Cute!

Rush on Sarah's Resignation - "It's All Speculation"

Brian Maloney, the Radio Equalizer, caught up with Rush to get his thoughts on Sarah Palin's decision to step down as Governor of Alaska.

(h/t: Kathy Shaidle)

And to my American friends...

Happy 4th of July!

I found this cute image at deltanewsweb.com

And before I forget...

... Happy Canada Day!

The Shack, Michael Jackson, and other things

We finally got a copy of The Shack (by William Paul Young) from our local library! I've started reading it, and will write more about it later.

I haven't had any energy for blogging lately, even though there's so much I could've written about: the Sri Lankan protests in Toronto, the protests in Iran, the murder of poor Neda, various celebrities passing on...

Right now, I'm trying to be proactive in fighting against headaches, insomnia, and my tendency towards depression, by doing the following:

- daily exercise
- eating healthy food
- taking vitamin supplements
- going to bed earlier during the week
- cutting down on caffeine
- improving my spiritual life

I'm also grateful to good ol' Rush Limbaugh for smacking down those who claim to have absolute knowledge that Michael Jackson did bad things to children: Please read this and this.

For me, Michael peaked with his Off the Wall album, released in 1979. I also saw him and his brothers in concert in Toronto, in 1981 (I think). As someone who grew up listening to a lot of pop music, I really enjoyed Michael Jackson's musical talent in my earlier years. Jackson music was often playing in the background during fun times I had growing up. I could've done without the crotch-grabbing that he incorporated into his dancing in later years, and I felt sad about his excessive plastic surgeries - I often wondered if someone close to him ever said to him, "Hey Michael, this is a bad idea - don't do this!"

The news of his death was a shock - I took a while to write anything about it on my blog, because I was embarrassed to admit just how much pop music and pop culture had been part of my earlier life, but the truth is I am sad about Michael Jackson's death, and in many ways, I'm also sad about his life.

For the last few days, a number of folks have been upset that MJ's death is being given more news coverage than other important events. Others have even referred to MJ as "a pedophile" and "a sick predator". I was disappointed to see that some of the folks using these terms were conservatives. Then, I read what Rush had to say (see earlier links) and my faith was restored - the King of Conservatives did not let me down!

I pray Michael's soul is now singing and dancing in God's mercy and peace.

Farrah Fawcett Received Last Rites

A Catholic priest was summoned to administer the Last Rites to Farrah Fawcett before she passed away.

May her soul rest in peace...

Goodbye, Michael...

Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus

Lord Jesus, let my heart never rest until it finds You, who are its center, its love, and its happiness. By the wound in Your heart, pardon the sins that I have committed whether out of malice or out of evil desires. Place my weak heart in Your own divine Heart, continually under Your protection and guidance, so that I may persevere in doing good and in fleeing evil until my last breath. Amen.
St. Margaret Mary Alacoque

The Stoning of Soraya M.

My Favourite Atheist

This evening I heard Camille Paglia speak at the Royal Ontario Museum. The Dead Sea Scrolls will soon be on display at the ROM, and Camille's talk was the final segment of a three part Signature Series, a preamble to the Scrolls display. Her topic was "Hollywood and the Bible".

I like Camille Paglia because, although she's a social commentator who frequently discusses politics, she's more interested in Truth than she is in politics. Although she's an atheist, she sincerely respects those who believe in God, and she sees how vitally important religion is to society and culture. Although she has sometimes described herself as "openly lesbian", she respects the beliefs and freedom of those with same-sex attraction who choose not to build an identity around homosexuality.

Camille shared that her Italian-Catholic upbringing is deeply ingrained in her psyche. It comes through in many ways, and I enjoyed her passionate story-telling this evening and her enthusiasm about her topic. I especially enjoyed the selected clips from The Ten Commandments, along with her commentary. Some elements of her talk even seemed prophetic to me.

There's so much more I could say, but it's getting late and I have work tomorrow. Anyway, I'm grateful for an interesting evening - thank you, Camille, and thank you, God! :)