From a blogging friend (now a Facebook friend)
"So……my dryer quit working and the repairman came today to fix it. Can’t be fixed. Wanna know why??? Well, a SNAKE crawled into the vent from outside and got caught in the fan!!! Chopped to pieces! The smell was horrible and so the dryer is now outside and a new dryer will be delivered tomorrow!!!!! This was a first!"
Tuesday, June 21, 2022
The Sandlot, fun movie for families
Last night at Lakeside the free movie was "The Sandlot," made in 1993 about the summer of 1962 and a young boy making new friends in a new neighborhood after his mother remarries. The clip I show (which won't load) has the main character standing in the background, unsure, inept and wanting new friends. The boys become good friends, make mistakes, take risks, and act goofy. A great movie for adults and kids to watch together and discuss. It's a feel good, no violence, with nothing we'd call bad language in this day and age.
I was reading a review, and saw a comment by a "victim." A woman complained that she watched it as a kid and was offended and threatened by the slur, "You throw like a girl." Oh lady, get over it. We've watched incredible female softball champs practice right here in our neighborhood, but this kid definitely threw a ball the way I did when I was 13 (even worse now). Such whiners! I hope the movie doesn't get pulled because some hyper feminist who never grew up got offended over a funny line.
I was reading a review, and saw a comment by a "victim." A woman complained that she watched it as a kid and was offended and threatened by the slur, "You throw like a girl." Oh lady, get over it. We've watched incredible female softball champs practice right here in our neighborhood, but this kid definitely threw a ball the way I did when I was 13 (even worse now). Such whiners! I hope the movie doesn't get pulled because some hyper feminist who never grew up got offended over a funny line.
Our dear pediatrician, Dr. Batterson, has died
There was a time when Dr. Batterson was the second most important man in my life. With our children just one year and 3 days apart, we saw a lot of him for about 6 or 7 years, as they would alternate or pass along childhood diseases, and then occasionally until they went to high school. Then in recent years after he retired and his wife died, he attended Upper Arlington Lutheran Church and I'd see him at study groups or worship. He always seemed to know me, and had a funny quip or jest to pass along.
He was born on Sept. 26, 1927, at Grant Hospital. During his 94 years, Dr. Batterson held many titles. His most cherished was Child of God, but he was also a beloved husband, a wonderful father, grandfather, and great grandfather, a physician, teacher, student, and World War II veteran.
Dr. Batterson was predeceased by his parents, Paul and Edith Batterson, wives Audrey (11 years) and Marjorie (45 years) and many friends and family. He is survived by his three children, Fran (Brad) Booth, Jane (Steve) Mockler, and Paul (Nancy) Batterson; grandchildren Samantha Hunt and Nick Mockler, and Alicia (Tom) Millerson and Grant Batterson; and great-grandchildren, Isbelle, Parkus, and Paisley as well as many friends and family.
Dr. Batterson grew up in Clintonville, Ohio. He was a member of the U.S. Army Air Corps during World War II. He graduated from Columbus North High School, attended the University of Kentucky, graduated from Capital University, and THE Ohio State University Medical School.
During his medical career, he interned at Mount Carmel Hospital, and completed his pediatric residency at Nationwide/Columbus Children's Hospital. Dr. Batterson was a trusted pediatrician for 37 years in Upper Arlington and Columbus. He was a past president of Nationwide/Children’s Hospital, and served on the medical staffs of Mt. Carmel, White Cross/Riverside Hospital, St. Ann’s, Grant, and Ohio State hospitals. He was the interim medical director at Ohio State Services for Crippled Children.
Dr. B enjoyed supporting his family, participating in many church activities, playing guitar, swimming, fishing, wood working, bird watching, doing ceramics with Marge, pursuing post graduate education, and watching Ohio State beat Michigan. He liked to joke that he was “born terrible,” but those who knew him will say he didn’t end up that way.
Monday, June 20, 2022
What's that fishy smell? Salmon
We had salmon for lunch. I came in from a walk to the store, and thought Yikes, it still smells fishy in here, so I got out an air freshener and now it smells really strange. But that brought back a memory of our son Phil who died in April 2020. We had let him and a group of buddies use the cottage for a few days here at Lakeside. While we were driving back we called about an hour out and told him when we'd arrive, hoping to catch a few minutes with him. When we got to the cottage, the young men were gone. And there was a very odd but familiar perfumy smell in the house. And there were strange spots on the walls. It took me a while, but I figured out that Phil had put the guys in high gear to get everything cleaned up before we arrived, and although they knew our rule was no smoking in the house, they did. Someone had grabbed a can of furniture polish thinking it was air freshener. . . and thus the odd smell and drips on the walls. In the file folder of memories of Phil, not sure where to put that one.
