Wednesday, June 14, 2006

WOW Thoughts on the Big O: Part II

For background on UU check out: Comparing Religions and UU Overview Link

A related thought: We discussed at the last membership committee meeting that maybe the best thing to do is give our new friends the book "The Unitarian Universalist Pocket Guide" at the WOW instead of at the New Member Ceremony. Read book then join: what a concept.

Note: if you can't wait you can get the book, Amazon sells it and, the UUA Bookstore [Link] sells it too. The UUA Bookstore is a very interesting bookstore.

Kinda sorta inspired by all those Bibles and Books of Mormon sitting in all the Hotel rooms all over the place. "We'll leave a light on for ya."

Please remember none of this will be on the quiz...

WOW Thoughts on the Big O

Gus was unable to be the Big O at the last WOW due to injury. Gus report's that he's ok now. Whoo Hoo!! This is good news.

I think that the fact that Chris and Gwen spontaneously stepped in to help conduct the orientation in Gus's absence is a beautiful thing. If one or two seekers show up and meet the members who attend I think that's great.

The main point is that the act of welcoming and orientation is important and something all members should be aware of and participate in... We want to know what inspired people to find SCUU and we want to listen to the story of their spiritual journey. We want to tell them of our own spiritual journey. We want to discuss what SCUU has to offer and the SCUU story and we want to tell them about UU.

Most people in my experience are looking for a place where they have a voice; a place to express their spiritual journey -- their spiritual joy! They are also looking for fellowship. I think this is what makes SCUU and UU a WOW. I think one of the major priorities of SCUU is to nurture the process of finding each member's voice and helping each other in our spiritual journey.

Our recent June Sunday Service "RE Sunday: Guide My Feet - Celebrating Religious Education" on the 11th was a tremendous example of our collective efforts.

WOW Moment: A Light is Shined Upon It... "After a series of regrettable events "

JP wrote in the last Digest -- "After a series of regrettable events before and at the 2005 General Assembly in Fort Worth, the UU President and Moderator created a Special Review Commission to gather information about these events so that the entire Unitarian universalism community could most effectively learn from them.

This Special Review Commission has completed its work and has created a report on its findings and recommendations. This report is available online at UUA Report Link.

The UU Board of Trustees has committed to the implementation of the recommendations of the Special Review Commission and requests that you closely review this important report and apply what you learn from it to your future work. We welcome your comments on this report and any ideas you have on implementing its recommendations in our Unitarian universalism community."

It's hard not to read of the news of "a series of regrettable events" and not think of Duke University. Washington Post Link

Both are quite the tragic bummer. Ideals do not line up with reality.

The good news is that in both situations; dialogue occurs; justice is sought; transparency is valued; and positive changes are implemented.

The questions still remain:

Have the organizations as a whole changed?
Are there people who view themselves as wronged, misheard, and misunderstood?
Are there people not mindful of the feelings of others who are perceived as different?
Do we just pay lip service to the inherent worth and dignity of others?
Do we pay lip service to the concept of inclusion?
How can negative escalation be countered with positive communication and action?

In both cases I have the feeling -- "Wow, I never knew that was going on (given American History I'm not surprised); and, I'm glad that it's being dealt with openly; and I'm glad that a light is shined upon it."

Our collective shared ministry is an amazing challenge.

Friday, June 09, 2006

Favorite Link #42 - Literature - Map

It would be interesting to implement something like this for other purposes...

This is quite a rabbit hole. Ya'all come back now...

literature map

Wednesday, June 07, 2006

June WOW News: Make Lemonade and Eat Outside!

Old saying: "When life gives you lemons make lemonade and eat outside."

Caveat for June WOW regarding Mold Sensitivity...


Chris writes: "Our basement flooded last Thursday and we have been trying to clean up the mess ever since. The carpet is now clean and dry, but it still smells of mold. We are continuing to clean it and dry it and hope to have it pretty much OK by Saturday, ...if [you] have a severe mold sensitivity, [you] might want to either not come or stay outside on the deck."

  • Local Germantown Area Weather


  • Thanks, take care, hope, faith, hold fast...

    WOW Great News! As A Welcoming Congregation This Makes Us Very Happy!!

    Democracy in action the discriminatory, anti ERA, and anti-freedom bill gets voted down!! Whoo Hoo!!


    Some Links:

    A Resounding Defeat of Discrimination in the Senate

    link to a great speech on the topic

    The ERA will lead the way -- precedence

    ERA Link

    Washington Post Link

    Sunday, June 04, 2006

    Happy SCUU New Year!!

    Thanks to all who attended the Congregational Meeting Today!! This marks another new year at SCUU!!

    SCUU Historical Reference link...

