JOYFUL WANDERING -- 60

+ updated at 9:56am on Wednesday, February 10, 2016.

+ I am working on the spiritual practice of humility for the next series of posts in the Spiritual Explorations series. There will be 16 posts beginning at SE49. It sure helps to have the resources Spirituality and Practice offers including their quotes on humility. You can search for all kinds of resources at the best website in the universe.   

+ Inner Frontier offers "Walking Presence," the next in the Presence Trigger series.

+ Spirituality and Practice offers The Most Spiritually Literate Films of 2015. How many have you seen?

+ Video > The Mystic Heart Uploaded to Youtube on Nov 12,2006 > In this dialogue series, Brother Wayne Teasdale and Ken Wilber discuss the advent of an integral mysticism in the postmodern world. Reflecting on their own spiritual experiences, the relation of science to spirituality, the lives of the great inter-spiritual pioneers, and how youth culture is revitalizing the mystical traditions, Brother Wayne and Ken show how an integral perspective can bring the revelations of mysticism

+ Diane Rehm Show at its best today, January 18.  Two important interviews >

1 - Congressman John Lewis and author Andrew Aydin talk about March: Book Two, a comprehensive and inspiring history of the Civil Rights movement. 

2 - Joseph Stiglitz deals very informatively with the huge crisis of income inequality in the USA.  

+ “The first peace, which is the most important, is that which comes within the souls of people when they realize their relationship, their oneness with the universe and all its powers, and when they realize at the center of the universe dwells the Great Spirit, and that its center is really everywhere, it is within each of us.” -- Black Elk

https://www.goodreads.com/…/15888-the-first-peace-which-is-…

As Jesus said: "The Kingdom of God is within you."

When we get to mysticism, we get to the heart of all of our great wisdom traditions. Wayne Teasdale promoted this vision.

In The Mystic Heart (2001), Wayne Teasdale says, “The real religion of humankind an be said to be spirituality itself, because mystical spirituality is the origin of all the world religions. If this is so, and I believe it is, we might also say that inter-spirituality – the sharing of ultimate experiences across traditions – is the religion of the third millennium.” (Teasdale, p. 26) + For more on InterSpirituality, visit https://quotationstreasury.wordpress.com/tag/wayne-teasdale/

+ Joyful Wandering posts 1 to 58 are found on The Abundancetrek Blog. You can find them all here.

COFFEE BREAK 346

+ updated at 5:19pm EST on Monday, January 14, 2013

+ Unbound: An Interactive Journal of Christian Social Justice offers "Earth Walk" by David Siegenthaler. The author says the Environmental Movement is not as effective as it could be because it is not paying enough attention to core spiritual values which demand rejection of our current way of life. Excerpt: "If the main val­ues of the U.S. soci­ety may be dis­cerned from the per­sis­tent struc­tural fea­tures of our coun­try, it is ques­tion­able whether the envi­ron­men­tal move­ment presents a seri­ous chal­lenge to an econ­omy based upon accu­mu­la­tion of wealth for some, a pop­u­la­tion of labor­ers (often for­eign, migrant, or oth­er­wise ren­dered pow­er­less) will­ing to accept a lot less, and an increas­ingly tech­nol­ogy and lux­ury infat­u­ated pop­u­la­tion of con­sumers. Indeed, the envi­ron­men­tal­ists them­selves (our­selves!) pre­dom­i­nantly rep­re­sent priv­i­lege and wealth"

+ Unbound: An Interactive Journal of Christian Social Justice A offers "Eco Justice and the Earth Court" by John Preston, a friend of mine and an environmental activist, colleague in ministry, Progressive Christian theologian, author. In this article, he challenges the church to be prophetic and daring and reformed especially as we face the real possibility of ecological and economic and social catastrophe.

Don't miss the whole article. It is so important. But I can't resist posting his final paragraph here: "Our Cre­ator is a God of Eco-Justice. Within the covenant between God and Israel there was a deep con­cern for the widow and the impov­er­ished that reflected God’s own con­cern for the wel­fare of the “least of these.” There was also a con­cern for the land, which was the foun­da­tion for sus­tain­able liv­ing. Today, for those who have the eyes to see, the plight of all crea­tures is tied to the wel­fare of the planet earth. The eco-justice story is also the earth story. It is this story that must come from a dim back­ground, kept in place by the illu­sion of old nar­ra­tives that are no longer viable, to the fore­ground of our con­scious­ness as Amer­i­can Chris­t­ian peo­ple. Bring­ing that story into the fore­ground of our con­scious­ness is the prophetic task. It is also the true pas­toral task in a time that strug­gles for meaning." | Read the article

+ We saw 4 great movies in recent days, 2 at the theater and 2 at home.  And, of course, Spirituality & Practice has great reviews of LINCOLN, LES MISERABLES, THE LADY and BABETTE'S FEAST (1987 Oscar for Best Foreign Film).

