7 Quick Takes!!

1. This weekend is reserved for catching up on the MOUNTAIN of schoolwork I have to do! It's crazy how far behind I've gotten on things.. I need to read like 5 books and write a few papers. Crazy! Pray for me! And pleeeease don't call me to do anything! I'll be looking for an out and, as the Queen of Distraction, will happily take you up on your offer to tour a paper factory or clean out your fridge!



2. You have to watch this video on YouTube. It's a video of what it would be like if guys were like girls! I'd like to say that it's completely sexist, but it's soooo true (and verrryyy hilarious)! You will love it!

3. Christmas has come early this year! Literally! Well, no not literally! But I've had every cheesy holiday song in my head for a week and cannot get rid of them! I have no idea where this came from.. I haven't watched a Christmas movie or listed to any CDs. My best guess is that the three Christmas gifts sitting on my bookshelf that I should have given to my friends months ago have been calling out to me..

Nah!

4. I'm chaperoning prom this Saturday at my old high school! My two high school brothers are going and when I asked them if they minded that I was going to be there my brother John said, "No. I actually suggested you when they asked." Awwwww!! How many 17-years olds say that!?

5. Speaking of brothers, my brother Brian will be playing football at Wabash, an all-men's college in Crawfordsville, Indiana! We are so excited! My brother Tommy kept saying, "I just can't believe I have a brother who plays college ball!" Brian is the one who, when he was very young, was caught crying in the garage all by himself. When asked what was wrong, he blubbered, "No one.. (sniff, sniff) No one is our family has EVER made it to professional sports!!"

Wow.. Yeah, it was time for him. ;)

6. Tonight I was at a study session with a group of 7 girls and one guy. Our lone gentleman let us see the engagement ring he's about to propose to his girlfriend with and all of us ladies went nuts. Teary-eyed and swooning, we complimented him on a job well done! One of the gals sighed and said, "Oh gosh.. Doesn't that just make your uterus hurt?" We all paused and laughed out loud when another said, "Um.. my uterus doesn't yearn." God love 'em.

7. It was my mom's birthday on Wednesday! Happy Birthday to the best momma ever! I love you!

Go visit Jen at Conversion Diary! Read her 7 and a few of her friends' quick takes!

Great post.. (Not mine!)

Go read Jen's experience of Easter with small children and sugar. Funny, moving and thought-provoking! I know you mommas will love it! :)

I am so gullible!!

This is a Facebook convo between me and our parish priest. Will and John are my brothers and Jack is a kid at school. I totally fell for this..

11:36pm F.T.
Hey CAit!
have u talked to anybody at home tonite?

11:37pm Me
Hey Fr. T! How are ya?
No.. Uh oh.. What happened?

11:38pm F.T.
about will?

11:38pm Me
No...
Is everything okay?

11:38pm F.T.
got in a little trouble

11:38pm Me
What?

11:38pm F.T.
at blue nite auction last nite
took an ipod

11:39pm Me
No..
What?
Seriously?

11:39pm F.T.
have u talked to him?

11:39pm Me
No!

11:39pm F.T.
maybe shd when u get chance

11:39pm Me
Oh my gosh..
Will?
I can't believe it..

11:40pm F.T.
hes on chat rite now...

11:40pm Me
It's so unlke him..

11:41pm F.T.
hes on late tonite cause no school tomorrow for him

11:41pm Me
Oh my..

11:41pm F.T.
belonged to joe brettnacher

11:41pm Me
Oh gosh..

11:41pm F.T.
why steal from the principal!?!?

11:41pm Me
(PS - Joe has an iPod? Are we paying him too much?)

11:42pm F.T.
well...

11:42pm Me
Is this a joke?

11:42pm F.T.
anyway then he sold it

11:42pm Me
NOO!!!

11:42pm F.T.
to jack kendrick
who spilled the beans

11:43pm Me
Can I tell him you told me?

