Monthly Archives: August 2008

Home, jiggity, blog

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Wow, lots to catch up on. Too much to blog via iPhone, so may fire up the frankenmachine and sit properly at a desk for the first time in weeks.

Church this morning was pretty good – outdoors again. Next week we go back to two services, and this year there will be much more differentiation musically and liturgically. Thanks be to God, I’m a High Church 77 Prayerbook / 82 Hymnal Liberal… I’m tired of singing out of Gather (a Catholic, slightly charismatic songbook) and never knowing which prayer to recite because my vicar loves to pull things out of many countries’ prayerbooks.

But still, some change is good. Just not ALL the time.

Farewell Ireland

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All packed, trip over, didn’t take enough pictures or get back to Grafton Street or Temple Bar because we ran out of steam the last two days.

But we had an amazing time and we’ll surely return. Economy and exchange rate be damned. We’ll return.

More later, as I have to get to sleep.

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Meanwhile, back at the suburb: the village worth its salt

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Daily Herald | Hoffman Estates starts stocking up on salt tonight
Breaking news: Chicago-area residents should expect a “very cold period” after Thanksgiving.

That’s according to the winter weather projections in the 2009 edition of the “The Old Farmer’s Almanac,” in stores in next month.

Yep, my village is debating the cost of road salt, in August, because the Old Farmer’s Almanac predicts a cold winter. Well, they did run out of salt last winter…

Yes they can: Chicagoans get entry to speech at last minute

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Yes they can: Chicagoans get entry to speech at last minute — chicagotribune.com

DENVER – The group of Chicago people who took a bus to the Democratic National Convention without credentials will get to see Sen. Barack Obama accept the nomination for president after all.

They will be the ones in the white T-shirts showing people to their seats.

Yay! They made it in! I’m so glad for them. It was one of the small stories reported in the Chi-Trib about the convention that caught my attention.

Uhhh… German Best Western Worst Bestern?

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So was Best Western’s system hacked – and if so how? | Technology | guardian.co.uk

We’re currently staying in a BW chain hotel in Dublin, and we certainly hope we’re okay – that is, David is able to keep an eye on accounts from here (never you mind how). But this news of a German Best Western having ALL their client records from the last year hacked is not good.

Tammy Duckworth, you GO, girl!

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Daily Herald | Duckworth blasts McCain over military policy

The former congressional candidate painted McCain as weak on veteran issues, despite his service as a Vietnam War veteran and POW. Duckworth touted Obama’s efforts at boosting GI health care and benefits. Duckworth now is head of the state’s veteran’s affairs department. She recently has been mentioned as a possible successor to Obama in the U.S. Senate should he win.

Here we are in Dublin, Ireland, logging in to check the political news, and find this news item in my “local news” section of Google News. We voted for Tammy when she ran for Congress and were disappointed when she didn’t beat the Republican that got in. And we’d totally support her for the Senate if Obama succeeds in winning the election – that would probably be an appointment by the Gov, Rod Blagojevich.

Yes, yes, yes, if it comes to it, yes to Tammy for Senate.

Only Connect: Holding together but going nowhere

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Only Connect: Holding together but going nowhere

From our viewpoint the bishops talked in secret little groups in their ‘big top’ surrounded by a ring of police and only emerged once to go to London to tell society how wicked it was not to do more about the debt. Many of us had worked in or visited Africa and experienced the poverty. We do all we can to press for justice and support the aid agencies but we also know about violence against women in Africa and the persecution of gay people. They are the real victims and scapegoats in this whole process.