+ Moved from my December 19 post which was titled incorrectly > Lester Brown is one of the most compassionate and articulate voices promoting sustainable abundance on our planet. Lester Brown’s new book Full Planet, Empty Plates takes a close look at the variables contributing to the growing crisis of food scarcity.  Utne Reader offers a section from the book. Here is an excerpt: "We are entering a new era of rising food prices and spreading hunger. On the demand side of the food equation, population growth, rising affluence, and the conversion of food into fuel for cars are combining to raise consumption by record amounts. On the supply side, extreme soil erosion, growing water shortages, and the earth’s rising temperature are making it more difficult to expand production. Unless we can reverse such trends, food prices will continue to rise and hunger will continue to spread, eventually bringing down our social system. Can we reverse these trends in time? Or is food the weak link in our early 21st-century civilization, much as it was in so many of the earlier civilizations whose archeological sites we now study?" Read more

COFFEE BREAK 237

+ updated at 1:15pm on Friday, December 31, 2010

+ Last night we enjoyed viewing Eat, Pray, Love.  Spirituality and Practice offers a great review of this 2010 movie.  The soundtrack is wonderful.  The quest for meaning and intimacy is very important, try essential.  We are all on this quest.

Excerpt 1: "Throughout history, people looking for spiritual renewal have undertaken pilgrimages to sacred sites. They have set out with great seriousness and high hopes for the energizing of their faith. Along the way they have squared off against obstacles and often found spiritual companions with whom they could share their experiences and insights. Sometimes they have wandered off the established route in order to follow the dictates of their hearts. They know that where they go is not as important as how they get there. Or as writer Henry Miller once put it: "Our destination is never a place but a new way of looking at things."

Excerpt 2: "The emotional scene in which Richard opens his heart and describes his battle with guilt contains genuine firepower."

COFFEE BREAK 231

+ updated at 4:56pm EST on Wednesday, November 24, 2010

+ For the first time in 4 years, I updated The Abundancetrek Movies Page. Here are some recent favorites: 

TEMPLE GRANDIN

AS IT IS IN HEAVEN

PHOEBE IN WONDELAND

INVICTUS

THE DRUMMER

SAY ANYTHING

YESTERDAY

WAKING NED DEVINE

AWAY WE GO

A SERIOUS MAN

ONDINE

EVERYBODY'S FINE

EVERLASTING MOMENTS

ENLIGHTEN UP

SERAPHINE

KEEPING THE FAITH

REMEMBER ME

+ Democracy Now! offers "Dr. Gabor Maté on ADHD, Bullying and the Destruction of American Childhood". This is a very interesting interview. He believes peers are now far more influential than parents. This is NOT healthy.

+ TruthDig offers "Fail and Grow Rich on Wall Street" by Robert Scheer.

It begins: "Welcome to the brave new world of post-bailout capitalism. The Commerce Department announced Tuesday that corporate profits are at their highest level in U.S. history, and the Fed released minutes of an early November meeting in which officials predicted a stagnant economy and continued high unemployment."

It ends: "What has occurred is what former International Monetary Fund chief economist Simon Johnson referred in The Atlantic back in May of 2009 as 'The Quiet Coup,' in which the financial industry is fully in charge of the government’s response to our economic problems. The result, he noted, is 'the reemergence of an American financial oligarchy' that had been broken by the banking regulations imposed during the New Deal in response to the Great Depression. Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s sensible regulations were gutted by Bill Clinton and George W. Bush, and tragically Obama has failed to restore them. The Wall Street lobbyists got their way and unfettered greed prevails. How else to explain last quarter’s outrageous profit figures?"

+ I am continuing this week's focus on the spiritual practice of solitude as I update "Joyful Wandering -- 6."

+ Shuck and Jive offers "If the Oil Runs Out: Peak Oil Film Set In 2016". John Shuck, my favorite blogger, continues to educate us on the crisis of peak oil which many believe has been reached. If they are right, the oil will get more expensive quite rapidly and our fragile oil-based economy is in for a lot of turmoil to say the least. 

COFFEE BREAK 217

+ updated at 11:56am on Tuesday, October 26, 2010.

