Friday Link Fest Because...

1. Why do I do a link up on Friday when I have my own link up on Thursdays?  

Because This Ain't the Lyceum! cracks me up with her earnest telling of what she's doing and why.

2.  I know, it's Friday but....

If you didn't make it to Catholicmom.com yesterday, here's the link to Small Success Thursday!

3.  Today, I have a piece over at Aleteia!  It's on teaching forgiveness and my own two cents.  

Here's the picture of the actual Forgiveness Jar.

4.  How's the Book coming?  Slow.   Last week I was sick, I'm trying to get back into the swing of writing, but somehow, life keeps taking up more and more time.   This week, I'm taking on Saint Teresa of Avila.   I figure, I should share some sites I've found that are gems.  This week's favorite is:

Order of the Carmelites.

What I keep understanding as I pursue this project, is I am in the kiddie pool of understanding, they swim in the ocean. 

5.  What are you reading?   I just got it, so I just started, but Elizabeth Scalia has a new book!

Thus far, I'm really enjoying it.  I hope to review it next Friday...as part of keeping my brain from spinning toward its natural state of atrophy.   

6.  What else are you doing?  In two weeks, we have a blockbuster weekend with Prom, Girls on the Run 5K and the Gaithersburg Book Festival!  The past two years, I've gone.  This year I'm helping with a booth.  I hope next year...to present!   

7.  I am a geeky woman.  I saw Captain America's Civil War.  I enjoyed all of it the same way Stephen Greydamus does, like a pizza that tasted great going down, but I probably shouldn't have eaten so willingly.  

After every movie, my husband and I do a wrap up, sort of like a post game review.   What got me was, the writers chickened out.  In the comic Civil War, the fight between Captain and Ironman has high stakes and high consequences.  If the movie had been willing to allow those sort of consequences to happen to both sides, it would have made the pain between them that much more than a mere stake out of my side, your side.  Superhero movies do have to rely on action and pop, so philosophical musings about the consequences of decisions, of releasing/holding onto power have to be done on the fly.   As Falcon says, "most fights don't involve that much talking."  However, I think the intimacy of the fight fell a little flat because there wasn't as much talking as one would want, to bring the audience into the Civil war with genuine torn loyalties.    

The poster promises something I don't feel the movie quite delivers, the pain and break isn't as decisive or hard as it should be.   It's more of a friendship sprain than a heart breaker. That being said, it was a fun popcorn date. 

Talking it over with my husband, we have allowed as young as John to go see it, but I wouldn't let anyone younger.  

See you Sunday.  Now I have to go get some writing done. :)

Seven Quick Takes or Will She EVER blog again?

(Actually, it's now hosted at This Ain't the Lyceum, and it's very funny). 

Is it cheating to be part of a link up when you're linking to another link up? I hope not.

1.) I am sorry.  This past week, I've written loads but posted nothing.  It's been a busy week.  I have three pieces at three separate places for you that ran in the past seven days.  However, this past week we've been busy celebrating my daughter's birthday, returning to school, running all the errands that should have been done last week but didn't get done, and trying to book a flight for one daughter to go visit a college, and for another to return home from school.   Like I said, it's been...busy.

2)Add to that, a ten year old working on a talent show with her two friends and thus four days out of seven rehearsing and a seven year old potty training and it's amazing to me if I get time to brush my teeth.

So I apologize for being negligent of my blog.   It will happen again.

Here are the three pieces.

3) First, Helen Avare of Women Speak for Themselves ran a piece created from a discussion we had over emails.   Special thanks to Kat, the editor for putting it together.  WSFT is a group of women from across the country speaking out against the current mantra that birth control medication is a must, and to think otherwise is to be anti-woman.   They're supporters of the Little Sisters of the Poor in their fight against the HSS Mandate. I am a member of WSFT, and attended a workshop held by them this past February.  I was constantly impressed with the joyful brilliant strong women I met there.

4) Second, I skipped linking on Thursday because the laundry threatened to take over the house.   It's now in fourteen tamed baskets so, if you'd like to join in and count your blessings from the past week, here's Small Success Thursday at Catholicmom.com.  I would really love to get the number of participants in listing success up to 100, because I know there are 100 people who read this blog (based on the counter and the followers), and I know, each of you have small successes which you aren't remembering from the past week.   Leave them in the com box, or if you have a blog, no matter how dusty, post them there and link up.   The goal of blogging is community, communication, and for me, connection.   So please, consider being a part of this weekly event.

5) Last, but not least, Aleteia has been gracious enough to host me in cyberspace yet again this week.   I'm working on another piece for them and hoping to keep my writing goal of getting a piece a week placed somewhere. Today's work is called The Point of Fasting Even When It's Not Lent.

On other notes...in case you wonder...well what's keeping you so busy?

6) Writing wise, in addition to articles, I'm working on a book, on the Doctors of the Church.  It's a load of research and takes a lot of time to write.  Say some prayers. I could use them. A publishing company expressed interest. I'm still putting together the packet for submission.

7) Also, I applied for the Catholic Relief Services Egan Journalism Fellowship for 2016.  I've linked to it so those interested in applying can do so.  The deadline is April 22 so get to work!   Why did I do this application?  Because the question that has been forming in my brain ever since Paul potty trained and I began to really think about having all my children in school, is now what?   Journalism may be part of the answer to Now What?  

Have a great weekend, and I'll try to be funny on Sunday for you.