Monday, October 31, 2022

Saints + Scripture: All Hallows' Eve

Simplex Edition | Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa!

The Popish Plot
"Theological Truth in Teen Slasher Films"

'Tis the Monday of the Thirty-first Week in Ordinary Time (Tempus per annum, "time through the year"): Wikipedia-link.
Saints of the Day
'Tis the All Hallows' Eve (also spelt Hallowe'en, A.K.A. All Saints' Eve), the vigil of the Solemnity of All Saints.

Commentary: Wayback Machine '21 & Wayback Machine '20.

The Rebel Black Dot Song o' Hallowe'en

They Might Be Giants, "Mysterious Whispers" from Apollo 18 (Mike Papa Whisperer)

Commentary: Hallowe'en isn't frightening, it's fun. You know, for kids.

The Stars My Destination: Theodore C. Freeman

Operation AXIOM: The Space Race—In Memoriam Ted Freeman
Fifty-eight years ago to the day, 31 October 1964, Captain Theodore Cordy "Ted" Freeman, U.S.A.F., died after ejecting from his T-38 Talon, which crashed due to a bird strike; he was selected as part of N.A.S.A. Astronaut Group 3 in October 1963 & was the first member of the Astronaut Corps to perish in man's conquest of space.
The Wayback Machine Tour of Theodore C. Freeman
The Explorers' Club, № DCCLXXX

Bonus! Space Race Song o' the Day: In Memoriam
The Phenomenauts, "Heroes" from For All Mankind (Space Cadet Mike Papa Whiskey)

Requiescat in pace.

Sunday, October 30, 2022

Saints + Scripture: XXXI Sunday in Tempus per annum

Simplex Edition | Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa!
'Tis the Thirty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time (Tempus per annum, "time through the year"): Wikipedia-link.

Commentary: Wayback Machine '21 & Wayback Machine '20.

The Rebel Black Dot Song o' the XXXI Sunday in O.T.

Better Late than Never | Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa!
Thirty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time
Kenny Rogers, "What a Friend We Have in Jesus" from Amazing Grace (Saint Mike Papa Whiskey)

Bonus! Hallowe'en Song o' the Day!

Better Late than Never | Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa!
The Aquabats!, "Mechanical Ape!" from Charge!! Special One Year Anniversary Edition (Captain Thumbs Up!)

Saturday, October 29, 2022

Bonus! Hallowe'en Song o' the Day

They Might Be Giants, "I Am Invisible" from Why? (Mike Papa Wraith)

The Rebel Black Dot Song o' the Day: Go Blue!

Team 143, Game 8: Michigan v. Michigan Agricultural
The University of Michigan Marching Band, "Let's Go Blue" from Forever Valiant (Mike Papa Wolverine)

Commentary: In many ways, playing against our illiterate in-state rivals is a no-win proposition: If the valiant Wolverines prevail, this is no great triumph, merely a restoration of the natural order; if the dastardly Spartans prevail, they will crow about it for the whole next year, because their lives are empty & meaningless except for their envious hatred of us.

Go Blue!

Friday, October 28, 2022

The Explorers' Club, № CMXII

Operation AXIOM: Between the Wars
27-29 October 1922: The March on Rome—Italo Balbo, Michele Bianchi, Emilio De Bono, & Cesare Maria De Vecchi (the Quadrumvirs) lead 25,000 Fascists toward Rome, while Benito Mussolini waited in Milan; King Victor Emmanuel III refused to declare a state of emergency to thwart the Blackshirts; Mussolini was invited to form a cabinet & succeeded Luigi Facta as Prime Minister on 31 October.
Commentary: Mussolini did not personally lead the March on Rome, but he did pose for propaganda photographs. The March on Rome did not immediately establish a Fascist authoritarian dictatorship, but catalyzed Fascism's gradual takeover within the Kingdom of Italy's liberal constitutional order.

Lest we forget.

The Rebel Black Dot Hallowe'en Song o' the Day

George Duning, "Where's Pyewacket?" from Bell, Book,and Candle: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (Mike Papa Wizard)

Thursday, October 27, 2022

Wednesday, October 26, 2022

The Rebel Black Dot Hallowe'en Song o' the Day!

