686 - updated with photo

05/21/09 :
DoD Identifies Air Force Casualty

1st Lt. Roslyn L. Schulte, 25, of St. Louis, Mo., died May 20 near Kabul, Afghanistan of wounds suffered from an improvised explosive device. She was assigned to the Headquarters, Pacific Air Forces Command, Hickam Air Force Base, Hawaii

Ladies of Liberty, a special Soldier’s Angels chapter that supports deployed female members of the military, posted this remembrance of 1st Lt. Schulte on their blog:

Yesterday, my closest friend for the last couple months, Roslyn Schulte, was killed in a roadside bombing halfway between here and Bagram. She is one of the most incredible people I have ever known, and I want to tell you about her. I had only known her about three months, but she was assigned to my unit, and so, she and I being the only two junior officers in the group, she had the unfortunate pleasure of having to hangout with me. I can probably count on one hand the number of times we did not eat at least one meal of the day together since she arrived here in early March.

Ros was truly an exceptional person. Usually when you hear that about someone who just died, it's almost always exaggeration, if not pure BS. With Ros, it's not. She passed up on the Ivy leagues to go to the Air Force Academy. She qualified for state in five different sports in high school, was an all-American in college, a qualified pilot. She was ALWAYS kind to others. She went out of her way to call her mom and dad two or three times a week every week she was here. Sorry I don't do that, Mom and Dad. No one did, except for Ros. She dreamed of getting out of the air force to settle down and start a family. She didn't drink. She didn't like the lifestyle of the military -- said it didn't work well for family. She wanted to be a successful business owner (like her mom), but worried that would interfere with raising a family.

(snip)

Ros and I usually travelled together on longer trips. We were almost always paired off together, in the same vehicle. That's how we wanted it, and how the mission planners did. Yesterday however I had to go somewhere else. We saw eachother briefly in the morning, just shy of
7am. She was walking from her room, my convoy was already staged and waiting. She saluted me, in typical jest. Junior officers usually don't salute other junior officers, especially when they know eachother. Without too much said, we each went our seperate ways -- I fully expected we would both be back having a meal together at Camp Eggers that evening. In fact, even though the day had just begun, I was already looking forward to that. She was my friend. My helicopter took off at 8am. By all accounts, Ros was killed halfway between Kabul and Bagram about 8:05.

(snip)

I'm writing this to you so you can know a little bit about this wonderful person, Ros Schulte. My friend.

Photo and remembrance via IGTNT

4299

05/21/09 AP:
3 soldiers killed in Baghdad bombing
The U.S. military says 3 soldiers have been killed and nine others wounded in a roadside bombing in southern Baghdad...a bomb exploded...while American troops were patrolling near a popular outdoor market in the southern district of Dora.

Here's a little radio stunt for you

h/t to Jed Lewison


--the BB

Get down and boogie

Molesy, I don't think we're in New Mexico anymore.

There was the requisite walk by the yacht club, discussing the lifegiving mystery of the Holy Trinity, in the midst of which we did stop to smell the magnolias on the way.


Who is the mystery blogger? Stay tuned.


Tomorrow I plan to kiss the bride. Last night I hugged her.

FranIAm and PJ


LJ

Jane demonastrates that professors have moves too! (I confess, all the bloggers but two got up and danced. We two cheered them on and waited for a quiet slow dance - and that didn't happen. Ah, these youngsters.


The groom cuts a rug with the bride's lovely daughter.


I loves me some mush. And they are very in love.

One thing about tonight's lovely birthday party for the groom (just a pup, 3 years younger than me) that really warmed the cockles of my heart was that so many kids got up and danced with great joy and abandon. This was a celebration that cut across the generations. I love seeing kids have a good time where they feel loved and safe and happy.

So today there was some napping, some walking, some discussion, some writing (mostly scholarly and me off in fantasy land), some dining, some dancing. Tomorrow, of course, there is hitching, with the bishop presiding. Lovely people. Lovely weekend.

