Cat Clock Part 2

Here is the rest of the cat clock construction. The project begins here.

The first thing is to place copper foil tape around each piece. The foil tape has a copper outside and various colors on the "sticky" side. On glass that is not transparent, it is ok to use tape that is copper on both sides. (It is also cheaper!) On glass that is transparent, like the orange stripes on the cat, I used tape that is black on the sticky side because the solder will be blackened and you will be able to see the tape through the glass.

Here you can see the tape around a piece of glass. You can also see the grain in this piece. After the tape is applied to the edge, it is folded over onto the front and back of the piece. It is then pressed into place by a piece of plastic called a fid.

The pieces have been foiled and have been fitted together

The joints are painted with a chemical called "flux." This is an acid that cleans the metal and allows the solder to flow. But at this point, a small blob of solder is placed on all the joints just to hold them together. This is called "tack soldering."

The pieces have been soldered together. A wire was also soldered around the outside edge to give the piece greater strength. After all the solder joints have been completed, the flux is washed off with a special soap.

This is where the magic happens! A patina is added to the lead solder that turns it black. Not only does the patina make the solder lines stand out, it also helps to hide any mistakes. The black lines act similar to the black outlines in cartoons. By making the lines black, they, in effect, disappear from consciousness. This is also the reason I used a tape with a black back on the transparent pieces. If you can see the tape through the glass, it will just blend into the solder line. Different patinas can be used to change the solder copper or to keep it silver.

I then painted irises into the eyes and added toes to the paws and whisker marks on the upper lip. For all intents and purposes, the clock is done at this point. The only thing that is missing is the clockworks.

And the finished product! I think I will have to get longer hands. And I will have to get black hands. It will make the hands much more visible. Right now, the silver hands look like an afterthought.

MEOW!!

Here is the clock with the proper hands.


P.S. to Lemuel: Getting your fingers cut is just part of the game. I go through a ton of band-aids!

Pattern byChantal

Starting New Job

Well, the "new" job starts today. I put "new" in quotes because, as I said before, I am still working for 'bucks, just in a different location. The hardest part will be to keep the information that is revelant while staying open to the things that are new. Reminds me of a church I supplied at; "We do things the same way as nobody else." I am sure this goes for jobs too.

Of course, the uniform couldn't be the same. Yes, there is the black shirt, but they will supply me with one. And instead of the khaki pants, we are supposed to wear black ones. (Now, black pants and two cats do NOT go together!) And hopefully, the closer location will offset the $.75 less per hour. On well...

I have been dealing with credit companies, mainly HSBC. I try to explain that I am exceedingly underemployed. I have been dealing with them for some time now. Now I am told that there is insurence on my account in case I become unemployed! THANKS FOR LETTING ME KNOW! I currently owe more on my sofa than it origianlly cost. Every time a payment is missed, they tack a $39 service charge on. (Why not just make it $40? Are they trying to look "nice" by not charging so much?)

Again, it is times like this that makes me question my actions. I could have kept my mouth shut, stayed in the closet and things would have been fine. But I came out in a church that claims to be "open and accepting." Yah, right. Every time I hear that, it makes me ill.

I still love peoples' reaction when they hear that I am an unemployed clergy. Their first response is "Is that possible?" Then they look at me like, "Who did you have sex with?"

Cat Clock Part 1

I am in the process of making a new clock for in the kitchen. The clock we had previously fell off the wall when the neighbor was moving and broke. So I decided to make the clock seen here.

Pattern byChantal

What I like about the clock is that the numbers are not obvious. Actually, there are no numbers, the cat's stripes mark the time.





I have shown many of my finished products and I thought people might be interested in the creation process. So I will do a couple of posts showing the steps from pattern to finished product.





The first thing I did was to make two copies of the above pattern and number all of the parts.

Then I cut one of the patterns apart and placed the pieces on a piece of glass. The glass I am using has "grain" just like material. As such, I have to make sure that the pieces are all arranged in the appropriate manner. If the pieces are not properly aligned, the effect is amaturish.



