m3rr'/ cI-Ir15m45! (Merry Christmas!)

a collaborative effort of Fred-sensei and Obsessive Pianist over at Central.
Merry Christmas everybody!

as the days approach

It really kicked in this past weekend. Before, I was just going through the motions. But now I'm properly mooded for Christmas. I think the big thing that happened was the inclusion of a guest to the rectory. One of the seminarians (the one who had this Parish last year), was invited by my pastor to come and stay in Cove for a while after the semester ended. The difference of having a guest in the house is quite noticeable and, for me, quite enjoyable. It is wonderful to have a peer to sit with, share a meal, and chat.

So, as it turns out, I cannot blame it on getting old, mature, large of foot, or small of heart. For me, the transition seems to happen when "vacation" begins and guests are welcomed home.

With any luck, I shall have a christmas themed drawing to post soon, maybe something to add to my Christmas card this year.

the Lord is near

frigid temperature, frigid temperment

pic by StudioQube at DeviantArt

We had a lovely Christmas Tree blessing and lighting ceremony last night. All the kids came over after their RE classes and many others from the parish came just to enjoy some cookies and cocoa, sing some carols, and, of course, put an ornament on our newly blessed and lit tree. Also, because it was the eve of St Lucy's day, St Lucy (bedecked in her traditional robe, sash, and crown with candles. very cute.) came to join us and help us celebrate. Seeing as her name means "light" (Latin, Lux/"Lucy" = light) it was very appropriate to have her plug in the tree lights. All in all, it was good, fitting, and right.

It was also cold.

That's really what this post is about. It was cold last night. As I was preparing to go outside, someone asked, "do you have a bigger coat? You might get cold." I was quick to respond that I did have another coat, and, not to worry, I was planning on wearing both of them. I am quite familiar with joy-sapping weather that sends your whole body into violent shivers in an attempte to create vital heat only to be brushed away by every slight and icy breeze.

As I stepped out into the frigid drizzle that overshadowed this evening, I smiled an ironic smile. Besides the holy hymns, they also sang the secular songs of the season--I remember specifically Jingle bells--and I realized that some twisted mind must actually enjoy the winter so much as to write a song about it. And not just any song, but a happy, upbeat, catchy, addictive song. There is an 3vi1 (evil) at work here.

And now you will see why I added that lovely picture at the top of my post. Besides being a lovely piece of art (disclaimer: not mine. I lie in bed dreaming of being half that good of an artist), it catches a lovely sentiment: watching the snow from behind a window. Notice, she even has a mug next to her with a hot drink, a little something to warm body and soul. It's the best of both worlds. You get to enjoy the beauty of the snow AND the lovely warm feeling of...being warm. It's kind of like singing "Let it snow" in Texas. You can enjoy the song with no fear that the weather might actually obey your lyrical commands.

The clouds have passed today and out my office window I see the morning star sharing his light and brilliance, his energy and warmth with every inch of the broad Texas sky. I hear that Oklahoma got pummeled by an ice storm and that this week the Northeast is entertaining some blizzards. You know, there isn't hardly a done goes by I can't find another reason why I'm glad God brought me to Texas.

the feel of the season

Is it really December? I don't know whether this is an effect of me getting older/more mature (a questionable proposition from the get-go) or if it's just because I'm in a different environment. Or maybe my shoes are too tight, or my heart is three sizes too small. Whatever the reason(s), I hardly feel like it is Christmas time.
I guess I'm waiting for the Traditions, like setting up the tree and spending two days baking cookies and listening to Kevin play Mannheim Steamroller Christmas on the piano. Without these...how does one know that it is really happening? My brain knows that it is Dec 10, my body knows that it is cold again, but my affections refuse to attach themselves to this unfamiliar soil.
I think I need to buy Christmas lights to hang in my room.

It's easy to be a celebrity in a small town

(excerpt taken from the Cove Herald, here is the full article)
For parade participants, the competition for the best float can get heated. At Holy Family Catholic Church, who took home the prizes for best overall and best themed entry in 2006, the float remains a top secret project until revealed the day of the parade. The entry is designed by church member Darlene Ryan and built by Jason Santos over the course of two weeks
“I think it’s fabulous that it’s a competition because it bring it up to a higher level. I think everybody else will try harder to put a good float together,” said Karin Kennedy, business administrator for the Holy Family Catholic Church.

But while only one float can take home the prize, participants and spectators alike agree that the parade unites the community in the spirit of Christmas.

“It gives them a break from the shopping,” Kennedy said. “Shop, shop, shop, which seems to be on everybody’s mind, which is not what Christmas is about.”

“This is part of the celebration of the birth of Christ,” added seminarian Matthew Kinney with the Holy Family Catholic Church. “The fact that we’re taking the time to get involved with this is just our way of participating in the larger celebration and the joy to the world that Christ brings.”

"anything to shoot at yet?"

In order to keep my level 4 fanboy status, today we have the mandatory unscheduled MT update.
Great Teacher Largo and Jeff-san are of similar mind (suprise me!) in the latest page: both have gone on a sort of vacation till the "boring story cr4p" is over and t3h b34tzd0wn begins. Well my action-oriented friends, "itz 5howtim3"!
p.s.--Congrats to Fred-sensei on the realization of his paternal potential! Welcome baby J!

lotsa liturgy

A musician working at a parish can be a lucrative combination...especially when you get swamped with funerals and weddings. How many other people can double their monthly earnings in a span of five days?
Alright fine, that probably says more about my monthly income than about my demand as a musician.
Since I've been here at my assignment, I've been quickly bumped to everyone's "A List" musician for these special liturgies. Part to do with my availability ("can you say 'always'?"), part to do with my abilities as both singer and accompanist (only one check that way), part to do with my smooth tones (yes, people compliment my voice), and also because I'm not old and grumpy and inflexible...yet. But if one more person asks me if I can play "When I get where I'm Going" during the funeral mass, I just might become rather grumpy and/or inflexible. Stupid Brad Paisley.
Because besides the wedding last Sat, another this Sat, the 3 funerals this week, the five baptisms that I didn't attend, and the one baptism I did, the Deacon is out of town to visit family, so the communion services (Mon and Tue) fell to me. Some weeks are busy with teaching/preaching. This week has been my special liturgy week. I would feel overwhelmed if the two overlapped, but right now it's not too busy (it can't be, if I have enough time to write a blog post.)

