is not what we're at war about. Culture is what will bring us peace. Maybe that's why Kalman's work can address these issues so much more effectively that mere words.

New Motivation for Real Health Care Reform

We must do something to protect the souls of all those working in the insurance industry.

Can you imagine getting a promotion at work because you were the employee who managed to cancel the most people's health insurance?

Nicholas Kristof has a piece today about Wendell Potter, a recovering insurance industry hack. He was on the Diane Rehm show a while back. His story is pretty convincing.

When people start going on and on about the 'threat' of rationing health care, I wish they would take a moment to think about what the insurance industry actually does. Not what it wants us to believe it does, which is spread out risk and take care of us when we have needs, but what it REALLY does, which is take our money and then kick us to the curb if we have needs.

We have to take better control of this debate. It's crazy to me that somehow we've not managed to get all Americans up in arms about how crazy and exploitative and immoral our current system is.

But since that's not working, maybe we need a new strategy. Perhaps we could shift things by talking about the emotional, psychological and spiritual toll screwing over so many Americans is taking on the soul of so many insurance industry employees. We oughtn't to demand that sort of heartlessness from anyone. It's too destructive to their humanity. I wonder if Wendell Potter is being treated for PTSD. Oh right, his policy probably doesn't cover that.

Here, Baby! There, Mama! Everywhere, Daddy, Daddy! Hair!

One of the changes that having a black president has brought to the world is that the New York Times is now running articles about African-American hair.

I didn't click the link, but supposedly conservative bloggers were upset that Malia wore her hair in twists in Rome? Five Words: Mind Your Own Damn Business!

It occurred to me as I was reading the article, that I've been assuming since before Obama won that the paparazzi and fashion media would keep a fairly high interest in the shifts that Malia and Sasha's hair goes through. I've been assuming they would be charitable, respecting the fact that they are kids, teenage girls, that species so fragile and vulnerable to nasty comments about their appearance. I've even been assuming that lots of people who were previously unaware of the many options and issues with A-A hair would learn about them through these next 8 years.

But then the article mentioned that Michelle relaxes her hair, which is how she achieves her signature bob. And I realized then that she is even more trapped than the girls. If she were to stop relaxing (straightening) her hair, it would be a very different deal than the girls hair.

We expect girls to go through all sorts of crazy phases with their hair. And quite frankly, black girls have a lot of fun options. (I've always been a little jealous of that, myself.)

But grown-ups? The First Lady? There is an expectation of 'dignity' that is probably going to eliminate corn-rows and even twists. If she went 'natural' there would be a major uproar and things would get ugly, fast.

Which is completely obnoxious. What woman keeps the same exact hairstyle for 8 years? (I'm being optimistic, yes.) Right now, Michelle has the bob, or she has the up-do. Not a lot of choice. And then she has a lot of theoretical choices that are, in fact, off limits. If I were her, that would make me really mad.

To get back to the dignity thing, it reminds me of the Sonia Sotomayor confirmation hearings. There were all these men, trying to explain what they didn't approve of about her, and they ended up saying lots of truly disrespectful things.

We hear about the 'dignity of the office', but during those hearings, it became apparent that lots of folks - okay, lots of white men - don't actually respect the dignity of the office unless the officer is a white man. The office itself is meaningless to them.

This reminds me of my first preaching experience in class in seminary, when a middle-aged man said that I wasn't preaching with authority. By the end of the conversation, it became apparent that what he really meant was, "You sound like a soprano, and I can't hear authority at that pitch."

The color line and the gender line have similar effects. Yet I can't pretend to understand all the struggles of African-American hair.

But I do recognize prejudice when I see it. What does it say about our country when, despite the fact that we've elected a black president, his wife isn't truly free to make her own choices about her hair?

I give thanks for Malia and Sasha and the teaching moments about black hair that their growing up will provide White Americans. But even more so, I ask God to bless Michelle with patience and grace, so that her fancy, White cage doesn't make her bitter.

Personal Responsibility

So today, I decided to take Personal Responsibility for my health. As you know, I have been walking 3 miles a few days a week with a walking buddy colleague. That is good, but I knew I could do better.

