Here is the latest innovation in prayer: a digital rosary. Press the button and hear a woman's voice recite "Ave Maria" and "The Lord's Prayer," in Italian. (It probably will be produced in English eventually.)
Somehow I think this defeats the purpose of seeking God through meditative prayer. But if you think this is something you want to get your loved ones for Christmas, it sells for a mere 29.99 Lira (not sure what that equals in U.S. dollars). Check it out at www.prexcompany.com (the site is all in Italian, however.)
I'm hoping to run the Associated Press article on the religion pages this week.
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As expected, I have gotten a few complaints about my story on Hillary Clinton's faith. One interesting caller and writer is Robert Morrow of Austin, Texas, who has compiled thousands of quotes and anecdotes about the Clintons over the years, has collected a Clinton library of 205 books, and describes himself as a Clinton expert and anti-Hillary activist. If Mr. Morrow is accurate, Mrs. Clinton has used some of the most vulgar words in the English language, with alarming regularity, in barking orders to and criticizing the secret service agents and other people who work for her. I don't know if it's accurate but I would never post some of those purported quotes on this blog, they are so foul. Let's hope that if it was true, Hillary has cleaned up her act. If not, somebody needs to wash her mouth out with soap.
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The day I left for San Antonio, I got a few unpleasant phone calls.
First, my best friend from high school and my college years, Peter, was hospitalized and scheduled for quadruple bypass heart surgery the next morning.
Next, my youngest daughter was stopped at a traffic light and someone plowed into her vehicle from behind, going an estimated 45 mph.
Not good news, and both calls caused me a great deal of stress. So what do you do at times like that, when you're a thousand miles away from where you want or need to be?
All I could do was pray. And make a few phone calls.
Well, Peter sailed through the six-hour surgery quite well. And my daughter, Cara, is fine, just a little sore. The Jeep was totaled, however. We are now dealing with the other driver's insurance company. It's a shame because we are not going to get enough money to replace the Jeep, which was a very handy vehicle especially when we needed to haul large items around town, which we often did... banquet tables, chairs, a big-screen tv, etc.
But then again, Cara was not hurt seriously and that was the main thing. Finding a decent car for the insurance settlement for the Jeep will be a challenge, but it's part of "the vicissitudes of life," as my father used to say.
If you know of anyone with a Honda civic for sale, cheap, let me know. That's what we're going to be shopping for, for Cara to drive.
Toledo, Ohio
Oct. 8, 2007