Symphony of Lights

Twin Peaks

Morning Jolt . . . with Jim Geraghty November 8, 2013 No politics today. There will be no Jolt on Veterans Day, November 11.  Things get back to normal on Tuesday, November 12. And Now for Something Completely Different . . . I'll be traveling to the Pacific Northwest for the first time this week.  One of the things I'm looking forward to doing is visiting Snoqualmie,  the filming site of one of my all-time favorite television shows, Twin Peaks. Twin Peaks fans often declare, "the show changed television forever."  Contemplating it a good 23 years after it aired, I think the notion of it  being a deeply influential show is overstated. I wish it were more influential;  the show threw out most of the conventions and "rules" of television.  It's not even easy to classify; technically it's a drama, but it often featured  ludicrous, silly, even slapstick comedy, along with elements of horror,  the supernatural, nighttime soap opera, and mysteries. It's plots feature  everything from police procedurals to Nancy Drew-style teen investigators to  government conspiracies. The character-driven dramas with such critical acclaim in recent years --  The Sopranos, Breaking Bad, House,The Wire, etc. -- are a slightly  different animal. There are shows that immitate a bit here or there --  The X-Filescertainly shared some of the vibe and cast members, and  perhaps Lost had the same grand ambition for a large cast, mysteries,  and plot twists. Like Twin Peaks, those shows demanded a lot from  their viewers -- "pay attention! This seemingly extraneous bit of dialogue  may turn out be very consequential several episodes from now!" -- and  struggled with viewer fatigue, as the audience began to suspect or believe  that the creators were making it up as they went along and contradicting themselves. While it certainly opened new doors for those creating television shows,  it remains a really unique off-the-wall vision and story that somehow  managed to become a brief national sensation. Other shows since  Twin Peaks's 1991 cancelation have adopted elements and pieces of  the Twin Peaks formula, but no one has really dared to try to emulate  the whole thing. I suspect most of Hollywood's screenwriters remember  the show's high points fondly, but programming directors think of it as  too difficult, too complicated, too demanding of the viewer. There were other shows that have featured weird small town with secrets, most notably ABC's short-lived Happy Town and Push, Nevada -- but Twin Peaks's overall package of weirdness, darkness, humor, mystery, and intensity set a bar that no one has really dared to cross. The result is a short-lived show with an intensely dedicated fan base and a not-quite-hit theatrical movie -- which is kind of like another of my all-time favorites, Joss Whedon's Firefly/Serenity. So what made Twin Peaks so unique? The Setting Is the Show For most of the history of American television, shows were filmed and produced  in either Los Angeles or New York. (In recent years, Vancouver has become a filming site of choice.) I was surprised to learn that only the pilot was filmed on location, mostly  in and around Snoqualmie, Washington. After that, they recreated the sets  in a Hollywood sound stage and found locations near Hollywood that resembled  the Pacific Northwest. But those key opening scenes and occasional bits of stock footage used  between scenes created an almost unequaled sense of atmosphere: an  isolated little town, beautiful but with a distinct sense that the whole place  is spooky and haunted. "Full of secrets," as the characters keep saying. The Visceral Punch of David Lynch, with a Sweetener The filmmaking of David Lynch is strong stuff: Blue Velvet, Wild at Heart,  Mulholland Drive. His films almost always include a character who represents  pure evil, or "the evil that men do." There is no glamorization of evil, the way a Hannibal Lecter is portrayed as  refined and witty, and there's no likeable charm as found in the television  antiheroes of Tony Soprano or brutal cop Vic Mackey. Lynch's villains are  nightmarish, disturbing, cruel, and there's often a sexual element to their  malice and mayhem. You wouldn't want to match wits with them or trade  quips with them, and they're rarely funny or sophisticated. They're evil and  terrifying and the impulse for cruelty made flesh. "I'm David Lynch, and I approved the nightmares you'll be having tonight." Some argue that Lynch's depiction of evil, sex, and violence are exploitative,  but I think you could argue the opposite, that he takes these subjects  seriously. (They are after all, the bread and butter of most Hollywood storytelling.  The Law and Ordershows, the CSIs, Castle, NCIS -- almost all of their episodes  begin with a murder, and the audience greets them the way the characters do:  just another day at the office.) Lynch seems convinced that when something  horrible like a murder happens, the audience should feel genuine horror. Twin Peaks begins with the murder of a homecoming queen in a seemingly  idyllic northwestern lumber town . . . and from that event, we learn about the  town's considerable problems with drugs, teenage sex and prostitution,  domestic violence, incest, blackmail, murder . . .oh, and perhaps a doorway  to heaven and hell, or at least the Native American mythological equivalents of them. Among its fans, there's considerable debate about whether Twin Peaks is mean t to be symbolic -- i.e., whether the horrific evils in the town are meant to be a  statement about American life or small town life, or whether we're watching a  town uniquely cursed and bedeviled by the consequences of the worst impulses of humanity. It's hard to interpret the series as a criticism of small-town American life or an  accusation of cultural hypocrisy, because the town teems with one good-hearted,  noble, brave soul after another: Sheriff Truman, Deputy Hawk, Deputy Andy,  Lucy Moran, Doc Hayward, Pete Martell, Major Briggs, Ed Hurley, Norma Jennings.  