Salvation Army and bells

I put money in the big red can while the bell ringer rang his bell outside of Schnucks last night. As I put the dollar bill and some change in the can, I paused and caught the bell ringer's eye.

"I have an idea," I said. "How about when people put money in the bucket, you stop ringing the bell."

"Ok," he said.

"I think if you STOP ringing the bell when people give you money, people would give you more money," I suggested.

"You think so? Maybe. I can try that."

"Good, I'll put my money in the bucket, and you can't ring the bell until I get into my car."

"Ok," he laughed, "it's a deal."

I placed my bill and change in the slit and waved goodbye. He raised the bell like he was going to ring it, but held it up in the air. "Go ahead, then. I'll wait." And he did.

Put money in the bucket and ask the bell ringer to stop ringing the bloody bell. If we all keep putting money in the bucket, the bell will never need to ring in annoying, constant ding dong ding, and they'll have lots of money to feed the poor.

It's a good idea.

Guess who is having a birthday in December?

Recognize this fellow?
It's Jesus. Yes, of Nazareth. Or Bethlehem, depending on the source.

We have all of Advent to have ready what he wants most for his birthday this year. He's been asking for the same thing for over 2000 years.

Arrr, what's your pirate name? Savy?

I'm Red Morgan Bonney....and who might you be, matey? ARRRR.

My pirate name is:

Red Morgan Bonney

Passion is a big part of your life, which makes sense for a pirate. You can be a little bit unpredictable, but a pirate's life is far from full of certainties, so that fits in pretty well. Arr!

Get your own pirate name from piratequiz.com.
part of the fidius.org network

Workin' For a Livin'

In france they have an expression that I like for the quotidian of life.

Expression: Métro, boulot, dodo

Pronunciation: [may tro boo lo do do]

Meaning: same old routine, work work work

Literal translation: subway, work, sleep

Sad that daily life can be capsulized as such.

Jon Goes Fishing

NOTE: Several of my posts were bombarded with spam comments. So, I reset moderating comments and reposted the old posts.

Luckily, Jon had no hook on his line. Just a bobber. He only LOOKS like a fisherman. Photo album below--click on photo.

Jon and Pops Go Fishing

Meg Popp is trying to win a trip to Australia Zoo. View her video and vote for her to win. You have to register in order to vote but it takes NO time at all. Here's how:
Voting started today on the "win a trip to australia" site. I've been voting all day.

http://freetrip.australiazoo.com.au/?p=watch&v=e8tevkcign

Over-thinking Disney?

The whole film is longer than this snippet from U Tube, but you'll get the idea.
I'm using this in class with regard to evaluation of an argument.
What do you think?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=byaMd_PNyIY
U Tube: micky mouse monopoly

BOOK TO READ

I needed something to read that had nothing to do with anything I am involved in at the present time. My library shelves are double deep, but I know I have not read every book. Shoving some books aside, pulling several out in order to read the back cover, I finally found one. West by Night.

With the first page, my adventure began. This woman is amazing. As the book opens we learn that she is a pilot in the 1930's on the African continent at a time when only very few men were flying over Africa. Hemingway has said of Markham that after reading her book he is embarrassed to call himself a writer. Each chapter begins a new story from her life in Africa--from her childhood through adulthood. What a courageous soul. Nearly impossible to believe.

The book is easy to read, a page turner from beginning to end. I would guess that you could check it out of the library. Take it home and enjoy the adventure.

KIN U spell?

Now, in the privacy of your own computer screen, you can test yourself in spelling.
SPELLING TEST

Oh, go ahead. It's fifty words. Takes a few minutes.

If you need to improve. Try this technique.
Visualization

Good memory, just short

Every day I speak to someone who thinks she/he is losing memory power. We forget dates, past events, names of books, movies, where we had dinner last Sunday. When my children were small, I was busy with many things. As soon as I was overly busy, I'd forget things like picking up the carpool (and my own children). Often, I lost my keys or forgot where I'd placed them. I still do all those things; luckily both of my kids grew up and drive their own cars. And I wonder, with the other people who are forgetful, where did my memory go?

