SCUU WOW News

Happy Holidays!! It's Official!!

2011-12-22T21:06:00.000-08:00

It's Official!! Seasons Greetings & Happy Holidays & Merry Christmas & Happy Hanukkah & Happy Winter Solstice & Yule & Happy New Year!!!

WOW! It Gets Better!!

2011-12-22T21:01:00.000-08:00

It Gets Better Project | Give hope to LGBT youth

The Compassion Exercise

2011-12-15T19:53:00.000-08:00

Carol gave a sermon this past month and led us in the Compassion Exercise. She had cards and I got one and told someone about it and gave the card away.

I googled and I found the web site that Carol referenced on the card: Avatar...

The Compassion Exercise

Honesty with one's self leads to compassion for others.

OBJECTIVE: To increase the amount of compassion in the world.

EXPECTED RESULTS: A personal sense of peace.

INSTRUCTIONS: This exercise can be done anywhere that people congregate (airports, malls, parks, beaches, etc.). It should be done on strangers, unobtrusively, from some distance. Try to do all five steps on the same person.

Step 1: With attention on the person, repeat to yourself:
"Just like me, this person is seeking some happiness for his/her life."

Step 2 With attention on the person, repeat to yourself:
"Just like me, this person is trying to avoid suffering in his/her life."

Step 3 With attention on the person, repeat to yourself:
"Just like me, this person has known sadness, loneliness and despair."

Step 4 With attention on the person, repeat to yourself:
"Just like me, this person is seeking to fulfill his/her needs."

Step 5 With attention on the person, repeat to yourself:
"Just like me, this person is learning about life."

Carol is listed as a Local Avatar Master on the Avatar web site -- Who knew? Carol was our Worship Committee Chair for 7 years -- she is the stuff of legend...

WOW... That's a big link...

This can also be filed under God Loves You and I'm Trying...

StoryPeople: Fighting Chance...

2011-12-13T20:15:00.001-08:00

What do I get for this? I said & the angel gave me a catalog filled with toasters & clock radios & a basketball signed by Michael Jordan & I said, But this is just stuff & the angel smiled at me & swallowed me in her arms. I'm so glad you said that, she whispered to me. I knew you still had a chance.

StoryPeople: Open To The Sky

2011-12-13T20:12:00.000-08:00

The top of his head was open up to the sky & when he walked down the street he'd end up with strange things in there like the number of dogs in China, or the time it takes to cook a pig. It's not really useful, he said, but I'd miss this stuff if it ever closed up.

Congregational Meeting Box Score

2011-12-13T19:43:00.001-08:00

2 Ceremonial Motions
1 Approval of Agenda Motion
3 Main Motions
4 Amendments
1 call for Orders of Day
1 Motion without Second
4 Call the Question Motions
1 Fill in Blank Motion
1 Suspension of the Rules
1 Move to Adjourn
3 Dangs (votes decided by 1 vote)

Main Decision: One Service to Be Held on Sunday 10:30am Starting December 18th. The date was determined by the Worship Committee and Religious Education (RE) Committee without delay following the vote for one service and the time of 10:30am; and following the vote to let the Worship Committee and RE committee make the decision on the date.

for some votes twas surprisingly close...

The unabridged Robert's Rules of Order is as big as a Bible... 816 pages with index and notes...

A UNIFYING FORCE IS AFOOT FOR US!!

2011-12-13T19:37:00.000-08:00

I still have strong faith in our Sugarloaf congregation even though I am on the losing side of our vote and have to give up the first service’s spiritual experience for a while.

After the Sunday when my first attempt to get the kind of discussion my motion writing needed, Megan helped me calm my angst. I appreciate her reminding me that all of us involved with this decision are well-intentioned. I believe this to be true.

Now I look forward to the Jubilee sessions for our open discussion in order to pave the way for unity of purpose in a do-able action plan.

The prep sessions for our one service decision gave us a beginning, common platform to make an agenda for the first session. We have the WOW forum and the talking stick list. Now, let’s talk!

Helen Popenoe

WOW Maybe Facts and Science Will Trump Fracking: Clean Water Critically Good!!

2011-12-10T17:25:00.000-08:00

Hydrofracking push in New York may be derailed by contaminated water in Wyoming

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency report says the gas drilling tainted Paillion, Wyoming's water

I think any risk to water safety requires all the research and time necessary to show efforts are safe... Unlike Wyoming having a highly highly highly populated regions water source contaminated would be extremely extremely extremely catastrophic. Actually it definitely sucks big time in Wyoming too...

Critics of hydrofracking worry the process is unsafe and will cause irreparable harm to the environment.

Gas industry officials, business groups and many elected officials — especially in New York’s economically distressed Southern Tier — argue hydrofracking is safe and could spur an economic boom in struggling areas of the state.

Sacred Text! Robert's Rules of Order Point of Information!

2011-12-06T21:28:00.000-08:00

Whoever said "Never analyze enthusiasm" never read Robert's Rules of Order.

Based on the link cited before http://www.robertsrules.org/ under Guidelines in Robert's Rules of Order Summary Version...

The agenda and all committee reports are merely recommendations! When presented to the assembly and the question is stated, debate begins and changes occur!

So we agree on the agenda with a majority vote. Once the agenda is set, it's up to the Chair to make the call as to whether a motion adheres to the agenda via the Call for the Orders of the Day. Listed in the Cheat Sheet.

http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/roberts-rules-for-dummies-cheat-sheet.html

A Suspend the Rules motion is either to modify the already agreed to agenda or overrule the decision of the chair as to what is in and what is out... This is cited in the Summary Version. Once the agenda (Orders of the Day) is set then a change to the order of the day requires a 2/3 majority via a Suspend the Rules motion. The 2/3 majority is not addressed on the Cheat Sheet but is discussed in wikipedia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suspension_of_the_rules

The person who makes the motion has the ability to change or withdraw their motion even if there was a second but this can only happen up to the point when the Chair states the motion and opens the debate. Once that happens the person who made the motion can not change it unilaterally. Using a football analogy when the question is stated that's the whistle for the opening kickoff. Once the debate gets going you can't call it off -- you have to vote on something to end it. The motion belongs to the assembly. The ball is in play.

See Guidelines again:

Before the motion is stated by the Chair (the question) members may suggest modification of the motion; the mover can modify as he pleases, or even withdraw the motion without consent of the seconder; if mover modifies, the seconder can withdraw the second.

Please see "Making and Handling Motions According to Robert's Rules" on the Roberts Rules for Dummies Cheat Sheet...

The main rules on motions is that there is a hierarchy and they can become nested shown on the Cheat Sheet and per the Guidelines:

The "immediately pending question" is the last question stated by the Chair! Motion/Resolution - Amendment - Motion to Postpone
The member moving the "immediately pending question" is entitled to preference to the floor!

It's Just That Easy!!

That's my story and I'm sticking to it...

Hope this helps.

Assume Good Intentions and Keep An Open Heart!!

2011-12-03T19:09:00.000-08:00

Settling differences directly with the person involved, while staying in relationship, assuming good intentions and keeping an open heart...

Robert Rules of Order Laws of Meeting Physics

2011-12-03T13:43:00.000-08:00

The more contentious the meeting the more Robert's Rules are utilized...

Deep end of pool link:

Robert's Rules of Order Revised Full Text 1915...

Fetch the Sacred Text!!! Roberts Rules of Order

2011-12-03T11:38:00.000-08:00

There are two sacred text in UU and Sugarloaf in particular.

1st is the Ministerial Settlement Handbook which throws off sacred heat as I imagine the Ark of the Covenant would. It is most definitely in support of our UU Principle:

Acceptance of one another and encouragement to spiritual growth in our congregations...

Our 2nd sacred text is Robert's Rules of Order. I was surprised to learn it was not written by a Unitarian Universalist but by an Officer of the US Army as a result of presiding over a church meeting during the Civil War -- close enough... At the very least U.S. Army Brigadier General Henry Martyn Robert is yet another adopted Unitarian Universalist. Robert's Rules of Order is most definitely in support of our UU Principle:

The right of conscience and the use of the democratic process within our congregations and in society at large...

And as anyone should have figured out by now: Democracy is Not Pretty!! But Consensus is Beautiful!!

Hence Rules have been adopted for conducting our meetings so there will be less chaos and more order: a cat herder's handbook...

The rules are both simple and complicated. Simple in the sense that there is a Motion made by a member to do something and after some discussion there is a Vote. Complicated in the sense that there are a fair amount of rules. An analogy can be drawn to football but I will save that digression for another time.

Here are two useful links regarding Robert's Rules of Orders.

Robert Rules of Order's for Dummies Cheat Sheet

official Robert's Rules of Order Summary Version.

To decipher the For Dummies cheat sheet you can use the official Robert's Rules of Order Summary "The Rules" section.

Robert's Rules of Orders are cited in our By-laws. If you ever want to change our by laws to not use Robert's Rules of Orders you will have to follow Robert's Rules of Order and you will not have the votes...

Per our by-laws, for Congregational meetings the Board Chair of SCUU runs the meeting -- wields the gavel. A Parliamentarian acts as the referee interpreting Robert's Rules of Order -- without a whistle unlike in football. The Parlimentarian is not per our by-laws; it's just our custom.

A talking stick is our custom too; which enforces the Robert's rule:

No member can speak twice to the same issue until everyone else wishing to speak has spoken to it once!

Fun facts: General Robert developed the harbors of Green Bay... The church meeting General Robert presided over was at a Baptist church in New Bedford Massachusetts. It would have been better if it was a Unitarian Church in Massachusetts but what can you do...

Dang Abilene Again?

2011-11-14T20:02:00.000-08:00

I got this picture from flickr - an abilene road trip I should use flickr more...

The Abilene Paradox is on wikipedia with footnotes and everything...

Gus writes -- A funny thing happened on the way to the forum....

2011-11-11T18:49:00.000-08:00

Adam,

Everyone keeps writing that http://scuuwow.blogspot.com/ is the place to go, but many people can't find their way from there to the real forum, which is at

Editor's note: This is the link to the forum!! I also put it in the blog version of the Second Talking Stick Annoucement...

http://scuuwow.blogspot.com/2011/10/forum-for-discussing-one-sunday-service.html

Is there anything you can do to make it easier for people to go from the blog's home page to the services forum?

Editor's note: I have added the "To the Forum!!" link under the Important Links List... The Important Links List appears on the home page. Clicking the "SCUU WOW NEWS" blog banner always takes you to the blog home page... Please note: you can also google "scuu wow forum" and that will show the link that will get you there too... Hope This Helps...

Storypeople is addictive and it's all Rev. Megan's Fault

2011-11-11T18:19:00.000-08:00

Bet you can't click just once....

first one...

He tried hard to tell the truth but it wasn't always that obvious, so usually he just said the first thing that came to mind.

second one...

He used to make model balloons & send them off to Macy's with a note that they could use them free of charge for their parades. After Macy's filed for bankruptcy he just shook his head. A better balloon could've turned that whole situation around, he said.

third one...

this is an American unicorn which explains why it has 2 horns & they're painted to match the tile in its bathroom

fourth one...

Her hair's on fire in the hot sun & there's no other sound in her head other than its slow, soft burning

in-freakin-finity...

I held him close for only a short time, but after he was gone, I'd see his smile on the face of a perfect stranger & I knew he would be there with me all the rest of my days.

Pick another one for me -- indeed...

gathering up bits of the world & setting them out in an order that her children can understand

must stop now...

thinking there's not a lot deeper he can go until he's willing to drown, but that takes half the fun out of it

end...