This piece shows an early piece of mine. In this, I didn't take the grain of the glass into consideration. You can see by the arrows that one grain is at a diagonal and one is horizontal. Some have told me that it is not noticable, but I just don't like the way it looks.

Here is a piece where I compensated for the grain. These are two different pieces of glass seperated by a piece of wood. But I wanted it to look like clouds in the sky, so by being sure the grain was horizontal, the sky looks like clouds.

With the clock, I had to consider how the fur of the cat would look as the cat was lying. I figured he grain would go down the body of the cat and so the grain should move toward the center of the clock. The stripes also have grain to them too.

Here is a piece of glass with some pattern pieces drawn on it. I use a permanent marker, which thankfully, is not permanent on glass. The top red handled pliers is called a "breaker/grozer pliers". The bottom pliers is called a "running pliers". The third tool there is a scorer. The scorer is used to make a scratch in the glass and then the glass is broke with the pliers. The grozer is used to wear away at a piece of glass to shape it.



Here are some of the pieces placed on the pattern. The pieces are numbered to correspond to the pattern. This just makes it easier to put together.

At this point, the lighter colors of glass are cut and placed. They have not been ground yet. Grinding is the process where the pieces are shaped so as to fit together snugly. A power tool specifically designed for grinding glass is used for this process.

At this point, all the pieces are cut and ground. They fit snugly together but they are not tight. Next the pieces will be taped and soldered. But that is for Part 2!

This photo shows one of the heartbreaks of stained glass. When dealing with glass with grain, you have to be especially careful. The glass "likes" to break with the grain. So when you have a curve, care must be taken so the glass breaks along the curve and not follow the grain.


The project continues here.

More Yucky Weather

It was NASTY this morning! Nick stepped out the door to take the dog out and nearly fell on his backside.

I got up and drove to church (about 20 miles away) only to realize when I had five miles left that I had a message on my cell phone. Yep, the message was that church was canceled. So I continued to the church to work on some stained glass. The parking lot was horrible. I felt like Tim Conway as Mr. Tudball walking from my car to the building.

Nick decided that by the time services at his church would start, the ice would have turned to rain, so he chose to have Sunday services.

So now, I am just enjoying a day off.

Hope you all are having a great day too!

New Job!

Well, sort of...

See, I am working with the same coffee company, just in a different store. Granted, it is $.75 less per hour than the previous job, but it is closer. I hope this goes well. I am getting sick of the daily drama that life has been handing me.

The Refuge

Folks from The Refuge, WELCOME!

I check occassionally to see how people are getting to my blog. Maybe a bit of vanity, but mainly just curious. What really intrigues me is when I get a bunch of hits from some off the wall site, like happened when I got a bunch of hits to this post. I also noticed that I was getting a bunch of hits to this post because of the picture from The Bloated Goat.

Now, I have been getting hits from a site called The Refuge. I had never heard of the site and was wondering what was up. They weren't even linking to a spacific page, they were just linking to my main page.

I guess there is a person on this forum who also goes by Dr. Benton Quest! Great minds think alike!

So, again, welcome folks from The Refuge, take a look around. Leave a comment. And come back any time!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Happy VD!

Back in "the day" when it wasn't "STD's"

Freedom To Marry Week

February 10-16, 2008

This Weekend

Well, another weekend has come and gone. All too fast!

Nick and I traveled around south eastern Michigan this weekend. We had to go to the church for Nick and then we went out exploring a bit. We decided to go to Canterbury Village since we had the pamphlet and had never been there. Besides, there was a Christmas store there and anyone who reads this should know that I am a Christmas fanatic.

The store was nice. I liked it better than Bronner's. The building was cool with some of the most incredible woodwork and stained glass. We had some fun while there because there was almost no one in the store.


And we also found something at this store that we would never find at Bronner's...



You see, Wally Bronner, the owner of Bronner's is a Missouri Synod Lutheran. And being a Missouri Synod Lutheran means he is not a big fan of the LGBT community. Therefore, there would NEVER be an ornament that would celebrate a gay relationship found in the store.

