I love Jimmy Stewart Movies!!!

I absolutely love old Jimmy Stewart movies! My all-time favorite is The Glenn Miller Story, with Strategic Air Command a close second...oh, and then there's also the Cheyenne Social Club with Henry Fonda...like I said, I love old Jimmy Stewart movies.

Anyway, I took this Which Classic Leading Man are you quiz and I am...

Jimmy Stewart
You scored 9% Tough, 14% Roguish, 52% Friendly, and 23% Charming!

You are the fun and friendly boy next door, the classic nice guy who still manages to get the girl most of the time. You're every nice girl's dreamboat, open and kind, nutty and charming, even a little mischievous at times, but always a real stand up guy. You're dependable and forthright, and women are drawn to your reliability, even as they're dazzled by your sense of adventure and fun. You try to be tough when you need to be, and will gladly stand up for any damsel in distress, but you'd rather catch a girl with a little bit of flair. Your leading ladies include Jean Arthur and Donna Reed, those sweet girl-next-door types.

Link: The Classic Leading Man Test

iPod Shuffle of the Week...

Thanks to Fr. Tucker for the idea!

1. The Impression that I get. The Mighty Mighty Bosstones
2. Jesus Freak. DC Talk
3. Detainer. Day of Fire
4. Take Me as I Am. FFH
5. God Forbid. Point of Grace
6. Tunnel. Third Day
7. Space Age Love Song. A Flock of Seagulls
8. Alrightokuhhuhamen. Rich Mullins
9. Soonerfreak. Artist unknown
10. Who’s Your Daddy? Toby Keith

hmmm, quite a lot of Contemporary Christian (CCM) with some spice thrown in for good measure...just like me!

The rules, for anybody who want to play:

Get your ipod or media-player of choice, select your whole music collection, set the thing to shuffle (i.e., randomized playback), then post the first ten songs that come out. No cheating, no matter how stupid it makes you feel!

C'mon, it's fun!

Thanks Be to God and Boomer Sooner!
Solemnity of Christ the King

ah, Boston...

Forget the freedom trail. Forget the USS Constitution. Forget Harvard Yard.

If you want a real look at life in greater Boston then visit the MIT Star Market at 20 Sydney St. in Cambridge.
Yes, I know you're saying to yourself, "what, visit a grocery store?" But guess what? This particular grocery store is located on the 3rd floor! A grocery store on the 3rd floor of a building!

C'mon how often do you get to visit a 3rd floor grocery store? Only in greater Boston!

Thanks Be to God and Boomer Sooner!
Feast of St. Cecilia

Teach for America update...

I just realized that I never let anyone know how my Teach for America application status ended.

Well, Teach for America didn't accept me :-(

They didn't give any reason why, so I don't know if it was something I did or didn't do or what it was.

As a good friend put it:

"Teach for America starts with a T, just like Texas! And they SUCK!"
LOL! Too true!

Thanks Be to God and Boomer Sooner!

Cardinal O'Malley on homosexuality...

Archbishop of Boston, Sean Cardinal O'Malley, recently reposted his pastoral letter on homosexuality on his blog (here)...I pass it on to you:

In light of the recent political events and public discussions about marriage and homosexuality, I wish to share with you some pertinent reflections. I originally issued this message last fall, but I feel that it’s important to share my thoughts with you again at this time, as many of you may not have had the opportunity to read it:

November 23, 2005

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

The Church’s efforts to defend the institution of marriage has been interpreted by some as an indication of the Church’s hostility toward homosexual persons. The way that the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts framed the issue is unfavorable to Catholics or others who do not oppose anyone, but rather support an institution which is the cornerstone of society.

Right from the beginning of this controversy I have called on all Catholics to rally behind the cause of marriage. It is encouraging that a number of Catholics who are homosexuals have expressed to me their conviction that marriage between a man and a woman is important for children and therefore for society.

