I am thinking about going to services (not this Sunday which will be too packed) at All Saints because they have a deep commitment to social justice and are very accepting of non-traditional families. I keep looking for a greater sense of community which my sporadic attendance at moms groups is not quite fulfilling. The limiting factor for church is my lack of belief in God as dictated by most churches.

Enh, JZ, the pill thing is so touch and go (he can usually be jollied, changed, fed, or cuddled out of it) that I think of it as him finding his voice. Yesterday at a playdate with a bunch of other infants, I realized all babies must be part pterodactyl.

Thank god, though, for the ability to take him to day care when he's pilly.

Okay, things may be improving, I think I have gotten a ticket for Leoonard Cohen for face value.

The limiting factor for church is my lack of belief in God as dictated by most churches.

You might want to check out the UUs.

Sue, that is GREAT news.

Sort of exciting stuff: 5 years ago, when I taught in South Central LA, I taught in a special program for motivated kids sponsored by USC. If they successfully completed the program with a certain (competitive) GPA and high enough SATs they would be given, basically, a full scholarship to USC.

I taught one group of ~70 kids for 2 years. Even years later other teachers in the program referred to them as my kids. Those students are now 12th graders. One of my co-teachers called yesterday to say that 23 of the group qualified for the scholarship.

Sure, it's only a 3rd of them, but I'm so deeply proud of them.

You might want to check out the UUs.

My other issue, Jesse, is I LOVE the pomp of good Catholic or Episcopalian service. I've been to a unitarian service and I was like, "hmmm... this doesn't feel like church." Though it might serve the community angle.

I realized all babies must be part pterodactyl.

Screech phase? Oh wait, we called D a velociraptor when he did that. Wrong dino.

An overly cologned guy was in the office, giving me a headache. Now that he's gone, the smell still lingers but is changing: now it smells exactly like Raid ant killer spray.

I sometimes miss the community aspect of quakerism. But then I consider actually attending and getting involved (if I could ignore the whole actual religion part of it!) I get preemptively irritated over stuff I know still bugs me (and not even the belief issue) and uhg!people! It was a nice community to grow up in, but I'm done.

My other issue, Jesse, is I LOVE the pomp of good Catholic or Episcopalian service. I've been to a unitarian service and I was like, "hmmm... this doesn't feel like church." Though it might serve the community angle.

This is very similar to my problem. Even when I found a church that had traditional pomp AND liberal politics, no one ever welcomed me into the community, so I drifted away.

I was gonna say, it sounds like the Unitarians would be a great fit for you. But the social justice-focused churches are also good--mine is like that, and it's unlike anyplace else I've ever been; all the hard and calcified doctrine is simultaneously less oppressive and more alive. 0.10000000 (That was Matilda's binary solo)

I haven't gone to Mass on a regular basis since college. When I'm visiting my mom on the holidays (namely, Christmas), I'll go with her to her church, but I found it too Protestant and not enough like my church growing up to be comfortable.

Too much singing, especially of the usual stuff that I grew up just mumbling along with the rest of the congregation. When they speak it, I know the words. When they sing it, I don't know the melody, so I just listen and fume because I can't mumble without standing out. Also, they don't have any kneelers! Again, way too reminiscent of the various Protestant churches I've been in to make me feel like I was actually going to a Catholic Mass.