Today, we went to Nick's church in the morning and we were supposed to go to an 85th birthday party for his mom this afternoon. But it ended up that his mom spent her birthday in the hospital so we drove to the Detroit area to visit her.

AND IT IS COLD! Right now, it is 0 degrees out. AND WINDY!! You got to love winter in Michigan!

Ain't It The Truth!

Stolen from I Can Has Cheezburger.

Mitt Drops Out

According to Joe. My. God., Mitt Rommey is going to drop out of the race. As one commenter put it, " If Huckabee is the running mate, he would be a bullet/heart attack away from the presidency, and old man McCain is like 80!!!!"

This is not good at all.

More Snow

What promised to be late night for both of us, yesterday, ended up being a cozy night at home. We got a ton of snow and Nick canclled his Ash Wednesday service and the evening service I was supposed to be part of got cancelled also. So we got to have a quiet evening watching the TIVO of Nip/Tuck and then American Idol.


I have to admit that Nip/Tuck is one of my guilty pleasures. It has got to have one of the most twisted set of characters on television. I mean really, who would ever think (spoiler alert!) of stuffing someone to death? That is right, stuffing as in "teddy bear."

As far as American Idol, we will have to see what happens. I am glad the initial auditions are over. In my opinion, these are pretty lame and at times cruel. I get tired of people who are horrible getting angry because they are told they are horrible.

As far as annoying TV is concerned, there is a new show on called The Moment of Truth. It asks people increasingly more embarrassing questions to which they are to tell the truth. I just find it annoying at best, cruel at worst. Nick had never seen it so we watched it. This was the second (and last) time I watched it.

Happy (?) Ash Wednesday

Well, it is Ash Wednesday and in a home with two clergy members, it is a busy one. Nick has to work today and then has an Ash Wednesday service this evening. I have a noon service and then a service at 7 pm. Sometime around 9 or 10 tonight we should run into each other again.

Great Quote of the Day

Romney looks like Waterworld right now: A big, expensive flop

Racheal (?) on the Today show.

Have a great day!

"Oops" or "On Purpose"?

Well, this is the passenger side rear quarter panel and door. It may be difficult to see in the pictures, but there are two definate dents in the truck. I am not sure if these dents were just an accident or if they were placed there on purpose (THE NEIGHBOR?). I don't know so I am not going to lay blame. I am not a big "car person" but I also do not like to have my truck dented.

UPDATE: I'm not going to file a report because the damage, while probably over the $1000 mark, is not going to get turned in. I can't afford the deductable. I hope whoever did it got some sense of relief from doing it.

Oh, Lemuel, the truck was in the parking lot of the apartment.

Isn't It Ironic?

I'm sitting here listening to the bass line of the music my neighbor is playing downstairs. That's right! THE NEIGHBOR! The one with the bionic-eared baby is playing his his music loud enough that we can hear it in our apartment. Now, in general it wouldn't bother me, but because of the hassel he put us through, it just pisses me off.

The other ironic thing was Nick and I were going to go shopping at the Salvation Army Store. We were vying with a Hummer for a parking spot. That is right, someone who can afford to drive, let alone own, a hummer, should not be shopping at the Salvation Army. Not only that, there was another Hummer in the parking lot.

Yucky Weather

Well, winter came back. So far this week, we have had 50 degree weather, single digit weather, rain, and now a snowstorm. It took Nick over an hour to get to work. He got this "wonderful" e-mail from work reminding everyone that even though the weather is bad, people still need to come to work. AH DUH!

The e-mail came from the higher management where Nick works (and where I used to work). The management there treats the workers as if they are children. I found it frustrating as does Nick.

As far as other things, life goes on. I have been looking for a job. I have been trying to write a sermon for Sunday. (I decided to re-run one from six years ago. Still pretty good, I think.) And, in general, trying to stay on this side of depression. Nick has been such a support. I just hope I am not leaning too hard upon him!

I'm still having trouble with the whole God/church thing. It feels weird having to write a sermon extolling the virtues of God when lately I have been questioning whether God even exists. Trying to get excited about anything, let alone church stuff, is hard right now. I keep trying to be excited about learning "how to be an Episcopalian" but it is wearing thin.

