I seem to remember posting a week or three ago about hanging my laptop because I'd deleted several programs that I shouldn't have. Haven't gotten anywhere with getting it back up and running, and am begining to think it might be best if I could reinstal Windows Vista (Home Premium).

Anybody know the best way to do this? (Of course I don't have reboots disks...)

Thanks.

"Pray for the dead, fight like hell for the living." Mother Jones

And to Pegg Kerr; thank you for The Wild Swans.

Hi, I'm Stina, and I'm new. I don't know if doing introductions are okay or frowned up, so I'll apologize in advance if they aren't, but a large part of why I joined this community was because I don't have very many Catholic friends on LiveJournal and I'd like to change that. I'm 24 and reside in Irving, Texas. I converted to Catholicism almost 5 years ago after being raised Southern Baptist and becoming greatly disillusioned with that faith tradition due to multiple bad experiences. My walk with God has certainly not been a smooth one these past few years (is it ever?), and I've certainly strayed and lost my way more than once; but I am finding my way back to my faith and my Church home. I'm newly married (five months) and I have to say my husband is probably more responsible for my rediscovery of my love and joy in my faith than anything else - he was a devout (very!) atheist when we met, and I doubted he would ever come into the Church. However, this Sunday, he will be participating in the Rite of Acceptance and Welcome at the same church where I was confirmed and come Easter he will be baptized and confirmed. If ever I doubted that God can do anything, I now have my own personal miracle to remind me that he can.

This leads me to my prayer request - I would greatly appreciate prayers for both my husband and myself as we move forward on this journey together. Prayers that I would have the right words to answer his questions and that I would be a good example of authentic faith, prayers that he will have continued affirmations that he is making the right choice for himself (he wrestled with the idea of spirituality a great deal before deciding to take this path).

Thanks so much!

Edit: if anyone feels like adding me to their friends list, that would be most welcome and I will add back :)

A couple of weeks ago one of my social workers asked if he could bring along a high school student who was "shadowing" him for the day. I said yes, and we set if up for today. In fact, just finished with it a little while ago.

It was a good get together, Randy & I dealt with a couple of SSI related stuff I'd gotten in the mail, so real work was done. When things were wrapping up Randy asked if it was okay if the student asked a few questions, which I'd thought about offering.

I'm feeling a little "eye-rolling" that the questions she had were about my being gay, but she probably hadn't met with an out gay guy before, so I guess I've done "god's work"...

Spots the Space Marine is a twice-weekly crowd-sponsored serial. Find out more and read prior episodes.

Claws. "So how exactly are we gonna do this?"

Spots squints at one of the bodies above them. "Flea, can you hold this crab in place?"

Flea. "****, that would mean poking my ****ing hand outside this thing."

Scythe. "Shut up and do it."

Spots, to Claws. "Just keep the shield up when I take mine down. It should last as long as we need even without me helping." She sets a timer on a grenade. When she looks up, Flea is grumbling but holding the body in place.

Spots. "All right, here goes nothing." She stands up, head above the shield, grabs the crab body and scrabbles on top of it, pushing through a narrow space between corpses.

Claws. "****! Spots—"

Spots. "I'm okay. It's all dead stuff up here."

Whiskers. "****, I had no idea you could do that."

Spots wedges herself between bodies until she can stand straight—more or less. She squeezes a hand up to place the grenade in between the corpses, then wiggles back down, steps off the crab she was using as platform and drops back into the bubble.

Spots. "Okay. Twenty seconds."

Hairball, eyeing her. "How'd you think of that?"

Flea. "**** that, how'd you shimmy like that in armor? Jesus!"

Claws starts laughing. "You ain't seen the ****in' half of it."

Fang, ignoring them. "...four... three... two... one!"

The shield flickers and dies as crab parts go flying. Through the broken mosaic of the explosion, Team Kitty can see the rest of the living crabs.

Whiskers. "Here they come!"

