The week that was

Wow. The move from one house to another, about three miles apart, took the entire week.

And it 's not done yet! You should see the previous house - thank God Newlin is going to take care of that bit, with a little help from the kid next door who's home from college. I can deal with an orderly progression of packing up things in a room. I can't deal with there still being bits and bobs left behind - the mirror that goes on top of my dresser, all the clothes in the closets, a box of sewing threads ( ! ), a bag of knitting. Let someone else throw it all in a big box and move it out.

Of course, the actual physical move - loading up the car on Wednesday, having the movers move the furniture on Thursday - had to take place in those two days because Beloved Partner was on a photo shoot from the weekend until Wednesday, and then left at 3 in the morning Friday to go on another. He's coming home early, though, tonight. So that's good.

And of course, there was the exhaustion of a brilliant, enthusiastic, and depleting meeting on Wednesday night that ran late, the wedding rehearsal on Thursday night (I swear, I ran them through it in 20 minutes, and then they changed it all at the end and that was fine.), then the wedding on Friday afternoon, followed by the reception (I really shouldn't to go those, I know), the healing service this morning (thank God - there was a woman drop in who really needed it), and tomorrow a major parish meeting with the bishop.

so, a nice, relaxing, low key week.

Next week all I have on my calendar is three physical therapy appointments and one oncologist follow up.

Now, why am I writing to you about all this boring, personal life stuff? Because who else is going to listen! That's why.

I'm on orders not to do any work today. But of course I just have to shift some more of these books into bookcases...

aren't you glad I took a break to write?! Cheers, all.

Networks

I am now on Twitter, Facebook and Anglimergent. All this is very exhausting, because anything to do with the computer has a steep learning curve for me. However, I have already connected with a bunch of folks from my past, not only my present, which is cool.

Now we are moving house tomorrow and Thursday, plus I have a wedding rehearsal and wedding Thursday and Friday, and a big meeting coming up with the bishop on Sunday evening - four hours with dinner. So I'll be taking a break from the computer until Monday-ish.

Peach to you all; God's Peace be with you.

Tweeting

Okay, so I just signed on to twitter. Now what? To search for friends who may be on twitter, they use my address book. Nobody in my address book is on twitter, but a bunch of stars and news services are. I checked two news services and one charity. Couldn't care less about the stars.

I tried a few things, and I've figured out, I think, that unless you are in my address book, or unless you give me your tweet username, I can't find you.

I posted two tweets ( ? ). I guess I'll wait and see if anyone sends me anything.

My username is (I think) http://twitter.com/rambleingrose
Please note the " e " between the l and i is necessary to the address!
But, then, all you have to do is click on, don't you? Oh I am so lame!

The Boon of the New Communications Technology

I'm considering Facebook or Twitter. The boon of communications technology to oppressed people who have cell phones has become apparent this week. Iran would have suppressed all the reports of the controversy surrounding the elections but they couldn't. The reports came out of that country via computer and cell phone technology - photos, videos, blogs, Facebook, Twitter... The ability of these forms of communication to reach many people at one time, and at the same time connect them with one another, astounds me. I want to be part of it.

I also value a life wherein I am not switched on 24/7/365. I have a cell phone. I do not turn it on except to make calls out. I do not give out the number because I don't receive calls on that phone. I take pastoral interviews in a parlor in the church instead of my office, much of the time, because the ringing phone is a distraction. I don't answer it. I let it ring. So why even be in the same room with it when someone comes to me to talk?

I don't post often on this blog. I don't often have anything I deem worth saying. Alternatively, even when I do have something I'd like to write about, I'm loathe to take the time away from the things that keep me face to face with people.

I may have to, or be able to, switch my brain to an understanding that virtual community may work just as well as face to face, or at least works well in this current world where community is global. After all, I frequent a blog which has become community and even church for me and its denizens. Is it so great a leap to Facebook or Twitter ( and Twitter has been recommended to me over Facebook)?

But my lack of use of this blog, my desire not to be switched on all the time, not to be checking my cell phone in the middle of meetings and one on one conversations to see if it's a caller worth interrupting what I'm doing, failing to check this blog's dashboard more than twice a day to see if anyone left a message to be moderated - all these tell me that I may be just as irrelevant with a Twitter account, or whatever you call it, as I am without one.

I still have a basic cell phone, with no computer access on it. I don't have a blackberry. And my watch has Minnie Mouse on the face, with her big, white-gloved hands pointing to the hour and minute.

I don't know. If I could be assured that people who try to communicate with me on Twitter would be just fine if they didn't hear back from me for hours, I'd feel better about getting a new phone, or something that would make me a little more available.

After all, I can always turn it off.

N.B. I am taking this blog off moderated comments again. Let's see how we do.

It's a spiritual problem, not a business problem

All the money managers, all the marketing experts, all the advertising and good business practices are worthless without first, before anything else, the people immersing themselves deeply in spiritual practices: prayer, Bible study, waiting on God, self sacrifice, generosity, extravegent hospitality, treating "the Jesus story like it really happened, and is really happening still".

Unless every woman, man and child is committed to learning and practicing these practices, all the best money/business manager clergy and even all the most pastoral and gifted clergy, all the marketing, the advertising, the increased rental of the building won't amount to anything.

Christians are baptized to be living stones. We are baptized to live as though the Jesus story - the birth, life, death and resurrection - is real, here, now. The catch is that without death, there is no resurrection. And resurrection looks nothing like the previous life. Jesus was not recognized by anyone until he did or said something that he had done before his death. Then their eyes were opened and they saw the scars from his wounds and they knew it was him.

If you will die to the expectation that everything will remain the same if only management or business practices were better, you will have a chance at resurrection, as a new thing, in a new form, the old, ancient practices becoming new to you - prayer, study of scripture, wrestling with God and the Word of God with one another, extravagent hospitality and generosity, and regularly and faithfully continuing in the apostles' fellowship, the breaking of bread, the worship and the prayers.

Thought for the Day

Yesterday, my physio therapist and I were talking about women in ministry, and she said,

"If Mary could be trusted with Jesus, why can't a woman be trusted with a Book?"

Amen.