New York

Second trip to NYC this year. We had dinner Friday with Kate & Brandon at SushiSamba. And of course, Le Bernadin. On the menu included:

Seared and Marinated Yellow Fin Tuna "Sandwich"

Warm Peekytoe-Maryland Lump "Crab Cake"; Shaved Cauliflower; Dijon Mustard Emulsion

Lamb

Cheese

Chocolate

Lots of good food. We had all sorts of things at sushi samba, including the rockfish and this seafood concoction. Pricey, but the company was fabulous. Lots of wedding chatter!

And SJE got into the draft on Saturday! It made for a very good day for him!

Ten Things

Love Justice Scalia.

Top Chef: Glad Stephanie wasn't eliminated last night. She, Dale, and Richard will be the final three.

Grey's Anatomy returns tonight!

I need to pack for NYC and prepare for Le Bernadin!

No wine in the house. Must make mixed drink.

Ran the usual outdoor route tonight. Last night did 4.5 miles. Did 4 miles on Monday. Walked uphill 3+ miles Sunday.

I have a new In Style for the bus trip tomorrow.

Is Ashlee Simpson pregnant? Do we care?

Wanna get the new Sarah McLachlan B-sides out Tuesday.

New Lost tonight, too!

Save the Catholic Schools

Bill Bennett's NRO column obviously struck a chord with me; it's something near and dear to me.

A new study by the Thomas B. Fordham Institute — a smart, highly regarded education think tank — estimates that 300,000 students have been displaced due to Catholic-school closings since 1990, and that taxpayers have spent upwards of $20 billion to pay for public schooling for these students whose Catholic schools have vanished.

It has now been 15 years since Star closed. Yes, I still think about it. With some of the controversy here about Archbishop Wuerl converting some Catholic schools to charters, this has been a news-worthy item here. Someone commented that we don't have Catholic schools to educate, but we have these schools because we are Catholic. Or something like that...anyway, when St. Veronica closed, obviously, I was a decade-plus removed from that environment. But there is a sadness that a generation of kids is being deprived of this education, Detroit kids who aren't Catholic and Catholic kids living in the inner suburbs. I guess this is all a product of demographics. But you can never convince me after what happened fifteen years ago that Church administrators and priests really care about this, really believe these schools are important and really will sacrifice for them. So if Wichita Catholics can make this a priority, well, that is one good thing about the state of Kansas. As for me, I need to think about what I can do.

Charleston

We were in Charleston over the weekend, staying at Charleston Place Hotel (I saw a bride!) and eating at the Peninsula Grill. We had a very tasty she-crab soup, some kind of ravioli (too small) and a fillet. Dessert was delicious, particularly their yummy coconut cake. The meeting itself was fine, though the news about little Francis and everything Amos is going through left me sad leaving. I am glad to be home, and count my blessings. Donna's little niece was born, 1 pound 12 ounces and your heart just totally goes out to this. And Ann's divorce and then everything that does suck isn't as bad as it could be.

Took it easy--a quick trip to Target and the grocery store, a workout, a nap, and new DH and Brothers & Sisters tonight. Yeah!

The Holy Father's visit

How neat was it to see Pope Benedict XVI at the White House arrival today!



HERE is the video of Happy Birthday.

What an amazing site it was on, a beautifully sunny 65 degree day, on the Holy Father's 81st birthday, to see him. He was strong, resilient, bold.

The speeches.

President Bush:

Here in America you'll find a nation that welcomes the role of faith in the public square. When our Founders declared our nation's independence, they rested their case on an appeal to the "laws of nature, and of nature's God." We believe in religious liberty. We also believe that a love for freedom and a common moral law are written into every human heart, and that these constitute the firm foundation on which any successful free society must be built.

Pope Benedict:

In a word, freedom is ever new. It is a challenge held out to each generation, and it must constantly be won over for the cause of good. Few have understood this as clearly as the late Pope John Paul II. In reflecting on the spiritual victory of freedom over totalitarianism in his native Poland and in Eastern Europe, he reminded us that history shows time and again that "in a world without truth, freedom loses its foundation," and a democracy without values can lose its very soul. Those prophetic words in some sense echo the conviction of President Washington, expressed in his Farewell Address, that religion and morality represent "indispensable supports" of political prosperity.

Wedding stuff

We registered last weekend at Macy's and Crate. Exhausting! I think we picked out a lot of small electric staples, great cookware, and some bedding/towel options. We need to still pick out dinnerware, but there are a few options we can look at. Nothing we're crazy about yet, though. We also looked at tux options, though Stephen keeps changing his mind! Three and a half months to go..I have an invitation option I want to consider tomorrow night. Plans are also in the works for a wedding shower. Part of me feels so shy about all of this. I don't want to anyone to really go out of their way for me, right? But excited too, though it's hard to admit!

Tomorrow is a big day...we see Pope Benedict at the White House. It should be a mob scene, but it will be really exciting!!!!!!

100th Post

Whoo-hoo. When I used to do the daily diary thing, I was doing a lot more posts than this. I basically started this as a way to get back into journaling, chronicling what's been going on with life, at least what I want to write about.

I don't have anything I really want to write about now. I'm listening to music, kind of watching American Idol's give back special, though I've largely muted the thing. It's fairly dull, not live, and there are already questions about how truly charitable it is.

So here are ten things on my mind, in no particular order.

1) SE's job search. 'Nuff said.
2) Registering this weekend, not to mention the multitude of other wedding stuff I got to get to.
3) New music. Still loving Basia Bulat and that India Arie song.
4) Running. Though I am a little sore today, I am so glad it is finally Spring!
5) My nephew who will be here very soon!!!
6) Work travel resuming very soon.
7) Needing a new Spring wardrobe.
8) Ladies poker night on Saturday. I am hosting, and utterly unprepared. And what if no one shows up?
9) #1. Yeah, that is the big one.
10) Yeah, and the wedding too. It is getting way too close.

Heroes

You read stories like this, and all of the stress of job searches and wedding planning is pretty much meaningless. Thank God for people like this. Or you read a story like this baby girl's and it resonates, and you think, wow, if I could only be that strong.

I don't write much about faith. There are times like last summer, after Margaret died, when I wonder how you can have faith when something so wrong happens, when someone who is so loved has her time cut short. And then you think about how much love is in the world, when your nephew receives dozens of gifts, and hundreds of strangers feel touched by a family they'll never know. You wonder how anyone can be strong enough and then you wonder how anyone could not be. And know that being a parent means what is best for your child, whether it means supporting their choices or relieving their suffering. Or knowing when to let go and how to ease the pain.

There are so many unimaginable tragedies in life, and families deal with them every day. I hope these families know that others care and are grateful and are thinking of them, for sharing their stories and letting others know you can survive.

television

OK, I am officially adding How I Met Your Mother to my tivo season pass list. Last night's show on Bracketology was the funniest thing I've seen on tv this season. Everything from the Ted Mosby is a Jerk website to the Doogie Howser blog entry really cracked me up. The cast is really funny and has great chemistry. Neil Patrick Harris rocks. Last week's hyped Britney Spears episode showcased how awesome Sarah Chalke was as Stella. The show returning so quickly from the interminable writers strike also scores bonus points. Let's hope CBS isn't foolish enough to cancel it. After last night's episode, no way.