###

Hooray, back to writing after my unplanned "being sick" hiatus! Sometimes being short comes in handy....

Stardancer Home.

Tonight is my night off! And... I have no idea what to do with it, being too sick still to work out. We'll see.

Word of the Day
upbraid, v. 1 : to criticize severely : find fault with 2 : to reproach severely : scold vehemently
From the back of the paper: "Scold" usually implies rebuking in irritation or ill temper, either justly or unjustly. "Upbraid" tends to suggest censuring on definite and usually justifiable grounds, while "berate" implies scolding that is prolonged and even abusive.

Baby at 27 Months
A long while ago we bought her a toy house for some Little People figures: a mommy (with bottle in one hand and towel over her shoulder), a daddy (with glasses and a button-down vest) and a little baby in a basket with a teddy bear.

Since then, the house has developed the following roommates:

Noah with beard and bird and his wife, with long gray braid.

A family of Tyrannosaurus Rexes: gigantic (christened "Daddy"), a much smaller one ("Mommy") and a teeny baby, who is usually jammed into Daddy Dinosaur's stumpy arms, because of course Daddy always carries baby.

Lightning McQueen the race car and at any particular time, one to four of his friends from the movie "Cars."

Several matchbox cars from the 70s and 80s.

As I type here, Mommy Dinosaur is upstairs in the living room looking out the window with the human baby and a rather appalling-looking black "Vette-Van", two triceratops are monopolizing the bathroom (one of them is sitting on the plastic toilet), Lightning McQueen appears to be using the telephone and Daddy and baby T-rex are outside playing on the lawn. I assure you, I had nothing to do with the arrangement of these actors. I can only wonder what my child is thinking when she places them (with a little "Rar" under her breath reserved for the movement of the dinosaurs from room to room).

God knows where Mommy and Daddy human have gone. Fled to the toy box in panic, no doubt.

Current Plans
Write Spots and work on the retrospective for Sketchbooks 51-55. Thinking I might have to buy that printer cartridge before Christmas, or there will be no Three Kings Day Sale... mph. Maybe tonight I'll take my print out of Flight of the Godkin Griffin with this $5 coupon to Borders and try to get some editing done over free coffee.

Elsewhere
• Heroic Heros! More fun with archetypes. "Magnificent Bastard," heh.
• 42 Essential 3rd Act Twists. This one's been going around, but it's still funny, so here it is!


Stardancer Home.

to papersky!

http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/wondermark/~3/-WoLLyF8l_M/

http://wondermark.com/?p=4658

Thanks very much to the many bloggers & librarians who participated in The Thanksgiving Project! Submissions are closed as of Monday midnight. I will be reviewing everything and making the final determinations probably later this week or early next. It’s been a treat to see folks participate; thanks very much for all the kind mentions and for the nice notes as well!

Now then: Moving into the holiday season, I would love to bring in someone to help out around the office and also show the ropes of entrepreneurism. You can read the requirements for my previous (summer) internship position; it’s pretty much the same again, except only through December (and maybe January), and ideally two or three days a week for the next few weeks. Meals will be provided and even some free merch too!

If you’re interested, email me (dave at wondermark dot com) as soon as possible; I got a lot of work to do this month so I want to get this process started.

• 06:32 seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2010386387_webleschihome29m.html Suspect in police shootings wounded, possibly dead. #
• 06:57 @bloisolson Probably customers. Booksellers tend to be used to selling books by folks they disagree with politically. #
• 08:22 @bloisolson Almost certainly. Would the Democrats fail to do the Willie Horton thing? #
• 08:42 @bloisolson Well, yeah. But, assuming that they didn't, you don't think the Democrats would give him a bye on it, do you? #
• 09:13 @detroitccw That's about what it is here. Priority One calls well into double digits. #
• 09:29 @bloisolson Don't know much about esteeemed, but I will cop to "reasonably prolific." And thanks. #
• 09:39 @SCartierLiebel You're very nice person. I'd be very nervous about buying from a place named "Hooker Furniture." #
• 09:47 @JeenaBelil I've no reason to doubt the quality of their merch, honest. I'd be nervous about eating Uranus Fruit Preserves, too. #

/tweets

Climate change data dumped - Times Online

Shared via AddThis

Anybody ever hear the New York translation of the phrase "Trust me!"?

