#it's step 27 in his master plan of getting James to like him back

[wordsofwilderness]

Regulus would be such a big Pandalily shipper, for not at all nefarious jealousy related reasons

[pope-francis-quotes]

10th April >> (@ZenitEnglish) #PopeFrancis #Pope Francis Presides Over Celebration of Passion of the Lord. Full Text of Homily by Fr. Raniero Cantalamessa, O.F.M. Cap

Pope Francis on Good Friday presided over the celebration of the Passion of the Lord in the Vatican Basilica.

The Preacher of the Pontifical House, Fr. Raniero Cantalamessa, O.F.M. Cap., delivered the homily, which is provided in its entirety below, provided by the Vatican.

“I HAVE PLANS FOR YOUR WELFARE AND NOT FOR WOE”

St. Gregory the Great said that Scripture “grows with its readers”, cum legentibus crescit.[1] It reveals meanings always new according to the questions people have in their hearts as they read it. And this year we read the account of the Passion with a question—rather with a cry—in our hearts that is rising up over the whole earth. We need to seek the answer that the word of God gives it.

The Gospel reading we have just listened to is the account of the objectively greatest evil committed on earth. We can look at it from two different angles: either from the front or from the back, that is, either from its causes or from its effects. If we stop at the historical causes of Christ’s death, we get confused and everyone will be tempted to say, as Pilate did, “I am innocent of this man’s blood” (Mt 27:24). The cross is better understood by its effects than by its causes. And what were the effects of Christ’s death? Being justified through faith in him, being reconciled and at peace with God, and being filled with the hope of eternal life! (see Rom 53:1-5).

But there is one effect that the current situation can help us to grasp in particular. The cross of Christ has changed the meaning of pain and human suffering—of every kind of suffering, physical and moral. It is no longer punishment, a curse. It was redeemed at its root when the Son of God took it upon himself. What is the surest proof that the drink someone offers you is not poisoned? It is if that person drinks from the same cup before you do. This is what God has done: on the cross, he drank, in front of the whole world, the cup of pain down to its dregs. This is how he showed us it is not poisoned, but that there is a pearl at the bottom of it.

And not only the pain of those who have faith but of every human pain. He died for all human beings: “And when I am lifted up from the earth,” he said, “I will draw everyone to myself” (Jn 12:32).

Everyone, not just some! St. John Paul II wrote from his hospital bed after his attempted assassination, “To suffer means to become particularly susceptible, particularly open to the working of the salvific powers of God, offered to humanity in Christ.”[2] Thanks to the cross of Christ, suffering has also become in its own way a kind of “universal sacrament of salvation” for the human race.

* * *

What light does all of this shed on the dramatic situation that humanity is going through now? Here too we need to look at the effects more than at the causes—not just the negative ones we hear about every day in heart-wrenching reports but also the positive ones that only a more careful observation can help us grasp.

The pandemic of Coronavirus has abruptly roused us from the greatest danger individuals and humanity have always been susceptible to: the delusion of omnipotence. A Jewish rabbi has written that we have the opportunity to celebrate a very special paschal exodus this year, that “from the exile of consciousness” [3]. It took merely the smallest and most formless element of nature, a virus, to remind us that we are mortal, that military power and technology are not sufficient to save us. As a psalm in the Bible says, “In his prime, man does not understand. / He is like the beasts—they perish” (Ps 49:21). How true that is!

While he was painting frescoes in St. Paul’s Cathedral in London, the artist James Thornhill became so excited at a certain point about his fresco that he stepped back to see it better and was unaware he was about to fall over the edge of the scaffolding. A horrified assistant understood that crying out to him would have only hastened the disaster. Without thinking twice, he dipped a brush in paint and hurled it at the middle of the fresco. The master, appalled, sprang forward. His work was damaged, but he was saved.

God does this with us sometimes: he disrupts our projects and our calm to save us from the abyss we don’t see. But we need to be careful not to be deceived. God is not the one who hurled the brush at the sparkling fresco of our technological society. God is our ally, not the ally of the virus! He himself says in the Bible, “I have . . . plans for your welfare and not for woe” (Jer 29:11). If these scourges were punishments of God, it would not be explained why they strike equally good and bad, and why the poor usually bring the worst consequences of them. Are they more sinners than others?

No! The one who cried one day for Lazarus’ death cries today for the scourge that has fallen on humanity. Yes, God “suffers”, like every father and every mother. When we will find out this one day, we will be ashamed of all the accusations we made against him in life. God participates in our pain to overcome it. “Being supremely good – wrote St. Augustine – God would not allow any evil in his works, unless in his omnipotence and goodness, he is able to bring forth good out of evil.”[4]

Did God the Father possibly desire the death of his Son in order to draw good out of it? No, he simply permitted human freedom to take its course, making it serve, however, his own purposes and not those of human beings. This is also the case for natural disasters like earthquakes and plagues. He does not bring them about. He has given nature a kind of freedom as well, qualitatively different of course than that of human beings, but still a form of freedom—freedom to evolve according to its own laws of development. He did not create a world as a programmed clock whose least little movement could be anticipated. It is what some call “chance” but the Bible calls instead “the wisdom of God.”

* * *

The other positive fruit of the present health crisis is the feeling of solidarity. When, in the memory of humanity, have the people of all nations ever felt themselves so united, so equal, so less in conflict than at this moment of pain? Never so much as now have we experienced the truth of the words of one of our great poets: “Peace, you peoples! Too deep is the mystery of the prostrate earth.”[5] We have forgotten about building walls. The virus knows no borders. In an instant, it has broken down all the barriers and distinctions of race, nation, religion, wealth, and power. We should not revert to that prior time when this moment has passed. As the Holy Father has exhorted us, we should not waste this opportunity. Let us not allow so much pain, so many deaths, and so much heroic engagement on the part of health workers to have been in vain. Returning to the way things were is the “recession” we should fear the most.

They shall beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks;

One nation shall not raise the sword against another, nor shall they train for war again. (Is 2:4)

This is the moment to put into practice something of the prophecy of Isaiah whose fulfillment humanity has long been waiting for. Let us say “Enough!” to the tragic race toward arms. Say it with all your might, you young people, because it is above all your destiny that is at stake. Let us devote the unlimited resources committed to weapons to the goals that we now realize are most necessary and urgent: health, hygiene, food, the fight against poverty, stewardship of creation. Let us leave to the next generation a world poorer in goods and money, if need be, but richer in its humanity.

* * *

The word of God tells us the first thing we should do at times like these is to cry out to God. He himself is the one who puts on people’s lips the words to cry out to him, at times harsh words of lament and almost of accusation: “Awake! Why do you sleep, O Lord? / Rise up! Do not reject us forever! . . . Rise up, help us! / Redeem us in your mercy” (Ps 44, 24, 27). “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?” (Mk 4:38).

Does God perhaps like to be petitioned so that he can grant his benefits? Can our prayer perhaps make God change his plans? No, but there are things that God has decided to grant us as the fruit both of his grace and of our prayer, almost as though sharing with his creatures the credit for the benefit received.[6] God is the one who prompts us to do it: “Seek and you will find,” Jesus said; “knock and the door will be opened to you” (Mt 7:7).

When the Israelites were bitten by poisonous serpents in the desert, God commanded Moses to lift up a serpent of bronze on a pole, and whoever looked at it would not die. Jesus appropriated this symbol to himself when he told Nicodemus, “Just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life” (Jn 3:14-15). We too at this moment have been bitten by an invisible, poisonous “serpent.” Let us gaze upon the one who was “lifted up” for us on the cross. Let us adore him on behalf of ourselves and of the whole human race. The one who looks on him with faith does not die. And if that person dies, it will be to enter eternal life.

“After three days I will rise”, Jesus had foretold (cf. Mt 9:31). We too, after these days that we hope will be short, shall rise and come out of the tombs of our homes. Not however to return to the former life like Lazarus, but to a new life, like Jesus. A more fraternal, more human, more Christian life!

[1] Moralia in Job, XX, 1.

[2] John Paul II, Salvifici doloris [On the Meaning of Human Suffering], n. 23.

[3] https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/coronavirus-a-spiritual-message-from-brooklyn (Yaakov Yitzhak Biderman).

[4] See St. Augustine, Enchiridion 11, 3; PL 40, 236.

[5] Giovanni Pascoli, “I due fanciulli” [“The Two Children”].

[6] See St. Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologicae, II-IIae, q. 83, a. 2.

10th APRIL 2020 19:27POPE & HOLY SEE

[kabane52]

The Story of Angels

Angels were the tutors of the human family prior to the new covenant. As David says, man was "for a little while lower than the gods [angels]" but is ultimately "crowned with glory and honor." It was angels who were running things in the time from Adam to Jesus. Jesus conducted His work as the "Angel of Yahweh." In the new covenant it is accomplished as the Last Adam. When God created the heavens and the earth, the heavens were complete and mature and glorified, and they do not develop over time. The angels, likewise, freely will good or evil and are from that point fixed in their goodness or evil, as John Damascene and other Fathers teach. It's rooted in this scriptural concept. We are told that the earth was "formless and void" and that "darkness was over the face of the deep." Throughout the six day creation, God forms, fills, and brightens the world, molding it to conform in greater degrees to its heavenly counterpart.

The "heavens" which are the space between the firmament-boundary of the cosmos and the earth described in Genesis 1:8 are a symbol and image of the heavens created in Genesis 1:1. Scripture consistently distinguishes the "Heaven of Heavens" with the "Heavens." In the order of the Temple, the Heaven of Heavens, the Throne-Room of God and location of the Heavenly Council, is the Inner Sanctuary. The starry heaven is the Holy Place, which has the seven-branched menorah called by the same term which names the heavenly lights in Genesis 1. The seven branches signify, among other things, the sun, the moon, and the five planets visible with the naked eye. This symbolic relation is why the angels are often called "stars" in the Bible. It is not until the new covenant that men are given permanent standing in God's heavenly council/court. Before that time, only prophets had access to the heavenly sanctuary (see Isaiah 6, 1 Kings 22, Amos 3, and so on) enabling them to make intercession (Exodus 32-34, Genesis 18-19, Job 42) before God for others. Members of the council are called the "sons of God" as they are in Job 1-2 and Deuteronomy 32. In the New Testament, we are the "sons of God" and are "seated in heaven with Christ."

James Jordan compares angels to drill sergeants. For a time, they have authority, but ultimately the purpose is for those over whom they have authority to be trained, at which point the drill sergeant salutes them. Now, as Apostle Paul says, we "judge angels." According to Christian tradition (and I think Jewish tradition) which found its way into the Quran, Satan rebelled because he did not want to submit to Adam. This is supported in the text of Genesis 3, which suggests that the serpent (the "nachash", the "bright one" whose name as a noun means "serpent" but as an adjective means "bright"- just like seraph which means "serpent" as noun and "burning" as adjective- the serpent is a heavenly, angelic being) rebelled because he did not want man to develop and mature to rule over him. Why was he there? He seems to have been the appointed angel who would be the chief tutor of the human family. As in the New Testament relative to Adam, the Divine Son assumes that role upon his rebellion, functioning as the Angel of the Lord. He first puts to Adam and Eve a question designed to make them reflect upon the commandment God had given:

(Genesis 3:1-3)  Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the Lord God had made.He said to the woman, "Did God actually say, 'You shall not eat of any tree in the garden'?" And the woman said to the serpent, "We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden, but God said, 'You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.'"

This is often read negatively on both sides, but it shouldn't. This is a teaching tool. You tell a child a commandment from God, then you repeat it to them in a slightly distorted fashion and ask: "is this right?" God does this in Exodus 33-34. "I'm going to destroy my people and replace Abraham with you. What do you think, Moses?" In repeating the covenant faithfulness of God back to God, Moses comes to a deeper understanding of God's instruction and character, bringing him to a deeper understanding of the character signified in the revelation of the Glory and Name in Exodus 34. Similarly, God challenges Job in Job 38-41 to explain various created things and various issues in the world. He's putting questions to provoke contemplation.

Why does the serpent then lie in Genesis 3:4? This is the moment he chooses to rebel. The key is in Eve's words: "neither shall you touch it." In the Torah, Israel is told that what they must not eat, they must not touch. This is a wise principle. Be "above reproach." Don't put yourself in unwise situations. What is key is that Eve has reflected upon the divine commandment and taken her first step to maturity. She has grown in insight. At this point, Satan sees the implication that the plan- to mature the human family and exalt it over the angelic host- can succeed. And so he seeks to cast the family into the dirt and seize perpetual dominion by tricking God into killing humanity for him. He does the same thing in Numbers when Balak and Balaam realize they can't curse Israel. So they seek to tempt Israel with sexual apostasy. In this way, they get God to kill Israel on their behalf. In Numbers we hear that Israel committed adultery with "Baal of Peor." Baal is a figure very closely associated in the Bible with Satan. The wicked are the "seed of BELial", Bel being Baal. In the New Testament, the evil one is called "Bel-zebub", Master of the Flies, a title taken from Baal's name. And as bridal Israel commits adultery with Baal there, so also Eve is called an adulterer with Satan in 2 Corinthians 11.

In the curses, he is told that he will "eat dust", which is not an etiology of why serpents don't have legs. Rather, it's a statement that he will be placed in Sheol, under the earth. He will "eat dust" which means that he will eat dead men who return to the dust. Hence, hell, which is the eternal actualization of Sheol, is prepared for "the devil and his angels" but includes those who ally themselves with the serpent. To be blessed is to be cut in two and stitched back together- death and resurrection. This is what we see in Genesis 15, where Abram cuts five sacrificial animals in two, and the glory-cloud passes between them, stitching them back together symbolically. Abram went into a "deep sleep", echoing Genesis 2 where Adam is cut in two and reunited in glorified form. God takes a part of him, turns the part into the Bride, and then puts Adam back together as they become "one flesh."

We are told that Abram drives away birds of prey. Why? Because to be consumed by the birds of prey is to be cursed under the covenant. Instead of dying unto resurrection and glory, one dies unto the second death. Compare Ezekiel 38-39, Revelation 19:17-21, and so on. The "unclean birds" symbolize the devil's angels just as clean birds symbolize God's angels, as here:

(Revelation 18:2)  And he called out with a mighty voice, "Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great! She has become a dwelling place for demons, a haunt for every unclean spirit, a haunt for every unclean bird, a haunt for every unclean and detestable beast.

So that's why the serpent is said to "eat dust." Genesis 3 is unfolded in Isaiah 14, where we hear of the "king of Babylon." This is not a historical king, but the ruler of the symbolic "city of man." Cain founded the first city, which was idolatrous and violent. That city is refounded after the flood and called "Babylon" which from that point on becomes a symbol for the civilizations gathered against God, in contrast to the next city we meet, which is Jerusalem- Genesis 14, which symbolizes the opposite. Who rules in Babylon? Genesis 11 tells us that they wished to build the tower with its top in the heavens. They wished to ascend to the heavenly council themselves. The text links with Genesis 6:1-4, where the "sons of God" came into the "daughters of Adam" and bore children who spread blood and violence. This is demonic, and traditions linking Nimrod with astrology and occult are accurate and representative of this. Satan rules in Babylon, so the king of Babylon in Isaiah 14 is Satan. He is the "Day Star, Son of the Morning" as nachash means "Bright One" and as Job 41, describing the Dragon (cf. Isaiah 27) Leviathan, the "king over the sons of pride" and the literary match for the Satan of Job 1-2, with "eyes as the dawn." The king of Isaiah 14 exalted himself above the stars but was cast down to Sheol, where he is greeted by the Rephaim, who are a specific class of Nephilim, thus connecting this text with Genesis 6:1-4 and the "seed of the serpent" theme more generally. This is the OT teaching on the demonic.

In the chiastic structure of Isaiah, Isaiah 14 matches Isaiah 53. The former describes the attempted ascent to heaven of Satan but his ultimate casting down to the grave, the latter describes the willing descent of Jesus into the grave and His freely granted exaltation far above all things, being "high and lifted up" with God Himself (Isaiah 6:1). Revelation 12 describes the activity of the evil angels this way:

(Revelation 12:1-9)  And a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. She was pregnant and was crying out in birth pains and the agony of giving birth. And another sign appeared in heaven: behold, a great red dragon, with seven heads and ten horns, and on his heads seven diadems. His tail swept down a third of the stars of heaven and cast them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, so that when she bore her child he might devour it. She gave birth to a male child, one who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron, but her child was caught up to God and to his throne, and the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God, in which she is to be nourished for 1,260 days. Now war arose in heaven, Michael and his angels fighting against the dragon. And the dragon and his angels fought back, but he was defeated and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world--he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.

So we have:

1. The woman of Genesis 3. This is the human family which focuses down onto one Woman. The human family, then Israel cries out as it desires to bear the Seed promised in Genesis 3.

2. The dragon appears, desiring to stop the promise of Genesis 3 and reflecting the war he has with the woman and her seed.

