series

Mental Health Monday – Mental Health Awareness Month

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May is Mental Health Awareness Month.

Each Monday from now until the second week in June will be the Mental Health Monday series with suggestions, resources, and coping tools. I would love for you to share what works for you in the comments, and I can gather them together for a future post for others.
It is more important than ever to be aware of our mental health, what triggers we face, and how to cope and overcome some of the difficulties.

Awareness is especially relevant in today’s world while we struggle through this unprecedented global pandemic with new surprises popping up every day in all aspects of our lives.

Today, instead of working on a more detailed first post, I was taking care of my own mental health, enjoying Star Wars with my family, eating comfort food (Kraft Macaroni & Cheese), praying the rosary, seeing my son for the first time in a long time, and most importantly, ignoring Twitter. Sometimes you just need to know when to stop and step away, and for me, that was today.

I have three resources to offer you today:

NAMI – National Association of Mental Illness

My own COVID-19 Mental Health and Crisis Information During the Pandemic Post
Wil Wheaton – he is very open about his depression and anxiety and many of his personal essays are helpful, even if only for knowing that you are not alone.

Election  Connection: 27 Weeks: Joe Biden for President

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VP Joe Biden is the presumptive nominee for the Democratic Party, challenging incumbent (and incompetent) President Trump.

Please donate what you can, volunteer where you are able, and listen to the priorities and policies of the Democratic party and Joe Biden.

Website
Twitter
YouTube

Here’s the Deal with Joe Biden podcast

Inspire. March.

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Some of my tools for this year’s Lenten Journey, including art from Bro. Mickey McGrath, my rosary, a key tab from my church, journal and Scripture gift, and really thoughtful and and prayerful daily devotions for Lent from Michelle Frankl-Donnay. (c)2020

“…the road that we seek is often the road we have already found.”

– Fr. James Martin, SJ, My Life with the Saints

Thoughts

One of things I’m learning through the Cursillo movement is how I can grow in relationship to Jesus through the three principles of piety, study, and action. These are key components of Cursillo, and while I did my weekend this past October, it is still taking me some time to regularly incorporate these into my life. I believe that I’ve always done them in varying degrees, but Cursillo has given me new eyes to see what it is I’m doing.

Lent is another way, a time of the year, to reflect on my relationships and what I do for myself in spiritual ways. The picture above illustrates some of my tools for my Lenten journey.

We are all obsessed, those of us who practice with giving up something for Lent. It is usually a food or a technology – social media, cell phone during dinner, etc. A lesser known thought is to add something to your life during Lent. This is only the first full week, and I am still discerning what I will add in addition to reading the daily devotional book my church gives us.

What have I given up?

Pizza. And bacon.

I didn’t even think about it. It just appeared in my head, and once it was there, I knew it was the right choice. My family still can’t believe it.

Adding?

I’m trying to journal a bit more, and heeding Brother Mickey’s advice to take fifteen minutes a day to just be with G-d. I’ll let you know how all of that goes.

In addition to prayer and fasting for these forty days, there is also almsgiving. I always support my church and my St. Vincent de Paul Society, but for this Lent, I will also be supporting RAICES, and I encourage all of you to take up that mantle. There are still children in cages; there are still families separated. RAICES is on the front lines with all kinds of help, and have been since the beginning of this nightmare.

Supernatural Lists: The Monsters (*) of Supernatural

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Over the years, the Winchesters (and their family and friends) have encountered a plethora of monsters. Some monsters come back several times over time, and we can recognize them enough to try and figure out the clues before Sam and Dean do. By the same token, some of our friends have become “monsters” (*)and have either needed to be ganked or go on to live very productive lives with spouses and children. You never know what you’ll find in a Supernatural episode. Also, my use of the term monster (*) includes entities like Angels or other neutral/good or not-necessarily-bad characters.

Here are a few of their favorite monsters:

Amazons. (Amazonian?)

Angel. See also Archangel.

Banshee

Bisaan (episode: The Chitters)

Bloody Mary

The Darkness

Death

Demon. See also the Yellow Eyed Demon, Crossroads Demon, Knight of Hell, Meg, Ruby, Lilith

Djinn

Dragons

Dreamwalker

Eve. See also Mother of All.

Fairies

Ghosts. See also Vengeful Spirit, Poltergeist

Ghoul

Harpy

Hellhounds

Imaginary Friends

Kitsune

Leprechauns

Leviathan

Nephilim

Okami

Pishtaco

Prophets

Psychic

Reaper

Rugaroo

Shapeshifter

Siren

Skinwalkers

Stryga

Trickster. See also Loki.

Unicorn

Vampire. See also Alpha Vampire.

Vetala

Wendigo

Werewolf

Witch. See also Rowena.