I hate feeling stupid. I have done the whole "church thing" and have been a clergy person for seven years. Now, being relegated to the status of "intern" just feels like a kick in the nads.

The Girls are just too cute!

Aren't they cute? Problem is: they have been laying there licking each other! Incestuous lesbianism! Oh the humanity! (or would that be catity?)

Here, things have been pretty difficult. Trying to make sense of life,God, everything. It gets frustrating.

I was raised with the whole "believe in God and always trust and good things will happen to you" mentality. My parents were BIG into the whole "just trust and pray." Well, when you trust and pray and things still seem to go down the tubes, it doesn't give you much to fall back on.



I finished Nick's Valentine's Day gift. Not the best work I have done, but I needed to finish something. There was a need to be able to complete something. I also wanted to get the thing to Nick. The way I was feeling, I didn't know if I would be here too long, so I wanted to make sure if something "happened" to me, Nick would know that I loved him. I wanted to make sure that I created it so that when you hung it, the hand would be left-handed. I cannot sign a "Y" with my right hand. I am left handed and sign with my left hand. The dimensions are about 15" by 12".

I have to go back and reattach the hanging loop. It didn't stay as well as I had hoped. At least it the heart didn't fall far so it didn't break. Putting hanging loops on is one of the most risky parts of the process.

Wake Up Call For Christians?

Hey Christians!

When we are known more for what we are against than what we are for what other
outcome can we expect?

This comment was made by National youth leader Greg Stier of Dare 2 Share Ministries who believes one of the worst enemies of Christians are Christians.

Criticism from people outside of Christianity toward the Church doesn't surprise many. But when negative viewpoints are being expressed by believers, it raises a red flag for churches across the country.

In the latest research report by Sam S. Rainer III, who heads Rainer Research, only 39 percent of people who dropped out of the church perceived their church as "caring." Meanwhile, 51 percent of them called their church "judgmental."

Among other unfavorable views from those who quit their church, 41 percent of them said their church was "insincere." Only 20 percent felt their church was "inspirational;" 30 percent said their church was "authentic;" and 36 percent said their church was "welcoming."

The survey was conducted on 18- to 22-year-olds and is featured in Rainer's upcoming book, Essential Church?.

"The churches that do not demonstrate these biblical qualities and rather become insincere and judgmental lose this generation," Rainer, a young Baptist pastor, commented. "They return to the culture that claims churches are not living up to their calling. Link

You know, when I am embarrassed by the actions of "Christians," (scare quotes intended) things really need to change. I do not easily get embarrassed by the actions of others, but when I see what some are doing in the name of Christ, I cringe. And especially being a "Professional Christian," it makes me angry, sad, and concerned.

What also worries me is when certain behavior is attributed to Christians but no one stands up and says anything.



Please! Post this image (or if you are good at graphics, design you own) on your blog! LET PEOPLE KNOW! We need to let the world know that we people of faith do not condone the actions of these people and others like them.

Please help!

Oh Porky!

334 Days 'til...

LET THE SHOPPING BEGIN!

Go out there and buy something and jump start the economy!

Nick's Comin' Home!

Yeah! Nick is coming home from Florida! From the 60 degree weather to the teens. He told me that I better bring his coat to the airport or he will be stealing my coat!

I've Been Thinking

What I find somewhat upsetting is the unequalness in the whole employer/employee relationship.

When I interviewed for the Starbucks job, I was asked about what I expected to give to the company and what I expected from the company. I stated that I expected to give a notice of two weeks if and when I would leave the job. But I also said that I expected the same courtesy from the company.

Why is it that we have to give advanced warning but they can summarily dismiss us? Can I claim two weeks severance? They obviously did not consider me a threat as I had worked over 20 hours after the event happened. If I had been a threat, shouldn't I have been put on leave?

It just rails me that if we don't give two-weeks, we are looked badly upon. They can just can us and it is business as usual.

Blasphemous Rumor

There is a song by Depeche Mode called Blasphemous Rumor which seems to sum up what I am feeling about now.