The key, so it seems experts tell us today, is to forget unnecessary things in order to have the space to recall the important information. They explain is with this example:

"Using fMRI machines to monitor brain activity, the researchers showed that when volunteers searched for a fact they had committed to memory while being distracted by new but irrelevant information, their prefrontal cortex, a part of the brain involved in decision making, was very busy. Once they recalled the information and were easily able to remember it when faced with continued distractions, prefrontal activity slowed considerably--meaning their brain had edited out the info clutter and was now free to do important things like make decisions."

One thing I have found that helps is to never commit anything to memory that you can look up. Frees up a lot of memory cells. So, when we meet next time and I've forgotten your name, don't be offended. I've simply downloaded that info in order to remember where I left my keys.

What's the buzz?

The buzz is no doubt a mosquito scouting your fleshy parts for a landing site. Evey time I walk outside at or after dusk, I am bitten ALL over by mosquitoes. I googled "How to not get bitten" and found this horrible bit of information.

Can garlic keep mozzies away? The answer given was ‘No’ but the article contained a vital piece of information – that drinking alcohol attracts mosquitoes!

So, it's the wine with dinner that attracts the little buggers. Argh. Looking further into the problem at hand, I found the following advise

"B1 Vitamins (Thiamine) are another homemade remedy to keep mosquitoes away. Taking B1 supplements helps your body metabolize carbohydrates and fats and turns them into energy. It's also great for the heart. Not only that, but taking 25 to 50 milligrams of Thiamine three times a day makes your body produce an odor. Don't worry, other humans can't smell it, but female mosquitoes hate it.

You need to take Vitamin B1 for two full weeks before they kick into effect as an effective mosquito repellent.

Rubbing apple cider vinegar on your skin or taking vinegar capsules is another homemade remedy you can use. You need to drink two tablespoons of vinegar every day for this to work. If you can't stomach the idea of taking it straight, mix it in a few ounces of cold water and drink it down that way. Besides protecting yourself from those bloodsucking insects, apple cider vinegar has many other other health benefits as well. It can help relieve arthritis, lower cholesterol and more."

I'm ok with the B1 but the vinegar might not be my answer. My mother tells me to rub my arms and legs with a dryer sheet. She read it in a magazine. Mosquitoes do not like Bounce or whatever.

Other search engines generated a diverse pile of hoe to avoid being bitten. Most of them too bizarre to even think about.

No More Curls

Handsome boy with new haircut.

Sweet Dreams are Made of Lemons

Carrie Hudson (Kansas City area; extended family in St. Louis) has what I'd call double vision. She sees her own life with the joys and struggles of a cancer survivor, and she sees the greater joys and struggles of exercising her vision to make life better for other people. She's 12 and cancer free after 26 long months of treatment. She's also our great-niece, and great in this case is totally appropriate. Here's the story:


Leawood — Everyone’s heard the old adage: “When life hands you lemons, make some lemonade.”
But seldom has someone as young as Carrie Hudson been called upon to heed its advice — or taken it so literally.
For a couple of days this past June, however, the 12-year-old parishioner of Curé of Ars Parish in Leawood, ran her own Alex’s Lemonade Stand as a way to take the lemons she’d been dealt — cancer — and turn them into “lemonade” for others facing their own cancer journeys. The proceeds from the lemonade stand went directly to pediatric cancer research for treatment and cures.

"Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven (MT 18:3)." Children see with bigger imaginations than grown-ups; maybe because they are so small their egos don't stand in the way, blocking the vision of what is possible in life.

Fun on the dock

Whose legs are these?



Grammy teaches Jon how to unhook the fish.

New York in the Summer

The people in New York stand out in a crowd.

The artist of this bejeweled "girl" stood next to me in the audience at the Today show. The cameras did not scan our section until AFTER she left. But she did get to talk to Natalie in person off camera.

Other photos of the NY trip can be viewed here.
second attempt
http://picasaweb.google.com/meister.home/NewYorkSummer07

Ordination Photos

This past weekend we celebrated another Sacrament. Bill only has one more and he'll have them all! But we can wait a long long time for that one.

All went well. Celebrations continued all evening and I slept all day Sunday.

To view the day click

Ordination 2007

Memories...

Some things are best forgotten. Like, say, someone's breath. And, yet, if you just can't live without smelling the faint odor of your loved one's life breath, prepare ahead:
Breath Capture

Why I don't go whale watching

Last time I had the opportunity to whale watch, off the coast of Vancouver, I opted not to sign up. The sea craft that would take me to the whales was a kayak. I'd seen video of a kayak overturned by a whale with a playful spirit. Though I am a good swimmer, I could not imagine swimming WITH whales, being eaten by a whale or another sea creature, or even just drowning in the cold sea.

