I went through his paper line by line, thanks a lot that's what I needed to spend three hours on today, and there's nothing wrong with it, the editor followed the style rules, he just doesn't liiiiiiiike it. ffs

I have work to do this weekend, but I plan to stubbornly take the weekend for myself anyway.

There's construction all around me now. I can see more houses from my house. Two of my neighbors talked to me today. It's time to move.

It's time to move.

People are looking at me!!!!

People are looking at me!!!!

I can hear other people outside like, all the time now. Rationally, I know everything's okay, but my lizard brain that grew up at the end of a quarter-mile lane still freaks out and sends up Danger Intruder Alert signals constantly. It's worse than my cats. I swear, this is one reason I like having cats around: when there's actually a human in my yard, my cats let me know. If they're calm, the humans are not in our territory.

I decided not to drive myself crazy this weekend by bringing a stack of books that I won't get to read because the TV will be on too loud all weekend. So, instead I'm bringing a stack of food magazines which require much less of my concentration.

We made it to Mom's. I walked in to the smell of meatballs that my grandfather had just fried.

I somehow slept until 3 today. So, didn't get done nearly as much grading as I needed to. Tomorrow, going to campus to get work done. Maybe I'll say that I'll get brunch somewhere near campus, to make sure I'm actually awake, because I really have no room for not finishing stuff anymore.

The tickets for high holidays thing has always blown my mind. Churches will just cram people in. Bigger churches will sometimes have overflow with some sort of screen or audio in another big room or chapel. I guess sometimes people are turned away if you hit fire code? If you want a seat you get there early - you know there will be throngs of C&Es (people who only show up at church on Christmas and Easter).

And while collection plates are passed, for members it's generally the weekly installment of an annually pledged amount and for non-members it's an optional thing. Well, for everyone it's an optional thing - they're not going to make you stop coming if you don't meet your pledge or don't pledge at all.

I sort of feel it's a difference without a distinction -- both are considered donations and come off the taxes as a deduction!

I have been working all day so far (it's early afternoon in Poland) so I might go out for a couple of hours and then come back and works some more.

You know, I get that some people feel pressure to out money in the collection plate every time it get passed, but I have never had a church official say anything that sounds like it's a real, official pressure. I mean, preachers preach about tithing and giving, and sometimes there is a real practical issue like a roof or something that the congregation has to raise money for, that gets mentioned during the announcements. But regardless of the percentage of your income you choose to give, if you are giving of your income, it makes sense that you give after payday. So some people are going to put something in the plate once a month, some every two weeks, some more often, some less. So far as I know, they pass the plate at every service not to guilt people into giving when there is nothing coming in, but because it's easier to do it all the time than to try to make a schedule based on when everybody's paychecks come in. It's none of my business if someone else puts something in the plate, or doesn't. My parents gave us our allowance on Sunday mornings, and taught us to give some of that in church. They stopped giving allowance once we were old enough to babysit or mow lawns. If I had done some paid work that week, something went into the plate; if I hadn't, I gave nothing and no shame about it. And then I brought this guy I was dating to church with me. When the plate was passed, he had a few dollars to put in, and handed me one so I wasn't empty-handed. Which was thoughtful of him, but at the same time I totally had zero need to put something in the plate just to put something in the plate.

Oh, there was never *official* pressure, but you sure knew everyone in the nearby pews was watching. And gentle, sideways questions if there was a change. "Is everything all right, dear?" if the amount was smaller, or whispers among themselves if the amount was higher, "I wonder what she's making up for." The little envelopes were the only way to get around it, and you could only hope the church treasurer wasn't a gossip.

signed, grew up in a tiny church in a country village.