DIVINE MERCY SUNDAY

Yesterday was Divine Mercy Sunday.  It was my turn to lector at 4:00 Mass on Saturday at O. L. Sorrows.  All went well.  The men's meeting in O. L. Sorrows' rectory on Saturday morning  went well too.   On Saturday, from 9:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. there was a really nice big book sale at the Methodist church right next door to the Wyoming Free Library on Wyoming Avenue.   The church & library worked together on it.   For only five dollars, I got quite a few very good books & plays.   I used to like the ones I attended at O.L.P.H. too.   I'm so happy to see that the spring weather is really getting started although it's often too  cold in the morning.   The campaign season continues.  Unfortunately Rick Santorum has dropped out of the race.   We can't afford another four years of Obama because our First Amendment rights are literally at stake.   Gas prices are obscenely high too.  By now even a gallon of regular gas, at any station, is already up to more than $4.00.   Lately I've been driving my father, quite frequently, to his doctor's appointments at the Veteran's Hospital in Wilkes~Barre.   It's  not usually too bad a trip but the traffic congestion in the parking lot is often annoying.   The centennial anniversary of the Titanic was yesterday so it's a major topic of conversation these days. 

PASCHAL TRIDUUM

Uncle Frankie can't show up for Easter because he's visiting Fran.  I shall have to get his mail for the next few days.  This evening's Mass at O. L. Sorrows begins this year's Paschal Triduum.  Fr. McKernan has asked me to get my feet washed.  It's the first time I've ever done that.  His sister is visiting him from Long Island for Easter.   Mary Anne, Steve & the kids will be coming in soon.  Of course all the liberal troublemakers are coming out of everyplace insisting we refer to it as just another holiday, as if any other holiday counts.   There's not such a lot of shopping to do for Easter.   I've always really enjoyed the beauty of all the decorations, nice clothes & flowers.  The only disadvantage is that it's entirely too fattening.  Because of my not having gotten a haircut in quite a while I got one this morning, after morning prayer at O. L. Sorrows, at Rose Chairge's in West Pittston.  Yet again it was a little hard for me to find her place because her husband has changed locations.   He got rid of the Batman logo & that was my only way of finding it.  After a few extra minutes of going crazy I got there.   She knows Michelle & Gino so I found out from her what they've been up to lately.  Spring is here but the weather is often still too cold.   Dave is always going through the neighborhood looking for things to do.  He cuts people's  grass,  trims bushes, etc. in the warm weather.  There's still no word from  Frank about my odometer.   Gas prices are still going up & it's gotten plum out of control.

BUSY TIME

The night before New Year's Eve I got a very violent attack of the flu. I was at O.L. Sorrows lectoring at 7:00 p.m. Mass when my voice started getting hoarse & I started getting very weak. I spent the next few days in bed with a violent headache & cough, besides all sorts of other aches & pains. Eventually I made an appointment to see Dr. Radzwilka in West Pittston. He prescribed a couple of kinds of medication before I made the appointment. The syrup gave me violent headaches so I gave up on it. When I went to the appointment I got him to do some blood work too. So far I have gotten no results. When I started feeling better I made sure I called Chris Calore, in Wilkes_Barre to see about getting onto a bus for the trip to Washington, D.C. next Monday for the annual pro_life March. He was forced to put me on a waiting list but he eventually called & said I get to go. I went last year & all worked out quite well for me even though it was too strenuous. Nothing gets me so crazy as haveing to be restricted like that all day long. I have to get my car inspected in January each year. This Saturday I noticed at the last minute that I desperately needed an oil change. I went to De Leo's gas station on Wyoming Avenue in Wyoming because it's the closest to me. He also does inspections so I made an appointment, for yesterday, to get my inspection. It was a long boring day for me but ultimately I got my usual expensive repairs done & I'm now set until next March. He says I now get a two~month grace period. This past Saturday was our monthly lay Carmelite meeting on S. Meade Street in Wilkes_Barre. Barbara & Rosemary were the only regulars who couldn't show up. Sr. Mary Robert spent the morning with us though & she was very helpful. The weather lately has been very violently cold with entirely too much snow & ice. There have been so many birthdays this month. We wish a very happy birthday to my mother, several cousins & , among the non~relatives, Tim, Lisa & Laura.