3. His tail casts a third of stars to the earth. "Stars" are angels, as they are called in Isaiah 14 (the "stars of God"). Satan fell in Genesis 3 when he chose to deceive Eve, his followers fell in Genesis 6 when they declared their allegiance to Satan and sought to produce seed through the daughters of Adam, the line which would ultimately produce the seed. Their casting to the earth describes Genesis 6.

4. The seed is born and ascends to heaven, being enthroned. This leads to the expulsion of the devil and his angels from the heavenly council. This is a new thing. As we see in Job 1-2, Satan had a formal standing in the heavenly court. God had ontologically bound up the world with the rule of the heavenly hosts. He has done the same, in Jesus the Messiah, with the rule of the church. Ecclesiastical sickness produces sickness in the human family and creation in general.

Alright, so to sum up:

-God created heavens complete and mature. Angels do not multiply. They are created as a host. The earth is formless, void, and dark. God forms, fills, and lightens it over six days and makes man as His image to partner in completing the work. God makes one man, takes a woman from him, and multiplies man into a host.

-Corresponding to this, the human family has a long period of habituation into either good or evil, and can repent and change minds while in the body. Angels make one choice and are fixed one way or the other.

-Angels were the tutors and stewards of creation in the beginning. They sat in God's heavenly court, ruled from the council, and appeared to man in order to carry out God's purpose to and through man.

-The fallen angels fell because they rebelled against God's purpose in relating man and angel. Just as man rebelled because he wished to have glory from the beginning, angels rebelled because they wished to keep glory unto the end.

-Still, God was faithful and the Eternal Son functioned as chief of the angelic hosts, tutoring Israel, the sanctified branch of the human family which will through the Messiah shoot forth and fill the whole world with fruit- compare Isaiah 11:1, Isaiah 27:6. Likewise, even the attacks of evil functioned to test God's children and mature them in teaching them to fight against idolatry.

-With the incarnation and glorification of the Risen Son, the Logos of God exercises His office as Last Adam, not Angel of the Lord. The new covenant means that we are crowned in the Messiah with glory and honor and that angels are judicially subordinate to us.

[chocolatequeennk]

Monthly self-rec, Nov/Dec

It’s time for the monthly self rec! If you make things–fanfic, meta posts, edits, fanart–you should do a round-up post with links to your works, and tag monthly self rec so we can all see what you’ve been up to! Full details in the first link. Making things is hard–let’s recognise each other.

I didn’t do one of these last month, because the only thing I posted was FANA. So here’s November and December combined.

Forever and Never Apart

Summary: After taking a year to recover from the Master, the Doctor and Rose are ready to travel again. But Time keeps pushing them forward, and instead of going back to their old life, they slowly realise that they’re stepping into a new life. Friends new and old are meeting on the TARDIS, and when the stars start going out, the Doctor and Rose face the biggest change of all: the return of Bad Wolf.

Series 4 with Rose, part 7 of Being to Timelessness; sequel to Taking Time (AO3 | FF.NET | TSP)

Ch 1 | Ch 2 | Ch 3 | Ch 4 | Ch 5 | Ch 6 | Ch 7 | Ch 8 | Ch 9 | Ch 10| Ch 11 | Ch 12 | Ch 13 | Ch 14 | Ch 15 | Ch 16 | Ch 17 | Ch 18| Ch 19 | Ch 20 | Ch 21 | Ch 22 | Ch 23 | Ch 24 | Ch 25 | Ch 26| Ch 27 | Ch 28 | Ch 29 | Ch 30 | Ch 31 Ch 32 | Ch 33

A Day to Remember

Walking hand in hand through crisp autumn leaves, drinking hot chocolate and eating warm apple pie, sitting together in front of a fire, and finding each other at a masquerade ball-the Doctor has planned the perfect first date, and it will be a day Rose will always remember.

(This was mostly written in October for Fall Fic Fest, but I apparently did not finish chapter 5 until November.)

AO3 | FF | TSP | Ch 1 | Ch 2 | Ch 3 | Ch 4  | Ch 5

Always Her Doctor (WIP)

John Tyler is a teacher at Farringham, but he’s been dreaming of another life–the life of an adventure known as the Doctor. When Marion Smith appears in Farringham, he’s immediately drawn to her. And why not? Marion Smith is the mirror image of Rose Tyler–the Doctor’s wife.

Reunion set during Human Nature/Family of Blood, with Christmas overtones.

AO3 | FF.NET | Ch 1 | Ch 2 | Ch 3

Twined Together with Love

When Rose is able to connect telepathically with their unborn baby, the Doctor realises she’s more telepathic than he thought-which means she might be able to share a telepathic bond.

Part of How Does She Know? Sequel to More Than Words Can Say. Pregnancy fic, post Doomsday fixit.

AO3 | FF | Tumblr

The Look of Love

After two years of friendship, James and Rose finally admit to the truth they’ve always seen in each other’s eyes.

This is a Ten/Rose Coffee shop AU, based on a Facebook post @jabber-who-key and I saw last year around the holidays. 

AO3 | FF | Tumblr

Lesson Learned

In which the Doctor learns that some things should not be sonicked, and Rose’s negotiation skills get the better of him.

Ten x Rose, post Doomsday fixit, telepathic bond. This is part of True Things, and comes after Jackie Tyler Saves the Universe

AO3 | FF | Tumblr

Rude and No Ginger

Why does the Doctor care that Rose’s eggnog would get him drunk? It’s not like he’s drinking it. Unless…

AO3 | FF | Tumblr

Forever With You

James and Rose have had a long-distance relationship for almost a year. Now James is moving home… which seems like the perfect time to discuss the next step in their relationship.

AO3 | FF | Tumblr

A Lot Like Christmas

The Doctor finds Rose decorating for Christmas, and decides to give her the best Christmas she’s ever had.

AO3 | FF | Ch 1 | Ch 2

Christmas Joy

A series of winter and Christmas adventures lead the Doctor and Rose into a deeper relationship-and eventually, open the door for them to spend forever together.

AO3 | FF | Ch 1 | Ch 2

Untitled tree decorating piece

In which the Doctor attempts to distract himself from the storm he can sense coming by decorating for Christmas

Only the Beginning

When the Doctor and Rose kissed under the mistletoe, a future full of kisses opened up to them.

Nine x Rose

AO3 | FF | Tumblr

Timeless Outtakes: Mocha Mixup

When a barista sees Rose with the Tenth Doctor after seeing her with the Twelfth Doctor, there’s a bit of confusion.

AO3 | FF.NET | TSP | Tumblr

We’re Happy Tonight

The Doctor finds the courage to change his relationship with Rose, with a little help from a Christmas song and some mistletoe

Prequel to Where the Love Light Gleams.

AO3 | FF | Tumblr

A Midnight Clear

When the Doctor takes Rose to cut down her first Christmas tree, the magic of Christmas leads to their first kiss.

Eight x Rose, soulmates au. This is a sequel to Where You Least Expect It.

AO3 | FF | Tumblr

Previous months:

October

September

August

July

June

May

April

March

February

January

[gvbejvmes]

Drabble: Gabe & Nattie go to Art School

Warnings: PG-13 Relationships: Gabe/Johnny, Gabe/Jillynn, Gabe/Nancy, Gabe&Georgie Characters: Gabe, Natalie, Bella, Johnny, Jillynn (mentioned), Nancy (mentioned), Georgie (mentioned)

Gabe had done some weird things in his life, but he definitely had to say that pushing a stroller through an art trade show on his way to teach a master class was definitely up there. Not only was it surreal, but the fact that there was a six year old perched on a skateboard looking thing attached near the handles definitely made things interesting. This wasn’t Bella’s first time having to sit through an art show. Most days she was attached to his hip. This was, however, Natalie’s first art show.

“Uncle Gabe, are you famous?” She asked as she looked around at all the booths as they were escorted across the main floor.

“Sort of.” He said with a small shrug, not looking down at his soon-to-be step-daughter and instead scanning the area so he doesn’t mow anyone down. 

Natalie nodded for a moment. “‘Cause Delia’s on TV?”

He blinked. “No.” He said, not liking where this was going.

“‘Cause you used to be married to someone who’s on the news a lot?” 

“No!” He said, now feeling offended. “I’m good at art. So people who like art, and want to be good at art, too, know who I am and I’m famous to them.”

She nodded as they came to a stop in front of a huge vertical banner outside of a ballroom. Gabriel James: Using Alternative Materials in Painting. Underneath it was a painting of a woman’s back made entirely out of liquefied glass. “Uncle Gabe.” Natalie breathed out, bending so she could look up at him. “Did you make that?” She asked staring at the screen-printed rendition of his art.

Gabe couldn’t help but snort. “Don’t sound so surprised, little girl. I am capable of doing things other than just coloring with you.” He said before ruffling her hair affectionately.

“Mr. James?” One of the volunteers greeted them. “I’ve been assigned to help you and your little helpers get set up before the master class begins.” They were lead into the ballroom where half of it looked set up for a seminar, and  the other half looked like an Art 101 classroom. 

As soon as they were inside, Natalie took off running towards an area off to the side of the stage where a couple of his new pieces were waiting. They were going to be shown off here before they hit the gallery showing next week. “Same rules apply here as in my studio at home. Don’t touch anything unless I say you can.” He called out before parking the stroller next to the stage. He glanced inside to check that Bella was still asleep. 

“Your kids are adorable.” The volunteer said before pulling out a folder with his and the girls’ badges and the schedule.

He laughed. “My kids are all full-grown: 27, 25, and almost 23. The sleeping one is my granddaughter. The one running around is my future step-daughter. And my cousin; don’t ask. But I’ll tell their moms that you said so.” He said with a warm smile before pinning his all access badge on and then pinning on Bella’s to her sleeping form.

“Nat, come here.” He called out, waving the badge. “You need a badge to go with the bracelet they gave us when we came in.” 

As he pinned the badge to her, the volunteer started talking. “We followed the plans you sent over for the display of your new pieces, but we don���t think we assembled the installation piece correctly, and wanted you to look at it before it’s displayed. After the seminar and the class they will be moved out into the instructors’ gallery. We also got a couple of your older pieces on loan from the collectors - Aphrodite, Ares, and Narcissus. And of course we received Apollo & Artemis when your newer pieces came. These will also be moved to the gallery after the seminar and will remain on display throughout the show.” Suddenly another person popped into the room, and the volunteer shot Gabe an apologetic look. “I’ll be right back. Can you check on the placement of your pieces?”

Once Gabe was alone with the kids, he took Natalie by the hand. “Come on. I’ll show you things I made.” He said leading her over to an area of the ballroom he hadn’t noticed before. The four paintings the assistant had talked about were in a row, perched on easels with a grumpy looking man  standing near by, obviously the supposed security guard of some kind. 

They stopped in front of Narcissus, which was the painting from the banner. It was a naked woman seen only from behind stepping into a pool of water. It was liquefied glass poured and painted onto wood. “Was that a real person?” Natalie asked as she stared up at the painting.

“It’s DJ and CJ’s mom.” Gabe affirmed before moving her to stand in front of Ares. 

This one was only a couple of years old, and wasn’t on display in someone’s collection so much as it was purchased because someone didn’t want a picture of their ass hanging in a stranger’s living room. It was dyed ash painted onto an acid washed canvas. A man was stepping into flames, and like Narcissus, it was a nude body from behind. He didn’t necessarily want this one here, but it was part of the set. The only painting missing was Zeus & Hera, but that had been an issue with the collector not wanting it on display. 

“That’s a boy butt.” Natalie said before bursting into giggles. “Is that Uncle Johnny?” She asked in a whisper. 

Gabe groaned. Between Natalie and Bella, he swore to God. “Mr. Johnny. That man is not your uncle any more. He’s Mr. Johnny now.” He corrected, sounding a little annoyed that all the little kids in his life were traitors. “And yes, but he doesn’t like people knowing that.” 

He then moved Natalie to stand in front of Aphrodite. This one was slightly different. It’d been painted out of different shades of lipstick on top of a faded out mirror. It was still was from behind, but the woman had been painted so her face wasn’t seen, but the swell of one of her breasts was. She was stepping onto the petal of a flower.

“Is that my mom?” Natalie asked in awe. “How mad at you is she that someone has her butt and booby in their house?” She asked with a slight giggle.

Gabe rolled his eyes. “This one is actually at the Museum of the Goddess. It’s a small, liberal, hippy museum. It’s mostly Wiccans and lesbians checking her out.” He said with a shrug.

When Gabe didn’t walk her to stand in front of the last one, she walked herself over to stand in front of Apollo & Artemis. This one was two people merged together like the original Greek interpretation of soulmates. The male half had been painted out of a rainbow of different crayons melted down. The female half was painted out of different shades of blue crayons. They were stepping into the woods, and their faces were turned so you could see the outlines of their faces as the looked at each other.

“Is that you and Aunt G?” Natalie asked him, sounding awed. It looked like she wanted to touch it, and because it was the only one of the four that he hadn’t had it in him to sell, he nodded in approval. Natalie’s fingertips gently traced over his and Georgie’s forms. “How come you look more like aliens than people? And you don’t have any tattoos. The one of Uncle Johnny’s butt has a tattoo.”

Gabe pinched the bridge of his nose. Jill was going to murder him if Natalie kept calling Johnny ‘Uncle Johnny.’ Sighing, he wrapped an arm around her shoulders and let her over to the installation piece to see what was going with it. “Little girl, you gotta stop calling that man your uncle.”

Later

There was the buzz of art students outside of the ballroom and all the pieces had been checked and double-checked. The make-shift studio was set-up to his specifications, and Natalie was dressed in a little smock so she wouldn’t come home covered in melted candle wax when she ‘helped’ with his class after the seminar. It wasn’t until Gabe and the girls were ushered into a makeshift greenroom made out of room dividers next to the stage that Bella woke up from her nap and wouldn’t stop crying.

“Bella, I gotta put you down, okay? We brought your playpen. You can watch Grandpa from the stage, but I’m gonna need to put you down.” He tried to reason with the toddler.

“Nooooooo” She whined, burying her face into the crook of his neck. “Grandpa can’t go. I need you. I have to potty.” 

Gabe sighed, and it was then that the volunteer appeared. “I can take her if you’d like, Mr. James. We have a tight schedule to keep.” She told him, looking frazzled.

He ran his free hand over his mouth before shaking his head. “I’ll take her. She won’t go with you. Stall or something. I’ll be right back.” He looked at Natalie. “Come on, Nat. I can’t leave you alone.”

The little girl shook her head. “I wanna stay with your paintings. Miss-” She looked at the volunteer’s name badge. “Bonnie will keep an eye on me. It’s just five minutes.” 

Sighing, he knew he’d lost this one. “Fine. Stay with Bonnie the whole time, okay?”

“I won’t go anywhere other than the stage.”

Something about that comment should have concerned him, but it didn’t.

Ten Minutes Later

As Gabe walked back into the the ballroom, it sounded like someone else had started the master class. What? Raising an eyebrow, he placed Bella into her playpen with her headphones and her iPad before giving Bonnie a very confused look. “Where’s Natalie?” He asked very slowly, already having a feeling he knew exactly where she was.

“She decided to start the workshop for you. She’s the cutest!” 

Raising an eyebrow, he stepped out of the greenroom and onto the stage where he could see Natalie. She was sitting on what he assumed was his stool, a microphone in her hand while the audience ate out of the palm of her hand. “Gabe says it doesn’t matter if other people think your art is pretty. If you think your art is pretty that’s enough. Or if it’s supposed to be ugly, then rock that shit.”

Gabe ran a hand over his mouth as the audience laughed. Natalie was quoting her verbatim. Oh, Jill was going to murder him for sure. 

“It’s not important what other people think of your art - as long as you think it’s fucking awesome.”

There was another loud laugh, and that was when Gabe decided it was his time to take the stage. Lord only knew what was going to come out of Natalie’s mouth next. He took the microphone from one of the volunteers and quietly walked onto the stage, a finger to his lips so the audience wouldn’t give away that he was walking across the stage.

“And you gotta be true to yourself and not care about the haters ‘cause they suck anyway.”

Gabe almost laughed, but he waited until he was standing right behind Natalie before he brought the microphone up to his mouth. “But the most important thing is to chase your truth no matter how weird it might be.”

Natalie all about jumped out of her skin. She spun around and looked at Gabe with a sheepish smile. “Hi, Gabe!” She greeted and there was a cheer.

“Can we make some noise for my almost step-daughter?” He asked the crowd of artists appeased him with a series of cheers and clapping. The little girl all but scrambled off the stool, but Gabe stopped her with a hand on her shoulder. “Where do you think you’re going? Can we get another stool up here?” 

As a stool was brought out two things happened at once. The door opened and a latecomer walked into the ballroom. And Bella somehow managed to get out of her playpen and was wandering down one of the aisles. Jesus Christ, this day was one thing right after another. Before he could even react, Bella suddenly screamed out: “MR. JAY! GRANDPA JAAAAAAAAAAY!” And of course she then launched herself at the person who had just come into the ballroom. He barely had time to catch the confused and startled look on Johnny’s face before Bella was suddenly in his arms. 