So today, since it was so nice out, I decided to park my car a couple blocks away from the office when I went to work. (And no, I don't usually work on Mondays, but this week is different.)

I made sure to park in a 2-hour parking space, so that I would have to take a short walking break every couple of hours. Two hours later, I came back, drove around the block, and parked in a different spot a couple spaces back.

So I had two lovely, outdoor walks today, in addition to my indoor 3 miles.

Now, why couldn't I just leave my car at home, which is also about 2 blocks from my office, and go out at some point and walk around the block? I suppose I could have. But I didn't.

You see, a few days ago, I taped a sign into my back car window that says "YES, I want, support and DEMAND a PUBLIC OPTION for Health Care Insurance." And the 2-hour parking place where I rested my automobile today happened to be right in front of my congressman's local headquarters.

Haven't decided if I'm going back tomorrow, or if I'll wait till Wednesday and keep them guessing!

Living the Cliche

There is a thing that preachers tell each other when one of us thinks we've written a crappy sermon. It involves stories about how you really can't tell how a sermon will hit people, as evidenced by how many presumed bad sermons are enthusiastically received by congregants.

I lived this cliche today. I was looking forward to my sermon until I started writing it. Then I realized I should have started writing it a long time before I did. Because there was a lot to cover, and to be truly coherent it was going to require major editing.

So instead, I wrote what felt like a meandering, all over the place, mediocre sermon. It was even pretty short, which I guess is a major plus for a mediocre sermon. It wasn't that much shorter, page-wise, than some of my other sermons, but it must have read fast, because when I got to the top of the last page, I was shocked and wondered for a moment if I'd skipped a page. (I hadn't. I would like to think I would notice if that ever happened, but it felt so short I had to ask.)

But after church, where I haven't gotten more than 3 comments on any particular sermon in months, I had at least 5 people specifically compliment the sermon. One was because it was short, but still.

My sister, whose job it is to keep it real, pointed out that most people only listen to sermons in fits and starts, and so if they tuned in at a point when I was saying something they liked, they would probably like the sermon. This was to explain why meandering doesn't necessarily negate positive reaction.

But truly, either preachers aren't nearly as self-aware as we assume we are, or the Holy Spirit does some of her very best work on Sunday mornings. Or maybe it's both.

Paul Krugman Tells the Truth (Again)

It really does all go back to Reagan. The mess, I mean. Paul Krugman explains.

What I don't get is how it's so easy to convince people that government is bad and therefore they should trust the market instead. With government -- which is supposed to be of us, by us and for us -- if it's bad, we have the chance to make it better.

Supposedly, with the market, if it's bad, you can shop around. Except that, in a lot of cases, health care included, there really isn't much to choose from. (Most health care markets are dominated by one insurance company.) And in the particular case of health care, it's simply ludicrous to think people shop around. Most people get their insurance from their employer, and employers don't really offer options. And when you're sick, an expectation of comparison shopping is unreasonable.

Anyway, it's crazy to me that Reagan and all his acolytes since then have managed to convince the American people that government is the problem. Especially when they've been proven wrong in so many ways. A "zombie doctrine" Krugman calls it. I wish I'd thought of that.

A Sign of Progress?

One of the things that surfaced early in the fervor about health care reform we've all been enduring lately is this idea that Congress had been pushed to vote on a bill they hadn't even read.

So. First of all, there isn't a bill yet. There are multiple versions of what might become a bill. So if someone says they haven't read, or haven't been able to read, THE bill, they are trying to mislead you.

Second of all, "pushed to vote"? They didn't vote yet. Cleary this is not something being pushed through over night, but now that you mention that...

The thing this makes me think about is the last bill or two that were, in fact, pushed through or voted on before legislators could read them.

The Medicare reform bill comes to mind. Did you know that voting on that one stayed open for over 3 hours, IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT, while Republicans who were wavering were taken into the cloakroom to have their arms twisted? (I'm hoping, but not positive, that that last bit is only metaphorical.)