    I was watching the kids during the meeting with Mr. Thieke. I brought some frisbees (I thought it was spelled with a z) along. We played with the frisbees a little bit but they were put aside for a soccer clinic with Elijah C. regarding the rainbow kick move; a yo-yo demonstration and workshop; a game of micro football toss and catch; and, a surfeit of pizza delivered by Jean C.

    SCUU Axiom: if you leave your frisbees lying on the ground they will find their way into Denise Guthrie's Game Bag (DGGB). This is not a bad thing.

    After the meeting I asked Elijah if he knew where my Frisbees went -- his family's frisbee avoided the DGGB -- and he told me it was carried away. I said that my frisbees are sacred artifacts that carry much personal history for me. He laughed when I said they were kidnapped!

    Later in the day I saw Denise and I asked her if she knew of my frisbees and I told her how important they are to me. She said "you must be a "Frisbetarian". I said "yes I am".

    I have now looked up the definition of Frisbetarian (or Frisbeetarian) on the great web:

    Frisbetarian, "We're all frisbeterians. We believe when you die your soul ascends to a high roof top and you can never get it back". -Bono in NME 1987.

    Bono of course is from the great UU band U2 (there's a musical math pun there).

    Friday, June 02, 2006

    Kindred Spirit #4 & a WOW Moment

    To explain UU I offer the following analogy and metaphor rolled into a pun in the form of a link...

    Click here for YouTube - Evolution of Dance: [Evolution of Dance Link]

    special thanks to debbie morris.

    June WOW At Chris Mauck and David Klein’s house!

    WOW -- stands for Welcoming Orientation and Welcoming dinner!

    June WOW – June 10, 2006, 5:30 pm: Visitor and Member Orientation at Chris Mauck and David Klein’s house followed by a potluck dinner for everybody at 6:30.

    At Orientation we will listen to you; tell you about UU in general and SCUU in particular, and share stories of our spiritual journeys. Gus will be the Big O at the June WOW.

    WOW is another avenue in which we keep our SCUU culture alive and well, so come out and enjoy some camaraderie with fellow searchers at your wonderful WOW volunteer’s house! The yurt and Sugarloaf house are almost available but we’re still nomadic and continue to move from place to place for the WOW Dinners. We’ll try to schedule a tour of the property for interested Visitors.

    Evites (email invitations) will be sent to the visitors who left their email address for the next Event. Please be sure to RSVP via the Evite.

    The Evite will give directions to our gracious and kind WOW hosts. However you can find directions in this Blog too.

    Watch for updates in JP Vidas’s Digest.

    For more information, contact Rev. Amy Russell or our membership chair, Adam Styles during coffee hour.

    Directions To June WOW - via Google

    Thursday, June 01, 2006

    Blog Issue: Dang My Sidebar Fell Down and It Can't Get Up!! Part II (the solution)

    I figured it out.

    To help clarify the technical concept, which provides a buttress for our UU principles of a free and responsible search for truth and meaning and respect for the great web of life, I will explain.

    Caution semi-Techie speak starts now...

    I spoke of web links a while back.

    If you create a web link it is composed of two parts: the URL link part and the link display text part. Some people show the URL link part as the display text part too. Hence you see a link that says http://www.blahblahblah.com

    Please note: A link's display text may not match the URL link part. In the link above, if you click on it, you did not go to www.blahblahblah.com you came back here. The link display text is "www.blahblahblah.com" and the URL link part is "http://scuuwow.blogspot.com/search?q=sidebar". Spoofers use this trick to get you to go to a site that looks like your bank's web site but is really in a northern suburb of someplace you had no intention of going to, and the spoofers ask you for very personal information like your favorite color or SSN. You enter the information because you think it's your bank, but it's not. Don't be fooled.

    I'm amazed there is no site at www.blahblahblah.com.

    But I digress... back to the dropped sidebar solution, some links are very very very long. And if you use a humongous link as your link display text then it doesn't wrap. Wrap is a technical term. Wrap means that the words automagically move to the next line based on the existence of a space within a line of text. Well URL links are special they don't have spaces. So ... if you have a mile long URL link which you use as the link display text it messes up the page big time. The link causes the sidebar to drop. Why? Because the blog web page is in newspaper column format. The column that holds the sidebar gets pushed down to allow the link to write outside the width of the blog post column. The blog posts column appear on the left side of the blog web page and the sidebar appears in the right column of the blog web page.

    So when I did the post about JP's link and added a link with a mile long display text it messes up the page resulting in the Dropped Sidebar. I have shortened the display text to "NY Times Link"

    It's my karma to have these problems and to figure them out.

    If you read this and are confused stop by and we can talk at coffee hour.

    If this post helps just one person, including myself, then I have done my job within this great web of life.

    Blog issue: Dang My Sidebar Fell Down and It Can't Get Up!!

    I've seen this at other sites where the sidebar on the right drops to the bottom of the page where it's not much use.

    For example Baltimore City Paper..

    Ok I just looked at theirs and they figured it out...