“Don’t worry. That wild child also belongs to me.” He allowed himself to shoot a lopsided grin in Johnny’s direction before tacking on: “And that’s actually her other Grandpa. More or less.” 

He took the stool from the volunteer, and settled down next to Natalie. In the distance he could see Bella tugging Johnny to where she wanted to sit, but he tried to focus on what was left of his master class time and not on everything going on around him. “Now, I want to be vain and assume everyone here is familiar with my work and my style, but just in case you have no idea who I am and just wanted to learn something new today, I’m going to have Nattie here tell you about each of the paintings that I brought with me today.” 

The projector behind them suddenly turned on, and Gabe nodded at Natalie to turn on the stool so she could see what was behind them. When the first painting came into focus, she giggled. “This one is called Narcissy-” “Narcissus” “And is of Aunt Satan, but that’s not really her name. That’s just what Gabe and CJ and DJ call her. Gabe poured glass onto wood and he had to be super careful ‘cause it was hot and ‘cause glass cools like really really fast and he wasn’t as good at art then and he has a scar on his hand now ‘cause it got too hot.”

There was laughter, and Gabe nodded for the next slide to appear. “What’s this one about?” He asked, and honestly this was easier than all the focus being on him.

“This one is called Aphrodite ‘cause that’s the goddess of love and being pretty, and Gabe thinks my mommy is the prettiest girl in the whole wide world. And that’s my mommy by the way. And I don’t know why he used lipstick other than ‘cause he was thinking about kissing her a lot. And her booby is out because he likes her boobies.”

There was more laughter, and Gabe couldn’t help but hide his face in his hands. He wasn’t sure if he was never bringing her to another one of these again or if he was going to bring her to all of them. The artists all seemed to love her. “I’m afraid to have her describe the next one.” He said as he nodded for the next painting to be shown.

Natalie giggled at the next painting. “That’s a boy butt. It’s Uncle Johnny’s butt. Hi, Uncle Johnny!!!” She waved into the audience, and Gabe did not hide his laugh at the look on Johnny’s face or how Bella waved back for him. “But it’s made out of ash that Gabe died different colors and I think Gabe chose ash ‘cause he and Uncle Johnny fought a lot a lot when they were married. And Uncle Gabe said Ares is the God of War and that’s why he named it that. I just think he wanted an excuse to draw Uncle Johnny’s butt. He really liked Uncle Johnny’s butt. I heard him tell Daddy once that Uncle Johnny has the most fuck-”

Gabe all but slapped his hand over Natalie’s mouth. “Now that’s enough of that.” The laughter was so loud that Gabe didn’t think he was going to be able to get control of the audience again. “Put up the next one.” He said, sounding flustered. 

His hand was pushed away and Natalie stared up at the next painting dreamily. “This one is my favorite. It’s named after twins with weird names.” She said. “Aunt G was Gabe’s favorite person in the whole wide world, and she died before I got to meet her. He loved her more than anyone else in the world. They were best friends, and he used crayons ‘cause they used to color together and she always told him that he should be himself. This one is his favorite, too.”

Suddenly feeling a lump in his throat, he reached out and placed a kiss on the top of Natalie’s head. “Thanks, little girl. Can we get another round of applause for Nattie and her mostly accurate descriptions of my paintings?” There was clapping and cheering. “Go ahead and have a seat with Bella and Uncle Johnny.” He realized what he said and winced, but it was too late. Rolling his eyes, he pushed Natalie off to sit down with Bella. “And, Nattie, leave the mic.”

There was laughter again, and Gabe addressed the audience again. “Alright, now let’s talk about how to paint with things other than paint.”

[comic-movieheroesranked]

Cinematic Comic Characters Ranked! (Year 2008) Part Three

Wow, I just want to say that 2008 really stepped it up when it came to comic movies released. Granted, a couple weren’t the best but overall this year was one of the best out of the bunch. The Dark Knight and Hellboy II: The Golden Army are the only sequels this year, while The Punisher: War Zone and The Incredible Hulk serve as reboots. Star Wars: The Clone Wars serves as a prequel and we also see the debut of Iron Man, Speed Racer, The Spirit and Wanted! Lets start off our largest list yet! Here’s #40-21!

*SPOILERS AHEAD FOR THE MOVIES HIGHLIGHTED ABOVE*

40. Lucias Fox (The Dark Knight)

"Consider this my resignation: As long as this technology is at Wayne Enterprises, I won't be."

Lucius Fox is still running Wayne Enterprises by day and creating the latest technology for Batman by night. His recent work in sonar helps Batman in his mission to retrieve Lau from China and also in the end to hijack every phone in the city to spy on the Joker. It's nice to see Lucius isn't blindly loyal to Bruce as he threatens to quit as long as the technology is still around, but his worries are put to rest when the technology destroys itself after capturing the Joker.

39. Pekwarsky (Wanted)

"I want you to live."

I don't know if Pekwarsky is a real priest or just uses it as a cover, but if he isn't bluffing then it's pretty ironic that he makes bullets for Cross as a little side job. He knows all about Sloan's corrupted ways and helps Wesley discover the truth after he kills Cross. He wants Wesley to honor his father's dying wish and leave the assassin life, but doesn't argue when Wesley refuses.

38. Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross (The Incredible Hulk)

"As far as I'm concerned, that man's whole body is property of the U.S. army."

Betty's arrogant father, who wants the power of the Hulk to be a military weapon for the U.S. army and starts a witch hunt for Bruce once the man goes M.I.A. Hardly anything would stop this man from his quest, barely even his own daughter. It's his drive to capture Bruce that ends up aiding Emil's transformation into Abomination so he really should take some blame on the attack in New York. In the end, he gets saved by the very thing he despises, Bruce.

37. Mom and Pops Racer (Speed Racer)

"I saw my son become a man."

Pops used to be a big time racer and often goes head to head with his sons, first Rex and then Speed once he's 18. At the end of the day, though, Mom and Pops still end up supporting Speed in everything he does. We even get to see Pops kick some major ninja ass.

36. Ellen Dolan (The Spirit)

"You're in love with every woman you meet, Mr. Spirit."

Ellen Dolan isn't just the new flame of The Spirit, she's the best surgical doctor Central City has. She ends up arriving to several crime scenes to help out victims and even The Spirit himself, even if he tries to deny any help. Even though they're clearly dating, The Spirit just can't help himself when it comes to flirting with the ladies and MAYBE  that has to do with Ellen letting it happen and forgiving him right away every time it happens. Maybe she's into it, but one day she's probably going to skip throwing operation knives at walls and go straight to throwing them at The Spirit himself.

35. Asajj Ventress (Star Wars: The Clone Wars)

"Typical Jedi scum!"

Ventress is a sith lord working for Count Dooku. She's the one that originally kidnaps Jabba the Hutt's newborn son and then stages it to make it seem like the Republic were the ones behind it. When she's ordered to 'rescue' the baby, she fails to defeat Anakin and Ahsoka even after using her cool mind control powers on Rex. She finally goes head to head with Obi-Wan Kenobi but proves to be no match for the experienced jedi.

34. Frank Castle/The Punisher (Punisher: War Zone)

"This is just the beginning."

Yes, this is the lowest the main character of a film has been ranked. Even though I think the first Hulk was worst, to be fair, this version of Frank Castle just doesn't deserve to be placed higher than the rest of the list. This rebooted/sequel version of Castle felt like a parody of the first Punisher and man was it a  bad one. He was so slow in his movement and he had the emotional capacity of a brick wall. If it weren't for Jigsaw and Looney Bin Jim getting on my nerves, I don't think I would've rooted for him. And the Punisher is one of my favorite characters, maybe that's why he's so low, but damn it was just such a downgrade from his appearance in 2004.

33. Yinsen (Iron Man)

"So you're a man that has everything...and nothing."

Why was this man so nice? I don't believe anyone deserves the kindness he showed to Tony right off the back as he basically saved his life, even though he had to implant a car battery to his chest. He helps Tony create the prototype suit to escape by saying he will join his family after. It isn't until Yinsen gets critically wounded that he reveals his family has been dead the entire time and is ready to join them in the afterlife. Like, really? We didn't deserve him!

32. Rex Racer/Racer X (Speed Racer)

"It's a mistake I'll have to live with."

The entire movie the mystery is whether or not Racer X is Speed's older brother Rex, who was thought to be dead after a horrible car crash. Turns out he is, but no one in his family finds out, as Racer X decides that it's better for them not to know. I don't get why he wears a mask when his face completely unrecognizable but hey, maybe he was going for an aesthetic. He ends up supporting his brother the entire movie as Speed brings down the corrupt Royalton and winning the two races Racer X never did when he was Rex.

31. Cross (Wanted)

"You're my son."

I had a feeling something was up with Cross since he appeared to be the main villain, yet we were getting no backstory whatsoever or any scenes with him coming up with a plan or just anything that proved he was the bad guy besides killing the assassins from the Fraternity. Turns out, not only is he good and trying to stop Sloan's corrupted ways, he's even Wesley's father and has been trying to rescue him from the beginning. Too bad he literally dies right after Wesley discovers the truth, but that's only because Wesley was the one to shoot him in the first place.

30. James Rhodes (Iron Man)

"Next time, baby."

Military General and former MIT classmate of Tony Stark, Rhodey Rhodes is obviously not the biggest fan Tony Stark. He respects him, that much is obvious, but the two have completely different personalities that tend to crash throughout the film. It doesn't help that Tony literally always causes trouble on military level and Rhodey is always left in the dark, until he finally discovers that Tony is Iron Man and helps him take down Iron Monger.

29. Obi-Wan Kenobi (Star Wars: The Clone Wars)

"You'll have to do better than that, my darling."

I just want to say that Obi-Wan Kenobi is so damn charming! Even when he's going up against people who are truly trying to kill him he can't help but let his charming, yet shady, comments slip his tongue. I feel like they tried to go that route with the live-action films but they didn't really pull it off like this film did. Obi-Wan teams up with Yoda and assign Ahsoka to Anakin to train, hoping the latter grows now that he's a teacher. He spends most of the film arriving just in time to clean up Anakin's mess and save his life, as a responsible master should.

28. Alfred Pennyworth (The Dark Knight)

"Some men just want to watch the world burn."

Everyone's favorite butler is back and he's still made of 100% sass. He still constantly worries about Bruce and if it were up to him, there would be no Batman, but he still offers his help whenever he can, especially once the Joker starts getting momentum in his plans. It's Alfred who gets Bruce to realize that Joker is a man that doesn't fit the mold of the average criminal, a unique breed that just does things for the hell of it. Still always trying to protect Bruce, he hides Rachel's letter-which basically has her dumping him-from him after she dies.

27. Liz Sherman (Hellboy II: The Golden Army)

"You should be running."

It's great to see that Liz has gotten more control of her fire abilities because who wouldn't be worried about her blowing up all of Hellboy's kittens every time they got in an argument? She shows her control when she ends up saving the team from being devoured by a bunch of cannibalistic tooth fairies. It's also during the fight that we learn she's pregnant with Hellboy's baby. She keeps him from the truth, worried he isn't mature enough to handle being a father. She changes her mind though when he nearly dies and has to convince the Angel of Death herself to bring him back. In the final battle, Liz is the one who destroys the Golden Crown, and therefore destroys the Golden Army, once and for all. When she quits, along with the rest of the team, she tells Hellboy that they're expecting twins.

26. Betty Ross (The Incredible Hulk)

"You zip it. We're walking."

I really liked Betty in this film. She got seriously hurt when Bruce first turned into the Hulk but still managed to jump into him with open arms because she knew right away that the Hulk wasn't something that Bruce could control. As soon as they're reunited their romance returns and Betty helps Bruce travel the country to find a solution to his problem, while also trying to avoid her father and the U.S. army. What makes Betty so important is that she's Bruce's anchor. Three times she's been able to snap him out of his uncontrolled rage just with the sound of her voice, helping him finally control his anger.

25. Silken Floss (The Spirit)

"The Octopus always finds his nemesis so distracting."

Silken Floss was probably the smartest person in Central City but for some reason just decided to take orders from The Octopus. Maybe it was the fact that he can't die or maybe it's because she truly just thinks all of this is fun. She's the only female who doesn't fall for The Spirit's charm, probably because she's gotten used to being complimented by all the dumb clones around her.

24. Sloan (Wanted)

"Otherwise, shoot THIS motherfucker and let us take our fraternity of assassins to heights reserved only for the gods of men!"

I like Sloan's character because it allowed me to witness Morgan Freeman shout 'motherfucker' in the most gangsta way possible. Besides that, Sloan is just a man with power that gets carried away. After the code he serves basically betrays him, he uses it and the strength of his assassins for his own gain until he's discovered by Cross. Not wanting to ruin what he built he ends up lying to Wesley, Cross's son, and convinces him to kill Cross himself. Too bad for him, Wesley finds out and gets his revenge, killing Sloan at the very end of the movie.

23. Padme Amidala (Star Wars: The Clone Wars)

"It is I, and the Republic, who owe you our thanks."

Padme came in late in the game but man did she show up! As soon as she finds out Anakin may be in trouble with the Hutts, she goes out on her own to try to settle things down between the Hutts and the Republic. She ends up discovering that Jabba the Hutt was betrayed by his uncle and Coun Dooku but gets captured before she can reveal the truth. She manages to send out a distress signal and then agrees to a treaty with Jabba once she reveals Ziro the Hutt's betrayal. Her little moment with Anakin was super cute and I'm glad they didn't spend too much time on their relationship.

22. Obadiah Stane/Iron Monger (Iron Man)

"Trying to rid the world of weapons, you gave it it's best one ever!"

Maybe Tony is too trusting because it was fairly obvious that Obadiah was out to get him. Ok, so I don't think anyone could have predicted that Obadiah was trying to kill Tony but it was clear that he was not his friend when it came to the company. He piggybacked off the success of Tony's father and then lead the company himself after he died. Did anyone honestly think he willingly gave that position of power away to Tony and was ok with it? It's laughable thought that he wants to steal the company when the only reason it's successful is because of Tony. Obadiah has no credit to himself, the whole movie he just tries to steal Tony's ideas. He even names his suit Iron Monger, which is barely different from Iron Man. In the final confrontation Tony proves he's smarter than Obadiah and fries him in his suit with the help of Pepper.

21. Speed Racer (Speed Racer)

"Racing is all I know how to do."

It's not surprising at all that the greatest race car driver is named Speed Racer. I mean the name is as creative as North West. But you know what would've been interesting? If Speed was actually a horrible driver or wanted nothing to do with racing because he didn't enjoy it. But it's fine, this works too. Speed himself is a little boring, his one-liners aren't that witty and his supporting team are a bit more interesting than him. He's just super bland but at least he stands up for what's right and never once considers giving up.

[deskcoin64-blog]

Ask Sam Mailbag: 11.23.18

Basketball is the toughest sport to referee.  In college intramurals, I was a ref for many sports and basketball was easily the toughest, can't even imagine how tough it is in the NBA. With that said, it seems to be getting a little crazy some of these fouls called on Wendell Carter Jr. This rookie doesn't get the call thing seems to go too far with this seemingly mild-mannered kid. Besides just him, can they fix something with this "jump into the defender" when he's in the air, Dwayne Wade mastered, type of play.  It is getting ridiculous!  A defender jumps, and the offense literally jumps five feet toward the defender in a terrible shooting attempt and is barely touched by him and it is a foul? Is there some way to limit this absurd play that can end up ruining a game?

Jon Kueper

Sam: I know; it’s awful, but I have noticed they have stopped giving every foul call to James Harden when he throws himself at defenders, which more than Carmelo is the reason the Rockets got off to a slow start. I generally have the backs of the officials, though I recognize fewer and fewer of them every game. They get it as close as you can get it right as you understand having tried. They always say a foul is a foul, but we all know it isn’t certain times in the game, especially at the end of quarters, and for certain people versus other people. It’s not right, but life isn’t all a level playing field, either. Often Carter has been victimized by the officials who not only don’t know him, like Natalie Sago in the Suns game. I’ve noticed that some of the new ones when they haven’t made a foul call for awhile find a young player. Some would say the player has to defend himself more and complain. I commend Carter for not falling into that ugly trap, remaining professional and respectful, and I believe things will even out for him as they generally do in these situations. But it is another positive sign of his maturity and class the way he handles inequity and injustice. I’m also supporting him for Congress.

I think the Bulls are a little behind schedule in wins because of injuries.  But, the talk about Jabari Parker being a failure seems pre-mature.  One thing I noticed though that bothers me is his attitude with the media.  He seems to be at war with the media with his short answers and blank stares.   I have been a Chicago Bulls fan for 30 years.  And he could be a valuable piece; however, he needs a real attitude adjustment. I wish Gar and Paxson could sit him down and tell him to relax and grow some thicker skin.  What’s your prognosis for Parker and utilizing his talents? He could breakout with Dunn, Markkenen and Portis comeback.

