Happy New Year is today's greeting, isn't it. Well, alrighty then, okey-dokey , happy new year! With second coffee, first cup was hot black in bed with a morsel of dark chocolate, having a potentially deadly Snack while the real breakfast of an exquisitely delicious pork sausage link bakes in the toaster oven, and over it I'll have a bit of yellow mustard, a bit of Löwensenf, and a bit of an excellent new French mustard; this second coffee is a 12-ounce mug of ice cubes and crushed ice, extra strong black coffee poured over; part of my so-far-it's-working morning routine to stop the postprandial BP plummet.  But the Snack -> years ago - - well it's coming up on forty-four years ago, isn't it, longer than Moses was in the wilderness whining to God about the Israelites - - I'd just retired from the Navy and was in Australia on a trial adventure into a possible new career, which along with being flown down from Pennsylvania to Florida six times a year to tea...

  Haze, 70° 96%, Wednesday, 29 Dec 2021, my kind of Florida Gulf Coast winter morning, though wondering whether this is an anomaly or signifies climate change. Childhood memories include being outside in the back yard barefoot and shirtless in short pants on Christmas Eve and it seemed normal, no climate change panic in those days.  Pic above, yesterday morning just off 7H, ship leaving with wood pellets to fire the converted power plant at Studstrup, Denmark, ship arriving to load wood pellets for Studstrup. On the chart, we in 7H are at the center right where a marina pier sticks out into the Bay and the print reads "Bue" for Buena Vista Point. One Saturday or Sunday afternoon five or six years ago we watched as an outbound ship ran aground, as I recall in a ships meeting situation like yesterday's picture, and churned up quite a cloud of foam, bubbles and mud with reversed engines and propellers revved up trying to back off.  Don't know about merchant ship masters ...

  You speak for yourself, I'll do the same: I don't know about you, but in my opinion humans are not naturally vegetarians. We are meat eaters from ancient Time, tired of a diet of roots and berries, we started chasing down or sneaking up on animals with a club, a rock, then a spear, then bow and arrows. Dragging it home for the homemaker team to skin or pluck, cut it up and, in Time, roast it over the fire in front of the cave.  Over more Time, still stealthily, patiently, in the blind or in bushes or bullrushes, rifle or shotgun loaded and ready. My grandfather Gentry used to arrive home at one o'clock in the morning, dump out sacks of quail and dove, waken and roust out the women of the household to pick and clean through the wee hours into dawn. Anymore, animals are farmed for eating just as beans, broccoli, cauliflower, corn, squash are for the casseroles. Though I don't want to give up meat, my wish as I finish my fourth turkey sandwich since the Xmas Feast wou...

The Holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, according to John: In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The Word was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through the Word, and without the Word was not anything made that was made.. What has come into being in the Word is life, and the life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness comprehended it not. … The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world.  The Word was in the world, and the world came into being through the Word; yet the world knew him not. He came to his own, and his own received him not. But to all who receive him, who believe on his name, he gives power to become children of God - - born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the human will, but of God.  And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of a father’s only begotten son, full of grace and tru...

Merry Christmas, Happy Christmas keep the Χριστός in Xmas What do I still like, love, about Χριστός-mas? That there is a Christmas Eve service, happy, yes, Holy Commotion. Last evening was the best yet.  Maybe in part because I remember Christmas Eve 2010, when I was scheduled into Cleveland Clinic some three weeks later for heart surgery that would give me +Time, and during our 4:30 service at Holy Nativity, at the Offertory, our priest motioned me over to the Altar to be Celebrant for the Holy Communion, but my angina was so severe and almost constant that I was popping nitroglycerin tablets, and I had to tell him I couldn't do it. And here I am more than a decade later still marveling at life and love! But oh, Holy Commotion. Before the service started, the angels and shepherds and sheep and goats and kings and all were crowded into the space behind the wall next to me on both sides, the littlest ones who recognized me kept waving at me in their excitement of the ...

  Mr Peters to me our dating years, senior year at Bay High December 1952 through graduation from UnivFlorida June 1957; Linda's father, Urban to friends and family; Pete later and to his grandchildren Malinda and Joe, Jody who is named after him. He died at age 65 in December 1970, fifty-one years ago this month, but that's not what causes this memory to cloud up and precipitate sunshine, what brought this on is sudden memories of his breakfast before one of his happy early mornings - - cracking a raw egg and gulping it down, or eating a can of Hormel Tamales - -  and then out the door for his boat the Blue Bonnet, tied up at the little "marina" in Massalina Bayou on the Cove side of Tarpon Dock Bridge. Remember that docking place? It's where Hurricane Michael left dozens of pricey yachts piled up against the bridge, and where there was a U S Coast Guard Station during World War Two when I was a boy.  In fact, not to stray too far, which no matter I've alread...

