The World of Grandpa Don
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Good works do not make a good man, but a good man does good works
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What's New In the world of Grandpa Don |
Week Ending Friday |
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Several people sent emails commenting on last week's "What's New" page. The first thing that told me is that they rather send an email by clicking on the Contact Grandpa Don link than use the Blog. As a result, the Blog is gone ... deleted ... kaput! Another change is the removal of the "Inspirations" link from the "spotlight" to a button replacing the "Blog" link where it will be a permanent feature just above the "3 Minute Retreat". They more or less go together. Also, you, or at least some of you" liked the new format for my "Update" email. As a result, it has been enhanced and will continue. The enhancements include a color change. I like the dramatic effect of a light colored text on a dark background. However, a few friends do not get email in HTML format and the background becomes white and white text on a white background is no text at all. So now we have dark text on a light background which will be visible when there is no background. I also added Buttons on the email so you could click right over to the Welcome page or directly to the "What's New page. By the way, last Friday I hade a record number of visitors. Was it because of the gussied up email notification? I made one other change to this page. I deleted the "Links of the Week" at the bottom of the page. Since I have been placing links throughout the body of the page as part of the 'story' of the week I often forgot to put them in at the bottom of the page. Now I don't need to remember. So, as you read, take a moment to view the links. They come up in a new window so you will always come back to this page when you close them and you ill be viewing them in the context of the text on this page. OK?
I had comments on the movie about our government last week and Ginny Gully sent an article referring to an aspect of the subject. I felt so strongly about the distinction between a Democracy and a Republic that I decided it warranted further thought and a permanent page. You may not agree with me, and I am sure that many will not, and that's OK, but it is how I feel and I present it so you know how I feel. So, take a look at Our Federal Republic It is now a permanent page in the "Our Nation" area of the "My Thoughts" section of The World of Grandpa Don.
Saturday we celebrated the feast of St Isidore of Seville. This learned man is the patron of The Order of St. Isidore of Seville and is one of the candidates for being the Patron Saint of the Internet. Being a member of the order, indeed having been elevated to Knight Grand Officer and At Large Priory Commander with the Order of Merit (impressive, isn't it) I promote the responsible use of the internet as well as the principle of fighting evil with good. Even before joining the group I considered both of these as being noble causes and so I can envision myself in the garb of a knight joining in these endeavors. This is why I proudly promote the order at the top of this page and why you find my knightly icon newly added to the "Update" email. To learn more about this great intellectual giant and patron of our order read: Isidore of Seville.
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The above quote has been adopted and changed by many usually by changing the first word to "plan" or such. But I like it as Isidore first said it. Maybe that is why I am always trying to learn new things, always reading and accumulating knowledge and maybe along with it a bit of wisdom. I mentioned that I have been reading "The New Testament And The People of God" by N.T. Wright. He invests the first part of the book in detailing his approach to the subject, explaining in great detail and with many references why he takes the approach that he does and why he differs in his methods of analysis from other writers. I gave up in despair of the drudgery of it all. If I was going to write a book in rebuttal it may have been of interest to me but my goal was to learn about the subject and not how to write a book. I have conceded to him that he is an expert in his field based on his reputation and the (relative to the subject) popularity of the book. So, taking him up on his actual suggestion, I skipped a large portion and went on to the subject itself. As he said, I could always go back to these details if I felt the need and as the saying goes, 'I only want to know the time, not how to build a watch'. In any case, I was instantly rewarded in his very concise discussion of the Jewish people and how their religion developed during the 1st century AD. I learned something.
The Temple of Jerusilem, which had been the focus of their religion, was not only destroyed but so was the city which was subsequently rebuilt as a thoroughly Pagan Roman city. The Jews were forbidden to enter it. As in past times of captivity, but this time dispersal, the Jews had to maintain their identity and their religious and daily lives became focused on maintaining a cohesion of the people. That is why there was such a strong need for them to have every aspect of their lives based in their religious beliefs and for them to set themselves apart from their pagan neighbors. After reading this, it occurred to me that we Christians have no such compulsion and maybe we are the weaker for it. We try to blend in and not to be different from our Pagan neighbors. I realize that there are few or almost none among us who worship Zeus, Aries or any of the rest of the old pagan gods but there are many who worship sex, money, power and themselves ... same thing. Maybe if we were more like the Jews (of the past) and didn't try to blend in, we could be better Christians.
Sunday was a cold and rainy day. That didn't prevent the church from being crowded for Palm Sunday Mass. As usual, our teens did a masterful job in acting out the Gospel reading for the day and the choir and musicians adding to the drama and solemnity of the liturgy. Deacon Mike had sent a notice of good news with the failure of an Anti-Life bill in the Illinois legislature. It needed to be put on the parish web site so that occupied a little time on the computer after I had my lunch. Another interesting email came from Jean Dean who sent a copy of a Land Grant certificate issued to her great grandfather and signed by President Ulysses S. Grant. Her grandfather was a Civil War veteran. What a family treasure to pass down!
I put a cap on Sunday by venturing out in the cold rain to Ashford House where I indulged myself with a libation followed by soup and their succulent lamb chops. They are small and tender, served three to a plate and, with the fixin's, enough that I took one home after, of course, enjoying a large scoop of ice cream. I went home content and ready for an evening of TV.