Ryan Carpel

Sam: Thanks for the support. I know in this era it’s fashion to widely and angrily condemn media, but it’s a sensitive subject for those of us who hope to connect fans with their favorites (and others). Really, that’s what we do. You think everyone loves standing around while Robin Lopez gets dressed? The misconception is we are in this to become friends with the subjects or gain fame trough their reflected glow. Some are; the great majority are not. They’re basically working people who are serious about their jobs, which are generally more fun than yours but often don’t pay as much, who seek the same respect at work as anyone. It’s where it’s sometimes been awful with Parker. I’ve been at just about all his media sessions, however short many are. Players don’t have to speak with media, in my view, even if it is a requirement in their NBA contracts. The issue with Parker is the way he’s shown a lack of respect for the reporters with his sharp, often one word answers and, as you note, disconcerting stares. No one asking fair, straight forward and basically inoffensive questions, which is their job and which the NBA encourages, deserves to be treated that way. Frankly, I’ve been surprised because I had no idea given he always said he was a community minded type person. Actually, I think the Bulls must have spoken with him because lately he has loosened up some, though he still holds the title of Bulls player you’d least like to spend a minute with. But you are right in that it’s a premature talent evaluation. He basically told us he’s not likely to contribute much on defense, so I’ll credit him, at least, for honesty as many NBA players say they will and don’t. Parker has some tremendous scoring abilities and talents, and he’s still less than a year removed from his second ACL return. So even as much as he doesn’t want to hear about having had surgeries, I think he has space to grow and get better. He showed a lot of that against the Suns earlier this week with nearly a triple double and some really impressive play that left us as speechless as he often is. OK, that’s laying it on too much, I admit. But I would love to see him smile some day. You need talent to do that. Parker has it. Though when Markkanen and Portis return, who knows. Parker doesn’t seem malicious, but I just wish he reciprocated to the polite treatment he’s universally received from the Chicago media. Maybe he’s been asking Tyrus Thomas for advice.

The Bulls should go after Otto Porter. After all, he's a small forward (and the Bulls desperately need them in order to win). Parker's listed as a small forward, but we know he’s a power forward for now.

Kieron Smith

Sam: Porter was my most sought to-trade-for last week until later in the week rumors were that the 76ers’ Markelle Fultz wanted to be traded. His agent denied it, which I assume means it’s true. And it certainly should be with the situation he’s in now with Jimmy Butler added to the team and probably pretty soon to begin calling him Karl-Anthony. We know the story of Fultz leaving again for treatment and the 76ers being surprised. It’s clear to most everyone now that he needs a chance elsewhere. Also, remember being a No. 1 overall pick is an arbitrary number. Would it be much different if he were a No. 7 overall like Emmanuel Mudiay or Randy Foye? Or No. 5 overall like Ricky Rubio or Devin Harris? Or No. 6 overall like Johnny Flynn or Dajuan Wagner? Or No. 3 like O.J. Mayo or No. 2 like Jay Williams? When you are drafting kids who have to play complicated guard positions, you never truly know. If Fultz were selected No. 4 would he be as big a mistake? He clearly needs a chance elsewhere because he does seem talented. But given that the 76ers used a No. 1 pick for him and blew plenty of other top picks on the likes of Jahlil Okafor and Nerlens Noel, they’re not likely to settle for spare parts. At least for now. Though the hysteria last week was the Wizards had to do something! And right now! I think it may be the opposite. GM Ernie Grunfeld is cautious and veteran oriented. Rebuilds, as we mostly have seen, take years to bloom if they ever do again. Instead of trading off Porter—who makes about $27 million a year and is essentially a spot up three-point shooter whose salary would remove the Bulls from free agency possibilities—Wall or Beal, my guess is they add to them and take one more run. If they miss the playoffs, then I could see some changes next summer. Though with Wall’s $42 million annual salary for four years starting next season, it difficult to see who would take that on, especially for a player who cannot lead his team to the playoffs in the East, if that occurs. But you gotta love a dysfunctional team with Dwight Howard that doesn’t even mention his name.

How long before LeBron forces Magic to trade for John Wall. Well, as long as they make the playoffs. I would hate to see them win the lottery and get Zion Williamson.

Tom Plonowski

Sam: Now that’s an interesting conspiracy; the latter part, anyway. Say the situation is to get the Lakers a college star and….OK, OK, I know it’s not true. Which never stops the discussion. Another frequent name I hear is among the Duke freshmen. They’re at least for now expected to be among the top five draft picks, and though they’re still playing mostly basically exhibition games and they are teenagers, I think this draft doesn’t look as good as last year’s. No one ever has a good idea how these kids will be in the NBA, but I don’t see generational talent for now. Sure, some pretty good pros. But it makes me wonder why the Duke coach rarely seems to put the ball in the hands of the big dunker to make plays. College ball does matter even when they don’t stay long. It did tell you something about Andrew Wiggins when you’d see him score six or eight points in big games. Big time players perform in big time games at all levels. When they don’t, you can question who and what they’ll become. I know it’s tough to watch NBA coverage on ESPN or listen on NBA radio without three quarters of the discussion being about LeBron and the Lakers. Bor-ing! LeBron can be annoying in making demands and getting what he wants, but I’m voting with Magic’s patience for now and his summer free agency plan. After all, he got Lonzo Ball’s father to drop from sight. That has to be the undercard to being able to hold off LeBron and his advisors. I think this season is about LeBron going for one more MVP and just trying to get into the top four and then taking their personnel shot next summer. But we’ll know more after Dec. 15 when most contracts are available to be traded. Heck, with all the former LeBron teammates with nothing to do and about to be released or bought out, he may be able to assemble one of his former teams before the end of this season. Is James Jones coming back?

My attitude towards tanking is I think the same as yours...but man, have you seen this Zion kid play?  With Valentine's injury it’s gotta be tempting to shut Lauri down till February and go for broke.

Guy Danilowitz

Sam: No more tanking. I know it seems like it sometimes is what’s going on with the Bulls now with all the injuries and the hole they’ll inevitably dig. But with the first step smoothing out of the odds, the three teams with the poorest records have exactly the same odds of the top pick, and just 14 percent. Then it’s 12.5 and 10, 8.3 and 8.2. So you essentially have almost seven teams with similar odds of the top picks. And is 14 percent—one in seven—worth blowing off your whole season? Especially because this season was to begin to find out if the Bulls had a team with LaVine, Markkanen, Carter Jr. and Dunn. They still haven’t seen that. So you are going to postpone that for another year to take a one in seven shot at a top pick? Which means more than an 85 percent chance you won’t get it. What sort of a bettor would that make them? I know fans love the draft, the next thing, as it were, but really, enough with the draft picks. The Bulls are going to get another unless they make a trade, but they already have too many young players who have proven little given their lack of playoff experience and still are apprenticing on the roster. The Bulls seem set with Carter, LaVine and Markkanen. They’re still trying to find out about Dunn. Even if Dunn doesn’t prove out, they don’t need to continue teenage tryouts. The Bulls certainly hope he does. But it’s about time to begin surrounding them with veteran NBA talent. Assuming we ever do see them playing together.

Rookie of the year is one of two people right now. Doncic as you said or jaren jackson jr who you didn’t even mention. Jackson is probably the third best player on a team with an 11-5 record in the west. He has been really really good but memphis so no one remebers anyone there. Conley and gasol both playing like allstars again and neither is likely to make it. Doncic the best player on a 5-8 or 6-8 team.

Jake Henry

Sam: I agree with Doncic. It looks like he’s running away with Rookie of the Year. It was fun to see Carter Jr. go against No 1 pick Ayton Wednesday. Ayton is bigger with more athletic talent, but you could see Carter keep up with better defense and more hustle even as he had some bad luck with foul calls. He’ll be a good one for the Bulls, though not rookie of the year. I mentioned five guys when I wrote about rookies a week or so ago and had Jackson on the edge of that. Not because he’s not talented, and I’m pretty sure the Bulls had him as high or higher on their board than Carter Jr., though the Bulls seem fine with their selection. Jackson has a big edge over the others given who he plays with. Gasol and Conley get so much attention, he’s often not defended as much and often plays off the ball on the weak side. The other rookies have to be too involved and get more defensive attention because their teams aren’t nearly as good or with as many veterans. Which is also another thing about that tanking. A lot of those teams that were aren’t anymore and the race to the bottom isn’t going to be as repulsive. It will be more organic, like for a team trying but with a lot of injuries. Trae Young is inconsistent because of the pressure he sees and Marvin Bagley hasn’t gotten the playing time, but has been impressive in spots. Jackson, though, should rebound better for his size. It’s a terrific class, but for now Doncic stands above.

This Bulls team reminds me of the 2008 Bulls team a little bit. Neither team is a world beater, but they have their similarities: a core of promising young players, underperforming roster, and a coach on the fritz. What if we land the #1 pick again? From which angle will you crush my dreams?

Yuriy Fomin

Sam: The No. 1 pick, as I explained. It is an interesting comparison, though, as the first team John Paxson was building with his kinds of players. You can see why he’d be interested in Kris Dunn as a Kirk Hinrich defensive type with more athletic ability, Zach LaVine the scorer like Ben Gordon but bigger and more athletic and Lauri Markkanen the forward but a better shooter than Luol Deng. Ryan Arcidiacono isn’t quite Andres Nocioni. But you can see some similarities. Now just how do you find the Derrick Rose?

I noticed yahoo had a piece on teams with the most cap primed to be players in free agency. The list includes Lakers, Mavs, Brooklyn and a few others. My understanding was the Bulls had huge cap space post likely waving Jabari and getting rid of a few contracts.

Michael Burling

Sam: The Bulls should have a lot, if not the huge amount you expected. Part of the issue is this summer several could have more money, like the Mavericks, Clippers and Nets. The Lakers and Knicks have a lot, but the Bulls can be up there with them. Obviously, like you mentioned, if they keep Jabari Parker they probably don’t have all that much given they have to pay Bobby Portis to keep him. It will depend on whether he gets an offer and how quickly they have to move. With Omer Asik’s buyout and Portis’ cap hold, the Bulls could have around $40 million to $50 million, which would pay one full contract and part of another if they were to pass on Parker. The salary cap is expected to be around $110 million next summer. The presumption is they move on from free agents Holiday and Lopez, but nothing has been stated for now. There are other free agents they’ll have to make decisions on like Ryan Arcidiacono, and they are close to having to make a financial decision on Dunn. So this summer will be crucial and the Bulls can be a major player. Which is another reason why it’s so important to play the season out seriously and see what they have and where they fit.

Too bad about Valentine, I’m not a big fan but I am a human being and that’s got to be tough.

Tom Offa

Sam: Oh yeah, Valentine also. Another guy closing in on restricted free agency and we know we won’t see him again this season. Certainly his market has changed with all the injuries, but he says he’s been told this time it will be right. Grant Hill had serious ankle issues for years and came back and became an All-Star. Decisions, decisions. It’s a side factor of when you fill your roster with high draft picks. You also have to start making some decisions about who to keep, who to pay and who to move. You can’t pay them all.

I’ve got a friend who passionately argues that Lebron James is the greatest of all time. I don’t actually have a strong opinion about who’s the greatest. But I’m a contrarian and I grew up watching Jordan so he’ll always be my favorite horse in this particular race.  Well my friend, the Lebron apologist, is always locked and loaded for the MJ vs LbJ debate. So I decided to throw him a curveball last time we had the discussion. I argued that it’s neither Lebron nor Mike, but Wilt, who was in fact the greatest.  His otherworldly stats speak for themselves but neither of us ever saw him play so it’s kind of hard for us to fully compare Wilt and Lebron.  As an observer who’s seen both play, could you craft a convincing argument for why Wilt is greater than Lebron?

Daniel Slesnick

Sam: Here goes, though I still go with Jordan, also. Wilt is unquestionably the greatest scorer the game ever has seen; averaging 50 in a season, 100 points in a game, the most games above 60, 70, 80. And this notion that he was playing against basketball midgets is erroneous. He played against most of the greatest centers in NBA history, Russell, Thurmond, Unseld, Reed,  Kareem, Bellamy, all Hall of Famers. He is criticized for winning titles just twice, but he played against the greatest dynasty ever in the 60s Celtics and beat them face up when they were in their prime when he was with the 76ers. And with a team with half as many future Hall of Famers as the Celtics. When he finally got away from the dominant Celtics dynasty and went to the Lakers, he was in the Finals four of five seasons consecutively. Wilt played in an era when virtual assault was legal and he was the target in every game. They changed the rules of the game multiple times to limit his dominance, from widening the lane to changing goal tending rules. Wilt was so good they talked about eliminating dunking at one time, and the game was so easy at times that Wilt became bored and often shot a fadeaway bank shot to amuse himself. And still won the scoring title. Plus as he wrote in his infamous autobiography, he certainly didn’t get a lot of sleep. At one time or another, he led the league in every major statistical category, including scoring, rebounding and assists and was often all-NBA and all-defense first team. His Lakers team was among those who have held the record in their time for most wins in history. Wilt led two of the top five all-time teams with the best records ever. Wilt won championships just with those teams, showing what he had to do to win given the competition in his era. No team LeBron played on ever ranked in the top 10 of those teams with the greatest records. I guess my question might be in what way would LeBron be better than Wilt at almost anything but free throw shooting? And Wilt may have made more in the last minute of games.

Source: https://www.nba.com/bulls/news/ask-sam-mailbag-112318

[andinewton]

Healing the Hurt - Avengers Redemption Series - Part Two - Chapter 27

Characters: Bucky Barnes, Amelia Richards (OFC), pretty much everyone from the MCU appears at some point!

Pairings: Bucky x Amelia (ofc)

Warnings:  Chronic pain, physical disability, implied smut, eventual smut, swearing, fertility issues, pregnancy, angst with a happy ending, Stark has a heart.

Word Count:  151372 (complete with additional epilogues added)

Summary: 
Everything is going well at Avengers Tower, Bucky is integrating into the team slowly but surely; he longs for his confidence back but knows it's going to be a long road, never more than when he meets the new secretary at his doctor's office.

Amelia Richards is a career SHIELD agent, recruited straight out of college into the "company" but now she finds herself passed around from department to department, her latest position as a secretary at Avengers Tower proving monotonous compared to her former life, but when James "Bucky" Barnes walks into her office one Friday evening everything changes…

Join Bucky as he rediscovers parts of himself he had thought long lost with someone who considered herself broken for a long time, helping one another heal in more ways than one…

Master List

Chapter 27

Summary:  Tony is a good boss and a nice guy, but don't tell anyone!

The next few days were a blur of activity. Bucky and Amelia agreed to Stark’s offer to buy out the restaurant and have it filled with staff, the rest of her belongings were delivered to her new room, and she had dredged up every little bit of information on Frederick White she could possibly imagine from around the world. The man himself had given nothing of discernible use and had been shipped off to a secure facility, along with the goons who had tried to grab Amelia off the street. Stark passed her a few small jobs he wanted her to look into, and she noted Nick Fury seemed to call by her room at least once a day to make sure she was settling in.