I don't want to start any blasphemous rumors
But I think that God has a sick sense of humor
And when I die
I expect to find him laughing

I just want the whole thing to stop. I am tired of being positive and upbeat. I am tired of "just trust[ing] in God." I am tired of it seeming as if nothing is going to ever work out. I get afraid of when things do work that suddenly something is going to go wrong.

Nick says that I will have a lot of sermon illustrations. I know he is trying to cheer me up, but I am sick of being a sermon illustration.

Why can't something go right for a change?

The former senior pastor called. He still has a job. I try to get over the whole thing but I just get so pissed off at times.

I wish Nick were here.

Fired

Well, I guess the gods were not with me in my stupid, unthinking, mistake. Even though I did pay for my shirt, I violated policy. And that results in termination. So, I am back looking for a job.

Heath Ledger Dead at 28

Some sad news today: Heath Ledger was found dead in his apartment today possibly from an overdose. Yes, he did make Brokeback Mountain, but I will always have a soft spot in my heart for him in 10 Things I Hate About You.



And here is that great scene!

Downstairs Update Part 2

Well, I met with the property manager and the maintenance person. We walked around the apartment. We stomped around the apartment. We tried to make as much noise as we could. And low and behold... It makes a bunch of noise the neighbors' apartment! There is something about the neighbors' apartment that seems to magnify the sound. Even when we were doing nothing but walking around, it was very noisy downstairs. So, I am sorry that doubted the integrity of the idiot neighbor, but he has such a wonderful way of helping us to solve the problem.

The manager said that she has a "chat" with him on how to appropriately let people know that there is a problem. She said that she hoped it helped. She also told me that I have not been the only person to complain about the behavior and attitude of the neighbor. I guess at least I was not singled out for his "kindness."

Nick's Gone and Other Things

Well, Nick is in Florida for the week. I am here at home in the cold. It has been cold, as in the teens, but I also will miss having Nick keep me warm at night. I have the dog and the cats, but they are a cheap substitute.

He is going to a class there. (How unfortunate!) The class is for interim pastors. So since Nick has taken a part-time position in a church, he is taking the class. He will be luxuriating in the warmth while I am freezing in Michigan. I am happy for him!

This leaves me alone for the week.

I finally have a couple of days off. I think Freud would say that I am trying to get myself fired. I went to work the other day not wearing the customary black shirt. So I had to buy one. I rung myself up and then had to worry that security was not going to get upset. (It didn't even dawn on me that security may frown on people ringing up their own purchases!) Then the next day, I was jumping into the shower at 1:05 pm only to realize that I had to be to work at 1:30 pm. I made it there with a minute to spare! A couple of days off will be appreciated!

The photo is the latest creation. I am not so sure I like it or not. I wanted to make it look like the bears were getting lifted like the picture in this post. I don't think it worked. Oh well, live and learn.

Candidate Quiz

I found this from Michael over at Reality Check. I thought it was kind of cool. Answer the questions truthfully and see which candidtes aling with your beliefs.

No big surprise here.

79% Barack Obama
77% John Edwards
77% Hillary Clinton
76% Chris Dodd
74% Dennis Kucinich
74% Mike Gravel
73% Bill Richardson
71% Joe Biden
42% Rudy Giuliani
35% John McCain
26% Mitt Romney
25% Mike Huckabee
21% Tom Tancredo
20% Ron Paul
15% Fred Thompson

2008 Presidential Candidate Matching Quiz

Downstairs Update

Got a call from the management. Mr. Downstairs was at the office. I don't know if he finally went, voluntarily, or if the management threatened him to come. At least he was there. We made an appointment for us to be moving around up here while the management listens downstairs. If there is a problem, LET'S GET IT FIXED! But I am not going to not walk in my own apartment just because the idiot downstairs has a chip on his shoulder or whatever. And as for the baby with bionic ears...

The ??? Downstairs

Ok, I just about totally lost it yesterday.

I was walking upstairs when I heard THE NEIGHBOR pounding, again. Now granted, I probably was not walking as lightly as possible (I had just gotten back from work) but I was not purposely stomping to anger the asshole man.

