Sunday, September 7, 2008

Important Update: I received the following email. I checked it out and this is very scary.

Hi Mary,

My name is John Alfred.

I stopped by your "Musings From the Sugar Bush" blog where you recently posted "Saturday, September 6, 2008 (09/06/2008)". Since I can see that you are actively blogging and knowing that most bloggers are well connected, I would like to request a quick, small favor.

Cutting to the chase here... all I'm asking is for you to sign a petition and pass it on to your friends. It will just take 2 minutes of your time and will help raise awareness of a security threat that affects an estimated 95% of homes in the USA.

The threat that has us concerned is called a "bump key" (think of it as a universal house key) and bump keys are currently being sold on the Internet for $3 to anyone who wants one. The sale of these keys should be regulated just like lock pick sets and other locksmith tools but the laws in most states have not caught up. So far, only Delaware and California have updated their laws (in July, 2008) to address bump keys.

By voicing our support using an online petition we wish to show legislatures in each state that this is important to us and encourage them to follow the lead of Delaware and California to quickly update their laws. At the same time we are promoting awareness of this issue so people who choose to do so can take steps to protect themselves.

A friend of mine, Rob Yaggie, is spearheading the effort using a site he launched at www.BanBumpKeys.com . It informs people of the problem, asks them to sign the petition and discusses free and low cost personal safety solutions. IMPORTANT NOTE: The purpose of this site is to create awareness and organize support ... it is not a sales site and does not sell anything.

Please take a minute to learn more, sign the petition yourself and help spread the word by telling your friends.
http://BanBumpKeys.com

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

I woke up this morning feeling a bit melancholy. Did you know that you could be happy and melancholy at the same time? I couldn't pin down the cause because there really isn't anything going on to cause it. But, I think perhaps it is the change of season. Seasons remind us of our mortality. They remind us that life is constantly in a state of flux. Change makes me nervous because I don't do well with transitions. Part of that could be due to the nebulous beginnings and endings. I am mourning the passing of one season and joyfully anticipating the advent of a new one. But the beginnings and endings of seasons are not cut and dried. They do not conform to dates in a planner. That makes me nervous. I have no control. Ah, there it is. I am reminded that I am not in control.

And yet with the changing of the seasons there is a bigger picture. There IS a constancy and an unchanging reality if we take our focus off the day-to-day and look at the whole. The seasons come and go in the fullness of time, according to God's plan. It is then that I am supremely glad that I am not the one who is in control.

On the lowcarb front:
I didn't get a workout in this morning, and I may not get to it later, but I have found that my need to blog in the morning is rooted in the fact that starting my day with the reading of the Gospel keeps me grounded. Workouts are important, especially at my "use it or lose it" stage of life, but they are not the most important. I am learning that my best - if it is indeed my best, is good enough, and while perfection is an ideal to keep in mind when setting goals, it can also lead to an "all or nothing" mentality. God doesn't ask for perfection, he has that. What he wants is us - warts and all. That being said, I will try to remember to at least lift some weights later today.

Word of the day:
Gospel
Mt 18:15-20

Jesus said to his disciples:
“If your brother sins against you,
go and tell him his fault between you and him alone.
If he listens to you, you have won over your brother.
If he does not listen,
take one or two others along with you,
so that ‘every fact may be established
on the testimony of two or three witnesses.’
If he refuses to listen to them, tell the church.
If he refuses to listen even to the church,
then treat him as you would a Gentile or a tax collector.
Amen, I say to you,
whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven,
and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.
Again, amen, I say to you,
if two of you agree on earth
about anything for which they are to pray,
it shall be granted to them by my heavenly Father.
For where two or three are gathered together in my name,
there am I in the midst of them.”

Thoughts from the cornfield:
I attended an RCIA conference a few years ago and one of the speakers made an illustration with regard to the formation of catechumens and candidates. He said, "discernment outside the presence of the subject is gossip." In last night's homily Father said something that would make an excellent addition to that statement. He said there are 3 conditions to approaching a perceived wrongdoer.

1. It must be true
2. It must be necessary
3. It must be done out of love.

Let those who have ears hear!

God bless the troops!