Monday already???

Yes, another Monday has rolled around and is almost kaput! Time has been moving so fast these last couple of months. I can't believe my last blogs were in June from Chicago...seems like just a few weeks ago.

So to catch you up on things since June...

Baseball season has come and gone. White Sox fizzled out in August and let Detroit and Minnesota walk all over them. At least the Cards won the World Series...St Louis is my favorite NL team. They hate the Cubs just as much as I do!

I went back to Chicago at the end of September. Mom and dad went too, as my cousin Craig got married. It was a great wedding and it was nice to see my dad's cousins Jim and Fran, Craig's parents, his sister Lynn and her new husband Brad, and my dad's cousins Sharon and Bobby from Phoenix. Did some more shopping and brought back a carload of goodies.

Oktoberfest went extremely well financially this year. As with all Oktoberfests, we had some bumps, but they smoothed out quickly and we had a splendid day. Remember the date for next year...always the second Saturday in October.

The weather has been extremely wishy-washy this autumn. Today was in the 70's, and they are calling for flurries on Christmas. With the warmer weather I was able to get some much needed yard maintenance done and it does look better. I dug up a corner of the front that was loaded with monkey grass, and split some irises and daffs. Hope they winter over good and pop up brightly in the spring.

Also did some dr visits the end of October and through November and into December. I'm in good health, but not good shape. (Hey, round is a shape! he didn't buy it!) My blood pressure was up a bit, so I have to lower it, exercise more, cut potatoes, white rice, white bread out of my diet, eat smaller portions, lose 1/2 lb a week and keep it off. My blood numbers were all good, so I just have to keep them the same. Went to the eye doctor and my sight was as near 20/20 as can be. He said I may need some really low power reading glasses, like the drugstore .50 or .75 strength. No prescriptions. Went to the dermatologist for some skin tags taken off, and he found a mole that needed to go. He did that this past Friday afternoon. Went fine...but it's in the middle of my back and I can't reach it to change the dressing. So the state employee clinic came in handy today and the rest of the week. I go get the stitches out after Christmas.

I finished the class work finally in my genealogy class on Paleography from BYU. All I need to close it out is to take the final exam. I have to check with Nashville State Comm Coll. to see if they received it yet. The exams have to be taken at a college testing center now. I'll try to take it right after New Years. I still have the research class to finish up with the outlines from the genealogy conference in Chicago in June. It'll be great to get those two classes under my belt!

I went to Salt Lake City Dec 7 - 11 to do research. It's my third trip out there...I seem to hit it every other year. I zeroed in on my English families--Bell, James and Jobson. I also did some checking on my other European clans, with little success. But I found at least a generation or two back on each of the three English families. That puts me right up to the early, early 1700's. Most church records are very sparse before that time frame, so this may be a good delineation mark to say, I'm finished with this direct line. I need to get the data published so it'll be of benefit to others.

Let's see if I can post a few pics from Salt Lake City....




This is the view from the Conference Center after seeing the Mormon Tabernacle Choir perform their weekly radio broadcast on Sunday morning.





Here's a picture of the Choir and stage in the Conference Center. It was magnificent!


After the performance, I went to Mass at the Cathedral of the Madeleine, under the patronage of St. Mary Magdalen. The pics of the inside came out a bit dark, so let's see how it posts here..


And the Stations of the Cross are interesting. Jesus is portrayed as an Indian.


I have a lot more pics. I'll see how I can added them all. Stay tuned!

So, that just about brings us up to date. Almost finished my shopping tonight. Just a few things left to buy. Then I have grocery shopping, as I am having Christmas dinner. I am thinking a ham and Italian sausage, plus veggies and bread and desserts. Gotta get the decorations up, the house cleaned and presents wrapped...thank God for gift bags!!

So I think I'm going to call it a night. I wonder if this blogger has spell check? I think I'm going to need it...my fingers are fatter than the keys and usually hit two at a time! Yep..I see the checkmarkABC....cool!

That's all for now from Germantown Central! Catch you tomorrow!

As in some of the past posts, I will try to include the saints whose feast day is the current day. So today is December 18 and the list includes:

Sts. Augustine Moi, Peter Duong, Peter Truat, and Paul Mi (Vietnamese, catechists, refused to trample a crucifix, martyred by strangling in 1838)
St. Auxentius of Mopsuestia (Cilician [Turkish], emperor's guard, bishop, c. 321)
St. Bodagisil (French, abbot, d. 588)
St. Desideratus of Fontenelle (French, Benedictine monk, c. 700)
St. Flannan of Killaloe (Irish, missionary monk, bishop, prayed the psalter [150 psalms] daily, 7th century)
St. Gatian of Tours (French, bishop, c. 337)
St. Mawnan of Cornwall
St. Moysetes (African, martyred c. 250)
Sts. Quintus, Simplicius, and companions (African, martyred c. 255)
Sts. Rufus and Zosimus (Syrian?, martyred [thrown to wild beasts] in Rome c. 107)
St. Samthann of Clonbroney (Irish, nun, d. 739)
Sts. Theotimus and Basilian (Syrian, early martyrs)
Sts. Victurus, Victor, Victorinus, Adjutor, Quartus, and 30 companions (African, early martyrs)
St. Winebald (English, son of King St. Richard, missionary, Benedictine abbot, d. 761 in Germany).

My Lives of the Saints singles out Gatian of Tours, who was bishop of Tours France in the middle of the third century.

God, You made St Gatian an outstanding exemplar of Divine love and the Faith that conquers the world, and added him to the role of saintly Pastors. Grant by his intercession that we may persevere in Faith and love and become sharers of his glory. Amen.

May God grant you a peaceful and restful night!