Sun up: 06:44
Sun down: 19:03
Ave Maria: 19:30
Days left: 3 full days
The Feast of St. Charles Borromeo, whose heart is in the church San Carlo al Corso.
Tomorrow it was one year ago that I had my newly re-gilded chalice consecrated by Card. Pell. How we miss him. During that day I had had a very important meeting and I prayed to St. Thérèse for help. That evening I received, for the second time in my life, a sign from Thérèse, the absolutely out of the blue gift from my florist friend Pippo of a perfect white rose as I walked through the tumult of a very windy Campo de’ Fiori during its disassembly and clean-up phase.
I ask you dear readers for the next few days to pray to St. Thérèse for me.
Welcome registrant:
Gregory M.
Heading to church this morning. Very peaceful.
Breakfast today after Mass with The World’s Best Sacristan™. Which is mine?
Yesterday I had a hankerin’ for clams. As you know, I went to the fishmonger, as one does.
The basis for this is white wine and a little oil in which I had for about 20 minutes warmed a half dozen smashed garlic cloves. Then the heat went UP and in went the clams. They had been purged in salt water for about 8 hours. They say they are purged already. “HA!” I purge them. Salt water. Change it a couple times.
All but one opened. Really good.
Pull the clams out and finish cooking the half cooked spaghetti in the juice.
Dessert: puntarelle with anchovy. Yum.
In the great church San Carlo al Corso, go around in back of the main altar where there is a little chapel with altar in the ambulatory. This contains the heart of St. Charles.
The writing says “humilitas”, which was San Carlo’s motto.
St. Charles is instantly recognizable by his enormous nose…. er um… heart. Actually, it was St. Philip Neri who had the miraculously enlarged heart.
What a lovely image, no? Offering his heart?
Meanwhile offer this puzzle. White to move and win.
1. Rd8+ Kb7 2. Rxc7+ Qxc7 3. Rd7 Qxd7 4. Qxd7+ Kb8 5. Kxb2 Rh6
NB: I’ll hold comments with solutions ’till the next day so there won’t be “spoilers” for others.
Interested in learning? Try THIS.
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Think about candles for your advent wreath!
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1. Rd8+ wins material — Black’s King is forced to capture the Rook. But after White plays Rf8+, Black has no alternative other than to interpose his Queen: Qe8. Whereupon White exchanges his second Rook for the Queen, and after the King takes that Rook, White’s Queen captures Black’s Rook on g6, applying check. Black’s King is forced to move, and then White’s King captures Black’s other Rook on b2, leaving White a Queen ahead.
Hmm. 1. Rd8+ looks promising. Accepting the sac goes badly for black:
1. Rd8+ Kxd8
2. Rf8+ Qe8
3. Rxe8+ Kxe8
4. Qxd6+
Declining is not so immediately catastrophic. There are some good lines in there for white, but I haven’t convinced myself that black has no way out. So for example:
1. … Kb7
2. Rxc7+ Qxc7
3. Rd7
at which point I think black has no better option than to take the exchange, also losing the rook on b2.
I’m convinced that “The World’s Best Sacristan” has an identical twin.
It’s not humanly possible for one person to cover all those duties.
So, St. Charles had a prominent probiscus. The delux equipment, Front of the line when God was giving out noses.
My nose is good size but I can always find bigger.
Embrace the nose! Many a great man had a prominent one.