Blog Blitz

I just downloaded 140 pictures from my camera onto my computer, and I realized I missed a load of great blogging topics all summer.

Time to make up for lost verbosity.

First, from May...

I went on a weekend retreat with some Catholics connected with my college program, the St. Ignatius Institute. It was a small and quality group, and we were up north of Santa Rosa. The priest who founded the program has a terrific alpine ski-chalet-type villa there called Sweetwater, really simple with bunk beds and wood everywhere, and retreat groups use it year-round. I hadn't been there since my senior year of college in 1999, and it was a wonderful return.

It came at a good time, as I was at that point seriously considering Catholicism and pretty much ready to make the move. It was good to be in that place with all my college memories and to think through what had happened over the last 9 or more years.

Several of the people with us have long track records of tireless serving and self-sacrifice. Some of them I knew well and others I was just getting acquainted with, but the whole weekend was a quiet reminder that most of the happiest days of my life had been either with or as a result of the guidance of these solid, principled, thinking and generous Catholic people. I'm truly grateful.