Povey Prattle

1. It was (by S.W. Florida standards ) quite chilly this morning (46 f,/7.7 c).  For my 6:30 a.m. walk with Penne I donned a top coat, scarf , and gloves. 46f in Massachusetts on December 22nd would have seemed to be almost balmy.  After six and a half years in Florida it feels cold! Is it true that our blood “thins”, (that’s the lore), or is there an alternative explanation as to why differing temperatures change our bodily reactions? --------------------------------------------------- 2. The cooler weather has its upside.  I was able to walk five miles yesterday, and about four and a half miles today. Penne was so happy! ------------------------------------------------- 3. She has been so happy that she dragged me out for a walk at about 4:45 p.m. today. There was a method in her madness. Somehow she knew that my neighbour, the recently widowed Sophie would also be out and about. She was correct, So Penne encountered Sophie this afternoo...

A follow up from yesterday's blog. Mental illness is illness.  It is not a choice. We in the United States have chosen to eviscerate (in the derivative meaning of that word) the medical, social and counselling services which are essential to mentally ill people.   Thus we have hundreds of thousands of ill people who are on the streets or in prison. (Incidentally in both places they are frequently the objects   not the perpetrators of violent behaviour). It is a national scandal – one amongst many. Once in a while  a mentally ill person will rampage. Because of another of our other national scandals -   e.g. the widespread availability of fire arms – including weapons which were designed for military usage,- those rampages can result in cruel and horrid murders –  shocking us to the core (for a week or two) when the murders take place in schools, and bringing us to despair when those killed are six and seven year olds. We are...

1. Last Sunday, December 16th 2012 I was in another town and at another Church. I arrived early because my host is a choir member who needed to attend rehearsal. Wandering the huge campus of this church I came across a room named “The Other Cup”.  From outside I noticed that coffee and snacks were available, so supposing that this was a place for a pre-service cup of java I entered the room. There were twelve or fourteen people in the room - not one of whom greeted me. I poured a cup of coffee and took my seat. The others began an un-focussed discussion. Their chat meandered from here to there, and eventually settled on the murders of so many in Sandy Hook, CT on Friday 14th. Of course there were genuine expressions of shock and grief.  But the group easily came to their conclusion that the shooter Adam Lanza was mentally ill, and that “therapy” would have prevented this massacre. I am not so sure. I wanted to ask “what about evil"”,  but as a gue...

“Kate is coming today”.  That’s what I told Penne earlier today.  Kate is the great woman who cleans my house (she retired last summer but has “un-retired”). Penne likes Kate, and Kate adores Penne.  When Kate arrived Penne gave her many “kisses”. Whilst Kate worked I went off to have a haircut, to return a book to the library, and to lead the weekly prayer service at Resurrections House. That being done I walked with Penne, had lunch, and walked again. Then I drove over to Sarasota’s fabulous Asolo Theatre for a matinee performance of the musical 1776 (which premiered in 1969). See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1776_(musical)  (cut and paste if necessary) My guests were the wonderful Ron and Charlotte Thompson. We enjoyed every minute of the show – with its historical accuracy, humour, lively music and superb acting. Post-show, Ron and Char headed towards the home of my good friend Ben, for a pre-dinner gathering. I drove home, fed the cats, and t...

I was on holiday in Greece at the time of the Columbine High School murders.  I read a paragraph or two about that massacre in an English language newspaper for tourists, but it all seemed so remote, so far away. I was flying from Tampa to Denver when the news first broke about the slaughters of the innocents in Newtown CT. A passenger in the row before me had paid to use the in-flight T.V., and as he flipped channels I heard no more than “killings in Connecticut”.  And that was all I knew until Sunday morning, when I read about this horror as I went on line to print a boarding pass. Back in my hotel room in Tampa I switched on CNN and began to get more of the story.  I had a sense of irritation with CNN and the scores of other T.V. stations who had their vans, their cameras, and their reporters in that small town.  I thought that such a huge presence was less than helpful and more than harmful to the residents of Newtown in their awful grief. “If only” the te...

Home, sweet home. I am back at home after a brief vacation. Last Friday I arrived in Phoenix to stay with my dear and beloved friend Joyce.  (She was a parishioner in Pittsfield MA) We enjoyed two very relaxing days together, despite the unusual rainy and cold weather in Arizona. We did not need to “do” anything, we simply enjoyed being together. Michael and Joyce Nevertheless we took one trip:to the Museum of Musical Instruments: http://mim.org/ There amongst many other things we viewed John Lennon’s piano - on which he composed “Imagine”. John Lennon's piano John Lennon apart,  Joyce and I enjoyed a bit of shopping, a lot of talking, and the worship of God at Joyce’s parish: “St Barnabas in the Desert” in Scottsdale/Paradise Valley. See http://www.saintbarnabas.org/ After Church and lunch with Joyce I took a flight from Phoenix AZ to Tampa FL (the flight arrived in Tampa 20 minutes early!!, and then I stayed overnigh...