Public service announcement: lots of air fresheners and room deodorizers (and probably scented candles) contain chemicals not good for our lungs, so I rarely use them. Also not good for your pets.
Public service announcement: lots of air fresheners and room deodorizers (and probably scented candles) contain chemicals not good for our lungs, so I rarely use them. Also not good for your pets.
Phil's selfie of his feet and Lake Erie
Sunday, June 19, 2022
As if the Russia hoax didn't stink bad enough . . .Michael Steinbach
"A top FBI official repeatedly violated bureau policy by hobnobbing with journalists while overseeing the controversial investigation into Donald Trump’s suspected ties to Russia — and then retired before he could be interviewed by ethics probers, a newly released Justice Department report revealed.
Michael Steinbach “had numerous unauthorized contacts with the media” that began when he was the bureau’s assistant counterterrorism director and continued after he was named executive assistant director of its National Security Bureau in February 2016, according to the heavily redacted DOJ Inspector General report obtained by The Post through a freedom of information act request...Steinbach, who did not respond to a request for comment, retired from the FBI in February 2017 and declined to be interviewed in the OIG probe. "FBI's Michael Steinbach had numerous contacts with media: watchdog (nypost.com)
The Personal Librarian of J. P. Morgan
I've been reading "The personal librarian" the story of J.P. Morgan's curator of his rare books and manuscript collection, Belle da Costa Greene. I'm not impressed with the novel. I just came across the bio of her father, the first black graduate of Harvard, Richard Theodore Greener. http://www.mixedracestudies.org/?tag=richard-theodore-greener If the fictionalized account of Belle's life is to be believed, then her father abandoned his family to suit his own ambitions and had a Japanese concubine and two children when he was the first black diplomat to Russia in the early 20th century. That said, she's not to blame for her father's abandonment of her mother and large family. However, the writing is clunky and awkward, and it's a very preachy book about the struggles of a light skinned woman passing as a white in order to have a good life using her remarkable talent and intelligence. But she also had an affair with a married man (who had other lovers) and an abortion when her Jewish lover chose his wife and station over her (she wanted her child). Maybe I'm just tired of reading about amazingly successful people who are seen as victims. Porch reading. I've talked to others who have read it, and many LOVE this book, so don't be afraid to pick it up.
Belle da Costa Greene (1883-1950) • (blackpast.org)
Belle da Costa Greene, the Morgan’s First Librarian and Director | History of the Morgan | The Morgan Library & Museum
A Look at Belle da Costa Greene | Rare Book Collections @ Princeton
The Women Who Made the Morgan: Belle da Costa Greene, Felice Stampfle, and Edith Porada - YouTube Lecture, March 3, 2021
https://youtu.be/uiHz5YKAnhg Her letters to Bernard Berenson (1865–1959), lecture, June 19, 2021
https://youtu.be/JWcaePIBLCU Unmasking a forgery. The Spanish Forger.
Summary and Review: The Personal Librarian by Marie Benedict and Victoria Murray - The Bibliofile (the-bibliofile.com)
The Personal Librarian Summary & Study Guide (bookrags.com)
a book review by Judith Reveal: The Personal Librarian (nyjournalofbooks.com)
Belle da Costa Greene - Wikipedia
Bernard Berenson - Wikipedia
Belle da Costa Greene (1883-1950) • (blackpast.org)
Belle da Costa Greene, the Morgan’s First Librarian and Director | History of the Morgan | The Morgan Library & Museum
A Look at Belle da Costa Greene | Rare Book Collections @ Princeton
The Women Who Made the Morgan: Belle da Costa Greene, Felice Stampfle, and Edith Porada - YouTube Lecture, March 3, 2021
https://youtu.be/uiHz5YKAnhg Her letters to Bernard Berenson (1865–1959), lecture, June 19, 2021
https://youtu.be/JWcaePIBLCU Unmasking a forgery. The Spanish Forger.