Wishing he'd been a little more specific about asking for stuff he really enjoys instead of the big formless stuff that sounds good to other people when you're trying to impress them

dang...

No one really keeps score, but if they did, we would've won 5 to 2.

stop...

I have so much less stress, he said, now that I've given up on ambition.

nothing more to say...

Everyone says she's like a reed in the wind, so she decided to try it out but she's still not convinced mainly because she hates the smell of swamp gas.

Second Congregational Talking Stick this Sunday between services!

2011-11-10T22:11:00.000-08:00

Dear SCUU,

The second of our four congregational conversations will be held this Sunday, November 13th at around 10:30 am in the Yurt. Please come and share your thoughts, opinions and questions about whether SCUU should stay at two services per Sunday or move to a one-service Sunday. The vote is coming on December 11th!

This Sunday's meeting will again be a "talking stick" format, where we'll take turns holding the talking stick and having time to speak our minds without interruption. This format worked really well at our first meeting last Sunday, where many different viewpoints were heard. We may switch the format to a more narrow focus for the third or fourth meeting.

Please feel free to come to as many meetings as you can. Your voice helps others consider the choice they'll make, and hearing the perspectives of other congregants can help you come to a more informed vote yourself. Plus, it's fun to sit with your community and hear their hopes and dreams for SCUU's future.

Here are some other sources of information for you as you make your decision:

Arlin has put together a group of historical and informational documents that you can access from this link: http://scuu.org/site/content/scuus-2-services-issue-collectors-edition.

They're also on the member's only section of the SCUU website.

There is also a virtual conversation on this topic moderated by Adam Styles on the WOW blog on the website. You can access that at

Editor's note: This is the link to the forum!!...

http://scuuwow.blogspot.com/2011/10/forum-for-discussing-one-sunday-service.html

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact one of us, members of the task force charged with facilitating these pre-meetings. Hope to see you Sunday!

(alphabetically)
Rev. Megan Foley
Linda Hunter
Arlin Stoltzfus
JP Vidas

Talking Stick: One or Two Services?

2011-11-03T06:24:00.000-07:00

Dear Members of the SCUU Congregation:

The Board has asked a group of which I am part to develop some opportunities for learning and discussion prior to the our December 11th congregational meeting, at which SCUU will consider the question of whether to continue with two services during the school year or move to a one-service schedule year-round.

The first such opportunity will be this Sunday, November 6th, at 1pm, in the yurt. Child care will be provided. We plan to lead additional opportunities on November 13th and December 4th between the services during coffee hour, and again at 1pm on November 20th.

The November 6th meeting will follow a "Talking Stick" format - SCUU has successfully used this before - and will be a chance to respectfully share concerns and ideas with each other on how SCUU should proceed into our bright shared future.

Everyone will have the opportunity to speak; your thoughts and responses can be shared when you "hold the stick", and you may sign up at the beginning of the meeting for a time slot. We'll establish an initial time limit based on how many people wish to share, and perhaps have enough time for some to speak an additional time. This meeting is part of our community learning process - no decisions will be reached during this meeting.

Please make time to attend one or (ideally) more than one of these meetings, and of course to come to the Dec 11th congregational meeting, when decisions may be reached. We look forward to seeing and hearing you!

Feel free to contact me or another of the planning group regarding suggestions about meeting format and topics. Our group members are (alphabetically):

Rev. Megan Foley
Linda Hunter
Arlin Stoltzfus
JP Vidas

Link to the Forum!! http://scuuwow.blogspot.com/2011/10/forum-for-discussing-one-sunday-service.html

Wow Flag

2011-10-29T13:36:00.000-07:00

They are everywhere!!

The Duck Song -- Disruptive Behavior?

2011-10-27T18:15:00.000-07:00

YouTube Link: Got Any Grapes? Got Any Glue?

Please keep two thoughts in mind...

“Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react to it” Charles R. Swindoll

There must always remain something that is antagonistic to good. Plato

conflict resoultion thoughts...

Forum for Discussing the One Sunday Service Vote

2011-10-27T08:18:00.000-07:00

A petition containing 15 member signatures was presented to the Board of Trustees on October 27, 2011. The petition proposed that "a Congregational Vote be called at the earliest opportunity to consider SCUU returning to one Sunday Service." The petitioners also stated, "We recognize that the two-services arrangement was a reasonable endeavor based on expectations of growth, but also recognize that sustaining two services has proven to be an unreasonable ordeal for our small congregation." The petition is a right and proper action, according to our bylaws, and was organized with the best interests of SCUU in mind. This forum is a means of dialogue and discussion on the issue. All positions, points of view, comments and opinions are welcome. Please abide by our UU principles and congregation's covenant.

Arranging Discussion Forums for the One Sunday Service Vote

2011-10-27T07:57:00.000-07:00

The following are suggestions for discussion forums regarding the “One Sunday Service” vote. These are intentionally overlapping and redundant. The goal is to engage as many members and friends as possible within the timeframe allotted. Every effort must be made to have all voices and opinions heard, and fully recognized, so that members arrive at the congregational meeting informed and aware of all positions on the matter, and no one feels excluded. Announcements regarding the date and time of the congregational meeting may include a list of discussion forums, and perhaps a sign-up procedure.

“Forums” should include both live, in-person discussions, as well as remote, electronic means of submitting comments and reading others’ responses.
Live, In-Person Forums

1. Coffee Hour discussions, Sunday mornings prior to second service, 10:15-11:15 is recommended, coffee and donuts served. These may be every Sunday, if needed.
2. One forum following the second service, say, 12:30-2:00, this one a “brown bag” event.
3. Each live forum will be invited, but not required, to post comments or position statements in the form of documents on the “Members Only” page of the SCUU web site. These are optional written statements or comments submitted by individual members who attended the forum, or from self-organized groups; not reports on forum discussions.
4. These live forums are intended for face-to-face discussion and dialogue. It is not recommended that minutes or records be kept. Facilitators will set ground rules, and keep timing limitations flowing smoothly. I believe the SCUU covenant is sufficient as a source of ground rules.

Remote, Electronic Forums

1. These are intended to (1) create additional opportunities for members to discuss and dialogue, or at the very least “post” comments, and (2) permit the full membership to read and think about the positions or opinions stated.
2. I recommend creating a special topic blog on the “Members Only” page of the SCUU web site. For those not familiar with blogs, this will require some instructions sent out via the “All Users” email distribution.
3. An alternative is the creation of a simply “public” email folder to which folks may submit emails, and then login to read all of the postings (in simple date/time order).
4. Finally, I understand that we may create a special topic or “post” on the SCUU Wow blog to which all others would be invited to comment. I would assume that the “post” would be a neutral statement about the upcoming congregational vote, and an open invitation for everyone to comment and discuss.

Link to the Forum!! http://scuuwow.blogspot.com/2011/10/forum-for-discussing-one-sunday-service.html

Wow! Science and logic the language of God!! New drug could cure nearly any viral infection

2011-08-13T19:25:00.000-07:00

Science and logic the language of God!!
Wax on Wax off!! Article on MIT Discovery

I hope this works it looks awesome.

Inspiration for the Yurt -- Glen Echo Park Yurts Near Clara Barton's House

2011-07-29T05:56:00.000-07:00

knew an artist in residence...

More Glen Echo Yurt Pictures...

Programmatic Fundraising

2011-07-12T23:01:00.000-07:00

As you may have heard, SCUU is moving towards Programmatic Fundraising -- meaning the funds raised by events and activities arranged by the fundraising committee will not go into the general fund, but rather be for a specific purpose. The fundraising committee has requested that the Board provide them with a list of possible items and related costs for them to work towards. The Board believes that the entire congregation should be involved in putting together this list. As a first step, the Board has reached out to committee chairs to get ideas. The board will review the ideas, prioritize them, and charge the Fundraising Committee to raise the desired funds.

If you have an idea, please add as a comment to this Post. Be sure to include the specifics of the item, the reason for it to be added to the list, and estimated costs associated with the item.

Some examples of items on the list are: carpeting for the aerie; carpeting for the yurt, and playground equipment. In the future, I will provide an updated list.

Clara Barton Founder American Red Cross: An Invitation

2011-07-04T06:21:00.000-07:00

Hello,

I would like to personally invite the Unitarian Universalist Churches in the Greater Washington Area to visit Clara Barton National Historic Site in Glen Echo, Maryland. Clara Barton was raised in the Universalist Church in Massachusetts and served as a model for humanitarian service and social justice throughout her life. Clara Barton National Historic Site preserves the house where Miss Barton lived and worked for the last 15 years of her life. It also served as the first permanent headquarters for the American Red Cross.

Tours of the house are free and begin on the hour between 10:00 AM and 4:00 PM daily. We do ask that groups of ten or more make reservations to ensure adequate staffing of the house. Groups interested in reserving a tour can call 301-320-1410. For more information, please visit our website www.nps.gov/clba.

Please don't hesitate to contact me with any questions you may have.

Thank you,

Beth Ruschau
Park Ranger
Clara Barton National Historic Site
Glen Echo Park
George Washington Memorial Parkway
elizabeth_ruschau@nps.gov
(301) 320-1413

American Red Cross -- Give Life Give Blood

We Are the Sacred Church of the Whoo Whoo!

2011-05-31T06:00:00.000-07:00

And That Is A Good Thing...

Free and Responsible Search for Truth and Meaning...

WOW! It is a far, far better thing that I tweet...

2011-05-03T19:21:00.000-07:00

"It is a far, far better thing that I do, than I have ever done; it is a far, far better rest that I go to, than I have ever known." -- Charles Dickens

A great article in the Atlantic Monthly -- a magazine founded by a lot of folks influenced by Unitarians and who influenced Unitarians (there's a lot of historical Unitarian Adoptions) but I digress --

in the Article Megan McArdle writes:

"Had I seen the quote on Facebook, rather than Twitter, I might have guessed at the truth. On the other hand, had I seen it on Facebook, I might not have realized it was fake, because it was appended to a long string of genuine speech from MLK Jr. Here's the quote as most people on Facebook saw it:

'I will mourn the loss of thousands of precious lives, but I will not rejoice in the death of one, not even an enemy. Returning hate for hate multiplies hate, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that.'"

link to the Article "Anatomy of a Fake Quotation" in the Atlantic by Megan McArdle- on the web...

The "Anatomy of a Fake Quotation" caught my eye because it's got both a reference to Penn Jillette in it and to a Penn State grad too... The Pen is mightier than the tweet...

In the original post that started the whole twitter tweeting or web a twittering, Ms. Jessica Dovey a Penn State Student writes...

I will mourn the loss of thousands of precious lives, but I will not rejoice in the death of one, not even an enemy. "Returning hate for hate multiplies hate, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that." MLK Jr.

I like how it came down to the dropping of a period and a quote via cut, paste and meme prior to being tweeted... Wow.

As Megan McArdle points out, Ms. Dovey had the first part: "I will mourn the loss of thousands of precious lives, but I will not rejoice in the death of one, not even an enemy." and

Martin Luther King had the rest...

"Returning hate for hate multiplies hate, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that."

Of course keeping this in mind and living by it while others are desperately and relentlessly attempting to kill you is the hard part of the lesson...

"forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us"...

This reminds me of previous articles and discussions about quotes attributed to Martin Luther King and Abraham Lincoln that were actually quotes that can be traced back to others -- notably Unitarian Minister Theodore Parker.

Although these historical figures did not Facebook, Twitter or blog; the art of sampling and repurposing was and is alive and well.

And yes Charles Dickens consorted with Unitarians too... don't ya know...

WOW: Flower Arrangement Thank You!

2011-04-30T07:15:00.001-07:00

Monica Berlin donated these flowers. A big Thank You to Monica!!

