Merry Christmas, faithful mu-sings readers! May God bless you with great joy!

(The tree is my dad’s tree. My stepmom likes big ol’ trees!)

What a great show! I am very proud of the Fools – the show was much fun. We had our biggest crowd ever for a show (around 55 or so), and the audience was really into it. It is MUCH fun to perform for an energetic audience.

I had been nervous about this show because I had no idea what to expect (almost like improv!). I did not know if we were going to have 15 people or 40 people (we were scheduled against a home basketball game through a mistake on my part). I was pleased with practices we had been having, but this group of Fools had never performed together before a real audience. They just nailed it. We did about 10 different games, and they all went well. Yes, there were a couple of very brief lulls in the energy, and there were one or two “no, buts” in the show, and I should have called “scene” a little sooner in one or two games, but those are really minor over the course of a whole hour. Every game came off well and each had some really good moments. I will take good games for a whole show over some great games with some bad games anytime. I am just a pleased as can be. I was on cloud nine last night after the show (although I was pretty beat – directing a show and being “up” for two hours is hard for a quiet Maine boy), and I woke up this morning still thinking about the show. It really did exceed my expectations. The kids had great energy, they had good volume (we are not miked for our shows), they had good commitment on stage, and the audience was behind us 100%. Plus, there were former Fools and members from another improv group in the audience, so our Audience Participation Freeze game at the end of the show was really good – there were several times there were only audience members on stage.

What a great great evening. Nice job to the Fools and a big thank you to our audience!

AP – New Baltimore, Ohio – Scientists are puzzled by the strange appearance of a cat growing out of an Ohio man’s beard. “I have been feeling a little sick of late, so I have not shaved for awhile,” Matt R. was quoted as saying. “He’s a friendly fella, so I may have to leave off shaving for a bit.” Both man and cat appear to be doing well.

 The Royal Fools, CVCA’s premier improv group, is proud to announce the opening of the 2006-2007 Fools’ season with a show on Friday, December 15th at 7:00 in the CVCA library. There will be food, fun, and Fools! Come on out and see what improv is about. 

Tuesday, Mer and I were bad people and went out on a school night! Moreover, we pulled one of our colleagues and her husband (Ami and Nate) into our wanton ways. We went out to my favorite Italian restaurant, Ristorante Di Gianni, which is in Kent. The food is good and authentic, the restaurant only holds about 75 people, and it is in a converted house. We had a leisurely supper (over an hour) with much laughing (and eating). We then headed the short distance to the oft-cited Kent Stage to see the band Over the Rhine.

Mer has known about Over the Rhine for over 15 years. Two of the founding members were students of her father when he was teaching at Malone College; he was even invited to their wedding. Mer is a big fan; she is usually slow to make a decision, but when we found out Over the Rhine was playing at the Kent Stage (last week), she let me invite Ami and Nate immediately. We have seen Over the Rhine twice before in Chicago (including Mer being responsible for me and her roommate going to a bar for the first time in our lives to hear them – don’t worry, no alcohol was consumed by us). I have known about Over the Rhine since about 1994 when Mer sent me two CDs. I like the band, but I am really fond of their later stuff (the last five years). The lead singer, Karin Bergquist, has a fantastic voice, but on the early albums she held it back, which I found frustrating. I knew this woman could sing, but she would not let it go. A few albums back, she finally let it go – I do not know the reasons why, but I am most pleased that she did.

Ami was looking forward to the concert as well. She had attended Malone College (and had one class with Mer’s father!), so she knew about Over the Rhine, but had never had a chance to see them. Judging by her and Nate’s responses to the songs and the concert, I’d say it was worth the wait.

The concert was just shy of two hours, including the two encores. The band had four people, and they had keyboards, accordion, guitar, upright and electric bass, and a drum set (the guitar got passed around a lot). They did mostly newer stuff, including several songs from their new release of original Christmas music, Snow Angels, which is excellent. It has a wide variety of songs and song styles. They even did a few songs from a CD they are releasing in 2007. It was a good concert, and shared in fun company – a radical evening for rebels wildly out on a school night who got to bed AFTER 11:00.