+ I was moved by Everybody's Fine, a film about a grieving and lonely widower trying to reconnect with his adult children.  Like usual, Spirituality and Practice offers a fine review.

+ I am doing some more Joyful Wandering today at The Abundancetrek Blog.

COFFEE BREAK 213

+ Waking Ned Devine reached the top of my Netflix queue this week.  It is a great movie with wonderful Irish scenery and music and a quirky, delightful story. Mary and I really enjoyed it last night. It is another great recommendation by Mary Ann and Fred Brussat.  Excerpt from their review: "Waking Ned Devine is a playful drama that encourages us to catch joy as it flies."

COFFEE BREAK 202

+ updated at 11:06am ESDT on Wednesday, September 22, 2010

+ Democracy Now! offers an interview with Chilean Economist Manfred Max-Neef who asserts that the US Is Becoming an "Underdeveloping Nation."  Here's the DN! blurb: "While President Obama is reporting looking into tapping a former corporate executive to become his next top economic adviser, many economists question the path the United States is on. We speak to the acclaimed Chilean economist Manfred Max-Neef. He won the Right Livelihood Award in 1983, two years after the publication of his book Outside Looking In: Experiences in Barefoot Economics.

+ MOVIES: Mary and I enjoyed Bright Star on Sunday evening. On Monday I watched all of Whip It. Mary left after about 20 minutes. There was a lot of nastiness portrayed. Both films are reviewed favorably by Mary Ann and Fred Brussat.  I really liked BRIGHT STAR.  Some wonderful cinematography and acting.  Nobody really knows what it would be like to live in 1818 but I think they made a serious attempt to be authentic.  It was about the romance of Fannie Brawn and the great romantic poet John Burns.

COFFEE BREAK 200

+ Movies I have seen recently seen and liked include: SAY ANYTHING, A SINGLE MAN, AMERICAN VIOLET, INVICTUS, THE GARDEN, THE DRUMMER, SERAPHINE, AN EDUCATION, KEEPING THE FAITH, REMEMBER ME, AS IT IS IN HEAVEN, LEMON TREE, DOWN IN THE DELTA, SILVER CITY, RETURN TO PARADISE, THE GROUND TRUTH, THE BIG ONE.  Most of these are reviewed favorably by Mary Ann and Frederic Brussatt at Spirituality And Practice. My favorite of these is AS IT IS IN HEAVEN followed by INVICTUS, AMERICAN VIOLET, SAY ANYTHING and DOWN IN THE DELTA.  Compassion and Justice are major themes found in these favorites of mine.

COFFEE BREAK 196

+ updated at 2:21pm ESDT on Wednesday, September 8, 2010

+ I have 3 blogs which have seen very little activity of late.  I wonder why.  I will begin by simply praying.  "Prayer Changes Things."

I do think I will get going again now that this incredibly fantastic and extremely busy summer is passing into history.  Our 2 weeks in Germany, of course, was the highlight but our trips to Toronto and Williamsburg were also quite delightful.  A lot of tooth pain and a necessary change of apartments in our second home situation in Rochester and the retirement of our beloved Pastor in Utica added almost too much to the mix.

+ I enjoyed Leahy at the Great American Irish Festival this summer.  Good Celtic Rock. Listen at http://www.leahymusic.com/mp3player2/music_player.html

+ We recently were inspired by the amazing film Invictus starring Morgan Freeman and Matt Damon, directed by Clint Eastwood. Read the Spirituality and Practice review.  It is about the courageous decision of Nelson Mandela to work as closely as possible with his former enemies, the Afrikaaners, people who had brutalized the majority native population for decades.  Not only closely but respectfully, compassionately.  It's about a rugby team which had a lot of heart and became world champions and united a nation. 

COFFEE BREAK 190

+ updated at 1:24pm ESDT on Friday, July 16, 2010

+ Holistic Living by Ana Jones offers "Spirit of the Age." It begins: "With the advent of a new global village, Muslims, Hindus and Buddhists now live next door to Christians and Jews. With the advent of the internet, a Chinese born seeker can read the New Testament while a seeker from Oklahoma can read the Tao Te Ching. Now American children not only read about Islam but sit next to young girls in burkas at grammar school. The dissemination of world wisdom texts and intermingling of cultures and religions has made it possible for people to follow spiritual and religious paths which deeply suit their inner nature. The growing holistic understanding that God is One, the root of all people and all paths, gives us now, in 2010, the added opportunity to worship that One Spirit in mosques, churches, synagogues, temples, sweat lodges, nature groves, on land, sea and air with our brothers and sisters—organized or unorganized."

