• Episcopal - Good and Joyful Things

    Almost Live: the Presiding Bishop’s Webcast

    This is long. LONG. Here, why don’t you go get a latte, while I fulminate quietly to myself. I almost missed the live webcast by the Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church, ++Katherine Jefferts Schori. Stupid time difference. Fortunately, it’s now available as a regular on-demand webcast. There are specific issues I want to hear her address, but I’m a little worried that she’s just going to offer some delicious tidbits of Anglican fudge. And now, the webcast. I’m not really clever or fast enough on the analytical side to comment seriously on it as I watch, but I’ll probably…

  • Hot Off The Presses

    This Is How They Support Our Troops

    Walter Reed patients told to keep quiet – Army Times Soldiers at Walter Reed Army Medical Center’s Medical Hold Unit say they have been told they will wake up at 6 a.m. every morning and have their rooms ready for inspection at 7 a.m., and that they must not speak to the media. “Some soldiers believe this is a form of punishment for the trouble soldiers caused by talking to the media,” one Medical Hold Unit soldier said, speaking on the condition of anonymity. It is unusual for soldiers to have daily inspections after Basic Training. Soldiers say their sergeant…

  • Home Improvement

    Home Sick

    Rats rats RATS. One of the issues that came up in the staff meeting last week was the problem of people who come to work sick. One of my cow-orkers has been down with strep and a cough the last week or so, and since the policy is you can’t be out more than 3 days in a row without having to get a doctor’s note and or go on salary continuation, people tend to come back too soon. Now it seems the annoying sensation at the back of my throat has become something that feels like the beginnings of…

  • Episcopal - Good and Joyful Things

    Well and Truly Listening: Talk of the Nation

    NPR : The Episcopal Church and the Rift over Homosexuality I'm currently listening to today's Talk of the Nation, recorded earlier today. First guest: Rt. Reverend Catherine Roskam, bishop suffragan of New York. She starts off well by stating clearly that discussing the blessing of same-sex marriage is off the table. She also tries to explain how the Anglican Communion isn't really a top-down, patriarchally governed church.  She stresses that there are more important issues that we ought to be facing in the Communion, such as how women are treated.  Caller: Jean from Utah is an Episcopalian. Feels strongly that…

  • Uncategorical Weirdness

    Lambeth 1998: The Crux of the Matter

    I started browsing old headlines for 1998 at Anglicans Online, because I wondered why the bishop of Chicago didn't sign a letter of apology to gay Episcopalians after the Lambeth 1998 bishops' conference passed the notorious "incompatible with scripture" statement on homosexuality. I found out that we didn't have a bishop at the time – +Frank went on to be Presiding Bishop, and +Bill wasn't elected until November of that year. I barely paid attention to the news items from Lambeth then – I wasn't really part of a parish yet, having just moved to Illinois the year before –…

  • Uncategorical Weirdness

    Review: Kris Longknife, Mutineer

    Kris Longknife: Mutineer, by Mike Shepherd =:) =:) =:) That third smiling alien is flickering a bit, in my estimation. I’m not quite done reading this book, but I’ve read enough to form a reasonably informed opinion. I’ve read all or most of the Honor Harrington books (such as The Short Victorious War (Honor Harrington (Paperback)) ) by David Weber, and although I got bored with them because the formula had worn a little thin for me, I liked the idea of reading SF books about galactic warrior women. This one struck me favorably; as the first in the series,…

  • SABRE2th Tigress: Book 'em, Dano.

    Work, work, work

    There’s something that’s been building and building for months now; I feel really overwhelmed and stressed out much of the time, while simultaneously feeling like I’m not pulling enough weight for other people on my team. Problem is, the tasks that I currently cover don’t play well with each other. Also, the new technology that we’re supposed to be using for making reservations leaves much to be desired. Here’s a partial list of tasks, some of which I’ve been totally neglecting because the first two tasks take up the great bulk of my time: Small group hotels (taking up about…

  • Home Improvement

    Blizzard!

    The storm we were threatened all weekend has finally blown in with a vengeance; We heard stuff hitting the house that sounded like rain or sleet, but no, it’s heavy snow and maybe also sleet too. High winds, and white stuff coming down fast. Tomorrow’s going to be interesting, because we could have a lot of snow on the ground by morning. Weather