MONDAY DIARY: FIRST FICTION AND THEN ALMOST EXCRUCIATINGLY TRUE STORIES

FIRST: THE OFFICIAL STORY:

So as many of you know, today begins the much anticipated restoration of St. Sebastian church.  Our beloved church building is closed to worship during the week for the next 3 months and so we have Mass at the Julie Billiart Chapel.

Already busy workers at their jobs removing pews!

Our awesome Knights of Columbus are hard at work both on the pews and in removing everything from the choir loft.  The organ company is here preparing to protect the organ against all of the dust that is expected to be generated.

And I woke up pleasantly early this morning to get ready to go down the street for Mass.  This robin greeting me on this Easter Monday as if to say, "It's a great day!"

It snowed during the night and I got a beautiful view of our neighborhood on the way to the chapel that I might not have seen if I didn't have to "drive to work!"

How beautiful Schneider Park is at 7:00 in the morning!

And finally, we had Mass in our little chapel which was followed by our very first baptism in this newly christened Catholic space.  A beautiful start to Easter!

NOW THE REAL STORY:

So the robin?  It's NUTS!  It must see its own reflection in the window and is ATTACKING it!  It obviously can't see in because I can walk right up to it and take a picture!  I was in my room screaming, "BLAH BLAH BLAH!  GET THE SAM HILL AWAY FROM MY WINDOW BEFORE YOU HURT YOURSELF!"

I hung a towel out of window to try to save it from itself.  Then I sat down to write this to you and HE CAME TO OTHER WINDOW CLOSE TO MY CHAIR AND IS ATTACKING IT!  What am I supposed to do?   Shroud the whole house in towels . . . OH MOTHER OF PEARL!  IT IS ATTACKING THE WINDOW IN THE GUEST ROOM!

And this was supposed to be a quiet day here.  There is not only the construction crew in the church, there are workers in the school repairing the damage from the fire on Maundy Thursday!  And there is another crew in the hall refinishing the wood floor in there.  It is crazy busy around here.

BUT - BUT - BUT - it was all topped off as I was getting ready to leave the house today for the JBA chapel.  I got downstairs and things didn't smell right.  SOMEBODY must have got sick last night and pooped on the dining room rug.  ARG!

My plan was to get a plastic bag and pick it up to stave off the worst of the stench and clean it up when I got back.  I scooped it up, took a step back . . . 

Stepped right into pile #2.  Fortunately I had slips-ons on and was able to carefully step out of them so I wouldn't track Chester dropping across the floor.  But AS I STEPPED BACK OUT OF MY SHOES . . . 

Yes, in my socks.

It was not a nice pleasant drive over in the beautiful snow BECAUSE NOW I WAS LATE and had to gun it over there. 

When our seminarian, Michael Crookston, made it to the chapel he asked, "Why are there socks sitting on the floor of the dining room?"

Happy Easter Monday.

UPDATE:  Plumbing problem in the school.  Inch of water in the boiler room.