Now, I have a new fear: Family scrambled to survive as boat sank off Hawaii
If you haven't heard the news, told today in the St. Louis Post, go read the story. I assume they've been on some number of tv shows; I'm a little behind in the news. This family will remember the day forever. And it won't be a pleasant memory.

The article doesn't say, but I don't think they saw any whales.

Math IS useful!

As a liberal arts thinker, I have often dismissed math as something we have to put up with, like menstruation (we, being women--and men if you're married to one). I married an engineer so that I wouldn't have to really LEARN math myself. Having graduated from an engineering university, I have many friends who also like to do math; and while I enjoy their company, I've pondered the existential meaning of their mathematical nature.

Until now. Here is math put to [good] use. [from Mirabilis blog] Not necessarily useful, you understand. But if there's beer involved (and most of the math minds I know like beer) it must have been useful for them.

Mathematicians have come up with a formula that predicts how the head on a pint of beer will change after pouring.

Their advance could shed light on why the foam on a pint of lager quickly disappears, but the froth on a pint of Guinness sticks around.

The research could not only provide tips for better brewing, but could also have applications in metallurgy, say the authors.

I wonder if there's a study group formed to compare the speed of women and men's pouring technique. I'd like to volunteer for such a study. Particularly if I get to drink the beer.

I wonder if the equation takes into consideration how much beer someone has consumed before pouring the beer.

I wonder if they have thought to apply Heisenburg Uncertainty principle to the study of the foaming.

I wonder if there are graduate students getting credit [extra] for assisting the genius professor in the lab with the beer.

I wonder...

Sometimes a red hat

Sometimes a red hat, that doesn't go and doesn't suit me, is just NOT enough!

When I'm 80, I'll wear a gold bow on my head,
that doesn't match and doesn't make any sense.
And I will know I am pretty.

When I'm over 80 I'll wear balloons on my head or any place I want!



[First I tried a copy and paste to get photos in post--doesn't work. Here they are!]

Have You Seen?

This video came out ahwile back. If you haven't watched it, you don't know.





Did You Know?

Be Happy AND SMART

I want some:

[from Science Daily] Antidepressants increase the presence of a growth factor in the brain, which then leads to a proliferation of new cells, according to a study by Yale School of Medicine researchers in this week’s Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
New cells, huh? Does that translate as the more you have the smarter you are? If it helps memory, I'm likely to benefit.

However, "Happiness in intelligent people is the rarest thing I know." Or so says Ernest Hemingway, author and journalist, Nobel laureate (1899-1961).

Thus, we might ponder why "adults tend to believe that intelligent kids can deal with anything because they are intellectually superior. This inevitably includes situations where the intelligent kids have neither knowledge nor skills to support their experience. They go through the tough times alone. Adults don't understand that they need help and other kids don't want to associate with kids the social leaders say are outsiders.

As a result we have many highly intelligent people whose social development progresses much slower than that of most people and they have trouble coping with the stressors of life that present themselves to everyone. It should come as no surprise that the vast majority of prison inmates are socially and emotionally underdeveloped or maldeveloped and a larger than average percentage of them are more intelligent than the norm."

I've never thought that criminals were smarter than the average bear....at least not the ones that get caught. In fact, we probably have all concluded that a life of crime is S-T-U-P-I-D. Maybe they are all depressed and need antidepressants to be smarter and happier and find a way to live within society with, say, more concern for the welfare of others and not so much their narcisstic selves.

Narcissistic individuals, those who live as though the world revolves around them. Infants and young children understand the world in this way, but they are young. As they gain more experience and begin to realize the self as separate from the ego, poof: the world begins to turn in another direction, one that involves others. One that results in relationships, healthy ones.

The neurotic tendencies of those who have not passed successfully through the stages of [Erikson's] human development with a positive slant toward moving into the next stage, drive the rest of us nuts. Neurotic people drive other people crazy. Psychotic people go crazy themselves.

Some people benefit from antidepressants. Having come full circle in this post, what have we learned? Not much. Feeling the need for Paxil, Prozac, or Zoloft? Know someone who could use a few more brain cells? I do. But this is NOT the place to mention any names.