Better Late than Never | Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa!
The Aquabats!, "The Gray Man!" from The Aquabats! B-sides (Captain Thumbs Up!)

Operation ÖSTERREICH — Please Stand By

Weekly Wednesday Weigh-in
Last weigh-in: 332.4 lbs (Wednesday, 31 August)

Tuesday, October 25, 2022

The Explorers' Club, № CMXI

The Porsche 911—In continuous production since September 1964, through eight generations, the 911 debuted as the 901, until Peugeot objected to the name; distinctive for its rear-mounted, flat-six engine, the 911 has endured several attempts by Porsche to replace it; in motorsport, 911s have won races as diverse as the 24 Hours of Le Mans (as the 935 Turbo) & the Dakar Rally (as the 953).
Semper exploro.

The Rebel Black Dot Song o' the Day

Better Late than Never | Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa!
The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, "The Route That I Took" from Pin Points and Gin Joints (Mike Papa Whiskey)

Skammentary:
"Without really knowing I took all the wrong routes,
A misguided monster in the Doc Marten boots,
In the wrong directions, against all of the grains,
Got off at all the wrong stops, back onto all the wrong trains…"

Monday, October 24, 2022

The Rebel Black Dot Song o' the Day

Better Late than Never | Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa!
Reel Big Fish, "Trendy" from Turn the Radio Off (Mike Papa Whiskey)

Skammentary:
"It's not so bad being trendy,
Everyone who looks like me is my friend,
Please don't hate me because I'm trendy,
They're not gonna laugh at me again!…"

Sunday, October 23, 2022

The Rebel Black Dot Song o' the XXX Sunday in O.T.

Better Late than Never | Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa!
Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Melanie Rea, "Come Ye Sinners" from It Is Well: A Collection of Hymns (Saint Mike Papa Whiskey)

Saturday, October 22, 2022

The Explorers' Club, № CMX

Operation AXIOM: Between the Wars—The Russian Civil War, Part IX
25-28 October 1922: The Red Army conquered Vladivostok—Bolshevik forces drove out the Whites from Russia's principal Pacific Ocean port (Sea of Japan); on 15 November, the Far Eastern Republic, a Soviet puppet state, was annexed into the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic; the Far East was spared the ravages of "war communism" & entered into the New Economic Policy.
Commentary: Japan kept its forces in the Russian Far East longer than any of the other Allies. (I regret not yet dedicating any episodes to the ultimately counterproductive Allied intervention in the Russian Civil War.) The Japanese announced in June 1922 their intentions to withdraw by the end of October & the Reds didn't move in to finish off the Whites until after the Japanese evacuation.

Lest we forget.

Bonus! Song o' the Day: Bye Week

"Weird Al" Yankovic, "Sports Song" from Mandatory Fun (Mike Papa Wolverine)

Commentary: The valiant Wolverines of Team 143 have a bye this Saturday, strategically placed the week before the annual contest against "Little Brother," our bitter in-state rivals, the dastardly Spartans of the Michigan Agricultural College.
"In fact, we play teams across the nation,
And you're the worst one we've come across,
Try to assimilate that information
And it just might help you cope with your impending loss.

"Oh, and if somehow, we are still failing
To effectively articulate the points at hand,
Allow us now to summarize them in a manner
That your feeble brains can understand:

"We're great! (We're great!)
And you suck! (You suck!)
We're great! (We're great!)
And you suck! (You suck!)
We're great! (We're great!)
And you suck! (You suck!)
You see, there's us (We're great!),
And then there's you (You suck!)
We're really, really great (Really great!)
In contrast, you really suck (Really suck!)
O.K., full disclosure: We're not that great,
But, nevertheless, you suck!…"
Go Blue!

The Rebel Black Dot Papal Song o' the Day

Dan Potthast, "Pope" from Sweets and Meats (Mike Papa Whiskey)

Commentary:
"…It was like a parade at forty miles an hour,
And the pope zipped past in his see-through car,
And we laughed and we waved and I think he smiled,
It all happened so fast, all the people were chanting:
'John Paul Two, we love you!'…"

Friday, October 21, 2022

Bonus! Song o' the Day

The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, "Don't Worry Desmond Dekker" from Medium Rare (Rude Boy Mike Papa Whiskey)

Skammentary:
"I, I can hear your laughter,
It stays with me after
All this time…"

Saints + Scripture

Simplex Edition | Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa!

