Why we don't do weddings during Lent

Following her wedding, an old-fashioned girl crawled into bed for the first time beside her new husband. She snuggled up to him and was surprised at his lack of response. In fact, he rolled over and began to fall asleep.

"So why aren't we going to make love on our wedding night", she asked finally.

"Because it's Lent" came the reply.

"That's nonsense!" she exclaimed. "I've never heard anything more ridiculous in my life. It's been lent to whom and for how long?"

A Lenten Exercise for Progressive Clergy

Sushipizza!

A little something from Andrew Brown's blog which will warm the heart of your Norwegian-speaking Italian/Japanese girlfriend and make up for the fact that you forgot Valentine's Day.

Multiculturalism made an appearance on the menu in this morning's Thought for the Day on Radio Scotland - querying the need for every linguistic and religious grouping ultimately to form its own nation (thinking of Kosovo). Diversity in the Church - or the lack of it - a perennial issue on most church blogs these days (think splintering churches in Western Canada).

I'm hoping, however, that there are happier alternatives to cultural and ecclesiastical homogeneity than Sushipizza!

see also: Jellied Salads

This article from this morning's Telegraph touched all my Victor Meldrew buttons. We are turning into very silly people!

....the general rise in our prosperity has led to a corresponding decline in common sense. We have become over-responsive to outside threats, more paranoid about the way our inventions are killing us, and we are eager to buy safety for our children and ourselves at any cost.

The United Steelworkers of Montreal deserve some international exposure. So, um, we'll start with the south of Scotland. Everyone from Hawick to Bonnyrigg - listen up! They've got a couple of disks out and a few of their songs can be heard in the traditional manner but, to my knowledge, this is their first posh video. Enjoy!

If you're going to jump a fence in order to chase rabbits in the field next door you'd better make sure you can clear it.

Good advice for Labrador Retrievers. Good advice all 'round, in fact.

Clio didn't manage the jump without catching the wire - poor wee dog is now at the Vet's getting her wounds tidied up. It's not very pretty.

Update:

Got a call from the vet saying that Clio was proving a terrible patient, flopping around after waking up from the anesthetic rather than merely sleeping it off and could I please come and pick her up since she'd probably sleep better at the Rectory. Well - she hasn't and has been staggering around walking into walls. A bit better as of late with the odd whimper. Tomorrow the stitches will no doubt start to itch and I'll have to put one of those cone things around her neck. The other dogs will laugh at her.

Bread for the eater and seed for the sower.....

Having heard a tale of woe for decades about the state of farming in Canada (and by extension, the rest of North America) it's good to hear that the farmers are happy.

Good on them. They deserve it.