Side note – I am listening to Folkalley.com as I write this, and Over the Rhine just came on with “Firefly.” Neat-o.

From the MRI report:
“Cerebellum, brainstem, and sella turcica are all unremarkable.”

Shesh. Even the medical establishment is insulting me!

The older I get as a Christian (and in general, I guess I get older), the more I become convinced that we have to base beliefs on the Bible and not on cultural tradition. I am aware that culture informs the reading of the Bible, but at least you have a text to start with. Too often, I think Christians can take cultural things as Biblical, and we need to be more careful to make sure we at least have some Biblical text as a starting point. To show what I mean, see how you do on this quiz about the Christmas story; what is Biblical and what is tradition? Answers based on Matthew and Luke are at the end. And, yes, some are VERY picky. My quiz, my rules.

Christmas Quiz

True or False

1.____ There are no records of Joseph speaking in the
Christmas story.

2.____ The wise men were kings from the orient.

3.____ The little drummer boy came to the manger after the
other shepherds.

4.____ The star appeared above the manger.

5.____ The angel Gabriel appeared to Mary first and then he
appeared to Joseph.

6. ____ Mary rode a donkey from Nazareth to Bethlehem.

7. ____ Joseph and Mary went to Bethlehem because of a
decree by Caesar Augustus.

8. ____ Shepherding was considered a very noble occupation.

9. ____ Both Joseph and Mary were told to name the baby
“Jesus”.

10. ____ When Herod heard about Jesus he was the only one
concerned about this new king.

11. ____ The wise men found Jesus lying in a manger in the
town of Bethlehem.

12. ____ After the angels’ announcement the shepherds went
straight to Bethlehem to see Jesus.

13. ____ Joseph married Mary immediately after the angel
appeared to him.

14. ____ Some of the shepherds doubted and refused to believe
the message they heard from the angels.

Multiple Choice

1. How many wise men were there?

3

4

12

The Bible does not say.

2. Did Joseph meet the wise men?

Yes

No

The Bible does not say.

3. How did Mary get to Bethlehem?

She rode a camel.

She rode a donkey.

She walked.

The Bible does not say.

4. What type of building was Jesus born in?

Cave

Stable

Inn

The Bible does not say.

5. What animals were present at the Nativity?

Cattle

Sheep

Doves

All the above

The Bible does not say

6. Who besides the wise men saw the star?

The shepherds

King Herod’s astrologers

The Bible does not say

7. How soon after Mary and Joseph reached Bethlehem was
Jesus born?

Immediately

That same night

That same day

The Bible does not say

8. When Mary became pregnant, Mary and Joseph were

Married

Engaged

The Bible does not say

9. Jesus was born

During the winter

December 25

January 6

During the Spring

The Bible does not say

10. When the wise men came, they found Jesus

In an inn

In a manger

In a cave

In a house

Answers:

Christmas Quiz

True or False

1.__T__ There are no records of Joseph speaking in the
Christmas story.

2.__F__ The wise men were kings from the orient. –they were not kings–

3.__F__ The little drummer boy came to the manger after the
other shepherds. –there is no record of a drummer boy–

4.__F__ The star appeared above the manger.  –the star led to the house Jesus was living in when he was about two years old–

5.__F__ The angel Gabriel appeared to Mary first and then he
appeared to Joseph. –we do not know the identity of the angel who appeared to Joseph–

6. __F__ Mary rode a donkey from Nazareth to Bethlehem. –there is no record of how Mary traveled–

7. __T__ Joseph and Mary went to Bethlehem because of a
decree by Caesar Augustus.