The Popish Plot
"Protestantism & Ephraim"
'Tis the Friday of the Twenty-ninth Week in Ordinary Time (Tempus per annum, "time through the year"): Wikipedia-link.

The Rebel Black Dot Song o' the Day

Operation AXIOM: The 12th Anniversary of My Loss on Jeopardy!
"Weird Al" Yankovic, "I Lost on Jeopardy!" from "Weird Al" Yankovic In 3-D (Mike Papa Whiskey)

Commentary: A dozen years ago today—Thursday, 21 October 2010—my episode of Jeopardy! aired on nationally syndicated television.

Thursday, October 20, 2022

Saints + Scripture

Simplex Edition | Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa!

'Tis the Optional Memorial of Saint Paul of the Cross, Priest, C.P. (1694-1775, "God's Hunter of Souls," A.K.A. Paolo Francesco Danei) founder of the Passionists, formally the Congregation of the Passion of Jesus Christ.
Commentary: Wayback Machine.

'Tis the Thursday of the Twenty-ninth Week in Ordinary Time (Tempus per annum, "time through the year"): Wikipedia-link.

Saint Quote o' the Day
"Hopes expands the heart, increases courage, & lovingly places us in the Hands of God."
—Saint Paul of the Cross (1694-1775, feast: 20 October)

Wednesday, October 19, 2022

The Rebel Black Dot Song o' the Day

The Blues Brothers, "She Caught the Katy" from The Blues Brothers: Original Soundtrack Recording (Mike Papa Whiskey)

Operation ÖSTERREICH — Please Stand By

Weekly Wednesday Weigh-in
Last weigh-in: 332.4 lbs (Wednesday, 31 August)
Bonus! Lied von ÖSTERREICH
Fountains of Wayne, "Bright Future in Sales" from Welcome Interstate Managers (Mike Papa Waffle)

Commentary:
"I've gotta get my shit together,
'Cause I can't live like this forever…"

Saints + Scripture

Simplex Edition | Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa!

The Popish Plot
"Pope's Prayer Intention for October 2022"

Commentary:
A Church Open to Everyone

We pray for the Church; ever faithful to, & courageous in preaching the Gospel, may the Church be a community of solidarity, fraternity, & welcome, always living in an atmosphere of synodality.
Saints of the Day
'Tis the Memorial of Saints John de Brébeuf & Isaac Jogues, Priests, & Companions, Martyrs, S.J. (died 1642-1649, A.K.A. the North American Martyrs, the Canadian Martyrs).
Commentary: Wayback Machine.

'Tis the Wednesday of the Twenty-ninth Week in Ordinary Time (Tempus per annum, "time through the year"): Wikipedia-link.

Scripture of the Day
Mass Readings—Wednesday of the Twenty-ninth Week in Ordinary Time
The Letter to the Ephesians, chapter three, verses two thru twelve;
The Book of Isaiah, chapter twelve (R/. cf. three), verses two & three, four(b/c/d), & five & six;
The Gospel according to Luke, chapter twelve, verses thirty-nine thru forty-eight.

Commentary: Daily Readings.

Gospel reflection by Bishop Robert Barron (Word on Fire):
Friends, in today’s Gospel, the Lord urges his disciples and us to be prudent servants, following his ways in anticipation of his coming again. Theologians often call prudence the queen of the virtues because it is the capacity to reign sovereignly over one’s life, both ordering one’s inner powers and directing one’s affairs wisely in the outside world.

Prudence is that sure touch, that moral instinct that renders one capable of making the right decision under pressure and in the face of complex circumstances. Prudence is a sort of accumulated theoretical and practical wisdom, a know-how that is for the most part instinctual, in the bones.

When placed in the Christian context, therefore, prudence is a feel for how Jesus would react, how he would think, how he would move in a particular situation. It is tantamount to having one’s soul gathered around Christ as its center, so that all one’s actions are informed by Jesus and his way of being in the world. Christian prudence comes from apprenticing to Christ—that is to say, moving with him, watching at close quarters how he lives and moves and gestures.
Video reflection by Jem Sullivan, Ph.D. (U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops): Daily Reflection.