WINTER: Bah Humbug!

February can be the cruelest month in the midwest. We can see spring o'comin' but it ain't here soon enough. More rain, more ice, more ---don't say it...

Think of more pleasant climates, like Miami in the winter.

Here, take a vacation--

Miami photos

This day was born

George Harrison

(1943–2001)

Born in Liverpool, England, musician George Harrison played lead guitar and sang with the Beatles, developing an interest in Eastern music and religion. After the Beatles’ break-up, he made solo albums, including All Things Must Pass (1970), and performed with other artists, notably ‘super-group’ The Traveling Wilburys (1988–90). He also produced several films, such as Monty Python's Life of Brian (1979). Harrison died after a long battle against cancer.

Takin' the Day Off

As if I have nuffin' to do. But it's President's Day, and the world rests in their memory. Quite a creative lot of souls, I'd say, those presidents all; some more memorable than others. They inspire my creativity, and I searched for ways to doodle on the day we have off.

Here are some to view.
Doodle one
Forget therapy--analyze this, Freud.
Other medium for doodlers
Even presidents doodle.
Exposing some interesting insights.

There's a science to everything. I thought doodling was just, you know, doodling. How can there be rules?

Of course you can do art doodles any way you please, but we recommend the following rules:

1. Working space refers to the entire area of the graphic file - in this case 300 x 300 pixels. Image refers to the actual shapes, pictures or lines on the working space when you first open the file. Picture refers to the completed picture after you have finnished doodling.

2. You may enlarge the working space to 600 x 600 pixels.

3. You may not erase any part of the image nor change the colours of the image nor cover more than 5% of the image (this allows for dithering or drawing a few lines over the image in order to complete your picture.

I think the rules are made to broken. Doodling relieves stress.
And some people are better than others. Do scroll down to see the cartoon.

I thought doodles were those shapes and scribbles I make while I am talking on the phone or listening to a speaker and pretending to take copious notes. I usually sketch the speaker. Passive aggressive behavior, I guess.

Aside: If you wear reading glasses--fun thing to do when someone is boring you: Look at the person in the room with you and tilt your head so that your reading lens is right about half way down their face. Shrinks the face. Makes it squatty and distorted. Don't laugh out loud, though. Every face looks different. Try it with various people in the room. Especially fun at bored, oops, board meetings.

Living on Another Planet

Do you know who Anna Nicole Smith is?
Of course you do.

Thursday, 8 February, I was the chaplain on the sixth floor of the FP Hospital, making my rounds to make initial visits like I always do. After the fifth visit, as I was sitting in the nurses station writing my chart notes, one of the nurses rushed into the station and grabbed a rolling chair and slid over next to me.
"I got somethin' to tell you," he said nudging my arm. I looked up from the chart with interest.
"Anna Nicole Smith just died. In her room. They don't know why she died," he told me.
"Anna Nicole Smith," I repeated, more a question than a statement.
"Yeah, Anna Nicole Smith."
My mind was turning. Had a seen a Smith this morning, I wondered.
He saw my perplexed look and continued, "She died, in her room. No one knows how she died."
"Smith." My mind was spinning. Smith, Smith, Smith. I didn't recall any Smiths. I hadn't heard them call a "code" and I had not gotten a page. I looked at my pager. When someone dies they always call a chaplain. Maybe they called the CCU chaplain. So I opened my folder to check the patient census sheet. No Smiths on the 6th floor. Maybe she was in CCU.
"What floor is she on?" I asked.
"What?" What what, I thought. Something is not right about this conversation.
"Is she a patient?"
"No! Anna Nicole Smith." He looked at the other nurses in station. They looked at him and then at me. "Anna Nicole Smith?" one of the offered, "You, know?"
"Um, I guess not. But I'm guessing she was not a patient," I admitted.

They took turns explaining the story behind Anna Nicole Smith. Intriguing, I thought, and said so. None of it sounded even vaguely familiar.

They all said it's ok not to know who she is or was. But I know they were all wondering what planet I live on when I am not at the hospital. Obviously one that does not care about Anna Nicole Smith.

The World Turns

Cultural disaster or turning point that will be noted by hisotrians to come? Perhaps print media has entered its end stage. I'll agree that holding paper in the form of a magazine or book adds a tactile sense to the reading experience. But the newspapers are a hassle and I for one will not mind their extinction.