Well, that pounding did it. I was tired from work and I was tired of trying to not disturb the folks downstairs. But since we can NEVER be quiet enough for them, it was time to again bring the management into the situation.

I told the management that either the harassment stops or we WILL be released from our lease. Having to constantly be afraid we are making too much noise is not conducive of relaxing. I also said that from our point of view, it appears the management is doing nothing to address the situation, just telling us something will be done and then ignoring the situation.

Well, I had had it. I told them that was it. Something was going to change.

I later got a call from the property manager. Kind of cryptic. She said, "Can you tip-toe until Monday afternoon? I think I have something that will make us all happy. I am not at liberty to say right now, but I will have more information on Monday."

So it will be interesting to see what is going to happen. More information as it becomes available.

Happy Eartha Day (+1)

Happy Birthday Eartha!

(Ok, it was yesterday, but better late than never!!)

She will always be a diva! Her version of "Santa Baby" will never be topped!

A Meme

Found this over at Spo Reflections and since I haven't posted anything in a while, I decided to do it.

1. What is in the back seat of your car right now? I have a pick-up with a small area behind the seat, but back there I have a communion set, a kite, papers, string, a Leprechaun hat, folders, silverware…
2. When was the last time you threw up? I don’t really know. It has been a while though. (THANK GOD!)
3. What’s your favorite curse word? Shit.
4. Name 3 people who made you smile today? Nick, Ur-Spo with his “cocktail waitress” comment, otherwise, it is too early. I have not been out of the apartment yet.
5. What were you doing at 8 a.m. this morning? Drinking coffee and doing the Sudoku puzzle.
6. What were you doing 30 minutes ago? Reading blogs
7. Where were you born? Dubuque, Iowa
8. Have you ever been to a strip club? Yes. However, it was a straight club. I tried to act interested.
9. What is the last thing you said aloud? Love you! (Said to Nick)
10. What is the best ice cream flavor? Cake Batter from Cold Stone Creamery
11. What was the last thing you had to drink? Coffee.
12. What are you wearing right now? Bath robe and slippers.
13. What was the last thing you ate? Generic Honey-Nut Cheereos
14. Have you bought any new clothes this week? Nope.
15. Where were you last? In the kitchen
16. What’s the last sporting event you watched? Michigan State basketball game a couple of years ago.
17. Who won? Ohio State.
18. Who is the last person you sent a comment/message while blogging? Ur-Spo
19. Ever go camping? Yep! I was a camp counselor for five years and Nick and I just went last September
20. Where do you live? In the KKK capital of Michigan.
21. What song are you listening to? Nothing. The TV is on.
22. Do you tan? I usually burn. I may visit a tanning booth around this time of year just to get a dose of light.
23. Do you drink your soda from a straw? Not unless I am at a drive through.
24. What did your last text message say? B home in 15. (Or something like that.)
25. Who’s your best friends? Nick, Anna, Doug, Beth
26. What are you doing tomorrow? Opening the store. Making coffee.
27. Where is your mom right now? Probably in the Hy-Vee in Dubuque.
28. Look to your right, what do you see? A pillow, a Santa hat, a sweater, Mardi Gras beads, a floor lamp.
29. What color is your watch? Silver, black, orange, and yellow. It has LCD flames on it. My friend gave it to me and called it my “Fire and Brimstone” watch.
30. What do you think of when you think of where you live? How can a town this small be so hard to navigate?
31. Ever ridden on a roller coaster? Yes, and have traveled great distances to do so.
32. What is your birthstone? Opal. I was born in October.
33. Do you go in at a fast-food place or just hit the drive through? Depends on how busy the drive-through is.
34. What is your favorite number? 7, I know, rather boring.
35. Do you have a dog? Yes, a toy poodle. (I know, stereotype alert! Two gay guys with a toy poodle!)
36. Last person you talked to on the phone? A telephone surveyor who I told that we do not do phone surveys.
37. Have you met anyone famous? Hakim Olajuwon from the Houston Rockets. I met him at a conference on Islam and Christianity. I also checked out next to Eric Clapton at the Virgin Megastore in Columbus, OH.
38. Any plans today? Going to work at 12:30 pm. I have to close tonight. Nick should be getting home about the same time I do. I am sure we will both be beat by tonight.
39. How many states have you lived in? Iowa, Illinois, Ohio, Washington, Texas, Michigan.
40. Ever go to college? Three for over 10 years.
41. Where are you right now? In the TV/Computer room watching two lesbians make out on LOGO. (Ewwww!)
42. Biggest annoyance in your life right now? Church red tape and minimum-wage jobs.
43. Are you struggling to forgive someone right now? I probably should be but I am not. Out of sight, out of mind.
44. Are you allergic to anything? Violence, I break out in blood.
45. Favorite pair of shoes? My Birkenstocks. They are sandals but I think they qualify. I have had them for over 11 years.

