Association Of Catholic Bloggers

I've been enjoying this week's bright blue skies and sunshine. I'd have been enjoying them more, if I hadn't been recovering from my second COVID-19 shot. And if our skies hadn't been quite so consistently clear. Sunshine's fine, but we need rain. On the 'up' side, my body's response to the mRNA vaccine could have been much worse. More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

I haven't been wearing a face mask when I go to Mass, the Adoration chapel or Walmart. But I do carry one in my pocket when I go out, just in case the rules have changed. Again. Most folks I've been seeing stopped wearing face masks when pandemic-related restrictions eased up. If I see someone with a face mask in Walmart, the odds are that the person works there. As a rule, non-employee mask wearers seem to be young, old, somewhere between, and either men or women. I figure it depends on the individual's general health and willingness to put up with slightly-used air. And maybe willingness to believe that face masks make sense. More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

Good news, my son and I had a long chat last Saturday. Not-so-good news, we had it in the local emergency room. Still, it could have been worse. After a few hours of fluids and pain meds, he wasn't feeling quite so awful, and I drove him home again. Blood work told us that his major systems were working. And a scan showed that his brain wasn't missing any pieces. So, basically, good news. Even so, I could have done without the stress. So, I'm sure, could my son. And I'm very glad that (almost) a week has gone by without a similar incident.... ...Imaging Tech: X-Rays and the Fabulous Foot-O-Scope (An image from my brain scans in 2018.) Medical diagnostic tech has come a long way since my youth, but we still can't tap into another person's sensory inputs. Which, from a 'privacy' perspective may be a good thing, and I'm wandering off-topic. Even so, we had impressive tech in my 'good old days.'... More at A Catholic Citizen in Am

I only wrote 18 words for my current "Dr Faustus" post yesterday. Partly because the screen went black around mid-afternoon. On the bright side, my computer did reboot. Eventually. My plan for today is to get this journal entry finished, do more writing and maybe pick up prescriptions at the local Walmart. Not necessarily in that order.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

I'm seeing "The Best of," "Top 10" and "2020 Top" headlines in my news feed: as usual for late December. Instead of waiting for someone else to highlight this year's science news stories, I'm making my own 'top 10' list. Each item is something that caught my attention, seemed important, or has been lurking in my 'to do' folders. More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

The first shipments of COVID-19 mRNA vaccine arrived in America this week. Folks are getting immunized, including health care workers. I think that's good news.... As I see it, all that's good news. I'd prefer focusing exclusively on the 'up' side. But there's an ethical problem with the new vaccines. I'll be talking about that, and why getting immunized when it's my turn still makes sense. COVID-19 Vaccines and a Little History Ethical Concerns HEK 293 Donor: RIP Options and "The Mark of the Beast" Statistics and Death Love, Neighbors and the Common Good Remembering, and Learning From, Our Past First Vaccines Arrive: "...Healing is Coming" The Inevitable Link Lists (and resources, too) From the USCCB My stuff More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

I'll be talking about mRNA vaccines and COVID-19. And why I'll willingly wait for my vaccination, but think the new vaccines are a good idea. But first, I'll look at news, weirdness and a little history. In the News: Prospects and Concerns An Alleged North Carolina-China Conspiracy Mild Curiosity, Real Threat Wanting Immunity Vaccination Viewpoints Smallpox Vaccinations: "a Daring Violation" or "a Precious Discovery" Fear and Ethics Dealing With Differences Dosages and Unpleasant Results Science, Technology and Making Sense Trust and Prudence DNA, RNA and mRNA Vaccines, Briefly Decoding the SARS-CoV-2 Virus SARS-CoV-2 Build-a-Spike mRNA Snippet COVID-19 mRNA Vaccines, Build-a-Spike Code and — Virus Rights?? From the CDC's Factsheets New mRNA Vaccines: Good and Not-So-Good News Willing to Wait For My Turn More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

...The Osakis Chamber of Commerce parade sounds like a good idea. Provided that they take pandemic-related precautions to keep folks comparatively safe. I'm guessing that this year's sidewalk watchers will be spread out more, and wearing face masks. But I won't be going. Even though Osakis is only 20 minutes down the road. Standing on a central Minnesota sidewalk after sundown in early December isn't my idea of a good time. The COVID-19 pandemic is still around, and making a difference. Maybe that's this post's unifying idea: Macy's Parade News: Good and Sort-of-Good Rampantly Raging Death and Dramatic Drumbeats Monday's Death Toll in Rural Minnesota Speculation and a Serious Subject Streaming Together for Thanksgiving Sound, Fury and the Usual Paranoia More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