Summary and Review: The Personal Librarian by Marie Benedict and Victoria Murray - The Bibliofile (the-bibliofile.com)
The Personal Librarian Summary & Study Guide (bookrags.com)
a book review by Judith Reveal: The Personal Librarian (nyjournalofbooks.com)
Belle da Costa Greene - Wikipedia
Bernard Berenson - Wikipedia
Saturday, June 18, 2022
Is Biden to blame for baby formula shortage?
The baby formula screw up actually shouldn't be a president's problem, anymore than masks and PPE were Trump's problem or GW Bush to blame for the NOLA mayor's short sightedness. We don't hire these guys to do shelf counts or "just-in-time" stocks. That's what we have massive agencies for headed by overpaid cronies. He is to blame for other things in the supply chain. Like fossil fuel and setting the tone for good business. He threatened the oil industry during the campaign to get the green vote. The concentration of industries is not just one president's fault--I think it had been going on a long time; but Trump should have noticed, because he's a business man and felt strongly about this type of thing. Biden didn't give a piddle and probably had no one watching. There is one thing not spoken about enough which in part makes it his problem. The government buys about half of the formula for its WIC and SNAP and Medicaid programs. So in that sense, whichever alphabet agencies cover that should have warned him so he had someone to blame.
Biden has weakened the country
The irony, in my opinion, is that the owners/investors of the fossil fuel industry are or will be the same who control the so-called "green" sources of energy. Sunlight and wind still have to be converted (controlled) into useable fuel just as crude can't run a truck or furnace.
Sean Hannity: Biden is doing 'exactly' what he promised with the fossil fuel industry | Fox News
https://youtu.be/uqoNzFv_rDk Bill O'Reilly weakened the U.S by trying to destroy the industry.
Friday, June 17, 2022
Friday book review--Roth's Rebellion and Hamilton's Pages
I will certainly need to add these two books to my TBR list. Hugo Hamilton wrote The Pages, where a 1924 novel is a main character, Joseph Roth's book Rebellion. Marianne and Ron, our neighbors here at Lakeside, presented a review of the two books at the Lakeside Women's Club today.
"Andreas Pum, having lost his leg in World War I, is rewarded with a medal and a permit to support himself by playing a barrel organ in the streets of Vienna. At first the simpleminded veteran is entirely satisfied with his lot, and he even finds a voluptuous widow to marry. But then a public quarrel with a respectable citizen on a tram propels Andreas’s life into a rapid downward trajectory. As he loses his beggar’s permit, his new wife, and even his freedom, he is provoked into finally rejecting his blind faith in the benevolence of the powers that govern his life. Joseph Roth’s remarkable novel deploys the haunting atmosphere and propulsive power of a dream to convey the bewilderment of an ordinary man as his world falls apart around him."
"JOSEPH ROTH (1894-1939) was an Austrian novelist, essayist, journalist, and publisher. An outspoken critic of Hitler and militarism, he moved to Paris in 1933. Roth’s novels include What I Saw, The Legend of the Holy Drinker, Right and Left, The Emperor’s Tomb, The String of Pearls, and The Radetzky March, an ironic portrait of the decline of the Austro-Hungarian Empire that is considered to be his masterpiece." (Penguinrandomhouse.com)
"In “The Pages,” Hugo Hamilton’s enticing new novel, “Rebellion” is described as: “A short novel about a barrel organ player who lost his leg in the First World War.” Discarded by the state, Andreas Pum, the disabled veteran, ends up friendless, homeless and hopeless. “Facing death,” Roth writes, “he clung to life in order to rebel: against the world, against the authorities, against the Government, against God.” The award-winning 1999 translation of “Rebellion” by the indefatigable Michael Hofmann, who has also translated half a dozen other Roth books as well as works by Elias Canetti, Alfred Döblin, Franz Kafka and others, is being reissued now to coincide with the release of “The Pages.” “Rebellion” is in fact both the protagonist and the narrator of Hamilton’s novel, a book about the fate of a book." (https://forward.com/culture/481275/the-pages-hugo-hamilton-joseph-roth-rebellion-nazis-kristallnacht/)
"Andreas Pum, having lost his leg in World War I, is rewarded with a medal and a permit to support himself by playing a barrel organ in the streets of Vienna. At first the simpleminded veteran is entirely satisfied with his lot, and he even finds a voluptuous widow to marry. But then a public quarrel with a respectable citizen on a tram propels Andreas’s life into a rapid downward trajectory. As he loses his beggar’s permit, his new wife, and even his freedom, he is provoked into finally rejecting his blind faith in the benevolence of the powers that govern his life. Joseph Roth’s remarkable novel deploys the haunting atmosphere and propulsive power of a dream to convey the bewilderment of an ordinary man as his world falls apart around him."
