Musical Math?

Here is a database of math and science songs. It never occurred to me that there could be enough songs about math and science to justify the creation of a database, but I guess I was wrong.

Bishop Olmstead and NFP

This article stating that Bishop Omstead of Phoenix is going to start to require all engaged couples to complete a full NFP course before marriage seems to be the topic of the day on several blogs I read, so I'll join the crowd and give my opinion here.

First of all, you deserve to know my beliefs about birth control. Basically, I accept the Church's teaching--IOW I choose to obey it, but I don't intellectually agree with it. The idea of someone using a condom just doesn't bring out the moral revulsion that say adultery or theft or pornography or gossip does. However, I am Catholic. I believe in the authority of the Church, and believe that if I reject that authority in one area, I'm not able to trust it in any area.

One thing I've found interesting reading about this on blogs is that people on both ends of the spectrum have complaints. The complaints from the left are the usual "keep out of our bedroom" type, along with "what's the difference between NFP and artificial birth control if you are using them to avoid conception?" Those on the right state that while NFP is allowed in grave circumstances, using it to avoid conception is not supposed to be the norm and believe that making all engaged couples learn it indicates that it is supposed to be the way married life is to be lived, rather than being intimate without regard to your current fertility status.

I think it is obvious that the Church in the US today is doing a terrible job teaching about sexuality and marriage. People are not only rejecting the teachings they know about, they are ignorant of many of the teachings that exist. I know I was well-aware that the Church forbade artificial birth control, but until I got on the internet I had no clue that the Church's teachings on sexual expression and procreation went further than that (except that I knew abortion was wrong). I know that the endorsement of NFP we got from the couple who prepared us for marriage was lukewarm--and they had five kids including one late-life blessing. I know that my thought at the time was that if those (including the priest who married us) whose job it was to push NFP weren't trying any harder, why should we buy it? I think that Bishop Olmstead is at least trying to teach the Catholic view of marriage, and by requiring NFP classes, is giving couples the skills they need to at least move in the right direction. Further, by requiring that people take an NFP class, he is saying that learning about the Catholic (as opposed to secular) view of marriage is important, and that HE actually believes what the Church teaches.

More Katrina

My daughter and a friend are working on a project for the school social studies fair. Their title is "What Damage Did Hurricane Katrina Do?". They have to do a report, a model and a backboard. Today we took my digital camera out to Lakeview, the part of New Orleans that was flooded by the break in the 17th Street Canal levee. Lakeview is a middle to upper class area and it is right across the infamous 17th Street Canal from Jefferson Parish, which is where I live. Life in Jefferson Parish is becoming more normal every day. FEMA trailers are popping up everywhere, but you also hear daily stories of people moving back into their houses. In Jefferson Parish it is easy to think the recovery should be done soon. Lakeview brings up back to reality. Most homes in Jefferson Parish that flooded were flooded with rainwater that was not pumped out quickly enough. They got several inches to a couple of feet of water. Lakeview homes had six to ten feet of water in them. I believe the power grid has been turned back on, but an electrical inspection is necessary before power can be restored to individual homes--and that is going very slowly. We saw a few FEMA trailers, but not many. Most houses appear to have been gutted--the contents, sheetrock and flooring had been removed--but some looked untouched. The girls took the pictures I have posted below.

Medical Research

Most of us have a medical condition (or two or more) that we are trying to learn more about, either because we suffer from it or because someone in our family does. There is a lot of medical information available on the internet, but separating the wheat from the chaff can be a big job. http://www.llrx.com/features/medical2005.htm is an excellent article about doing medical research on the internet and I'd advise bookmarking it.