    I've sometimes seen the problem at AOL..

    I've never seen the problem at the Washington City Paper..

    Well this should be intersting to figure out.

    Nope no truth to the rumor that the sidebars have been figured out in Baltimore hon. The problem persists at Baltimore City Paper depending upon the content posted. When it's off you'll see a big blank white box on the page where the content should be. You need to scroll down the see the content.

    Kindred Spirit #3: Gus will be the Big O at the next WOW!

    Gus has volunteered to be the orientator (.it is a word), the Big O, at the next WOW.

    He'll tell you about UU, he'll tell you about SCUU, he'll tell you about his spiritual journey, and he'll listen to your spiritual journey.

    Thank you Gus!!

    Kindred Spirit #2.2: JP's links - Catch it the next time around

    The Network of Spiritual Progressives (NSP) will be holding a conference focusing on Spiritual Activism in Washington, DC from May 17th through May 20th. Among the speakers will be Rev. Sinkford (President of the UUA) and Cindy Sheehan. More information on the organization is available at: http://www.spiritualprogressives.org/
    and more information on the conference at:
    http://www.tikkun.org/community/spiritual_activism_conference/

    Kindred Spirit #2.1: JP's links - Don't build fences!! Teach English!!

    This one's old but that's ok there's still good information here -- Don't build fences!! Teach English!!

    "The English as a Second Language program in Gaithersburg has an urgent need for volunteer instructors for the nine-week cycle beginning Tuesday, April 18 (two days ago). No experience is required and you need only commit to one evening for 2 hours per week or Saturdays for 3 hours (you can teach additional sessions if you wish.) Classes are at local Gaithersburg schools on Monday through Friday, 6:30 to 8:30 PM and Saturdays 10 AM to 1 PM. As a bonus, volunteer instructors are invited to attend Spanish classes at no charge.

    The majority of the students' native language is Spanish but others including Asian and African are also represented. The only requirements for instructors are a strong English, interpersonal and communication skills and a desire to do something worthwhile for the community. Previous foreign language training would no doubt be helpful but is not required. All instructional materials are provided, and the students are issued books, workbooks and audio tapes.

    Please note this is not a religious program and the curricula are entirely non-sectarian. It is a genuine equal opportunity for students and staff of all ethnic, religious and cultural backgrounds.

    If you are interested please contact the Program Director, Ms. Diana Tato, for more details at 301-417-9113, from noon until 9 PM Monday through Friday. Email: Tato@centrocatolico.org."

    Kindred Spirit #2: JP's links

    I've added some links from JP that I thought were good to have handy.

    Please check www.snopes.com for information about ... "I wonder if this is really true" email chains. http:www.snopes.com

    I'm including some links to some articles that have interested me over the last month or so:

    An article about a Presbyterian church titled "Why We Let an Atheist Join Our Church":
    http://www.alternet.org/story/34268/

    An article on being a "conscientious carnivore":
    http://www.alternet.org/envirohealth/35084/

    An article on the global effects of electronic waste:
    http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2006/04/10/ewaste/
    and an accompanying article on how to recycle electronics mindfully:
    http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2006/04/10/greenguide/

    Finally, an article about the agreement between the Smithsonian Institute and Showtime Networks:
    NY Times Link

    Kindred Spirit #1 - Manifesto for Living

    We saw this in the Washington Post Health Section a couple of weeks ago and it immediately went up on the refrigerator with one of the smiling real estate broker magnets that we get... Went out to the Post Web Site and I can't find it. So I type it in here...

    "Manifesto for Living

    My oldest brother's heart stopped beating at 10:57am, on Wednesday, July 21,last year. Chip was only 62. This year, I turned 50, and no longer will take my life for granted. With you as my witness, I declare my "Manifesto for Living."

    One: Live for Love. Nothing is more important than love. I will put the relationships in my life first, and I will seek to see the divinity in everyone I meet.

    Two: Let Go. Instead of becoming vested in specific outcomes, I will trust that what will be will be.

    Three: Live in Gratitude. Several Months ago, I began the practice of beginning each day listing three things (or people) for which (or whom) I am grateful. When I remember to do it, I seem to have a brighter day.

    Four: Follow My Energy. Yesterday, a friend posed the question: "What would your life be like if you were to simply follow your energy?" In his question, I found my compass.

    This is my manifesto for living. Hold me accountable to it. Through it, I will live a rich and abundant life."

    Ok, now I can put it back up on the refrigerator.

    the usual brain fart...

    it used to be that you'd lose your keys, or your wallet, or your umbrella, or your atm card, or your parked car, or your neighbor's name. now it's that you forget your password; and for an extra added bonus you forget the answer to the security question, you made up, to help you get your password.

    i'm not accepting the fact that this is a "junior moment" for i have seen seniors have the situation occur as a "senior moment".

    quick -- what's your favorite color?