The Church’s position is not based on an animus against people with a homosexual orientation. Each and every member of the Church is called to holiness regardless of their sexual orientation. The Church has often warned against defining people by their sexual orientation in a way that diminishes their humanity. Each person is a mystery, an irreplaceable treasure, precious in God’s eye. We are God’s creatures and in baptism we are His sons and daughters, brothers and sisters to one another.

The extreme individualism of our age is undermining the common good and fractionalizing the community. The Church wishes to call people to unity based on mutual respect and a commitment to the common good. We do not want Catholics who have a homosexual orientation to feel unwelcomed in the Catholic Church. We remind them that they are bound to us by their baptism and are called to live a life of holiness. Many homosexual persons in our Church lead holy lives and make an outstanding contribution to the life of the Church by their service, generosity and the sharing of their spiritual gifts.

We must strive to eradicate prejudices against people with a homosexual orientation. At the same time the Church must minister to all people by challenging them to obey God’s commands, the roadmap for a meaningful human life that allows us to draw near to God and to one another.

In the Gospel when the self-righteous Pharisees bring the adulteress to be stoned, Jesus says let he who is without sin cast the first stone. Then to make sure they got the point Jesus wrote their sins on the ground. The stones fell from their hands and they fled. Jesus said: “Neither do I condemn you”, but He added, “Go and sin no more.”

If we tell people that sex outside of marriage is not a sin, we are deceiving people. If they believe this untruth, a life of virtue becomes all but impossible. Jesus teaches that discipleship implies taking up the cross each day and following Him with love and courage.

It is never easy to deliver a message that calls people to make sacrifices or to do difficult things. Sometimes people want to punish the messenger. For this reason we priests at times find it difficult to articulate the Church’s teaching on sexual morality. We must never deliver the message in a self-righteous way, but rather with compassion and humility. It is important to express the moral teachings of the Church with clarity and fidelity. The Church must be Church. We must teach the truths of the Gospel in season and out of season. These recent times seem to us like it is “out of season”, but for that very reason it is even more urgent to teach the hard words of the Gospel today.

We know that friends and relatives of homosexual Catholics sometimes feel torn between their allegiance to Christ and their concern for their loved ones. I assure them that these goals are not incompatible. As Catholics we profess a firm belief in the dignity of each person and in the eternal destiny to which God calls us. Calling people to embrace the cross of discipleship, to live the commandments and at the same time assuring them that we love them as brothers and sisters can be difficult. Sometimes we are told: “If you do not accept my behavior, you do not love me.” In reality we must communicate the exact opposite: “Because we love you, we cannot accept your behavior.”

God made us to be happy forever. That true and lasting happiness is accessible only by a path of conversion. Each of us has our own struggles in responding to the call to discipleship and holiness. We are not alone. Christ promised to be with us and has given us His Church and Sacraments to help us on the road.

At every Mass we pray that beautiful prayer before the sign of peace: “Lord…look not on our sins, but on the faith of your Church and grant us the peace and unity of your kingdom.” May
God grant us that grace of peace and unity.

Devotedly yours in Christ,
Seán P. O’Malley Archbishop of Boston

Well stated Eminence.

Thanks Be to God and Boomer Sooner!
Feast of St. Cecilia

Harvard Knights of Columbus

On Wednesday November 1st, the Feast of All Saints, a group of undergrad and graduate male students gathered together and formed a Knights of Columbus Council at Harvard. The Council has yet to decide on a name, but it is exciting all the same.

Here is a picture of the men inducted that night...

I am located all the way on the right in the blue shirt w/silver tie.

It was a neat experience...even if there is a boatload of irony in the fact that an Indian is now a Knight of Columbus! I keep telling myself and my friends that Columbus was lost and needs a guide! LOL!

Thanks Be to God and Boomer Sooner!

God Bless the Fruitcake Lady...

You know, there comes a time when elders reach a certain age, around 80, where they are entitled to say absolutely anything they want! And that is exactly what Marie Rudisill did!