I never thought about it in quite that way.  Thanks for the insight Ana.

+ The New York Times offers "Redo That Voodoo" by Paul Krugman. If I believed in dictatorship and could choose the dictator, I know who I would choose! PAUL KRUGMAN.  If the Administration and Congress would listen to him, I believe we could make our economy vibrant again in no time at all.  Read his column in today's New York Times. 

Excerpt: "On paper, solving America’s long-run fiscal problems is eminently doable: stronger cost control for Medicare plus a moderate rise in taxes would get us most of the way there. And the perception that the deficit is manageable has helped keep U.S. borrowing costs low. But if politicians who insist that the way to reduce deficits is to cut taxes, not raise them, start winning elections again, how much faith can anyone have that we’ll do what needs to be done?"

+ Kisses is definitely a movie I must see.  Here's an excerpt from the Spirituality & Practice review: "Throughout the film, there are references to Bob Dylan and his songs are used on the soundtrack; they add sparkle and spunk to this engaging tale about two friends who become more precious to each other during their adventures."

COFFEE BREAK 162

+ updated at 2:33pm ESDT on Wednesday, March 31, 2010

+ TruthOut offers "Welcome to Glennbeckistan" by Chip Ward. It begins: "What if the Tea Party ruled? Imagine a land, let's call it Glennbeckistan, where white, patriarchal, religiously zealous, Tea Party-type patriots hold a super-majority in both houses of the legislature, sit in the governor's mansion, and control most local governments. It's a place so out of sync with the rest of the nation that states' rights and even secession are always on the agenda. It's a place where gun-ownership trumps all other rights, climate change is considered an insidious socialist conspiracy, and a miscarriage can be investigated as a potential crime. Welcome to Utah."

+ CNN offers "Christians from political left and right sign 'Civility Covenant'" by Dan Gilgoff. It begins: "A group of more than 100 prominent Christians ranging from evangelical minister Jim Wallis on the political left to Nixon White House aide Chuck Colson on the right released a document Thursday calling for an end to the fight club tone of the national political discourse."

+ Democracy Now! offers "Rage on the Right: Christian Militia Raided in Michigan; Tennessee Skinhead Pleads Guilty to Obama Assassination Plot" in video or audio or transcript format.  Excerpt: "Well, earlier this month, the Southern Poverty Law Center released a report called 'Rage on the Right: The Year in Hate and Extremism.' It tracks a major rise in domestic right-wing extremist groups in the United States. According to the report, the number of right-wing militias tripled last year to 127. Two chapters of the Hutaree militia, one in Michigan, the other in Utah, were included on the list. Mark Potok is director of the Intelligence Project at the Southern Poverty Law Center in Montgomery, Alabama, and that’s where he joins us."

+ I have done more planning for our trip to Germany in June.  See "Germany 2010 -- 7" at The Abundancetrek Travel Blog.

+ Democracy Now! offers "International Uproar over Uganda Anti-Gay Bill, Study Finds American Evangelicals Encouraging Homophobia" in video or audio or transcript format. Excerpt: "In the report that you have done, Reverend Kapya Kaoma, you say in the United States the renewal groups are the problem in the Episcopal Church, the United Methodist Church USA, the Presbyterian Church USA, US conservative evangelicals and the Institute on Religion and Democracy, the neoconservative think tank that for decades has sought to undermine Protestant denominations’ tradition of progressive social justice work." 

Plutocrats fund the IRD and many of these so-called renewal groups which poison the atmosphere of our mainline denominations.   

+ Spirituality and Practice offers a review of the animated film, My Neighbor Totoro.  Excerpt: "The haunted house is not a scary place filled with terrible creatures but a space inhabited by beings we cannot understand or control. When they make their presence known, they are accepted by Satsuki, Mei and her father. Here the world of spirit is taken seriously, perhaps because of the pervasive influence of Shintoism in Japan where nature and all her mysteries are reverenced."

COFFEE BREAK 141

+ updated at 12:16pm EST, Friday, February 12, 2010

+ The Abundancetrek Blog offers "Reformed and Always Being Reformed -- 3".

+ I never expected to become a fan of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers.  Thanks to Turner Classic Movies (TCM), I have seen and enjoyed this amazing dance team at work, or rather, at play. Wow!  What chemistry!  What art!  What beauty!  What energy!  Last night Mary & I thoroughly enjoyed seeing Roberta, a 1935 movie which featured great song and dance and comedy and quite a bit of Parisian fashion.  It truly was "Hollywood's Golden Age."   