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Sunday evening at about 7 PM I noticed that the rain had changed to huge flakes of snow. By the time I went to bed everything had a coating of snow. In the morning it was a winter wonderland ... beautiful, but the inch or more of wet and sloppy was already melting. Nick called to tell me that he was going to shovel the Buchler's driveway and then come to do mine. I told him not to bother but he insisted. He called again saying that when he got to his other grandparents house he found it almost all melted. (I knew that!) He would come to my house anyway and bring a Maxwell Polish sandwich for me. I readily agreed. By the time he reached my house, there was nothing left to shovel either but we did enjoy lunch. We also watched and episode of the Military Channel's documentary on the Revolutionary War. Nick and I share an interest in history. Thanks for lunch Nick.
A good part of the rest of Monday was dedicated to business. I contacted the bank to resolve a matter regarding the Land Trust I have for the house. They had misplaced a payment I made and I faxed them a copy of the check that they had processed and apparently misapplied to the wrong account. Everybody makes mistakes and I am sure they will figure it out. I also (finally) did my income Tax. After loading TurboTax, the program imported my file from 2007 and gathered information from it to start the 2008 filling. It then went out to my broker's computer and that of two banks and gathered the figures needed. I checked them against the paper forms I had gotten by snail mail and all was correctly and automatically filled into the proper places. I then let it guide me through the rest of the process, filling in the answers to questions aided by the records kept through the year in my Microsoft Money program which allows me to print out a handy "tax transactions" report. I did need to go on line to the Orland Park Village web site to look up the current sales tax rate for my area. Inputting that enabled the program to apply the sales tax deduction to the calculations. With all the figures entered, I was told the amount of my overpayment and asked if I wanted a check or to have it applied to my 2009 taxes. I chose the latter and went on to download the Illinois tax program. Using the information from the Federal return, the Illinois form was quickly done. For the first time ever I decided to e-File the Federal but mail the State return. The Federal was free and they wanted $19 to e-File the state return. The e-filing took a minute and a short time later I received and email verifying the the IRS had received it. I printed out the Illinois forms and signed and put them in the mail box for pickup. Later in the evening an email was received informing me that the IRS had accepted my return.
If you get all your income from retirement sources, Illinois is a great place to live. They do not tax retirement income so I haven't paid Illinois income tax for years. But, I must send in a set of forms. In any case, that is a task that I never used to put off but now it seems like there is always something better to do so ... You may wonder why I apply my refund to next year's taxes. First of all, it isn't that much. I pay attention to what I pay in taxes every time I take a distribution from my IRA. Secondly, my next distribution from my IRA will be tax free. And ... speaking of Taxes, ... both Frank Schober and Bob Clarke sent ... TAXES
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I am approved! Isn't it a nice feeling to have gained approval. The call came from the bank Tuesday morning. Well, no ... a bank didn't call, but Cheryl, a most pleasant and happy sounding employee of the bank called. How appropriate it is to have your approval come from a happy person effervescent with joy. It brightens the day and lifts the spirits. I was also happy to be informed that the appraisal of the house was considerably higher than the original estimate. I will get an official notification by mail and a call will follow with a closing date. The Reverse mortgage is on its way and my house will soon be paying me ... tax free.
And speaking of happy days ... Jean Dean sent Take Me Back To The Fifties . Do you remember the TV show "Happy Days" with "The Fonz" and all the crew? I remember them well, and I the Korean War, my war, and my Navy days. I remember voting against General Eisenhower when I was in the Navy because I thought I knew the mentality of military men. That just proves I am not always right.
My use of TurboTax by Intuit caused me to reflect on the fact that it gets easier to use every year not only because of my familiarity with it but because of the improvements they continue to make in the product. I have been using Microsoft Money to track my finances and there are aspects of it that are rather clunky (a technical term). I had tried Intuit's Quicken many years ago but found the transition from Money to be too taxing (no pun intended) but decided, based on my pleasant experience with TurboTax to try it again. And so, on Tuesday morning I downloaded and installed it. The setup of the program itself was a snap and based on what I see so far I think I am going to like it. Tuesday afternoon I set up most of my accounts in Quicken and downloaded my information from the broker. All my investment data simply spilled into Quicken and so there was very little for me to do. I then did the same from my Discover Card account. Wednesday morning I went through the Discover card entries and made sure that they were all identified with the proper categories and the proper tax status so that when I go to do my taxes next year everything will be properly identified. Everything was very easy to do and I only had to refer to the Help windows on one occasion.
Mary Moskal sent The Devil & The Duck. What a great parable and a lesson in life! I also got a call regarding the missing payment on my land trust. They found it, corrected their mistake and canceled my late fee. She also asked me to add the word "Trust" to my account number that appears on the check in order to avoid confusion in future payments. I immediately went on line to my bill pay service and made the account number change. The Devil is in the details.