8. __F__ Shepherding was considered a very noble occupation. –Shepherds were considered lowly, and even unclean by religious law–

9. __T__ Both Joseph and Mary were told to name the baby
“Jesus”.

10. __F__ When Herod heard about Jesus he was the only one
concerned about this new king. –Matthew reports “[Herod] and all Jerusalem” were troubled–

11. __F__ The wise men found Jesus lying in a manger in the
town of Bethlehem. –Jesus was almost two years old by the time the wise men arrived.–

12. __T__ After the angels’ announcement the shepherds went
straight to Bethlehem to see Jesus.

13. __T__ Joseph married Mary immediately after the angel
appeared to him.

14. __F__ Some of the shepherds doubted and refused to believe
the message they heard from the angels. — Luke 2:15 (it sure seems to indicate they all went)–

Multiple Choice

1. How many wise men were there?

The Bible does not say (the language is plural, so more than one).

2. Did Joseph meet the wise men?

The Bible does not say.

3. How did Mary get to Bethlehem?

The Bible does not say.

4. What type of building was Jesus born in?

The Bible does not say. Mangers were kept in stables, in house courtyards, in caves, and more. It is fully possible that Jesus was born in a cave or an enclosed courtyard.

5. What animals were present at the Nativity?

The Bible does not say

6. Who besides the wise men saw the star?

The Bible does not say, but Mt. 2:7 implies that King Herod’s astrologers either saw it or were able to figure out when it appeared. Tricky question!

7. How soon after Mary and Joseph reached Bethlehem was
Jesus born?

The Bible does not say

8. When Mary became pregnant, Mary and Joseph were

Engaged

9. Jesus was born

The Bible does not say

10. When the wise men came, they found Jesus

In a house  –Jesus was almost two years old–

Sorry if some of these were too picky. How did you do? I wrote this a few years ago, and even I tripped up on a couple of the tricky ones.

Mer and I finally got to see Pirates of the Caribbean at the cheap theater, so now Carribbeaner can talk to us again. Since it was a weekend night, it cost us $3 to see it instead of $2, but it was worth it. It was a fun movie – I loved the fight sequence on the water wheel. Also, if you see it again, make sure you sit through the credits – there is a little bonus at the end. I’m looking forward to the third movie – I like the character of Jack Sparrow.

So, I got a call from my family doctor, whom I am very fond of. She told me the results were in for the MRI of my head, and that everything looked okay, but there were a couple of odd things that needed a specialist to explain. So, she wants me to see a neurologist and that looks like it might be 6-8 weeks before that can happen.

I really don’t need an expert opinion. It is obvious to me what is going on in my head – my mutant powers are finally manifesting themselves. I was hoping for telekinesis (“the Amazing Mu-ver”), but one does not get to choose one’s own powers. It appears that I am developing the ability to read minds. Mer was anxious over the fact that my brain is clinically odd. I told her that I was clearly developing powers. Just then, I was stuck by the extraordinary knowledge that my wife was thinking she had married a loon. When I confronted her with proof of my growing abilities, she did not try to deny it.

I will try to respect your privacy, but you have been warned!

Last week (and weekend), Mer and I traveled to Bridgman, Michigan, to spend Thanksgiving at my Mom’s place. Mom and her Significant Other, Marc, are wonderful people to be around on holidays. They want you to be comfortable doing whatever you want to do, and they throw in an endless supply of food to boot.

We left Ohio early afternoon on Wednesday (we slept in – why get up early on the first day of your vacation?), and started on the 5-1/2-hour trip to Michigan. We go through South Bend on the way, so we stopped off to see a friend who lives in South Bend with her husband. Our friend’s family was in town for Thanksgiving, so we all went to Ponderosa. That was my first time ever going to a Ponderosa, although I had been to Bonanzas in my youth. That was very gracious of them to let us tag along, although it was not a good thing for me to go to a buffet the day before Thanksgiving!