Most of the teenagers are "good souls" as well, although they're bedeviled by  the rebellious impulses of late puberty. The townsfolk may be naïve or oblivious to  some of the evils in their midst, but they aren't complicit in them. Lynch's world isn't all horror. There's almost always at least one noble hero  (frequently played by Kyle McLaughlin) and genuine innocents threatened by  that evil. Despite all the dark stuff, Lynch's work usually includes some deep  affection for small-town, Norman Rockwell Americana. Twin Peaks was by far Lynch's most mainstream hit, and I'd argue what made  it so much more broadly popular than his films was the recipe of mixing Lynch's  intensity and instinct for unforgettable images with co-creator Mark Frost's  skill for detective stories, plot twists, and characterization. You can see how different the tone is when Frost isn't involved in the theatrical  release, Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me. The writers of a television series that  ended on perhaps the biggest, most terrifying, and most consequential cliffhanger  got a chance to make a movie after the series ended . . . and Lynch chose to  make a prequel which, of course, doesn't resolve that cliffhanger at all.*  Fire Walk With Me is Lynch straight, no chaser, and is mostly a long, slow,  agonizing build-up to something we know is coming, the murder of Laura Palmer. The Mother of All Cliffhangers, Never to Be Resolved Lynch and Frost insist they always knew who Laura's killer was, but that they  wanted to put off identifying the he or she as long as possible. If executives at  ABC hadn't insisted they reveal the killer, it's possible the mystery would have  gone on for the entirety of the second season. (The network had erroneously  promised in the promotional materials that the killer would be revealed in the  first-season finale.) In a commentary on the DVD release of the show, Lynch  is adamant that the murderer should never have been revealed, because that mystery is what drove the narrative forward. You can see the show's skyrocketing  popularity in 1990, and subsequent decline in 1991, stemming from the resolution  of that question. Lynch, Frost, and the other creators also had a particularly mischievous way of  dealing with ABC's reticence about renewal, which was to pile cliffhanger upon  cliffhanger into each season finale. The first season ended with Lucy Moran  announcing her pregnancy; Leo Johnson shot; Jacques Renault smothered to  death in his hospital bed; the mill burning down with Pete Martell, Catherine Martell,  and Shelly Johnson inside; Audrey Horne in danger of being caught by her father  within his bordello; and FBI special agent Dale Cooper shot. The second season  resolved most of these questions. The second-season finale ended on a similarly epic pile-up of cliffhangers . . .  none of which were ever to be resolved. The quiet, gentle town doctor has had  an episode of violent rage, appearing to seriously injure another key character;  the town bank gets blown up with several key characters inside. . . . But most significant, Dale Cooper has gone into the otherworldly Black Lodge  to confront evil in both human and supernatural forms . . . and lost his battle.  The closing scene features Cooper looking in the bathroom mirror and seeing Killer BOB looking back at him. Cooper smashes his forehead into the mirror  and laughs and rants uncontrollably. Cooper is possessed, and at least at this  moment, evil has triumphed utterly, with the town's inhabitants in more danger than ever. And then the show ends. * The original script for Fire Walk with Me offers a vague hint of a resolution . . . 38.        BLACK LODGE/RED ROOM        Laura is sitting in a chair.  As the end credits begin...        We move back to see that Laura is sitting in Cooper's lap in the        same chair.  . . . in which the souls of the murder victim and the man who caught her killer  become entwined, sexually and romantically, in a limbo-like existence beyond  the physical world. This scene does not appear in the film. Jim's Best Explanation for What's Going On (for Diehard Geeks Only) Outside Twin Peaks, there is a doorway to a world beyond our own. Native  Americans called the locations beyond that doorway the "White Lodge" a nd the "Black Lodge" -- mysterious places that roughly align with the Christian  Heaven and Hell: One is a place of angel-like spirits who try to help people,  and the other a place of unspeakable evil that is fueled by "garmonbozia" --  human pain and suffering in corporeal form that appears to mortals as creamed  corn. The spirits of the Black Lodge influence certain townspeople of Twin Peaks  in an attempt to get them to commit terrible acts that generate pain and suffering. During the series, we see three beings from the Black Lodge. The most notable  is BOB (note the all-capital spelling) who appears to have possessed Leland Palmer  and driven him to molest and murder his daughter, as well as commit several  other murders. There is considerable debate about whether Mike, who takes the form of an  eccentric one-armed man, is good or evil. At one point in the series, Mike says,  "We once were partners. . . .Oh, but then . . . .I saw the face of God . . .  and was purified. I took off the arm, but remained, close to this vessel, inhabiting  from time to time, for one single purpose: to stop him! [referring to BOB]."  