The PATRIOT Act comes to mind. Talk about long and fast. That one had thousands of pages and was voted on pretty much the day after it was given to legislators. How did anyone manage to write it so fast? Hmmm, do you suppose it was filled with measures the Bush Administration had on their wish list, just waiting for a good crisis to give them an opening to pass? Before you get upset about anyone not reading the health care reform billS, ask your congressman if he read the PATRIOT Act before he voted on it (or after!).

What is sadder than all that though, is the lack of citizen accountability about either of these bills and the accompanying lack of interest that our government showed in involving citizens in the debate or in hearing our opinions. There were no Town Hall meetings about these issues. (Hard to have a town hall meeting when you're creating "free speech" areas to keep people who disagree with you in pens out of hearing distance.)

Which brings me back to the present moment -- despite all the bad reasons (fear, mis-information, racism, general ugliness) for the obnoxious behavior at recent town hall meetings, are they perhaps a sign of greater citizen engagement in policy issues? Will they, in the end, result in a better-informed populace, because people are finally paying attention?

I have been thinking a lot about the differences between the opposition now and where I was during the last administration. I called Mr. Bush a lot of ugly names and frequently pointed out his fascist tendencies. I did not, and would never, take an automatic rifle to any public event. That gun thing, I believe, is something that distinguishes the right from the left.

Honestly, my position hasn't changed all that much around here. When I attended Congressman Android's town hall last week, I was sorely tempted to be just as obnoxious as anyone you saw on tv, if not as potentially violent. There were so many moments that called out for a shouted correction, simply because he was spouting so many half-truths. But he was also remarkably smooth and even respectful, and I don't really need the reputation of being a loud-mouthed hot-head even more than I already have it. I guess what I'm saying is that I understand those people who yell, even if I don't understand how they can hold the opinions they do. The deck is stacked at any event a politician hosts and having your say is very unlikely.

But here's the thing, it seems to me that being willing to tolerate dissent is also something that distinguishes the left from the right, which is why the country is having this debate right now and why we didn't when the PATRIOT Act was voted on. And I have to believe that, at some broader level, a more engaged populace is a good thing that will eventually lead to something better. Which is worse, ignorance or apathy? I say apathy, for ignorance can be corrected.

Politicians' Dirty Trick

Here's something that makes me mad. How is it that politicians, in the very process of defending big business, can talk up the ways big business is going to screw over the little guy?

Take, as an example, my congressman's approach to opposing Cap and Trade. At an event on Wednesday, he was trying to convince his constituents that it was a Bad Thing. His reasoning? That the companies would pass the costs on to consumers.

As I see it, the only, if imperfect, path to more sustainable energy requires paying the true costs of the energy we're using now, that is, paying for the pollution and destruction we're causing by burning fossil fuels or damming up rivers. And since the energy companies are making the money, it makes sense for them to pay the costs.

Which is how we end up with things like Cap and Trade. It seems to me, if Congress really wanted to move us toward responsible energy AND protect consumers, they could pass regulations that would restrain the energy industry from passing most of those costs on to consumers. They could include rules about rate hikes and things in the law itself.

That is, if they really cared about consumers and not just their energy industry buddies. Gosh, I wonder why they haven't?

Measuring the Passage of Time

I think I've mentioned before that I have an unusually strong attachment to my birthday. The context last time was that I have a brief surge of celebration whenever I see my birth date on a digital clock.

But another thing that loving my birthday means is that I'm a fan of horoscopes. They are ridiculous, but they are attached to the day of my birth. I am happy about being a Virgo. Reading my horoscope entertains me, and even occasionally reminds me to watch myself in important ways through the day.

But the best thing about the horoscope, in my local paper at least, is that they always keep the one whose birthday is right now at the top of the list. They shift them in the middle of each month, so that the current one is first. Which gives you a subtle way of knowing how long it is till your birthday arrives. As long as I'm on the second column of the list, I know it's not soon, but once you move over to the first one, it's getting here. So really, the horoscope is a way of measuring the passage of time, which seems to be something humans are really into.

(Except possibly not so much in Iowa. My sister's newspaper's horoscope had gotten stuck with March at the top of the list. It's like they were doing it and then just forgot to change it or something.)