We got to Mom’s about 9:00, and Mom, Marc, Sonotmu and OrangeJoJo, and the Rev. were already there. We got the junk out of the car and got settled in to our room, and chatted.

On Thanksgiving, the game playing started in earnest. SoNot and JoJo both like to get interesting (and fairly unknown) games to play. We started playing various games, which was cool. SoNot and the Rev. both convincingly beat me at Abalone. Then JoJo beat me at Tyrus (by ONE point!), but I managed to win the second game (which should have been a tie, except JoJo made a mistake in the last round). I then played Mom at Yinsh, which I won. Meanwhile, Mer and the Rev. played many games of Tyrus. I lost count of who won what. SoNot and JoJo played Abalone (SoNot won), and Rev. and SoNot played Abalone (Rev. won). It was a very competitive morning and early afternoon.

It was not ALL lazing around. The weather was beautiful the entire weekend, so I took the opportunity to go for a 3-mile run Thursday morning. It was really nice. I ran along the beach along Lake Michigan and then toward the town of Bridgman. In the 3 days were were in town (not traveling), I managed to walk or run about 15 miles. It is a great place to take walks.

We had a *wonderful* Thanksgiving dinner with all the usual fixings. Mom and Marc sure can cook. We ate well all weekend. In addition to Thanksgiving diner, Mom kept pints of Ben and Jerry’s on hand, as well as chips, chocolates, and nuts. Marc made us his mouth-watering burgers and chili. They took us out to breakfast at a diner on Friday. Through it all, I only gained about 1 pound – the walking did me some good, methinks.

You can take the English teacher out of the classroom, but you can’t take the spin off the English teacher. Most of us spent the evening watching the recent version of Othello. It was well done, and beautifully shot. One warning for my readers: it is rated R for some sex and violence.

Friday morning I went for an early walk before Mer woke up. I saw a small heart made of stones on the beach, and it gave me the idea to make something for Mer. It took a little while, but it came out nice, and just in time for the sun to start to come over the dunes. I got to take Mer there after breakfast in town, and she kept wondering why I was so focused on getting a ways down the beach. She thought the walk was worth it once we got there.

SoNot, JoJo, and the Rev. had to leave for the Windy City on Friday. I took a nap and ate some more wonderful food, and then we went to the beach for a tremendous sunset. What a nice evening on the beach! On the walk home, I saw something moving at the bottom of a dune hill near Mom’s. It turned out to be a very friendly big cat. He was friendly toward me, but he took much interest in the rustling under nearby leaves. I don’t think he caught anything. Good kitty!

Once back at the house, we convinced Mom and Marc to watch “O” with us. It is the Othello story updated to a prep school and the basketball court. It was nicely done, and the plot and dialogue were easily traceable back to Shakespeare’s text. It is well done, but is very violent, has some sex, and a LOT of language use. Be warned. One of the bonus features on the DVD was a restored 1922 silent movie version of Othello. It is hard to describe. The film made up several scenes, rearranged things, switched dialogue, and generally made things pretty amusing to watch. I’m not saying I want to see it again, but it was worth seeing once.

Saturday, Mom and Marc took us to the studio of Fritz Olsen, a sculptor. He did modern stuff, which I usually only find okay. I did like several of his pieces, and it was a great afternoon to be out and about. After going home, and the inevitable food, Mom and Marc took us out to the Acorn Theater to see Spider Saloff, a jazz singer (singing mostly older jazz from the 30s-50s). It was a very nice concert, and the theater was cool – an old factory that had been converted to a theater. I do wish Spider had sung some Gershwin – I’m fond of his music. Her accompanist was a fantastic guitar player. The only odd thing was he tended to hum while playing his solos. His humming was not always in tune, and it tended to distract from the jaw-dropping things he was doing on the guitar. Still, a very fine evening.

So, that brought about Sunday. We got on the road a bit late, so we did not get home until about 4:30. I do like the Michigan escapes – lots of food, rest, and fun people.