In other news, I finished Season 1 of Heroes. I have to say, I really like the series. There were several "ohdudethatwassooooCool!" moments that just really made the whole thing worthwhile. And they usually dealt with the suspense and mysterious elements surprisingly well (Season 2 is delinquent in that regard). The ending was a little anticlimactic for me. "How do you stop an exploding man?" Well, off the top of my head I can come up with several ideas that don't involve murder...Claire has experience in that area actually. Peter needed to jsut stop and think about that one for a second.
I'm still drafting together my list of superhero traits from the series to compare and contrast it with other superhero worlds. Trait #1: no costumes or masks (awww!). Trait #2: no sidekicks (except Ando), and almost no consistent cooperation (i.e. superhero 'teams'). Trait #3: very international/multicultural group (kinda reminds me of seminary).

If I don't get to it later this week, Happy Thanksgiving! I've been saying in my homilies all week that people should be thankful for Religious Freedom. It is definitely on my Top Ten list of things I'm thankful for; probably on my Top 5. What are you Thankful for?
Cheers!

Villain or Valor? Voicing varied votes; vying for validation

Domenicus, myself and Alex (Dom's classmate) went through a trio of movies recently (not all on the same day). I brought "V for Vendetta", Alex hosted a veiwing of "Kill Bill", and Domenicus showed "Hot Fuzz". There were vying opinions and friendly debates following each of the screenings, usually ending with Alex and I at some sort of a dealock on some aesthetic or philosophical matter. Suprisingly, Domenicus took a diplomatically neutral stance.

I had heard enough about Kill Bill to keep me curious. There were some bits of the series that were clever, but I still don't see what the draw is--I certainly didn't "get it." A story of hot blooded revenge that I just couldn't warm up to.

Oddly enough, I thought that I would hate "V" for the same reason. The trailers for the movie were enough to turn me off. I happened to watch part of it at school once, and I found out that I was wrong to judge the proverbial book by its cover. I have seen it now 2 1/2 times, and would probably be up for seeing it again. (Warning, mild spoilers ahead)

The discussion following "V" focused on the not-so-subtle political and moral agenda that "V" was promoting. Alex and Domenicus were quite thorough and merciless in their philosophical dissection, revealing him as a consequentialist who justified murder, torture, and political agitation yet didn’t even have the courage to live in the world that he wanted to create. Evee was similarly dismissed for her sympathies and involvement in his plans. We also noticed the negative overtones in reference to Christianity, and sympathies toward the homosexual minorities.

Yet…I still like the movie. At the time, I couldn’t voice exactly what it was about “V” that impressed me. I certainly don’t dispute any of the points given above. They are quite solidly reasoned. (These same points were not, however, so forcefully emphasized towards Kill Bill, and I found every character in that movie to be more despicable than “V”.)

I think that my affection for “V” bypasses his fundamental moral flaws and rests on his careful understanding of Drama and Truth. One quote: “a poet uses lies to tell the truth; a politician uses them to hide it.” V sees himself as the poet. And what is a poet? It is perhaps a poetic definition, but one could say that a poet strings together images to communicate his message.

This is exactly what V does. He organizes his drama, assigns each man his part, and even writes himself into the play—a tragic hero. He may not be a good moralist nor a good politician, but he is an astounding director. He’s got style, and he sees that his abilities as an artist can change the world.

I am a performer. I appreciate a well crafted show and give respect to a man who realizes the power of words and signs. V has his flaws, but certainly we should not refuse gold from Egypt.

Visions and voices of Vendetta verily vivified in video, inviting a revival of valorous voices: Viva “V”!

Goings on

It has been a long time since I gave any sort of a personal update--or very much text at all. Of late, pictures have dominated the digital scene. Someone once said that a picture speaks a thousand words. I'm inclinded to chalk that up as poetic exageration. Though on the chance that it is true, I beleive that I have overcome Myth on her word-count (last posted word count: 5,013).
It is not like I have given up on writing. My obsession with words, whether written or accomianed by the sound of my own voice, has not lessened since my assignment. But I do have new outlets. I have found myself doing quite a bit in the realm of teaching/preaching at my parish--a job to my liking. I suppose that fulfilling my duties toward parishioners has left me with less enthusiasm to employ my skills upon my blog. That and the fact that most of my readers are people that I am in contact with on a regular basis anyway. It is redundant to repeat things repeatedly. ;-)
Still, given the option, I should hate for my blog to fall into disuse; it has been and good and useful friend these past months. How best to employ a blog? A question to ponder.

At least I can mention that I have now reached approximately 2 months at my parish, and things are going well. I am kept occupied, it is progressively getting busier. I stick to the office most of the day, usually have a meeitng in the evening, and I have been traveling every one of my days off (either to Austin, Dallas or Houston). Not that my life is hectic--thankfully, it is not that busy--but I rely heavily on my calendar to organize all the different responsibilities from several different quarters. It is a new rhythm of life for me, but I think I'm adapting well. This whole parish thing seems to fit pretty well for me. Soon it shall be Advent and Christmas, and things will become busier yet. All the parties, the preparations, the liturgies, the presents, the music--sometimes being at the parish is little different from being at home: same activities, but just on a bigger scale.
I think I shall post again soon. Domenic, Alex and I have had an interesting series of moives each followed by discussions of comprable interest. Perhaps next post we'll talk a bit about "V for Vendetta."

