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Helping Veterans

The Dept. of Veterans Administration just accredited me as an attorney eligible to represent vets before the VA to prosecute medical claims and pursue other  benefits to which vets are entitled but often don't get.

Old versus New Testament--THE SABBATH

After attending Mass this past Easter Sunday, I was reading the church newsletter (a Loma Linda Catholic Church) and came across this statement. The author was responding to a question as to why the Sabbath (Saturday by definition) is actually on Sunday for Christians. The author, an CSsR (I really don't know what that designation is, I use it because he used it beside his name), responded that the Old Testament stricture to observe the Sabbath was binding on only on Jews, along with the other parts of the Old Testament.  Huh?

What about  the Ten Commandments, Mr. CSsR? Are they binding only Jews?  Christians profess them. Matthews' Jesus in particular insists that the laws of the Old Testament must be obeyed; indeed; not just, to paraphrase, don't hurt your neighbor, do not even get angry at your neighbor!  It was St. Paul who upended the teachings of Matthew and proclaimed in his letters to his various church communities that  belief  in the resurrection was enough for salvation and that one did not have to obey the laws given in the Old Testament. Thus, St. Paul let aspiring Christians off the hook by saying that one did not have to get circumcised to become a Christian. Those were all  mere ipsi dixits. As the Gospels make clear, Jesus' own teachings are quite to the contrary.  Jesus himself observed the Sabbath and was circumcised according the the Jewish law on the 8th day after his birth..

It is fine to proclaim that Christians will worship on Sunday. But don't pretend to base it on biblical teachings.

http://youtu.be/9IaYJj4fkbk Me on a snowshoe done in February 2011.

Snow Climb of Mt. Baldy (10,064') Bowl Last Sunday

Here are some shots of my climb, with 3 others of the Baldy Bowl in southern California. We began our climb at 5:15 a.m. and arrived at the summit at 9:55 a.m. after having made a stop at the Ski Hut for about half an hour.  What took us 3 hours to ascend, took us 23 minutes going down b/c we glissaded the descent.

Canyoneering Saturday

My son Daniel and I plan to do Bailey Canyon above Sierra Madre, CA on Saturday.  Here are some pics of my last canyoneer of Bailey.

Skiing at Mammoth, CA this past weekend March 25-27, 2011

Scene from our condo window Sat. morning 3.26.11

Me and my daughter Alicia

View from our condo window Sat. morning 3.26.11

Snowshoe Scenery Near Wrightwood

My son and I went on a snowshoe outing about a month ago.  This was the scenery we encountered.

A Musical Note

Who did the better version of "Bring it on Home to Me" --Sam Cooke or Eric Burdon & the Animals?

I also recommend David Lang's composition "The Little Matchstick Girl Passion" based on the sad Hans Christian Anderson story "The Little Matchstick Girl" and modeled on the format of JS Bach's "St. Matthews Passion."

A Musical Note

I never tire of Aleghiri's "Miserere Mei Deus."  Those high notes put me in mind of the teenage gal in the 1950's group, The Skyliners, and those soaring notes she hits at the end of  "Since I Don't Have You."  Great stuff, both compositions.

Tea Party and Debt Ceiling

So will the Tea Party-backed new Congressman toe the party line and take a serious shot at defeating  raising of the country's debt ceiling in a few weeks when the ceiling is approached?

Alma Maters

Save Little Used English Words

  Check out this website if you're interested in preserving obscure or little used words of the English language.
http://www.savethewords.org

Mountain High, Wrightwood, CA

My achilles tendon injury is in the final healing stage. My hope is to be back skiing at Mammoth by late Feb. or early March.

Tea Party 2011

The newly elected Congressional representatives beholden to the Tea Party will either change Washington or Washington will change them.  My bet is on the latter scenario.  Those grass-roots activists are going to be mighty disappointed.  Around April, there will be a vote on raising the debt ceiling.  Per Tea Party principles, the vote should be no.  However, the consequences would be devastating to national interests.

Like Ants Crawling Up A Wall

Point Dume, Malibu, California

Top-Roping at Pt. Dume, CA overlooking the ocean.  It's a drop-dead gorgeous spot.  To the right of the view you see is a wall that faces the water.

Rose Bowl Parade.  Living just a few miles from the parade route, we usually go to the end of the route around 9 a..m. and watch the whole thing.  There is always plenty of room to get a spot on the street right up close to the floats.  Beats trying to get a space towards the start where people either have to buy expensive tickets to sit on hard stadium seats or stake out a spot overnight on the sidewalk.

Achieving New Lows in TV

My hope for mankind took a big hit when I recently stumbled onto a "reality" show called "Jersey Shore."  This show aims for a level well below moronic.  I marvel that the show can have enough of a viewership to sustain it, but this is apparently the case. At least shows on serial killers have a point.