STOCKHOLM, Sweden - For centuries, readers thumbed through the crackling pages of Sweden's Post-och Inrikes Tidningar newspaper. No longer. The world's oldest paper still in circulation has dropped its paper edition and now exists only in cyberspace.

The newspaper, founded in 1645 by Sweden's Queen Kristina, became a Web-only publication on Jan. 1. It's a fate, many ink-stained writers and readers fear, that may await many of the world's most venerable journals.

Can you spell SPA....................

Welcome back to midwestern winter! Temperatures will not reach above freezing for the next several days. Pinch me, somebody, so I can wake up back in Key Biscayne.

Last week I died and went to the Ritz Hotel on an island off the coast of Florida for four days. In addition to lounging by the waterfall at the pool, I enjoyed the spa amenities. The first thing I noticed is the scent of the entire spa and fitness area. A quick look in the gift shop and the nose found mango candles. Ah ha! The smell of the spa.

Entering through the spa doors, I walked down a long, softly lit, softly carpeted, well appointed hallway, through French doors surrounded by the hint of mango. The door to the women's spa opens into a warmly lit and cozy lounge where each guest is greeted by the hostess who gives you sandals and offers you a key to a locker. I thought the lounge was cool enough just to stay right there! An inviting couch, magazines, botanical prints, live orchids, healthy snacks, water or light cranberry refresher or hot herbal tea whisper, "relax, time has stopped, be here, be you , be now." Filled with an other worldly Zen-like transcendental peace I sipped my lemon water, slipped into the spa slippers, and floated through the next door to the locker area, which is nicer than most people's bedrooms. Much!

I changed into my silky robe with terry lining and ascended into the mango scented spa area. First, the steam room, then more water, then the jacuzzi, then more water and five minutes of sinking my body into the cushions of the wicker chair. Ready set go...into the sauna. Ah, but I brought with me a fluffy washcloth, folded and chilled in cucumber water to place on my eyes.

How can I recreate this in my own bathroom? I wondered. Well, the sauna and steam rooom will take a major rehab. But the mango scent and soft lighting, cucumber towels and robe are an easy addition to any home. Chilled lemon water with a splash of cranberry can be stored in the fridge for spa day.

The locker room [really far to harsh a description for the lovely environment] was complete with hair products, disposable razors for the shower, lotions, conditioners, body gel soap, and personal hygiene products. Silly me; I brought from home in my 1 quart zip locked baggy for the plane all those personl items! Who knew? The spa also offered the hair dryer and the flat iron and the curling iron and the hot rollers. And more fresh soft white towels than Macy's.

I found mango tea candles at the Fairchild Tropical Botanical Garden.
First step to home spa accomplished!

For years I've kept potpourri in a Lenox bone china bowl that I bought for nothing at a flea market in Paducah or somewhere. It's filled with water, now, waiting for ice, cucumber slices, and water to soak the hand towels in. I noticed the hotel room bathroom had a lovely silver tray that held the shampoo and lotion. Finally, an everyday use for the wedding gifts of silver bowls, trays that have slept for years in the dining room hutch. And orchids! Don't forget the orchids. I've killed two in the last two years. Better to buy artificial ones in pots that last forever and look more real and never drop their leaves. Every bathroom needs an orchid.

The memory of the Ritz spa is etched in my mind. Each pore and cell of my body remembers the creature comforts of the otherwordly environment. May be a slight problem in creating the time I'll need to lock myself in the bathroom at home and light the tea candles.


Next post: I hope I'll have photos downloaded and ready to share.

Puttin' On the Ritz

Run along the island shore. Soak up the early morning sunshine. Lunch on the beach. Fun in the sun. Relax poolside. Mild Florida winter temps. Fresh seafood, vegetables, prepared by the french chef. Tomorrow replay the whole day.

Relatively speaking---

I want a president with good judgement. The president doesn't have to have be the smartest person on the planet because the president has a steady stream of advisors with lots of information, numbers, and plans. The president needs to have good judgement in order to sift through all the muck and make the right choice.

Has Hillary Clinton forgotten that we all know she married Bill Clinton? That does not show good judgement. And we remember his presidency and the endless stream of media attention that distracted from governing our nation with reagrd to his sexual exploits. Definitely a lack of good judgement in the whole family.