WOW A Sign of Survival!!

2011-04-30T07:10:00.000-07:00

I found this statue along the side of the road. I take it as a good sign. A horse statue with four feet on the ground signifies survival.

I choose to see it as an optimistic sign. the horse standing in the bed of a truck signifies evolution; if you look closely you can clearly see that the rider and the driver of the truck are both Sugarloaf Congregation.

Wow fun with HTML -- iframe who knew?!! or Fundraising Web Geekery...

2011-04-27T06:23:00.000-07:00

I wanted to add the Amazon link that allows SCUU to get a 4% donation and discovered iframe... A webpage within a webpage...

fun with iframe

This is the Amazon link found on the new improved version of www.scuu.org -- the seriously new and improved SCUU web site!!!

Click on the Amazon link above to order from Amazon and donate 4% or more of your total purchase to SCUU, at no additional cost to you!

Please note you have to click on the SCUU Amazon link for the purchase to be identified as a SCUU 4% of total purchase donation.

fun with iframe

What kind of geekery is this? It's fundraising web geekery.

Everybody sing "If you knew SUUSI like I knew SUUSI..."

2011-04-12T20:38:00.000-07:00

JP gave a sermon on SUUSI last Sunday.

SUUSI is on wikipedia and...

SUUSI is on facebook too and...

SUUSI is on flickr and...

SUUSI is on YouTube and ...

SUUSI is ca-ray-z good...

Planned Parenthood Founder Was Not a Unitarian Universalist But She Had a lot of Unitarian Universalist Friends

2011-04-12T19:03:00.000-07:00

"When I started this sermon, I assumed Margaret Sanger had been a Unitarian because we have claimed her as one of us. Yet, there is no record of her ever having become a member of one of our congregations and we seem to be stretching facts when we claim her. Never the less, she spoke in many of our Churches, had many close Unitarian Universalist friends, and a large number of Unitarian Universalist congregations and members supported her cause then as we do now."

from a sermon by Rev Charles J. Stephens of UUCWC that discusses Margaret Sanger founder of Planned Parenthood.

"The reproductive rights movement, as I see it, is about preaching the radical message that people, and women in particular, are trustworthy moral agents. It is about saying, "Yes." Women do know what they're doing. They do know how to best lead their lives, and they should be trusted with those important decisions."

from a sermon "Sharing a Journey" from Lisa Sargent published by the Starr King School for the Ministry -- the Unitarian Universalist School of the Graduate Theological Union.

"... she began publishing 'The Rebel Woman', with the motto 'No Gods, No Masters'..."

from yet another sermon by Rev. James R. Bridges of the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of the Poconos on Margaret Sanger.

"Dr. Vosburgh departed from the widely held belief by physician in those days that women's purpose in life was to have babies. One physician suggested that women be defined as "a uterus surrounded by a supporting organism and a directing personality... Their refusal to be pregnant was clearly pathological."

from one more sermon: "Our Fight for Mother's Reproductive Rights" Rev. Samuel Trumbore.

Sometimes collecting links to sermons on the great interdependent web feels like collecting sea shells...

I have a dream speech version 2.0: Gettysburg Address

2011-04-12T18:51:00.000-07:00

"Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent a new nation, conceived in liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.

Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation, so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battle-field of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.

But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate, we can not consecrate, we can not hallow this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us—that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion—that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain—that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom—and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth."

-- Abraham Lincoln

Wow: The Correct Answer is All of the Above!!

2011-04-05T05:00:00.000-07:00

Unitarian Universalist are listed on The Golden Rule poster. Our "Great Web of Life" principle appears on the poster as our Golden Rule. Being a UU I of course was inclined to argue that the "Inherit Worth and Dignity of All" principle should be our Golden Rule listed on the poster. The realist in me says we're lucky and blessed that we're even on the poster.

This poster appears up in the Loft of the Sugarloaf House where I alternately teach the "WOW Club!"...

And then it struck me -- especially since as luck would have it we appear near the bottom of the poster -- the correct answer is "ALL OF THE ABOVE!!!"

The Golden Rule that should appear on the poster for Unitarian Universalist is "ALL THE ABOVE!!".

Alternatively, "ALL THE ABOVE" can appear as an asterisk footnote to our entry on the poster.

Conflict Resolution At SCUU

2011-04-03T14:44:00.000-07:00

I saw this video on YouTube and immediately the words "conflict resoltion" popped into my head.

Although the cats look like they're playing patty cake there is conflict lurking underneath -- the claws, biting, and hissing eventually come out.

When herding cats at SCUU we have a few guidelines. They are on www.helpguide.org...

Unhealthy responses to conflict are characterized by:

An inability to recognize and respond to matters of great importance to the other person
Explosive, angry, hurtful, and resentful reactions
The withdrawal of love, resulting in rejection, isolation, shaming, and fear of abandonment
The expectation of bad outcomes
The fear and avoidance of conflict

Healthy responses to conflict are characterized by:

The capacity to recognize and respond to important matters
A readiness to forgive and forget
The ability to seek compromise and avoid punishing
A belief that resolution can support the interests and needs of both parties

There are 4 steps we agree upon...

1. to accept that the SCUU covenant provides principles and practices(guidance) of how we wish to treat one another.
2. to take part in conflict resolution training...
3. to act when conflict arises between the member and others by speaking directly with each individual who feels the need to resolve a conflict.. Having a 3rd cat around helps.
4. to recognize that conflict resolution is hard and very important to do....

Linda gives a workshop called "Have A Nice Conflict" which is excellent; we call it HANC.

Remember:

If you don't get everything you want, think of the things you don't get that you don't want. ~Oscar Wilde

Humor Update

2011-04-03T14:37:00.000-07:00

For the members of any religion…

To have a few doubts is normal.

To have many doubts is a crisis of faith.

To have constant doubts is a conversion to Unitarian Universalism

This joke came from Rhetta's Blog

A result of my spring link weeding...

when you fall down

2011-04-03T12:05:00.001-07:00

when you fall down
your arms reach out for the dirt
your face looks to the side to avoid a mouthful of soil
your brain screams at
your foot
what happened
your heart beats cadence
your mouth shuts but not before
your tongue tastes some small flecks of soil as
your legs arc up over
your back
your feet would kick
your butt if you let them
your pelvis comes to rest and
for a brief instance it looks like the earth might be hugging you
your brain yells
get up
your toes move to where your torso once was digging in
your hands move down to push you forward
you're going to run with your elbows and your knees until
your legs save you from Mr. gravity
you're up all in the blink of
your sweat filled eye
most importantly
keep moving forward
as best you can

-- a poem for those who experience the 1st (or 2nd or 3rd... infinity) taste of reality bites existentialism...

Affirmation 42.1

What We'd Like to Say About SCUU

2011-04-03T11:48:00.000-07:00

We would like to say about ourselves that we are a small community, optimistic about growing, and we focus on retention of members.

We would like to say about ourselves that we recognize the damage that conflict can do to our community and that we are actively educating ourselves on better ways to handle the conflict -- and these efforts have been well received.

We would like to say about ourselves that we have a historically strong Religious Education Program (RE). RE is a priority of SCUU.

We would like to say about ourselves that SCUU is rich with musical talent and that we use it creatively and productively to sustain and enhance us.

We would like to say about ourselves that SCUU is a multifaceted spiritual community that supports people in their spiritual quest.

We would like to say about ourselves that SCUU is located on a beautiful site and we are planning ahead to improve and expand for the benefit of the community that we live in.

From the SCUU ministerial start-up workshop 10/31/09

The lesson of the moth -- don marquis

2011-04-03T05:09:00.000-07:00

the lesson of the moth

i was talking to a moth
the other evening
he was trying to break into
an electric light bulb
and fry himself on the wires

why do you fellows
pull this stunt i asked him
because it is the conventional
thing for moths or why
if that had been an uncovered
candle instead of an electric
light bulb you would
now be a small unsightly cinder
have you no sense

plenty of it he answered
but at times we get tired
of using it
we get bored with the routine
and crave beauty
and excitement
fire is beautiful
and we know that if we get
too close it will kill us
but what does that matter
it is better to be happy
for a moment
and be burned up with beauty
than to live a long time
and be bored all the while
so we wad all our life up
into one little roll
and then we shoot the roll
that is what life is for
it is better to be a part of beauty
for one instant and then cease to
exist than to exist forever
and never be a part of beauty
our attitude toward life
is come easy go easy
we are like human beings
used to be before they became
too civilized to enjoy themselves

and before i could argue him
out of his philosophy
he went and immolated himself
on a patent cigar lighter
i do not agree with him
myself i would rather have
half the happiness and twice
the longevity

but at the same time i wish
there was something i wanted
as badly as he wanted to fry himself

don marquis
all things archy & mehitabel

WOW Moment Religion Selector or What Religion am I? or Belief-O-Matic

2011-04-03T04:50:00.000-07:00

A while back I posted this as part of Comparing Religions. During my spring link cleaning I noticed the Link broke. So I refreshed it.

Religion Selector or What Religion am I? or Belief-O-Matic

It's on www.beliefnet.com

My results are:

1. Liberal Quakers (100%)
2. Unitarian Universalism (99%)
3. Theravada Buddhism (90%)
4. Secular Humanism (88%)
5. Mahayana Buddhism (84%)
6. Neo-Pagan (82%)
7. Mainline to Liberal Christian Protestants (81%)
8. Taoism (80%)
9. New Age (75%)
10. Jainism (71%)

Which seems not to have changed much since my last post.

Wow...

John's Dad is a Quaker. When he came to one of our services he said "Wow this is just like a Quaker service only you're guaranteed someone is going to talk".

I thought that was funny.

Great Moments in UU History: The Invention of the Ice Cream Sundae

2011-04-03T04:18:00.001-07:00

"On April 3, 1892, the Rev. John M. Scott visited the Platt & Colt Pharmacy – and its owner Chester Platt – in Ithaca after services at the Unitarian Church. Platt served up two bowls of vanilla ice cream, but decided to jazz it up with cherry syrup and candied cherry, according to What's Cooking America. The duo were so pleased with the creation that Scott suggested it be named after the day it was created, and the "Cherry Sunday" was upon us."

How cool is that...

Google Doodle Celebrates 119th Anniversary of First Ice Cream Sundae

WOW Emergency Meta News!! Run a Website or Blog? You Can Help Japan With One Code Snippet

2011-03-13T18:44:00.000-07:00

SEE THIS LINK & TELL THE OTHERS!!!

The Main excerpt from the article above lists links to relief organizations:

"Here are a few reputable organizations that are collecting funds and working with organizations in Japan to meet the needs of Japanese people:

The American Red Cross

Americares

Global Giving

Doctors Without Borders

Mercy Corps"

Another one not listed above is the UUA Japan Relief Fund...

I grabbed the UUA link off the UUA web site...

WOW! Astonishment is the root of Philosophy!!

2010-09-22T20:11:00.000-07:00

Astonishment is the root of religion - Paul Tilich with a slight tweak..

Paul_Tillich -- I like Wikipedia

Picture of the devastation after yesterday's 3.6 earthquake in Germantown Maryland

2010-07-17T17:50:00.000-07:00

Thanks to JP and his friend in Catonsville for their exclusive photo.

God Loves You and I'm Trying...

2010-07-14T17:11:00.000-07:00

A bumper sticker I saw on the road a while back.

We are the Church of the Good Metaphor

2010-06-30T18:03:00.000-07:00

I'm not panicking; I'm taking the initiative.