Did a quick once over of the prologe to Mother's Diary and here's the basic time line of her life. (Please note: Some events don't have a clear date)


1888-Nov. 13th-Born, Herman Minnesota
f: George Smith
m:

1912-Engaged to Charles Lorne Cummer

1914- 1918-The Great War

1918-Graduated Bemidji High School (salutatorian)

1919-Sept. 1 Married CLC

1921-April 20th Charles David Cummer born (Bemidji)

Moved to Memphis, TN
CLC employed by T.J.Elliot Jewelers

1924-John Phillip Cummer born (Memphis)

1927-Rosemary Cummer born (Mephis)

1929-Great Depression begins
James Cummer born Jonesboro

1930 CLC "physical" breakdown

Moved to Fargo, ND

Moved to Page, ND (ranch of Ward Woodbury [G's brother in law m to G's sister Mamie)

1932-Summer CLC released from hospital, moved to ranch)

Fall Moved back to Bemidji

1932-1938-Family moved seven times

1938-June Diary began

1941-dies of sleeping sickness

http://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation/AP/story/1358470.html

A Roman Catholic is leading the troops to try and get a proposition on the ballot in California (where people vote on stupid stuff) to have divorce declared illegal.

Now, in the case of this particular movement the intent is to be satirical (in the wake of Prop 8), but....

Should Catholics support such a measure? I think there are some serious justifications for Catholics wanting to see divorce outlawed in the civil arena. The damage that divorce has caused to our society (just look at the issues associated with single parent homes) seems to be pretty severe. I am sure there tons of other studies that would lead us to believe that divorce is bad for kids, bad for adults and a destabilizing and destructive force on society. Honestly, it seems like most divorces are over issues that could have been resolved either through counseling or one (or both) parties of the couple ceasing to act like spoiled children.

Sure, the ballot campaign is meant to be a joke, but can we seriously argue, from a Catholic perspective, that banning divorce is really such a bad idea? Honestly, if we are going to discuss defending traditional families and marriage it seems like the real place to focus energy is on a social convention that effectively kills 50% of all marriages and has left a society jaded about the institution/sacrament of marriage. Personally, I opposed Prop 8, but having seen the damage that divorce has left on many members of my generation, and the way that folks tend to think of their families as disposable relationships of convenience, I would be inclined to favor this proposition if for no other reason than it might make people think about the marriages they are about to enter into instead of thinking that marriage is a paid vacation at Barbie's Dreamhouse.

Hi all,

I've been following some controversy lately in Britain concerning the implementation, or rather the protest of, the implementation of Syariah (the 'One Law for All' movement). There has been a lot of comparison with Christian Canon law.

I'm doing a quick scan of stuff about Canon law (both Orthodox and Catholic, although I admit my focus is Orthodox) on Google, but are they really similar? I understand the set-up for Syariah, but I'm not sure if I understand the set-up for Canon law, or at least, I don't quite understand how Syariah and Canon law are similar.

1. From a Catholic perspective, is there any way that Canon law can break the separation of Church and State, ie. must state involvement be available in order for Church adherence to canon law?

2. Was Canon law compromised as the powers of the Church over the State became more distanced after the Reformation and Enlightenment?

Why do I ask? I'm interested because I'd like to know whether it is possible for Islam to function in a secular framework, since I live in a Muslim country and we have the problem of syariah and civil running as parallel legal systems. The initial argument I always had is that there is no possible way for Islam to be reconciled with secular law because of fundamental theological principles, particularly its relationship to state involvement. I've always assumed that the reason Christianity can function is because there is nothing in its theology that demands state involvement. How correct am I?