11:43pm F.T.
never trusted jack
yah

11:44pm Me
Is this really serious?

11:44pm F.T.
well now the ipos was thrown somewhere in highland and everbodys lookin for it
i thot maybe john had it to save will but john says no

11:45pm Me
Oh no..

11:45pm F.T.
but then connie lux saw kids in her back yard so they think thats where it is
but
connie won't let them look

11:46pm Me
What? Why not?

11:46pm F.T.
casue shes afraid theyll call her a snitch
so
now
joe is going there tomorrow

11:46pm Me
What is she, in Jr. high??
Oh gosh.. I'm sick to my stomach!

11:46pm F.T.
and make her let him find the ipod
and your mom said

11:47pm Me
Oh LORD..

11:47pm F.T.
that she's going to rip connies dog up
if the dog ate the thing

11:47pm Me
IS THIS A JOKE?

11:47pm F.T.
cause music is comingout of the dog every time it farts
lolololololololol

11:48pm Me
DANG ITTTTTTTTTTTTTtt!

11:48pm F.T.
lolo///caitie gotcha!!!!!

11:48pm Me
I'm -- I -- I cannot even.. No!

11:48pm F.T.
farting dog music
lolololol

11:48pm Me
My roommates are all laughing at me cuz I'm freaking out! LOL
YOU GOT ME GOOOOOOD!

11:49pm F.T.
oh gosh too much fun tonite

11:49pm Me
So Will didn't take it?
LOL

11:49pm F.T.
no
but heck
doesn;t it sound like CC drama?
!!!

11:49pm Me
Oh my gosh, Fr. Tim! I wish I could say differently, but YOU GOT ME!
I was getting tears in my eyes!

11:50pm F.T.
poor will!

11:50pm Me
Well he's playing along!
He hasn;t admitted he was joking!

11:50pm F.T.
No we planned it

11:52pm F.T.
Nite!

11:52pm Me
I'm posting the conversation cuz this is legendary!

11:52pm F.T.
Hahahahahaha!

11:53pm Me
This is better than Mrs. Vath eating potpourri.

11:54pm F.T.
Lololol!!!! Life is so fun!

I'm on iTunes!

My concert is on iTunes! I gave a charity concert for St. Patrick's Day last month and someone recorded it for a podcast! Between you and me, the sound quality is horrrrrrrrible! I'd much rather you watch the videos! But either way, it's on iTunes and that's exciting!

Go to http://www.marian.edu/Library/Pages/iTunesU.aspx and click on "Visit Marian U on iTunes". When your iTunes comes up, scroll down to "In Good Faith" under "Other Events and Podcasts". You should see "St. Patrick's Day Charity Concert". Don't be confused when you hear Caitlyn.. He means me. ;)

Feminism vs. Chivalry (Junior High Edition)

My brother, Will, is 14 years old and doing a project on what feminism did to chivalry! Impressed? I sure as heck was! Now, granted I became his editor on the project, gave him a few quotes to use and helped him to round out his thoughts, but this is Will's paper! I thought I would share it with you!

__________________________________________________

Since the 1920s, the work for women's equal rights, treatment, and respect has made significant strides. From hunger strikes to parades, they have caught and kept the attention of all. Eventually, they earned their equality and in general, this brought them victory. However, when taken to an extreme, it brought them downright turmoil. Women should have been fighting to be treated equally as men, not the same as men. Somewhere along the line though, that's exactly what happened. Women lost their distinct feminine place in society and the decline in manners, etiquette, and chivalry soon followed.

My sister explains it, saying that men and women are absolutely equal.. But it's like four quarters and a dollar. Are they both equal to 100 pennies? Sure! But they're distinct. You can do things with four quarters that you can't do with a paper dollar and visa versa. Trying to say that they are the same belittles the unique gifts of each.

