From Pope St. Paul VI

"No one should deceive himself into thinking that the Church which has now become a vast, magnificent, and majestic temple built to the glory of God, should be reduced to the modest proportions which it had in its earliest days, as though this minimal form were the only one that is genuine and lawful. Nor should one conceive the desire of renewing the whole structure of the Church just by taking account of the special spiritual gifts (charism) of some of its members. Some imagine that the only genuine renewal of the Church is one which is born from the ideas of a few, admittedly zealous, people who not infrequently consider themselves divinely inspired. Their vain dreams of the wrong sort of renewal could easily defile the very shape which the Church ought to have.We must love and serve the Church as it is, wisely seeking to understand its history and to discover with humility the will of God who guides and assists it, even when He permits human weakness to eclipse the splendor of its countenance and the holiness of its activity. It is precisely this holiness and splendor which we are endeavoring to discover and promote."

Encyclical Letter Ecclesiam Suam #47, 1964

THEY DID IT!

What a game! What a season! What a team!

Congratulations to the Cubs, 2016 World Series Champions!

Blowing a 4-run lead was classic Cubs, but these guys aren't classic in that sense. They came back and got it done, on the road, overcoming a 3 games-to-one deficit against a killer team.

Goodbye curse, goodbye goat, goodbye to all that!

"Wait until next year" now has a new meaning.

The Cleveland Indians did a phenomenal job. I thought they would win in 5.

But, here we are. Thank you, Cubs, for a most gratifying season!

They did it!

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I gave up my unrealistic expectations of the Cubs. Last year, I thought the Cubs could do it, but they ran out of gas against the Mets. This year, they showed that they could do it, were expected to do it, and have now broken the first of two "unobtainables" that have dogged them for lifetimes - they won the pennant!

Their playoff accomplishment had lots of drama: pitching duels, a seemingly impossible comeback win, two shutout losses in a row, and, finally, a 5-run shutout win against the pitcher touted to be the best in baseball, of one of the most-storied franchises.

Although, in the grand scheme of things, this isn't really all that big of a deal, it still is quite gratifying!

On to the Big Show - Eamus Catuli!

If I were a carpenter...

A carpenter quit his job.

He was board by it.

When I saw him, he was beaming, but I suppose it all depends on how one frames the situation.

Biking Over Ice

Funny that my last post was about biking in the snow; I've done that a few times this winter, but fortunately there hasn't been as much snow this time around.

However, we have had a lot of rain, and a week ago Sunday was one such day. On Monday, the temperature dropped to well below freezing. Still, I didn't think twice about riding my bike to work, what with the transit strike.

The approach to the MacDonald bridge from Barrington Street was a sheet of ice; the salt hadn't penetrated it yet, so I walked my bike up the grass to the bridge proper and started riding from that point.

Everything was fine from there until the end of Leaman Street, where I crashed in the schoolyard due to ice. I walked the bike up to Highfield Park Drive, then rode on across the bridge. The last thing I remember was crossing the second exit on the far side, and then I woke up in the ditch with three strangers watching over me.

I had somehow fallen off the bike and hit my head.

The paramedics and police came, and even though I felt well enough to continue on to work, I submitted to their efforts, and they brought me to the hospital in due course. My first ride in an ambulance, by the way!

The verdict was a "moderate brain injury", including a concussion and bleeding. No outward disturbance to my head, thanks to the bike helmet and a couple of hats.

After spending the night and most of the next day in the hospital. I returned home and have since been resting/recuperating. A week on I feel not quite myself yet, but getting there. Strength is returning to my right side, and I've gone for a couple of walks.

Thanks go to those three people who stopped and looked after me, to the EHS crews, to the staff at the Dartmouth General ER, to my wife, and to my guardian angel and his colleagues!

The bike is OK!

Biking in the snow

Wednesday night I rode my bike home from work in the worst snowstorm of the season.

I ride about 13.6 kilometers one-way, but it turned out to be neither as difficult nor as long as I thought it would. It took about 1 hour and 20 minutes door-to-door; it usually takes 40 minutes to an hour.

The surprise was that the MacDonald Bridge was quite rideable. It was packed snow on the approaches, but slush on the span. The slush was easier to navigate than the snow.

Only once did I need to get off the bike, and that was when I was going up a hill and heard a bus behind me - I got off the bike and let it pass. It was difficult getting back on the bike and starting up! I had to walk it up to a more level surface.

Thursday morning the snow was still caked on the bike, but fortunately I had wiped the chain and lubed it before putting it away Wednesday night. My lock was frozen, though, so I had to thaw it out!

The rides Thursday and this today were much easier.

You know it's bad when...

It's been a rough year for the Cubs: a losing season, the loss of Lou Piniella, new ownership, various issues with Carlos Zambrano.

I thought this photo from the Chicago Tribune said it all!

In the last 25 years, all of Chicago's other Major League teams have won championships: the Bears (.500 in Super Bowls), Bulls (6x), White Sox, Blackhawks (hence the sign), and Fire.

That leaves the Cubs minus a championship. Not even a pennant.

Today I did some reading on the 2003 season, the first in which the Cubs won a post-season series since 1908. I remember watching game 6 of the LCS with a friend who is not familiar with Cubs history. When the Cubs made it to the top of the 8th inning with a lead and one out, my friend said, "Only 5 more outs to the World Series! Aren't you excited?"

"Just wait," I replied, "this is the Cubs," after which Steve Bartman promptly interfered with Aramis Rodriguez' attempt at fielding a foul ball. When the implosion was complete, my friend was beside himself. How can it be? How did this happen?

"Easy," I said. "It's the Cubs!"

That year I overcame my profound disappointment in the team that I'd cheered for most of my life. I became more like a Sox fan, I suppose, in not being completely unrealistic in my hopes for the team. I became more like a Missourian, too: "Show me."

It would be nice to have at least a .500 season this year, but I'm not holding my breath (I don't know if it's possible for them to go .500). Bully for Mike Quade and the team's performance under his tenure!

But in the words of the late Jack Brickhouse, they've closed the barn door after the horses got out; they're a dime late and a dollar short; whew, brother.

Back up the truck! Bring on the new manager!