Video reflection by Doctor Tim Gray (Augustine Institute/Formed.org): Daily Reflection.


Mass Readings—Memorial of Saints John de Brébeuf, Isaac Jogues, & Companions
The Second Letter to the Corinthians, chapter four, verses seven thru fifteen;
Psalm One Hundred Twenty-six (R/. five), verses one(b/c) & two(a/b), two(c/d) & three, four & five, & six;
The Gospel according to Matthew, chapter twenty-eight, verses sixteen thru twenty.

Commentary: Memorial Readings.

Papal Quote o' the Day
"The Cross was not an accident in the journey made by Jesus. It was an element consciously willed for the redemption of humankind."
—Pope Saint John Paul II the Great (1920-2005, r. 1978-2005; feast: 22 October)
Saint Quote o' the Day
"While [the Blessed Virgin Mary] holds your hand, you cannot fall."
—Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, Doctor of the Church (1090-1153, feast: 20 August)
Mother Teresa Quote o' the Day
"Life is an adventure, dare it."
—Saint Teresa of Calcutta, M.C. (1910-1997, feast: 5 September)
Archbishop Sheen Quote o' the Day
"Everyone else who was ever born into the world, came into it to live; our Lord came into it to die."
—Venerable Fulton Sheen (1895-1979)

Tuesday, October 18, 2022

The Explorers' Club, № CMIX

Operation AXIOM: Destination Moon—The 60th Anniversary of Ranger 5
18 October 1962: Ranger 5 lifted off from Florida's Cape Canaveral Air Force Station atop an Atlas-Agena rocket; fifteen minutes into a flight, a fault disabled the solar panels, giving Ranger 5 only a few hours of battery power; a necessary midcourse correction burn could not be executed, so Ranger 5 missed the Moon entirely (into which it was meant to crash) & eventually entered a heliocentric orbit.
Commentary: The last image is a representation of how the launch of Ranger 5's lunar capsule, which carried a seismograph to gather data from the crash of the main probe with the lunar surface, would have looked. Ranger 5 was the fifth consecutive Ranger mission to fail. Ad astra per aspera, indeed.

Semper exploro.

Saints + Scripture: Feast of Saint Luke

Simplex Edition | Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa!

'Tis the Feast of Saint Luke, Evangelist.

The Rebel Black Dot Song o' the Day

Reel Big Fish, "Everything Sucks" from Turn the Radio Off (Mike Papa Whiskey)

Skammentary: I woke up in a foul mood, prognosticating doom, disaster, & disappointment at every turn. I recognized that I had no reason to be in such an ill humor, & so decided not to be. I don't have, to the best of my knowledge, any neurochemical imbalance that would make me involuntarily depressed; so, joy is a choice, the fruit of the Holy Ghost that I have the terribly freedom to accept or reject. I choose joy. Every now & again, I want to listen to an unapologetically earnest song like Rachel Platten's "Fight Song," but most of the time when I'm in high spirits I want the snark & sarcasm of the Reel Big Fish.
"I know everything sucks, yeah!
I know everything sucks, whoa-o-o!
I know everything suck, yeah!
And this is gonna be the last time you hear me complain…"

Monday, October 17, 2022

The Rebel Black Dot Song o' the Day

Better Late than Never | Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa!

Fountains of Wayne, "Denise" from Utopia Parkway (Mike Papa Whiskey)

Commentary:
"I know this girl named Denise,
She makes me weak at the knees,
She drives a lavender Lexus,
She lives in Queens, but her dad lives in Texas.

"When she holds me,
I can't help myself…

"I heard she used to be married,
She listens to Puff Daddy,
She works at Liberty Travel,
She got a heart made of gravel.

"She controls me,
She can't help herself…"

Saints + Scripture

Simplex Edition | Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa!

'Tis the Memorial of Saint Ignatius of Antioch, Bishop & Martyr.
'Tis the Monday of the Twenty-ninth Week in Ordinary Time (Tempus per annum, "time through the year"): Wikipedia-link.