The room she had been designated was larger than her entire apartment had been on the temporary floor, and had a separate office, as well as a sizeable bedroom encompassing a fitted wardrobe and living area with entertainment system, the bathroom being larger than the living area at her previous place. It was Friday morning and she had just dressed, her hair still wet from the shower, when there was a knock on her door. She had already checked her laptop and set one of her programs running. ‘Here’s my little Trinity.’ Stark announced as she stepped aside to let him into the room. He kept stopping by too, and she was still unsure whether his attention was for her computer skills or her personal life. ‘Morning, Tony.’ She said as she towelled her hair. ‘Everything going okay?’ He glanced around, listening in case the shower were running and Bucky were there, as he hadn’t seen him that morning yet. ‘Happy with the room?’ ‘You know I am, you ask me every day.’ She laughed as she led him towards her office. ‘But the novelty of a walk in shower still hasn’t worn off.’ ‘A walk in shower is a novelty? What did you have before?’ He screwed up his nose and wasn’t surprised to see her laptop already running a series of programs. ‘Shower over the bath. Do you really not know what your temp accommodation floor is like?’ She had suspected as much but this was the closest to confirmation she had had. ‘No idea, maybe I should check it out.’ ‘Only if you want to depress yourself.’ She pulled a stack of papers off her printer and handed them to him. ‘The overnights.’ ‘Did you have breakfast yet?’ He asked, as he took the papers from her. ‘No, that’s my next job. I had a couple of cookies so I could take my meds but that’s only a quick fix, unless I feel like being ill later.’ ‘No, you’re not allowed to be ill, T800 is too excited for tonight for you to let him down. Come on, I’ll make you some toast, because if I leave you in here you’ll get engrossed and skip another meal.’ ‘I can make my own toast.’ She complained but let him guide her out of the room again with his hand on her back. ‘Yeah, but will you? I’m starting to think you’re more of a workaholic than me.’ ‘A lot of my work can be sit and wait. I prefer to do things when they need it.’ She argued. ‘Like at three am?’ He let her know he had checked the logs of when she had been working and she screwed up her nose. ‘That was just one time. Maybe twice.’ She argued. ‘Three times since you started working for me.’ He stated. ‘You’re putting in some eighteen hour days, and while I admire your dedication I am ordering you to take the rest of the day off.’ ‘The whole day?’ She said in surprise. ‘And the weekend. If I have to I’ll have FRIDAY bar your access, but I think I can trust you to do as you’re told. I can trust you do to do as you’re told, right?’ He looked down at her as they reached the common area kitchen. ‘Can I at least finish what I’m working on?’ ‘Nope. Monday. White or wholewheat?’ ‘Wholewheat. What if it needs working on?’ She went to the refrigerator and took out the butter as Tony put four slices of bread in the toaster. ‘If something urgent comes up I will ask you to look into it, but until then you are off duty and the only thing I want to see on your computer records is you playing The Sims or watching cat videos, understood?’ ‘I guess.’ She pulled a face, unsure how to argue further. ‘Good.’ Tony leant against the cabinet and folded his arms. ‘So, what are you wearing tonight? Something to make the old man’s ticker fail, I hope?’ She laughed as she went to the coffee machine. ‘Nat is bringing me a selection of dresses over later to try.’ ‘You mean you don’t know already?’ He said in surprise. ‘Don’t girls normally have entire outfits planned in advance?’ ‘I don’t have dress up clothes, just hang around the apartment or go to work clothes, none of which are suitable for a dinner date.’ ‘This might be a bit of a personal question, so feel free to tell me to shove it, but when did you last go on a date?’ ‘It’s been a little while.’ She admitted reluctantly, busying herself making coffee as she rested her crutch against the counter. ‘How long is a little while?’ Tony leant towards her, trying to get in her eye line. ‘A…while. I didn’t really want to get involved with anyone when I was in deep cover; being a HYDRA agent wasn’t really on my list of traits to look for in a boyfriend.’ ‘You mean, like, years?’ Tony said in surprise. ‘Do we have to discuss this?’ She looked up at him in exasperation. ‘I don’t know, do I have to have a birds and the bees talk with you?’ Tony was suddenly worried he might have dug a little too deep, and learnt more than he wanted to. ‘I’m not a virgin, asshat.’ She scowled at him. ‘Good, okay, well, that’s…good, I guess. I mean, I don’t need details.’ ‘Thank fuck for that.’ She muttered as she dropped a sugar cube into her coffee before automatically making Tony one. ‘But an actual date, it has been a while, but I think I remember how to behave.’ ‘I’m sure it’ll all come back, and Barnes hasn’t dated since he came to the tower, and who knows how long before that, so you’re probably still the more experienced.’ ‘Why all the interest in our date suddenly?’ She passed him the mug she had finished fixing for him. ‘Because it’s our first date and you seem more nervous than I am.’ ‘You’re nervous?’ He put the cup on the counter as it was still too warm to drink. ‘Of course I’m nervous, I’m going on a date with an Avenger when HYDRA are out to get me.’ She leant her hip carefully on the cupboard beside her. ‘I’m not too nervous about the date itself, Bucky and I get on really well, but knowing the place is full of people watching us, that feels a little weird.’ ‘Try ignore them. Gaze into his big baby blues like you normally do and you’ll forget all about them.’ ‘I do not…’ She started then conceded defeat. ‘Yeah, okay, I do do that. I like his eyes.’ ‘He seems to like yours too.’ Tony replied as the toast popped up. Amelia was quiet for a moment as Tony went about putting the toast on plates then passing her a knife for the butter. ‘I don’t want to be a disappointment to him.’ She said quietly and Tony stopped what he was doing to look at her. ‘What do you mean?’ ‘I mean I’m, well, I’m broken, Tony. I’m never going to get better and committing to someone like me, it’s not an easy ask. It gets tiresome for me, so it could get old for him too, and really fast. I actually thought I’d never find anyone who’d accept me for what I am now, but with Bucky I feel like I’ve been given hope, that maybe I’m not meant to be alone.’ She sighed and he saw for the first time just how afraid she was, how she was facing the unknown and had had no one to confide in. ‘It might be too much to ask.’ ‘Shit, kid.’ Tony held his arm out. ‘Come here, one time offer.’ He waved her towards him with his arm and wrapped her in his embrace when she stepped forward. ‘You seem to forget, just because he’s a super soldier doesn’t mean he doesn’t have disabilities of his own. I blew his arm off, for God’s sake, he knows what it’s like to be impaired more than anyone else on the team, and the way he looks at you is so genuine. He doesn’t see the crutch, or your pain, or all those times you’re struggling to get comfortable, he just sees you, the whole package, and he really likes what he sees.’ ‘But the shine could wear off.’ She argued. ‘If I become a burden, or bothersome…’ ‘You sure as hell aren’t a burden.’ He interrupted her. ‘You complain less than anyone I’ve ever met, and you have a lot you could complain about, but you don’t. I don’t know if you go home and cry every night, or bottle it up, or even if you don’t do either of those things, but I know that even in the short space of time I’ve known you that you’re one of the strongest people I’ve ever met. Barnes likes you, a lot, the whole thing, not just one but everything, even the thing you’re worried about. If it put him off he would have been out the door by now, but he’s not. He’s there every day, just because he wants to spend time with you, so don’t you for one minute think that something that’s intrinsically a part of you will make his feelings for you stop, you hear me?’ ‘I hear you, Tony.’ She murmured, swallowing past the lump in her throat. ‘Thank you.’ ‘Just make one another happy, that’s thanks enough.’ She nodded and he let her go, allowing her to step back and recompose herself. ‘Your own mind is always your worst enemy.’ She smiled apologetically at him. ‘And at three in the morning, when you can’t sleep, sometimes it’s easier to work than listen to your own thoughts.’ He pressed his lips together in understanding of what she meant. He worked his troubles away too, or at least ignored them by keeping busy. ‘If you need something to do in the middle of the night, work a little, I won’t admonish you too much, but when you do you, take extra time off during the next day. Work a set number of hours, don’t burn yourself out.’ ‘I’ll try not to.’ She smiled and resumed buttering her toast. ‘You’re a really good listener.’ ‘Don’t tell everyone.’ He replied with a small smile. ‘People will think I’m taking Steve’s place as resident agony aunt.’

Chapter 28

[frontproofmedia]

Gervonta “Tank’’ Davis Moves Up to Face Former Unified Champion Yuriorkis Gamboa

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Published: October 27, 2019

Two-Time Super Featherweight World Champion Gervonta “Tank’’ Davis Moves Up to Face Former Unified Champion Yuriorkis Gamboa for WBA Lightweight Title on Saturday, December 28 Live on SHOWTIME® from State Farm Arena in Atlanta. Also Features Interim WBA Light Heavyweight Champion Jean Pascal Defending Against Two-Division World Champion Badou Jack.

ATLANTA – Two-time super featherweight champion Gervonta “Tank’’ Davis, Mayweather Promotions’ top rising star and boxing’s hottest attraction, will seek to conquer another division and close out the year with a bang when he takes on former unified world champion Yuriorkis Gamboa for the WBA Lightweight Title live on SHOWTIME Saturday, December 28 from State Farm Arena in Atlanta in a special year-end Premier Boxing Champions event. Davis and Gamboa both scored highlight-reel knockouts this summer to set up this world title showdown that will headline a special holiday SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING® telecast that begins at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT. Interim WBA Light Heavyweight Champion Jean Pascal will defend against two-division champion Badou Jack in the co-feature of this PBC event. The event is promoted by Mayweather Promotions and TGB Promotions. Ticket sales information will be announced next week. “This event is a great way to top off the holiday season and 2019,” said Leonard Ellerbe, CEO of Mayweather Promotions. ”We’re looking forward to lighting up the city of Atlanta with a spectacle headlined by the most exciting fighter in boxing, Gervonta Davis taking on a seasoned and fearless warrior, Yuriorkis Gamboa. Gervonta spends a lot of time in Atlanta and he wanted to bring his talents to his second home where he plans to put on yet another electrifying performance. We also have Badou Jack who’s ready to get back in the ring after some time off. He has an opportunity before him to be back on the big stage and become champion for the third time. I’m confident that Jack is ready to get back in the mix and he will come ready to go to war against Jean Pascal come fight night. December 28 is going to be lit in the city of Atlanta!” “Each time Gervonta Davis steps in the ring he proves worthy of the considerable hype around him,” said Stephen Espinoza, President, Sports and Event Programming, Showtime Networks Inc. “On the heels of two electric performances in 2019, he’ll close out the year in a new division and look to further define the Tank Davis mystique. Yuriorkis Gamboa presents a challenge unlike anything Gervonta has faced before: a pure boxer with true finishing power and bona fide credentials. And the co-feature, Jean Pascal vs. Badou Jack, is a 50-50 fight between two proven veterans that is sure to deliver on both skill and intensity. We are proud to deliver this unique, holiday event from Atlanta, a city that is long overdue for a marquee world championship boxing event like this one.” Davis (22-0, 21 KOs) burst onto the scene with an explosive knockout victory over Jose Pedraza to win the IBF super featherweight title in a star-making performance on January 2017. At the time he became the youngest world champion in boxing at age 22. In the ring, Davis blends controlled aggression with blazing hand and foot speed, eye-catching power and sublime boxing skills. It’s a winning combination that has kept the southpaw unbeaten and given him a 95.5 percent knockout ratio, making him a fan favorite on the threshold of superstardom. A 24-year-old native of Baltimore, Davis thrilled his hometown with a masterful performance against Ricardo Nunez in his last fight on July 27. The sold out crowd at Royal Farms Arena witnessed Davis score a spectacular second round knockout of Nunez to defend his WBA Super Featherweight title and become the first world champion from Baltimore to make a homecoming defense in nearly 80 years. December 28 will be Davis’ third consecutive headlining appearance of 2019. Under the guidance of Mayweather Promotions, Davis will look to further improve his impressive portfolio with a title at lightweight. “I’m excited to head south for the holiday season and put on a great show for the city of Atlanta on December 28,” said Davis. “It’s been a long time since a boxing fight of this magnitude has come to the city and I’m proud to be able to give lots of excitement to a city where I’ve spent a lot of my time. “Some of the greatest boxers in the Hall of Fame have won titles in multiple weight divisions and I’m no different. I expect as much success at 135 pounds as I had at 130 pounds. Yuriorkis Gamboa is a respected name in boxing and has achieved high levels of success in both the Olympics and as a professional. I expect him to bring out the best in me and l will be ready for it. I’m thankful to my whole team for making this happen. To all my fans, continue to support me and I’ll fight for you.” Gamboa (30-2, 18 KOs) is riding a resurgent wave in his career, which has been sparked by some recent displays of power. The 37-year-old, who is from Guantanamo, Cuba and now lives in Miami, has always been a cerebral boxer. But recently he has demonstrated the attitude and ability to be a finisher, dispatching his last opponent with a crowd-pleasing knockout. Gamboa is a former unified featherweight champion, holding the IBF and WBA 126-pound titles between 2009-2011. Since dropping just the second fight of his career against Robinson Castellano in 2017, Gamboa has won four in a row. He is coming off a knockout victory over Roman Martinez as the co-main event to Davis’ Baltimore homecoming in July, setting up a tantalizing showdown between the two for a lightweight championship. “I am blessed to have this amazing opportunity to become world champion once again,” said Gamboa. “I have been hoping that this opportunity would be against Gervonta Davis as well. I love and embrace the role of underdog that I have in this match because it will be the ultimate motivator. For the first time in my career, I will be involved in a high profile bout in which I am not coming in at a disadvantage. Gervonta is an excellent fighter, but he has yet to face anyone like me. All the sacrifices I have made in my career and my life - leaving Cuba and coming to this country to find a better life for my family - will finally payoff on December 28.” Pascal (34-6-1, 20 KOs) most recently captured his interim title by giving Marcus Browne the first defeat of his professional career. Pascal scored four knockdowns in the fight, eventually earning a narrow technical decision when a cut suffered by Browne on an accidental head butt stopped the fight after eight rounds. The 36-year-old has been in the ring with the top fighters of his era during his brilliant career, including Bernard Hopkins, Sergey Kovalev, Carl Froch, Lucian Bute and Chad Dawson. Pascal, who was born in Port-Au-Prince, Haiti and now lives in Laval, Quebec, Canada, won first the light heavyweight world title with a unanimous decision over Adrian Diaconu in 2009. “After I took this belt from Marcus Browne I asked my team to get me back in the ring before the end of the year and they delivered,” said Pascal. “This is going to be a fight you don’t want to miss. Everybody knows I come to fight, I’m a warrior and it’s the same thing for Badou. We both have proven to be boxers that want to fight the best in the world. Now we’re fighting each other, so you know it’s going to be fireworks. “I’m training super hard for this fight because I know he’s coming to try to take my belts, but I’ve gone through way too much to become a two-time champion, so my belts aren’t going anywhere.” Jack (22-2-3, 13 KOs) will fight for the interim title that Marcus Browne won in January by defeating him in a fight that saw Jack battle through a nasty cut on his forehead. Jack will return to action in his fourth fight at light heavyweight after relinquishing his super middleweight world title. Born in Stockholm, Sweden, Jack represented his father’s Gambia in the 2008 Olympics and now lives in Las Vegas. Jack won the 168-pound world title with a majority decision against Anthony Dirrell in 2015 and successfully defended the belt three times before a hard-fought majority draw against James DeGale in one 2017’s best fights. In his first bout at 175 pounds, Jack stopped Nathan Cleverly to pick up the WBA light heavyweight title before fighting to a majority draw against then WBC champion Adonis Stevenson in May 2018. “It feels great to be back and I’m looking forward to putting on another exciting performance,” says Jack. “I always fight to make sure my family lives a comfortable lifestyle and to secure my legacy, but I’m just as motivated to represent and fight for children across the globe that my foundation helps. “Expect to see me stronger, smarter and more experienced on December 28. I’m looking forward to getting my belts back and becoming a three-time world champion. I respect Pascal and consider him a friend, but business is business.”

(Featured Photo: Mayweather Promotions)

[pope-francis-quotes]

10th April >> (@RomeReports) #PopeFrancis #Pope Francis Relive the Celebration of the Passion of the Lord, which #PopeFrancis presided over on #GoodFriday. #EasterAtHome

Pope celebrates Passion of the Lord, as papal preacher reflects on Covid-19 pandemic

Pope Francis presides over the Celebration of the Passion of the Lord, with Fr Raniero Cantalamessa reflecting on the positive fruits that God draws forth from the coronavirus pandemic.

By Vatican News

The celebration of the Passion of the Lord took place on the evening of Good Friday in a near-empty St. Peter’s Basilica.

Pope Francis presided over the liturgy, which was live-streamed to the faithful across the world through media outlets and social media.

At the moment of the Adoration of the Holy Cross, only the Pope was able to venerate the Cross with a kiss, in compliance with measures to avoid the spread of Covid-19.

The Preacher of the Papal Household, Fr Raniero Cantalamessa, preached the Sermon, reminding everyone that God has plans for our welfare, and not woe, even in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.

Below please find the full text of his Sermon:

“I HAVE PLANS FOR YOUR WELFARE AND NOT FOR WOE”

Sermon for Good Friday 2020 in St. Peter’s Basilica

St. Gregory the Great said that Scripture “grows with its readers”, cum legentibus crescit.[1] It reveals meanings always new according to the questions people have in their hearts as they read it. And this year we read the account of the Passion with a question—rather with a cry—in our hearts that is rising up over the whole earth. We need to seek the answer that the word of God gives it.

The Gospel reading we have just listened to is the account of the objectively greatest evil committed on earth. We can look at it from two different angles: either from the front or from the back, that is, either from its causes or from its effects. If we stop at the historical causes of Christ’s death, we get confused and everyone will be tempted to say, as Pilate did, “I am innocent of this man’s blood” (Mt 27:24). The cross is better understood by its effects than by its causes. And what were the effects of Christ’s death? Being justified through faith in him, being reconciled and at peace with God, and being filled with the hope of eternal life! (see Rom 53:1-5).

But there is one effect that the current situation can help us to grasp in particular. The cross of Christ has changed the meaning of pain and human suffering—of every kind of suffering, physical and moral. It is no longer punishment, a curse. It was redeemed at its root when the Son of God took it upon himself. What is the surest proof that the drink someone offers you is not poisoned? It is if that person drinks from the same cup before you do. This is what God has done: on the cross he drank, in front of the whole world, the cup of pain down to its dregs. This is how he showed us it is not poisoned, but that there is a pearl at the bottom of it.

And not only the pain of those who have faith, but of every human pain. He died for all human beings: “And when I am lifted up from the earth,” he said, “I will draw everyone to myself” (Jn 12:32). Everyone, not just some! St. John Paul II wrote from his hospital bed after his attempted assassination, “To suffer means to become particularly susceptible, particularly open to the working of the salvific powers of God, offered to humanity in Christ.”[2] Thanks to the cross of Christ, suffering has also become in its own way a kind of “universal sacrament of salvation” for the human race.

***

What light does all of this shed on the dramatic situation that humanity is going through now? Here too we need to look at the effects more than at the causes—not just the negative ones we hear about every day in heart-wrenching reports but also the positive ones that only a more careful observation can help us grasp.