Despite his self-claimed mission of stopping the indisputably evil BOB,  Mike cannot be seen as a genuinely good character. In the movie, Mike and  the Little Man from Another Place (touching him where his arm would be)  demand BOB hand over the "garmonbozia" he has collected from Leland Palmer. Mike is best seen as an orderly, low-profile force for evil, and BOB an out-of-control,  chaotic one. The existence of the lodges is dismissed by most of the townspeople  as an old Indian legend. (During the series, there are several scenes indicating the  U.S. military is studying the potential existence of the lodges, and the FBI has  been investigating for several years.) It may be that the Mike believes that too  much overt activity on the part of the Black Lodge will cause humanity to become  aware of the lodges, with serious consequences for all involved. ("The greatest trick  the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn't exist.") Then there is the Little Man from Another Place. At one point, he says, "I am the arm,"  suggesting that he is, in fact, a part of Mike that is now a separate being. We rarely  see the LMFAP do something evil; he's usually giving cryptic clues, smiling, and  doing his otherworldly dance. The LMFAP is probably best seen as a mischievous imp,  sometimes seeming to help Cooper, sometimes laughing at him, mostly taunting him  about how little he understands what he's investigating. Finally, owls are often seen  when the Black Lodge denizens are near, echoing their role as ominous or sinister  figures in Native American mythology. The White Lodge's existence means there are good and helpful supernatural forces at  work, but they seem less directly involved with humanity -- we see the Giant, the elderly  woman Mrs. Tremond, and her grandson magician. The Log Lady also seems to know  some things about what's really going on in town, but much like an H. P. Lovecraft character,  her contact with the supernatural has left her mentally unstable and incapable of effectively  communicating. Put simply, the White Lodge doesn't understand humanity, and humanity  doesn't understand the White Lodge, so the clues usually only make sense much later. Time works differently in the lodges. The presence of lodge beings makes people smell  burnt oil, their hands sometimes shake, and electrical devices malfunction. (In the movie,  Dale Cooper suddenly sees himself standing in a different place on a closed-circuit  security monitor, appearing to exist in two places at once.) The FBI has been investigating mysterious occurrences and crimes relating to the lodges  for some years before the events of the television series begin. Agent Philip Jeffries  (David Bowie) disappeared three years ago, and  briefly reappeared before Cooper and his FBI colleagues in Philadelphia, roughly a year  before Laura Palmer's murder. His contact with the Black Lodge has left him near-incoherent,  but those who watch the series understand he's deliriously trying to explain the  supernatural forces he's encountered: "Believe me, I followed them . . . they live above a convenience store. I've been to one  of their meetings. I found something. And then there they were." He points to Dale Cooper  and angrily asks, "Who do you think this is, there?" because he knows Cooper will in  time become possessed by BOB, or he perhaps erroneously believes Cooper is already  possessed. In the film's script, a deleted line of dialogue indicates he's confused by  the fact that the year is 1989. Around that same time, Leland Plamer murdered Theresa Banks, and FBI agent  Chet Desmond (Chris Isaak) similarly disappeared after discovering some lodge-related clues. The presence of the lodges is best seen as a sort of low-level spiritual or psychological  radiation affecting the behavior of townspeople: Sheriff Truman -- perhaps the most normal and level-headed resident -- says, " There's a sort of evil out there. Something very, very strange in these old woods. Call it what you want. A darkness, a presence." In the penultimate episode, several residents experience inexplicable bouts of shaking hands. Harold Smith is an extreme agoraphobic. A major character dies suddenly and inexplicably, and the town doctor concludes  "it is as if she died from fear." At a biker bar called the Roadhouse, the clientele listen to the ethereal Julie Cruise  and when a second brutal murder is committed, everyone begins spontaneously crying. What happens next? Well, Lynch and Frost have had many opportunities to wrap up the  cliffhanger ending and have turned down every one. While several cast members have died  since the show ended, most of the rest have gathered for interviews, done a DVD commentary,  and a good chunk of the cast agreed to appear in a tribute episode of the show Psych  entitled "Dual Spires." There was a persistent rumor that an episode of the The X-Files  would travel to Twin Peaks (it never happened) and  an episode of Fringe referred to a Twin Peaks character. If the creators wanted to finish the story, they could have and probably would have.  They don't, and as a result, Twin Peaks stands as one of the great unresolved  cliffhangers of all time. If it were resolved, perhaps it wouldn't be Twin Peaks. Having said that, Lynch and the cast made a quartet of commercials for a Japanese  coffee company -- and the  last offers a version of the happy ending Twin Peaks fans hoped to see -- the successful rescue of the damsel in distress from the Black Lodge.  Readers, thanks for indulging me. Normal politics stuff returns Tuesday. To read more, visit www.nationalreview.com Why not forward this to a friend? Encourage them to sign up for NR's great free newsletters here. Save 75%... Subscribe to National Review magazine today and get 75% off the newsstand price. Click here for the print edition or here for the digital. National Review also makes a great gift! Click here to send a full-year of NR Digital or here to send the print edition to family, friends, and fellow conservatives.

