tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-98731562009-03-01T03:44:13.654-05:00The manic mind of the minister - Auntie Mame Meets Cotton Mather. Blogging about Unitarian Universalism, UU Chrisitan spiritual practice, occasional cultural and political ravings, and the inner life of ministry. PeaceBang is the alter ego of a small town pastor serving an historic New England Unitarian Universalist congregation. Visit me also at http://www.beautytipsforministers.blogspot.comPeaceBanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11431551457505981195noreply@blogger.comBlogger1195125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9873156.post-36907356522645956062008-03-13T19:35:00.001-04:002008-03-13T19:35:16.798-04:00

20080307ho_1pettigrew_500 Originally uploaded by Peacebang let's test his first

PeaceBanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11431551457505981195noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9873156.post-81361514927880915022007-05-06T18:04:00.000-04:002007-05-06T18:09:04.384-04:00

PeaceBang is now being hosted by WordPress, and you can join us there at www.peacebang.com.I owe a world of thanks to ChaliceChick for making a Christmas gift of my new domain names -- something about which I was entirely clueless.And I owe a galaxy of thanks to BoyInTheBands for shepherding me through the entire transfer process, for designing the new site, for working with me via e-mail from 11

PeaceBanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11431551457505981195noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9873156.post-75273817038325688892007-05-05T15:16:00.000-04:002007-05-05T15:17:34.385-04:00

HERE!

PeaceBanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11431551457505981195noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9873156.post-46333030000055791822007-05-02T14:07:00.000-04:002007-05-02T16:15:28.135-04:00

Hi everyone,We are in the process of designing www.PeaceBang.com, and it's up and ready to roll, thank to the marvelous Scott Wells.PeaceBangers can start setting bookmarks over there, and I'll be learning all the new tricks of posting over the next few weeks.I have a wicked busy month, so it may be a light blogging month. Then again, maybe I'll need the outlet!Good day, and see you over at

PeaceBanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11431551457505981195noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9873156.post-44248987398155177132007-05-01T08:29:00.000-04:002007-05-01T08:30:29.650-04:00

Hi everyone,PeaceBang the Blog is in FLUX.With the help of my dear friend BoyInTheBands, we are moving to WordPress.My learning curve on this stuff is as steep as it gets, so bear with me.

PeaceBanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11431551457505981195noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9873156.post-33965003814548068912007-04-29T20:39:00.001-04:002007-04-29T20:43:48.303-04:00

Hey everyone,I deleted the last post because I can't get into blogger regularly and it's making me ANXIOUS (haha, the irony!), so I deleted. The conversation was way too deep and important not to be able to respond to, but thanks for joining me for the short time it was up.I'm going to chill until I can move this blog outta Blogger.Ciao, and love.

PeaceBanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11431551457505981195noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9873156.post-24672523626469516152007-04-29T07:44:00.000-04:002007-04-29T07:46:19.447-04:00

Right ON, Ms. Palfrey!!Why should you be punished and impoverished for your "sins" while the Washington moralists and hypocrites sit smugly in their offices, confident in the knowledge that you're just a woman and can't touch them?If she has to go down, let her take her entire clientele down with her. Brava, I say.

PeaceBanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11431551457505981195noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9873156.post-41896175971518579132007-04-28T08:57:00.000-04:002007-04-28T09:03:58.456-04:00

So I'm watching the Yankees-Red Sox game last night when really, I should be working on my sermon, and I'm thinking hey, how come we don't have a preacher's bullpen we can go to when we're at the seventh inning of the church year?This could be a great job for talented retirees. It could be like, "Weinstein has given twenty-five decent sermons this year but her arm is obviously giving out -- she's

PeaceBanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11431551457505981195noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9873156.post-51832704793329417022007-04-27T17:47:00.001-04:002007-04-27T17:59:24.893-04:00

There is something so truly sweet about this.You're going to love the very cinematic fade-outs, and I think you'll agree with me that this cat plays some music that's better than some of the bad jazz you've heard in piano bars in your lifetime.I'm loving this little gray girl. She is a serious hep cat.Don't watch it anywhere where you can't laugh out loud, and scream with joy, and go "BWOH!"

PeaceBanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11431551457505981195noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9873156.post-81070314114358358002007-04-26T21:25:00.000-04:002007-04-26T21:32:55.700-04:00

I went for a walk today and listened to Lena Horne sing, "That's What Miracles Are All About" several times in a row.For three minutes and fifty-eight seconds of pure bliss, you can get it from i-Tunes for .99."The very factthere's you and me,that's what miracles are all about."I can't tell you how much the entire album, "Lena Horne: The Lady And Her Music" has meant to me since I first heard it

PeaceBanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11431551457505981195noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9873156.post-11708051105387395292007-04-25T21:48:00.001-04:002007-04-25T21:48:33.165-04:00

Ermengarde Earns Her Keep Originally uploaded by Peacebang. I came home today and Erm, who has been very squirrelly in the bedroom lately, had THIS to show me.

PeaceBanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11431551457505981195noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9873156.post-22783328873481365982007-04-25T11:00:00.000-04:002007-04-25T11:01:14.591-04:00

So... who wants to organize the great Blogger's Dinner at GA in Portland this year?(I did it last year)

PeaceBanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11431551457505981195noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9873156.post-62141646209122658702007-04-23T10:54:00.000-04:002007-04-23T11:05:01.557-04:00

Just having endured Don Imus' dismissal of talented young female athletes as "nappy-headed hos," I was particularly depressed by Alec Baldwin's rant against his 11-year old daughter in which he called her a "thoughtless little pig."It all seems of one piece to me. I was talking with my sister yesterday about a friend of ours whose husband is controlling, insulting and hyper-critical. Our friend

PeaceBanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11431551457505981195noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9873156.post-48399520875434469062007-04-22T19:26:00.001-04:002007-04-23T11:06:23.240-04:00

Spring NYC 2007 064Originally uploaded by Peacebang. Those gray things sticking out of the wall behind me are crystals!

PeaceBanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11431551457505981195noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9873156.post-83019407466560502932007-04-22T19:11:00.001-04:002007-04-22T19:16:02.166-04:00

Spring NYC 2007 040Originally uploaded by Peacebang. When I am really sapped, I find it really healing to empty my mind and fill my eyes with color and beauty and diversity. New York City is one of my favorite places in the world to do this, so I spent all day yesterday in the city. What a glorious day.I fell in love with this 5-floor store, ABC Carpet and Home (such a prosaic name for such a

PeaceBanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11431551457505981195noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9873156.post-44995391037901109592007-04-22T19:03:00.001-04:002007-04-23T11:10:35.592-04:00

Spring NYC 2007 043Originally uploaded by Peacebang. Union Square in New York City was all abloom with flower stalls and produce stands.It was almost miraculous to finally be out in the sunshine.Here are some hydrangeas. I wanted you to see the bigger size, it's just an explosion of color:http://farm1.static.flickr.com/169/469069465_004eb81cf5.jpgAmazing to get such vibrant colors from my little

PeaceBanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11431551457505981195noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9873156.post-62800329405279486902007-04-19T16:05:00.001-04:002007-04-19T16:05:03.435-04:00

The Sanctity of the Classroom Originally uploaded by Peacebang. I remember when Chris, a tall, shy, arrogant, pimply blonde high school junior in my creative writing class, submitted obscenity-filled blood-fests in lieu of assignments.In each case, I told him his work was garbage and insisted that he re-write the paper.He came to see me after class one day, red in the face and coldy

PeaceBanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11431551457505981195noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9873156.post-86759392524745308412007-04-19T08:31:00.000-04:002007-04-19T08:37:01.992-04:00

I watched "American Idol" on Tuesday night and, um, Melinda was the only one who didn't have serious pitch and tonality problems.What happened this season?That kid Sanjaya was atrociously bad. What was the deal there?The kid who sang badly and then tried to redeem himself by giving a shout-out to his friends at Virginia Tech (Chris?) had terrible tonality issues, and was "pitchy."Jordin Sparks

PeaceBanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11431551457505981195noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9873156.post-51879122392310886832007-04-18T13:42:00.001-04:002007-04-18T13:54:29.009-04:00

This editorial by Jeff Jacobs appearedin today's Boston Globe:http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2007/04/18/why_we_need_religion/Have at it, gang.I appreciate that for once, a conservative writer admits that atheists can still be good and moral people (THANKya, Jesus), and I really--especially lately -- appreciate his point that the philanthropic spirit is not as

PeaceBanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11431551457505981195noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9873156.post-20496052263066111002007-04-15T20:56:00.001-04:002007-04-15T21:04:47.492-04:00

Joel Monka wrote a very provocative post here:http://cuumbaya.blogspot.com/2007/04/working-class-unitarians.htmlreferencing another article by Doug Muder that was like a punch in the stomach, but a really loving and good punch that let's you see the stars while you're lying on your back getting your breath back:http://freeandresponsible.blogspot.com/2007/04/unitarian-universalism-and-working.html

PeaceBanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11431551457505981195noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9873156.post-40823994529615967722007-04-15T19:11:00.001-04:002007-04-15T19:11:11.987-04:00

Still Waters Originally uploaded by Peacebang. I knew something was wrong, or off, yesterday when I sang almost an entire concert from somewhere not quite in my body. Every third or fourth song, I would look into the audience and really connect, but most of the time I was smiling and energetic but on some deep level I just wasn't home.Partly it is this time of year. I go into reveries and

PeaceBanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11431551457505981195noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9873156.post-7482516339678627522007-04-14T12:07:00.001-04:002007-04-14T12:07:23.499-04:00

blogger picnic Originally uploaded by Peacebang. Philocrites asked a few weeks ago if we all wanted to plan a Boston Area Blogger's Picnic.We are welcome again at First Parish in Milton, and maybe if we pick a good date, it won't POUR RAIN THIS YEAR!!Does May 19th work for you?

PeaceBanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11431551457505981195noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9873156.post-77997402296691237082007-04-13T13:30:00.001-04:002007-04-13T13:30:25.750-04:00

Sweet the Sound Concert Tomorrow! Originally uploaded by Peacebang. Sweet the Sound will have a concert tomorrow, April 14, at 3pm at the First United Methodist Church in Melrose, MA.The church is at 645 Main StreetThis probably concludes PeaceBang's blogging until such time as she has many hours to devote to the problem of signing into Blogger. She has cleared her cache, chosen new

PeaceBanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11431551457505981195noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9873156.post-52971811169366553292007-04-12T21:55:00.000-04:002007-04-12T21:59:31.721-04:00

I'm glad he got fired.I am depressed, however, reading the comments on MSNBC.com, which I have to believe represent the Average American.There's the usual trite comments about "free speech" and "double standards," the expected vitriol against Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton, the brilliant analyses about how this is "all about money," and lots of folks saying Imus went too far but he shouldn't have

PeaceBanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11431551457505981195noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9873156.post-13029880252194784412007-04-12T21:24:00.000-04:002007-04-12T21:32:14.096-04:00

I spent most of Monday curled up with this marvelous novel about America, about incestuous love, about sexual identity, about family secrets, about growing up and getting pounded into manhood or womanhood by culture and self and the deep desires of mama and papa.After years of slogging through pointless, derivative novels, it was a joy to read something so thoroughly engaging, original and

PeaceBanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11431551457505981195noreply@blogger.com0