I didn't feel all that sick Friday evening. That was August 21, 2020: 45 days ago. Online self-assessment guides from the Minnesota Department of Health and Mayo Clinic put me on the threshold of needing to call a doctor. My wife said calling the local hospital was a good idea. As it turns out, she was right.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America . Living in Room 20 Staph, Strep and Cellulitis Conspicuous by Their Absence A Century of Antibiotics Mice and a Man More Than You Need, Or Maybe Want, to Know About Penicillin Pandemic Precautions, Piety — and Prudence The "Source and Summit of the Christian Life" The Common Good Uncertainty Weirdness and Worship San Francisco's Rules It Could have been Worse Seating Capacity North Carolina in Cahoots with China?! New Lyrics, Old Song Sound, Fury and Making Sense Fear Appeal: Communist Agents, Tiny Cows and More Per

COVID-19, a coronavirus disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, is still spreading. Thousands have died. Nearly 900,000 have been infected. A great many more are affected, directly or indirectly. Some are behaving badly. We cannot cure this disease. We can only endure it, or die trying. That's the bad news. The good news, part of it, is that this isn't the 14th century. We've learned a bit since the Black Death was spreading across Eurasia. Quite a bit, actually. More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

COVID-19, a coronavirus disease, has been headline news since last December. By March 11, 2020, we had more than 122,000 known cases in 120 countries and territories. 6,100 of those were serious. The March 11 death toll was 4,300 — 3,200 in China. On the 'up' side, 67,000 have recovered from the disease. Folks are dealing with travel restrictions, quarantines and cancelled events. And, as of today (March 11, 2020), COVID-19 is officially a pandemic. UPDATE March 12, 2020 That didn't take long. The nearest known case of COVID-19 is an hour's drive or less away.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

Just when you thought it was safe to grow up — Folks in their 20s may afoul of a quarter-life crisis: the doubt and disappointment of student loans, dull careers and iffy relationships. Others learn that they're terminally ill. I learned about Michelle Pittman at Mass last Sunday. An inoperable brain tumor will kill her. She and her family have unexpected expenses. That's why a Michelle Pittman Benefit fund was set up at a local bank: Michelle Pittman Benefit c/o MN National Bank PO Box 306 Sauk Centre, MN 56378 Michelle Pittman's situation and the benefit fund are the important part of this post. I'd planned on writing about assorted crises, including terminal illness. 1 That started me thinking about life, death and not having all the answers.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

It's Epiphany Sunday. It's not about the magi, wise men from the east. Not exactly. They're involved; along with King Herod, religious experts, Mary and Jesus. But they're not what this is all about. More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

Whether you call it mental illness, lunacy, or insanity, being crazy isn't fun. It's not a lifestyle choice either. Not for most. Certainly not in my case. I'll get back to that.... ...Somewhere along the line "mental hygiene" got repackaged as "mental health." I think it wasn't just a new coat of paint on old ideas. We were learning more about how minds work, and sometimes don't. We were also learning what we can do: and what we shouldn't.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

Quite a few parts of the Bible don't talk about forgiveness. But quite a few do, and they're not just in the New Testament. This morning's second reading doesn't mention forgiveness directly, but the verse right after it does. They all say why forgiving is a good idea. It's enlightened self-interest, in the long run.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

Scientists at England's John Innes Centre learned how to grow plants that produce polio vaccine. That sounds like a very good idea, particularly since the process should work for other vaccines, too. The other 'genetic engineering' news raises issues that can spark strong feelings: and should encourage serious thought. More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

A "Benefit for Teri (Sanden) Starkey" notice was on the Our Lady of Angels bulletin board this Sunday. The event was Saturday, July 29, and in Litchfield; a town south and a bit east of here, about an hour and half away. I saw the notice a day late to do anything by Saturday, but figure I could pass along what I learned. She has cystic fibrosis, and needs new lungs. The clinic in her area wouldn't or couldn't do the procedure. The good news is that an outfit in North Carolina will. However, getting a chance to keep her alive means raising money to move her, her two kids, and husband, to North Carolina. That's something like a thousand miles away. My guess is that the family has above-average medical expenses, too.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

Using drones to deliver vaccines seems reasonable for places like Vanuatu. But vaccines won't help if folks don't know how to use them correctly, or can't. Others avoid vaccines because they believe warnings from dubious sources. More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

"Crisis" or not, opioid overdose is a problem. A lethal one, sometimes. We've used one opioid, opium, for millennia. Others have been developed during my lifetime. They're all useful: and dangerous if misused. More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

Variations on "dead men tell no tales" go back at least to 1560 or thereabouts in my language. The idea is much older. 1 As advice goes, it's arguably flawed. Folks who are dead aren't chatty, but their bodies occasionally pop up at inopportune times. I'll be talking about unmarked and unremembered graves, insane asylums, and similarly-uncheerful things. It's not all bad news, though. More at A Catholic Citizen in America .