Thank you, Msgr Sal Pilato for some clarity on recent issues. Here is the outline of a homily that he gave today.

Outline of this morning's homily given at two Masses:
XIII Sunday of Ordinary Time, Cycle C 
(Aftermath of SCOTUS Gay “Marriage” Decisions) 

I. If I were new here I wouldn’t give this homily. I believe you need to get to know a priest before we can effectively cover controversial issues. So if you are new to the parish or visiting and are tempted to walk out on this homily please wait until the end of the homily before you do. Listen to the whole thing before you make your decision. Also know it can be difficult to cover sensitive topics in 12 minutes and I might leave a part out that could lead to greater clarity or less misunderstanding so please forgive me if I do.

II. Today’s 2nd Reading from Galatians 5 speaks of true freedom and the conflict with the flesh. The Collect of the Mass speaks of “children of light,” the “darkness of error” and the “bright light of truth.”

III. Two Fridays ago we began “Fortnight for Freedom”
a. Like last year we began on the Feast of Sts. John Fisher and Thomas More and end on the 4th of July.
b. The American Bishops have asked Catholics to use the Fortnight to educate ourselves about our religious freedoms and to pray and work for an end to the government’s encroachment upon these freedoms.
c. Encroachment on these freedoms? 4 current examples:

i. First – the Obama Administration’s “HHS Mandate”
1. Named after the Health and Human Services Department mandate which was announced in January 2012 and which goes into effect this summer - August 2013
2. Requires that all employers in their employee’s insurance pay for contraception, sterilization and abortifacients. 
3. Since these three things are taught by the Church to be intrinsically evil and since we can never cooperate in intrinsic evil, the Church cannot pay for these things.
4. After the uproar last year the Administration came up with a “compromise” – requiring the insurance companies rather than the employers to pay for these. Of course this was a slight of hand, smoke and mirrors, the insurance companies would pass the cost down to the employers. They wouldn’t pay for this and lose money on their insurance programs.