Like Home, pg 6

Oni-Con

Well, it was a mixed weekend. Due to an unfortunate series of circumstances, the contingency from Univ. Dallas couldn't make it, which left Domenicus and myself on our own for the weekend. Dom and I can fend for ourselves pretty well, so I think we made good on the situation enjoying such diversions as Hot Fuzz, Kill Bill, a large homecooked meal celebrating the Canadian Martyrs, Soul Caliber, and, as the pics would indicate, Oni-Con.
It is customary to attend these conferences in the costume of some favorite comic/anime character. I came as "Junpei", the l33t ninj4, and Domenicus as "Dom", the Evil Sega hitman (as a side note, when describing Dom's character, the real Dom remarked how "I want a job like that." The resemblances were alarming enough without that comment...)
The pictures didn't come out too good, and I wimped out at the last moment before actually coloring my hair (black, with red streaks). All things considered, I think Dom's costume was more successful, not to mention cheeper. Oh well, maybe more luck for me another occasion. Sadly, I found only one other visible Megatokyo fan, a middle aged man who was wearing a Megatokyo t-shirt--no costume.
But the rest of the conference was filled with a huge number of amazing costumes. Possible 80% of the attendees were cosplaying, some of them with alarmingly accurate costumes like Fuu (Samurai Champloo), Vash (Trigun), the hero from Halo, Nightmare (Soul Caliber), Jet (Cowboy Bebop), and what seemed to me as enough cosplayers to fill the play the entire cast of Bleach (yeah, wow. there were a lot of Bleach cosplayers.)
In the end, I have to say that the costumes were fun to make and to wear, and it is my opinion there should be more costumes parties in this world.

because everybody loves a ninj4

my brother did a pretty good job on this one, and right now I can use it for some inspiration...

it was a zombie jamboree

Jeff-san should be pleased now that the undead horde has finally made a definitive reappearance in MT, linked to, but I believe firmly distinguished from, the Otaku FanBoys. And thatnks to Boo's encouragement, I'm rather expecting Largo and Junpei to be arriving soon for some b34tzd0wn 71m3! (aggressive reinforcements)
p.s. I love the vaguely Tolkien reference in the title for today's page: "frying pan"

This could be the beginning of a beautiful freindship

It's probably no surprise that Theme of the Creator's Music has become the home of my fun and artistic projects--participating in my Master's creativity, you know. My most enduring obsession has been Comicing (if that is not a word, then I just created a word. oh yeah. it's my blog; I can do that.) And, continuing to imitate the Grand Exemplar, I have elected some to participate in my sub-creations.
The following is an example of such collaboration. My brother, Obsessive Pianist (aka Kokku-kun... umm, yeah. he needs a better name. but that's not my department.), has taken up the noble art of coloring pictures. See? I drew the picture, and he added all the color stuff. Yeah, I know; it's pretty cheesy--but this is just the beginning! We are making great strides. Even just last week we researched a system that radically changed the way we deal with the whole coloring process and allows for more detail with less work. Everything indicates that we shall progress in perfection of our individual and combined virtue in comicing. In fact, there is strong precedence that it will not take too long before ni-san proves his M4|] 5k11z (talents) as superior to my own. (I'm thinking now of the whole story of us and the piano.)
In case you are curious, his name is Aeneas, and I designed him with Domenicus rather strongly in mind.
Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam!

|\|1f7E g4J37z (nifty gadgets)

I know that many of you have found the practicality, elegance, and downright awesomeness of iGoogle's personalized homepage and it's plethora of gadgets for any and every little online whim you may have.
Well, up till recently, I had an unfulfilled online whim: Google Talk Chat rooms. I said goodbye to AIM a long time ago, and with it I lost my chat rooms. Google talk was more convenient (and so much more discrete when chatting at work) that it was worth not having the chat rooms.
But now! I just noticed that if you use the Google Chat Gadget on you iGoogle homepage, there is a little tab that says "group chat." Yes! best of both worlds! we are back on game! (so install the gadget on your homepage already!)

Little things like this make me happy.

Diverting Picture Day (DPD)

Been messing around with color and color pencils. This is a half decent peice that I ended up with. The nice thing about it is that it is a shot of Rin, so you finally get to see her in technicolor. I'll have to do a DPD Jamie later.

lovin' it in Copperas Cove

Aquinas, my laptop, is contentedly humming in the background as I fall backwards onto the soft coverlets and mattress of my double bed and, as I lie there, I feel an encompassing sense of satisfaction, of rightness with God and creation, like the sweet blending harmonies of a song. The desk and its appropriate electronic occupants are nearly the last of my things to be given their proper place—not because of my lake of esteem, but because the former occupant of the room had no such items and I’ve had to, umm, appropriate the necessary furnishings from various places around the rectory and parish. Soon I shall hang my corkboard pictureboard and my megatokyo.n173z poster and all shall be finished.

My satisfaction does not flow only from my room having nearly achieved is proper technological feng shui. Providence sent me to a lovely parish in a rather unassuming quarter of the diocese. If you didn’t know yet, I’ve just begun my internship year at the parish here in Copperas Cove. It’s been only four days, but my initial impressions are good. The living conditions are nice, I have full authority in the kitchen (my pastor doesn’t know how to boil water and, so far, considers my talent in cooking my primary asset to the parish. sheesh.) The people are friendly, the staff is considerate and welcoming, the Church and grounds are highly functional (though not really beautiful), the town is small, quaint, and close enough to a highway that I’m still in touch with civilization, and they have 24 hour adoration.

But beyond all of that, there is a stronger resonance. This is what I have been training for all these years. As I start filling my calendar (a process that will happen in a hurry, I assure you), I think to myself “wow, I can’t wait to do all of these things!” I sit in Adoration enjoying a consolation that I’ve not known for at least two years now. I’m sure the euphoria will wear off with time, but for now I can hear the first notes of a theme of music—a new motif that will eventually come to dominate the rhapsody of my life. And from what I’m hearing, I like it. Deo gratias!