"JOSEPH ROTH (1894-1939) was an Austrian novelist, essayist, journalist, and publisher. An outspoken critic of Hitler and militarism, he moved to Paris in 1933. Roth’s novels include What I Saw, The Legend of the Holy Drinker, Right and Left, The Emperor’s Tomb, The String of Pearls, and The Radetzky March, an ironic portrait of the decline of the Austro-Hungarian Empire that is considered to be his masterpiece." (Penguinrandomhouse.com)
"In “The Pages,” Hugo Hamilton’s enticing new novel, “Rebellion” is described as: “A short novel about a barrel organ player who lost his leg in the First World War.” Discarded by the state, Andreas Pum, the disabled veteran, ends up friendless, homeless and hopeless. “Facing death,” Roth writes, “he clung to life in order to rebel: against the world, against the authorities, against the Government, against God.” The award-winning 1999 translation of “Rebellion” by the indefatigable Michael Hofmann, who has also translated half a dozen other Roth books as well as works by Elias Canetti, Alfred Döblin, Franz Kafka and others, is being reissued now to coincide with the release of “The Pages.” “Rebellion” is in fact both the protagonist and the narrator of Hamilton’s novel, a book about the fate of a book." (https://forward.com/culture/481275/the-pages-hugo-hamilton-joseph-roth-rebellion-nazis-kristallnacht/)
Thursday, June 16, 2022
Source of inflation could be Covid money
"Did you ever stop to wonder- there was $2.5 Trillion of excess savings due to the pandemic free money? So that money was not needed by the recipients since it went into savings and more went to pay down of credit cards. In short- it was unneeded money transferred from the tax payers to the 50% who are non-taxpayers. So, it then follows that a major portion of the $6 trillion of pandemic give aways, and especially the last $1.9 trillion in March 2021, was a waste of funds, and all that extra spending created the excess demand which is now manifesting itself in 12% inflation to those people who got all that free money they now need just to buy gas and food. And now they are proposing spending another package of hundreds of billions and raising taxes further as we head to recession. Stupid does not begin to define the economic team at the White House." From Ross Rant, [investment newsletter] June 12, 2022
How have environmental rule and regs worsened our housing for low income and middle class?
Because our AC died on the hottest day of the summer (95) and current EPA laws on R-22 prevent it being fixed (will have to replace) I was trying to research to what extent our energy and environmental laws have contributed to homelessness or even pricing low income out of real estate wealth or the competition for a good rental. It's only common sense that the constant drum beat of climate change on the building trades and the corresponding greater concern for mother earth than a mother in America has to hit the more fragile in the wallet. Zip, nada, zilch in the research, especially EPA and Energy Star articles. So I'll just continue to know in my gut that saving the environment is throwing a lot of people out of work and out of their homes. Soon, you may be seeing a lot of cars up on blocks as the bidenflation roars ahead.
But my eyes landed on an interesting fact sheet about homelessness in Washington DC. It decreased significantly under the Trump booming economy, but was still higher than most big cities. The January 2018 count (a point in time) showed 3,761 single adults, and 924 families (3,134 people), and 9 minors alone. So I took a closer look at the singles: 51% were chronically homeless, but only 19% of the adults in the families were chronically homeless. I think that was my big takeaway. 50% of the singles had formerly been institutionalized--from jail or hospital to the streets; 19% of the singles had a history of domestic violence, much lower than the family rate; 30% of the singles had chronic substance abuse and 32.7% had a history of mental illness; 24.6% of single homeless adults were chronically ill and 18% were disabled. Median age for the singles was 51 and for family adults 29.
I was a librarian not a social worker, so I won't suggest a solution, but I do know that saving families is a big part of the solution of homelessness, and housing is probably the smallest part. Families are a social safety net, and many of our government policies can't answer that need.
https://www.legalclinic.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/Fact-Sheet-on-Homelessness-and-Housing-Instability-in-DC.pdf
But my eyes landed on an interesting fact sheet about homelessness in Washington DC. It decreased significantly under the Trump booming economy, but was still higher than most big cities. The January 2018 count (a point in time) showed 3,761 single adults, and 924 families (3,134 people), and 9 minors alone. So I took a closer look at the singles: 51% were chronically homeless, but only 19% of the adults in the families were chronically homeless. I think that was my big takeaway. 50% of the singles had formerly been institutionalized--from jail or hospital to the streets; 19% of the singles had a history of domestic violence, much lower than the family rate; 30% of the singles had chronic substance abuse and 32.7% had a history of mental illness; 24.6% of single homeless adults were chronically ill and 18% were disabled. Median age for the singles was 51 and for family adults 29.
