The Sci Fi Catholic Yak Module
Wait, the Deliverance Movement?
Isn't that where they cast out the demons that make you squeal like a pig?
Yeah--there's some wierd stuff out there..
When I was down in Mississippi in the late 80's my roomie and I went to a tent to see the snake handlers...you listened to this preacher guy for what like seemed FOREVER, really preaching on sinners and confessing your sins and being forgiven etc...then he invited folks to come up, and tell of their sinful lives before everyone in the tent, and the preacher laid hands on them, and if there were truely saved and forgiven they could reach in the box and pull out the cottonmouth snake, and not be harmed. A few guys did it and one little boy came up, probably about 7 or 8 years old... I think they gave him the "Special box" with the garter snake in it... The big snakes I think were well fed and had their fangs taken out because when they were pulled out of their box they could hardly move...
I'm sure the couple of guys that confessed to adultry with their wives in the audience were probably much better facing off the cottonmouth than facing the wrath of the wife when they got home...
Sorry to derail the topic guys, but it's my 21st birthday today I wanted to tell you what goodies I brought home with me from the bookstore this morning:
Eifelheim by Michael Flynn
A Secular Age by Charles Taylor
Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay by Michael Chabon
Pirate Freedom by Gene Wolfe
Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman
Children of Hurin by J.R.R. Tolkien
Gardens of the Moon and Deadhouse Gates by Steve Erikson
Stone of Farewell and Green Angel Tower by Tad Williams
Needless to say I'm very excited by thinking about all the new covers hat will grace my poor little shelf. I think it's going to have a tein brother very soon if I keep up this pace 
But that's not all, folks! I'm going to see Iron Man later this evening. This is truly one of my best birthdays yet, and I wish all you guys could my happiness today! 
God Bless!
Once again sorry for the typos. That's supposed to read "... going to have a twin brother very soon if I keep up this pace." Looks like age hasn't improved my spelling.
*sigh* Once again, sorry for the embarrassing spelling. That line should read " I wish you guys could share my happiness."
Maybe it's time I looked through my spelling/grammar textbooks from elementary school...
Thomas!!
Happy 21st Birthday!!
However--in your shopping spree you neglected to pick up the obligatory 24 pack to celebrate with your friends.......smack your hand..
On my way home from Sat Mass I DID have to pick up a 12 pack of Bud Light Lime...I haven't tried it,it looked intriguing and was on Sale Plus it's gonna be a hot day and I'll be out in the yard putting in flowers...I'm hoping it tastes somewhat like Corona Light with lime..
I'll drink a toast to ya!!
Have a happy day
Yikes! That is ... disturbing!
Off topic. Mike Duran of Decompose passed this interview along to me and I thought you might also be interested:
http://www.bustedhalo.com/
featur...rsInterview.htm
Becky
Thanks a lot, Becky. I'll be able to use that shortly, as I'm going to be reviewing that in the near future.
Thomas, happy birthday, and nice booklist.
Sara, I hope you're not buying your beer from a supermarket. This is Utah, and we don't sell real beer in supermarkets...of course, you are buying Bud, so maybe it doesn't matter.
Budweiser, the Proletariat of Beers.
Deej--on your beer comment :P
It IS true that the 3.2 crap we have here is not worthy of being called beer....I had the distinct pleasure of enjoying the real thing during my two years in West Germany..however it still tastes good on a hot dusty day...especially after doing yard work...
We do have some nice microbrews here...I particularly enjoy a nice Pale Ale called Cutthroat, there is also a Hefeweizen that comes in both Raspberry and Apricot flavors... however the micros tend to be a bit heavy (=2 hours on the treadmill) so I will just enjoy one for dessert... not too many diet microbrews out there...
I'm quite fond of Guiness, and Cutthroat really is good, but I'm mostly a wine drinker. I love port, but it's expensive (unless you want it to taste like cough syrup). I've also grown fond of plum wine, but of course it's super sweet and it can knock me for a loop if I'm not careful.