Wraith

Zombies

Monsters they’ve named: Jefferson Starships, Khan worms

Supernatural Lists: Time Travel Episodes

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Time travel.

Love it or hate it, it will give you a headache.

I think the most apt description I’ve ever found for time are a combination of Quantum Leap which relies on the string theory that time is like a ball of yarn and you can jump from one to the other, and Doctor Who where time is a wibbly-wobbly, timey-wimey ball of stuff, which really sums it up nicely and succinctly.

I thought there were many more time travel episodes in the Supernatural universe, and I could only remember about five. The rest that were in my head were more of flashbacks, which aren’t time travel per se, but in doing my research in the Supernatural wiki, I saw that they counted twelve, which I will list here even though there are a couple that I didn’t particularly consider them for my personal list. For example, in As Time Goes By, Henry Winchester travels forward from 1958 to 2013 and in Lebanon John Winchester travels to current day Kansas despite his being dead canonically. I was looking for the episodes where the brothers traveled through time.

At any rate, these all have something to love, and yes, they will still give you a headache.

1. In the Beginning [4.03]

2. The End [5.04]

3. The Song Remains the Same [5.13]

4. My Heart Will Go On [6.17]

5. Frontierland [6.18]

6. The Man Who Would Be King [6.20]

7. Time After Time [7.12]

8. As Time Goes By [8.12]

9. King of the Damned [9.21]

10. The Vessel [11.14]

11. Family Feud [12.13]

12. Lebanon [14.13]

Election Connection: 40 Weeks: Democratic Primaries

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Beginning next Monday is the first of nineteen voting days to choose the Democratic candidate for President. Voting will take place in fifty-seven primaries and caucuses from the fifty states and seven territories. What follows is all of the primary/caucus dates. Find your state, make sure you’re registered, and vote for the candidate you feel passionate about. Be part of the process; make your voice heard. Then after the Democratic National Convention in July, unify behind the candidate (more on that in later weeks) and return the country to the rule of law and common decency.

Before you review the primary schedule, visit Vote Save America. They have tips on how you can help the candidates, stop gerrymandering, volunteer, donate to the eventual nominee, check your voter registration, and other resources to make your vote count. Check them out.

February 3

Iowa (caucus) 41 delegates

February 11

New Hampshire 24 delegates

February 22

Nevada (caucus) 36 delegates

February 29

South Carolina 54 delegates

March 3 (Super Tuesday) 1344 total delegates

Alabama, Arkansas, California, Colorado, American Samoa (caucus),

Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Tennesee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia

March 10 365 total delegates

Idaho, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, North Dakota (firehouse caucus), Washington

Democrats Abroad voting period ends

March 14

Northern Mariana Islands (caucus) 6 delegates

March 17 577 total delegates

Arizona, Florida, Illinois, Ohio

March 24

Georgia 105 delegates

March 29

Puerto Rico 51 delegates

April 4 107 total delegates

Alaska, Hawaii, Louisianna, Wyoming

April 7

Wisconsin 84 delegates

April 28 663 total delegates

Connecticutt, Delaware, Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island

May 2 46 total delegates

Guam (caucus), Kansas

May 5

Indiana 82 delegates

May 12 57 total delegates

Nebraska, West Virginia

May 19 115 total delegates

Kentucky, Oregon

June 2 215 total delegates

District of Columbia, Montana, New Jersey, New Mexico, South Dakota

June 6

United States Virgin Islands (caucus) 7 delegates

July 13-16

Democratic National Convention, Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Election Connection: 42 Weeks

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From Crooked Media comes a new six-episode series talking to whomever necessary in order to defeat Donald Trump at the ballot box on November 3rd. This election is too important to skip out on. We’ve seen what can happen when the wrong person is in The White House, and we have forty-two weeks to rectify this.

What will it take to defeat Donald Trump in November? In season 2 of The Wilderness, Jon Favreau looks for the path to victory in 2020 by talking to voters, strategists, organizers, and candidates in the battleground states that will decide the election.

Favreau takes listeners to the four most competitive regions on the road to 270 electoral votes and 51 Senate seats, where he conducts focus groups with voters in Pennsylvania, Arizona, Florida, and Wisconsin. The series also follows grassroots organizers and candidates in these states who share their winning strategies to reach these voters.

Through his own experience as a campaign veteran and speechwriter for Barack Obama, Favreau attempts to unpack the complicated and often surprising reasons voters support a particular candidate, or choose not to participate at all.

Episodes 1 and 2 are available now wherever you get your podcasts. (I personally use Player.FM and like its service very much.)

Subscribe so the rest of the series will automatically download each week and you won’t miss any. If you didn’t catch The Wilderness, Part 1 when it premiered, the link will take you to the first of fifteen episodes that are well worth listening to.

The Wilderness, Part 2

Episode 1: The Stakes

Episode 2: The Northeast