I was a librarian not a social worker, so I won't suggest a solution, but I do know that saving families is a big part of the solution of homelessness, and housing is probably the smallest part. Families are a social safety net, and many of our government policies can't answer that need.
https://www.legalclinic.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/Fact-Sheet-on-Homelessness-and-Housing-Instability-in-DC.pdf
Wednesday, June 15, 2022
It's 94 at the lake
And the air conditioning died.
We've contacted the new owners and they've decide to replace rather than repair. That's what the new environmental laws do--force people to buy new rather than repair. It's supposed to be cooler tomorrow, and we haven't had the really hot days that Columbus has experienced. The AC was new when we bought our cottage in 1988, and we replaced it in 2002. So I hear 20 years is a good record for AC units. Tonight we go to the picnic in the park--last week was too rainy and cold! Tonight we'll be slapping our ankles as the bugs in the grass bite!
Tuesday, June 14, 2022
Peaceful biolabs in Ukraine--46 of them
"The United States has also worked collaboratively to improve Ukraine’s biological safety, security, and disease surveillance for both human and animal health, providing support to 46 peaceful Ukrainian laboratories, health facilities, and disease diagnostic sites over the last two decades. The collaborative programs have focused on improving public health and agricultural safety measures at the nexus of nonproliferation. " Defense Dept. Fact sheet on WMD reduction efforts. https://www.defense.gov/News/Releases/Release/Article/3057517/fact-sheet-on-wmd-threat-reduction-efforts-with-ukraine-russia-and-other-former/
Hmm. 46 biolabs. Wait. Weren't people called conspiracy theory dups for even suggesting U.S. was funding Ukrainian biolabs?
Remember when Tucker interviewed Tulsi Gabbard and they were accused of spreading Russian misinformation. I wonder what happens when "peaceful biolabs" get bombed? How will public health be improved?
Hmm. 46 biolabs. Wait. Weren't people called conspiracy theory dups for even suggesting U.S. was funding Ukrainian biolabs?
Remember when Tucker interviewed Tulsi Gabbard and they were accused of spreading Russian misinformation. I wonder what happens when "peaceful biolabs" get bombed? How will public health be improved?
If it took them this long to admit to 46, I wonder how many there actually are?
A. J. Lee all grown up and still singing
https://youtu.be/VcRZdmJtVwY 2012, 8 years old
https://youtu.be/Ra7h7lvHbuc 2019,
https://youtu.be/lALQAUn2QTo 2022, 18 years old
Sunday, June 12, 2022
Will the U.S. become Venezuela?
From a Christian Aid Ministries newsletter: ". . . a street artisan weaves a beautiful handbag out of 800 pieces of large denomination banknotes. The money is worthless. Welcome to Venezuela."
And I wonder. Will we be next as Biden's totalitarianism makes our money worthless? Hugo Chavez introduced socialism gradually to Venezuela until he'd destroyed a once prosperous country rich in petroleum assets. It didn't take but a few years. Watch out.
Buying Venezuelan oil while Biden kills our own industry won't save Venezuela from its own leaders' bad socialist choices and it certainly won't help Americans. A Potential U.S. Oil Deal with Venezuela Faces Hurdles (investopedia.com) Biden enriches and enables bad governments elsewhere, while poking American citizens in the eye and lying to them.
And I wonder. Will we be next as Biden's totalitarianism makes our money worthless? Hugo Chavez introduced socialism gradually to Venezuela until he'd destroyed a once prosperous country rich in petroleum assets. It didn't take but a few years. Watch out.
Buying Venezuelan oil while Biden kills our own industry won't save Venezuela from its own leaders' bad socialist choices and it certainly won't help Americans. A Potential U.S. Oil Deal with Venezuela Faces Hurdles (investopedia.com) Biden enriches and enables bad governments elsewhere, while poking American citizens in the eye and lying to them.
Saturday, June 11, 2022
There is a tomorrow, and someone has to pay for it
"In 2021, Social Security spent $57 billion more than it collected in dedicated tax revenue and interest on its trust funds. The trustees expect this gap will widen over the next decade, quickly depleting the program’s trust funds until its runs out of money in 2035. At that point, the program’s income will cover only 80 percent of benefits promised to recipients."