Six Years of National Shame

1-11-2002 / 1-11-2008

Lemuel, at The Greedy Maelstrom, has reminded us of this blight on the reputation of America. People held for years by the American government without charge. I guess this is just another example of "Liberty and justice for some."

Discussion with Kirby

I have been having an on-line discussion with a person named Kirby. It has been pretty amiable so I will continue. The whole dialogue can be found here, here, here, and here.

Although some, including Nick, have warned me against this endeavor, I have decided to continue. Even if the whole thing is futile, at least it keeps me up to "fighting speed." But so far the exchange has been civil so I have no problem continuing.

I also need to restate a disclaimer: I am sorry if I keep bringing up the age of Kirby. I think there is a great difference in how one sees the world at 18 and at 43. I am not disregarding the experience of the 18 year-old and not disregarding the idealism, we all need idealism. I am, though, saying that there is also something to be noted about experience.

That being said, let's look at what Kirby has to say:

First of all, I do not want you to think that because I do not agree with you, that I am throwing all that you have to say out the window as baseless and useless. I have examined all you have had to say and read the article you suggested. If I was not interested in the conversation we are having, I would not be using precious study time to indulge in this argument.

The article did have many clarifications and was very informative for me, and I am sure you and your partner Nick have a loving relationship, yet the article does not have any proof or bass for some of the assumptions it makes. In Romans it condemns homosexual activity as a whole, and although there does exist loving same sex relationships in today's world, the relativistic society we live in cannot blur the words of St. Paul.

But we do blur the words of St. Paul. Again, I would bring up the situation of women teaching in the church. The rector I am working with is a woman. I have worked with pastors who are women. Granted, the Roman Catholic church does not allow women to be priests, and this is one of the areas that I differed with the Catholic church. It is also one of the reasons I left the Catholic church.

Now it seems that where we differ for the most part in our debate in views
on interpretation. I claim that I have the true and ultimate interpretation in
that of the Catholic Church, you claim that there is no perfect interpretation
and we merely must do our best with the guidance of the Holy Spirit. (if I am
off base on your belief, please correct me) please do not think that I am a
Catholic who accepts the doctrine of the Church blindly and never questions the
word. I never hesitate to challenge an interpretation of the Church which I feel
odd about, yet to this day, I have been proven wrong on every doctrine. I was
raised Methodist and sent to a Catholic school because the public school I would
have attended is the number one meth school in the nation. So as a protestant in
a Catholic school, I questioned every aspect of their faith hoping to prove them
wrong. Most of the time I succeeded, but only because the majority of the
students do not know their faith very well, because when I came across one
teacher in particular, I was taken step by step logically to an answer. Every
question I had, he had an answer. But although I have left the Methodist Church,
I feel no bitterness towards it, and I even often go to Church with my Mother on
Sundays.

What I was getting at in that small tangent was that you should keep your
mind open to at least hear the defense of the Catholic Church and not be ready
to end the conversation with every minute Catholic teaching that is thrown in. I
feel the only way I can get what I am trying to say across to you is to attempt
to get the true message of the Catholic Church across; so that whatever corrupt
view you have of the Catholic Faith may be corrected. So now I would like to
know the doctrinal differences, other than views of homosexuality, which you
left the Catholic Church because of.

