I love Latin....

My husband found a source online for the rosary prayers in Latin. He printed it out in booklet form (he's a graphics designer & has a new toy at work), one for each of us. So last night I tried saying my nightly rosary in Latin.

WOW. I like it. It's more complicated, of course, and I read directly from the booklet. But what I really liked was how that kept me focused. I have a problem with my mind wandering while I say the rosary, and that didn't happen of course because I had to PAY CLOSE ATTENTION. The same thing happens when I attend Tridentine Mass as opposed to Missa Normativa. I actually PARTICIPATE MORE FULLY at the Latin Mass because I'm not rattling off the prayers in automatic . Oh wait, that's not supposed to be the case, I'm a mindless drone at the Tridentine Mass 'cause I don't actually speak Latin (yet....waiting for SJC's fall classes to start....is it October yet????), never mind that THE ENGLISH TRANSLATION IS RIGHT NEXT TO IT!

But one weird thing: I had a problem saying the Hail Holy Queen, because as I read, I remembered I'd heard it (or bits of it, at least) before, in song. I realize now that Andrew Lloyd Webber cribbed bits of it for the opening sequence of Evita, at her funeral (it's not in the movie, but it's on the Broadway soundtrack, which I used to own). So last night I had trouble not singing those parts.....

Why Missal Thumper?

It occurred to me that I should probably explain the title here. One day my cousin referred to her traditional Protestant sister-in-law as a "bible-thumper", and it got me thinking. What would you call a traditional Catholic? "Mackerel-snapper" is too old. Then I remembered the 1962 Missals we bought when we decided to become parishioners at St. John Cantius (PLUG: BEST PARISH IN THE WORLD, YOU MUST GO IF YOU CAN). Ah-HAH!!! MISSAL thumpers!

Eggs in Purgatory

My husband and I stopped eating meat on Fridays altogether. I suspect this is more of a penance for him than for me; I love vegetables & fish, but he grew up very meat-and-potatoes. Here's something he really likes, called Eggs in Purgatory. The "purgatory" part is spicy gravy (non-Italians read: tomato sauce), but if you prefer gravy that isn't spicy, it's still good.

2 eggs per person
2 slices Italian bread per person
gravy to cover, at least 1c per person
butter or olive oil
grated romano cheese (or parmesan if you like that better)

Warm the gravy in a saucepot. While it's heating, lightly butter or oil the bread slices. Put them under the broiler or on a George Forman grill to brown. Fry 2 eggs per person in butter.

To plate: lay the browned bread on the plate. Top each slice with a fried egg, then ladle over the gravy. Sprinkle with grated cheese & serve.

YES. This is good. Try it!

Hello out there

Yes, yet ANOTHER blog. This one's about the random interests of a Catholic woman from Chicago. Cooking, books, movies, and the odd rant about whatever I'm thinking at the moment.