This is an informative article. If you're looking at retirement with SS benefits to supplement your pension in 10-15 years, you definitely should be paying attention. I have a state teacher's pension so I don't get SS (that would be double-dipping). Did you know that? Nor am I be eligible for spousal benefit if my husband died first. G.W. Bush had planned to work on fixing this but with 9-11 and the war he got sidetracked and I don't think any president since then has even mentioned it. Now with raging inflation, you may need to adjust your spending and saving.
This is an informative article. If you're looking at retirement with SS benefits to supplement your pension in 10-15 years, you definitely should be paying attention. I have a state teacher's pension so I don't get SS (that would be double-dipping). Did you know that? Nor am I be eligible for spousal benefit if my husband died first. G.W. Bush had planned to work on fixing this but with 9-11 and the war he got sidetracked and I don't think any president since then has even mentioned it. Now with raging inflation, you may need to adjust your spending and saving.
Friday, June 10, 2022
Shadowlands, the movie
Monday evening at Lakeside we enjoyed the movie Shadowlands about C.S. Lewis and his wife Joy at Orchestra Hall (movie theatre) where I sat with Barbara Martin. It had been raining very hard, so my tarp was actually occupying the seat between us. Our book club had read a fictionalized account of Joy Davidson Gresham several years ago, but I wasn't terribly familiar with their story. I noticed that one son had been left out of the story of their friendship, marriage and her death. So last night at an art show I asked Barbara about it, and she told me of the unfortunate life of the older son David and why he was left out of the story. Today she sent me this link which explains a lot, in case you saw Shadowlands. Douglas Gresham, the stepson of Lewis, has had a very interesting life, and survived some very difficult times.
An Untold Tragedy: Douglas Gresham and C.S. Lewis’s Final Years – The European Conservative
C.S. Lewis tried to help his schizophrenic step-son | The Bridgehead
I wrote about Douglas and his life with Lewis in a 2017 blog. Collecting My Thoughts: C. S. Lewis’ son Douglas Gresham
Plot of Shadowlands (from Wikipedia)
"In the 1950s, the reserved, middle-aged bachelor C. S. Lewis is an Oxford University academic at Magdalen College and author of The Chronicles of Narnia series of children's books. He meets the married American poet Joy Davidman Gresham and her young son Douglas on their visit to England, not yet knowing the circumstances of Gresham's troubled marriage.
What begins as a formal meeting of two very different minds slowly develops into a feeling of connection and love. Lewis finds his quiet life with his brother Warnie disrupted by the outspoken Gresham, whose uninhibited behaviour sharply contrasts with the rigid sensibilities of the male-dominated university. Each provides the other with new ways of viewing the world.
Initially, their marriage is one of convenience, a platonic union designed to allow Gresham to remain in England. But when she is diagnosed with cancer, deeper feelings surface, and Lewis' beliefs are tested as his wife tries to prepare him for her death."
An Untold Tragedy: Douglas Gresham and C.S. Lewis’s Final Years – The European Conservative
C.S. Lewis tried to help his schizophrenic step-son | The Bridgehead
I wrote about Douglas and his life with Lewis in a 2017 blog. Collecting My Thoughts: C. S. Lewis’ son Douglas Gresham
Plot of Shadowlands (from Wikipedia)
"In the 1950s, the reserved, middle-aged bachelor C. S. Lewis is an Oxford University academic at Magdalen College and author of The Chronicles of Narnia series of children's books. He meets the married American poet Joy Davidman Gresham and her young son Douglas on their visit to England, not yet knowing the circumstances of Gresham's troubled marriage.
What begins as a formal meeting of two very different minds slowly develops into a feeling of connection and love. Lewis finds his quiet life with his brother Warnie disrupted by the outspoken Gresham, whose uninhibited behaviour sharply contrasts with the rigid sensibilities of the male-dominated university. Each provides the other with new ways of viewing the world.
Initially, their marriage is one of convenience, a platonic union designed to allow Gresham to remain in England. But when she is diagnosed with cancer, deeper feelings surface, and Lewis' beliefs are tested as his wife tries to prepare him for her death."
Methodists: Don't miss your exit!