Of course there was a lot of poor treatment to women before the movement and they had much to fight for. But regarding the way in which men related to women, his whole demeanor would change! Men would go out of their way to ensure women were feeling comfortable and important. They would stand at a table when a woman stood or approached, only sitting when she sat or gestured them to do so. He would never swear in front of her or speak of rude things. In passing, he would tip his hat (raising the front slightly then returning it) to her and allow her to pass or enter before him. Doors were always held for women, whether entering a building or exiting a car. In the highest form of chivalry, men would go as far as to place their suit coat on a puddle, letting the woman walk on his jacket before requiring her to getting her feet wet. Not all gestures can be listed, of course, but saying women were unnoticed individuals is just plain wrong. Although mistreatment accompanied at the time, they were given a distinct place in society and not all of that is out of attempts to suppress their roles.

As the equal rights movement progressed in history, men began to get a different viewpoint on etiquette. Women were demanding to be thought of as the same (not equal) as their male counter-parts and many even protested being given any chivalrous treatment. The result is perfectly apparent today. You don't even have to go so far as to atrocities as domestic abuse, cheating or rape to see the effects. Take the small examples. It is now widely accepted for a man to ask a woman out via text or talk to women like their locker-room buddies. In my opinion, we've completely lost, not gained, our respect for woman and the sad thing is, most girls don't even realize what it could be like; they don't even know what they're missing. Just think.. years ago you acted completely differently when interacting with a man or a woman. You were forced to recognize their gender and relate to them accordingly. Now, we can go a whole day without ever pointing out the distinct masculine and feminine qualities in the human beings around us. It's no wonder women today are reduced to objects, sexually and feel that they're not appreciated for who they are.

Pope John Paul II wrote an incredible letter to women, citing their "feminine genius" as their distinct gift to the world. He says true feminism is not to deny these gifts and pretend that both men and women espouse them equally, but to build up the gifts that women have, as they are just as important as the masculine gifts. He says, "The creation of woman is thus marked from the outset by the principle of help: a help which is not one-sided but mutual. Woman complements man, just as man complements woman: men and women are complementary. Womanhood expresses the 'human' as much as manhood does, but in a different and complementary way." Women are the heart of our society. Without their unique gifts, we are lost. What feminism and the fight for equal rights did was generally good! There are stories in history that are lost because a woman wasn't allowed to tell it. There are moments in history that would have been more successful because a woman wasn't allowed to be involved in it. We have lost out on centuries of the feminine genius in history. But I worry that the same will be for the future unless we make a distinction between treating men and women equally and treating them the same.

This past year, Dockers came out with an ad campaign that builds up the "masculine genius". It read; "Once upon a time, men wore the pants, and wore them well. Women rarely had to open doors and little old ladies never crossed the street alone. Men took charge because that’s what they did. But somewhere along the way, the world decided it no longer needed men. Disco by disco, latte by foamy non-fat latte, men were stripped of their khakis and left stranded on the road between boyhood and androgyny. But today, there are questions our genderless society has no answers for. The world sits idly by as cities crumble, children misbehave and those little old ladies remain on one side of the street. For the first time since bad guys, we need heroes. We need grown-ups. We need men to put down the plastic fork, step away from the salad bar and untie the world from the tracks of complacency. It’s time to get your hands dirty. It’s time to answer the call of manhood. It’s time to WEAR THE PANTS." Now, this kind of man would ensure that women are treated as they should be and I call upon all of us to do the same.

7 Quick Takes

Happy Friday!


1. I finished Pioneer Woman's story of how she fell in love with her Marlboro man and, believe it or not, I'm ready to move to the sticks and jump into country life with the man of my dreams! Now, anyone who knows me can tell you what a stretch that has to be. I've never been known to be particularly good at dealing with gross or messy situations. Tonight, for example, we had friends over and someone vomited on the patio. I refused to go near, remaining to one side of the yard for more than a few minutes. One of my roommates finally hosed it off but I could swear that I could still smell it so I rummaged around in our cleaning cabinet and sprayed the whole thing down with "Outdoor Fresh" scented Pledge. Yes, as down home as I am ready to go, I know I'd need some time to adjust. But if she did it, I can try! Oh, cowboy!?