I’m going to be sending out my new contact info real soon. Look on the normal channels (email, facebook, etc) but if I miss anybody, let me know and I’ll get on it. Also my internet access is through my office computer, not with Aquinas. If you want to tag me online, try during the daytime.

Gaudium Domini vobiscum

Return of the L33t Master

hehehe, this is fun.

Like Home, pg 5--v2.0

Like Home, pg 5

Like Home, pg 4

St Domenic's feast

Blessed namesake day to Domenicus and baby Dominic

Prayer to Saint Dominic

God of Truth you gave your church a new light in the life and preaching of our Father Dominic. Give us the help we need to support our preaching by holy and simple lives. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, God, forever and ever. Amen.

two things

Well, this will be short, but I've got two things to throw out for ya'll.

First, my nephew decided he was ready to burst upon the world 11:30 on Sunday night. Yeah! I got to see our little Domenic (love the name. good strong name.) yesterday, and he is perfect, simply perfect. So congrats to J&R !

Second, the rectory that I'm staying at has rather abruptly terminated the internet service that, hitherto, I had been, umm, borrowing. Whether I'm justified in complaining about losing an internet service I wasn't paying for aside, I am now in the position of non-internet accessibility for most of the time. I'll still be able to cover the essentials by borrowing a computer at work, but don't expect too much. As always, I have my cell phone which is a l3553r l33t (not as technologically advanced item) but is still highly functional.

Adieu!

Like Home, pg 3

Like Home, pg 2

Not as valuable as a black pearl, but far more intersting than a dead man's chest

I have a theory about Hero Stories that has become in many ways the interpretive key I use to unlock the layers of meaning within stories and movies. This theory is best applied to superhero and fantasy stories. Pirates is not quite either of those genres, but I would argue that the extensive use of magic, the paranormal, mythology, and superhuman abilities places us very near to fantasy—near enough for my purposes.

In short, my hero theory runs as such: when an author writes or draws a superhero, he has limitless options on what this hero will look like and what his superpowers will be. Consciously or unconsciously, this hero reflects the inner ideals of the author. Whatever the author thinks is the most important virtues, ideals, elements, cultural and political agendas, etc, will all come out in the way he creates his hero. The same applies, inverted, to the arch-villain. In fact, if the author is inspired and thoughtful, the same sort of logic can be applied to all sorts of images and characters throughout the story.

OK, theory posited; let me use an example to make it more understandable.

Superman is a hero born during WWII. He is the “man of steel” whose suit sports some distinctly American color schemes (red, blue, and yellow substituting for the white). He is compared to technology: faster than a speeding bullet, stronger than a steam locomotive, can leap over tall buildings in a single bound. He is an absolute loner who fights evil for completely altruistic motives. He is Caucasian and physically flawless. Superman is a rich character, so these are only some surface details, but it is enough for exemplary purposes. He is a self made man, strong, independent, fighting for freedom, a “doer” and not a thinker. His biggest dilemmas are not about “what is right?” but “how can save everyone with my super strength?” In short, Superman is the American ideal put into ink and paper.

Decades later a new generation of superheroes arise: the X-men. These are not clean, perfect, altruistic heroes. No longer superior to technology, they are genetic mutants whose superpowers cast them to the fringe of society. They are flawed, persecuted, divided and struggling. Unlike Superman, they are much more vulnerable. They are centered around a “university” with Professor X as their ad hoc leader. I don’t claim to be an expert in X-men, but I think the shift here is very noticeable—and I argue that it is a cultural shift. This is the difference of American culture between the 40s and the 70s. Authors coming from different points of view create different heroes to personify their ideals.

And so, with that extensive, but necessary, prologue, I am now ready to turn my attention to the World’s End and hang out with some pirates.

First of all, let’s look at our pirate heroes. Why pirates? Pirates are, by definition, thieves. How does a pirate become a hero? Permit me to quote an elegant explanation given in another classic pirate movie:

"Now take Sir Francis Drake, the Spanish all despise him

But to the British he’s a hero, and they idolize him

It’s how you look at buccaneers that make them bad or good

And I see us as members of a noble brotherhood!”

--Long John Silver, “Muppet Treasure Island”

Compared to the greedy, stuffed-up, totalitarian, lying, cultural monopolizers (i.e. the British), the pirates are defenders of freedom, liberators of the oppressed minorities, bulwark of cultural diversity, the Robin Hood of the seas, rough and tumble real-world rebels who don’t live by the sterile customs of the British Imperialists. And to reinforce the antagonism, the only time we see our Pirate Heroes steal anything or kill anyone, it is part of the British navy.

What else do we know about our Pirate Heroes?

Pirates are very cosmopolitan and international, embracing all cultures and ways of life.

They are also a strangely mystical group who have a relationship with the nature goddess Calypso. In fact, they ultimately decide to “free” this goddess so that nature will once more have the powers that humans once took from her.

The real enemy is Big Business (the East India Trading Company) which is allied to Government Military (British Navy). This Evil Alliance hires out demonic terrorist death-squads (the Flying Dutchman) to fulfill their malicious goals. Pirates are not evil, they are simply persecuted because they stand up against this Totalitarian Terror.

Pirates do, however, have a great respect for Law, Order, Fair Play and the Democratic process. They end up electing a pirate leader, who, for some reason renounces her feminine title and assents to be called “King” and not “Queen.” (I’ve always felt there was something about feminism that secretly hates being feminine; this little detail only strengthens that theory.)

As you can probably tell, the ideals that the Pirate Heroes stand for are not the necessarily consistent nor virtues that I would endorse. My comic heroes would be differnt--but that is another topic.