If you are willing to share those with me I feel we could make some
progress in our conversation, otherwise we will continue to but heads on every
detail.

Yes, it does come down to interpretation. (Concerning your comment that I should "keep [my] mind open:" please realize that I have been at this process for longer than you have been alive. If anyone should be pleading for someone to keep their mind open, I should be making that request of you.) I have been preaching on the scripture for over seven years. Every time I approach the scripture, I find something new. If it weren't a matter of interpretation, all we would have to do is have one sermon or homily and just repeat it every three years. But life changes and our understanding of scripture changes. This change in understanding is Biblical. Peter was challenged to change his understanding of what was clean and what was unclean. (Acts 10)

We too have are challenged to change our understanding. Our understanding of the place of women in the church has changed. Our understanding of slavery has changed. Our understanding of divorce has changed. Perhaps our understanding of homosexuality needs to change too.

My theological understanding is that the Holy Spirit is still at work in the world. The Holy Spirit is still expanding our knowledge and understanding of the scriptures. Just as Peter's understanding of what was clean and unclean was changed, our understanding also must change. The world is not static, our understanding of scripture must not be static either.

Ok, why I left the Catholic church.

One, I could not stomach the separation of clergy and laity, especially the priests. They were people, just like me. They may have been singled out for a specific calling in life, but that calling did not suddenly make them superhuman and above question.

Two, I stated my feeling about women in leadership positions. How can be deny people whom God has called? You may say that they can become nuns, but that is a cop out answer. We are telling them that because of their gender (and gender alone) they are less fit to lead. That does not make sense.

Three, praying to saints. Saints are people like you and I. We do not need a mediator, we have one. He is named Jesus.

Four, the ever-virginity, immaculateness of Mary. This is just an excuse to not be about the work of God in the world. We can say that we have not been endowed with the "special gifts" that have been given to Mary (or the saints for that matter) so we could not possibly do what they did. So therefore, we are off the hook. But if we realize that God works in this world through, to paraphrase Joan Osborn, "slobs like us," then we see that God can use us to do incredible things.

Five, closed communion. How dare we have the hubris to turn someone away from God's table!! Would Jesus, who ate with sinners, turn anyone away? Jesus even fed Judas before Judas went off to betray him. If that is not table hospitality, then I do not know what is! And the Catholic church would turn people away? That does not strike me as very Christian.

I will continue to keep you in my prayers Dr. Benton Quest!
I would like to inform you that my name is Kirby Longo, that may clarify all the confusing issues with the Kirb and Longo 15 names, I keep having to create new screen names for the blogger

Kirby, again thank you for the prayers, we all need them. But be aware of what you are praying for: if it is that I receive insight, maybe the prayers have been answered. There is the possibility that I actually have received insight and this conversation is a product of the Holy Spirit to spread this insight to you and to others. I cannot know this, but it is a possibility. Perhaps I am to receive insight from you? Who knows? But again, I will repeat your entreaty back to you, "keep your mind open."

Peace,

Benton

Latest Creation

Just finished him today. He is about 16 inches tall.

A Frightening Trend

This is a photo of our neighbor's door. This is not THE NEIGHBOR, but one down the hall. This seems to be the new thing in the building: we don't take the garbage out, we just set it outside of the door. This bag of garbage was sitting outside the door at 9 this morning and this picture was taken around 4 in the afternoon. If finally was gone by 9 in the evening. I was feeling passive-aggressive so I put a bow on the bag. When the bag was finally thrown out, the bow was left on the floor.

This is just a continuation of things in this apartment complex. People do not clean up after their dogs. Dogs are left to run loose. People leave their garbage sit outside of their apartments. The parking lot is almost impassable after the snow. The management does nothing about the situation with THE NEIGHBOR. It is just a bunch of little things that get so annoying. We really try to be good neighbors and clean up after ourselves and our dog. It is just annoying when no one else seems to do the same. I hate stepping in dog dew while taking Amber out to do her thing.