2. I am having my three youngest siblings come to campus and stay with me for the weekend. It is "Kids and Sibs" weekend and many fun activities lie ahead. I find they're getting old enough to where they can last all day and really enjoy big outings but, honestly, I find that it's me who is now starting to whine, "Can we go home now?"

3. Some dear friends of mine have announced their movement towards the priesthood and I could not be more excited! As someone who has found the peace of being on God's path, I so enjoy seeing others find their next step in life; taking it in service and love for God. How great! Pray for these men and their journey towards ordination! I am blessed to have such lovely men as friends!

4. School. Bleck! Go away!

5. Did you see that Kitty Kelley has written a tell-all, not-at-all-authorized (so you know it's good) biography on Oprah? I. Cannot. Wait to read it! I saw it at Target and refused to pay $20 for it, but I will surely watch on Amazon for a good bargain! Will give you all the goods when I'm done!

6. Today, as I was nannying, an ice cream truck rolled through a nearby neighborhood. I peeked outside as I saw at least 20 children being drawn from their homes, anxiously looking around for the sugar-on-wheels dreamsicle! It never came through their neighborhood, but I swear -- it was like watching zombies stumble through their yards towards prey. It's that music!

7. Finally, congrats to all the new mommas! Many wonderful families have grown this past week or two and I see many beautiful souls being brought into the world; gifts from the Big Guy! Hooray for new babes!

Go see Jen at Conversion Diary.. Such a generous hostess!

What the world needs now, is Rod Stewart, sweet Rod Stewart!

So I got a very sweet comment from a dear, old friend that TOTALLY made my day and I wanted to spread the joy. It's always nice to hear sweet words from a friend, as small as they may be and we can always use a little encouragement! Thank you, Annie, for giving me yours! Anyway, I am declaring this week -

"Comment On Someone's Blog and Tell Them Why You Love Them Or Why They Rock Or Just Write Something Nice (Or send an email or text them or do the un-thinkable and talk face-to-face) Week"!

Either way, make like Rod Stewart and mumble somethin' perdy to a friend or fellow-blogger. Or heck, just ask them:

Reality TV!

First thing's first... Did you see the Oprah episode when she had the Sisters of Mary from Ann Arbor on the show? It was really great and I loved hearing the stories of all the nuns. One of the sisters who was on the show was the Vocational Director and guess what! I saw her today! She was at St. Mary's helping with the senior girls' retreat! I soooo wanted to say hello but I never got a chance.. I really love their order and am thinking about scheduling a visit! But, I'll be honest, I was just dying to ask what it was like to be on the Oprah show!

________________________________________

Anyway, a couple weeks ago I was watching one of my favorite TV shows with my doppleganger, Theresa and two of the characters on the show finally initiated a long-awaited relationship with each other! "Yay!" I screamed! "This is perfect! Since he needs a place to stay, now that they're dating, he can move in with her!"

Theresa happily agreed and then stopped.. She said, "Wait, you know what? In real life I would never agree with that." I thought for a minute, contemplating what exactly I had suggested. "Wow!" I said. "You're so right! What was I thinking?" I had just gotten ridiculously excited over the fact that two people could shack up, thumb their noses at God and blow any potential of success for their relationship to smithereens! Eeek! What's more, THESE PEOPLE DON'T EXIST! I was so invested in their "relationship" that I was making housing plans! How many levels of wrong would this go?

Would someday I be watching Grey's Anatomy (which I've never actually seen) and find myself yell out, "C'mon, you idiot! Cheat on him!"? Or would I be curling up with a Matthew McConaughey flick and whisper, "Lie, baby! Lie!" It scared me and was a bit of a reality check! And let's be honest.. Caitie B. can always use a good reality check! :)

TV can be fun! But I don't have cable and I like it that way. Or rather, I'm scared of what would happen if I DID have cable! I do have a couple shows that I adore, but I'm starting to see just how much I'm into them! Too much. I think it might be time to inflict a little TV retreat! Right after Oprah! :)

Sawyer Picture of the Week

This week? Shirtless!

