Whirlwind trip to the upper South, the Mississippi Delta region. We started at the Abbey of Gethsemani [http://www.monks.org/] Wednesday evening. Caught Compline, then left for our hotel in Cave City. Mammoth Cave Thursday morning, then Memphis for its barbecue festival Thursday night. Hurricanes were pretty strong; so

"To finish off what we do often means taking care of minor details, of the little things. This demands an effort, demands sacrifice, and when we offer it, it is pleasing to God. Taking care of the details for love of God does not diminish the soul. It ennobles

Miscellaneous Passages "True freedom comes only to a lucid mind unbound by conventional wisdom and suspicious of received opinions." Joseph Epstein, on the thought of George Santayana "[H]umanitarians have an intense hatred of mankind as it is." Santayana "Santayana says that, as we approach

Tonight is the much-anticipated release of the new "Star Trek" movie. It's expected to make $100 million this weekend. That's a lot, but imagine how much it would make if the people buying tickets were going with dates. Most "Star Trek"

Miscellaneous Passages . . . . . . with a little commentary: "To consort with the crowd is harmful; there is no person who does not make some vice attractive to us, or stamp it upon us, or taint us unconsciously therewith. . . . I come home more greedy, more ambitious, more voluptuous, and even more cruel

Miscellaneous excerpts from my recent reading: "Several of America's greatest heroes who were born during the age of slavery were whipped far more often than most slaves." Thaddeus Russell "In fact, only a tiny minority of anarchists have practised terror as a revolutionary strategy . . . historically

Background: When I was the editor of Gilbert Magazine [http://www.chesterton.org/explore-the-acs/gilbertmagazine/], I was responsible for the "Tremendous Trifles" column. It was occasionally hard to find a sufficient amount of interesting GKC material to fill the page, so John Peterson sent me a

Garden Stuff Whew. The container planting nears its end. After tomorrow, I'll have scores of containers with vegetables, herbs, and beneficials (flowers that help ward off pests). It's been tiring. Over Memorial Day, I'll finish my ground planting with winter squash, pumpkins, watermelon, cucumbers,

Miscellany The Weather Channel again missed a forecast. They not only botched up all of March and April, but last week WC resolutely clung to its prediction that Monday night temperatures would be in the 37-40 range. Meanwhile, Accuweather [http://www.accuweather.com/] had been predicting sub-32 temps

"[D]o what is asked of you quietly, peacefully, without hurry, and without vexation." de Caussade