Poem: Cathedral builders - john ormond

2010-06-30T17:58:00.000-07:00

The Cathedral Builders
by John Ormond

They climbed on sketchy ladders towards God,
with winch and pulley hoisted hewn rock into heaven,
inhabited the sky with hammers,
defied gravity,
deified stone,
took up God's house to meet him,
and came down to their suppers
and small beer,
every night slept, lay with their smelly wives,
quarrelled and cuffed the children,
lied, spat, sang, were happy, or unhappy,
and every day took to the ladders again,
impeded the rights of way of another summer's swallows,
grew greyer, shakier,
became less inclined to fix a neighbour's roof of a fine evening,
saw naves sprout arches, clerestories soar,
cursed the loud fancy glaziers for their luck,
somehow escaped the plague,
got rheumatism,
decided it was time to give it up,
to leave the spire to others,
stood in the crowd, well back from the vestments at the consecration,
envied the fat bishop his warm boots,
cocked a squint eye aloft,
and said, "I bloody did that."

Come Out!

2010-03-04T05:04:00.000-08:00

Gay brothers and sisters,... You must come out. Come out... to your parents... I know that it is hard and will hurt them but think about how they will hurt you in the voting booth! Come out to your relatives... come out to your friends... if indeed they are your friends. Come out to your neighbors... to your fellow workers... to the people who work where you eat and shop... come out only to the people you know, and who know you. Not to anyone else. But once and for all, break down the myths, destroy the lies and distortions. For your sake. For their sake. For the sake of the youngsters who are becoming scared by the votes from Dade to Eugene. Harvey Milk

Wild and Precious Life: My Answer...

2010-03-02T20:22:00.000-08:00

Some of the great thinkers tell us to be like something else…

Christ in his sermon on the mount said to be like the birds: “do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them”… We have a bird feeder in our back yard and I think the birds worry. The wrens, cardinals, blue jays, grackles, doves, and chickadees fly away at the slightest movement and fight amongst themselves; and are pushed around by the squirrels. Birds cause worry too. The grasshopper that she holds in her hand in the poem by its action thinks, “I do not want to be eaten by a bird”.

Aesop in the fable the grasshopper and the ant says we should work hard like the ants. “Idleness brings want, to work today is to eat tomorrow. It is best to prepare for days of necessity”… The truth is that the ant lives for 5 years and stores food for the winter. In fact the ant stores grasshopper eggs if they can get them. The male grasshopper lives for 51 days while the female of course lives the longer life of 52 days. The grasshoppers are singing not because they are wasting time but because they are desperately attempting to get a lot of work done in a shorter period of time. Grasshoppers are born complete. No complicated metamorphosis like ants. Grasshoppers mate lay eggs and die. Grasshoppers like ants work their asses off. Grasshopper eggs adjust there hatching time based on the temperature of the ground. The eggs can wait for spring; the grasshopper gives it all and dies. The grasshopper by its evolution thinks “I hope my eggs don’t get eaten by ants”.

Lao Tzu says never mind the birds, ants and grasshoppers, be like an empty boat. If a person in a boat is bumped by another boat he or she will become angry with the person who bumped them. However if the boat is empty that bumps them there is no anger. Who would get angry at an empty boat? Aside from the fact that the angry person needs an anger management class, Lao Tzu teaches that we should empty ourselves and be like the empty boat.

“If you can empty your own boat crossing the river of the world,
no one will oppose you, no one will seek to harm you....

Who can free himself from achievement, and from fame, descend and be lost amid the masses of men? He will flow like Tao, unseen, he will go about like Life itself with no name and no home.
Simple is he, without distinction. To all appearances he is a fool.
His steps leave no trace. He has no power. He achieves nothing, has no reputation.

Since he judges no one, no one judges him.
Such is the perfect man:
His boat is empty.”

I still don’t know how you cross the river as an empty boat. How do you steer? Learning to steer seems important to me. To make things much simpler get rid of the boat – burn it if you like -- and learn to swim. Who knows maybe you can occasionally get a ride with the angry person and teach anger management. I think: “I hope I am not distracted by anger”.

Life is very much a leap of faith be ye a bird, a grasshopper or a empty boat crossing a river.

I say, “May I not be distracted by worry, fear, or anger.”

Mary Oliver asks, “Tell me what else should I have done?” I say it’s quite obvious: you wrote a wonderful poem. I think creating art is a wonderful thing.

You and I: We get to love. We get to think. We get to learn. We get to love. We get to enjoy. We get to teach. We get to meditate. We get to appreciate nature and create beauty. We get to adapt. We get to build boats. Or not. And it’s spring so we get to pay taxes -- oh boy. We get to pay the bills. We have our brains and senses and the answers come to us. We get to swim and travel.

To live and be happy and swim and do all these things is enough for me.

Wild and Precious Life.... Question...

2010-03-02T20:04:00.000-08:00

Last year I was asked to give my response to the question "Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?"

The question appears in a poem by Mary Oliver. The poem sounds so gay -- the happy, joyful, wonderful gay; the positive gay; all who I love who are gay -- that the question at the end is jarring like this.

It's strange because Tom and Suzanne and I all gave our responses at Sunday service last year. I remember Suzanne's response because it was so clear and I am glad she is with us. I remember Tom's response because that's the day he announced he was leaving for Fiji -- and that was jarring. I miss Tom.

Even though the Poem's title is "The Summer Day" I still think of it as a spring poem.

Wild and precious pretty much sums up my year since then; here's my answer to the question...

How do I become an member? You ask....

2010-03-02T20:00:00.000-08:00

Get thee to a Pathway to Membership Meeting. Find Este and she will show you the way.

Pathways to Membership

2009-12-07T01:09:00.000-08:00

What does it mean to be a member of the Sugarloaf UU community? Come to a Pathways to Membership meeting, Saturday, December 5th in the house from 9 am to noon to learn about SCUU and have your questions answered. Bagels, coffee/tea will be served. Childcare will be provided if you contact Este Armstrong, estea@starpower.net

SUGARLOAF CONGREGATION OF UNITARIAN UNIVERSALIST MINISTERIAL START-UP SEMINAR

2009-10-11T11:48:00.000-07:00

mug available at Artransmitte
OCT 30 FROM 6pm to 9pm OR OCT 31 2009 FROM 9am TO 3pm… PICK DAY THAT WORKS BEST FOR YOU OR BETTER YET ATTEND BOTH DAYS… Please Come!

Please remember this announcement every time you drink coffee, tea, hot chocolate, hot cider, milk, or water…

What is a ministerial startup? It is a very important time of focused conversation with our new minister, church leaders, and members, to establish priorities and goals for the first year of our new ministerial relationship. The Joseph Priestley District of the UUA (JPD) provides facilitation for such events, bringing to the conversation information of how congregations and ministers achieve positive working relationships.

Why should you participate? And can you wear a Halloween costume?

Because the importance of this process deserves your time and attention, because your voice matters to your new minister, and because congregations who invest the time tend to enjoy more satisfying and longer lasting ministerial relationships.

Because Rev. Megan Foley believes that this activity is important… Because Rev. Megan Foley believes that this event is important… Because the JPD who supports us is providing their facilitation for FREE…

Please Come!! The Seminar will be held at SCUU at the YURT and Sugarloaf House on Friday October 30th From 6 to 9pm & Saturday October 31 from 9am to 3pm... Childcare will be available… Easily served and light food will be available… For more Information Please contact Adam Styles[Email Link].

The Internet Dependent Web of Life!!!

2009-04-23T05:50:00.000-07:00

All the weeding reminded me to post one of our UU Principles tweaked...

Respect for the internet dependent web of all existence of which we are a part.

Breaking UU Humor News: Springtime Weeding the Links...

2009-04-23T05:24:00.000-07:00

It's spring time and time to weed the links. After a nudge from a comment on the UU Humor post I found that a few Humor pages have changed or moved around a bit.

Unfortunately I can no longer find the Bay Area Unitarian Universalist Church (BAUUC), Texas Humor page so I have replaced it with the Unitarian Fellowship of Houston, Texas Humor page.

I am extremely pleased to find that Houston Texas has UU Humor... Yeehaa!!

I also found in my quest for Humor the blog a UU Deist in Texas. It's one of the first links to show up in a google search when you enter "uu humor texas"...

So weeding the links is a good thing...

Springtime Weeding helps to maintain the Unitarian Universalist principle of the Internet Dependent Web of Life!!!

A friend is a present you give yourself.

2009-04-22T11:12:00.000-07:00

Repeat as necessary....

A friend is a present you give yourself.

Robert Louis Stevenson

Hence it's always a special gift giving holiday here at SCUU...

Or as a friend once said: "lather, rinse, repeat"

Many Moons ago I Read a Poem by Lao Tzu -- Empty Boats

2009-02-22T00:20:00.000-08:00

He is also known as Chuang Tzu and of course Thomas Merton is involved. Thomas Merton was the translator of the Poem...

Being humble

If a man is crossing a river and an empty boat collides with his own skiff,
even though he be a bad-tempered man he will not become very angry.
But if he sees a man in the boat, he will shout at him to steer clear.
If the shout is not heard, he will shout again, and yet again, and begin cursing.
And all because there is somebody in the boat.
Yet if the boat were empty, he would not be shouting, and not angry.

If you can empty your own boat crossing the river of the world,
no one will oppose you, no one will seek to harm you....

Who can free himself from achievement, and from fame, descend and be lost amid the masses of men?
He will flow like Tao, unseen, he will go about like Life itself with no name and no home.
Simple is he, without distinction. To all appearances he is a fool.
His steps leave no trace. He has no power. He achieves nothing, has no reputation.

Since he judges no one, no one judges him.
Such is the perfect man:
His boat is empty.
(20:2, 4, pp. 168-171)

The man who has some respect for his person keeps his carcass out of sight, hides himself as perfectly as he can.
(23:2, pp. 187)

Link to Poem

Strange, when I read the poem long ago I felt I understood on a deep level what it meant. The same way I felt about "green eggs and ham"; I would use the term as a shorthand to remind myself to not take myself too seriously. But who will truly empty their boat completely.

I like the feel of a good canoe floating on a lake or pond. You can lie in the bottom the ribs of the canoe pressing against your back and float. However it's hard to steer in that position. I don't think I would try lying down in the canoe in a river.

But I digress the point is to attempt to be an empty boat.

WOW... It says nothing about burning boats...

WOW: "Where Is It Written?" A Poem from Jim Wyckoff

2008-07-08T20:44:00.000-07:00

Jim writes: Gus, What a powerful message. I am attaching a reading I prepared recently for my Global Warming service on Aug. 3rd. In another way it speaks to this young lady's plea. All the best, Jim

Where Is It Written?

Where is it written that my generation should:

Use up all the world’s forests
All the world’s fish,
All the world’s oil,
All the world’s gas,
All the world’s coal,
All the world’s copper,
All the world’s helium,

While using the oceans as it’s trash dump,

While using the atmosphere as it’s pollution dump,

In celebration of greed,

To make me comfortable?

Jim Wyckoff June 21, 2008

WOW: message from the next generation

2008-07-08T20:34:00.000-07:00

Gus writes:

WOW!!

My very first thought when I started to listen to this is ... "Oh.. just another kid who doesn't know how complicated the real world is."

But... very quickly I became astounded by this girl's poise, dedication, speaking talent, and courage. Not to mention the undeniable truth of her words. She should be asked to speak at the start of every UN and major international conference.

message from the next generation Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5JvVf1piHXg

Zaria has not been well and we want her to get better...

2008-07-08T20:30:00.000-07:00

We pray, hope, wish for all blessings to be bestowed upon Zaria.

Please give her a quick recovery.

love

WOW: Happy 4th of July!!