The pandemic of Coronavirus has abruptly roused us from the greatest danger individuals and humanity have always been susceptible to: the delusion of omnipotence. A Jewish rabbi has written that we have the opportunity to celebrate a very special paschal exodus this year, that “from the exile of consciousness” [3]. It took merely the smallest and most formless element of nature, a virus, to remind us that we are mortal, that military power and technology are not sufficient to save us. As a psalm in the Bible says, “In his prime, man does not understand. / He is like the beasts—they perish” (Ps 49:21). How true that is!

While he was painting frescoes in St. Paul’s Cathedral in London, the artist James Thornhill became so excited at a certain point about his fresco that he stepped back to see it better and was unaware he was about to fall over the edge of the scaffolding. A horrified assistant understood that crying out to him would have only hastened the disaster. Without thinking twice, he dipped a brush in paint and hurled it at the middle of the fresco. The master, appalled, sprang forward. His work was damaged, but he was saved.

God does this with us sometimes: he disrupts our projects and our calm to save us from the abyss we don’t see. But we need to be careful not to be deceived. God is not the one who hurled the brush at the sparkling fresco of our technological society. God is our ally, not the ally of the virus! He himself says in the Bible, “I have . . . plans for your welfare and not for woe” (Jer 29:11). If these scourges were punishments of God, it would not be explained why they strike equally good and bad, and why the poor usually bear the worst consequences of them. Are they more sinners than others?

The one who cried one day for Lazarus' death cries today for the scourge that has fallen on humanity. Yes, God "suffers", like every father and every mother. When we will find out this one day, we will be ashamed of all the accusations we made against him in life. God participates in our pain to overcome it. "Being supremely good - wrote St. Augustine - God would not allow any evil in his works, unless in his omnipotence and goodness, he is able to bring forth good out of evil.”[4]

Did God the Father possibly desire the death of his Son in order to draw good out of it? No, he simply permitted human freedom to take its course, making it serve, however, his own purposes and not those of human beings. This is also the case for natural disasters like earthquakes and plagues. He does not bring them about. He has given nature a kind of freedom as well, qualitatively different of course than that of human beings, but still a form of freedom—freedom to evolve according to its own laws of development. He did not create a world as a programmed clock whose least little movement could be anticipated. It is what some call “chance” but the Bible calls instead “the wisdom of God.”

***

The other positive fruit of the present health crisis is the feeling of solidarity. When, in the memory of humanity, have the people of all nations ever felt themselves so united, so equal, so less in conflict than at this moment of pain? Never so much as now have we experienced the truth of the words of one of our great poets: “Peace, you peoples! Too deep is the mystery of the prostrate earth.”[5] We have forgotten about building walls. The virus knows no borders. In an instant it has broken down all the barriers and distinctions of race, nation, religion, wealth, and power. We should not revert to that prior time when this moment has passed. As the Holy Father has exhorted us, we should not waste this opportunity. Let us not allow so much pain, so many deaths, and so much heroic engagement on the part of health workers to have been in vain. Returning to the way things were is the “recession” we should fear the most.

They shall beat their swords into plowshares

and their spears into pruning hooks;

One nation shall not raise the sword against another,

nor shall they train for war again. (Is 2:4)

This is the moment to put into practice something of the prophecy of Isaiah whose fulfillment humanity has long been waiting for. Let us say “Enough!” to the tragic race toward arms. Say it with all your might, you young people, because it is above all your destiny that is at stake. Let us devote the unlimited resources committed to weapons to the goals that we now realize are most necessary and urgent: health, hygiene, food, the fight against poverty, stewardship of creation. Let us leave to the next generation a world poorer in goods and money, if need be, but richer in its humanity.

***

The word of God tells us the first thing we should do at times like these is to cry out to God. He himself is the one who puts on people’s lips the words to cry out to him, at times harsh words of lament and almost of accusation: “Awake! Why do you sleep, O Lord? / Rise up! Do not reject us forever! . . . Rise up, help us! / Redeem us in your mercy” (Ps 44, 24, 27). “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?” (Mk 4:38).

Does God perhaps like to be petitioned so that he can grant his benefits? Can our prayer perhaps make God change his plans? No, but there are things that God has decided to grant us as the fruit both of his grace and of our prayer, almost as though sharing with his creatures the credit for the benefit received.[6] God is the one who prompts us to do it: “Seek and you will find,” Jesus said; “knock and the door will be opened to you” (Mt 7:7).

When the Israelites were bitten by poisonous serpents in the desert, God commanded Moses to lift up a serpent of bronze on a pole, and whoever looked at it would not die. Jesus appropriated this symbol to himself when he told Nicodemus, “Just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life” (Jn 3:14-15). We too at this moment have been bitten by an invisible, poisonous “serpent.” Let us gaze upon the one who was “lifted up” for us on the cross. Let us adore him on behalf of ourselves and of the whole human race. The one who looks on him with faith does not die. And if that person dies, it will be to enter eternal life.

"After three days I will rise", Jesus had foretold (cf. Mt Mt 27:63). We too, after these days that we hope will be short, shall rise and come out of the tombs of our homes. Not however to return to the former life like Lazarus, but to a new life, like Jesus. A more fraternal, more human, more Christian life!

______________________________

Translated from Italian by Marsha Daigle-Williamson, Ph.D.

[1] Moralia in Job, XX, 1.

[2] John Paul II, Salvifici doloris [On the Meaning of Human Suffering], n. 23.

[3] https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/coronavirus-a-spiritual-message-from-brooklyn (Yaakov Yitzhak Biderman).

[4] See St. Augustine, Enchiridion 11, 3; PL 40, 236.

[5] Giovanni Pascoli, “I due fanciulli” [“The Two Children”].

[6] See St. Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologicae, II-IIae, q. 83, a. 2.

Topics

POPE FRANCIS

CORONAVIRUS

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LITURGY

10th April 2020, 19:03

[torentialtribute]

Alexis Sanchez returned to training this week – but £500,000-a-week flop’s future looks bleak

A typical rainy Sunday morning in Manchester and there was a clearly sad expression on the face of Alexis Sanchez while driving the United training complex with his Bentley at Carrington.

What a contrast this was from 12 months earlier, when his face had adorned every poster and billboard to promote the club's pre-season trip through the United States.

California . Michigan. Florida . Where United went in the summer of 2018, Sanchez was the main attraction.

Alexis Sanchez looks sad applies for pre-season training with Man United

The attacker has just returned from his summer vacation after the America & # 39; s Cup

a stark contrast to last summer's optimism when he scored against Real Madrid during United & # 39; s Pre-season tour of the States

Only six months in his career with United after his move to United January from Arsenal, which had been the Chilean chance to make its mark and fueled the appetite of fans for the upcoming campaign

After Chile had not qualified for the World Cup, Sanchez had the luxury of a full preseason to prepare yourself while his teammates slowly stepped back to training after their duties in Russia.

There was a false start when the US authorities initials refused to grant him a visa because of his 16-month suspended prison sentence for tax fraud in Spain.

But once Sanchez arrived on American territory, he was undoubtedly United Star Turn and scored in victories over AC Milan and Real Madrid. His outlook looked bright.

Now, while Sanchez reports on the new season after the race from Chile to the semi-final of the Copa America, his outlook on gloominess is like the weather in Manchester.

Sanchez's last summer's hope quickly evaporated during an injury campaign

The Chilean struggled for form and scored only twice in 27 performances for the Old Trafford club

Sanchez in 2018-19

Performances: 27

Start: 13

Targets: 2

Assists: 4

]

The Ole Gunnar Solskjaer team has been traveling through Australia, Singapore and China for the past three weeks. traveled – and the absence of Sanchez has hardly been noticed.

A revolutionary revolution in the United team and, he hopes, their prospects for a campaign where anything other than a top four finish is too miserable to consider.

With intense double training sessions in Perth, Solskjaer is determined to have steam at the business end of the season as they did last time.

He continued his master plan to get United to play an urgent, property-based game where the energy of young people such as Dan James, Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Mason Greenwood will be crucial.

And all this took place while Sanchez was still on vacation.

He was briefly mentioned in a press conference after the exit of the Chilean Cup – and was immediately forgotten again.

It is not going well for his chances to break back in the United side and justify those wages of £ 500,000 a week after a cursed 2018-19 season in which he suffered from hamstring, knee, thigh and ankle injuries.

Sanchez scores against Arsenal in the FA Cup fourth round – a rare bright spot last season

But Sanchez failed to win the favor of manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer with his execution rings

Sanchez started only 13 games and scored only twice during a season for which his performances only mocked.

Younger, more hungry players have improved Sanchez in the manager's thinking. James has performed well in the left position all the way during the tour competitions, while Anthony Martial is also effective there.

The 17-year-old Greenwood performed well on the right, scored in the games against Leeds United and Inter Milan

Two more teenagers from the academy, Angel Gomes and Tahith Chong, have solid enough achieved a way in the thinking of Solskjaer with the start of the season in two weeks.

Sanchez was accidentally seated on Solskjaer's chair during the FA Cup tie against Reading in January

The rest of the campaign was plagued by Sanchez who suffered four setbacks

Man United matches

Pre-seas on

Tuesday Kristiansund (A) 18.00

Saturday AC Milan (Cardiff) 5:36 pm

[1945902] ] Premier League

11 August Chelsea (H) 4:30 pm

August 19, 19 Wolves (A) 8 pm

August 24, Crystal Palace (H) Fifteen

August 31, Southampton (A) 12.30pm

Last year, Jose Mourinho had little choice but to play Sanchez during the pre-season tour of United because so many players were back late for the preseason after the World Cup.

This time you sincerely wonder if Solskjaer would have taken the trouble to play Sanchez even if he had been available.

While catching up with his condition, the Chilean seems to be becoming something for United for an expensive problem.

Solskj aer has been given the last word about his future by the club and all logic suggests that it would be better if he went ahead before the end of the transfer window.

But his stratospheric wages and injury record are huge obstacles when it comes to finding suitors. You suspect that only a team in the Chinese Super League would be willing to meet its salary requirements.

It will certainly be interesting to see how powerful United is trying to discharge him in the coming weeks.

Signing of summer time Daniel James is already under the impression of United in their preseason matches

17-year-old Striker Mason Greenwood shone with two goals during the pre-season tour

What is certain is that Solskjaer has a vision of how he wants to play United in the coming season and

If that means that Sanchez is warming up the bank again or playing in the reserves, it will be the Do not disturb Noor. He will certainly not spoil Sanchez, no matter how bleak he looks.

It is therefore up to the player to catch up with his fitness work quickly and to make something to impress Solskjaer and to justify the club's continued spending on his salary.

Otherwise, the Solskja revolution will continue without him.

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[keywestlou]

RANDOM OBSERVATIONS LEFT BY THE WAYSIDE BECAUSE OF CHRISTMAS BLOGS

My two Christmas blogs took precedence over normal blog activity. I have a number of notes that would have been mentioned were it not for the Christmas blogs.

Waste not, want not. I want to set forth briefly the items not mentioned. No particular order involved.

— Christmas eve and Christmas day at Lisa’s. Best Christmas eve meal Lisa has ever prepared. Only one fish however. My daughter has been become Americanized.

Desserts especially good.

Robert and Ally are young adults. I enjoy talking with them. I sat at the children’s table with them for dinner.

Ally enjoys painting. Gets in and out of it since a very early age. Back into it. Gave me a beautiful hand painted picture of mail boxes. I have already hung it in the living room.

Robert gave me a book involving thoughtful matters. Like is there a God? He was more excited with the card that accompanied it. He is taking some sort of video course in high school. He made the card. Three steps involved, if I understood correctly. He explained how he made it. I was as excited as he. And impressed!

— LeBron James spoke out against the NFL owners. “A bunch of old white men” with “slave mentality” toward players. Describes their attitude as “the old plantation mentality.” Believes they are more concerned about money and fear Trump.

— Went to Hot Dog Church sunday evening. Got there late. Only a few ladies remaining. Laurie bartending.

I will be doing Laurie’s radio show on 107.5 FM thursday from 4-5. Appears I will guest weekly at that time.

— Hot Dog Church followed by the Chart Room. Great evening!

Two couples. Tourists. Never met till that night. Each couple have been visiting Key West for 30 years. Great history!

One of the husbands retired. He has a part time job. Times marathons. Does it periodically. Travels everywhere.

A solo guy was at the end of he bar. A gem of historical fact. He was in he Marines stationed in Key West in 1965. Now a full time resident owning a home here.

— The World Happiness Report 2018 recently came out. It lists the most happy and most miserable countries.

Top 3 most happy are Finland, Norway and Denmark in that order. The U.S. ranked 18. Burundi the least happy ranked at 156. Two countries the U.S. presently has an interest in ranked. Afghanistan 145, Syria 150.

— When will the U.S. learn that Middle Easterners hang in there. As the Vietnamese did against the U.S. in that war.

The Soviets sent tanks and 8,500 men into Afghanistan in December 24, 1975. Afghan fighters declared a jihad. Guerrilla war ensued. The Soviets left 10 years later defeated. And broke! The war had destroyed the Russian economy.

The U.S. learned nothing from that history. We have been in Afghanistan 17 years now. Crazy! Trump recently announced he was pulling half of our military contingency out. Seven thousand five hundred service personnel.

The U.S should never have gone in, especially without an exit strategy. The U.S. should not now be pulling out without a specific plan. A double screw up.

— My love Terri White sings this week. Four consecutive nights at the Little Room Jazz Club. 12/27-12/30. A Fringe Theater presentation. Show time 8. I will be there New Year’s Eve. Broadway tunes.

— Key West and bicycles continue to be in the news. Apparently the City ordered a study 2 years ago. The Key West Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan is now ready for release. The City Commission will discuss it at its January 15 meeting.

This I’ve got to see!

Total cost to implement the Master Plan $28.6 million. Payment in 2 phases: $9.6 million and $19 million.

— A resident complained publicly in one of Key West’s news papers. Key west is becoming like San Francisco. We have a poop problem. Only in season, only in Old Town. The inference tourists don’t give a shit

— Trump is now on the Fed’s ass. Claims the market is down because the Fed raised interest rates. Suggesting he is going to fire the Chairman who he appointed this past year.

Trump claims…..”The only problem our economy has is the Fed.” I say…..”The only problem our economy has is Trump.”

— The shutdown has causes not anticipated. It also evidences people not hurt who should suffer with those being hurt.

White House Xmas tree lights went out.

Congress has a gym and spa. Must be a beauty. Still operating during the shut down. Speaker Ryan used it the past few days.

The Congressional gym and spa is considered “essential” under the law.

— Stock market keeps going down. Down this year 20 percent. The worse drop since the Great Depression.

Market this morning before opening sitting around 2,700. If it breaks 2,000 there will be a recession. A world wide one.

Who do we thank? Donald Trump! He has destabilized everything.

— How many more children have to die?

An 8 year old Guatemalan refugee boy sitting on the border took ill. Authorities got him to a hospital. He died. Autopsy results awaited.

Two weeks ago, a 7 year old Guatemalan girl died.

Mr. President, have you no conscience?

–The wall. Now a fence or whatever.

Trump claims he signed a contract for the construction of 150 miles of the wall in Texas to begin construction next week. Who is he kidding? He has no authority to do something like that outright. The House is part of the approval process and cannot be ignored.

Going to be interesting how he explains his way out of this one. I am willing to bet there is no signed contract. This is just another of Trump’s falsehoods thinking he can bullshit the American people. Those days are over!

— Trump time continues. Once again, he failed to visit American troops stationed in foreign lands on Christmas. Just as he failed to visit the American military cemetery in France.

Called no respect.

He did telephone soldiers on Christmas morning.

— Studies reveal more and more Americans are living into their 90s. The University of California did a study on the whys and wherefores. Sixteen hundred people involved. Study began 2003.

Results interesting.

Alcohol and coffee consumption on a daily basis will help people to live past 90. Abstinence will not. Alcohol should be consumed in moderation, however.

Another test finding is that people overweight in their 70s live longer than those underweight.

Glad I did not begin my diet till I was 82.

— Harry Truman. As always, Truman loved Key West and Key West loves Harry Truman.

Truman made 11 visits to Key West. Described as working vacations. Spent a total of 175 days.

Truman died this day in 1972.

–I am caught up!

Enjoy your day!

RANDOM OBSERVATIONS LEFT BY THE WAYSIDE BECAUSE OF CHRISTMAS BLOGS was originally published on Key West Lou

[alisonfloresus]

Evidence For God as a Scientist: Physicist, Microbiologist, Rainbow Creator, And Geneticist

Summary:

Scientists form hypotheses, carry out laboratory and theoretical experiments to prove their hypotheses, and publish their work in peer reviewed scientific journals. In my mind, God is the Master Scientist Who keeps His theories to Himself while feeling no need to provide scientific proof to we mortals. Rather God disguises his scientific accomplishments in the form of miracles. Because of the Free Will that God gave us, His position to us is stated simply and elegantly ― it’s your choice whether to believe or not believe in Me. Furthermore, if you trust as I do that God dictated to Moses the first Five Books of the Hebrew Bible, known as the Torah, then God is His own published author. It is in the Torah that we find God the Master Scientist as well as the Master Creator.