Right now, my sign is second on the list. And as of Tuesday, my birthday is less than a month away. So last night, when I started to crave chocolate chips again, I started to think a little bigger. Suddenly I didn't just want chocolate chips; I wanted my birthday cake, which has chocolate chips in it.

And though I occasionally believe in delayed gratification, last night was not one of those occasions. So I went to the store, got what I needed, and made a cake. You can too, because I'm breaking my silly rule and posting a recipe.

I have had this cake for my birthday every year since I was about ten. It is Very Tasty. And it can pass for coffee cake, so you can even eat it for breakfast, which I may be about to do.

POLKA-DOT CAKE

Sift together
2 cups flour
1 and 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
into a medium bowl.

Cream together
1/4 cup butter
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon vanilla
in a large bowl.

Add the flour mixture to the cream mixture and mix thoroughly.

In a small bowl combine
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 cup chocolate chips.

Spread half the batter into a 9x13 pan.
Sprinkle half the chip mixture on top of the batter.
Carefully spread the other half of the batter on top of the chips. (This part is a little complicated, but it doesn't matter a whole lot if they get moved around.)
Sprinkle the rest of the chip mixture on top.

Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes. Cool (at least mostly) before eating. No frosting required. (Another reason I love this cake!)

Enjoy! And may your birthday arrive soon!

Priorities, What Priorities?

Nicholas Kristof has a great piece today comparing what we spend on prisons to what we're willing to invest in education and health care.

It seems to me that conservatives treat spending kind of the way they treat biblical literalism, that is, they are blind to their own selectivity.

More Than Just a Toothpaste

I realized yesterday that I tend to use the word "aim" in describing my ministry a lot. I mean, it's not like I even talk about it all that much, but in my own head, I think I use the concept of the word "aim" a lot.

When you think about it, it's kind of a miracle that a control freak like me could even be in ministry, given that there is so much that I do that I cannot determine the results of. I can aim, and hope it works. And sometimes it does, brilliantly or sort of, and sometimes it doesn't, with a bang or a whimper.

The funny thing is that if you'd asked me about aim, I would have told you that I have terrible aim. But I guess that depends on what it is I'm throwing out there. Hopefully I'm getting more hits than misses. They haven't kicked me out yet.

And in case you were wondering, the thing that made me realize this was having to summarize a sermon. I realized that I wasn't comfortable doing that with any other grammatical construct than "I aimed to..." Whether or not I did wasn't within my grasp. It's a good thing I don't think too hard about preaching, or I'd never dare do it.


In other toothpaste related news, I bought two tubes of Tom's of Maine today, for $1.32 each. 75% off -- WOW!

Public Service Announcement

In case you have friends or family who are "confused" about the current health care reform "debate" here is a link to a very helpful column in the Washington Post that explains things very clearly.

Meanwhile, I am debating the complications and possibilities and obstacles and potential of trying to organize a Health Care for All rally next weekend.

Things I Like -- Nature Edition

I love those weird, extra curly vines that seem to grow on grape vines for no apparen reason. They are just pretty, as far as I can tell. If you know the reason they're there, I guess I'd like you to tell me, but I kind of like the idea that they have no purpose. Maybe they're like a grape vines appendix.

(On the other hand, they recently discovered the purpose of the appendix. It was just really obscure. Ah, science!)

Two other things I like from nature, although usually I classify them as reasons it's good God is God and not me, because I wouldn't have thought of them: Clouds, in all their variety; and peripheral vision.

It Takes Two to Tango

As Paul Krugman points out that he pointed out before, you can only achieve a 'post-partisan" era if both parties are willing to cooperate. Ain't happening. This was always the part of Obama's rhetoric that seemed most distressing to me. No one is that charming. And pit bulls aren't particularly susceptible to charm anyway.

It's time to let go of the illusion that people will be reasonable and move on with what the majority of Americans know needs to happen, on health care, on energy, and more.

Doonesbury Man, Please Invent "Cornie"

I was just saying to my sister the other day, while in Iowa eating awesome sweet corn, that the Doonesbury guy should create a mascot for the Corn Industry the way he has one for the Tobacco and Drug Industries.