--the BB, your reporter from North Carolina

Where's Waldo? For that matter, where am I?

There was much wrangling in my household this past week since certain kids got to play in New Orleans for months AND are back in the south again. Maggie and Belle and Molesy and I have all run off to North Carolina for Doxy's wedding.

The happy bride and groom

The kids with Doxy
(From this angle you cannot tell but
Belle has on a mask. You can take
the girl out of New Orleans but....)

And here we have Jane R (Acts of Hope), FranIAm, and the BB. Someone really should warn a state before we all arrive in one place. (Well, Jane lives here these days and fills us in beautifully on local history.)


The kids and I also got to meet Her Felinity, the Bishop of Naps, yesterday. She is gorgeous, but y'all knew that.

I have not had my IV feed of Diet Pepsi and am totally uncaffeinated. Pray for me.

--the BB

Heart thread - 05/22/2009

I ask your prayers for Jane R's godson Robbie, who was assaulted and robbed yesterday and now has a bruised face and broken leg. For swift healing of body and spirit after this unfortunate accident.

For Doxy and Dear Friend who are getting hitched mañana.

The lovely bride

Most gracious God, we give you thanks for your tender love in sending Jesus Christ to come among us, to be born of a human mother, and to make the way of the cross to be the way of life. We thank you, also, for consecrating the union of man and woman in his Name. By the power of your Holy Spirit, pour out the abundance of your blessing upon this man and this woman. Defend them from every enemy. Lead them into all peace. Let their love for each other be a seal upon their hearts, a mantle about their shoulders, and a crown upon their foreheads. Bless them in their work and in their companionship; in their sleeping and in their waking; in their joys and in their sorrows; in their life and in their death. Finally, in your mercy, bring them to that table where your saints feast for ever in your heavenly home; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

For students working on their papers and dissertations (and hippie rockers on sabbatical).

And all those whose requests are scattered across the blogosphere and in your hearts right now.

The practice of the Jesus Prayer is simple. Stand before the Lord with the attention in the heart, and call to him: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me!” The essential part of this is not in the words but in faith, contrition, and self-surrender to the Lord. With these feelings one can stand before the Lord even without any words, and it will still be prayer.
—Theophan the Recluse, a 19th century Russian master of prayer

--the BB

Needle and thread

Photo above is from a project of several years ago: the spring banner in a series of four that I pieced for St Cuthbert's, Oakland. They were for the creation season (autumn) when we celebrated a creation liturgy.


I have had another creative project of late. I hope to share a photo of it before too long.

Years ago, in one of those rounds of testing and counseling on the way to ordination (many rounds for some of us - it took me four tries just to get into the process), the counselor said that I needed to be creative or I would be like a capped volcano with pressure threatening to erupt.

Mercifully, I have been able to pursue several modes of creativity in recent years for which I thank Godde and encouraging and inspiring people. This blog is one of them, of course, in addition to knitting, sewing, writing fiction, and gardening. Let us not forget preaching, which I do once a month.

Tomorrow posts will probably be light as I may be more intent on partying than blogging. Y'all will surely understand. (Now then, how many years has it been since I waltzed? Baptist feet are not raised to do this sort of thing.)

Party responsibly, my little gypsy moths!

--the BB

Passion

My friend, and hitherto greatest fan of my writing, Kathy noted recently that what she enjoys in my tales is the undercurrent of emotion in many scenes.

I am often startled when I feel those emotions. An intriguing question is why some scenes choke me up or reduce me to blubbering - when I think about them, type them, read them aloud to others, or simply talk about them.

[Well, yes, we all know I'm a big softy, but beyond that.]