The Choice:

When God gave us Free Will, He ensured that even the most disinterested party did not have to believe in Him and could believe only in the evolutionary and scientific explanations for the existence of our universe, planet, and ourselves. However besides our choice to believe or disbelieve in God, there is also another choice for those who have Faith. Did God create the world initially at the time of the big bang and then step back to allow natural events to occur or has God played a behind the scenes continuous role in the development of our world? It gets even more complicated. Is God, unbeknownst to us, at the helm of our ship while we journey from port to port during the course of our lives making new discoveries? Or has God pre-planned everything so that although we are captains of our own ship thinking that we are making new discoveries, these discoveries are really old hat to God? The fact that God has foreseen everything doesn’t make our lives less joyful or less exciting for as Forrest Gump said in the movies, life is like a box of chocolates as you never know what you are going to get. One should look at God as a scientist irrespective of one’s personal beliefs. Please keep in mind that although we use our limited human brains to understand our lives and universe; with his limitless organizing intelligence of energy God plans on a higher level that we are not capable of accessing. God’s thoughts are higher than our thoughts. God’s ways are higher than our ways.

God the Physicist:

We published a previous article on this internet site which suggested that the physicist’s unseen Higgs Field was the same as our proposed undetected God Field. The Higgs field is essential to the structure of matter and in turn to life itself. Our thoughts were that at the time of the big bang, only God existed as unique Light Energy particles. We further suggested that these special resting Light Energy particles acted like a reverse black hole and contained the darkness and all the gaseous ingredients necessary to kick start our universe 14 billion years ago. At a time of God’s choosing, He caused or became the big bang, and today God’s Light Energy represents more than one billion quadrillion of these special particles. God’s energy particles are still geometrically increasing as our universe perpetually expands.

Spiritual energy particle calculations indicate that God’s energy particles currently occupy 625 billion plus miles of space. If true this would be a huge number in line with scientific views that trillions of miles of space are thought to be a crude estimate of the distance spanning the universe. God therefore represents a large part of three-dimensional space and He has the potential to spread His energy particles throughout our universe, so that He essentially is space itself. God is thus the master physicist because all planetary, life forms, and even inanimate objects like water and rocks are “alive” and filled with God’s energy. This special Light Energy was discussed on the very First Day of Creation of our world in the Hebrew Bible or Old Testament and is independent of the light energy from the sun which did not show up until the Fourth Day of Creation or millions to billions of years later.

God the Rainbow Creator:

Aristotle may have been the first recorded human to study rainbows. However, almost twenty-five hundred years before Aristotle, God was speaking to Noah about setting His bow in the sky. The actual text comes from Genesis IX:11, “And I [God] will ratify My covenant with you [humankind]: never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of a flood, and never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth.” And from Genesis IX: 12-17, “This is the sign of the covenant that I give between Me and you being that is with you, to generations forever. I have set my bow [rainbow] in the cloud and it shall be a sign of the covenant between Me and the earth. And it shall happen, when I place a cloud over the earth, and the bow will be seen in the cloud. I will remember My covenant between Me and you and every living being among all flesh, and the water shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh. And the bow shall be in the cloud and I shall look upon it to remember the everlasting covenant between Me and every living being, among all flesh that is upon the earth.” A “sign” is an agreement between God and man while the actual agreement forged is called the “covenant.”

Was God the first one to see a rainbow? As far as we know, YES. Rainbows are natural occurrences which seem to brighten our world no matter how bleak our future looks. If one carefully examines the biblical text, one can’t help but notice that God is actually claiming the rainbow to be His bow as if He owned it. Even if the rainbow is a natural phenomenon that always existed from the beginning of the time when the sun’s rays were refracted within rain droplets, God could have created the rainbow in the sky without the water droplets just as He created Adam from the stardust without a sperm and an egg. It is well known that scientists discovered that white light is actually made up of a spectrum of colors of different wavelengths. Yet why is this so? Do rainbows exist for our pleasure or is the real significance the sign of the covenant between God and man? Moreover, why should white light have this color composition and is the color spectrum created by God purposely chosen because we tend to know and love visualizing colors with our eyes, so much so that when we see color we easily remember what we saw? Will God show all of humankind a rainbow simultaneously everywhere on the earth in future Messianic times to demonstrate His covenant with us?

God the Microbiologist:

While the universe is approximately 14 billion years old, our earth did not form until 4.5 billion years ago and we did not see the first fossilized microorganisms until 3.8 billion years ago. But where did these bacteria come from? If you examine the scientific studies on the Origin of Life, you discover that scientists cannot tell you how life initially began, just like they cannot tell you what happened during those Divine moments before the big bang. Bacteria and other advanced life forms have DNA but you can’t make DNA without enzyme proteins and you can’t make enzyme proteins without DNA. It’s the chicken and egg hypothesis where you don’t know which came first ― the chicken or the egg. You need the chicken to hatch the egg but you need the egg to give rise to the chicken. No scientist in any laboratory has found a way to create macromolecules of DNA or enzyme proteins. So how did these fossilized microorganisms appear 3.8 billion years ago? Francis Crick the Nobel Laureate, who with James Watson solved the double helix structure of DNA, proposed that aliens on UFO spaceships brought these microorganisms to earth 3.8 billion years ago. I kind of agree with Sir Francis as long as we substitute angels for aliens commanding the spaceships. God is the microbiologist who created microorganisms billions of years before the science of microbiology began. Microorganisms would be a snap undertaking for God if you accept the premise that God created Adam out of stardust.

God the Geneticist:

There is an interesting story in the Bible written thirty-six hundred years ago about the Jewish Patriarch Jacob and his scheming father-in-law Laban. Jacob had worked tirelessly for fourteen years to marry both of Laban’s daughters, Leah and Rachel, and their handmaids Zilpah and Bilhah. When he wished to leave with his family and his little flock of animals, Laban refused telling Jacob that he was good luck for Laban and that Jacob had to work an additional six years. Jacob knew that Laban was unscrupulously dishonest and that he needed to set up conditions in an agreement which by the natural order of things seemingly totally favored Laban. At the same time, Jacob realized he had to behave according to what is written in Psalm XVIII:27, “With the trustworthy, act trustingly and with the crooked, act perversely.”

The story is taken from Genesis XXX. Jacob asks Laban to let him pass through Laban’s whole flock. Laban will then remove from the flock every speckled or spotted (reddish brown) sheep, every reddish brown lamb and the speckled or spotted (white markings) among the goats and give these existing “damaged” animals to Laban. Then Jacob promises that he will tend Laban’s remaining unblemished pure white sheep and pure black goats but if any future offspring are born abnormally colored, Jacob will keep these as his wages. Jacob further agrees that that if there are any pure monochrome animals among his speckled and spotted future born offspring that the whole agreement is nullified in Laban’s favor as Jacob will keep not even the newly born mixed colored animals and he will wind up with nothing. Jacob was acting with integrity even though Laban was not. Laban felt that he couldn’t lose as it was unimaginable to him that speckled and spotted sheep and goats could be born from pure monochrome colored white sheep and black goats. Jacob on the other hand felt that God would bless him in a miracle. What neither realized was that God was a geneticist and that speckled and spotted animals could be born from one-colored white sheep and black goats if the mix of genes during the mating of each animal would allow it. Thus many speckled and spotted animals were born and Jacob became very rich while Laban fumed as he had been outwitted even though he too benefited from Jacob’s shepherding.

from JournalsLINE http://journalsline.com/2017/05/10/evidence-for-god-as-a-scientist-physicist-microbiologist-rainbow-creator-and-geneticist/ from Journals LINE https://journalsline.tumblr.com/post/160511955030

[the-record-newspaper]

80,000 participate at MerleFest

Banknotes: (left to right) Billy Gee, Jeff Pardue, Wes Tuttle, Mike Palmer, Donnie Story, Randy Gambill, Tony Joines,and R.G. Absher performed Thursday on the Cabin Stage. Photo By Gordon Burns

 MerleFest, presented by Window World, has wrapped up its 30th year, closing out with a raise-the-roof acoustic performance from Zac Brown Band. Early estimates show that from its start on Thursday, April 27, to its close on Sunday, April 30, aggregate participation over the festival’s four days exceeded 80,000 participants. MerleFest, held on the campus of Wilkes Community College, is the primary fundraiser for the WCC Foundation, funding scholarships, capital projects and other educational needs.

From the Watson Stage, Zac Brown talked about growing up coming to MerleFest and watching his musical idols on stage, artists he saw as heroes. He spoke of what a privilege it is to be in the “batcave” with them now, meaning the Watson Stage. He also spoke nostalgically of how he used to lie in the grass field at MerleFest listening to all the music as a young man. He said that he does not get to do that anymore, but he is happy that everyone else at MerleFest can still enjoy doing that at the festival.

Over 100 incredible performers contributed to the success of this year’s festival, nearly all of whom had performed in previous years and were invited back to be part of the 30th celebration. These artists included Zac Brown Band, Transatlantic Sessions hosted by Jerry Douglas and Aly Bain featuring James Taylor, The Avett Brothers, Béla Fleck, Marty Stuart & His Fabulous Superlatives, Del McCoury Band, Leftover Salmon, Sam Bush Band, The Earls of Leicester featuring Jerry Douglas, Peter Rowan, Steep Canyon Rangers, Natalie MacMaster and Donnell Leahy, Jorma Kaukonen, Sarah Jarosz, Jim Lauderdale and many more.

The Del McCoury Band on the Watson Stage. Photo by Bob Alexander

Every year, music fans experience what has become known as “MerleFest Moments” – special groupings of performances, jam sessions and events that get the whole festival talking and add to the festival’s rich history.

Thursday night’s MerleFest Moment came from bluegrass pioneer Del McCoury. Even though he was reportedly suffering from laryngitis and was planning not to sing, he was carried away by the emotion of the moment onstage and sang his entire set in his uniquely powerful voice. The Avett Brothers were wildly anticipated Thursday night and took the stage with an explosive performance that echoed across the grounds. Their cover of Doc Watson’s “Country Blues” went from a close-quarters fiddle and banjo duet into a wonderful extended jam.

Friday afternoon, MerleFest was buzzing with excitement for folk-rock legend James Taylor, who was scheduled to perform with The Transatlantic Sessions Tour hosted by Jerry Douglas and Aly Bain. Taylor opened his set with his hit song “Carolina on my Mind,” joking, “I might as well get this out of the way!” Aside from James Taylor, the Transatlantic Sessions set was an unexpected delight for many MerleFest attendees, featuring a parade of some of the best Celtic musician in the United Kingdom. Earlier on Friday, programming ranged from Sierra Hull’s quietly sublime mandolin and bass duet with bassist Ethan Jodziewicz to Wayne Henderson’s blazingly fast bluegrass twang, featuring 12-year old flatpicking guitar prodigy Presley Barker.

James Taylor with The Transatlantic Sessions Tour. Photo by Jim Gavenus 

On Saturday, the Avett Brothers returned for an especially powerful set on the Hillside Stage entirely made up of songs from Doc Watson, a key influence to their music. "We feel Doc's presence here, even three years after his death, and he's everywhere in our music," said Scott Avett. The Avett Brothers invited Doc Watson’s brother, David Watson, to the stage for a special introduction. "I was 15 the first time I came to MerleFest. It doesn't feel different now. The authenticity seems to stay here," said Seth Avett. Other surprises of the day included Sarah Jarosz’s hard-edged cover of Prince's "When Doves Cry" complete with stunning bass solo from bassist Jeff Picker. Late in the evening, Ireland’s I Draw Slow showed their love for the region with a rousing Appalachian stringband tune on the Dance Stage that had people spinning and twirling. Closing out the Watson Stage on Saturday night, Donna the Buffalo was joined by Béla Fleck, Sam Bush, and young bluegrass mandolin powerhouse Chris Henry for their all-star Saturday night jam.

The Kruger Brothers

Sunday at MerleFest opened to more beautiful sunny weather. Sunday’s programming sponsor was Lowes Foods. On the Watson Stage, The Kruger Brothers mastered the difficult combination of bluegrass and classical music, premiering their “Roan Mountain Suite” with The Kontras Quartet, and in a virtuosic turn, brought the group together on Sting’s "Fields of Gold." Natalie MacMaster & Donnell Leahy, two of Canada's best fiddlers, brought out four of their young children for a rousing round of fiddle and step-dancing that had the MerleFest crowd on their feet for their first of three standing ovations for the family. Toward the end of his set, country and roots music star Marty Stuart paused to remember Doc Watson, who he “missed with all his heart,” dedicating a beautiful hymn to Doc. Closing out the evening and the festival, Zac Brown Band presented a special all-acoustic set, just guitars, bass and fiddle, including songs off his upcoming album, “Welcome Home.”

MerleFest has always been known for discovering emerging talent in American roots music. From Old Crow Medicine Show to Gillian Welch and the Avett Brothers to Tift Merritt, careers blossom from breakout performances on MerleFest stages. The 2017 MerleFest lineup continues this trend, presenting breakout and up-and-coming artists like Megan Nash, Front Country, Lydia Luce, 10 String Symphony, Mountain Heart, Locust Honey, Ken Tizzard and more.

The Avett Brothers on the Watson Stage. Photo by Whitebox Photography

The great MerleFest tradition of The Hillside Album Hour, hosted by The Waybacks, returned with guest vocalist Celia Woodsmith (of Della Mae). MerleFest's bucolic Hillside Stage filled out with crowds for the unveiling of the classic album, “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Heart’s Club Band” by The Beatles. After the triumphant opening, Woodsmith grooved to “Getting Better,” and later Sam Bush and guests joined The Waybacks for cuts like “Within or Without You” and “Lovely Rita.”

The Midnight Jam: Photo by Willa Stein

The Midnight Jam, hosted by Mipso and sponsored by The Bluegrass Situation, is always a source for one-of-a-kind moments and unexpected surprises. Opening with Mipso’s Americana and bluegrass roots, Sierra Hull and Peter Rowan sang a beautiful duet on the classic Doc Watson song “What Does the Deep Sea Say.” Jim Lauderdale put together a wonderful set of Ralph Stanley songs that compelled Peter Rowan to run back to the stage to join him on harmony vocals for the song “White Dove.” Surprising the whole crowd, Mipso had invited four brass musicians to start up an impromptu parade through the crowd playing “When the Saints Come Marching In,” ending in an old-time stringband jam with Sierra Hull, Mipso and Front Country.

MerleFest continues to celebrate the life and music of Doc and Merle Watson because the legacy of their music is the artistic center of the festival. Musician, composer and storyteller T. Michael Coleman joined Doc and Merle to tour the world and help create countless Grammy-nominated and Grammy-awarded recordings. Coleman has joined the festival in its mission to keep Doc and Merle at the heart of MerleFest. His popular annual Saturday “Memories of Doc & Merle” set is part of that mission. 

Sand Sculpture by Hilda Smith

The Chris Austin Songwriting Contest on Friday, known for discovering the finest aspiring songwriters, brought a new group of talent to the festival. Winning bluegrass songwriter Linda Jean Stokley from Kentucky, Nashville country songwriter Mary Bragg, and more performed their award-winning songs on the Cabin Stage on Friday evening.

The Band Competition, another point of discovery for great new artists, brought together 12 bands of various ages and genres on Saturday at MerleFest. The Trailblazers, an emerging progressive bluegrass band from North Carolina picked up the first place prize, an honor they can add to their already accomplished career for such young pickers, including opening spots for Ricky Skaggs & Kentucky Thunder and Blue Highway.

In addition to promoting "traditional plus" music, a term coined by Doc Watson to describe the wide variety of musical genres and styles celebrated at MerleFest, the festival also featured heritage crafts demonstrations, instrument picking lessons and jam sessions, dancing, and music education workshops.

“We’ve had an incredible weekend,” Festival Director Ted Hagaman said. “With over 100 artists on 13 stages over the four days, we again feel we succeeded in providing a quality and successful event for all involved. Preliminary numbers show we attracted thousands of fans from all over the world. We appreciate their support. This event could not happen without the work and dedication of our 4,000-plus volunteers and the many great safety and service agencies in Northwestern North Carolina. We’re already looking forward to MerleFest 2018.”

“Giving back is one of Window World’s core values,” said Window World Inc. Chairman and CEO Tammy Whitworth. “And what better way to embrace the community than MerleFest, the single largest fundraiser for Wilkes Community College? We’re proud that Window World is headquartered in Wilkes County, North Carolina, and we consider it a privilege to support exceptional educational opportunities in the community through our sponsorship of MerleFest.”