2008-07-04T23:59:00.000-07:00

In Congress, July 4, 1776

The Continental Congress: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness."

May our constitution be preserved. May democracy prevail. May power derive from the consent of the governed.

Long live change; long live evolution; long live Safety and Happiness.

WOW: What is the Sound of One Hand Clapping?

2008-02-18T23:15:00.000-08:00

The sound of your hand hitting your forehead... Duh!!

Under the heading of inherent worth and dignity of all:

"Timely Cancer Diagnosis Linked to Insurance Status"

The invisible hand is going to come out and slap some people silly...

Ms. Sam goes to Annapolis

2008-02-16T23:50:00.000-08:00

Hey, one of our own makes the front page!

Congratulations Samantha for testifying and garnering publicity for the cause of marriage equality.

Here is a link to the article online.

Myron

The Great Circle Re-Org Has Begun!! Tom Cooke Helps A lot Simple Living Circles Form As I Type!

2008-02-15T19:00:00.000-08:00

Tom Cooke writes: "I'd like to address the concerns of several of us, regarding our starting to meet before the Great Realignment of Circles occurs. I asked Adam Styles (Grand Wazir of Realignment) for his feedback, and it's as follows:

creating one or two simple living circles is fine with me. I think they should be known to the congregations...
circles usually are created in a meandering mode even when the great re-org is underway....

In other words, there's no reason for us to hold off. Beyond that, I've agreed to help Adam with this year's reorganisation (letting him retain his Grand Wazir status); so I expect that process to begin imminently anyhow. You should soon see some announcements. I add this just so you'll know that that constraint will soon be removed, and there'll be no lingering justification for guilt over this. The Congregation has been invited to join this circle through a variety of media, including this month's newsletter, live announcement at today's service, initial proposal at the January 13th Green Sanctuary service, and in the weekly bulletin. While I have no objection to admitting anyone else who wishes to join us, I don't think anyone can feel left out. It might behoove us to publicise our first dinner in a forthcoming weekly bulletin, but I don't think we need to do much more than that -- anyone who is interested should feel invited at this point."

MarneyB wrote:
"Hi All - ... Lovely that there might be enough folks for two circles!"

If you would like to host a Circle please let Tom Cooke know.

Not all Circles will be simple...

Peter Mayer Will Be Here on March 15th!!

2008-02-15T18:24:00.000-08:00

You might want to make a reservation.

I feel like Buddy in the movie Elf only I say:

PETER MAYER! OH MY GOD! PETER MAYER'S COMING! I KNOW HIM! I KNOW HIM!

That's Not A TeleMarketer!! That's the Wonderful Sam from Sugarloaf!!

2008-02-15T18:15:00.000-08:00

If you have visited us recently Sam will contact you soon to see how you're doing... Please speak to her she's a wonderful person...

Report from the Congregational Meeting!!

2008-02-15T18:10:00.000-08:00

On February 10, a congregational meeting was held to debate and approve three action items; the results were as follows:

1) Growth Plan: the primary elements of the growth plan were to create a volunteer coordinator' position to help people find their place in the congregation, to be consciously welcoming and hospitable and to move to 2 Sunday services at some point in the future. There was unanimous approval of the plan, signifying the congregation's commitment to implement it.

2) Application for a 'First Home' grant from the UUA: There was unanimous approval to apply to the UUA for a 'First Home' grant of $25,000.

3) Transition to two services on Sunday in the spring: the majority of your elected Board of Trustees, the consulting interim minister, the treasurer and the RE coordinator are in agreement that this action should be taken not just for growth, but for our continued survival. There were also many in the congregation who argued that we didn't need to do this at this time. A straw poll was taken after an hour of debate and the vote was 17 in favor of the move and 14 against. Although the majority was in favor of the move, there was a significant minority who were not, and the decision was made by the chair to not go forward with the plan at this time. This outcome leaves unanswered the question of the appropriate timing for this transition, and additional work will be required by the congregation to resolve this question.

The meeting was adjourned. As chair, I would like to stress that although we are not going forward with the 2 services option at this time, other efforts can and should be made to improve the welcoming atmosphere in the yurt. I urge all members and friends to sit close to the front of the yurt, leaving free chairs in the back for visitors to use. More seating will be available if, when children come in, they sit on the carpet in the front of the room or on parental laps. Other helpful ideas are welcomed.

Jean Carr, Chair of the Board of Trustees
SCUU

A new SCUU volunteer job - image 1...

WOW! Ya got to love Anna Quindlen!

2008-02-09T23:45:00.001-08:00

We went to the Million Mom March, seems like yesterday, and the main quote that I remember from all the speeches was one during Anna Quindlen's speech: "And if they ask you why we should have gun control, you quote what every mom has said at one time or another throughout the ages; Because I Said So!!". The crowd roared. On our way to the car we saw a protest sign with those words abandoned on a wall and we've had it in our house ever since.

Another quotes: All parents should be aware that when they mock or curse gay people, they may be mocking or cursing their own child.

One more quote, ok it's more like an excerpt, from a Anna Quindlen commencement speech... of course I'd widen the age range:

"Whether you are 24 or 54, begin today to say no to the Greek chorus that thinks it knows the parameters of a happy life when all it really knows is the homogenization of human existence. We need to eschew that way of being today more than ever before, to the extent that we have defined ourselves sometimes in this nation in terms of false gods. We have to turn toward the true because perhaps soon the true will be all we will have. There was once a forward march in this country, ditch digger to cop to lawyer to judge in four generations, that’s how we learned it in Irish households. Our children would do better than we had done. But maybe we’ve topped out and that progression is no longer true. I think in some ways this is a very good thing. Because perhaps we will learn to redefine what doing better really means. After all, it’s hard to escape the notion that we have sometimes become spoiled and a little lost. People who once thought that TV was a miracle now feel impoverished if there isn’t one in every room, then wonder why their kids don’t read more.

Twenty years ago we’d never heard of the Internet. Ten years ago most of us had never gone online and today we go ballistic if we can’t sign on in seconds. You millennials, bombarded by a culture that sends you so many divergent messages—to wear khakis, to smoke cigarettes, to live clean, to drink Bud, to take jobs your parents hate, to pierce your navels, to dye your hair, to have casual sex but seek enduring love—have had to puzzle out for yourselves what truly has meaning. That is disconcerting, difficult, and wonderful. Socratic is better than rote. Discussion teaches more than dictums and paths set in stone are, as we’ve discovered, often rocky when we move along them. By giving us a model of individuality, tolerance, adventure, and risk-taking you have already taught us a good deal about living fulfilled in the future. You’re the bungee-jumping generation.

We could never do it ourselves but our hearts leap and our adrenaline rises at the sight of all of you, arms outstretched, poised to do—what? Something great. Camus wrote: “Real generosity toward the future lies in giving all to the present.” So: follow Camus, go. Party hearty. Sleep late. Work hard. Love someone better than yourself. Give all to the present and the future will take care of itself. The future has already done so, I am convinced, because I look out at all of you today and I see the future and it looks so good.

Samuel Butler once said, “Life is like playing a violin in solo in public and learning the instrument as one goes along.” That sounds terrifying, doesn’t it, and difficult too. But somehow you have always known that that way lies music. Look in the mirror tonight. Who is that man? Who is that woman? She is the work of your life. He is its greatest glory, not some out there, they, view of what he or she ought to be. I know you will not dare to diss them by dressing them up in someone else’s spiritual clothing. So pick up your violin and lift your bow and play, play your heart out, live well, because you are our role models."

WOW! Feeling a little Crispy.... Or "You want that on whole wheat, white, or rye Toast?"

2008-02-09T23:30:00.000-08:00

TO RSVP Please Use Email Link: [OFFICIAL WOW RSVP EMAIL LINK].; Thank! & take care...

My Dad is fighting cancer. He's like a bouncing ball. When he hits the floor he's in the ICU or ER. Then he recovers, and he's functional again, and he's flying through the air. We're trying to help him spend more time in the free air. He says he's not an invalid. He has bestead all the odds. He's functional. Who am I to say he can't if he can? We've setup in home care to lessen the hard bounce off the floor.

I think I have joined the ranks of the Sandwich Generation. JP told me this when we had lunch on Teusday. I now think "well if I'm a sandwich then I'm a toasted sandwich"; I definitely feel a little toasty.

When we visited Dad today, later after he said "your being here means so much to me"; he said to my sons: "I hear you're having a tough time in some of your courses at school. Well you have to remember to keep on trying. Just keep trying and trying and eventually you'll have an epiphany; and, you'll get it. That's what happened to me".

It was so uplifting to me to hear those words. They define me. I breath those words.

Then I remembered I had a WOW tonight... Doh!! My folks used to say "you can't spread yourself too thin like butter on toast"... Trying to be two places at the same time is not simple...

OK, actually I remembered before that -- but it sounds good for dramatic effect. Vic called me at 5:35pm just as I was walking in the door. I spoke on the cell in the hallway. Jim called me to talk of other things at 8:36pm. So I was on the phone a bit in the presence of my dad.

When I got home I found Gwen's message. Gwen called the house and left a message at 7pm.

To manage the crispy feeling, I now think, I now know, that I need an RSVP before I'll show up for the WoW. I need a quorum. You can contact me via my email [Email Link]. You can call me using the phone number in the order of service or directory. And let me know that you're going to attend. If I don't hear from anyone before Saturday Morning then we are in "At a Mutually Agreed upon Time" Mode.

I definitely want to arrange to meet anyone who wants to be welcomed and who wants to talk about becoming a member of this great community -- which is what the WOW is all about.

We'll arrange the "personalized, flexible, and movable" WOW...

Later when we got home I asked my son: "Do you remember what granddad said?" My dear teenage son who is as tall as me and has bigger feet said "something about school?". You got to love him for his honesty. I told him what granddad said in what I hope was a gentle and loving manner.

Just keep swimming.

There's no place like change.
There's no place like change.

The most important manifestation of change is the act of learning...

Learning and loving are very intertwined...

Next Stop Abilene...

Thanks! & take care,
Adam

SCUU WOW: Our Mission Statement

2008-02-08T08:24:00.000-08:00

Sugarloaf Congregation
of Unitarian Universalists
is a spiritual Community
that welcomes questions,
explores answers,
and shares the lessons of life.
We celebrate theological and cultural diversity
and are united by our caring for humanity
and the earth.

Please note: The link "Our Mission Statement" also appears on the "About Us" page... http://www.scuu.org/aboutUs.html

WOW -- Cheer up; we’re only happy when we’re miserable...

2008-02-01T18:36:00.000-08:00

I found this article a while back. It's not often that you find a person willing to argue with a published GOD, and being a good UU I always like a decent arguement, so when I read these paragraphs I reached for the blog:

"More objectionable than anything else is Lencioni’s thesis that “the universal causes of anguish and frustration at work” are: (1) Anonymity. Management shows little interest in you, your background or your life; (2) Irrelevance. You have no idea your work matters to anyone; and (3) Immeasurement. You have no objective way of gauging your performance.

My objections, conveniently, are threefold: (1) “immeasurement” is not a word; (2) While “anonymity”, “irrelevance” and “immeasurement” can make people unhappy, they do not do so “universally”. If you simply see work as a way of making money, then these qualities could make a job attractive; (3) There are evidently more than three signs of a miserable job and to discover how many more you need only ask some miserable friends and colleagues."

It's enough to make an absurdist existenstialist UU with sort of quaker leanings cry.

