There are very serious discussions happening all around me. I know, because I read your blogs, your articles, your websites. I help to moderate a Catholic chat room, and we had a fairly heavy debate on Marian devotions about an hour ago. I participated in a staff development day today at work, in which weighty matters were addressed such as our ageing population, renovations, and coping with stress.
And yet, I am taking a break from that to tell you that my new deodorant - which seemed perfectly harmless when I chose it from among many on the shelves in the drug store - is giving me a headache because it stinks. Oh, it is effective - though it was very hot today, I haven't shed a drop in that area. But it smells something awful, when it is supposed to smell like ocean breezes or fruits of the forest or something. It's a heavy, musky scent, and it's wafting from under my arms. How embarrassing.
Dear Personal Hygiene Product Making People,
Women are not supposed to smell like cheap magazine perfume strips in the under arm area. A nice light baby powder scent would be more than enough.
Thank you very much.
Tess.
PS, can I get a refund for a used-only-once stick of deodorant?
Yes you can get a refund--just take it back and say it stinks. Then go tell the pope Vatican II stinks.
ReplyDeleteJan, thank you. I just might follow your first suggestion.
ReplyDeleteAs for the second, I have far too much respect for the Holy Father and the Church to deliver your message.
I don't know which word is disrespectful, pope? Stink? Although I wouldn't say that--in those words-- to the Holy Father himself. Just in the context of stinky deodorant. But I would say the essence, if I ever got the chance. Vatican II does stink--or do you disagree? It stinks the way a corpse stinks. The opposite of the odor of sanctity.
ReplyDeleteAnd one can suffer from an excess of respect, a deformation of respect. We must watch what we worship.
Jan, I don't know how you went from deodorant to Vatican II, or what you have read here at the Lighthouse that led you to think I have any complaint with that council. I stand by the Pontiff - both the man and the office - and the Magisterium - including the councils.
ReplyDeleteThe respect I referred to in my reply to you was my own. Your use of the word 'disrespect' in reference to yourself is rather telling, don't you think?
Actually I don't see where I referred to disrespect with reference to myself--I said I respect the pope and I do, and would not flippantly say such a thing to him, at least not the first thing I said to him. (But I respect tradition more, as we are obliged to do by the teaching of the Church.) What made me make the comment? Isn't this a Catholic blog? Isn't this a Catholic issue? Isn't this one of our more serious Catholic issues? But I was making a joke, originally, just because your post had rather that tone, or at least I took it as a 'light' effort, not one of your more ambitious posts, surely. So I was contrasting it with a topic I (personally) find to be of enormous importance, of 180 degree importance over the angst resulting from stinky deodorant.
ReplyDeleteI don't know how that ended up being from Unknown, sorry! Jan Baker
ReplyDeleteGlad to know you respect the Pope, Jan.
ReplyDeleteYou'll find many 'light' efforts here, on my personal blog. More serious topics are usually found elsewhere.