To tell or not to tell?

Blogging about personal things or one’s health is always a tricky one. I know some clergy just don’t do it.  Never a peep.  Although sometimes they use their cat as a substitute. Others do it a lot and that comes in for some criticism. It is a dilemma, right enough.

In the past I have blogged probably more than I should.  Occasionally it has brought about interesting discussions and I was glad I did it. But that is not always the case.

The thing is, there is so much mileage in this latest medical adventure of mine. The jokes are just bubbling away during visits and phone calls and I’d love to share them with you. But that good taste gene is just pulling me back whispering in my ear, “Don’t do it Ruth. Step away from the lurid stories.  You are a priest and must maintain the aura of …. ” (fill inthe gap yourself.)

So let us just say that I have had a wee stay in hospital which involved an operation under general anaesthetic. It was quite nippy after. All has gone well and now I must desist from lifting, driving, bending or hoovering for 8 weeks.  My attention span is that of a gnat.  So far my days have passed in reading, sleeping, reading, sleeping, sleeping, a little TV and then more sleeping. Visitors have been much welcome and very entertaining so far.

And I have promised not to sit at the computer all day long. So a little update in the mornings which I fear will all be much of a muchness is all that I shall do. Well I’m saying that now…

Quote of the day

Blogging is the first draft of history.

Nobel Prize committee, explaining why blogs are now eligible in the writing and newspaper categories.

Blogging hiccup

Well, it has been a busy old week and you may have noticed the lack of blogging. Lady Day came and went with not a mention or gorgeous pic. The visit to my new dentist – Pedro, yes Pedro… sigh… came and went with nary a mention. The film group watched The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas and cried but not a peep from me. I missed four birthdays – sorry. I joined Slimming World on Monday and haven’t even opened the books yet to find out what I’m meant to be eating – or not. And we had a full church for John Jeffrey’s Memorial service which was incredible. I gathered info from all the Portie churches to do our Holy Week and Easter leaflet with much prompting. Oh, and I did the magazine all by myself but promise to hand over to the new mag group next time. Nearly forgot – also supported Son #1 with his last essay on rewriting Greek tragedy plays, I think. In amongst it all, of course, there was a little Holy Week planning – but more to come.

So there you have my week. And today is my day off and I woke at the crack of dawn. I promise to clean my desk, file a pile, take Son #1 to Costco, and finish my book.

Take up your cross

Blogs are often used to criticise. (And there are certain theatre companies who should take heed of that fact in light of a certain Provost’s blog.) The whole world is a critic now and if, like me, you check Google for reviews of goods to purchase or places to go then a lot of companies should take heed.

However, today is a day for praising not criticising.  In my planning-for-Holy-Week frenzy this week I thought it would be good to get hold of some little wooden crosses to give out to the children at our Stations of the Cross event on Good Friday morning. I have a great source for the most beautiful holding crosses but as I have heard that some of the mums are bringing all and sundry I knew that was going to be too expensive. All I wanted were some plain little wooden crosses. I googled. And I found this. I got 60 crosses within two days delivered to my door and they are perfect. And you get an invoice too so you can see before you buy. I got the unfinished ones because they were cheaper for that volume and might have to do some sanding before little hands get hold of them, but you can get finished ones for a little more. Great service and I shall be back.

Oh, and you get other shapes too – doves, fishes, stars etc.

Blogging and looming Lent

It is that time of year again when the number of blog entries declines in tandem with the increase of Lent preparation.

And just to add to the heady mix of ashes and liturgies and groups and quiet days there are a pile of people needing visiting all of a sudden. So if you see a mad looking woman with purple hair and a little black box dashing by, give her a hug would you?

Need help reading Blogs?

One of the most heard comments I hear is “I’d like to, but I don’t have time to read all these Blogs”.  And of course if you were typing in each Blog URL then indeed it would take up most of your morning, even if you had them saved as your Favourites.

So think of this as a public information notice.  You can use FeedDemon to help you. It only takes a few minutes to set up and put your favourite Blogs or websites in to its search engine. (You can only use websites that have RSS somewhere on the page.) Then in the morning you just click on FeedDemon and all the updates will appear.No more searching through them all – they will be brought to you. Easy!

PS This is the Dummies guide so please forgive the non-technical language (which I don’t know anyway!)

Love Blooms Bright

The Piskie Advent blog starts again soon. Check it out daily for inspiration and prayer.

Blogging update

You might think I’ve only been blogging since July 2007. Not true. I’ve actually been blogging for much longer but I used to be with another Blog hosting company who got me so riled with spam that I left. However it still exists out there in the ether so this afternoon I spent a few hours, while listening to the Archers Omnibus, cutting and pasting some entries into this one. So now if you check out Jan – July 2007 you might find some stuff you’ve not read yet.

It was weird going back through it all. Like reading old diaries. Did I really say that?  I haven’t brought it all over – some was just out of date and nonsense. Some links may not work and I haven’t figured out how to bring comments and pics without a considerable amount of time and effort.

One thing that was interesting was the story of Cataract No 1’s removal. As No 2 is about to be removed on 8 October it was good to remind myself of the healing process and what I shall be able to do.

Also found the agonies that were Primates Communiques, Dar es Salaam, the Gene Robinson scandal and other such stuff. How quickly we forget.

Blog nasties

I have taken the decision to delete the discussion on the new Administrator at Walsingham. I should have learned. This happened the last time I posted something on Walsingham. I shall not do so again.

Another Piskie Blog

Fr John Penman at Christ Church, Falkirk has been blogging in secret for a wee while now by the looks of it. You can check him out here.