It happened to me last night. I have sketched out a scene that still lies several chapters later than where I am at the moment. It is actually a dual scene: a nightmare followed the next afternoon with an encounter with a deity. The nightmare is truly horrific and I was dispassionate thinking about it and writing notes for it. The following scene is mystical, challenging, and contains an element of healing. I expect the two scenes to be quite powerful (not too much humility there, eh?). What I did not expect is that in mentioning this to my chum last night I would suddenly choke up. WTF? I did not think that passage, still unwritten, had strong hooks in me.

And yet is describes something of the horror and compassion we all feel when we see a people or a nation being savaged. Put another way, the kind of thing that leads me to cry for complete strangers.

Oh.

Fantasy fiction is really not very removed from our everyday world, even if it seduces us into imagining alternatives.

Today I was writing a bit of the aftermath of another assassination (I am leading up to a full-fledged civil war, in case you are new to this). The narrative issue is how the family reacts to this loss. As I entered more deeply into a sub-scene I felt the powerful, physical reactions to sudden, devastating news.

Pray for those you love.

Pray for strangers.

Pray for us all.

Gospodi, pomiluj.

--the BB

Prayer request

I ask your prayers for Janet who will be having a lumpectomy - for her and her entire family. We are talking early detection and are optimistic.

--the BB

The short run-down

After dinner I went to my friend's house. We zipped over to Village Pizza and had a medium pizza with whole wheat crust, pepperoni, sausage, and green chiles (this IS New Mexico). Yummy. We sat outside as it was a lovely evening. Nice to yak beneath a huge cottonwood tree. We then went back to his place for dessert, also outdoors. Lovely.

Now to catch up on a thousand things.


I launched into the next chapter of the book. The first victim of the civil war, not counting the assassinated prince. It really does get nasty from here.

Discussed with my friend Kathy how I spend lots of time on domestic scenes against which the larger events are played out.


I watered the vegetables tonight - and the freshly planted penstemons. Everything will get a good watering tomorrow evening but I wanted to check on all of these. Last night we had some rain and some spectacular lightning. I wish I could capture the colors I see in the yard just around sunset. The camera cannot do it. Even so, here are two blooms. The one below is the same "singing in the rain" bud pictured in the last yard photos, just opened. It is stunning, the colors an electric blend of apricot, pink, and lemon. With the flash it is washed out and tweaking it does not help a whole lot.


Maggie and Belle and Molesy and I are going to party this weekend. More to follow.

Ciao for niao,

--the BB

685

05/18/09 :
DoD Identifies Army Casualty (2 of 2)
Sgt. Carlie M. Lee, III, 23, of Birmingham, Ala...died May 15 at Forward Operating Base Shank, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when their patrol was attacked by enemy forces using small-arms fire in Chak, Afghanistan.

05/18/09 :
DoD Identifies Army Casualty (1 of 2)
Staff Sgt. Esau I. De la Pena-Hernandez, 25, of La Puente, Calif...died May 15 at Forward Operating Base Shank, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when their patrol was attacked by enemy forces using small-arms fire in Chak, Afghanistan.

4296

Latest Coalition Fatalities

05/18/09
DoD Identifies Army Casualty
Spc. David A. Schaefer, Jr., 27, of Belleville, Ill., died May 16 in Baghdad, Iraq, of wounds suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated near his unit. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 2nd Infantry Regiment...

Progress

How much can be discerned in a glazed bowl with sides so thin one cannot help thinking of an eggshell? Prices are very good in the northern principality. The duke continues connecting the dots.

Today at lunch I scratched out six more paragraphs. This evening I added them and developed the issues further, finally concluding another chapter. Hooray.

I smirked to realize that I subconsciously broached the theme of warrantless wiretapping, translated to the eighth century, of course. We really cannot force our framework upon an earlier time. Still, I am amused. There was no Fourth Amendment in the duchy, nor in any of the lands thereabouts; not then, not later. Only human decency and honor. Which should suffice.

Sweet dreams, my little mayflies.