And ... Speaking of details, details of a big thing orbiting the earth, Gay Wands sent a great link to the International Space Station. For those of us who have wanted to see what this engineering marvel looks like and how it is put together this is great. The presentation allows us to inspect it piece by piece, seeing how and when it was assembled. Just click on the name of the module at the right of the screen and when the module window appears, start the mini movie in the module window. It is a testimony to what can be achieved through international cooperation. Thank you cousin Gay.
"To be yourself in a world that is constantly
trying to make you something else is the greatest
accomplishment."
— Ralph Waldo Emerson
The cooperation of various nations in the engineering, building, maintaining and using the International Space Station is just one example of what can be accomplished in this world through cooperation instead of competition. The Olympic Games is another example. Yes, the games involve competition but holding the games requires cooperation of all the nations involved and brings together people from all over the world in a spirit of fair play and camaraderie to say nothing about the cooperation of the various Olympic committees and sports organizations throughout the world. There is also the proliferation of multi-national businesses which also bring peoples together in a spirit of cooperation for the common good of all. That is the key, ... a the mutual benefit of all involved, not an effort of getting as much as I can regardless of the needs of others. A trade does not mean someone has to win and someone has to loose. Trade, Fair Trade, means exchanging something of which I have an overabundance for something that I need and getting it from someone who has an overabundance of it and a need for what I have to offer. Everybody wins. That is the world that God intended and it is the world that can be if we control our egos and our greed. .
Have you seen the Kindle?. It is just like the devices I have seen on the Star Trek Si-Fi series. What a great way to read books, magazines and ... anything. I would love to have one but at $360 it is still a little too steep for me. There are thousands of books available for reading on this handy device and even several of C.S. Lewis that I haven't read and all for less than $10. Isn't technology wonderful! I am sure the price will come down in a year or two and by then there will be even more titles available.
Have you seen Bella lately?
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Who is that looking at me? | |||
| Hi there Grandpa Dom! |
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| That dog is acting silly down there! |
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Oh my! Grandpa is kissing my hand! |
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What
can I say? ..........5 months, and becoming very much aware of her
world.
(Click on the thumbnails for a larger picture.)
"In three words
I can sum up everything I've learned about life:
it goes on."
— Robert Frost
And as it goes on, (life, that is) it is necessary to make a tour of the back yard occasionally to pick up what Mikey has left there. Thursday was the perfect day for it, in the mid 50's and no wind at all. A little, very little, general cleanup was done while I was at it and I also rested on the swing for a bit. Spring being what it has been this year, hasn't allowed my yard guys to start yet. Sometimes they are here in March. After dinner I reset my modem in accordance with the instructions received from Comcast. After the indicator lights were back to normal I went on line and did a couple Google searches. It was obvious that I was functioning at a much higher speed. Their letter said that it would improve from 6 Mbps to 12Mbps. (MegaBits per second) That, of course is under ideal conditions. I checked my performance and it said I was getting 100Mbps. There seems to be a decimal point error here someplace.
Thursday evening, Holy Thursday, was the first part of the Easter Triduum and as usual, this very special mass with the washing of feet and the bringing in of the new Sacramental Oils along with the readings commemorating the Last Supper was inspiring, enhanced by the well rehearsed choir and bell choir. What stood out this year was the stripping of the church. The Blessed Sacrament is, of course, removed from the church, temporarily to the chapel, leaving an empty Tabernacle. The voice of the choir fades to silence. Then the alter is stripped followed by the removal of the candles, their stands, all decorations, movable tables and chairs and even the decorative carpets ... leaving a bare and empty space. Christ is GONE, taken away for trial, leaving emptiness! It happens every year, But for me, this year it was a religious experience! Without Him, there is emptiness and despair.
I went home reflecting on this event. Mikey was upset that I wasn't going to bed and even more upset when, shortly after 11 I left him alone again. But There was Night Prayer. The Temporary Tabernacle stood at the center of the Altar in the Chapel surrounded by a myriad of candles. About 50 of us gathered in silent prayer. "Come, watch with Me and pray". At 11:30 about 15 choir members took their places and a bowl of lit charcoal was placed before the altar. "Let our prayers rise like incense". The Choir led us in sung prayer and psalms and there was a reading during this half hour followed by a final blessing. The Tabernacle was opened and the Blessed Sacrament removed ... hidden away ... He was again taken away as for trial and we are left without Him. Empty! We left in silence. Yes, another religious experience. This Night Prayer always moves me deeply. The sung prayer and psalms are reminiscent of Taizé. I need this every year. We are left alone and empty. I can feel the despair of the Disciples. They had no idea of what was to come. Oh yes, they knew why He was taken and knew there was going to be a rigged trial and He would be killed. But They didn't know about Easter. At least we have that.
Today we follow at a distance in fear and carry our emptiness to the second part of the Triduum, to Good Friday ... the trial and Crucifixion ... we remember. There is the despair of the disciples, ... there is His despair and death ... and the reminder of our despair without Him.
But we can look forward to the last part of the Triduum, ... The glorious rising and the restoration of hope and the true beginnings of faith. The new beginning!
Because of all this ....
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I am blest |
Grandpa Don
Plefka
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Anne wanted everyone to be 'Nice'.
This button was in one of
her dresser
drawers I cleaned out in August of 2004
