Quick Takes, for fun and profit

Mental profit, that is.

While I was prostrate with morning sickness last week, the stomach bug swept through, a brutal combo that left me in bed for 36 hours straight, and many more between brief bouts of trying to stand up. But lo! A new week has dawned, and I suddenly have a burst of brilliant second-trimester energy, four weeks early. And God knows I need it, because we're going on driving vacation on Wednesday, and there's a family-load of packing to do.

So! Some quick takes for ya!

1. Katharine Jefferts Schori, the presiding bishopess of the Episcopal Church, has produced an interpretation of St. Paul casting a demon out of a slave girl that is... stunning in its originality.

Paul is annoyed at the slave girl who keeps pursuing him, telling the world that he and his companions are slaves of God.  She is quite right.  She’s telling the same truth Paul and others claim for themselves.  But Paul is annoyed, perhaps for being put in his place, and he responds by depriving her of her gift of spiritual awareness.  Paul can’t abide something he won’t see as beautiful or holy, so he tries to destroy it.  It gets him thrown in prison.  That’s pretty much where he’s put himself by his own refusal to recognize that she, too, shares in God’s nature, just as much as he does – maybe more so!

Emphasis mine.

I'd like to hear Bp. Schori expounding on how Jesus deprived the Gerasene demoniac of his gift of strength.

2. But perhaps the good Bishopess makes more sense if we Gizoogle her:

There is some remarkable examplez of dat kind of blindnizz up in tha readings our crazy asses heard dis morning, n' slavery is wrapped up in a shitload of dat shit.  Pizzle be annoyed all up in tha slave hoe whoz ass keeps pursuin him, spittin some lyrics ta tha ghetto dat he n' his companions is slavez of Dogg.  Biatch is like right.  She’s spittin some lyrics ta tha same truth Pizzle n' others claim fo' theyselves.[1]  But Pizzle be annoyed, like fo' bein put up in his thugged-out lil' place, n' he respondz by deprivin her of her gift of spiritual awareness.  Pizzle can’t abide suttin' da thug won’t peep as dope or holy, so tha pimpin' muthafucka tries ta destroy dat shit.  It gets his ass thrown on lockdown.  That’s pretty much where he’s put his dirty ass by his own refusal ta recognize dat she, too, shares up in God’s nature, just as much as da ruffneck do ��" maybe mo' so!  

3. Simcha Fisher has given this piece of silliness the fisking it deserves.

4. Go you and Gizoogle something, but don't blame me for your lost time or your damaged keyboard.

5. Here, a palate-cleanser: my nephew Benjamin in the crabby suit I bought for him months ago, because I already knew he was a boy.

See his Peter Rabbit sticker? That's because he was a good boy at his first doctor's visit. The sticker is nearly as big as his head.

6. Julia, age nine, doesn't have any patience for foolishness. Yesterday, after enduring Mom's boring oldies on the radio, she demanded to know, "What do they mean, you can check out but you can't leave?"

7. Speaking of old-timey sounds, we are so fascinated with the iPhone Gramophone, but it's hard to find a good example of how acceptable the sound quality is playing modern stuff, as opposed to music that already has a retro sound.