Personal Update

I've finished radiation--yay! And my skin is only slightly pink, which may be due to the aloe vera I slathered on three times a day.

The results of my MUGA test, which checks how efficiently my heart pumps blood, came back with excellent results, so I can still have Herceptin treatments (Herceptin targets a specific protein on the cancer cells). And I just started taking Tamoxifen (a daily pill).

Now I have to wait for the results of my mammogram. I can't believe it's been a year since the lump was discovered.

And my hairstyle has morphed from "Golem" in LOTR to "M" (think Dame Judy Dench) in Casino Royale. And, yes, that's an improvement! Now I only wear hats or caps when I'm cold. :)

Irony--AGW Edition

The Bay Area has a "Mediterranean Climate," according to what I was taught many years ago. Basically, summers are cool and winters are cooler, without getting really cold. Summers are also dry, for the most part, with rain coming between November and April.

So what was this stuff I saw on December 7?
Yep. Snow. On the cars that had been parked overnight at the BART station.

And on the hills across the street.

The forecast was for the snow level to reach down as low as 1300'. So I expected to see white tops on Mt. Diablo (3849'), Mt. Tamalpais (2571'), and Mt. Hamilton (4200'). The hill pictured is much lower; probably around 1100 or less.

The snow didn't stick around, but Tuesday and Wednesday brought freezing temperatures, which meant frozen windshields and black ice on the roads. We generally don't see this kind of cold weather until January and February.

Today it's raining, so it's warmer. And we need the rain around these parts, so I'm not complaining!

R.I.P., Matt

Sadly, Matt passed away the day he was scheduled to come home. He went to sleep and never woke up.

Please pray for the repose of his soul and for his family.

Cal: 34, Stanford: 28

For the first time since 1973, I did not watch the Big Game in the stadium. This year, rather than fight traffic, the cold, and the chance of losing my mother in the crowd, we watched Big Game at Sis#2's house. If the Bears couldn't hear us in Palo Alto, it wasn't for lack of trying. (I'm still hoarse.)

Easy parking. No worries about baby-sitters. Plenty of food and drink. No lines for the bathroom. Great company. And we watched the second half of the Oregon-Arizona game, which went to double-overtime!

And, like most Big Games, the outcome was decided by 7 points.

The only thing I missed was watching the Band perform, including trying to figure out what the Stanford Band--who are not noted for their marching ability--was trying to do. And the card stunts. Those are never shown on TV.

No game this week, but the Bears play the Huskies at Washington on Dec. 6. Seems very strange to have a game after Big Game, but there it is.

Trying to figure out the Bowl Game situation is also confusing. Apparently, Cal is eligible for possibly five Bowl Games, depending on how the Pac-10 standings shake out.

Makes pro football look tame by comparison!

Decision Time

Now is the time to choose if you're blue & gold or cardinal & white. If you're a tree or a bear. Order or chaos.

It's time, Bay Area, to choose a side for the Big Game: Cal or Stanford.

And, oddly enough, people do choose. My local Jay Vee liquor store sports a yellow sign with the blue script "Cal." At H-P, employees are divided. Heck, the guy who sits in front of us during the home games is a retired professor from Stanford, but roots for Cal because that's where he graduated.

Unlike most other years, this Big Game is for more than just Bay Area Bragging rights. Stanford has a real chance to win the Pac-10 and go to the Rose Bowl on New Year's Day. Cal has a chance to redeem themselves and get a better Bowl bid.

Oh, yeah: the winner gets The Axe. And to decide what the score of the 1982 Big Game (look up "The Play" on YouTube) really is.

Who am I rooting for?

picture taken by me with my Palm Centro(tm) at Cal's Memorial Stadium on November 7. Image of Oski (the Cal mascot) designed by the Cal Rally Committee using cards for card stunts. Yes, the students at radical, socialist, Leftist Cal still do card stunts. The Cal Band betrays its roots by marching in step. The football games open with a color guard formed by the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marine ROTC units. Code Pink chooses to not protest. Good thing, too. The stadium holds 72,000 people.

Prayers Requested...

...for Matt and his family. He's a high school friend of DS#1 who has been battling liver disease for most of his life. He received a liver transplant about 12 years ago, but it's failing. He was on the transplant list, but just found out his other organs are now too damaged. So he's coming home, basically to die.

DS#1 saw him the weekend he came up for Aaron's funeral (a group went down to Stanford Hospital to see Matt). Since he's coming home for Thanksgiving, he'll visit with Matt again.

As you can imagine, it's been difficult for Matt, his parents, and his sister. But--damn!--this is the second young man (25-26 years old) in a month within DS#1's circle.

Thank You to Veterans

The September after my dad died, I accompanied my mom to a Reunion of my dad's shipmates (the WWII destroyer, U.S.S. Fraser, DD-607). Like many veterans of WWII, my dad didn't talk much about his experiences, so this was my chance to discover more of what made my dad the man he was. He was one of the "babies"--not quite 19 when he was assigned--and he had been somewhat spoiled and pampered before entering the Navy. He was a gunner's mate, in charge of handing up ammunition from the hold to the gun operators. The work was physically hard, especially in the hot, humid climate of the Pacific.

Later, the Fraser did "clean up" in the Philippines and in Japan (specifically in Yokohama) before being decommissioned in the Boston Naval Yard.

The men my dad served with went back home and became farmers or lawyers or businessmen or blue-collar workers like my dad. One returned to his medical practice. They returned to their wives or married and raised families.

The women I met were pretty interesting as well. Long before my generation decided women needed "liberating," these women were working the family farm, managing the family business, raising kids during a time of rationing (two pairs of shoes per person per year!), and generally doing the work necessary to "keep the home fires burning." They are survivors--and are funny, intelligent, and engaged in life and current events. They are also self-effacing, claiming that what they did was unexceptional and boring. They just lived ordinary lives during extraordinary times.