Meanwhile, Mother Jones seems to have heard me. Check out these stats documenting the battle between the Corn People and the Sugar People. There's even some good info in the comments, but I didn't read them all, so beware of annoying people.

Ten on Tuesday - Really Quick Before Bed Edition

1. For the first day back in the office after two weeks away, today was remarkably productive. Not necessarily the first 6 hours, but the last 2 were.

2. I have a bunch of back-logged things I want to blog about, but I haven't done it. Why is that? Perhaps because my commenters have silenced themselves? Anybody out there?

3. I have been growing very worried about the state of the country. I feel like there is a growing fear-based rage out there that is pushing us past a barrier of civility from which it will be difficult to return. The recent disturbances at 'town-hall' meetings and the 'birther' movement and such. Read a very interesting article that I haven't figured out how to link to yet, about how 'socialist' has become a code word for 'black guy who wants to steal all our stuff.' Seems pretty probable to me. Clearly, they can't really mean that Obama is a socialist, since he's so clearly not.

4. I have had occasion today, more than once, to bump up against my own prejudices and fears, by observing my reluctance to encourage persons of certain mental states into deeper relationship with me or my church. It is disappointing to be so bad at loving everyone the way Christ would, or as if they were Christ. I kind of suck at it. Sigh.

5. I went to a very pitiful farmers market today. There were three vendors and two of them pretty much only had tomatoes (which I didn't need). I got 3 cucumbers and a green pepper for $2. Still a good deal.

6. The episode of L&O:SVU that we just watched made me realize that it's entirely probably that Parkinson's disease is highly likely to be the state of my final years. My impression of it is that it's a good day/bad day kind of experience. I wonder if they'll have a cure by the time I'm 75?

7. Eunice Kennedy Shriver might actually make it onto our dead famous people list at All Saints Day this year, unlike many of the recently departed celebrities.

8. I love serving on the Committee on Ministry, but three meetings in the space of 8 days is a bit much, don't you think? At least each one has its own special purpose. Unfortunately, I don't know that I will be able to add on a trip to Costco to any of them, because of scheduling issues.

9. The previous mention of Costco should not really be taken as an endorsement. I'm still mad at them for trying to propose a bogus 'third way' alternative to the Employee Free Choice Act. Any day now I'm going to blog about the lying email they sent me. Speaking of which, they still haven't written me back after they said they'd send my response further up the food chain.

10. I need a good book for our ecumenical book group to read this fall. It needs to be around 200-250 pages, non-fiction, dense but readable, able to be stretched out over 12 weeks of reading a chapter or so a week, preferably at least indirectly related to faith issues. I sometimes describe the perfect book as 'one we know it's good for us to read that we might not get through on our own.' Any suggestions? I've been thinking another anthology might be nice. We read "Practicing Our Faith" in our second session many moons ago; it's kinda cool to have each chapter written by a different person.

This Is Why We're Not Afraid of Government-Run Health Care

Kevin Drum makes a great point, by telling a story about replacing his cell phone.

Seriously, why is anyone trying to protect corporations? Oh right, they have all the money. Please don't tell me we're not going to get health care reform until after we have serious campaign finance reform!

Confession

Okay, I'll admit it. If not here, where? I am a Big Government junkie. My opinion about most problems that the government tries to solve by "throwing money at them", as the conservatives say, is that if they aren't solved, it's because not enough money has been thrown.

Paul Krugman agrees with me, at the moment. If it's true of averting another Great Depression, as he states, why not of fixing education?

If only conservatives would use the same philosophy they apply to the Pentagon to the rest of civil society, life would be so much better for so many people. Too bad there isn't a well-heeled social work lobby working the halls of Washington.

Barbara E Is My Hero

Barbara Ehrenreich is one of the smartest, savviest, most cut-to-the-chase scholar/commentators I know. Her latest piece on the criminalization of poverty is heart-breaking.

To paraphrase someone quoted on a National Council of Churches a few years ago, "When money becomes an idol, to be poor becomes a sin."