--the BB

The day the smirking stopped

occams hatchet has published a must-read diary about the Nuremberg trials and the central issue of holding leaders to account for a war of aggression when they were not under threat (wink, wink, nudge, nudge, Iraq, know what I mean, know what I mean?).

It is a solid and sobering account (no graphic violence so the squeamish may read it). I believe it gives us important perspective on the issues we face today.

It should be required reading for every member of Congress and all cable and newspaper pundits. (Come to think of it, they should all re-read the Constitution while they're at it.)

--the BB

All four in one pic!

Parents Jeremy and Katie with Clara and Olivia

The outpouring of love from family and friends is overwhelming. We are so grateful. The girls are growing and changing each day. There are still challenges they need to master. The biggest challenge right now is feeding. It is an exhausting task and they have to breathe and suck at the same time. For babies, who were three months early, that is a big job. Every day is a blessing, every day they get a little bit closer to their original due date. God is good and loving.

Quote of the Day:
Breathe in, Breathe out, Smile.
Thich Nhat Hanh

--from the blog

--the BB

J'étais dans le jardin ce matin

I so wanted to share a couple of new roses with you last night but had to charge the camera battery. So here are photos from this morning:

Sun spray

Singing in the rain



Iceberg



Blaze



Piñata - a new one like the large established one



Penstemon, one of three just planted



Golden showers

The top two just put out their first bloom in the past few days so I am especially excited about those. I have to standards of Iceberg. Lost of cool white and green against the back wall between them and the potato vine. The little baby piñata rose offers a good idea of the variety of shades they display from newer blossoms in intense yellow, then into oranges, reds, and finally a faded wine shade.

Enjoy! I certainly do.

-the BB

The non-progress report

... new forms of darkness rose up.

It is ever thus.

I keep hoping that I can have a nice chunk of writing time on the weekends but it never happens. This weekend had a half-day church meeting, a sermon to prepare, laundry to do, tomatoes and penstemon to plant, tender new plantings to water, sundry yard work, plus other stuff. And now it is, once again, past my bedtime. Ah well.

I did manage to go back and insert a scene, make a few minor corrections, add some chronological references, and rectify a major error I made in the genealogy database. (Only one person but the name was totally garbled.) In a moment of reciprocity, the genealogy program enabled me to correct a relational reference in the narrative. There is a reason they have people work on consistency and continuity in making movies and editing books.

It gets even crazier when my characters resemble Russians in having a first name, a patronymic, and a nickname.

Bit by bit.

I doubt I shall write much this coming week but there you have it.

--the BB

Heart thread - 05/17/2009

Mimi has the requests here. I am cutting and pasting just to pass then along.

From Roseann:

Just want to let you all know I am feeling better. The stuff that goes in my feeding tube is working like a charm. My main issue now is I am having trouble with dialysis. I am suddenly unable to breathe and they have to put oxygen on me. It is a horrible feeling, like a panic attack. Right now they don't know what is causing it. Could be an insulin surge or who knows.

I know I ask for prayers a lot but please pray that this is cleared up quickly. Right now it feels like one of the last hurdles.

Love, Roseann

From Elizabeth:

Bad news just in: My brother John was just diagnosed with temporal lobe deterioration and early Alzheimer's Disease. He's 55 years old. Yes, that's 55. His wife, Mary, is the primary caretaker for their granddaughter and her aged parents who live with them. Needless to say, she is quite overwhelmed. I am too stunned at the moment to know how I feel, exactly, except terribly, terribly sad and deeply concerned for my brother. Of my three siblings, he and I have been the closest.

Prayers, please.

Margaret and Joel need your prayers. Margaret asks for the prayers here and gives an update here.

Please pray for my beloved --he's in the hospital. They think he's had a series of small strokes.

The episodes started last night --we thought they were a food allergy or something, because he couldn't control his speech and his tongue was like a rubber band. Nothing else but that. We were with our neighbor Ben, who is a big time brain doctor... last night he showed some concern. But the episode passed quickly.Today, Joel lost his speech again while talking to Ben, and Ben called me and said that I was going to spend the next six hours in the emergency room and either hate him because it was allergies or love him for saving Joel's life.