Dr. Warren Lathem, a retired UMC pastor and husband of a blogger friend, writes on Facebook, (1) Warren Lathem | Facebook :
"Atlanta drivers know if you wait until the last minute to try to cross 6 lanes of traffic to get to your exit, you are likely to either miss the opportunity and wait for the next one, or get run over by a delivery truck. Therefore, we have learned to get prepared to exit long before the exit appears.
The UMC made a provision for churches to disaffiliate (exit) from the UMC taking their property and all assets without any liability for future unfunded UMC pension benefits. It is described in paragraph 2553 of the current (2019) Book of Discipline.
However, this provision has an expiration date: December 31, 2023. There are costs involved, specifically paying the church’s share of the unfunded pension liability (the conference has to provide that number) and any unpaid current year apportionments plus one more year apportionments. Various other bishops and Conference Boards of Trustees have added other requirements, some quite onerous.
The paragraph 2553 of the 2019 General Conference made provision for disaffiliation by a local church and was ruled constitutional in 2021 by the Judicial Council. This meant disaffiliation could be processed beginning in 2022. Seventy churches in North Georgia completed the process and were approved/ratified for disaffiliation at the June, 2022 Annual Conference.
The remaining churches wishing to disaffiliate have a very narrow window. They must complete the church decision making process and ask for a church conference to be scheduled January 1- February 28, 2023. The North Georgia Conference must vote on whether to ratify the local church disaffiliation agreement which is scheduled for May 31, 2023. No further opportunity for ratification is presently planned.
In order to meet this deadline it is imperative churches act now. The Annual Conference has published very specific procedures which must be followed exactly to be able to successfully execute this process. A sixteen page disaffiliation package has been prepared to help churches navigate this laborious process. The packet is available via email on request.
Please do not believe the speculation that there is no need to do anything before the 2024 General Conference. Also do not believe the speculation that the 2024 GC will make the process easier and less costly. Indications across the church reveal an agenda to thwart the process of disaffiliation. For example, one bishop has declared no churches will be allowed to disaffiliate until after the 2024 GC. Another has required churches to surrender 1/2 of their assets in addition the Disciplinary requirements. Further, the centrists and progressives who were involved in the negotiations which resulted in the Protocol for Separation have withdrawn their support for the legislation in the 2024 GC. The NGA bishop has declared, “The Protocol is dead.”
There is not sufficient evidence to believe the 2024 GC will adopt a new version of Paragraph 2553 nor make leaving less onerous, if even possible. Many have speculated they will, but this a very unlikely outcome.
Therefore, I believe you will have one opportunity: Annual Conference 2023. If you miss the exit, you will have probably made a very costly mistake.
In order to avoid missing the exit, you must begin moving toward it now, not later. Now. No one knows how many NGA churches will seek to disaffiliate in 2023. It could be hundreds. The exit ramp is fast approaching and the exit lane will fill quickly. You need to move toward it quickly.
Please do not let conference leaders, centrist/progressive clergy, or other church members convince you there is no hurry. The time is now.
There are folks available to speak with you, your church leadership, your church or a group of churches to help with understanding the current situation and the necessary process to successfully get through this exit.
In many churches there has been little or no discussion of the whole matter forcing the decision. Often that may be the natural state of inertia in many of the congregations of the UMC. Or it may be a theological misalignment of the pastor and the congregation. Further, it may be the fear of conflict in the congregation. Now is the time to face the fears and the consequences. Time is of the essence.
Disclosure: after 50 years of ministry in the UMC I transferred to the Global Methodist Church. It was in some ways a very sad and difficult decision. However, it was for missional reasons, first, then doctrinal and theological reasons. I believe we have a great missional future together. Our Wesleyan heritage is one of outwardly focused mission. It’s time to pursue it again.
warrenlathem@gmail.com
"Interestingly, the reasons churches are discussing leaving almost always have nothing to do with human sexuality, the high-profile issue at the General Church level. They are talking about a misalignment of mission, decades of ineffective pastoral leadership, the misuse (in their opinion) of their apportionment dollars, the forced closing of local churches, the seizing of local church assets, and a desire for a viable future which appears to no longer be possible in the UMC. They have watched their children leave to go to effective orthodox churches, often independent or loosely aligned with an association of churches. They have observed the sometimes slow and sometimes rapid exit of their contemporaries to other vital churches in their community. They have observed the politically driven actions of the leadership of the conference in hiding or withholding information that for years was readily available to local churches. They have had to receive and pay the salaries of District Superintendents who have little experience and often no serious effective experience. Some of them have had a new DS assigned and have never met them in over two years! Many discuss the all-consuming institutionalism of the denominational leadership while experiencing either benign neglect or open hostility from that same leadership to the needs of the ministry of the local church. Now many of these most faithful United Methodists gather in sanctuaries for worship, look around and see fewer than 50% of the folks who were there just a few years ago. Some will say this is simply the result of Covid. Certainly some of it is. However, in most churches this downward trend in attendance stretches over multiple years and pastors. They never see a believer’s baptism. Confirmation classes have fewer than five or none at all. They are threatened if they do not pay their annual apportionment in full. They are not included in any district or conference decisions, not even consulted. So they want out with their assets to continue ministry in a more effective way. They may not be sure what that looks like, but they know what is current reality is not working."