Another theme is Betrayal, which is the modus operandi for every character in the film, pirate or not. It shows the effects of selfishness, the need for trust and authenticity in relationships. The lack of trust is the basis for the disunity that also weakens the Pirate alliance. But most of all, I think double-crossing is a plot device to make the most convoluted script possible. Why? Because the first movie had a complicated plot. It seemed full of random twists and turns, but we find out with Will that Jack had this “planned this the whole time.” The third (and second) installments have tried to imitate that unpredictability that made the first Pirates so wonderful, but it is a poorer imitation and lacks proper resolution. Instead of being clever, it is simply confusing.

My favorite line in the movie? When Barbosa said “it’s not about livin’ forever Jack; it is about livin’ with yourself forever” (approx quote). Jack’s Hell in Davy Jones’ Locker was exactly that: he had to live with himself and what he had become. It has some echoes of Dante’s contrapassio, the punishment of forever reliving your sins and their effects. God doesn’t punish you in Hell—you punish yourself…again, and again, and again, and again…and the only reason you can’t leave is because you are too proud to admit that you are wrong. Jack’s Hell and Barbosa’s commentary were possibly the deepest and truest ideas in the movie.

In fine, I enjoyed the movie, especially for it’s action/adventure value. I mean, a movie that starts off with Ninja Pirates—how cool is that?! Pirates III takes us to the Edge of the World—and also reflects our own world back to us, and maybe a glimpse of a world beyond death. Not as good as The Curse of the Black Pearl--but perhaps we will never find two such pearls.

(For an alternate review, see an angel's blog.)

no pirates yet

a whole new subplot possibility: "He's a ninja. She's a gaming accessory. In a society that views them both as disposable, these two will find each each other to be completely necessary." (MTforums 6.13.07)

lol!

Update; yadda-yadda

I'm getting bored of just using my blog to give brief updates on my recent schedule. So let me get it out of the way real fast:
Finished vacation. Got home. Repacked. Moved to my summer residence: St Louis parish rectory, Austin. Work orientation for Hospital Chaplaining. Begin weekend by updating blog.

or something like that,


After finishing what might be described as our first Tour with major stops in Oh and MI, w/out.Alps is going to be using this summer to advance their repertoire to include the early world of Rock & Roll. For me, this is something of a new world. I have eclectic musical tastes. I go Jazz and Swing, I go Celtic and Bluegrass, I do Choral music and Musicals, and it is not uncommon for me to listen to Evanescence or dance techno that features good female voice work. Oldies, for me, is new stuff. I'll claim my ignorance and I freely open the comment board for any ideas on good Oldies that we should check out and maybe use for our band.

Next post: Pirates III--the world's end, or something much closer?

Northward

It sometimes comes as a shock. You have a quiet morning and you decide that you are going to make your on-line rounds before everyone else is awake; whatever your regulars are (email, blogs, facebook, webcomics, Canadian World Domination updates, etc). Everything is going fine, until you notice the date of the last time that you posted anything and then you calculate what todays date is. The distance seems much longer than the number of days you remember enjoying. But then, you did enjoy those days, with all their business and excitement, so, perhaps, as the old saying goes "time flies when you are having fun."

(N.B. the you of the second person pronouns in the previous paragraph was purely a rhetorical device. None of the statements are meant to imply, suggest, or otherwise convict anyone of any general behavioral patterns or particular acts. All of the statements are intended to apply primarily to the author of this blog (except the bit about the frequent visits to the Canadian World Domination site. Crazy Canucks). )

I am right now sitting in my Aunt's living room, enjoying a lovely sunshiney-shiney mornin--in Grand Blanc, MI. I'm on vacation with my family right now, visiting with family and old friends here in the north country. We left...a week ago? A week and a day, since I'm calculating dates. But I honestly have trouble remembering what day of the week it is. The trip has been very good so far. My parents planned the whole thing and I am sort of a last minute tag along. It fit neatly in between Finals and my Hospital Chaplaincy assignment this summer. So far we've stopped in Cincinnati, Youngstown, Pittsburgh, Grand Blanc, Flushing, and tomorrow we go to Ann Arbor, our final stop before we boogie back to Austin.

Highlights? A car trip with my siblings, learning accapella music, dropping by to see Stephenie Seta and her new baby Philomena, jamming music with the Egans, bunking with my littlest brother, drawing pics for Mary Norton, talking music stuff with Uncle Paul, and all the lovely hospitality that we have received all along the way. And although I feel bad that I haven't kept my normal lines of communication active, there is something enjoyable about spending so much uninterrupted time with my truly awesome family and friends.

And, despite my hopes to the contrary, I've had little time for drawing. grr. It takes time to get into the right frame of mind to draw comics, to get myself into the story and the characters again. Time that is otherwise occupied right now...bakara! I'm beginning to whine like Fred-san! I guess I really have taken him as my sensei.

Anyway, people are really starting to get up and that means there will soon be...breakfast! mMm, sVp3r p0w3r+ f00<| ! (Aah, the excellence of a morning meal! a gift of our Creator; a delight of taste and scent; a rush of energy refreshing the body and mind!) Farewell!

Spidie

It is often my custom to post a review of a popular movie that I've seen recently, and Spidie 3 just came out. A noble movie, well worthy of the super hero genre, which I got to watch over the weekend. Sadly, because I'm in the throws of finals, I do not have time for a full review. But if anybody wants to get the ball rolling (in the form of a comment), my blog would be happy to host such a diverting discussion.

Last year a highly inferior flick (Pirates II) spawned a heated debate maxing out at 15 comments. Spiderman deserves at least a fraction of that...

Clear!

Today I got the go-ahead on my plans: Thur-Fri in Galveston! Woo-hoo! I probably won't get there till at least late dinner time (save some food for me!) Thur, but I can stay till late on Fri. Bring a frisbee; bring the doo-wop books.

The only thing between then and now is a test, another test, packing my room, presenting a paper, work order, and, hopefully, enough sleep.