On Uncertainty

So I was in the Minneapolis-St. Paul airport the other day, and I might have seen Senator Al Franken. I had this great set-up with my laptop on the edge of a restaurant with a lovely Bella Roma pizza, facing out a big tinted window.

And in this one, brief moment, I looked up, just slightly too late, and saw someone who might have been Al Franken. It was, in fact, the day the Senate went out for recess, so it easily could have been him. But he was already past my spot in the window, so I only got the 7:00 or so view of his face.

There was no one with him, which made it seem less likely that it was him. But then again, maybe he likes to fly solo.

So now I'm left with this weird, unresolved feeling. It might have been him. It quite possibly wasn't. It seems cooler that it might have been him than it would have been if I thought it was him, and then he turned around and I discovered it wasn't him.

But it's definitely not as cool as if he'd turned around and it clearly was him.

I had been on a trip where I had my 24-year-old autograph book with me, but it was in my checked bag, so even if I'd run after him (which would have been terribly difficult given where the restaurant's door was and probably embarrassing for everyone, since it probably wasn't him), I couldn't have had him sign it.

So I guess (since I have no choice), I'm left with possibly having seen Senator Al Franken in the MSP airport. Actually, come to think of it, just being able to write "Senator Al Franken" is probably enough.

Actions that Make You Think of People

It could be that this title is clear only to me. I want to write about something that happens to me because I'm curious to see if anyone else experiences it.

There are certain things I do, often or not, that remind me, pretty much every time, of certain people.

1. Sifting flour reminds me of my friend K's mother, who was famous when we were growing up for being a home economics major and who once suggested that my demonstration project for 4-H could be measuring and sifting and re-measuring flour to show how sifting removes some by adding air. It actually gave me new respect for the chemistry and physics of cooking, and I think of her every time I sift and every time I simply stir the flour up in the bag to add air because I'm too lazy to sift.

2. Draining pasta out of its cooking water reminds me of my friend D's mother. I once "baby-sat" him (truly, only the one time) when he was almost but not quite old enough to be on his own and I was just barely older. His mom made a big deal about making sure I knew how to pour out the pasta water away from me so I didn't get a steam burn. At the time, it seemed a little over-careful to me, but I've steam-burned myself a couple times in the years since. Those were probably the times I thought of her.

3. Brushing my teeth frequently makes me think of Bobby Goren from Law & Order: Criminal Intent because in one show he announced that someone was right-handed (or maybe left; I don't remember) because of the uneven wearing on her gums and something he supposedly knew about how most people brush a certain side harder than the other. It seemed like bullshit at the time, but it haunts me and probably makes me a better, which is to say more even, teeth-brusher.

4. Applying or contemplating applying self-tanner (more on this soon!) makes me think of my former yoga teacher, who is the first person I ever had a serious conversation with about how to do it and whether it works or not. She had all these tips about certain body parts, like elbows and ankles, that required special care. She was right!

So are there actions that make you think of certain people? I probably have more, but those are the ones I've collected at the moment. I can't really be the only person who does that, can I?

God Bless Bob Herbert

In this column from the NYT, Bob Herbert points out that if a gunman separated out victims based on race or religion, we would be especially horrified, but that when the grudge is against women, we don't seem too surprised. Misogny has to stop. The selling of sex as life's ultimate goal has to stop. The myth of the Real Man has to stop. People are dying.

I'm Sticking with the Union!

So, during the church convention last week, there was a moment when our pension fund took some time to report and encourage us to give to the fund that supplements the income of retirees whose careers didn't amount to a livable pension.

And listening to them talk about it made me realize something. My pension fund, which is clearly very well run, gives me a huge sense of security. I feel like they have my back, like they are watching out for me, like they will do what they can to make sure I am taken care of and give me smart advice about other things to do to further that cause as well.

And I wished that all Americans had something like that. "It's almost like a union!" I thought. And then I was sad for all the American workers who don't have access to such a collective body made up of colleagues who help them all look out for one another. Part of it is that I know that the people who work at our pension fund have access to the same pension benefits and health care stuff as I do, so I know they're invested in making it work. But mostly, I know that their priorities are good ones. I trust them, and that is a wonderful feeling. I wish everyone had it.