COFFEE BREAK 129

+ updated at 10:10pm EST, Monday, January 25, 2010

+ The Supreme Court and Congress has for decades been allowing big multinational corporations to have more and more influence over our politics.  Last week the Court voted by a 5-4 vote to allow any corporation to spend as much money as they want to influence elections.  All restrictions lifted. 

Democracy Now! offers an interview with Jamin Raskin which presents a scathing critique of this decision.

LATE ADDITION: An even more scathing response is offered by Adam McKay in his blog at The Huffington Post.

+ Media Matters offers "Can the media's climate change deniers ignore the latest temperature record?" It begins: "This January, major meteorological organizations throughout the world -- including NASA -- released reports showing that the past decade, 2000-2009, was the warmest on record. The reports undermine the right-wing media's numerous claims that recent snow and cold weather shows that climate change does not exist or has slowed over the past 10 years."

+ You can now download a five-module course, "Globalization We Can Grasp," with plenty of information and practical ideas for dealing with this oppressive domination system hurting so many citizens of planet Earth.  The course was developed by the North American Working Group for Covenanting for Justice of the World Alliance of Reformed Churches (WARC). 

+ Spirituality and Practice offers a film review of Last Chance Harvey.  Excerpts:

• It takes some of us many years to discover our true song, to take a risk on love, or to free ourselves from prisons of our own making.
• Last Chance Harvey is a life-affirming romantic drama that reminds us that it is never to late to turn our lives around. The trick is that it usually takes a leap of faith into the dark which can be very frightening. Dustin Hoffman conveys Harvey's awkwardness as he finds himself reaching out to a complete stranger for sympathy and a little human kindness. She responds to his pain, and they spend a long time together after Kate convinces him to attend his daughter's wedding reception. She joins him and provides moral support as he expresses his love for Susan. What is endearing about the intimacy that develops between these two middle-agers is their convivial conversation. In the end, it serves them both very well.

We saw this movie recently as I finally allowed it to reach the top of my NetFlix queue. I particularly appreciated the tenderness and vulnerability and humility of the Harvey character as played by Dustin Hoffmann.  I went through a few tissues as a wonderful romance developed and as family healing took place during the wedding of Harvey's daughter.  The review got the tears flowing again. 

+ Two Friars and a Fool offers "Shooting People for Jesus". Excerpt: "I shouldn't be surprised, but this stuff just hits me like a kick to the ribs. It sends me spinning off into depression to realize how many people calling themselves Christians are full of violence and proud of it. We are never going to be satisfied that Christ has been crucified enough. We keep putting him up there over and over and it is disgusting."

+ Viola Larson's post, "Where are we at? What about Jesus Christ?" continues to attract comments including several by me.  We are dealing with orthodoxy which I see as a dynamic process and not static content.  One of the brothers thinks it is pretty irresponsible of me to part from the tenets of fourth century and sixteenth century orthodoxy.  And, of course, Viola Larson has said before that I am not a Christian since I don't believe in Jesus in the same way she does.  If she had her way, I would be kicked out of the Presbyterian Church.  Thankfully, my Presbytery and most Presbyteries don't have such a narrow lens.

+ Heavy rain today along with plenty of melting snow will definitely create flooding in some places around here.  It is quite warm for January today. Soon, possibly by midnight tonight, the forecasters say that it will be very cold again and we will get more snow but there is no major storm predicted at this time.

COFFEE BREAK 121

+ updated at 3:26pm EST, Tuesday, January 12, 2010

+ Naming His Grace offers "Jesus and the Gurus" by Viola Larson.  There are now 20 comments including several by me.  Here's my latest comment:

It is interesting that you said "only metaphor." Language itself is metaphor. We are always struggling to find words and symbols which can describe the Holy and Mysterious. We always fail to find the perfect words and symbols because of our human limitations. I simply can not embrace your kind of certainty about things mysterious and beyond human knowing. But I have no problem affirming your right to have your kind of certainty if it works for you. I wish you could affirm my right to embrace an understanding of our wisdom tradition which is different than your understanding. I invite you to keep on wrestling with God and I do believe that as you wrestle you will find it possible to become more accepting and affirming of people who differ from you. Variety is the spice of life!

Holy Communion has been called the Holy Mysteries since ancient times. I do believe in the Real Presence of Christ and I do believe Holy Communion is a re-membering of our union with Christ. We are brothers and sisters of Christ. The heavenly connection is miraculous, mysterious and marvelous.