"Atlanta drivers know if you wait until the last minute to try to cross 6 lanes of traffic to get to your exit, you are likely to either miss the opportunity and wait for the next one, or get run over by a delivery truck. Therefore, we have learned to get prepared to exit long before the exit appears.
The UMC made a provision for churches to disaffiliate (exit) from the UMC taking their property and all assets without any liability for future unfunded UMC pension benefits. It is described in paragraph 2553 of the current (2019) Book of Discipline.
However, this provision has an expiration date: December 31, 2023. There are costs involved, specifically paying the church’s share of the unfunded pension liability (the conference has to provide that number) and any unpaid current year apportionments plus one more year apportionments. Various other bishops and Conference Boards of Trustees have added other requirements, some quite onerous.
The paragraph 2553 of the 2019 General Conference made provision for disaffiliation by a local church and was ruled constitutional in 2021 by the Judicial Council. This meant disaffiliation could be processed beginning in 2022. Seventy churches in North Georgia completed the process and were approved/ratified for disaffiliation at the June, 2022 Annual Conference.
The remaining churches wishing to disaffiliate have a very narrow window. They must complete the church decision making process and ask for a church conference to be scheduled January 1- February 28, 2023. The North Georgia Conference must vote on whether to ratify the local church disaffiliation agreement which is scheduled for May 31, 2023. No further opportunity for ratification is presently planned.
In order to meet this deadline it is imperative churches act now. The Annual Conference has published very specific procedures which must be followed exactly to be able to successfully execute this process. A sixteen page disaffiliation package has been prepared to help churches navigate this laborious process. The packet is available via email on request.
Please do not believe the speculation that there is no need to do anything before the 2024 General Conference. Also do not believe the speculation that the 2024 GC will make the process easier and less costly. Indications across the church reveal an agenda to thwart the process of disaffiliation. For example, one bishop has declared no churches will be allowed to disaffiliate until after the 2024 GC. Another has required churches to surrender 1/2 of their assets in addition the Disciplinary requirements. Further, the centrists and progressives who were involved in the negotiations which resulted in the Protocol for Separation have withdrawn their support for the legislation in the 2024 GC. The NGA bishop has declared, “The Protocol is dead.”
There is not sufficient evidence to believe the 2024 GC will adopt a new version of Paragraph 2553 nor make leaving less onerous, if even possible. Many have speculated they will, but this a very unlikely outcome.
Therefore, I believe you will have one opportunity: Annual Conference 2023. If you miss the exit, you will have probably made a very costly mistake.
In order to avoid missing the exit, you must begin moving toward it now, not later. Now. No one knows how many NGA churches will seek to disaffiliate in 2023. It could be hundreds. The exit ramp is fast approaching and the exit lane will fill quickly. You need to move toward it quickly.
Please do not let conference leaders, centrist/progressive clergy, or other church members convince you there is no hurry. The time is now.
There are folks available to speak with you, your church leadership, your church or a group of churches to help with understanding the current situation and the necessary process to successfully get through this exit.
In many churches there has been little or no discussion of the whole matter forcing the decision. Often that may be the natural state of inertia in many of the congregations of the UMC. Or it may be a theological misalignment of the pastor and the congregation. Further, it may be the fear of conflict in the congregation. Now is the time to face the fears and the consequences. Time is of the essence.
Disclosure: after 50 years of ministry in the UMC I transferred to the Global Methodist Church. It was in some ways a very sad and difficult decision. However, it was for missional reasons, first, then doctrinal and theological reasons. I believe we have a great missional future together. Our Wesleyan heritage is one of outwardly focused mission. It’s time to pursue it again.
warrenlathem@gmail.com
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