This Makes Me Happy

Prelates Place Friendly Wager on World Series
Bagels and Tastykakes Are on the Line

NEW YORK, OCT. 28, 2009 (Zenit.org).- As the New York Yankees and the Philadelphia Phillies set to square off in baseball's World Series, the archbishops of the two cities are placing a friendly wager on the outcome.

Cardinal Justin Rigali, archbishop of Philadelphia, and Archbishop Timothy Dolan of New York, settled the terms of the bet Tuesday evening, the dioceses reported in a joint press statement. Cardinal Rigali will send a case of Tastykakes to the Big Apple if the Yankees win. Should the Phillies take the World Series, Archbishop Dolan will ship a dozen bagels to the City of Brotherly Love.

"Cardinal Rigali is one of my closest and dearest friends," Archbishop Dolan was quoted in the statement. "For several years he even served as my archbishop, so I feel a particular loyalty to him."

In 2001, Archbishop Dolan was named auxiliary bishop of St. Louis, where then Archbishop Rigali was leading the archdiocese. In the light-hearted note, Archbishop Dolan lamented his friend's loyalties to the Phillies: "I know he has exquisite taste in most matters. I just wish he had better taste in baseball teams."

Cardinal Rigali also noted "great esteem" for his colleague. "He is a gifted spiritual leader who has been a true friend for many years. "That is why I am so sorry he will be disappointed when the Phillies successfully defend their World Championship." "We have the cream cheese ready for the bagels that I know will be arriving shortly after the Repeat in the City of Brotherly and Sisterly love," the cardinal noted with confidence.

The best-of-seven series begins tonight at Yankee Stadium.

GO YANKEES!

Happy National Chocolate Day!

Happy National Chocolate Day! Yes, there is such a thing!

http://dsc.discovery.com/news/2009/10/28/national-chocolate-day.html

It's a day definitely worth celebrating. Have you had your chocolate today?



Great or Memorable Quotes About Chocolate:

"Life is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're gonna get!" ~ Forrest Gump

"Save the earth: It's the only planet with chocolate" - Magnet on my Mom's fridge

And on the eighth day, God created chocolate.

"To love is to will the good of the other in a way that is in accord with its nature," said Dr. Asci. Let's recall that wonderful class and "will the good" of some Milka! (They have some at Meijer's here in South Bend and at the South Bend Chocolate Factory!")

Chocolate is proof that God loves women-kind.

There is no choco-holics anonymous because nobody wants to quit!

I am not overweight. I am chocolate-enriched.

Day (and Night) Dreaming...

So I promised I'd write a little more about my experience at Boundaries Bootcamp. One of the things that came up in the talks at the conference was that in order to have good boundaries, you have to have a good sense of who you are and what you value. John & Henry encouraged all the participants to take some time when we got home to think about our values, and then also, thinking about who we are and what we want to accomplish with our lives and then set boundaries that protect or enhance that vision.

This reminded me a lot of what Matthew Kelly wrote in his book "The Rhythm of Life" and so I went back and started looking at that.

Since the conference, I've been trying to do a little bit of soul-searching and have spent some time thinking about this more. It's hard work! To be quite honest, I know what I value, but I do not know what I want - what I want in life, what I want to accomplish, etc. I've been floating through life, doing lots of useful and good and wholesome things, but I don't think I could say that I have a clear sense of where I'm headed or what my life's meaning is.

Then I stumbled across a friend's facebook page which had some really helpful questions pulled from John Maxwell's book Put Your Dream to the Test: 10 Questions That Will Help You See It And Seize It. Here are the questions:

A dream is an inspiring picture of the future that energizes your mind, will, and emotions,
empowering you to do everything you can to achieve it. (xiii)

1. The Ownership Question: Is my dream really my dream?
2. The Clarity Question: Do I clearly see my dream?
3. The Reality Question: Am I depending on factors within my control to achieve my dream?
4. The Passion Question: Does my dream compel me to follow it?
5. The Pathway Question: Do I have a strategy to reach my dream?
6. The People Question: Have I included the people I need to realize my dream?
7. The Cost Question: Am I willing to pay the price for my dream?
8. The Tenacity Question: Am I moving closer to my dream?
9. The Fulfillment Question: Does working toward my dream bring satisfaction?
10. The Significance Question: Does my dream benefit others?

I guess I have some more thinking (dreaming) to do.

Halloween Costume Ideas?

Does anyone have any interesting Halloween Costume Ideas?
Suggest your own (post a comment) or vote on which of the following you like best!
I'm trying to keep it cheap and easy: no over-achievers!

Here's a few I've found online or come up with that have some promise:

* Nurse (buy scrubs, get stethescope?)
* Super-Fan (ND apparel overload, foam finger, rally beads, temporary tatoos, sport horn - I'm mostly excited about the sport horn!)
* Mime (white face with stars over eyes, black pants / shirt)
* Go as a Die (singular of 'dice' - cardboard box painted like a die).
* Lame Excuse (Write various excuses on Post-It Notes, attach them to your body and walk around with a cane).
* Greek Goddess (white sheet(s): Think Toga, fake vine & grapes (for crown), white shirt, safety pins, gaudy, greek-looking jewelry or clay pot (to put candy or figs in).

Others?