+ Boycott Israeli Goods is a UK organization devoted to educating the world about the illegal and immoral occupation of the West Bank and East Jerusalem.  "Why Boycott Israel?" is found on the homepage.  Here's why:

The Palestinian people are experiencing their 42nd year of military occupation. The siege by the Israeli army and the economic blockade have devastated their daily lives so that 'normal' life is impossible.

Israel operates an entrenched system of racial Apartheid against its own non-Jewish inhabitants and has been illegally occupying Palestinian land in the West Bank, Gaza Strip, East Jerusalem and the Golan Heights since 1967. It has sought to further annex these lands and has systematically transferred its own civilian population into these occupied territories in contravention of international law. Israel continues to build the illegal Apartheid wall, annexing vast swathes of Palestinian land in the West Bank and creating Palestinian ghettos, despite the ruling of the International Court of Justice that it is illegal.

+ For a few minutes this morning, the sun was shining over the Mohawk Valley.  That has been a very rare experience this winter.

+ I have very mixed feelings about Avatar after seeing it on Saturday. I can see the spiritual depth which Mary Ann and Fred Brussat spell out in their S&P review.  But I was really turned off by the violence just as I was when seeing The Lord of the Rings trilogy.  Does there have to be so much?  Does it have to be so vivid?  I know it's part of the story and even the message of the movie.  But it was not at all pleasant to experience.  Maybe that's the point.  It is so painful after experiencing the joy and beauty of a paradise on Earth, or rather on Pandora, the planet which has an essential resource needed on Earth.  I am reminded of the novel Island by Aldous Huxley where an aboriginal tribe has an idyllic existence until Western Civilization comes in and destroys it.

+ I am getting the hang of converting old slides to digital photos using the Epson Perfection V300 Photo Flatbed Scanner which I got for Christmas.  I join the many users who are quite satisfied with the results. You can now see photos of Paris I took in 1990 at   http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=42880&id=1005045494&l=bdfe3f7118

COFFEE BREAK 116

+ updated at 4:35pm EST

+ Spirituality and Practice offers some important statements by Gandhi on achieving the attitude and behavior of non-violence found in Mohandas Gandhi: Essential Writings by John Dear, a Jesuit Priest.  Here is one of the quotes: "We should try to understand the psychology of evildoers. They are very often the victim of their circumstances. By patience and sympathy, we shall be able to win over at least some of them to the side of justice. Moreover, we should not forget that even evil is sustained through the cooperation, either willing or forced, of good people."

+ 4:22pm weather update: It's NOT snowing here.  Here is Rochester. 

+ The Abundancetrek Blog offers "Spiritually Literate Resolutions for 2010" with a link to some powerful and compassionate New Year's resolutions offered by Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat.  This wise and knowlegeable couple offer enormous resources for the journey of faith, hope and love in their 19,000+ web pages at Spirituality and Practice.  The amazing website is always offering fantastic e-courses for reasonable fees.  I have signed up for "Catalysts for Change" beginning tomorrow.  Participants have begun to intoduce themselves and offer intentions. 
  
+ I'm not sure if I have ever seen so many consecutive days when I could look out the window and almost always see snow falling.  I belive it has been ten days now and counting.  But only 2 or 3 of those days have seen much in the way of accumulation.  Neverthless it adds up to about 18 inches in Whitesboro with very little melting going on.

+ Last night Mary and I enjoyed watching The Talent Given Us on The Sundance Channel. It's an Indy film written and directed and produced and cinemetographed (is that a word?) by Andrew Wagner with the rest of his family playing the leading roles.  It can be described as a "comedy" but I think it is better described as a "meaning of life" film.  All kinds of questions are pondered.  It is definitely a film for adults asking deep questions and  expecting few definitive answers.

COFFEE BREAK 62

+ updated at 4:20pm ESDT

+ Spirituality and Practice offers a positive review of the new film A SERIOUS MAN.

Excerpt: "A Serious Man is a modern day Job story that brings us into a close encounter with suffering and loss, the ancient and universal questions about why good men often get the shaft while evil doers thrive, and the difficult questions we have about the nature of God and the meaning of our lives."

+ Spirituality and Practice offers a positive review of the new film PRECIOUS.

Excerpt: "Precious is an emotionally poignant film directed by Lee Daniels and adapted from Push, a 1996 bestselling novel by Sapphire. This is a deeply spiritual film that conveys the many ways in which loving, kind, and compassionate people can be catalysts for real change in the lives of others."