Marie Rudisill, affectionately known to fans of the Tonight Show as the Fruitcake Lady, has passed away at the age of 95 on November 3. The Fruitcake Lady was born in 1911 and was an Aunt of Truman Capote and helped to raise him. In recent years she became well-known for her up-front advice and reprimands on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.

I'm gonna miss the Fruitcake Lady, but I rest assured that she is with our Lord in heaven making fruitcakes to celebrate His upcoming birthday!

Here's a couple of classic Fruitcake Lady segments...

OMG! I LOVE Fozzie Bear!

You Are Fozzie Bear

"Wocka! Wocka!" You're the life of the party, and you love making people crack up. If only your routine didn't always bomb! You may find more groans than laughs, but always keep the jokes coming.

The Muppet Personality Test

Re: Wal-Mart and homosexuals

So, I realized I needed to clarify my position on Wal-Mart a little...

In case you didn't see, I posted a little while back about Wal-Mart catering to homosexual interests (read my original post here). But, I realized that some people were reading it and assuming I was upset with Wal-Mart for catering to homosexual interests, but that isn't exactly what I meant.

I already despised Wal-Mart for other reasons and refuse to shop there when I have another option...which in small-town America those options are fewer and fewer!

I truly, truly hate Wal-Mart! But, not for their policy on homosexuals. Instead I hate Wal-Mart for their atrocious personnel and labor policies, not to mention the way they go into small communities and close small businesses. For more info on these issues you should see the movie Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price. It does a great job of showing how Wal-Mart is destroying small town businesses and how horribly they treat their employees. Sam Walton is probably turning over in his grave as you read!

Anyway, my surprise with Wal-Mart as it pertains to the homosexual issue is that it's, well, Wal-Mart! I mean this is a company whose core customer base is Red State red through and through...you know them--the gun owning, hunting, fishing, church on Wednesday night and twice on Sunday Christian, George W. Bush, Iraq War supporting, homophobic Red Staters!

I just can't believe it is Wal-Mart doing this...I mean the next thing you'll be telling me is that the Republican Party has decided to become Pro-Choice!

It's WAL-MART people!

I'm still overwhelmed by the irony of it! But, I hope that makes my stance a little clearer.

Thanks Be to God and Boomer Sooner!
Feast of St. Didacus

Oh, and here is a trailer for Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price...

Dim Sum Girl

My friend at the museum has this song on her MySpace page and I LOVE it! It is fabulous!

Dim Sum Girl is a song by the group The Notorious MSG! They didn't do this video...it's just a parody I found on youtube.

So without further ado...here's to my dim sum girl, SD (you know who you are!):

updates and such...

Well, it has been a little while since I posted on here and I'm happy to see at least a couple of people have visited! That rocks!

Based on my graduation from Harvard in June, I've been thinking about the future a lot lately. I find out if I've been accepted to Teach for America via email sometime on Tuesday.

Additionally, my boss at the museum came to me and basically offered me a position as a Harvard Administrative Fellow for next year. This is really quite an honor...this year there are only 12 Administrative Fellows within the University as a whole. The program is set up to train/mentor minorities to go into higher education administration, so it is really right up my alley. I don't know what I'll do if I'm accepted to Teach for America.

It's good to have options though, right? Although, I feel a real sense of pressure trying to think about the future...this is the first time I've really thought outside of school (for myself) in over 10 years. It's good pressure, but pressure all the same.

Last night a bunch of us got together for a friends birthday and watched Jesus Christ Superstar (her birthday wish). I'd never seen it and the thing is really a joke...we laughed all the way through it! Just hanging out with friends was awesome...I need to do that more often. Harvard isn't the greatest place in the world, but I've made some truly awesome friends here.

I guess I just need to face the fact that Jesus loves me and I am very blessed!

Thanks Be to God and Boomer Sooner!
Feast of Venerable Solanus Casey