I love Ben... he saved my husband's life.

and later

Thank you all so very much for your prayers.

Joel is doing well--still in the hospital and might be for a couple more days. He is not bright red like a lobster any more, and even though his talking is thick, he is still punning fluently away.... and is able to tell us what year it is--which he was not able to do yesterday!

I am so deeply grateful for Ben who gave us only one option--ER. I think he saved Joel's life, and/or prevented Joel from living with great impairment--at least that is what it looks like right now.

And I'm exhausted and going to bed early!

Thank you again for your prayers. Please, keep 'em coming.

O God, the strength of the weak and the comfort of sufferers: mercifully accept our prayers, and grant to your servant Joel the help of your power, that his sickness may be turned into health, and our sorrow into joy; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Lots of hurt feelings are going on right now too, exacerbated by aching raw hearts. I won't link but I think Jonathan needs some prayer as well.

We all need prayer. Our hearts hurt, our minds are in turmoil, the world is rather a mess. And yet there is grace. May we all be bathed in that grace, washed fresh by the Spirit, anointed with sweet-smelling oil of healing, and be reclothed and in our right minds.

Rejoicing in the joy of Cecilia's sermon. May grace sustain her and Beloved and her congregation.

Remembering those affected by the tornado in Kirkepiscatoid's town.

I am grateful for the prayer by Concord Pastor that FranIAm shared with us.

While I explained Rogation Sunday in my sermon this morning we had not planned ahead to do anything about it. Caminante and the folks at Trinity Episcopal Church did, however. Check it out here.

Kirstin finished the academic year. Hooray!


Grandfather, Grandmother, Sacred One,
Creator of heaven and earth, Giver of life,
We are here before you,
Hear us!
Thunder Beings, Medicine Bear,
Waters where the Sun goes down,
We are here before you,
Teach us!
Buffalo upon whom the People depend,
Land of Snows and Winter Gales,
We are here before you,
Strengthen us!
Rising Sun and fresh Breezes,
Elk Nation, Seeds of all Beginnings,
We are here before you,
Fill us with life!
Ripening Time, Plant Nations,
Winged Cousins, Sheltering Trees,
We are here before you,
Nurture us!
Round circle of the Sky,
Father Sun, Sister Moon, Star Nations,
We are here before you,
Shine upon us!
Mother and Grandmother Earth,
Crawling and Burrowing Clans, all Grasses,
We are here before you,
Sustain us!
Great Circle of all Beings
And all Powers who serve the Sacred One,
We are here before you,
Behold us!
Gathered with All Our Relations,
Holy Creator of All Things,
We are here before you
To praise you!

[Invocation from the Turtle Island Mass]

--the BB
The graphic at the top of the post includes artwork by Paul Madonna whose work appears in the San Francisco Chronicle.

Lying in loco parentis

Innit just the cutest thang, sending out yo' baby girl to dissemble for you? That just has to make a poppa proud.

Soulless *$)&^_@$)&^_(#&$@!

h/t to TPM

--the BB

Anaheim will soon be upon us

Or we shall soon be upon Anaheim, Godde preserve it.

I have only attended one General Convention and that was in Anaheim. I was there the day Ed Browning was elected PB and brought into the hall to be introduced to the House of Deputies. That was rather exciting. It was quite a fascinating tribal experience.

I suspect most Episcopalians experience bishops the way I had up until then - in small numbers. Usually just one, occasionally two or three. To pass through the convention center and see whole multitudes of purple shirts descending on the escalators was just... weird.

OK, a little creepy. Remember, I may be ordained but I remain incredibly anti-clerical. I just don't cut us much slack. Hordes of bishops just ratchets up the adrenalin that is the body's way of saying, "Look out, there is danger near you."