ii. Second, SB 131 – a bill working its way through the California legislature right now that would again lift the statute of limitations on Churches and other private groups but not the public schools, and allow new civil (not criminal) lawsuits seeking financial damages for cases of child abuse.
1. When this happened 10 years ago, cases came forward of accusations going as far back as the 1930’s. Many of these cases involved people who were long dead and could not defend themselves.
2. Yes there were horrific cases of abuse. All known abusers have been removed from the clergy. Today our Safeguard the Children education programs are second to none in the number of young people and adults that are certified and re-certified in them.
3. Yet over the last ten years California dioceses had the highest settlement rates in the US because of this lifting of the statute of limitations – billions and billions of dollars most of which went to attorneys. One law firm (Anderson) made $16 million.
4. Many in the Church believe that if this bill passes it could lead to the bankruptcy of the 12 dioceses in California and the selling of many parishes and schools.
5. The bill conveniently exempts the public schools from being included even though more child abuse has taken place there than in the Church.

iii. Third, President Obama’s very negative comments about Catholic schools while speaking in Northern Ireland two weeks ago:
1. “If towns remain divided—if Catholics have their schools and buildings and Protestants have theirs, if we can’t see ourselves in one another and fear or resentment are allowed to harden—that too encourages division and discourages cooperation.”
2. He has never criticized Jewish or Muslim schools for being separate.
3. When he gave the commencement address at Morehouse last month he did not criticize historic black colleges for being separate.
4. Some say he was referring to a different situation in Northern Ireland but the Irish bishops responded by saying that he was using an old stereotype that is not fair or accurate.

iv. Fourth, the two decisions of the Supreme Court this week regarding so-called Gay “Marriage”
1. One decision invalidated part of the Federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) signed in the 90’s by President Clinton
2. The other decision refused to make a judgment on California’s Proposition 8 passed by 7 million California voters which defined marriage as between one man and one woman. This decision said that the supporters of this amendment to the California constitution lacked standing because the Governor or State Attorney General refused to defend the law passed by the people. 
3. This refusal to make a judgment has allowed these “marriages” to begin again just this last Friday.
4. The Church and the Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches the importance of compassion in ministering to those with same sex attraction. Most would tell you that they have had priests in the confessional who were kind and understanding.
5. But the gay “marriage” debate goes over the top when proponents compare it to the civil rights movement or the abolition movement. They are over the top when they compare the lack of gay marriage to slavery and segregation.
6. These comparisons are insulting to those who actually were slaves or who were segregated in the old South. These comparisons are insulting to those who fought for civil rights in the 1960’s or fought for women’s suffrage in the early 1900’s.
7. In many states including California, gays have all the privileges of marriage when they enter into domestic partnerships. There is only one thing missing - a word - marriage. This doesn’t come close to a comparison to slavery or segregation.

IV. Effects of this progression of aggression against the Church
a. The Church in the US has already removed itself from the ministry of adoption agencies because many states have required that all agencies include gay couples in their placements. The Church cannot do this.
b. Because Church hospitals cannot offer abortion, contraception or sterilization we are seeing hostility on the part of the government toward Catholic hospitals.
c. Proposed legislation in some states and at the federal level would require all hospitals to offer these so called services.
d. Proposed legislation would require all medical students to learn how to perform an abortion. 
e. Catholic medical students could not take such courses and Catholic university medical schools could not offer such courses.
f. While the President has said that this week’s Supreme Court decisions regarding marriage will not affect Churches for conscience reasons there is already talk on the part of the government in requiring military chaplains to perform gay “marriages” at chapels on military bases. Our Catholic chaplains cannot do this. If required they will have to leave the military.

V. Our country has moved away from having standards toward accommodating people’s feelings.
a. Law has always been based on standards of behavior not people’s feelings.
b. What we are seeing in this country is a diabolical disorientation.
c. We are seeing a confusion or reversal between light and darkness.
d. We are being accused of being bigoted and evil for holding to standards of behavior that are thousands of years old.