MerleFest 2017 is presented by Window World. MerleFest is grateful to the 100+ sponsors and advertisers for their support in making the event possible, including Window World, Lowes Foods, Birthplace of Country Music, Burger King, Carolina West Wireless, Curtis Media Group, Explore Boone, G&B Energy, Knee-Deep in Bluegrass, Pepsi Bottling Ventures, Ray’s Weather, The Law Offices of Timothy D. Welborn, Tyson, Vannoy Construction, WAME 92.9 FM / 550 AM, WBRF 98.1 FM, WFNZ 610 AM / 102.5 FM, Wilkes Communications, Wilkes Regional Medical Center, Winston-Salem Journal, WLNK 107.9, WNCW 88.7 Public Radio, WOXL 98.1, WPAQ 740 AM, WSMW 98.7, WTQR 104.1, WXII 12, Yes! Weekly and many more. A complete listing of all MerleFest sponsors and additional information about all aspects of the festival can be found at www.MerleFest.org.

 The Ralston Family: Cindy, Rich, Adaline, Gracie, Corin, Elijah Ralston and Larry Skipper at the Acoustic Kids showcase. Photo by Gordon Burns

About MerleFest

MerleFest, considered one of the premier music festivals in the country, is an annual homecoming of musicians and music fans held on the campus of Wilkes Community College in Wilkesboro, North Carolina. MerleFest was founded in 1988 in memory of renowned guitarist Eddy Merle Watson, the son of the late American music legend Doc Watson. MerleFest is a celebration of "traditional plus" music, a unique mix of music based on the traditional, roots-oriented sounds of the Appalachian region, including bluegrass and old-time music and expanded to include Americana, country, blues, rock and many other styles. The festival hosts a diverse mix of artists on its 13 stages during the course of the four-day event. The annual event has become the primary fundraiser for the WCC Foundation, funding scholarships, capital projects and other educational needs.

About Window World

Window World, headquartered in North Wilkesboro, N.C., is America’s largest replacement window and exterior remodeling company, with more than 200 locally owned offices nationwide. Founded in 1995, the company sells and installs windows, siding, doors and other exterior products, with a total of over 13 million windows sold to date. Window World is an ENERGY STAR partner, and its window products have earned the Good Housekeeping Seal for nine consecutive years. Additionally, through its charitable foundation Window World Cares, the Window World family provides funding for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, where it was named New Corporate Partner of the Year in 2010. Since its inception in 2008, the foundation has raised over $7 million for St. Jude. Window World Inc. also supports the Veterans Airlift Command, a non-profit organization that facilitates free air transportation to wounded veterans and their families. For more information, visit www.WindowWorld.com or call 1-800 NEXT WINDOW. For home improvement and energy efficiency tips, décor ideas and more, follow Window World on Facebook and Twitter.

[rotoworld-yahoopartner]

Daily Dose: Wild Card Weekend

The NFL playoff field dwindled from 12 teams to eight as Wild Card weekend saw all four home teams pick up victories with the Raiders, Lions, Dolphins, and Giants sent packing. While the closest margin of victory among the Wild Card games was 13 points, there were notable performances throughout the weekend that kept the fantasy faithful tuned-in with playoff contests and DFS winnings at stake.

Two of the more interesting fantasy eruptions from the weekend came from players who hadn’t turned in a single useable performance in nearly a month. Seattle running back Thomas Rawls had a brutal stretch in Weeks 15-17, turning 37 carries into 56 yards (1.5 ypc) while backup Alex Collins began to barge his way into the Seahawks’ backfield. Early on Saturday, Seattle coach Pete Carroll told ESPN that he wanted to get Rawls the ball “20 times this week,” and Carroll spent Saturday evening chomping on his gum and watching his master plan take shape. Rawls began ripping off chunks of yardage against the Detroit defensive front from the jump, and by the time the dust cleared, Rawls had racked up 161 yards and a touchdown on a whopping 27 carries. Rawls will now look toward the Atlanta Falcons, Seattle’s Divisional Round opponent. Atlanta allowed opposing rushers to chip off 4.5 yards per carry in 2016, good for 26th in the league, although they had success against Seattle in Week 6, holding the Seahawks to 72 yards on the ground at 2.7 yards per attempt. The potential return of C.J. Prosise (shoulder) may lessen Rawls’ workload, but the Seattle ground game will likely need a repeat performance to knock off Atlanta.

Randall Cobb also emerged from hibernation over the weekend, exploding for 116 yards and three touchdowns on five receptions after not catching a single pass since Week 14. Cobb dealt with ankle issues that held him out of Weeks 16 and 17, but was able to return to the field and play a key role for the Packers after Jordy Nelson (ribs) was knocked out of the game in a 38-13 win over the New York Giants . Cobb’s only other 100-yard performance of the 2016 season also came against the Giants, who were served a swift gut punch at the end of the first half on Sunday when Cobb managed to snag a 42-yard Hail Mary from Aaron Rodgers as time expired. Cobb should continue to be heavily involved in Green Bay’s offense next week when the Packers travel to Dallas, and Rodgers will certainly lean on his old pal if Jordy Nelson is forced to miss time.

Franchise Tag for Bell

Aside from shredding the Miami Dolphins for two touchdowns and a Pittsburgh postseason record 167 rushing yards, Le’Veon Bell was in the news for other reasons on Sunday. Bell stacked up a mountain of production in 2016 but won’t get a chance to hit the open market over the offseason, as the Steelers will reportedly use the franchise-tag on the free agent running back, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport. Bell and the Steelers will have plenty of time to work on a long-term deal, a resolution that would benefit both sides as Bell turns just 25 next month and just completed a season with 1,884 total yards in only 12 games (157.0 yards per contest). Fantasy footballers will now have all offseason to doodle on their notebooks while hopelessly daydreaming about a Pittsburgh offense with Antonio Brown, Le’Veon Bell, Ladarius Green, and Martavis Bryant all on the field at once.

Injury Updates

The Green Bay Packers received a tough blow in the second quarter on Sunday when Giants CB Leon Hall exploded toward Jordy Nelson on the sideline and crushed the receiver directly in the ribs. Nelson didn’t return to the game and his Divisional Round status is now up in the air after coach Mike McCarthy told reporters, “I obviously have concern for Jordy. I don’t have the information yet.” In Jordy’s absence, Davante Adams (12 targets), Jared Cook (9), and Randall Cobb (7) were Aaron Rodgers’ top targets and all three will be heavily involved at Dallas next Sunday if Nelson’s ribs cause him to miss game action. Quarterback Aaron Rodgers also called out Geronimo Allison’s name after Sunday’s game as a player who will see more action if Nelson is on the shelf. “But you know Geronimo is going to have to step up and play extended time if Jordy is going to be out," Rodgers said.  Allison saw just two targets on Sunday, but was a force with Randall Cobb out of the lineup in Weeks 16 and 17, catching eight passes for 157 yards and a touchdown in two games.

Ben Roethlisberger reportedly injured his ankle near the end of Pittsburgh’s 30-12 stomping of the Miami Dolphins on Sunday, but told reporters “I’ll be out there next week” when the team travels to Kansas City to face the Chiefs. Large Ben did throw a pair of passes to the wrong team on Sunday but was otherwise solid, throwing for 197 yards on just 18 pass attempts and hitting Antonio Brown for two scores. There should be no major cause for concern here, but stay tuned to Rotoworld this week as more news surfaces regarding Roethlisberger’s status.

Ladarius Green (concussion) was able to practice last Thursday but was absent on Friday and is still in the NFL’s concussion protocol. Green was unable to play on Sunday, but may have an outside chance at suiting up in the Divisional Round if he makes progress this week. Jesse James caught one of two targets for six yards in Green’s absence with Pittsburgh not pressed into many passing situations against Miami.

Michael Crabtree (concussion) was forced from Oakland’s game at Houston in the fourth quarter on Saturday and did not return after suffering a concussion. Crabtree had a rough afternoon with the rest of the Oakland offense, hauling in just two of seven targets for 33 yards as the Raiders fell to the Houston Texans 27-14. Crabtree and the Raiders sorely missed Derek Carr in the Wild Card round and should jump right back on track next season when their quarterback is back in action.

C.J. Prosise (shoulder) sat out Seattle’s win over Detroit on Saturday, but is a name to watch this week as the Seahawks prepare to travel to Atlanta to face the Falcons. Prosise did not practice before the Wild Card round but should be nearing a return after injuring his shoulder in Week 11.

[pope-francis-quotes]

10th April >> (@VaticanNews) #PopeFrancis #Pope Francis celebrates Passion of the Lord, as papal preacher reflects on Covid-19 pandemic

Pope Francis presides over the Celebration of the Passion of the Lord, with Fr Raniero Cantalamessa reflecting on the positive fruits that God draws forth from the coronavirus pandemic.

By Vatican News

The celebration of the Passion of the Lord took place on the evening of Good Friday in a near-empty St. Peter’s Basilica.

Pope Francis presided over the liturgy, which was live-streamed to the faithful across the world through media outlets and social media.

At the moment of the Adoration of the Holy Cross, only the Pope was able to venerate the Cross with a kiss, in compliance with measures to avoid the spread of Covid-19.

The Preacher of the Papal Household, Fr Raniero Cantalamessa, preached the Sermon, reminding everyone that God has plans for our welfare, and not woe, even in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.

Below please find the full text of his Sermon:

“I HAVE PLANS FOR YOUR WELFARE AND NOT FOR WOE”

Sermon for Good Friday 2020 in St. Peter’s Basilica

St. Gregory the Great said that Scripture “grows with its readers”, cum legentibus crescit.[1] It reveals meanings always new according to the questions people have in their hearts as they read it. And this year we read the account of the Passion with a question—rather with a cry—in our hearts that is rising up over the whole earth. We need to seek the answer that the word of God gives it.

The Gospel reading we have just listened to is the account of the objectively greatest evil committed on earth. We can look at it from two different angles: either from the front or from the back, that is, either from its causes or from its effects. If we stop at the historical causes of Christ’s death, we get confused and everyone will be tempted to say, as Pilate did, “I am innocent of this man’s blood” (Mt 27:24). The cross is better understood by its effects than by its causes. And what were the effects of Christ’s death? Being justified through faith in him, being reconciled and at peace with God, and being filled with the hope of eternal life! (see Rom 53:1-5).

But there is one effect that the current situation can help us to grasp in particular. The cross of Christ has changed the meaning of pain and human suffering—of every kind of suffering, physical and moral. It is no longer punishment, a curse. It was redeemed at its root when the Son of God took it upon himself. What is the surest proof that the drink someone offers you is not poisoned? It is if that person drinks from the same cup before you do. This is what God has done: on the cross he drank, in front of the whole world, the cup of pain down to its dregs. This is how he showed us it is not poisoned, but that there is a pearl at the bottom of it.

And not only the pain of those who have faith, but of every human pain. He died for all human beings: “And when I am lifted up from the earth,” he said, “I will draw everyone to myself” (Jn 12:32). Everyone, not just some! St. John Paul II wrote from his hospital bed after his attempted assassination, “To suffer means to become particularly susceptible, particularly open to the working of the salvific powers of God, offered to humanity in Christ.”[2] Thanks to the cross of Christ, suffering has also become in its own way a kind of “universal sacrament of salvation” for the human race.

***

What light does all of this shed on the dramatic situation that humanity is going through now? Here too we need to look at the effects more than at the causes—not just the negative ones we hear about every day in heart-wrenching reports but also the positive ones that only a more careful observation can help us grasp.

The pandemic of Coronavirus has abruptly roused us from the greatest danger individuals and humanity have always been susceptible to: the delusion of omnipotence. A Jewish rabbi has written that we have the opportunity to celebrate a very special paschal exodus this year, that “from the exile of consciousness” [3]. It took merely the smallest and most formless element of nature, a virus, to remind us that we are mortal, that military power and technology are not sufficient to save us. As a psalm in the Bible says, “In his prime, man does not understand. / He is like the beasts—they perish” (Ps 49:21). How true that is!

While he was painting frescoes in St. Paul’s Cathedral in London, the artist James Thornhill became so excited at a certain point about his fresco that he stepped back to see it better and was unaware he was about to fall over the edge of the scaffolding. A horrified assistant understood that crying out to him would have only hastened the disaster. Without thinking twice, he dipped a brush in paint and hurled it at the middle of the fresco. The master, appalled, sprang forward. His work was damaged, but he was saved.

God does this with us sometimes: he disrupts our projects and our calm to save us from the abyss we don’t see. But we need to be careful not to be deceived. God is not the one who hurled the brush at the sparkling fresco of our technological society. God is our ally, not the ally of the virus! He himself says in the Bible, “I have . . . plans for your welfare and not for woe” (Jer 29:11). If these scourges were punishments of God, it would not be explained why they strike equally good and bad, and why the poor usually bear the worst consequences of them. Are they more sinners than others?

The one who cried one day for Lazarus' death cries today for the scourge that has fallen on humanity. Yes, God "suffers", like every father and every mother. When we will find out this one day, we will be ashamed of all the accusations we made against him in life. God participates in our pain to overcome it. "Being supremely good - wrote St. Augustine - God would not allow any evil in his works, unless in his omnipotence and goodness, he is able to bring forth good out of evil.”[4]

Did God the Father possibly desire the death of his Son in order to draw good out of it? No, he simply permitted human freedom to take its course, making it serve, however, his own purposes and not those of human beings. This is also the case for natural disasters like earthquakes and plagues. He does not bring them about. He has given nature a kind of freedom as well, qualitatively different of course than that of human beings, but still a form of freedom—freedom to evolve according to its own laws of development. He did not create a world as a programmed clock whose least little movement could be anticipated. It is what some call “chance” but the Bible calls instead “the wisdom of God.”

***

The other positive fruit of the present health crisis is the feeling of solidarity. When, in the memory of humanity, have the people of all nations ever felt themselves so united, so equal, so less in conflict than at this moment of pain? Never so much as now have we experienced the truth of the words of one of our great poets: “Peace, you peoples! Too deep is the mystery of the prostrate earth.”[5] We have forgotten about building walls. The virus knows no borders. In an instant it has broken down all the barriers and distinctions of race, nation, religion, wealth, and power. We should not revert to that prior time when this moment has passed. As the Holy Father has exhorted us, we should not waste this opportunity. Let us not allow so much pain, so many deaths, and so much heroic engagement on the part of health workers to have been in vain. Returning to the way things were is the “recession” we should fear the most.

They shall beat their swords into plowshares

and their spears into pruning hooks;

One nation shall not raise the sword against another,

nor shall they train for war again. (Is 2:4)

This is the moment to put into practice something of the prophecy of Isaiah whose fulfillment humanity has long been waiting for. Let us say “Enough!” to the tragic race toward arms. Say it with all your might, you young people, because it is above all your destiny that is at stake. Let us devote the unlimited resources committed to weapons to the goals that we now realize are most necessary and urgent: health, hygiene, food, the fight against poverty, stewardship of creation. Let us leave to the next generation a world poorer in goods and money, if need be, but richer in its humanity.

***

The word of God tells us the first thing we should do at times like these is to cry out to God. He himself is the one who puts on people’s lips the words to cry out to him, at times harsh words of lament and almost of accusation: “Awake! Why do you sleep, O Lord? / Rise up! Do not reject us forever! . . . Rise up, help us! / Redeem us in your mercy” (Ps 44, 24, 27). “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?” (Mk 4:38).

Does God perhaps like to be petitioned so that he can grant his benefits? Can our prayer perhaps make God change his plans? No, but there are things that God has decided to grant us as the fruit both of his grace and of our prayer, almost as though sharing with his creatures the credit for the benefit received.[6] God is the one who prompts us to do it: “Seek and you will find,” Jesus said; “knock and the door will be opened to you” (Mt 7:7).

When the Israelites were bitten by poisonous serpents in the desert, God commanded Moses to lift up a serpent of bronze on a pole, and whoever looked at it would not die. Jesus appropriated this symbol to himself when he told Nicodemus, “Just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life” (Jn 3:14-15). We too at this moment have been bitten by an invisible, poisonous “serpent.” Let us gaze upon the one who was “lifted up” for us on the cross. Let us adore him on behalf of ourselves and of the whole human race. The one who looks on him with faith does not die. And if that person dies, it will be to enter eternal life.

"After three days I will rise", Jesus had foretold (cf. Mt Mt 27:63). We too, after these days that we hope will be short, shall rise and come out of the tombs of our homes. Not however to return to the former life like Lazarus, but to a new life, like Jesus. A more fraternal, more human, more Christian life!

______________________________

Translated from Italian by Marsha Daigle-Williamson, Ph.D.

[1] Moralia in Job, XX, 1.

[2] John Paul II, Salvifici doloris [On the Meaning of Human Suffering], n. 23.

[3] https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/coronavirus-a-spiritual-message-from-brooklyn (Yaakov Yitzhak Biderman).

[4] See St. Augustine, Enchiridion 11, 3; PL 40, 236.

[5] Giovanni Pascoli, “I due fanciulli” [“The Two Children”].

[6] See St. Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologicae, II-IIae, q. 83, a. 2.

Topics

POPE FRANCIS

CORONAVIRUS

HOLY WEEK

LENT

LITURGY

10th April 2020, 19:03