Walmart, the store that has everything, has something I've been searching for for almost 2 years now. Some may remember when I broke one of my favorite classical recordings during my last year of undergraduate studies, noting that the album didn't even seem to exist online.

I discovered some months ago that the recording had been re-released by another label, but was since out of print again and in limbo, since ownership had again changed hands. Up until now, I'd hesitated to buy it from the handful of listings on the internet because the asking price was between $23 and 38 pounds for a CD that originally retailed at $7. I'm not sure how Walmart still had a copy of a 6-year old CD floating around, but assuming they actually do, I will get it at essentially the $7 retail price after shipping. Now that's a bargain.

Posted by Justice at 6:12 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Who would ever figure that on this campus, I would end up being blessed by having a counterbalancing weight to all of the charismatic stuff that goes on around here. A traditionalist has shown up on campus who, to put it mildly, is a good reminder of the dangers of wandering too far to the extremes of Catholic thought. Now, I know there's room for disagreement, but a style of bluntness combined with highly critical thoughts on certain figures (e.g. John Paul II, von Balthasar, and to a lesser extent Benedict XVI), has a tendency to be off-putting.

Despite this, I expect they will be a very helpful source for all things traditional, while at the same time acting to temper some rather uncharitable leanings in that direction, which are often fired up by the goings on on campus.

Posted by Justice at 5:43 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Sears and I will be having a little chat over a late fee they've slapped me with due to having a pretty archaic online bill-paying system. They need 6 business days to figure out if my checking account belongs to me, but apparently they need about 6 seconds to figure out if my payment is not there at the exact moment it's due.

The late fee is an insanely high $39, more than 25% of the outstanding balance on the card, which means not only that everyone reading this should avoid Sears cards, but that I will be cancelling this card should the charge not be waived and likely moving over to their competitor Walmart to make up the difference.

UPDATE: The fee was waived with little hassle, since my payment history with them is good.

Posted by Justice at 11:51 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Normally, the first day of classes isn't quite so chaotic a day. This year set out to break all precedents in terms of the amount of things I had to do, including things entirely unforseen until about 1:00 this afternoon.

The day began easily enough, with the first of two hour long shifts manning a computer lab. After that, I picked up the tutoring paperwork and filled out the paperwork to pick up the meal plan I use to cover dinner (amazing how I just didn't find the time to sign up for it during orientation week, when the opportunity was available).

Following a brief trip home to grab a forgotten watch and voice recorder, I headed over to the 12:45 class, which was supposed to be Pastoral and Spiritual Direction. Color me somewhat surprised that, at 12:45, there were 2 bodies in the classroom, neither of whom was the sister assigned to teach it. A few questions revealed that the class had been cancelled, but nobody had notified the 3 students signed up for it, nor had it been taken off the course listings for this semester.

This set in motion a quick search for a replacement class, the only suitable one of which was closed. That forced a trip to the registrar to pick up a form to force into it, followed by a period of camping outside Dr. Martin's office so he could sign it. It's all signed now and things are in order, but I am a bit miffed at having missed the first lecture due to a lack of notice about the other class's cancellation, since both run during the same time slot.

Another trip was made to the registrar to deliver a letter to financial aid to receive a scholarship, along with filing a request to get the financial aid money disbursed and get a book voucher so I could purchase a new set of books for the class. Along the way, the tutoring form got dropped off, and time sheets were signed for work.

On a sidenote, an interesting challenge has now developed. Owing to the schedules of my classes and work, of the 25 daily Masses offered between Monday and Friday here and at St. Peter's, only 9 are actually feasible, and on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, my only option is the 6:30 AM on campus. Those who have any idea of my habits know that 6:30 AM is a challenge for me even to be functioning, let alone up, showered, clothed, and at school. On the plus side, 6:30 AM is a musicless Mass that is likely to get my day off to a good start, so making the sacrifice on sleep (or staying up late, more likely), may well be worth it.