--d'MontfortFan

Fanboys

Some fanboy on the forums took this (from 995) ,

and got this,

: hi piro.
: how did things go between you and nanasawa yesterday?
: she looks like she is worried about something.
: i saw her walk into the coffee shop.
: i got concerned when several people followed her in.
: talk to me, piro. i think this could be serious.

Which tells me a few things. 1) What seemed to be a throw-away with Piro yelling at his screen (991 & 992) is actually foreshadowing and highly connected to another intriguing plot piece. 2) Miho is really creepy. 3) Piro-sensei wasn't exaggerating about the obsessive behavior of fanboys. They are out there; they are organized; they are closer to you than you'd like to admit.

This of course reignites the question of Miho and her motivations. One of the most compelling theories is that she is "playing" with Piro and Largo because they are a the only ones who are a challenge to her. Both Piro and Largo have "beat" her at least once (once in Endgames and once in the Cave of Evil). Now she is playing with them again, but it is no longer a fantasy world: it is real. And she's playing to win. What's more, she seems to be feeding off from their losses. Her actions would then be motivated by pride and envy.

Here's another question: is Dom getting in the way of her game? We already saw how she wasted Ed because he was interfering "yesterday" (MT time), and Ed was heavily armed. But on the other hand, she might just let Dom get involved and try to use that to her advantage. "What to do..." Yes, what to do indeed...

ph34r t3h cU+3 1s (and her outfit today is cute!)

Happy St Joseph's Day

Page 1

Tease

I realized that it has been two months since I posted any pics of my art. Has it really been that long? Amazing how the semester flies by. Anyway, this one turned out pretty good, but it didn't fit into...something. So I figured I'd just post it alone.

If you're a long time fan, she may look familiar (imagine her with red hair). And I did finally decided on a name, and, as it turns out, Angel won. Her name is Rin.

I have now completed my penultimate week of classes. I am happy to report that everything seems to be on schedule, academically speaking. So I've been even been dabbling in something of a social life. Last weekend was highlighted by Domenicus double header: Friday going to see "Guys and Dolls" live at the university and a Sat evening of poetry reading and beer on his balcony.

This week we had a special going away party for the seminarians who are to be ordained this year. There was a nice dinner followed by the traditional "roast" of the 4th year class. The guys that did the Roast was a parody called "Seminarian Idol", letting each of the "contestants" show off their proto-priestly skills in various ministerial situations. It was done exception well and so funny--I have never seen such a successful Roast in my life. Possibly the funniest part was the parody of Jamie Misko, who, I found out this week, has been marked to be the new associate pastor at my home parish in Pflugerville. I always sorta wondered what it would be like if someone I met here at seminary were sent to my home parish. And now it's true...with Jamie. Mmm, oh yeah--this is going to be interesting. St Elizabeth's won't know what hit her.

And speaking about summer assignments, I can mention that I'll be in Austin this summer and next year I'll be at Holy Family Parish in Coperas Cove. Both assignments are as good as I could ask for and I'm looking to the future with high hopes. (Email me if you want my new addresses.)

This weekend should be busy again too. Tonight is a Taize music service, which should be really nice. And tommorow I'm scheduled to go back to see Guys and Dolls again--they did a good job, and Mark wanted to go with me this time. Ok I gotta run to get some lunch.

Pax Christi nobiscum.

Providing an end to that which is not

For those in the habit of noticing absences and observing that-which-is-not, you will have undoubtedly pondered on my blog's recent lack of postage. Although I love my blog and consider it important to update my many fans, I also have a considerable attachment to my grade point average (me and my GPA go way back. She tends to be rather demanding and jealous. We are negotiating some of those issues.)

Anyway, point is this: now is that special time when the sun shines brightly, trees leaf, flowers bloom, and the whole Creation seems to respond in joy to our Lord's victory of life. But there are still some that are dumb and unresponsive to the Easter joy. My body, for example, abruptly decided that the pollen here in Houston is actually a dangerous toxin and left me sick in bed of allegeries for two days.

Also, the professors have this annual ritual of sending us on a type of extended scavenger hunt they call "Research Paper", which involves spending an inordinate amount of time in the library searching obscure words and then spending even more time puzzling how all the words fit together into a predetermined format. The Official Party Line is that these riddling treasure hunts are good for us and they "build character"; the popular conspiracy theory is that they are testing our skills--the weak ones drop out; those that show aptitude, alacrity, and accuracy are punished by being assigned to positions of responsibility; those clever enough to see the trap do the only sensible thing left: procrastinate.

And now you know why I'm updating today.

But on a more positive note, I've been doing a significant amount of prepwork on a creative project that will begin airing on my blog, hopefully, in the near future. I have not forgotten my fans, I'm just in the development stages. Quality work takes time and p0VV3rfu77 ski77z aqw4zi710n (the cultivation of aptitude in one's craft).

And obviously, I never did get that post up about L'Angelus, mostly because I ended up saying most of what I wanted to say to the people I wanted to hear it when I was with them in person over the Easter break. That, and I didn't bring my camera so I don't even have any pics to make it more interesting. It is enough to know that L'Angelus 1z t0+4l r0x3r! (performs completely enjoyable music) and I highly encourage going to their concerts and buying their CD.

Whole again

Today (well yesterday actually, but nobody thought it was important to set out the mail) my new power source arrived and now Aquinas is back up and running. We have been spending some quality time together this afternoon. It's nice to be together again.

As a result from this I, I think I can authentically assure you of some truths: if you are afraid that you might be computer dependent, let me make this easy: you are; if you think you're not computer dependent, let me make this easy: you are. If you are readying this post, then it is too late: you are dependent. If this disturbs you in any way, I suggest that you do some deep soul searching (google might help you here) and try to become united with your inner l33t. Technology gives you superhuman powers, stop whining and start enjoying it.

And if you, like me, are a fan of MT and LoTR, this vid is for you.