Saint Quote o' the Day
"I am God's wheat, & I shall be ground by the teeth of beasts, that I may become the pure bread of Christ."
—Saint Ignatius of Antioch (d. 107, feast: 17 October)

Sunday, October 16, 2022

The Rebel Black Dot Song o' the XXIX Sunday in O.T.

Twenty-ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time
The O.C. Supertones, "Perseverance of the Saints" from Supertones Strike Back (Saint Mike Papa Whiskey)

Saints + Scripture: XXIX Sunday in Tempus per annum

Simplex Edition | Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa!
'Tis the Twenty-ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time (Tempus per annum, "time through the year"): Wikipedia-link.

Commentary: Wayback Machine.

Scripture of the Week
Mass Readings—Twenty-ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time
The Book of Exodus, chapter seventeen, verses eight thru thirteen;
Psalm One Hundred Twenty-one (R/. cf. two), verses one & two, three & four, five & six, & seven & eight;
The Second Letter to Timothy, chapter three, verse fourteen thru chapter four, verse two;
The Gospel according to Luke, chapter eighteen, verses one thru eight.

Commentary: Sunday Readings.

Gospel reflection by Bishop Robert Barron (Word on Fire):
Friends, today’s Gospel exhorts us to pray with persistence. This command is everywhere in the Bible. We see it in Abraham’s steady petition on behalf of the people of Sodom. We see it in today’s account of the persistent widow. We hear it in Jesus’ extraordinary teaching: “Knock and the door shall be opened to you; seek and you will find; ask and it will be given to you.”

One reason that we don’t receive what we want through prayer is that we give up too easily. What could be behind this rule of prayer? Augustine said that God sometimes delays in giving us what we want because he wants our hearts to expand. The more ardently we desire something, the more ready we are when it comes, the more we treasure it. The very act of asking persistently is accomplishing something spiritually important. So when the Lord seems slow to answer your prayer, never give up.
Video reflection by Bishop Robert Barron (Word on Fire): Sunday Sermon.

Video reflection by Father Greg Friedman, O.F.M. (U.S.C. of Catholic Bishops): Sunday Reflection.

Video reflection by Doctor Tim Gray (Augustine Institute/Formed.org): Sunday Reflection.

Video reflection by Jeff Cavins (Ascension): Encountering the Word.

Audio reflection by Scott Hahn, Ph.D. (St. Paul Center for Biblical Theology): Breaking the Bread.


Papal Quote o' the Day
"God the Father loves each of you. It is not that He loves you too, but that He lovesyou most of all. His is a love so strong that it melts the hardness of the human heart. His is a justice that is clothed in mercy."
—Pope Saint John Paul II the Great (1920-2005, r. 1978-2005; feast: 22 October)
Saint Quote o' the Day
"What a joy to remember that she is our Mother! Since she loves us, & knows our weakness, what do we have to fear?"
—Saint Thérèse of Lisieux, O.C.D., Doctor of the Church (1873-1897, feast: 1 October)
Mother Teresa Quote o' the Day
"If you were to die today, what would others say about you? What was in you that was beautiful, that was Christlike, that helped others to pray better? Face yourself, with Jesus at your side, & do not be satisfied with just any answer. Go deep into the question. Examine your life."
—Saint Teresa of Calcutta, M.C. (1910-1997, feast: 5 September)
Archbishop Sheen Quote o' the Day
"Sensationalists miss divinity for just that reason: the true religion is always unspectacular. The foolish virgins go & buy oil for their lamps, & when they comeback, they find the Bridegroom already returned. And the door closed. It was so undramatic. A beautiful maiden knocks at the door of an inn, & an innkeeper tells her there is no room. Into the stable she enters, & there a child is born. It was God's entrance into the world. But it was so undramatic."
—Venerable Fulton Sheen (1895-1979)

Saturday, October 15, 2022

The Explorers' Club, № CMVIII

Operation AXIOM
15 October 2021: The Assassination of Sir David Amess, M.P.—Sir David Anthony Andrew Amess (26 March 1952-15 October 2021), a husband & father of five, & Member of Parliament for Basildon (1983-1997) & Southend West (1997-2021), knighted in 2015; he was assassinated at a surgery (public meeting) with constituents, stabbed by a jihadist terrorist who expressed no remorse at trial.
Requiem æternam.