Perhaps that explains a bit of my very harsh negativity toward primates.

Mind you, I have met primates I admire and respect. There are bishops I admire and respect (and am even fond of). Priests and deacons too! But not one of them gets automatic respect because of the funny collar or the fancy ordination certificate on their walls.

Anyway, this stroll down memory lane (and disquisition on clergy) was triggered by something I said in an earlier post today and recent traded comments thereon with Grandmère Mimi.

My ex used to opine that there are only 300 Episcopalians and they just move around a lot.

The more we run into people who know people we know, the more this seems to be the case. I allowed that a thousand or more folks in one cathedral service belies this, but in our ordinary lives it seems to be true. A visitor today was the son of a colleague of mine with whom I was in a clergy support group. He was with us at the mission today because he knows two other people in our congregation. Afterward we were talking about all this and links in the Diocese of Utah, whereupon a congregant pointed out that she and I have a friend in common there, who is known to the others, of course, and the suffragan for the part of New York where my former colleague now serves is my chum +Kathy Roskam, who shepherded the newly ordained in the Diocese of California when I was ordained.

Scary.

300. Moving around a lot.

Mimi adds that we are "special." We certainly are.

God bless the Episcopal Church. (I don't care about the Communion since it became a golden calf, but I value this chunk of it.)

--the BB

Sumbitch ipse loquitur

Freedom from torture is an inalienable human right. The Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment, ratified by the United States and more than 130 other countries since 1984, forbids governments from deliberately inflicting severe physical or mental pain or suffering on those within their custody or control. Yet torture continues to be practiced around the world by rogue regimes whose cruel methods match their determination to crush the human spirit. Beating, burning, rape, and electric shock are some of the grisly tools such regimes use to terrorize their own citizens. These despicable crimes cannot be tolerated by a world committed to justice.
--George Walker Bush, 26 June 2003

h/t to Hunter

What can one say in the face of such brazen hypocrisy?

--the BB

Mad dogs, Englishmen, and crazed bears

When I got home from church I headed out into the yard under the midday sun. This may be doubly foolish since I got a haircut yesterday and what is not already bald is now buzzed down to #1.

I planted the last remaining penstemon, did a bit more well repair and mulching, and watered the newly planted items again. I hope to have photos later today or tomorrow but some more of my bare root roses have had their first bloom, one more has shoots, and one from last year has new shoots too. I am still waiting for some sign of life an about five others. Nonetheless, the yard is a great joy to my heart.

Oh, and I stretched out more string along the wall for vines to grow on, pruned a bit, and put up poles for the beans.

We had a lovely time at church, as usual. Afterward I met a visitor who knew some of our members. As we were chatting it finally dawned on me: he is the son of a colleague with whom I had been in a support group in California! The world is small. The world of Episcopalians is really, really small.

--the BB

Just go read it

I refer to the entire McClatchy article by Jonathan S. Landay. It narrates how there was huge pressure from the offices of Cheney and Rumsfeld to get information from detainees "proving" the non-existent link between Iraq and al Qaeda.

Set aside the unsubstantiated adolescent male fantasy of ticking time bombs and focus on this: the timing and nature of the use of torture indicate that it was done to justify the Iraq War. Not to get actionable intelligence that might save lives but to justify what they wanted to do prior to 9/11.

Torture for the sake of false evidence. (Phony confessions are really just about the only thing torture is good for, not counting the pleasuring of sadists.)

Here is Cheney lying (I know, why even point it out):

"The (al Qaida-Iraq) links go back," he said. "We know for example from interrogating detainees in Guantanamo that al Qaida sent individuals to Baghdad to be trained in C.W. and B.W. technology, chemical and biological weapons technology. These are all matters that are there for anybody who wants to look at it."

No evidence of such training or of any operational links between Iraq and al Qaida has ever been found, according to several official inquiries.

Read it all here.

--the BB