VI. A few (3) quotes – from a Jewish woman, a Catholic bishop and a Protestant general:
a. “The Supreme Court has decreed that there is no possible rationale beyond hatefulness to oppose changing the ancient institution of marriage. This sets the stage for nearly all religious institutions to be considered agents of bigotry. As many in the pro-marriage coalition have been arguing for two decades, the case for traditional marriage is not about hostility to homosexuality. It's about staunching the decay of the institution that undergirds everything else in our society. To enshrine same sex marriage is to endorse the idea of marriage as adult fulfillment. Marriage is much more than that.” -Mona Charen
b. “If you choose to offend God, successful you may be, honored you may be, rich you may be, praised by the world you may be, “broadminded” and “progressive” you may be, alive to public opinion and to the new morals of the day you may be, but you will never know how much you have failed, as Barabbas never knew how much he failed the day of his success. But you will be dead! Dead to the life of Christ! Dead to the love of God! Dead to the ageless peacefulness of eternity! . . . “Moral principles do not depend on a majority vote. Wrong is wrong even if everybody is wrong. Right is right even if nobody is right.” - Archbishop Fulton Sheen
c. "History fails to record a single precedent in which nations subject to moral decay have not passed into political and economic decline. There has been either a spiritual awakening to overcome the moral lapse, or a progressive deterioration leading to ultimate national disaster." -General Douglas MacArthur

VII. Conclusion
a. Fortnight for Freedom began with the Feast of Sts. John Fisher and Thomas More.
b. Both Saints were beheaded by King Henry VIII for not taking the Oath of Supremacy which acknowledged that the King was the head of the Church in England. Of all of the Catholic bishops of England St. John Fisher was the only one to refuse. Sir Thomas More was the King’s Chancellor equivalent to his Vice President.
c. Both men took their faith very seriously.
d. Both men could not compromise their consciences to save their lives.
e. Both men did not separate their faith from their public life or day to day life.
f. Some people believe a persecution of Christians is coming soon.
g. It has been happening for years in other parts of the world especially in the Middle East. Just last week a Catholic priest in Syria was beheaded with a knife before a hundred men and young boys shouting over and over again: “God is great.”
h. Will we stand firm in our faith handed down to us from the apostles?
i. Will we stand up for our beliefs? Will we give witness to our faith?
j. Or will we compromise because it is convenient and popular?
k. God bless America! God save America!

Published in Politichicks!

And here's the link:

http://politichicks.tv/tag/anne-yenny/

Merry Christmas from the Yennys!

Cas, Julie, Jack, Jonathon, Cade, Joe and Lane.

McKenna, Alix, Jonathon, Mike, Pat and Conor.

Pete, Theresa, Jonathon, Meghan and Kiley.

John Flanagan, Taylor, Jonathon, Ronda and John Samuel.

Jack, Cas, Jonathon, Meghan, Cade, Lane and Kiley.

Jonathon and Jack.

Waiting for the hat toss.

More Pics from Party (thanks Julie)

Cas, Jack, Cade and Lane

Kiley, Cas and Meghan

John Yenny and me.

Cas, Julie, Jonathon and Cade.

Sisters: Julie, Pat, Ronda, Me, Theresa at the party at the Marriott.

Commissioning Day Newspaper shot

A friend of Jonathon's from the east coast scanned this picture and sent it to us. That's Jonathon in the Marine blues in the lower left-hand corner. And looking happy, I might add.

Misc Pictures / Superintendent's Garden Party

All these pictures were taken either at the Garden Party, or on our way out the door. As I posted on FB that night: Free food, free drink? We may never leave.

With the superintendent and his wife. The Supe asked me how I felt about Jonathon choosing Marines as his service selection; I answered that he was the first to think my thoughts or feelings were relevant! And I told him we were glad to have Jonathon in the family; we finally had someone who could get us into the good parties.

Alix, Jonathon and Elle as we were leaving for the Superintendent's Garden Party.

On our way out the door to the Superintendent's Garden party. It was early in the week, so Jonathon is still in Navy whites. The last time we'll ever see him in that uniform.

On Sunday night, after the garden party, John Yenny, Jonathon, Elle, Alix and I went to a party hosted by one of Jonathon's rugby buddies, appropriately nicknamed "Bonesaw". Never did get his correct name, when I ran into his parents on Commissioning Day I addressed them both as Mr. Bonesaw and Mrs. Bonesaw, to which they both happily answered.

Commissioning Day

The view from my seat across the field to where mom was sitting. She's on the top row, immediately to the right of the outcropping windows. Notice the door leading the the blessedly air conditioned and catered room.

Jonathon marching on the field. I don't think he was as worried as he looks; maybe it was the thought of sitting in wool for three hours in heat and humidity that accounts for the expression.

