Finding my religion...

Well, its Friday again. This means that I was up way past my bedtime last night working on my church's bulletin. Yes, that's right...I am that person.

When Joe and I met almost six years ago, I was that happy ignorant atheist who hadn't been to church, other than occassionally with a friend or my mom, in more than 20 years. Yikes.

When I first walked in Joe's house (the house we still live in (he's been here his whole life)), I was overwhelmed to say the least. The living room walls were covered in family pictures and religious paraphernalia. This was quite a shock to my atheist system. I knew that Joe was a good Catholic boy when we first were introduced...but I wasn't expecting that. I got used to it fairly quickly. Heck, I must have...I moved in 2 months after knowing him.

Just 19 days after meeting him in person he got me into church. Our Lady of the Angels Cathedral in Los Angeles for midnight mass on Christmas. It was the first Christmas after the Cathedral opened. It was also my 30th birthday.

For weeks/months after that I would watch him get up and go to church on Sunday mornings...while I usually slept in. Then something strange happened. I got curious (okay, my sister-in-law Anita constantly calls me Curious George), so maybe I can get away with saying I was curious about what it was that made Joe come home so peaceful on Sundays.

So, one Sunday I got up and went with him. It wasn't quite as tedious as I had remembered. The whole sit/stand/kneel thing that is. This continued for a few months. At this point I noticed an announcement in the bulletin about RCIA. For those non-Catholics out there...it stands for the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults. It's for people switching to the Catholic faith or like me just coming back to it. We started to go to the meetings. The couple that runs it were great and terribly understanding.

The process lasts two years (only one if you have already had your First Communion and just need to be Confirmed). After the first year I wasn't sure if I wanted to continue. Then came Lent. I was very big into knowing all of the aspects of the Holy days and events of the Church. So, we went to them all. Including Holy Thursday. That is the Thursday before Easter. At my church after the Holy Thursday mass the Hosts are carried in a solemn procession from the church into the hall where they are left overnight with people staying up all night praying. We didn't stay up all night, but we did follow the procession. Joe and I were standing there holding hands and suddenly I realized that I was crying. Tears just streaming down my cheeks. Somehow I had found my faith. It all just clicked for me. That was when I knew I wanted to be Confirmed.

The classes were just on Monday nights for the 1st year. The second year we had an assigned Mass schedule. We would go to Mass thru the readings, then we would get dismissed and go to a class talking about what we had just heard. It was during that second year that I was asked to join the Handbell Choir. I also became the Webmaster to the church website. I know! It was getting crazy.

2005 was my Uber Catholic year. I gave my first confession (now referred to as reconciliation), had my First Communion, got Confirmed, and got married in the Catholic Church.

In 2006 they asked me to be the Bulletin Editor. Apparently they thought it would be good for me since I was already the Webmaster. Maybe it is good...but I still stay up way too late on Thursdays making the thing.

Post Festival Let Down...

Okay, so the festival has come and gone. It wouldn't be so bad except that I go to the festival for two reasons..."I've Got It" and scones. This year the "I've Got It" booth was not there. I was devastated. I realize that sounds a little harsh for just some festival game booth...but it was a game that my whole family enjoyed playing, with the exception of my mother who is just not a player period. I have great memories of my dad sitting there playing with my best friend and I that last year he made it to the festival. It's kind of like bingo...only played with rubber balls thrown in a bin instead of numbers called. It's such a good game that my church tried to get it last year because I had taken people to play it at my mom's church. What is really disappointing is that my church will probably get it this year...but we won't be here.


However, I did really enjoy watching my neice Aimee play the dime toss. She really wanted this cactus shot glass. After a couple dollars she won it. She was very excited.


She was also pretty darn excited to go on "The Sizzler". A ride that I refuse to go on after an unfortunate incident when I was a child that involved me, a preist, and vomit. Yes, 25 years later and he still remembers me.

I love the look on her face...

Today I got to do more mundane things. I had The Clock Man out to fix our grandfather clock. It is very bizarre to hear it chime now. It's been broken for 3 years or so.

I also got to fax info to the British Consulate...hey, that's not something you get to so everyday. My neice and her husband should really be set to leave on Sunday for their year long adventure in London.

We are also getting ready to have the yucky ceiling/floor in our den/back room removed. We have to empty out the areas involved which means we are shifting things from one room to another a lot. I started today with all of my craft stuff. It amazes me how much crafting crap I have accumulated. I don't know when I could possibly finish all of the projects that I have already started or have to start. I have beading/jewelry, cross-stitching, crochet, knitting, latch hook rugs, mosaics, sewing, and of course I can't forget stamping/embossing/cardmaking. Crikey.

Okay, one more picture to share. We drove thru the Jack-in-the-Box drive thru the other morning and this guy was in front of us. Amazingly he made it thru...but if he had been any further to the right and it would have been ugly.

Nothing really to say...why do I have a blog?

Well, I can't really come up with a good answer for that. Maybe I just want to ramble...whether anyone will listen or not. My neice, and she is not the first to, says that I have a story for every occassion. Maybe I will relay them here. Who knows.

I can tell you this...today I am going to my mom's church's festival. We went last night and found that they didn't have my favorite game this year. So, I had to settle for the dime toss...which is why I have three cactus shot glasses sitting on my dining room table. And then we played a little Bingo. We did not win. Which is why there are only three cactus shot glasses on my dining room table instead of them and a giant wad o' cash...okay, so the highest pot last night only got up to $32 so it wouldn't have been a giant wad anyway. Today is the last day of the festival. We (my wonderfull hubby & I) are going to go with my brother and his family and my mother.

This week I get to have a clock repairman out to see if he can get our grandfather clock running again. Hopefully he can...I don't want to have him take it into the shop where the price goes up to at least $500. Yikes!

Our neice and her husband were supposed to move out tomorrow...been living with us for the summer...but plans changed and now they aren't moving until next Sunday. I'm proud of her and a little jealous. They are moving to England for a year while she gets a degree in International law.

Okay, I have to get in the shower now. Then off to the festival.