I went to an awesome L'Angelus concert yesterday. It's worth a post all on it's own, but that will have to wait for another time. Bon soir!

Magic blue smoke left

I have the unhappy news to report that yesterday afternoon the power adapter on my laptop started overheating, making sparking noises, and smelling of burnt silicon. Although the defective device did not set my room on fire, nor even damage my laptop, I will not have access to that computer until I have a replacement part.

I took the peice to John Kim, our resident computer god, who first remarked about how he loved the smell of burnt silicon (the sign of a true geek if there ever was one) and then helped me find an exact replacement, a process that took him about 5 mins adn woudl have taken me several hours. 4ll h31L t3h c0mpu+3r g0dz!!! The part should arrive in a couple days, maybe a week.

In the meantime I have to take notes by paper and pencil (a truly barbaric and uncivilized process) and you may notice a significant lack of my presence on the normal channels (gchat, email, etc.) Right now I am reduced to making this post from the *twinge of pain* library computer, but at least I can be thankful I don't have to go to that hideous computer lab. The loss of my laptop is profoundly diorienting. It's as if I lost a hand or one of my senses or part of my memory--I am lessened. Part of my soul has fallen into hibernation mode and I cannot awaken it...

Choir concert

My spring semester choir concert is on Sun, April 22 here at the Seminary, in case anybody wants to come. It's an Easter themed concert and we'll be singing, among other things, Thompson's Alleluia.

--deMontfortFan

Megatokyo in color

It all started trying to find a better Largo avatar. But one thing led to another, and next thin g I know, I'm staring at an entire database of MT comics that fans have colored in ("cg" the strip). Really, I can't imagine anyone being so obsessed as to spend that much time playing with Fred Gallagher's work...um, yeah.

I noticed that the database is a little old. Looks like no one has been updating and adding submissions for a couple months. But that does not mean the fans have stopped. If it is an interesting strip, likely someone on the Forums has posted something. The fastest way to find out is a Google search for the strip number's cg.

And to end where I began, I did fine a marvelous Largo pic to work with: t3h 3v1l.

Pax cum vobis.

studying for a Christology midterm...

Theology on Tap

Hypostatic Union of Christ as Related to a Black and Tan(Summary):

I. Jesus: Two Natures
- human
- divine
II. Beer: Two kinds of beer
- Bass
- Guinness
III. One Person
- Jesus of Nazareth
- No division, separation or confusion between natures
IV. One Drink
- Black and Tan
- No division, separation, or confusion between the two beers
V. Distinction is amongst the natures
VI. Distinction among the beers
VII. Each nature is preserved in full in the one Person
VIII. Each beer is preserved in full in the one Drink
IX. The two Natures act together as one, which form Jesus the Christ
X.Two beers act together as one forming the one drink called a Black and Tan.

Courtesy of:

aliveandyoung.blogspot.com

and

Dr J Wilkins

Hot New Release!

All yesterday I was listening to a CD by a hot new band, Without the Alps, in their first album Without the Alps: Live! Although this family band promotes themselves as a jazz group, they also showed themselves competent to move through the popular genres, everything from country to soft rock and oldies.

The lead singer (Mary) shines forth with brilliant and energized performances. Her enthusiasm and virtuosity is matched by both the piano (Kevin) and percussion (Sarah). One brother (Brian) might be called the strings section of the band with his multi-faceted talent in playing guitar, bass, and upright bass, while another sibling (Matt) plays plays even more instruments, though his real talent was as one of the band's lead singers. The newest member of the band (Jeff) appears prominently in his singing role. The two youngest brothers (Andrew and John Paul) steal the stage one with his saxophone debut and the other singing with an off-the-scale 20x cuteness factor.

One of the great joys of this album is the energy surging through these young musicians. Sometimes it seems as though there is too much energy and the music is rushed. We shall see if the subsequent performances tempers the youthful virtuosity with a more measured meter.

The sound technicians and mixers are to be complimented for their talent in preparing a first CD off from a live performance. It is high quality for a home studio production, and they were able to capture some of the live and lively banter of the concert.

The band's next concert will be held on March 17, in Austin. It will be a dance with an evening full of the hits of swing, jazz, and big band, and a bonus set of Irish tunes in honor of St Patrick's day. (Tickets and more information available by leaving a comment or contacting withoutthealps@gmail.com)

L'Angelus in town

March 31- April 1 there is a Bayou City Cajun Festival here in Houston. But the exciting part is that L'Angelus, that crazy cajun family band, will be at the festival. If their schedule is anything like last year, they'll play for a couple hours both days. Besides them, there will be the normal booths, shopping, music, and such that are present at these kind of festivals.

Anyone (read, Mary) interested in coming?

Christian Karma?

"Mardi Gras"
"Fat Tuesday"
"Shrove-tide"

There are many ways to say it, but there is a basic agreement on the proper way to celebrate it: heroic consumption of mass quantities of food, drink, and alcohol.

Once upon a time this feast served a noble and practical service: to clean out the pantries of any food that would spoil during the great fast. For example, if you give up cheese for Lent, you had better eat it now or things will get smelly.

Today there is an occasional Christian who sincerely embarks upon the ritual fasts, but I can nearly assure you that they are not cleaning our their fridge during tonight's eating binge. If I were cynical, which at times I am, I would say that Marti Gras is a feast to counter the fast, an odd Christian celebration of Karma. Of course this pagan notion of Equivalent Exchange is also found in people who think that suffering the pain of hunger tomorrow makes them holy. It doesn't. It just makes them hungry.

As Paul says "the Kingdom of God is not a matter of eating or drinking." For the Christian, fasting and feasting should both point beyond themselves. God does not enjoy us suffering, but he does enjoy us. Lent is our chance to let Him enjoy us and for us to enjoy Him. We normally enjoy God through His many gifts of food, drink, etc.--and it is good, right, and holy so to do. But starting tomorrow, let's take a step beyond the gifts are go straight to the Giver. Then we can celebrate Easter not only because we stop doing our penances, but because of the sheer joy overflowing from a heart in love.

Aspiring Manga-ka

hehehe,

I decided to go ahead and buy the Megatokyo books. Besides being a delightful story, lovable characters, and LOL funny, they are have some fine artwork. Thus, studying at the metaphorical feet of Piro-sensei, my drawing skills are also improving. (Yuki-san should try learning this way. It is way easier than her attempts to get lessons).
Below are two pages that I finished this afternoon. First is a freehand copy out of Megatokyo. "Pirogoeth" is the name of the girl who is glaring back at the character in the foreground. The second pic is a redux of the digital pic (third pic) I took this during the summer . The original sketch is a little old, and some of the faces are not as good as I could do now. Nathaniel is a little disappointing. But Brendan's turned out great. Something about his oh-so-serious face that is just delightful. I really could do a whole series of action comics based on the adventures that those boys have with their costumes. Maybe someday I will.
And now that the Without the Alps t-shirt competition has begun, I have even more motivation to advance in my virtue with pencils.

Comic draft and Year of the Pig

I got access to a scanner today, and I downloaded some of my drawings into digital format. This is one of my best: potentially a cover page for the adventures of Miles Danser and May Price in a Fullmetal Alchemist spin-off.
Other pics may wander up here eventually too. We shall see.

Oh, and Happy New Year to all of you who follow the Asian calender. I know, I know, New Year isn't for a few days yet, but here at the seminary the feast was transfered to tomorrow. In honor of the dawning of the Year of the Pig, we are roasting two of the species and eating them for lunch. We will also have the traditional dancing dragons with the cool drummers and all that fun stuff. There will be Asian music during the mass tomorrow, and I'm very excited because I get to play! I've never played Asian music before, and some of the Vietnamese songs are quite beautiful.

Not a lot, but it's a post

My classes this semester are pretty heavily "front loaded", meaning that there is more work at the beginning and it gets easier later on. I'm getting to the point where my classes are becoming less like standard academic courses and more "practical." Meaning less papers, but more homilies, presentations, etc. It's a nice shift, even if it does mean I'm playing catch-up during the third week of classes.

Last weekend I took a trip down to Austin for the state pro-life Mass and to visit the family. Several of us seminarians got to serve for a big mass with bishops, incense, music, cassocks and miters--the whole Catholic sensory overload. Being "backstage" for a liturgy like that is...interesting. Definitely different from the congregation perspective. The weather that day surprised me--it was wonderful! After the mass I joined the rest of the family at my brother's house for a family party. One highlight was the frisbee game with my siblings. Funness.

I've been half feeling sick today. I don't know if it will get worse or not. Hopefully not. It would really stink to get sick on the weekend not get to miss any classes. I wouldn't surprise me though. The weather has been lousy for a long time and almost everyone on my floor has gotten sick since we started the semester.

Well, it's not a lot, but it's a post. See ya next time!

--d'MontfortFan

Censoring

This probably applies only to the Roth girls, but just so that we're all on the same page here on my page, there are a few rules about "L33t" on my blog.
At first, I was going to just ban it entirely as an abuse of rights against the English language (I'm sure there was clause concerning that in the Geneva Convention). That was before I followed ni-san's link over to MegaTokyo. Wow that stuff is addicting. In respect, therefore, to the Great Largo Sensei, "L33t" shall be allowed, provided that a translation in in non-jargon English is provided.
And if you have know idea what this post is attempting to communicate, it simply means that you have not been infected by this particular intriguing contagion and should have no fear of censorship.

P.S. f34r 3v1l z0mb13z (trans: arrange dutiful precautions against invasions of scary evil. Exploding projectiles are preferred.)

Back

I'm back now. From both trips.

The reatreat finished on Friday morning (a great retreat, by the way) and I then I went to Dallas to visit and help an Angel get into her new apartment at UD. Sadly the trip got cut short and I made a harrowing escape from the city, retreating just ahead of a monstrous ice storm that threatened to immobilize the entire metroplex. By now, I'm sure the winter storm has decended in full and sent those populations into a forced hibernation, but here by the Gulf I'm back to my shortsleves with the weather warning of a couple thunder clouds mvoing into the area. There is a moral to this story:

I love my car.

Good News

What's the good news? Let me count it off:

First, I'm settled here in Houston and things are going well. I hurried back here yesterday to now patiently sit on my duff for three days. I'm still contemplating why we need three days to sit through a hour and a half presentation which I already heard last year. On the other hand, I'm catching up on rest that I missed during the Great Week of Parties, so I guess I can't really complain.

Second, I got accepted to the position at Seton hospital this summer for my CPE. That's the program that I wanted to get into most, so I'm quite happy. I start June 4th, which even gives me a little break in May.

Third, silent retreat begins on Sunday. I will be officially off the map until Friday at noon. You can still leave messages on my cell phone, and Mom and Dad will have the emergency number at the reatreat house. Please pray for us during that time, as we will be returning the favor.

Fourth, I'm still psyched that the parties--especially the New Year's Dance--went so well. We'll glory in the joy of a success for a while, and then we can start planning our next event.

Fifth, two of my Ave Marian cohorts shall soon be joining the ranks of Texan inhabitants: the zealous promoter of my ascension to World Dictator, Domenicus; and the Muse, cause of ideas random and profound, Angelie.

Sixth and finaly, my plants didn't die while I was away on vacation, even through I left them the whole time without watering them. See, not only did I forget to bring them with me, but I even forgot to take them off my window ledge. Sitting on the window ledge they managed to get enough rainwater to survive, I suppose. Lucky little palms.

I'll probably post again after retreat. Maybe I'll have something holy and profound to share.
--DeMontfortfan

Scenes from WIthout the Alps' New Year Dance