Umm.. yes, pliease!

Five Years Later..

.. Okay, maybe not five years, but it's been forever! Over a month! Which, in the blogging world, is practically five years.

Here's a Top 10 List of what I've been doing.. If you're pressed for time, just shoot to Number 1. It's my favorite!

Oldenburg, Indiana

10. Convent Visit - My roommates and I went to visit our house advisor. We live in a house of Discernment called The Magnificat House on campus and Sister Olga, a Franciscan nun in Oldenburg, Indiana, guides us in our intentional living. Well, we thought we were going for a visit, but it turned out to be a "Come and See" weekend. Each of us is open to whatever God is calling us to but we all knew this convent was not the one for us. The Sisters, however, would have been thrilled to hear differently. It was a long day, but we met some lovely Sisters and laughed our butts off. It's always nice to come home with a little less butt. ;0)

9. Date Night - I went on a date the other night. It was going well until I got the 411 on his sex life.. Let's just say, in his world, the wedding night would arrive close to the first date than the actual wedding. Survey says...? No, thank you. (Sigh) Sometimes I want to do a "30 Dates in 90 Days" blog! Wouldn't THAT be a fun read? Think you can talk me into it? No, don't! Okay, do it.

8. LOST marathon - Hello, Lova! I am officially IN LOVE with Sawyer! Here's how I got hooked on LOST: My BFF and fellow blogger, Laura loves the show and asked me to watch an episode from Season Five with her a few months ago. I. Was. Hooked. I started with Season 1, blew through the whole lot and have just began with the first episodes of the final season. Wow! Incredible feat or super lame? Wait! Don't answer that. Just know that I had a dream about my luscious, con-man the other night and woke up unable to remember if it was real or not. Yes, I'm THAT involved. Thanks, Laura!



7. The Oscars - Okay, I shouldn't even mention this because it was NOTHING compared to last year, but the Academy Awards are like my Superbowl. I remember who wore what last year, who won what 3 years ago and I was 10 for 13 on my picks this year. Not bad! Even so, Hugh Jackman is, in my not-so-humble opinion, the best host that ever was. Watch the video above from the 2009 Oscars (though there's a non-embedable version that is much better quality on YouTube) and enjoy! :)

6. Open Mic Nights - I started going to a bar downtown every Monday after my night class and end up singing 2 or 3 songs at the Open Mic Night that my friends, Holly and Rick host! It's lots of fun and good practice! Come down and see me sometime at the Tip Top Tavern on 14th and Capitol! :)



5. The Swell Season - I just love this video and song!

4. A New Baby - My BFF is preggie! I am thrilled to say that I will be an Auntie all over again to a new bundle of joy this fall! Hooray! Congrats, Lo and Dan! I love you guys!

3. New Laptop - My practically-extinct, hunk-of-junk laptop died! Finally! I used a coupon for a rebate and ordered a new one. He's black and sleek, he doesn't talk back and anticipates my every need. Wait! Did I just order a new boyfriend? ;)

2. House Manager Job - Along with nannying two days a week, I've been hired as a House Manager for a family here in Indy. Both parents were never given the tools to run a household and brought me in to help with the day to day running of the household. I just help them organize aspects of their home and family life and it's been a very gratifying job so far. The family has been great to work with and very receptive. I'm thankful for the opportunity to help a family grow! It's been fun!



1. St. Patrick's Day Concert - A couple weeks ago, I gave a concert to benefit a local homeless shelter. Here's one of my songs! Don't mind my bass player.. He.. Oh, boy. He was a character. LOL Anyway, it was really fun and we raised a lot of money for the shelter! Yay! I'll keep uploading songs. Below is one more that features the Irish dancers we had in the show! Fun, fun!