Month: December 2003

Great Expectations, Random Walks

With Christmas gone and New Year’s on the horizon, almost no one in my immediate circle is really happy.
I will spare you the usual self-flagellation about how Americans and other citizens of developed countries don’t appreciate how truly privileged we are.
It seems with our hot running water and relative freedom of speech, though, comes the burden of expectations which in this day and age, few of us can hope to fulfill.

Continue reading Great Expectations, Random Walks

Okey Dokey

The other day, I saw a person standing outside a municipal building in Falmouth and didn’t recognize that it was my son. Duh.
In my own defense, rarely do I see Flargh-boy in actual daylight, so I’ve probably forgotten what he looks like in a “normal” setting. He is usually sitting down, in the middle of Kristalnacht-like chaos, dressed in pajama bottoms and a t-shirt, staring at a computer screen.
I am also used to seeing him while his chi is being mangled by one or more shrieking or sulking children. These are by the way highly intelligent, creative children who nonetheless do not grasp that they live in a house with multiple floors, multiple rooms and a large fenced-in yard and, thus, do not have to share the same space as Daddy.
But I digress: given my recent experience, I can somewhat relate to the parents who thought they’d buried their son, Kevin Wickoff, an inmate who’d committed suicide at the Lexington, Oklahoma, Assessment and Reception Center. They thought they buried him – until they got a phonecall from none other than Kevin himself right after his funeral.

Continue reading Okey Dokey

Speechless

A German incinerator plant has found a way to turn incontinence pads like Depends into energy.
Located in the industrial city of Bremen, the plant has contracted with a local retirement home to purchase 100 tons of the stuff each year.
And we all thought that “Senior Power” just referred to a voting bloc.

Alex

If you’ve been patient enough to be a regular reader of this blog, you know my opinion on the adoption of children.
Unfortunately, you don’t have to look very hard, or even make a conscious effort, to find cases where adoptees have been mistreated, abused or murdered by those responsible for their care.

Continue reading Alex

Winter Solstice

The holly and the ivy
When they are both full grown
Of all the trees that are in the wood
The holly bears the crown
The rising of the sun
And the running of the deer
The days are short, the night is long–the Wheel of the Year.
The holly bears a blossom
White as the lily flower
The Goddess shares the Solstice Sun
Days grow longer with its power
The rising of the sun
And the running of the deer
We celebrate with joyous hearts
The Wheel of the Year
The holly bears a berry
As red as any blood
The Goddess brings the Solstice Sun
To allow our hopes to bud
The rising of the sun
And the running of the deer
The days are short, the night is long–the Wheel of the Year.
The holly bears a bark
As bitter as any gall
The Goddess gives the Solstice Sun
For the wonder of us all
The rising of the sun
And the running of the deer
In perfect love and perfect trust
May our hearts be ever clear
The holly and the ivy
When they are both full grown
Of all the trees that are in the wood
The holly bears the crown
The rising of the sun
And the running of the deer
The days are short, the night is long–the Wheel of the Year.
From THE HOLLY AND THE IVY III
(adapted by Susan M. Shaw)
http://www.joellessacredgrove.com/Carols/hollyivy3.html