So I guess this brings us back to the moral of stories that have been told here before: Support the Employee Free Choice Act! And if you hear weird things about it, check them out, because they're probably corporation-sponsored lies.

Shifting Perspective

We commissioned some missionaries last week at our church convention. And I had a weird moment during that.

I suddenly noticed that most of the missionaries were young men. They were mostly all young folks, but it stuck out to me that they were almost all male. And I was glad.

Weird, eh? You see, the thing is that lately, it seems like almost all people taking on short-term ministry, intern-like positions that will lead to bigger things in our denomination have been young women. I certainly don't believe in an all-male ministry, but I don't really think an all-female ministry would be a huge improvement either. (Okay, maybe a little improvement, at least for a little while, but not a huge one!)

So I was glad to see some young men stepping up. It made me curious about why these particular positions and not others that are still currently dominated by young women, but mostly, I was just glad to see them showing up.

The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil

This past Sunday away from home and this coming Sunday at home, I will be preaching on the tree of life. But in the Genesis story, it's the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil that causes all the problems.

What's weird is that I'm not always convinced we realy do know the difference between right and wrong. Obviously, in many situations, we do because it's very clear.

But even with kids, though we talk about them getting to the point where they know right from wrong, that hugely depends on the standards and requirements and rules and expectations of their parents.

It seems to me that there are lots of situations in which we're really not sure, where the consequences of certain actions (usually large collective actions like wars and social engineering) are simply not all that clear and are spread out enough that it can seem right to some and really wrong to others. Plus, a lot of times, the choices are simply bad or less bad, not bad or good.

It might be nice if God would give us another tree, the Tree of Complex Reasoning and Moral Ability. What travails would it be worth to gain that? I suppose the ethicists making their livings off there not being easy answers might protest, but I bet they could find other things to do.

Taste the Truth and Reconciliation

This is the first of a few brief posts with thoughts I had and scribbled on the back of my name tag at the recent church convention I attended. (heh, heh, my anonymity is so mysterious, isn't it?)

I got to go to a breakfast one morning for people within the denomination working on anti-racism stuff. It was nice to see so many different people there. The speaker was a professor with a new book out about the history of African-Americans within our church. And he said this amazing thing...

He talked about the communion table, the experience of the Lord's Supper, as something very similar to South Africa's Truth and Reconciliation Commission.

At first, it seems like a metaphor, but the more you think about it, the more you realize how literal a comparison it is. We talk about what happened, we confess our role in it, we ask for and receive and celebrate forgiveness and unity. Wow.

If that is the case (and I'm convinced that it is), then why are so many people so threatened by suggestions that Truth and Reconciliation Commissions could be helpful in certain other situations* and simultaneously so un-threatened by communion? Which one do you suppose we're sapping of its power?


*In my community, they were trying to do something like what South Africa did, but they were pressured into calling it a "Healing and Reconciliation" project, instead of "Truth and Reconciliation." Supposedly, people were too "intimidated" by the word "truth." I don't get how people don't understand that you can't have either healing or reconciliation without first having truth.

Haikus for Hiroshima Day

I have been having a wonderful day with my sister's family. We had tea and went shopping at a thrift store. But then when I got back and checked my email, I was reminded that today is the 64th anniversary of the American bombing of Hiroshima, Japan. I got attached to this tragedy early in life through the story of Sadako and the 1000 paper cranes.

So let's mark the occasion with some haikus.


Loud hot powerful
Wind carries the breath of death
Eternal instant.


Families apart
Survivors always wonder
How bad was the end?


Someone dropped that bomb.
Was it me? Was it not me?
It was all of us.


When we say "Never"
do we really mean Never?
Are we listening?


Paper cranes for peace
One thousand works of art
Prayers our fingers make

Fascinating Approach to Mid-Life Crisis

Oh, you just knew I'd break the silence with another link, didn't you?

This is a fascinating article by a woman whose response to her husband's announcement that he didn't love her anymore was "I don't buy it."

Adds an interesting dimension to thoughts about marital relations.