Are College Women Coming Around to Catholic View on Contraception?

This article was first published by Technorati on 11 March 2010. To see all my Technorati articles, click Lifestyle in the Contents listing on the sidebar.

New research suggests that the vast majority of Americans (82%) believe God helps them make personal decisions. Does that include decisions about sex?

At first blush, one might think that a heightened sense of spirituality in an individual would lead to less frequent sexual activity, but researchers at the University of Kentucky (my alma mater) say that isn't the case.

The study in question distinguished religiousness from spirituality and found that the latter was actually a predictor in the other direction.

Sleep Poll Reveals Wives' Tales

This article was first published by Technorati on 8 March 2010. To see all my Technorati articles, click Lifestyle in the Contents listing on the sidebar.

The National Sleep Foundation released its 2010 Sleep and Ethnicity Poll results today, uncovering unexpected findings that will forever stand in the way of some much beloved wives tales vis-a-vie sex and good sleep.

The poll, conducted by telephone with over a thousand participants, seems to be completely legit, with a nice PDF brochure of its "Summary of Findings," which contains lots of graphs and charts.

Word of warning: please consult that brochure yourself, because I stand behind none of these conclusions.

One of the stated goals of this research effort was: "To investigate attitudes and behaviors about the relationship between sleep and health across different ethnic groups." Last on the Foundations list, first on mine.

Eckhart Tolle on Abortion

This article was first published by Technorati on 05 March 2010. To see all my Technorati articles, click Lifestyle in the Contents listing on the sidebar.

Abortion is once again on the front pages in conjunction with the healthcare overhaul.

Advocates on both sides of the debate remain tense as Democrats and Republicans negotiate the fine details of proposed legislation.

One of those details is whether the final package will include what is now known as a "Hyde Amendment," outlawing the use of federal funds to pay for abortions.

In the midst of this 37-year-old debate, perhaps it would be enlightening to consult one of America's most beloved spiritual teachers, Eckhart Tolle, for some guidance on the subject.

No Shame in US Bank CEO Helping His Janitor

This story was originally published by Technorati on 5 March 2010. Arthur Delaney, the writer of the story in The Huffington Post to which this article is a response, asked me to include this statement:

"My story is clear that US Bank bought the already-foreclosed property in a sheriff's sale, and that US Bank is the trustee while Chase is the servicer."

To see all my Technorati articles, click Lifestyle in the Contents listing on the sidebar.

The Huffington Post recently reported on the fate of Minneapolis janitor Rosalina Gomez, who as providence would have it, found out that she was cleaning the executive offices of Richard Davis, the CEO of US Bank, the bank that bought her house, which had been foreclosed upon and was sold in a sheriff's sale in September.

Calling Davis the culprit in this story, Huffington's Arthur Delaney's gotten it all wrong.

U.S. Bank didn't send Ms. Gomez's home into foreclosure; U.S. Bank bought her home in foreclosure. That's a big difference. Chase is the bank that held the mortgage and allegedly didn't make it clear enough to Ms. Gomez and her husband that the loan they were getting had a variable interest rate, that would allow their monthly mortgage payment to climb after a period of time.

Churches Can Fight City Hall and Win

A version of this article originally appeared on Technorati on 2 March 2010. To see all my Technorati articles, click Lifestyle in the Contents listing on the sidebar.

The Crossroads United Methodist Church in Phoenix, Arizona, has an outreach ministry to the city's homeless population. Part of that outreach includes reaching out to the downtown area and pulling in, by the bus load, as many homeless folks as they can find every Saturday morning for a pancake breakfast.

The problem with this laudable practice is that Crossroads is in a posh neighborhood, and the rich folks that live there are none too keen on having walking, talking reminders of "There, but for the grace of God, go I" in their midst. They like their churches like they like their children, seen and not heard.

Rich folks have lawyers, and these rich folks' lawyers impressed their clients' position upon the local politicians they underwrite, who forthwith issued an injunction against said pancake breakfast, ordering Crossroads, citing zoning law restrictions, to cease and desist, or face consequences.

That should take care of that, said the city fathers to themselves, what with the little guy's inability to fight city hall and all.

Enter the hero in the white hat, in this western melodrama, who happens to be none other than . . . the U.S. Congress?

That's right, that loathsome first branch of government passed the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act back in 2000, and it's been taking down city halls under similar scenarios all across the country ever since.

The Pursuit of Greatness Can Be Costly

A version of this article was published by Technorati on 24 February 2010. To see all my Technorati articles, click Lifestyle in the Contents listing on the sidebar.

An object lesson in egoic behavior comes by way of a recently authenticated Van Gogh original.

Museum de Fundatie, a small museum in a small Dutch town 70 miles east of Amsterdam called Zwolle began showing what is now known to be Van Gogh's "Le Blute-Fin Mill" yesterday (pictured). It will remain on display through July 4th.

The painting and its former owner will remain forever linked by a checkered past.

"Le Blute-Fin Mill" was previously owned by an art collector and curator named Dirk Hannema, who bought it in 1975 from an unsuspecting Paris art dealer for the equivalent of $2,700. Hannema later insured the painting for around $43,000.

Let Your Better Self Shine

This article was originally published by Technorati on 12 February 2010. To see all my Technorati articles, click Lifestyle in the Contents listing on the sidebar.

I have a confession to make: I like Shine from Yahoo! I'm pretty sure it's for women, with fruity colors and Cosmo-esque content. But I like it.

I like it because from time to time they post articles like Brett Blumenthal's 6 Personality Traits to Admire and Acquire, articles that point us in the direction of our ideals.

The traits Blumenthal most admires (spoiler alert!) are Selflessness, Tolerance, Genuineness, Sensitivity, Integrity and Humility. She readily admits, however, that the list could be much longer.

This article's title invites the inevitable comparison to Dr. Stephen Covey's 1989 international bestseller The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. These are habits he recommends, not traits, but there is some overlap.