To me, they are every bit the heroes as their husbands and brothers were.

So, to all Veterans, to all Active Military, and to their families: Thank you, especially for your willingness to fight for the ideals of America even when many seem to doubt them.

And, props to Hubs, a Vietnam-Era Marine. Hoo-rah!

OREGON: 47, USC: 20

Ducks are now undefeated in the Pac-10, with four games to go. They absolutely manhandled the Trojans in the second half.

Autzen Stadium was so loud, I couldn't hear the announcers (not always a bad thing!).

Jeremiah Masoli was incredible. He ran for over 150 yards. He's the quarterback--they don't usually run!

And, BTW, the Obama "hand signal"? They ripped that off from the Oregon fans.

They shut up the USC band, too.

USC Needs To Learn New Fight Songs...

"Ode To Troy" and "Victory" are obnoxious no matter where USC is playing.

Although I think it's pretty funny that they've co-opted "All Right Now" which is what Stanford uses as their fight song.

The only two private universities in the Pac-10--you think they could afford to buy a wider variety of music. :)

Go Ducks!

(Cal beat Arizona State--barely. But I'll take the win.)

Book Review: Our Lady of Guadalupe, Mother of the Civilization of Love

Just in time for her feast day, December 12, this book by Carl Anderson and Fr. Eduardo Chavez documents the visitation of Our Lady to Juan Diego Cuauhtlatoatzin on Tepeyac. Anderson and Chavez recount the visitation using several sources, including the testimony of Juan Diego himself as well as his contemporaries.

I knew the outlines of the story but I didn't realize how the Virgin spoke to Juan Diego in his native language, using phrases and endearments that he would recognize. And, as she did later at Lourdes and Fatima, she chooses her messenger from among the lowest caste.

In fact Juan Diego protests that there are others who would be better suited to deliver her request for a church to Friar Zumarraga, the bishop-elect of Mexico. But the Virgin insists and Juan Diego obeys. Fr. Zumarraga's staff stonewalls Juan Diego and later lies about his actions, but he delivers the Virgin"s message and later the proof Fr. Zumarraga demands: flowers wrapped in his tilma. And the incredible image we know as Our Lady of Guadalupe.

An incredible image it is, too. Anderson & Chavez write about the scientific examinations the tilma has undergone over the centuries, how this simple garment has withstood deterioration, the lack of damage from acid and bombs. They also reveal the complex symbolism of the painting, incorporating images recognized by the Spanish and by the native population, including the fact that Our Lady is a mestiza: a mixture of Spanish and native. I found this section quite interesting and wish I had known more about it when the authorized reproduction of Our Lady of Guadalupe visited my parish several years ago. In fact, my one complaint is the lack of color illustrations in this section of the book.

Anderson & Chavez spend a lot of time on the historical events at the time of the Apparition (1531), both in Europe as well as the New World, further clarifying the extraordinary power of the apparition and why Our Lady of Guadalupe is so highly honored in the Americas, including the United States and Canada. And explaining, as well, the significance of Mary to the Catholic Church.

The final section discusses the hope the Virgin brings to us because she carries her Son with her always. She directs our attention to Him and models for us the behavior of a true believer. To quote from the book, "...she is the spiritual mother we all share, perfectly enculturated, a symbol of the "catholic" aspect of a Church where all are full members and all are welcome as equal heirs to the kingdom of God." We share Mary as our Mother and with her help, we are called to bridge the gap between cultures and countries.

The Appendices include The Nican Mopohua, the earliest written record of the apparition, as well as a Chronology, prayers, and a bibliography. There are extensive footnotes.

Carl Anderson is the Chief Executive Office and Chairman of the Board of the Knights of Columbus. Fr. Eduardo Chavez is an expert on the Guadalupe apparitions and was the postular of St. Juan Diego's cause for sainthood.

The book is well-written in language for the layman. Canonical and theological terms are explained without slowing down the narrative.

FTC Disclaimer: I received an uncorrected proof copy of this book for review from The Catholic Company

On the March Hare scale: 4 out of 5 Golden Bookmarks

This review was written as part of The Catholic Company product reviewer program. Visit The Catholic Company to find more information on Our Lady of Guadalupe: Mother of the Civiliation of Love.

crossposted at Catholic Media Review

Please Pray for..

...the repose of the soul of Aaron, who passed away Saturday night from complications of juvenile diabetes. Aaron would have been 26 years old next month.

And pray for his family. Their life has been full of challenges lately; Aaron's death is just the latest one.

Aaron is the same age as DS#1; in fact, they went through First Communion classes together, Confirmation, and high school. One of my earliest, and favorite, memories of Aaron is from that First Communion class. Our parish had decided that parents needed to be more involved in the religious education of their children, so all First Communion families had to participate in classes held on Sundays after 9:00 a.m. Mass. You can imagine how well-behaved the boys were during the 90 minute class (taught by their parents) after an hour in Church!

The "activities" in the program consisted mostly of punching out paper figures and re-enacting the lesson. One of the early lessons was the parable of the Good Shepherd. There were three boys in the class: Aaron, DS#1, and one other. They punched out their paper dolls of Jesus and the Lost Sheep and then gave one of the more sacrilegious renditions of the parable I have ever seen: three paper Jesus figures "fighting" over the three identical lost sheep.

We broke it up, trying hard not to laugh.

Aaron was always polite to me and hugged me whenever we saw each other at Mass. He always had a smile and a laugh--and he usually made me laugh, too, when I wasn't shaking my head. I'm going to miss seeing him around.