If Only to Hear the Organ

My husband and I tried a new church on Sunday.  We had one we were going to (infrequently) before, but they weren't very friendly and we didn't like the preacher and it just didn't ... fit.  Well, with baby on the way I have a new found drive to find a church, so last weekend I said we needed to sit down, find a place to visit, and make a new committment to getting a church home.

The new church is huge.  Huge.  There were probably 3,000 people there on Sunday.  This is perhaps the only draw back to the new church.  Large churches are intimidating.  I am afraid we'd get lost in the shuffle.

Minus points for the new church.

So when we walked in, I'm studying the program looking for ministries and if they happen to have any young family meetings or Bible studies, and Lewis says, "look at the organ."  What joy is mine!  A bright shiny organ!  And a full choir!  One I would probably have to try out to be a part of, and would probably have to wait until someone stepped down before a chair was available, but still ... a choir and an organ, not a band.  And hymnals!  And songs sung from the hymnals!

Point for this church.  Maybe even 5 points, on a sliding scale.

The sermon was good and came from Mark, which makes sense as we get ready to head into Lent (another reason a church is oh so important right now - Lent is my favorite of the Christian seasons - and probably the most important).  And the preacher, who's name you would know if I told you, was really good and timely and his message made sense both in the context of the scripture and in today's world.

More points for this church.

But really ... they had me at the organ.  My grandfather, the amazing man that he was, played the organ.  And the violin, but I think because the organ is such an unfamiliar sound these days, that every time it's played it reminds me of him.

And really, anything that reminds me of him, that brings up a story that I can share with my children about how awesome an individual he really was, well that's all good stuff.  Not everyone is as lucky as I am to have had such an amazing individual in my life.  He owned his own business, sucessfully supported a family with it, raised three children, square danced, played the violin, the organ, was a master gardener and was a volunteer up until he was 89 years old.  He survived the Great Depression, WWII, and all the other unsundry oddities that happened between 1913 and 2005.  He led an amazing life.  He wore a suit every Sunday to church.  And he prayed the same prayer, before every meal.

And I feel him in organ music.  I see him in beautiful gardens, in well tended plants, and in the lives of my family.  We are all a testament to his choices.  I hope that he would be proud of the family he left behind.

So does this mean that the new church is our new home?  Maybe.  Maybe not.  But it means I will go back and give it another try.  If only to hear the organ played ...

More on the Budget

Things you should read regarding the President's proposed budget (all emphasis mine):

Obama Parts Company With Reality - Powerline

Obama said: "[W]e can't simply move beyond this crisis; we have to address the irresponsibility that led to it, and that includes the failure to rein in spending...." But his budget doesn't rein in spending, it increases it over last year's precedent-shattering total by around $100 billion.


Obama said: "[I]t would be a terrible mistake to borrow against our children's future to pay our way today...." His budget, in just the next year, will borrow $1.6 trillion against our children's future to pay our way today.

Backdoor taxes to hit middle class - Reuters (Yahoo! News)  Interestingly enough, Reuters has pulled this story.  I copied the whole thing into word, if you want to see it.
 
Obama Budget Seeks $1.9 Trillion Tax Rise on Richest, Business - Bloomberg

“The proposed budget’s $300 billion in tax relief over the next 10 years for individuals, families, and businesses is mostly targeted and limited, often to people who don’t have to pay any taxes,” said Senator Charles Grassley of Iowa, the ranking Republican on the tax-writing Senate Finance Committee. “The tax increases in the budget dwarf the tax relief.”

 
Largest-ever federal payroll to hit 2.15 million - Washington Times
 
Our view on the budget: Obama’s big fiscal deficits reflect bipartisan failures - USA Today
 
Huge Deficits May Alter U.S. Politics and Global Power - NYT

In fact, in 2019 and 2020 — years after Mr. Obama has left the political scene, even if he serves two terms — they start rising again sharply, to more than 5 percent of gross domestic product. His budget draws a picture of a nation that like many American homeowners simply cannot get above water.

Wealthy Face Tax Increase - WSJ

"It tells you we're in a lot worse shape than advertised," said David Walker, a former U.S. comptroller and now president of the Peter G. Peterson Foundation, a think tank focused on budget reduction.

A lot of talk going on about the tax increases on coal, oil and gas companies.  The amazing thing here is that no one is drawing the line from that to increases to the consumer.  If you think people are angry now ... and I've said this a million times before ... wait until their summer air conditioning and winter heating bills double or triple.

This budget is a tragedy of epic proportions.  And as my mother said yesterday, the budget has gone up in the years since President Bush, but it's skyrocketed since Democrats took control of Congress in 2006.  The President should not be allowed to continue to blame Bush and Republicans for the rising deficits he "inherited" when he was one of the people that voted to approve them.

Obama Budget Will Increase Your Taxes And Costs - Stop the ACLU

You know what increases tax receipts, too? Decreasing taxes. Because people spend more. And this has the added benefit of watching the money flow through the economy, before hitting the federal treasury. That is true stimulus. Money given straight to the federal coffers is money that is not being used to purchase something, which means someone else is not making money that he/she/the business cannot spend on something else, which is money that will not go to so on and so forth. Basic economics, libs. Don’t blame the Bush tax cuts, which brought in way more money, for the Republicans spending like drunken sailors. BTW, Dems controlled the Senate in 2001, and voted for the 2001 tax cuts.

A Taste

Reason number 1,544,756,566,654 to be happily married while pregnant and planning for baby: picking up and setting up of the baby furniture. 

It's all arrived, the room is painted (Rapture Blue - remember?).  I'm still missing the bedding and some wall decor - hence no photograph - but it's coming together.

The dog, however, is in some sort of panick mode.  She was so confused by the crib and the boxes and the screws ... she kept trying to lay on top of us as he put it together, and then she tried to lay inside the crib, then on the edge of the crib, and now she's made her way to her safe place - her kennel.

We're not moving, but I'm not sure she remembers when we moved.  But she definitely knows something is up.

The Obama Girls

The Obama children and child obesity

Michelle Obama in a speech today said that her daughters pediatrician told her that her daughters were getting "off track" in regards to their BMI.  The story here.

I just ... I have a hard time believing that.  I know that first hand stories and these personal tales really motivate, but these girls should not have their BMI used as a measuring tool for all the world.  Should they?

First of all Sasha and Malia are probably my favorite thing about this White House.  They are just totally adorable and fun and I like them with the dog and yes I'm a sap.  When they got to meet the cast of Harry Potter for Sasha's birthday ... yeah I was green with envy.

This just seems .. like using the kids for political points?  Or using them to fit an agenda?  I know childhood obesity is a huge problem (pardon the pun) and the more people working on fixing it the better ... but is this the way to go?

BTW - interested to know what people think about the First Lady's announcement that there would be more money in the 2011 budget for military families.  It's only a 3% increase, but every little bit helps.  Especially as bases close hospitals, cut services, and tours get longer and longer and the strain on families increases.

Also - can we have a Congressional Commission or Ethical subcommittee or whatever million dollar process to look into Nancy Pelosi and her GROSS MISUSE OF MILITARY AIRCRAFT.  She needs to be outed.  NOW.