  Just a couple of things, or IDK it may turn out to be more, three or four. Being a holy man - - though not in the sense of Laurus, whom some are reading as a diversion from pandemic horrors and boredom, I read it early 2017 as an escape from the 2016 election nightmare and fear, all of which turned out justified and continues to hover (this is not a political blog, but who doesn't like my occasional elder politics, don't read me, it's that simple) - - I need to come up with something of holiness for the day before Christmas Eve, and I'll try to get back to that. Diversion though. I do agree with Laurus the yuROdivyy on many things, including that when a person dies the world becomes different now and there's no way back, otherwise I'd meet Gina at Hunt's for oysters. Also that it can be easier to speak (or write) if people don't understand you. It may be that I'm finally coming to understand myself now, but it's taking (not taken, taking) these...

Lots on the mind these holiday season days, the kind things that people enjoy doing, the nice things that folks bring, sugary spicy nuts, caky breads, wonderful pork sausages. This morning the delicious aroma of a ham in the oven. Red flowers,  lights of the Christmas tree. Yesterday's drive to Pensacola, being with Kristen, day with my brother Walt, and Judy, high school sweethearts back together for the rest of life.  There in Maria's on Cervantes for noon dinner of perfect, large oysters on the half-shell and sharing them with my brother, a special joy in life with its own built in memories, fried oysters, fried mullet, looking up and there's my first cousin Suellen making a place for herself and a friend at the end of our table, nobody realizing that a family gathering is forming!  Later we had a drive, and, as we crossed Cervantes and 17th Street Judy said, This intersection is where Walt kissed me the first time. She was sixteen, Walt seventeen, some memor...

Browsing online for various things, I came across this article from The Living Church, that I found almost magically perceptive, incisive, on what is my favorite theme about our baptismal covenant and Christian faith. A center of it is the proposition that if we don't live the covenant, then we don't really believe; or (1 John 4:20 CEV) "if we say we love God and don't love each other, we are liars".   ‘THE DIGNITY OF EVERY HUMAN BEING’: THE CONSTITUTIVE BAPTISMAL COVENANT Calvin Lane December 2, 2016 Liturgy , The Episcopal Church It’s not too much to say that the 1979 Book of Common Prayer’s Baptismal Covenant is (or at least was meant to be) a constitutive document. I rather like that word, constitutive . I had an office-mate in grad school who seemed to work it into every imaginable conversation (which always reminded me of an old Kids in the Hall sketch and the potential for obfuscating academic language). At any rate, one doesn’t have to master French phil...

  Starting this on Sunday afternoon, after the mandatory nap. Love, I love Sunday afternoons, nearly always have, especially this season of year when the world is gray and overcast, looking like a freezing winter day though it isn't, 64F and 79%, a week before Christmas, two days before the winter solstice shortest daylight hours day of the year on the NW Florida Gulf Coast.  Clouds from here often remind me of jewelry made by our exquisitely gifted friend in Apalachicola. This clouds at sunset picture is looking westward at 3:53 pm, but the visibility is 10 miles, and looking south I can see beyond the sailboats and over Shell Island into the Gulf of Mexico. On a happy Sunday afternoon like this, when I'm thinking to live forever and so far so good, it comes to me that our priest's blessing is right on, "My friends, life is short". It might be nice if we could live as far as we can see, which on a clear day or night at 7H is forever. Even traveling at the speed...

  Hail, Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.  Today, Advent Four, the candle is for Mary Sunday and our holy story of Mary. On this final Sunday of Advent, as Christmas dawns, the church greets you in the Name of the Holy Family, and of God the Father, whose entire face toward humanity is the face and gift of love.  The love of God is the sole reason for the angel’s visit to Mary, and Mary’s visit to Elizabeth. The love of God is the sole reason for the Incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ in the Holy Child of Bethlehem.  God’s love for us, that brings Jesus’ own commandment that we treat others lovingly, is the sole reason for the earthly ministry and New Commandment of Jesus.  God’s love for us - - no matter how cruelly we hate and abuse God the Son on the Cross of Calvary and in human life to this day - - God’s love for us is the sole reason for Easter, God’s resurrection of Jes...

Granted, this won't be very organized, I'm just getting it together in case Dr Dan doesn't feel up to coming this morning and leading our adult Sunday School class so soon after his surgery. When I preach or supply, Dr Dan, professor at Gulf Coast State College, graciously takes the class, one of my great and most appreciated blessings.  Anyway, here's my premise, rambling mightily, and doubling back to repeat, all based on today's Old Testament lesson from Micah: New Revised Standard Version Micah chapter 5 Y ou, O Bethlehem of Ephrathah, who are one of the little clans of Judah,  from you shall come forth for me one who is to rule in Israel,  whose origin is from of old, from ancient days.  Therefore he shall give them up until the time when she who is in labor has brought forth;  then the rest of his kindred shall return to the people of Israel.  And he shall stand and feed his flock in the strength of the  Lord , in the majesty of the name of the...