Thusday's List

READING: Lord, Open My Lips: The Liturgy of the Hours as Daily Prayer by Seth H. Murray. I've actually been praying the Divine Office at Lauds (morning) and Vespers (evening) prayer for a couple of years, but there's never any harm in learning more about how and why. This little book is really well done and very simple to understand. It helps make sense of all the flipping back and forth during Lent and Advent, which can sometimes flummox even the most seasoned pray-er. The only two people I've ever seen who had complete command of the Christian Prayer book are Sister Shirley from St. Anne's and Patricia, the president of our St. John of the Cross Carmelite group. They serenely go from page to page to page while I continue, after two years, to fumble like an amateur. I hope this book will help - it does have a couple of pages on how to logically arrange the markers.

POOLSIDE READING: Boo by Rene Gutteridge. This is another book from my mother's church's library and it's a fun story about a horror writer (think handsome, single guy who writes Stephen King-type books) who comes to know Christ and throws the town he lives in, which has become a major tourist attraction due to him, into a tailspin. Do the residents want him to achieve heaven at the expense of their town's economic collapse? Because "Boo" (short for Wolfe Boone, the horror novelist) isn't sure he wants to keep on writing in this devils-and-demons genre. Some people are happy for his newfound faith, while others will do anything to get him back to the banshees.

LISTENING TO: Some landscape design show on HGTV. Meelyn is watching it. And, oh! A National Weather Service alert. Thunderstorms a-comin'!

SAINT IN HEAVEN I'D LIKE TO MEET: St. Dominic, to whom the Blessed Mother gave the rosary.

HAPPY TO SAY: That I got my new flash drive installed on the computer and have backed up about a jillion files, all without having to call my brother even once.

FAVORITE NEW FIND: Whole wheat pasta. Much healthier, being whole grain. Doesn't spike the blood sugar like regular white semolina flour pasta, thus making it a good carbohydrate. Tastes good, too. I've known it existed for years but had never bought any before. I've tried several different brands, some expensive (organic) and some cheap (store brand) but they all work equally well.

FAVORITE THING TODAY: Picked up Aisling's new glasses at the optometrist and found out that the frames of her old glasses, which broke when I attempted to give her the clumsiest high five in the history of the world and accidentally snapped the earpiece right off her head, can be replaced FREE. They were still under warranty.

HOURS OF SLEEP LOGGED LAST NIGHT: Seven! A real treat after three nights of being awakened by thoughts of Shakespeare.

SCRAPBOOK PAGES THIS WEEK: None. Too busy with the fair and other stuff.

THE CAUSE OF MY STRESS: The girls leave for a week's vacation on Sunday and prodigious amounts of laundry need to be washed, dried and folded, plus I have to supervise their packing and aaaaaahhhhh....

PRAYING FOR: Tom, Terri and their children; Jeff, Kari and Gracie; Tom, Sue and the kids; Peter and his family - all families that are hurting due to illness, injury, or unexpected death. Also for the repose of the soul of my internet friend, Kathy Hansen, who died unexpectedly after leaving Adoration one evening in early June. Grant unto her eternal rest, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon her. Amen.