Everybody sing "Put On A Happy Face" Link to Article

WOW!! The Greater UU Community!! The SCUU Digest Part II Section 3

2008-02-01T18:07:00.000-08:00

GREATER UU COMMUNITY BASED ANNOUNCEMENTS

Seeking Administrator: River Road Unitarian Universalist Congregation seeks a Director of Administration. See job description at www.rruuc.org. Send resume to job@rruuc.org.

7th Annual Music and Worship Arts Festival: February 23, 2008, 9-4, Unitarian Society of Germantown, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. $35 Early Bird Registration (through February 17) (includes food and music). Workshops! Singing! Music! Worship!
Workshops for lay leaders and religious professionals on exciting and useful topics. Join over one hundred fellow musicians and worship leaders for an all-day festival that will send you home singing. Contact Kathy Smith by e-mail at essandell@yahoo.com.

JPD Women and Religion and The Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Pottstown
invite you to the 2nd Annual Drumming Circle for Women to be held on March 8th, 2008 from 10am to 1pm. Mid-session snack and beverages will be provided. Childcare will be arranged with advance notification of need. Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Pottstown, 1565 S. Keim Street, Pottstown, PA 19465. http://www.uupottstown.org/ for directions
or google the street address. Further information will be posted as it becomes available.
Check our web site: http://www.jpdwr.org

JPD Workshop - Voices of Justice, Hands of Change: March 28-30, 2008
Doubletree Hotel, Bethesda, MD. Join neighboring UUs, for a weekend of leadership development, UU worship, inspiration, and celebration. The conference will include Childcare, Elementary, and Middle School programs, plus select workshops for High School Youth and a full-length Bridging Program for graduating high school seniors. Bring the whole family! Look for registration information and workshop descriptions in early February, 2008. Workshop proposals and volunteer applications are due January 2, 2008. Check http://jpduua.org for updates and previews.

For more JPD announcements, check out http://www.jpduua.org/pages/jpd-packet-2008.php

The current edition of Interconnections is available online at: http://www.uua.org/publications/interconnections/index.shtml

WOW!! The 2 Service Task Force Strikes Back!! The SCUU Digest Part II Section 2

2008-02-01T18:04:00.000-08:00

SPECIAL REPORT OF THE 2 SERVICES TASK FORCE

(12/07 VERSION MODIFIED)

The mission of this group is to present to the Board a plan for the transition to 2 services. The task force held its third meeting on December 16, 2007.

What is happening?
The SCUU Board asked this Task Force to consider the reasons for and against going to two services, to determine what would be needed to do so, and to present a proposal to the Board.

Why go to 2 services?
The Task Force feels that going to two serv ices would allow SCUU to offer its members and the community additional opportunities for worship, fellowship, and religious education. Going to two services would help SCUU grow, help relieve overcrowding in RE, and make us more welcoming to visitors.

What is currently proposed?· A start date of March 16, 2008 is being considered – this is the first anniversary of our moving into the yurt and would be a wonderful time to publicize this new transition and to celebrate our growth.
· Going back to a single service in the summer when attendance is usually reduced is recommended. This would allow time to identify any glitches and work them out during the summer before restarting two services in the fall.
· Having the two services at 9:15 and 11:15 is also recommended. The experience of other churches suggests that both times should be different from 10:30, an hour in between is ideal, and having start times other than on-the-hour may encourage people to be on time.

How can you get more information and express your opinion on this?· Read each month’s update on the 2-services Task Force in the SCUU Digest and newsletter.
· Talk to a task force member.
· Attend a special Congregational Conversation on Sunday, January 6 at noon.

The January 6th meeting included:

One-page handouts showing the basics of the proposal.
· Full proposals.
· A Task Force representative to walk everyone through the one-page proposal.
· An impartial facilitator to guide questions and answers with two members of the task force taking notes on flipcharts.
· The notes were transcribed into minutes to be sent out to the congregation and provided to the board along with the proposal, for discussion at the January 7 board meeting.
· The board will decide at its January 7 meeting whether to accept, reject, or modify the proposal. This has been changed. The Board decided to submit the question to the congregation for a vote. See, special notice of Congregational Meeting, above.

WOW!! We're Not Standing Still!! The SCUU Digest Part II Section 1

2008-02-01T18:02:00.000-08:00

When you sign the visitor log and give your email address to us, you become one with the SCUU communication machinery. One cog in the machinery is the SCUU Digest. The digest used to be published by a single brave soul. Now we've "automated" it in a file that as a community we update. The file then get's blasted out on a weekly basis via email. Or to paraphrase George Carlin, "That's not stuff, that's my announcements."

Here at this moment in time is the latest Digest. I'm breaking it up and serializing it into three blog entries; Sections 1, 2, & 3...

I now have this vision of the beginning of each Star Wars movies with the words scrolling off into starry space and the orchestra playing. Only now I see the digest... It helps to sing or hmm the music as you read -- just not too loud or people will stare. Help SCUU Digest your our only hope....

ANNOUNCEMENTS

SCUU Meetings: Congregational Discussion February 3, Board February 4, 7:30; Sunday Services February 5, 7:00; ***Congregational Meeting, February 10, Noon, Choir Wednesdays at 7:15; Spirituality Group February 12, 7:30; Oakley Circle, January 29, 7:30.

Upcoming Services: February 3 – Mental Health and Mental Illness in Our Lives, Consulting Interim Minister Myron Andes; February 10 – Evolution Sunday: Do Those Words Go Together? Consulting Interim Minister Myron Andes; February 17 – “Don’t Go Back to Sleep!” Consulting Interim Minister Myron Andes; February 24 – "African American History and Music” Lay-led by Chris Hager with the Takoma Park Community Band.

Community Concert and Sing-along: February 1 (tonight) at 7:30 pm, bring a Snack to Share. At the Yurt! Sponsored by the SCUU Choir
.
Next Wow, Second Saturday of the Month, February 9. Orientation begins at 5:30. We encourage everyone, especially new friends, new members & visitors, to attend a WOW and to join a Circle. For details: Contact Adam Styles; or Google "Sugarloaf WOW" or “SCUU WOW. or go to http://scuuwow.blogspot.com/

Congregational Discussion: February 3, Noon. Open topic.

Special Notice of Congregational Meeting: February 10, 2008, Noon. Note from Jean Carr -- As we all know, our lovely yurt will eventually become too small for our burgeoning congregation and we will have to have 2 services to accommodate our growth. We have all talked about our many ideas about when this should happen and it is clear that an important decision like this should be made by congregational vote. Therefore, we are announcing an official congregational meeting at noon on February 10, 2008 to discuss and then vote.

To facilitate a discussion of all of your ideas, I would appreciate it if those of you with suggestions about this would e-mail me a short description of the choice you currently favor (I really mean short). We will lay out all the options, discuss them all and then vote. My new e-mail address is: jecarr@ihv.umaryland.edu I look forward to seeing you all on February 10.

At this meeting, we will also be presenting the Growth Plan and the UUA Grant application (which requires congregational vote).

Spirituality Group meets February 12 at 7:30 in the house. The topic is shared music. Bring a couple of your favorite songs to share. Sign up at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/scuuspirit/ to receive e-mails relating to Spirituality Group and Oakley Circle gatherings.

Newsletter Content: Please send, by the 15th of the month, newsletter text to Kathy at kathbell666@yahoo.com and hi-res pictures to Marida at marida@dogdaysgraphics.com.

Oakley Circle: March 18, 7:30. Celebration of Spring Equinox. This is an open pagan circle that shares in a variety of ceremonies and rituals. Sign up at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/scuuspirit/ to receive e-mails relating to Spirituality Group and Oakley Circle gatherings.

Hymnal Drive: Ongoing. Sugarloaf Congregation of Unitarian Universalists needs more hymnals, “Singing the Journey” for use during services. For a donation of $12.80, you can give a gift that will keep giving for many years in many ways. Your name or someone you wish to be remembered will be on the nameplate of your gift to SCUU as a thank you. Please contact Gwen Stamper, Music Director, with your gift. We will apply this to our order for a quantity discount. You will be supplied with a receipt upon request.

Coffeehouses: Peter Mayer, Marianna Previti & Annette Wasilik: Saturday March 15, 2008, 7:30pm, Open Mic 7:00pm (reservations recommended) Suggested Donation: $15.00; Jennifer Cutting's Ocean Quartet - April 19; Wishing Chair - May 17; Emma's Revolution - September 20th

Equality Maryland Lobby Day: February 11. For the past 4 years, SCUU has sent a group of people to Annapolis to lobby our delegates and senator for equal rights for lesbian, gay and transgendered people. Lobby Day is organized by Equality Maryland (www.equalitymaryland.org) and consists of a rally to gather constituents to the correct district, and then all of the district constituents have appointments to meet with their 2 delegates and senator. Lobbying is in the early evening, and we usually carpool to Annapolis. If you are interested in attending, let me know and I will make sure you are included. Jean Carr (jecarr@ihv.umaryland.edu).

Thanksgiving in February -- Dine Out Tuesday February 26 and some percentage of proceeds will go to Interfaith Works (including Germantown HELP). Contact Chris Hager by February 10 if you are interested in forming a group. Go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/scuu_announcements/files/ and click on “Thanksgiving” for a list of participating restaurants.

Note to Committee Chairs: Please check your mail box at the end of the hall, past the bathrooms. Thank you.

Special Request for Books -- From Este Armstrong: One of my elementary school runs services a poor part of Rockville. Yesterday, I put some of the elementary level books that Cecilia and Josephine used to read out on my dashboard. I was surprised at how much the kids on the bus wanted the books. Half of my riders are boys and all of my books targeted girls. Also I didn’t have easy readers for the very young. Alphabet books would be awesome!! If anyone has books that your kids have outgrown and can give them to me to pass out, I’d appreciate that! And the kids would, too.

Playground Task Force: Green bins are for equipment donations.

Food and Toiletries Collection: Please drop off food and toiletries in the clear plastic boxes usually located in the Yurt.

Take the SCUU Green Sanctuary Challenge! SCUU (through the Green Sanctuary Committee) is volunteering to help preserve our country's energy resources and fight against global warming by encouraging our members, families, and friends to change at least one light at home to one that has earned the government's Energy Star rating. SCUU is doing this as part of the national Energy Star Change a Light, Change the World campaign. Go to http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?fuseaction=cal.pledgeForm and click on “Join Us! Take the Pledge” to fill out the form. Be sure to choose Sugarloaf Congregation of Unitarian Universalists from the “Which organization” drop box to properly credit your pledge to SCUU. You may count bulbs that you have replaced since Earth Day 2007 toward your pledge as long as you haven’t already counted them in the Change a Light campaign. We will report our progress toward the goal in future Green Corner articles.

Adult Advisors: For Youth Program activities. High school group in development. Contact us! Lynda Warner, tlwarner@hotmail.com or 301-466-7418.

Caring Committee: Volunteers needed to help fellow members of the congregation on a short term basis.

Giant Debit Cards: Betsy Riggs sells Giant Debit cards in $100s, $50s, and $20s. SCUU makes 4%. See, Betsy Riggs (3-wheeled walker) by the piano in the house.

Germantown Help: Drivers wanted to deliver groceries on the 1st Wednesday of the month. Only 1-2 hours of your time (later afternoon or evening) can assist this major social justice project of SCUU. Contact Kathleen Walker, dillerdwellers3@verizon.net.

Landscaping: Volunteers needed to care for grounds, cut the grass and help with landscaping tasks. Contact Min Kyung Kim or Arlin Stoltzfus

Nurture Your Spirit. Help Heal Our World!!

2008-01-20T07:45:00.000-08:00

Rev. Dr. Richard Speck, District Executive of the Joseph Priestley District writes:

Many people have found that this new tagline beautifully expresses the essence of our faith tradition. In fact, there are anecdotes of people seeing the banner and coming to church because it summed up what they were looking for in their lives.

