Church And State

In an ideal republic, like this country, there would be no mixing up of religion and government...and I say this from both the perspective of the religions and the secular aspects of our society.

Separate?
Not really.

One area I've mentioned before is that priests and ministers and rabbis are allowed to perform a marriage, which is both secular and religious.  It bestows hundreds of legal rights to a couple (the secular part) and celebrates the union in a spiritual/religious way as well.  There are lots of overlaps in other areas.  Not taxing religious organizations.  Religious schools taking the on the public responsibility of teaching.  Praying to the flag and acknowledging god everyday in classrooms.

It would seem to me that if I were a religious organization, I'd want the government completely out of my "business".

And I know as a secular citizen, I definitely would prefer the religious influence out of my life.

If it could only be so cut and dried.

Current Knitting/Crocheting
I did finally finish the baby blanket using Kauni and the Tunisian crochet technique, and I love how it came out.

I ended up doing a three-stitch Tunisian crochet around the edges and I like how that worked to flatten out the outer-ruffling effect of the pattern design.  I'm not sure this would make a very good baby blanket for a number of reasons.  First of all it's a bit rough as yarns go, although it might soften up when I wash it.  Second, it's not machine washable...a cardinal sin for a new parent gift.

However, I love the technique, and I will definitely use it again using appropriate yarn for a baby blanket.  I just couldn't resist the amazing colors in this colorway of Kauni.

Current Reading
I just finished reading a truly amazing book...the biography of Louis Zamperini called "Unbroken" by Laura Hillenbrand (the author of "Seabiscuit")



Amazing story of an amazing man that I can't believe I hadn't heard of or read about before.

Also, if you're on Facebook and like my taste in books, you should join GoodReads.  It's a great place for tracking friends' reading.

For Tom
The obligatory infrequent photo of Nico...our wonderful kitty cat.