WHEW! THAT'S A BRAIN DUMP!

I had to make a visit to the doctor today for some "flank pain' as she called it. She sent me to get a "renal ultrasound" to see if I have an 'in kidney' kidney stone causing the discomfort. Let's hope not!!

After seeing her (which took HOURS) I grabbed lunch at the Popeye's on the corner of Belle Chasse Hwy and Wall Blvd. While I was eating a fairly lengthy train went by. I always find the trains interesting. It had four engines, but what I really appreciate is the boxcar graffiti such as this or this or this. It seems like there's a lot of untapped raw artistic talent out there.

Our pastor, Fr. Joseph is leaving after next weekend to go to his new assignment as pastor of two parishes, one in Pointe a la Hache, the other in Braithewaite. He'll be neighbors to Fr. John, our former pastor who has been assigned to two parishes also, one in Violet and one in St. Bernard. We at HNM are getting Fr. Pat, from St. Anthony's in Gretna. There is much moving and shaking going on in the archdiocese. Hopefully the dust will settle soon, and people can get back business.

I fear the outcome of the upcoming Presidential election. I wonder if I could find a job that would take me out of the country for the next four to eight years. It's sad to see democracy go down in flames without a fight, with socialism rising from the ashes. The liberal establishment has already taken away our freedom of speech. We are awash in a sea of political correctness. Freedom of speech now applies only to those whose thoughts are in line with the liberal Democrats and the main stream media. God forbid you should want to espouse such principles as morality, chastity, integrity, responsibility. God forbid you should want to work for solutions to civic problems without more federal intervention. God forbid you should make a mistake in judgment and find yourself being held responsible, and not the government, or someone else. God forbid you should believe that life is a gift that should be cherished, nurtured, protected, and not a mistake born of indiscretion or misjudgment to be destroyed as merely an inconvenience.

It's one thing for the government to step in and try to ensure that every single American citizen has access to at least the minimum basic necessities of life. It's a whole different ballgame when the government decides at what point one person is "too successful" and has to "share his wealth". Our Bill of Rights guarantees us the right to "life, liberty, and the PURSUIT of happiness". It DOES NOT GUARANTEE HAPPINESS! It DOES NOT promise a guaranteed standard of living. It's one thing to want everyone to have a "chicken in every pot" and quite another to want "an iphone in every hand, an ipod in every ear, a Wii and a high-def flat screen TV in every living room". Life is NOT fair. It can't be legislated in. Luxury is not necessity. It's time we got our heads on straight.

I could go on, but it's too depressing to look at the future as it appears we are heading.

To my family and friends, and anyone who happens to wander by, I pray that the happiness you seek is that which only God can provide, the happiness that is based in love for each other. A true love, that sees each person as a child of God, worthy of respect and dignity as a human being. We are just that, human beings made in the image and likeness of God. We make mistakes. We are weak. But in spite of it all we are loved by a God who's love lasts for eternity. If only we can respond with a mere shadow of that love for each other. What an awesome world it would be!

Take care, my peeps. God loves you, and so do I!!