Satisfying an Addiction

OK, I admit it. I'm addicted to Dairy Queen, specifically Moolattes from Dairy Queen. Where else can I combine my love of chocolate, coffee, and ice cream? I know they are bad for me, but sometimes I just need a fix. Last night was one of those nights. I blew off the gym because it was sunny and gorgeous out and drove home, intent on one thing...finding the closest Dairy Queen and downing a Moolatte. To offset the ensuing calories, I decided I would ride my bike there rather than drive.

After I located the closest Dairy Queen (999 Howard, Evanston...in case you were curious) and changed into shorts and a tee-shirt, I started off on my 5 mile trek north. It would have been a beautiful ride up if it hadn't been rush hour and I hadn't been riding on Ashland, Clark, and Ridge. When I ride my bike, it's as much for the enjoyment of riding as it is for getting the exercise. There was nothing enjoyable about my ride last night. Two cars made left turns into me as I was riding through the intersection on a green. I stopped before they hit me (obviously), but seriously how dense can you get? If bikes are considered vehicles (and they are by the city of Chicago), then shouldn't drivers be aware that a person on a bike has the right of way if they're going straight and you're turning left? Granted, the one was busy talking on the cell phone, but I'm sure that wouldn't have been a consolation to his BMW if he had hit me. Then, there were the inevitable car doors opening. Truly, a bicyclist takes their life in their hands when they ride the streets of Chicago, especially if they're like me and don't wear a helmet. If it weren't for my desperate need for a Moolatte, I wouldn't have ventured out.

But I did venture out and I did get to Dairy Queen, the Mecca of ice cream desserts. I paid my $3.25 to the teenager behind the counter and awaited the refreshment I had worked so "hard" for. These days I don't eat much more than a piece of fruit or a muffin if anything at all each day, so the tasty goodness of a Mocha Moolatte really hit the spot. So much so, that I decided to take a longer route home. I rode my bike (on the sidewalk this time) to Western and turned south. I rode through neighborhoods I've never seen before. My goal was to connect with Lincoln Square at some point. I've only been that way once, and I thought it would be a fun experience on my bike. It was. I'm going to have to ride up that way much more often, minus the choking bus fumes this time though.

All in all, it was a successful trip...I got exercise, I got dinner, and I got to sightsee. Not a bad way to spend an evening I must say :-)

Catholic Wars: A New Pope

Well, it's been announced...the Catholic church has elected itself a new Pope, a German this time. This is only the second non-Italian Pope in the Church's history. I should be happy that we have a new Pope, but I'm not. I feel much like I did when George Bush was elected for a second term...disillusioned and disappointed. I didn't always agree with Pope John Paul II, but I respected him. I respected what he was trying to do, and I feel that through his efforts the Church was becoming much more broadminded and progressive. There were definitely problems with his papacy, but he seemed to be dedicated to bringing the Church into the 21st century. Pope Benedict XVI seems determined to send it right back to the Middle Ages. This Pope doesn't speak for me. As a divorced, practicing Catholic on birth control, I am just about everything this Pope has spent his life fighting against. It's sometimes difficult for me to take an active role in a religious community that doesn't accept the choices I've made in my life, and this election has made it even more difficult.

This may be a little odd for a practicing Catholic to say, but I don't think that Catholicism is the be all and end all. Despite what I may have been taught, I don't believe that being Catholic is the only way to Heaven. I see great beauty and, yes, even salvation in many other religions. I'm not so closeminded as to believe that God would set us on this earth with one particular religious agenda or another, especially one so contrived by humans. Let's face it, a good deal of the world's problems could be solved if countries actually tried understanding one another, especially on religious grounds, rather than forcing their own beliefs on everyone else (works politically too...though the Dork in the White House would disagree with me). You don't have to believe the same as someone else, you just have respect their right to believe differently from you. I had hoped that the Church was heading in that direction. I am disheartened to find that it is not, at least not from what I can tell of this new Pope.

I am also disappointed that there will be no moves toward allowing priests to marry or ordaining women, but I guess I didn't really expect that to happen soon. I think it's ridiculous that a woman cannot become a priest, but what do I know? I'm just a college-educated, progressively minded woman. The patriarchy of the Church is its greatest tradition and therefore it will not change...at least not in the near future. And as for priests marrying...well, who knows? That could change, but somehow I doubt it.

Basically, I am trying to stay positive about this new Pope, though clearly I'm not doing very well with that. I'm willing to give him a chance before I completely write him off, but I pray that he doesn't do anything to undo all the progress John Paul II made during his Papacy. Here's to hoping that he at least attempts to live up to John Paul's legacy.

Let's Take A Walk

Today was a glorious day in Chicago. The sun was shining, and it was 76 degrees! In honor of the lovely weather, I decided to treat my kitty to a special evening of outdoor activity. I slipped on her pretty blue harness with the matching leash and took her outside on the front porch. We visited with Liam, our one-year-old neighbor, and his mommy Megan. I read my book, while Victoria sniffed the grass and rolled happily on the sunspotted sidewalk. After about an hour, I took the little fuzz-button back inside.

A few hours later after I mistakenly deleted a portion of my nomination project, I decided I needed another break. So, I put the harness and leash back on the kitty and let her sit on the porch with me again. This time, we decided to go for a walk up and down the block a little way in each direction. It's rare that a cat will walk on a leash, but Victoria will. While I was outside, my neighbors locked me out of my house, so I picked up Vicky and took her on a longer walk to my friend Whitney's house to get my spare key. We got to Ashland when I realized that she wasn't going to be home anyway, and I stopped to talk to a neighbor. Victoria then decided that she needed to walk again, so I put her down. She took off like a shot and before I could finish my conversation, we were down the block and around the corner. She stopped to sniff the church and walk through my neighbor's garden. We even walked the path between the houses into the backyard and back. I think she really enjoyed herself. She was purring like an outboard motor when I picked her up to bring her back in. What a wonderful way to spend an evening...