Another curious coincidence is that the busiest day of the week in my schedule occurs on Wednesday, in the exact middle of the week, when I have 6 hours between classes and work. The lightest day is Thursday, which has only 2.5 hours committed. Friday comes in a close second at 3 hours, followed by Tuesday with 3.5 hours and then Monday with 4.5 hours. Right now, it looks like I'll be on campus from:

Monday: 6:30A - 7:00P
Tuesday: 6:30A - 7:00P
Wednesday: 6:30A - 8:00P
Thursday: 10:00A - 7:00P
Friday: 8:00A - 7:00P
Saturday: 2:00P - 6:00P

Sunday I will take a day of rest and not show up here at all. Even though these look like long days, except for Saturday, nothing is bigger than a 2-hour block, and all of my afternoons are pretty wide open if I happen to want to do something else. It's going to be an interesting semester to manage, time-wise.

Posted by Justice at 6:18 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

The media doesn't get religion. Someone who does gives them a well-deserved smackdown over the reporting done on the rescue of Steve Centanni.

Posted by Justice at 10:01 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

The orientation is now basically finished, with just one more big event tomorrow before all is said and done. While it was a hectic week, it went mostly okay, excepting my usual dislike of certain elements that will remain nameless, if not guitarless.

At any rate, among the new students this year, the following have been observed:

- At least 2 GNTs from my home region of Western New York (yet to find a Buffalonian proper, though)
- A student who knows Thomas Howard, author of this summer's Sacraments text, Chance or the Dance
- A student who knows Dr. Alice von Hildebrand
- A fellow graduate traditionalist who makes me look like a moderate

I have already spent some extended conversation time with the last aforementioned student, and I think we are going to hit it off very well over the rest of my time here.

As sidenotes from the week's experience...

- The praise and worship style of music is and likely will remain something that does nothing for me other than cause ringing ears and desires to be elsewhere. Moderation in all things apparently has a dispensation here when it comes to musical volume.

- Dietrich von Hildebrand is likely to be someone I read more often, not only due to a book of his I read during the week, but also hearing some rave reviews about his philosophy from one of the MA philosophy students.

- The "Lord's Day" celebrations here definitely raised concern, not only with me but several other students incoming. The format approximates the Mass a little too close for comfort.

- More than ever, I come to the conviction that there is something amiss in the charismatic movement in general, due to the inability to reconcile the supposedly Holy Spirit-led actions with the disobedience to the Church's liturgical and disciplinary documents that such actions entail. Even ignorance of them, which I'm sure is the case with several, is no excuse in this, since the Spirit is aware of them and is unlikely to be actively encouraging dissension from them.

Posted by Justice at 12:42 AM | Comments (4) | TrackBack

First day down, three long days to go before life starts getting back to normal. Thus far, it has gone pretty well, though I would probably prefer more silence than is possible at the moment.

Posted by Justice at 1:49 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Back in Steubenville safe and sound. Also, I passed my road test yesterday on the first time and now have a driver's license. So far, this is a good start to the weekend. The new monitor should be in on Monday.

Posted by Justice at 7:00 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

In a fitting whirlwind conclusion to my summer break, I am now packing things back up while trying to get in enough practice to pass my road test the first time out. I may have set a record in terms of how long I've held a learner's permit before actually trying, as well as a record for the least amount of time driven during the more than 7 years I've held it. The test, due to some incompetence faced in this process, will be out in Olean, a nearly 66 mile hike from home.

Saturday is the move back to Franciscan, which hopefully will not be too bad since I didn't bring as much home this summer. My monitor is trying to make me fret however, as it chose yesterday to start acting up every time the power is switched on.

Meanwhile, for those heading over to Franciscan University for the first time, I will be part of the orientation crew, all of whom are liable to stand out due to the color of our shirts. Since I'll be with the GNT group, the people most likely to see me are older undergraduates and those going for Master's degrees. However, if you happen to spy a guy wearing the orientation aide shirt and a blue St. Benedict's cross next weekend, feel free to say hello.

Posted by Justice at 4:38 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack