Make a Joyful Noise

In the midst of our Advent waiting is Guadete Sunday.  Gaudete is Latin for REJOICE.  So, on this day, we ought to rejoice.  Scriptural tradition tells us that this is the day the Wise Men set out to seek the newborn king.  Liturgical tradition suspended all fasting on this day during Advent, so it was one of rejoicing for other reasons too.

O Wisdom of our God Most High, guiding creation with power and love: come to teach us the path of knowledge!

Advent--looking for a King

Advent’s intention is to awaken the most profound and basic emotional memory within us, namely, the memory of the God who became a child. This is a healing memory; it brings hope.

— Pope Benedict XVI

Remembering Joey

Our beloved kitten Joey died last night.  He was a furry ball of mischief, and we all loved him. 

What's going on here

Anna is finishing up her last show, where's she's been a PAID backstage hand.  She will likely work on another which opens Thanksgiving week.  She has also been busy with school and some house-sitting.

Gabriel (who we don't here from too much) just had an interview in NYC for a summer internship, which he got.  So, he will be headed to NYC for the summer of 2018 to work for the Two Sigma New York branch.  Hopefully, no mosquito born diseases there...

Marian finished a show (for which she was Assistant Stage Manager) and is now in another non-musical show in which she sings (for comedic effect at that!)  She is also desperately trying to binge watch some shows before they get cut from Netflix.  (Ah the worrisome cares of youth.)

Bogdan is still loving work and also is involved in teaching an after-school club (middle school) about drones.  He will attempt to build a drone with this club over the school year. 

I am busy with costumes for 2 shows right now, then the BIG show (The Music Man) begins in December, with most of the December break dedicated to sewing.  I am also organizing a Diocesan wide Women's Convention for which I've been emailing, meeting, signing contracts, and generally always thinking of one more thing to do.

What happens in Vegas, should not stay in Vegas

This was sent to me by a friend, it was printed in her church bulletin, by the youth director, and worth sharing

 - What happens in Vegas, is men and women who shielded their wives, husbands, girlfriends, boyfriends, and strangers from bullets that were raining down.
- What happens in Vegas, is strangers that were pulling others to safety and loading the injured into any cars they could during the attack to help save lives.
- What happens in Vegas, is drivers for Uber and Lyft going in to the chaos to get people out.
- What happens in Vegas, is nurses, doctors, police, all first responders showing up in big ways to prevent any more harm from happening and aiding the wounded the best they could.
- What happens in Vegas, is people lining up at 1:00-2:00 AM at blood banks before they opened to donate blood.
- What happens in Vegas, is blood banks being fully booked for the next two weeks.
- What happens in Vegas, is people buying all sorts of food and drinks to pass out to people donating blood.
- What happens in Vegas, is people buying donuts and coffee for police officers who were up all night serving this city.
- What happens in Vegas, is counseling being offered for free for any persons affected.
- What happens in Vegas, is individuals, businesses and corporations donating millions of dollars to help the families of all those affected.
- What happens in Vegas, is free flights for the families of those killed.
- What happens in Vegas, is hotels offering free rooms to those displaced by this tragedy.
- What happens in Vegas, is countless prayer services already held and more in the days and weeks to come.
- What happens in Vegas, is people are already talking today about what they are going to do to help TOMORROW.
- What happens in Vegas, is showing what a community of BELIEVERS we are!
We are #battleborn and ready for battle - the battles of this world and the spiritual flight.
Never have we been more proud of our big city that is just a small town. We are the city of lights that shines in the darkness. Christ’s grace, love and mercy can reach any person, even the most far gone. God sure hasn’t forgot about Vegas. This “city of sin” is your city. Our wounded are your wounded. This can happen anywhere. Yet, the God’s light in the people in our city has defeated the evil. Good always wins. Good always outshines the dark. Always.

So much going on

September was a blur...

Gabriel was very sick and is much better now.  Most likely he had (or still has?) Dengue fever.  But, he is 100% better now.  Many thanks for all the prayers.

All the kids are in school and in fact Marian is already on her Fall break!  Gabriel has his next week and Anna the week after.

Anna now is the proud owner of her own car (used).  It's not the best car, not winning any land speed awards, but it's hers and she's happy.  She continues to work at a local semi-professional theatre in Knoxville and getting paid for doing backstage work.  It's a good job for her and she is saving money now for a deposit for her own apartment.  She hopes to get that by May of next year.

Marian is busy in 2 productions, she is in Tech week this week for a play she is assistant stage manager for and then in November she is in a play, not a musical, but somehow she has a singing role in it. :)  And she is already working on and preparing for the Bijou awards, she will compete in both acting and singing competitions this year.

Bogdan will head to Nevada (the atomic test site area) for work in October, testing the software and hardware of most recent projects.

Cool nights and hot days around here, with changing fall leaves, beautiful all around.

Stellar Week

This week was like no other and we are all stunned, amazed, and exhausted by its events.  First was the Total Solar Eclipse and next was Hamilton.  You'd have to be living under a rock if you don't know about both of these.

Of course, first was the Total Solar Eclipse, for which we were in the path of totality.  It was a beautiful day, literally not a cloud in the sky.  We were in Harriman at Roane State Community College, and there was plenty of parking, nice grassy areas, eclipse lectures, free viewing glasses, lots of people, and lots of fun.  We all counted down to totality and sat in awe as we saw the eclipse.  Bogdan was conducting radio astronomy experiments during it and we stayed until his equipment was finished.  Not too much traffic going home.  Bogdan already has plans for 2024 when it will cross the US the opposite diagonal, from Texas to Maine.

We had a day of rest before we headed to Chicago to see Hamilton (the musical).  It was amazing.  I loved the music, the acting, the lighting, the costumes, the choreography, the ensemble, the lead actors, just everything.  We were given the tickets by a good friend (thank you Michele) and we so loved it.  Especially stellar performances by the actress who played Angelica and the actor who played King George.  Just amazing, a once in a lifetime experience.