Theo's Sanctuary

South Koreans becoming more religious

2008-11-18T12:47:00.001-06:00

Buddhist monks pray in Seoul. The number of South Koreans with religious beliefs has risen steadily over the past decade, with Catholicism growing the fastest, a report showed
(AFP/File/Kim Jae-Hwan)

nautilus

2008-11-18T12:41:00.002-06:00

A Nautilus swims in the Underwater World Singapore's new showcase known as The Masters of Disguise, a collaboration of intelligent marine life form found in the deep seas. The Nautilus is the only member of the Cephalopod class to have a fully developed shell which encases its entire body.
(AP Photo/ Wong Maye-E)

my condolences

2008-11-18T12:06:00.002-06:00

to conserve and restore the past

2008-11-17T13:16:00.001-06:00

Johanna Puisto, a sculpture conservator, works on the Angel of the Annunciation roundel, from Venice, Italy, part of a greater sculpture-monument made between 1500 and 1550, at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, Wednesday Nov. 12, 2008. The roundel is part of Renaissance treasures being conserved and restored in preparation for the V&A's 30 Medieval and Renaissance Galleries, which open in Nov. 2009.
AP Photo/Lefteris Pitarakis)

the flames draw near

2008-11-17T13:10:00.005-06:00

The church steeple of the Sam Sung Presbyterian Church in Carbon Canyon near Brea, California stands tall as a wild fire bears down a hillside towards the church November 15, 2008. A wildfire whipped up by hurricane-force gusts raged through northwestern Los Angeles foothills on Saturday, burning some 165 homes and threatening the power supply of California's largest city.
REUTERS/Mike Blake (UNITED STATES)

that's mushrooms to my ears

2008-11-10T11:36:00.001-06:00

A Stradivarius violin on display. A Swiss researcher said Thursday he had hit on an unlikely way of recreating the unique sound of a Stradivarius violin -- by treating the wood of a replica instrument with mushrooms.
(AFP/File/Dieter Nagl)

cholera in the Congo

2008-11-10T11:25:00.001-06:00

An old man get suffering from cholera gets treatment at a Doctors without Borders clinic, Sunday, Nov. 9, 2008 in Kibati just north of Goma in eastern Congo. Doctors without Borders have treated 45 cases of cholera in Kibati since Friday.Congo's neighbors are calling for a cease-fire so humanitarian aid can reach victims of fighting in the African country's east.
(AP Photo/Karel Prinsloo)

the Aleppo Codex

2008-11-10T11:22:00.002-06:00

The Aleppo Codex is seen on display on display at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem, Tuesday, Sept. 16, 2008. A quest is under way on four continents to find the missing pages of one of the world's most important manuscripts, an ancient Hebrew Bible known as the Crown of Aleppo. Two-thirds of the manuscript's parchment pages survived a millennium of turbulent history, including Crusader captivity, fire, and an escape across Mideast borders in a washing machine. But 196 pages have vanished, each one priceless to the small group of Biblical scholars for whom the Crown has become a kind of Holy Grail.
(AP Photo/Rachael Strecher)

a lion cub in Cali

2008-11-10T11:19:00.002-06:00

Pictured is one of three lion cubs born in captivity at the zoo in Cali. November 6, 2008.
Reuters Jaime Saldarriaga (Colombia)

ancient earring

2008-11-10T11:16:00.001-06:00

This undated photo made available by the Israeli Antiquities Authority on Monday, Nov. 10, 2008 shows what archaeologists say is a 2,000-year-old gold earring discovered beneath a parking lot next to the walls of Jerusalem's old city. The Israel Antiquities Authority says the earring is inlaid with pearls and emeralds and was made around the time of Christ, between the first century B.C. and the beginning of the fourth century A.D.
(AP Photo/IAA, HO)

Gross National Happiness...a great concept

2008-11-10T09:32:00.000-06:00

A Bhutanese man at a Herbal Steam Bath at an Indigenious Hospital in the capital, Thimphu. In the Buddhist Himalayan nation the success of the country is not measured economically but in terms of its levels of 'Gross National Happiness' and, says the remote country, its unique approach has been vindicated by the ongoing global economic meltdown.
(AFP/File/Deshakalyan Chowdhury)

Fra Angelico: The Sermon on the Mount

2008-11-10T00:27:00.000-06:00

Fra Angelico, "The Sermon on the Mount," 1436-43

Bill Withers: Soul Shadows

2008-11-08T17:02:00.000-06:00

with the Crusaders...

our new president-elect!!!

2008-11-05T12:41:00.001-06:00

President-elect Senator Barack Obama stands on stage with his family as he is greeted by supporters during his election night rally after being declared the winner of the 2008 Presidential Campaign in Chicago, November 4, 2008.
(Shannon Stapleton/Reuters)

more fall foliage

2008-11-04T13:40:00.002-06:00

Fall foliage is seen at its peak in Massachusetts.
(Photo and caption submitted by Mollie McPhee Ho)

I voted

2008-11-04T13:09:00.004-06:00

All of you who read this blog on a regualr basis know what a huge fan of and supporter of Barack Obama I am. (And what a huge critic I am of George W. Bush and Republican policies in general.) But in the end, the only thing that truly matters in this whole election processs is our VOTE.

Voting is a right and a privilege, and I'm so glad to be living in a country where basic, ordinary citizens (like me) have the opportunity to make our voices--individually tiny as they may be--actually be paid attention to. I could do blog posts and send out emails and have political discussions with family, friends, and coworkers until I'm blue in the face--and while all those things are important--that doesn't change a thing in Washington, D.C. It is only our VOTE that will cause a difference. (And thank god, it DOES make a difference.) As good citizens who care about our country and the future direction we take, we need to think of voting not only as a right, but also as a responsibility. (And that goes for whichever candidate you support.)

Earlier today I did my part; I hope you also did--or will do--yours.

sea otter

2008-11-03T12:22:00.000-06:00

one last plug for Obama

2008-11-03T12:20:00.000-06:00

South Haven lighthouse

2008-11-01T12:07:00.002-05:00

Winds over 50 mph pound the pier and lighthouse as waves over 10 feet tall roll down the channel into the dock areas at Lake Michigan in South Haven, Mich., in this Oct. 26, 2008 photo.
(Photo and caption submitted by Mark E. Reiman)

a terrific illusion

2008-10-31T00:33:00.000-05:00

OMG!!!

Happy Halloween

2008-10-31T00:14:00.000-05:00

Monet: Self-Portrait with Beret

2008-10-30T00:14:00.000-05:00

"Self-Portrait with Beret"
Claude Monet

Lamott on laughter

2008-10-30T00:11:00.000-05:00

"...[L]aughter is carbonated holiness."
--Anne Lamott, from Plan B, p.66

Dvorak: Symphony No. 7

2008-10-30T00:09:00.000-05:00

Symphony No. 7 in D minor, B. 141 (Op. 70)
Composed by Antonin Dvorak
Performed by London Symphony Orchestra
Conducted by Sir Colin Davis

My friend Peter recently gave me this CD and I've really been enjoying it. Whenever I listen, the words "powerful" and "sweeping" come to mind. I'm no expert on Classical music, but I do recommend this one.

marigold garlands

2008-10-29T13:24:00.002-05:00

A vendor strings marigold flower garlands while waiting for customers on the eve of the Hindu festival of Diwali in the southern Indian city of Hyderabad October 27, 2008. Flowers are offered to Hindu Goddess Laxmi on the occasion of Diwali, the festival of lights.
REUTERS/Krishnendu Halder (INDIA)