Just in the Nick of Time

This evening, just before 7:00 PM, my family and I arrived at Ocean Beach Park in New London, CT to enjoy the final Wednesday night magic show of the season.  The featured magician was Zach Ivins, the son of my dear friend, Koalagirl.  He is quite the talented young man, excelling at magic, musical theater, acting, etc.  He and several other young magicians were recently featured in a documentary about Tannen's Magic Camp, a weeklong summer experi
ence that gave rise to the likes of David Blaine and others.  Zach has attended for a number of years and thoroughly enjoys his time there.  In fact, his mother has been known to say that Tannen's is home for Zach and he merely visits with his family the other 51 weeks of the year.

This summer, after magic camp, Zach took a job in upstate New York, teaching at a performing arts camp known as French Woods Festival.  He has been there for a week or so and came back especially to do the show this evening.  It was a pretty big gamble as thunderstorms were threatening the entire day.  Thank goodness they held off until the end of the performance, just until the end.  It was a rush to get all the props and equipment loaded as a full-on downpour swept over the park just before 8:00 PM.  The rain was so heavy that it caused us to traverse partially flooded streets all the way home.  But the trip was worth it.  Zach put on another great show that the audience loved. I can't wait to see what he has up his sleeve for next year.

The Sacrament of Penance (Part 1)

A few days ago, I started looking at "The Sacrament of Penance," written in 1519.  Wow, what an education for a cradle Lutheran!  I never knew, for example, that Luther considered penance to be a sacrament.  Apparently, he did, although he eventually abandoned the idea in favor of just Baptism and Communion, the two sacraments that are used in the Lutheran Church today.  Frankly, whether or not Luther thought of penance as a sacrament isn't of much concern to me as a layperson.  What he had to say about faith as regards sacrament really hit home and made sense to me.  Read more.

A Wrap-Up on Fermata

Now that we are approaching fall, one of the busiest times of the year here on Gooseberry Lane, I was thinking back on the beginning of 2012 and realized that I didn't give a final wrap-up on Fermata, my twelve-year-old tuxedo cat who suffered suppurative lymphadenitis this past winter.  As you can see from the photo (taken with his brother, Chopin;  Fermata is the one on the right), my baby is looking good.  He has regained all his weight and is on methimazole, an anti-thyroid medication, twice a day.  He still prefers the Science Diet Adult Light dry food, something I will work to replace with wet food at some point.  One interesting remnant of the social time that was built in to the feeding tube routine:  Fermata doesn't finish all his dry food anymore.  He leaves some that he then likes to eat from my hand.  I don't mind.  It is only about a teaspoon and it takes just moments, really.  I have the time and am pleased that Fermata still wants to hang out with "Mom."  I'm not sure how the hand feeding thing will go over with the cat sitter, though, the next time I go on vacation.

Note:  No compensation was received for any recommendations or referrals made in this post.

Reflections on a Window at St. Mary's

Hiding in a rear corner pew on the right side of the sanctuary, I am enjoying the light as it streams in through the gorgeous stained glass windows, twilight drawing ever nearer as I watch.  It isn't very often that I find myself in a church this time of day.  Summertime services are almost always held indoors during the brightest part of the day so parishioners can find some respite from the seasonal head or outdoors in the evening where the refreshing sea breeze that graces the Connecticut shoreline can provide some much needed relief from the high temperatures and humidity, especially in August.  Read more.