Equality Maryland Lobby Day in Annapolis!

2008-01-20T07:41:00.001-08:00

To All:

For the past 4 years, SCUU has sent a group of people to Annapolis to lobby our delegates and senator for equal rights for lesbian, gay and transgendered people. Lobby Day is organized by Equality Maryland (www.equalitymaryland.org) and consists of a rally to gather constituents to the correct district, and then all of the district constituents have appointments to meet with their 2 delegates and senator.

This year Lobby Day is Monday, February 11. Lobbying is in the early evening, and we usually carpool to Annapolis. If you are interested in attending, let me know and I will make sure you are included.

Jean K. Carr
SCUU

Take the SCUU Green Sanctuary Challenge!

2008-01-20T07:31:00.000-08:00

SCUU (through the Green Sanctuary Committee) is volunteering to help preserve our country's energy resources and fight against global warming by encouraging our members, families, and friends to change at least one light at home to one that has earned the government's Energy Star rating. SCUU is doing this as part of the national Energy Star Change a Light, Change the World campaign.

Go to http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?fuseaction=cal.pledgeForm and click on “Join Us! Take the Pledge” to fill out the form.

Be sure to choose Sugarloaf Congregation of Unitarian Universalists from the “Which organization” drop box to properly credit your pledge to SCUU. You may count bulbs that you have replaced since Earth Day 2007 toward your pledge as long as you haven’t already counted them in the Change a Light campaign. We will report our progress toward the goal in future Green Corner articles.

Freecyclers of the World Unite!! Special Request for Books!!

2008-01-20T07:00:00.001-08:00

Request From Este: "One of my elementary school runs services a poor part of Rockville. Yesterday, I put some of the elementary level books that Cecilia and Josephine used to read out on my dashboard. I was surprised at how much the kids on the bus wanted the books. Half of my riders are boys and all of my books targeted girls. Also I didn’t have easy readers for the very young. Alphabet books would be awesome!! If anyone has books that your kids have outgrown and can give them to me to pass out, I’d appreciate that! And the kids would, too."

Simplify Your Life Part IV: Downsizing Dad

2008-01-19T08:58:00.000-08:00

I helped my dad move out of the house my family lived in after I moved away to college into an apartment. During our moves, I was known to say "it's toast" when asked if we should keep something. I became the judge and jury for deciding whether to carry stuff over the state line. Dad had veto power but the laws of physics usually prevailed. The law of physics rhetorical question: "Where are you going to put it?"

When the movers showed up they said "oh no, no, we can't take anything from the house because we don't chose what to move. We move everything we see. We move all. You have to have everything we are not to move out of the house." I showed up the next day for "clean up" -- silly me -- and discovered the move had not taken place. I was under the false hope that all the toast was gone. Dad had already filled one tractor trailer dumpster with stuff and had it hauled it away. But clearly there was more.

Revelation #1: Forget about renting a truck. The movers will return Monday. There's too much. There's little time, must hire hauler. Must sort and make piles: pitch, give, keep, store, and take.

Revelation #2: We can throw stuff that rises to the level of "toast" out the second story window onto the driveway! We made a huge pile.

Revelation #3: After hauling two piles of stuff away we still had stuff to throw into storage; and we had a piano we needed to get rid of...

Revelation #4: We will give the piano my mom bought to someone who wants it. Family legend -- Mom bought it for $5.00 at a yard sale.

To give is to recycle: Green Toast...

Simplify Your Life Part III: Word of the Day Freecycle

2008-01-19T08:50:00.000-08:00

I was definitely inspired by the Green Sanctuary Committee's service "The Impact of Unsustainable Living" on January 13th.

I've found myself thinking about a lot of "stuff"...

The yin and the yang; the pro and the con; the point and the counterpoint of Freecycle:

Freecycle Point: "Meet Auntie Clutter" Link [Checkout the FAQ too..]

Freecycle Counterpoint: "The Simple Family" Link [lots of comments]

Please note: Rachel has many more green points than counterpoints. Rachel in "The Simple Family" Blog writes: "Our goal is simple: to simplify and green our lives. How far is simple enough? We haven’t decided that yet. What is our “shade” of green? Don’t know that, either. Come along for the journey; maybe you’ll learn something with us."

Simplify Your Life Part II: That's Not Stuff That's Our Yard Sale!!

2008-01-19T08:35:00.000-08:00

Many moons ago we at Sugarloaf invented the "quick and dirty" yard sale. We would wait till the River Road Unitarian Universalist Congregation Yard Sale had finished. Then we would arrange with the dear yard sale organizers of River Road to pick up everything they did not sell. Our caravan of cars, vans, and trucks would show up at River Road just as their yard sale was winding down. We would bring it back to the Fellowship Hall and sell it at our "quick and dirty" yard sale. We made very good money. After our yard sale we would give away unsold items; the clothes to consignment shops, and all the rest to Goodwill.

Our method resulted in more "stuff diversity". We were small back then and it's hard to get a critical mass of stuff for a yard sale with a small group of people. Plus we were doing a public service for the community and for River Road. The River Road yard sale is HUGE and structured like a department store!!

We felt like we were not wasting any portion of the great web of stuff.

We are very grateful to River Road for all the Stuff...

Simplify Your Life: "Giving It Away" - To Give is Better Than to Pitch.

2008-01-19T08:15:00.000-08:00

Many households in my neighborhood can't park the car or cars in the garage because there's too much stuff in the garage. The garage is no longer a garage it's a stuff collector; stuffed with stuff.

We had a yard sale to clear out our garage when it almost got to the point we could not park the cars in the garage. I've discovered that there's more giveaway to a Yard Sale than sell. At the end of the yard sale what do you do? You give the stuff to anyone or any organization that will take it. Around here the default organizations are Goodwill and Salvation Army.

I saw this article a while back it was very inspiring to me; it was the first time I saw the words "craplock" and "freecycle" -- "Giving It Away" by Michelle Gienow Baltimore City Paper Link. Everyone Sing "may the link stay unbroken by and by lord by and by"...

Please note: We can park in our garage.

The Movable WOW -- The Road to Abilene Part II

2008-01-18T08:23:00.000-08:00

The WOW is held on the Second Saturday of the Month.

Sometimes many people show up, some times I am at the Sugarloaf house waiting for someone to show up. One could construe that a WOW with only me at the Sugarloaf house means the WOW did not work. Actually I'm a Zen optimist type of guy so if I'm sitting or standing alone in the Sugarloaf house in restful solitude after a hard long day of living; I say the WOW worked.

This past January WOW I was at the Sugarloaf house waiting and Vic called. We had a wonderful conversation.

We're flexible. If the Second Saturday doesn't work for you we have something new. We're having a Movable WOW, I've arranged to meet with Monica B. and Jennifer I. in the next couple of weeks. If you're interested let me know. We are going to pick a quiet restaurant and WOW.

My phone number is in the order of service and the announcements. You can reach me by email via this WOW!! E-mail Me! Link

Also please check the SCUU Calendar: SCUU Calendar Link

The WOW Road to Abilene Link... I was in Texas this last month for business. Texas is a large flat state. I regret not visiting Abilene; maybe next time.

WOW Thoughts Link

Thanks! & take care

Feeding The Bears

2008-01-18T07:35:00.000-08:00

I saw this in the New York Times Magainze and thought it was a great metaphor for all things one may try to control (bad habits, overindulgence, work, clients, teenagers, drivers on highway, etc., and of course with the elections coming up...)

"Bear managers and park wardens have tried aversive conditioning before: in Banff, for instance, they used to drive up to bears eating roadside vegetation and blast them with water cannons. But as St. Clair points out, that kind of hazing not only violates several principles of animal learning theory (among them, that punishment should be immediate, consistent and not signaled in advance); all it ultimately teaches the bear is that, through a series of our bylaws, the only humans who will hurt it are humans in uniforms arriving in trucks between the hours of 9 and 5. According to St. Clair, hazing also ignores a breakthrough in animal psychology known as the Garcia Principle (after John Garcia's work with rats in the 1970s), which suggests that, no matter how hard you try, you may never be able to get an animal to associate food with pain. "It makes complete sense," St. Clair says. "In terms of survival, a bear has had no evolutionary reason to associate food with danger."

From "The Bears Among Us" by Darcy Frey, New York Times Magazine, November 25, 2007

I ask: What is your inner bear? What is your inner Park Warden? What is your food?

Here's another UU in the News Article: Hey Wait I Have A New Complaint!! or If I had a Hammer!!

2007-11-30T07:45:00.000-08:00

When I first saw this not one but rather two songs went through my head; two songs come to mind...

UU World writes: "If I Had a Hammer: UU Mona Shaw made headlines after she expressed her displeasure with the quality of Comcast's customer service by visiting her wrath upon the local Comcast office's equipment with a hammer. Though not endorsing her actions, Washington Post staff writer Neely Tucker calls Shaw an "avenger of oppressed cable subscribers everywhere."

UU World Link: http://www.uuworld.org/news/2007_10_14_archive.php

The Post Link: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/10/17/AR2007101702359_pf.html

WOW: Blessed are the Moonbats

2007-11-30T07:06:00.000-08:00

I saw this article in the Post a while back. I lost the article and then I found it on the UU World New archives.

Per our by-laws Surgarloaf (SCUU) is not a political organization. Sugarloaf (SCUU) is a religious organization dedicated to a free and responsible search for truth and meaning. When representing Sugarloaf, we can speak about specific issues. However, when acting on behalf of Sugarloaf, we can not favor one political party over another. [For link to article see Step 3 below]

Sometimes it's difficult to see how a political organization can ever be dedicated to a free and responsible search for truth and meaning.

As members of SCUU we covenant to affirm and promote a free and responsible search for truth and meaning. We also covenant to affirm and promote the goal of world community with peace, liberty and justice for all...

UU World writes: "Virginia Republican Rep. Tom Davis received a less-than-warm welcome when he attended a meeting of Americans Against Escalation in Iraq at the Accotink UU Church in Burke, Va. (The Washington Post - 8.24.07)"

For those interested in the logic of the seeker, my search went like this...

Step 1 - the google search: http://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&ie=UTF-8&rls=GGLG,GGLG:2006-23,GGLG:en&q=tom+davis+burke+unitarian+post

Step 2 - the specific UU World News archive link: http://www.uuworld.org/news/2007_08_26_archive.php

Step 3 - the article in the post that I lost and found: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/08/23/AR2007082302011.html?hpid=topnews

We love. We love peace.

Ich bin ein Moonbat...

WOW UU News from UU World

2007-11-30T06:56:00.000-08:00

I was looking for a couple of articles that I had saved in the newspaper pile at my house. I have a pile in chronological order that go back about a week. At the bottom I keep the articles I want to save. One or two of the articles were used for an art project so I lost them. I was looking around for the lost articles on the web and found this link. For UU related news this is awesome. I can recycle my newspapers knowing I can find the articles on the great world wide web of life; cool... Joy...

UU World News Link: http://www.uuworld.org/news/blog.php

What's black and white and green all over? Recycled newspaper!!

WOW: YouTube - Why I Am Unitarian Universalist (Part 1)

2007-11-30T06:49:00.000-08:00

Vic writes: If you have not checked out YouTube lately, this is some amazing material. Enjoy!

You Tube Link: http://youtube.com/watch?v=15R3EFI3BJU&mode=related&search=

WOW! No Need For Temples

2007-08-14T17:30:00.000-07:00

WOW a quote I saw in Kathy's email:

"There is no need for temples, no need for complicated philosophies. My brain and my heart are my temples; my philosophy is kindness." - Dalai Lama

Works for me...