Speaking of this tangent, I'm reminded of my Baptist background. Teetotaling was the norm, though it wasn't exactly required. What's particularly strange, though, is that every once in a while you can find an Evangelical who will claim, dead serious, that the wine in the Bible was non-alcoholic. He's wrong, of course; their wine was wine, and the "other fermented drink" was something more-or-less like beer. Both alcoholic beverages were consumed and used in the temple cult. The warnings against alcohol in scripture are consistently directed at over-drinking, not at all drinking.
Of course, a few years back, I heard an Evangelical radio program entirely about the pleasures of wine-drinking, so it's not universal. Also, as I mean to discuss in a later post sometime, the teetotalism of American Evangelicalism has some very understandable reasons behind it.
I was raised in CA where wineries and good affordable "house wines" are abundant, and from the time I was old enough to sit at the dinner table I was allowed to partake (probably a thread toward another discussion). I enjoy a glass of wine with dinner or conversation. Unfortunately Utah has quite a limited selection in our package stores.I would not consider myself a wine snob, and someday I would like to take a class on wine tasting and appreciation. I grew up on burgandies and other dark mellow red wines, when I was in Germany I was introduced to white wines--I especially like Chardonnays-- then my sis-in-law introduced me to white zinfandel. We have a couple of wineries in Southern Utah that produce a limited selection. Not spectacular, but I buy a few bottles throughout the year to help keep them in business
Deej--the plum wine sounds intriguing..I might pick up a bottle next time I'm out. Thanks for the warning about the sweetness. What I like to do is just wander through the store and select a few bottles that seem the grab my attention...its a fun way to try different varieties. The past couple have been Aussie wines which have been a pleasant surprise.
Speaking of Guiness--when I was in Germany I ran across an Irish pub which served the AUTHENTIC Guiness....not the watered down stuff we get across the pond. You could about stand your spoon up in it...plus it was served room temp..blech...I believe I'm still suffering the consequences of that night..
Sara--good for you! This spring I stunned my First Communion class when they asked me if I had thought the taste of wine was yucky when I made my 1st Communion. I told 'em the truth--that when I was their age I could have wine whenever I wanted & that was normal for my ethnic heritage & some of my extended family made their own wine from their backyard orchards. They were aghast--I told my DRE just in case she got any phone calls about it. hee hee hee
Deej--the plum wine sounds intriguing..
It's a dessert wine, and I think it's a Japanese thing. I've only begun drinking it recently, after trying it in a Japanese restaurant. The back alley store where I buy it has a limited selection of two brands, one of which I haven't tried because it claims to be "plum flavored," which sounds awful. The genuine stuff they sell is Kikkoman (as in the same company that makes soy sauce), and it's pretty cheap, so it's probably not the best stuff, but I'm not a wine snob either, so I like it. I understand it's good on the rocks, but I haven't tried that yet.
Xena--same with my family....I get lots of raised eyebrows also, but I do believe it was a great thing...there was no big mystery around alcohol..it was just something to drink alongside soda and milk and water. We were also taught that there was responsibility that went along with it. So my brother and I never had any need to binge drink or party really hard or get wasted just to get wasted even as college students when it was "legal"..it just didn't make alot of sense. It's the whole "everything in moderation " thing...although when my first fiance and I broke up I about drowned my sorrows in a bottle of Black Velvet...I suppose everyone has to do that once or twice in their life.
I also can't make much sense of the various religions that teach that alcohol is "evil".... along with short skirts and red lipstick..
Oh yes-- and the moral of the Black Velvet binge-- NO MAN is worth getting THAT SICK over... :P
The time in Juarez was worse though...when we found a bar where women drank for free..and the blessed bartender kept setting in front of me the most wonderful margaritas..delightful on a terribly hot day after going to the bullfights.. now even the slightest whiff of tequila will cause my stomach to do summersaults..
Actually the ANon post is me... on a different PC.
Sara
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