Jonathon taking his Marine Corps oath. Blake Taylor graduated in the top 10% of the class of 2011, which scored his family seats on the field. I have his mom, Jeanie Taylor, to thank for this great shot.

That's Jonathon in the lower left-hand corner during the hat toss. This picture was on the front page of a east coast newspaper.

Party at the Marriott during Commissioning Week

We celebrated Jonathon's graduation and commissioning along with six other families and their Midshipmen at the Waterfront Marriott on Wednesday, May 25. We had a dinner in the ballroom and drinks and bagpipers on the patio overlooking the Severn River and the USNA campus.

John Yenny and Nan Flanagan. All dressed up, thank heavens somewhere to go!

Jonathon and Anne Yenny.

Jonathon and John Yenny.

John, Ronda and Taylor Flanagan.

Jack Flanagan, Kiley Wright, Cade and Julie Flanagan, Elle Yenny, Lane Flanagan and

Sam Yenny.

Conor Leighton, Theresa Wright, Alix and Pat Leighton.

Jonathon in uniform

I am learning to grab the opportunity to get a pic of Jonathon in uniform whenever it presents itself; he is out of that thing as fast as possible.

He is on the way tonight to an event with Brian, I withheld the car keys until he would cooperate.

He is in a wedding on Sunday and I am confident he will cooperate for the photographer much more than he does for me. Mother of the groom has promised copies.

Commissioning week 2011

Where to begin? We had a fantastic week, lots of moving parts so the potential for disaster was huge. Mike Leighton was the last of the family to arrive; his scheduled Friday at 1:00 am arrival turned into a 10:00 am arrival just in time for the commissioning ceremony. Lots of worry for all of us, especially Pat, but a happy ending when he showed up at the stadium, luggage in hand, after taking a cab from DC.

I have complained mightily this past year that my dad seems to be bored in heaven and is spending his time throwing his loved ones unexpected challenges. But he must have been on our side this past week (or he knew I'd HAD IT) because everything was perfect. Except, of course, that he wasn't there to enjoy it all with us.

My mom was amazing, spent an entire day in DC with various Flanagans, another day in Gettysburg. Walked to the USNA chapel with me on Sunday, and back several times to see the campus and visit the mid store.

We all had a great time at the big party on Wednesday night, friends Greg and Cheryl Brooks, along with Greg's girlfriend Ann even drove from PA to join us. A friend from church's son who lives locally also joined us. That, along with two bagpipers and an open bar? How NOT to have fun?

It's hard to describe the actual commissioning, hearing hundreds yell "I Do" taking the Marine Corps oath, and then hundreds more for the Navy, was overwhelming. Robert Gates' speech was inspiring and the announcers said each Mid's name with the enthusiasm it deserved.

After Jonathon received his diploma we all met in a pre-determined spot on the field where all the kids lined up. Once those hats were tossed they ran onto the field and each returned with at least one.

My mom had provided Jonathon with his silver dollar and by luck we were all there to witness him receiving first salute. JY pinned on the whatever-it-is that goes on his collar and a Marine was made.

I'll be posting pictures and details over the next couple of weeks.

Higher resolution?

Pics for Christmas calendar

Semper FI

In 1993 Jonathon was in kindergarten. That was the first time we heard that he wanted to be a Marine. 13 years later he was a Plebe at the Naval Academy, with the same goal.

And today, 17 years later, he's been officially accepted into the Marine Corps. Commissioning day from the Naval Academy will be the end of May 2011, at which point he will head to TBS (The Basic School) for six months of basic training.

He never wavered and we never doubted for a minute that he would achieve his goal.

Well done Jonathon.

Andrew Jackson says in one paragraph a concept this country was founded upon

"There is but one safe rule, and that is to confine the General Government rigidly within the sphere of its appropriate duties. It has no power to raise a revenue or impose taxes except for the purposes enumerated in the Constitution, and if its income is found to exceed these wants it should be forthwith reduced and the burden of the people so far lightened. " Andrew Jackson

A clever adaptation of a speech given by Sir Ken Robinson, world-renowned education and expert.

Great subtitle: Why I'm bored. This video points out the obvious. EVERY parent and teacher should watch this and remember it. The time for top-down control of education is over; only at the local level can education be saved. And I mean LOCAL: parents especially.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zDZFcDGpL4U

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