WOW! Kewl! -- Progress On A/C

2007-08-14T00:05:00.000-07:00

To All:

The A/C that Hugh installed on Friday passed its Sunday morning test with flying colors! Many thanks to Hugh and Spence - I think we're OK for now.

Jean

Please Stop the Wars!!

2007-08-12T00:14:00.000-07:00

This plea falls under the heading of "Love Thy Enemy Implies Don't Kill Them."

For those keeping track here's a profound link #1. and another profound link #2.

All can be found here at profound link #3.

Yet another profound link #4.

I still like the Global Thou Shalt Not Kill Day; or maybe it should be a Month or Year or Century or Millennium...

Remember: Peace is Patriotic!!

Ah Sweet Lovable Nature! -- Be Mindful of Stray Kittens

2007-08-12T00:10:00.000-07:00

Speaking of rabies;

I remember seeing another article of a neighborhood that had to get rabies shots because some one found a cute little kitten and everyone pet it and touched it without taking it to the vet first. [Link to Kitten story]

This reminds me of a great book I used to read to my daughter and sons when they were little on how we should respect nature; remember we are a part of nature and be mindful that knowledge is useful: "There's a Hair In My Dirt" Book [Link]. I got to teach them irony -- a useful tool. Often we say the ironic refrain: "Ah sweet lovable nature".

Please be aware that Nancy is a member of our congregation and a vet; seek her learned advice.

Usually if I See a Fox It's a Bad Sign...

2007-08-12T00:02:00.000-07:00

Nevermind the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club, around February when I look out the window and see a fox the last several years it signified a rather volatile year; a year of much change. One year I saw a fox face off against a wild turkey; another year I saw three foxes in the snow chasing down a rabbit; and yet another year the fox walked up to our bird feeder in the back yard and marked the area -- like he owned the place. Each time I experienced massive disruptive change -- volatile with a capital "V".

This year in February I saw a dead fox by the side of the road on Clopper. I'm not sure how to interpret a dead fox. The practical pragmatic non-superstitious realist in me says: "It's a dead fox and part of the web of life".

This year there is another fox story; a fox story about an incredible act of bravery by a 5 year old [Link #1 to Fox Story]... [Link #2 to Fox Story] I read somewhere else that earlier in the day the fox had attacked a little girl in a nearby neighborhood. The theory was that the boy had fought off the same fox.

Thanks! & take care & be safe

Hey All You Daugthers and Sons of Sisyphus! Watch Your Toes!

2007-08-11T23:59:00.000-07:00

For any and all who work to sustain Sugarloaf Congregation of Unitarian Universalist I ask: is our task Herculean or of Atlas?

No I perfer Sisyphus...

which relates to quote -- The gods had condemned Sisyphus to ceaselessly rolling a rock to the top of a mountain, whence the stone would fall back of its own weight. They had thought with some reason that there is no more dreadful punishment than futile and hopeless labor.
Albert Camus Quote Link

and Camus's essay Link.

The essay concludes "The struggle itself is enough to fill a man's heart. One must imagine Sisyphus happy."

I like the toes metaphor...[LINK!]

May we all find great happiness and keep our toes intact while rolling the rock together...

From JP: Reasons to eat more Rhubarb

2007-08-11T23:52:00.000-07:00

I ran across this quotation:
"Because of its intense tartness, rhubarb is usually combined with a considerable amount of sugar."

Reading some of the comments on this page is funny:
Reasons to eat more Rhubarb Link #1

Consider the Rhubarb Link

Particularly this one from the Daily Mail: "Rhubarb's in the pink; It's eye-wateringly sour and reminds us of hideous school dinners. But suddenly it's selling like hot crumble. .."

And here's an interesting article - happily it seems the root and not the stalk is the medicinal part of rhubarb:
Reasons to eat more Rhubarb Link #2

Please note: some of the original links were broken so I substituted a few that appeared close in content to the originals.

A Whiteboard Stands on a Wooden Tripod in the Woods...

2007-08-11T23:28:00.000-07:00

One of the first retreats I helped organize was at Little Bennett Park. A bunch of us were to have a workshop in the woods and then a campfire and singing. We were also suppose to have games too.

Bob Johnsen the presenter of the workshop set up the whiteboard and I could see people looking at each other and saying "wait a minute I thought we were going to have fun"...

Bob drew three concentric circles and said "the outer circle are visitors and people who attend the services and are people who are new to the congregations; and odds are they are new to Unitarian Univeralism; they are often passive participants. The next circle are people who actively join committees, or help on fundraisers, or join the choir, or teach RE, or help in the worship service; or help on the newsletter; or help with social justice and community out reach programs. The inner circle the bullseye are the leaders; the people who are on the board; and the lay leaders"...

While Bob spoke someone said "What happens next? Where do the people in the inner circle go?";

and, someone else said "Oh they burn out and leave"..

Bob's next question cut through the side discussion: "What do we call these people? What name do we give these people?" I believe Bob spoke of the inner circle.

I think at that moment Chuck said without missing a beat: "George"... Chuck would not miss a beat because he's an awesome musician and he once sang the song by Tom Waits called "Step Right Up". If you know the song then you are in profound awe right now...

And that became the shorthand for anyone who got burned out and the only way they saw to escape the concentric circles was to run screaming into the night.

They become "George"...

Of course people may also have left because they had to move, or they found another path, or they liked watching cartoons on Sunday morning; but i digress.

Here's the point: if we had to chose between you leave because you did not want to become a member; or you leave because you burn out; or you stay as a friend; then we would always chose that you stay as a friend...

The free and responsible search for truth and meaning is a marathon; please pace yourself. Remember you are not alone; we are here to support each other; there are others here to help. Slow down when you have to...

Please note: we did have a great time singing songs and eating somemores that night. And subsequent retreats were very much skewed towards fun...

Thanks! & take care & be well,

Digest News: The Following Post Has a Techie Geek Alert Level 4...

2007-08-11T23:06:00.000-07:00

The issue before the SCUU techies, a merry band of techies, "Can we automatically generate the digest from the announcements that go into the order of service, the blog, or our online calendar?"

JP writes: "Yahoo Groups is oriented towards group use. It is also ad-driven and does not support calendar merging the last time I checked. Google Calendar seems powerful and explicitly supports multiple calendars; I had hoped the calendars would be set up along functional (committee) rather than geographic (i.e. rooms) lines but perhaps that can be revisited.

http://www.google.com/intl/en/googlecalendar/tour4.html
and
http://www.google.com/intl/en/googlecalendar/tour5.html

Google in particular seem to address sharing calendars effectively and subscribing to calendars.

http://www.google.com/support/calendar/bin/answer.py?answer=41208&topic=8606

addresses sharing with the world; if the calendars for the different committees/rooms/whatevers were all under ONE google ID, then the shared calendar for that one google ID would display all events from all calendars.

Regarding "resource calendars" (i.e. rooms), the following topics provide guidance (again, this seems to be within one google ID, but I could be wrong):

http://www.google.com/support/calendar/bin/answer.py?answer=44108&topic=8606
and

http://www.google.com/support/calendar/bin/answer.py?answer=44105&topic=8605

Regarding notification, that seems to be the major downfall of Google Calendar, but I haven't researched this in depth. It seems that folks who (a) have a google ID, and (b) subscribe to a calendar would receive notifications, but that's unclear to me. There are export options which would allow us to export events to another application and send out announcements using that feed. I am especially wary of creating an email per calendar change; we've successfully kept people on the announcements list by controlling the volume of email. However, a dump once or twice a week could work provided we (calendar updaters) are disciplined about
formatting event info consistently.

Sorry if I'm dragging people through options and functionality that has already been fully researched."

Spence writes: "Perhaps you're correct about the committee versus the resource. I can see advantages either way and I am willing to change if people what to. At the time most people (in my perhaps faulty memory and/or judgement) liked the color coding on the rooms. It can refuse to give you a room if its already reserved, a slight advantage. But I'm happy to revisit, especially if we need more security; having it done by committee would have traceability.

As far as notices, you can set them up to notify your (calendar owner) email of new events, and I think It's set up that way (I just picked that) but it goes to google@scuu.org which I don't see.

But I would think that we could easily (well, feasibly) auto forward those emails to a google group(s) that then did a digest weekly. We'd want people to always put nice notes in the calendar and even then we might get formatting problems in the digest - it would probably have irrelevant email headers on every digest message.

Just a few thoughts."

JP writes:

"Google Groups was more analogous to Usenet for a long long time, but the new functionality looks great and largely similar (although even better I think) than Yahoo! Groups. I can mass-add the addresses from the prior list, so translating them over may not be a big deal. We get RSS feeds for free!

I think we can use resource calendars for the rooms, but that makes sense only if we use one google ID, rather than different ones for all the committees. Personally, I'm not worried about different committee chairs messing each other up ;-) eventually, we'll probably have all calendar items go to one person for addition to the calendar anyway.

The forwarding notices sounds like one strategy that could work; another that could work is a calendar export & parse which may be trickier to set up but would give us more control."

Please note: Hopefully we get an answer soon. I like the idea of sending the digest out composed of links to a webpage. We'd still send out the digest weekly. I also like the idea of distributing the creation of the information, the publishing of the information, to many members within the congregation; a decentralized approach.

The wheels keep turning. Hopefully we arrive at a solution soon.

If You See the Buddha In the Street Part II

2007-08-11T22:56:00.000-07:00

No Silly! don't kill him; I don't care if it's a metaphor. Invite him to a wow; and you might want to check out this web site Link.

Would Everyone Please Stop Killing and Hurting Selves and Others!

2007-08-11T22:46:00.001-07:00

I got up at Joys and Concern's a few Sunday's ago and said "I wish everyone would stop killing".

I think we should concentrate as much on "Kindness to Self and Others" as "Danger to Self and Others".

Maybe we should have a Global Thou Shalt Not Kill Day!!

I read a Rolling Stones magazine piece in the latest edition with Zach Ephron on the cover. The article spoke of a gang that was against racist and Nazi's. However the "against racist and Nazi" group would show up at Punk Metal Rock concerts and start fights that resulted in serious injury and sometimes loss of life.

The weird thing was that one of the concerts where fighting broke out was at a Unitarian Church!!!

After reading the words "Unitarian Church" in the middle of the article, I said to myself "that's one congregation and board that has to rethink their music concert policy". Of course I also immediately thought that violence is not a good solution; and I thought -- Would Everyone Please Stop Killing and Hurting Selves and Others!

What a Great Greeting! "You look happy today!"

2007-08-11T22:30:00.000-07:00

I was waiting at the bank to make an offering to the credit gods, a man was in front of me in line and he greeted the teller with the words "You look happy today!".

I think this is a much better greeting than "You look exhausted" or "Are you sick?".

I think affirmations and positive statements are really important.

When my daughter was little I remember her running around like she was powered by something we should harness to solve global warming. Invariably she would try to totally defy the laws of physics and get hurt.

When she got hurt she would look at us with "the look"; I called it "looking for the call" like in baseball when a batter looks at the ump for a call when he doesn't swing. The look asks should I get upset. And if you looked at her in horror or panic she would lose it and cry and cry and cry and feel pain. But if you looked at her and smiled, a smile that said "we love you good try getup and try again", she would go back to playing.

There is of course a caveat to all this; if she really did hurt herself bad by god you were at her side like an army of medical rescue technicians.

The trick was making the right call.

I say for the most part the right call; the courteous call is to say: "WOW you look happy"...

Please note: the story also applies to either one of my sons -- so you can substitue "he" for "she".