Is it too much to ask that we have a choice to elect someone who is not related to anyone who has ever been president? I'm tired of Kennedy relations, Bush relations, and Clinton relations. I think I might be tired of Arkansas, Texas, and the North Eastern states, as well. Californian is a weary topic, too. Maybe Indiana or Illinois or Kansas are states that breed people who have good judgement and have no genetic relation to anyone who has ever been president. We can only hope.

Another Shade of Pale: the Other White Meat

I think I'll pass on those juicy BBQ ribs. After reading the Smithfield article my taste buds are still numb. I didn't need the photo they show, either.

I hear Australian cattle ranchers give red wine to their beefy herd. If red wine tastes good with a steak, they thought WHY not go double or nothing. Like free range chickens, these will be HAPPY cows.

[via: Boing site; Mirabilis, respectively]

Don't Delay Happiness

Reliving childhood memories is sweet. Here's a clip from a movie I watched over and over and over as a child. Shirley's feet barely move. I thought she was always dancing.

this post has been edited to direct you to a new ST movie

Hello Mudder,

These are photos taken with the new camera, explained below. But FIRST!!!

Everyone say hello to Muzzy. C'mon. Just click on "comment" below. Muzzy has found this blog and enjoys reading it. She says I should write a book. As long as I don't write it about her--but she didn't say that! To see the comments, Mum, just click on comments and they should pop up. To add your own, follow the directions.

I have a new camera. A Fujifilm V10. There is nearly NO delay time when you snap a photo. Here's a sample of the first pictures. The new foosball table is awesome. The little winter village is quaint, and that is the Great Wall of China behind the houses. Nice effect.

I can't wait to go out and take s'more pictures. The old digital Kodak is finding a new home with a graduate art student in Minneapolis. The fuji V10 has a 3" display screen--that's the same size as the camera itself. It's just the size of a a deck of cards. The Cnet link is a keeper; they review all kinds of stuff. Aaaaanyway, the V10 only has x3 zoom and I wanted x6 or more, but those are pricey and large. So, I went for FAST, excellent photos, and orange. Mine's orange. Nice.

Just When...

Just when I've figured out most of the idiosyncracies of Blogger and posting, they invite me to RE-up with the NEW and IMPROVED version. One click and they do all the work. I'm looking for differences on this build a post menu....no, don't see any. Looks the same. Well, now, there's a post options icon to click on which allows or disallows backlinks and comments. Ok. And a place to change the date and time. A place for labeling the post--in addition to the title.

I'll check the template.

What's Next? St. Oscar (Wilde)?

I hear Catholics warning others about one author or another, some condemned by the church or some who have written things opposed to Church teaching. Take for example Fr. Anthony DeMellow S.J., whose books and lectures were banned from local Catholic bookstores a few years ago. Too Eastern in his thought, the Vatican judged.

What about the "poet, playwright, gay icon and deathbed convert to Catholicism," who " has been paid a rare tribute by the Vatican"?

"Wilde [as in Oscar] (1854-1900) had long been regarded with distaste by the Vatican — a dissolute and disgraced homosexual who was sentenced for acts of gross indecency over his relationship with Lord Alfred Douglas." And now, one of the pope's closest aids has included quotations from Wilde in a new book. "Father Sapienza said that he had devoted the lion’s share of Provocations: Aphorisms for an Anti-conformist Christianity to Wilde because he was a 'writer who lived perilously and somewhat scandalously but who has left us some razor-sharp maxims with a moral.'"

In contrast, the congragation for the Doctrine of the Faith condemned Fr. DeMello, stating, "But already in certain passages in these early works and to a greater degree in his later publications, one notices a progressive distancing from the essential contents of the Christian faith."

The final statement of the documet regarding Fr. De Mello warns: "With the present Notification, in order to protect the good of the Christian faithful, this Congregation declares that the above-mentioned positions are incompatible with the Catholic faith and can cause grave harm." Have they read Fr. Sapienza's new book? Have they read any biography of Oscar Wilde?

Mr. Wilde was, however, not a Jesuit. And we all know how dangerous those Ignation warriors can be. While the Church later lifted the ban on Fr. De Mello's work, they did issue a word of caution to readers who may not understand the full context of his lectures and teachings. And now they have lightened their opinion of dear Oscar, a gay rascal, albeit a deathbed Catholic.