there are no jews named peter, but there are two jews living in shreveport.

religion makes people do funny things. observe:

1) my blogmate apparently thinks unitarianism will help her remember to floss more often.
2) mb thinks jesus is a big hippie waiting to share a bong with him in heaven.
3) a former college roommate regularly announced that ash wednesday was her favorite holy day of obligation, even though the ashes made her forehead itchy.
4) another former roommate decided to be confirmed catholic as an adult, mostly so that she could request gifts of neon crosses and our lady of guadalupe candles from her hindu family.

me? much like my tendency to live vicariously through the much more interesting life of my blogmate, i accompany my friends on their religious adventures. for the most part, i keep quiet about my own opinions, not because i agree or disagree, but so nobody finds out my own thoughts are even more off-base...

1) i am anxiously waiting to accompany my blogmate to unitarian service, because i heard the classical music is good, and because i have a theory that unitarians are skinnier than average but have more-frequent-than-average receding hairlines and evanston-professor's-wife-ness, and i feel it's my job to scope the place for men for my blogmate while she gets her religion on.
2) although i truly believe jesus was more active in his revolutionary practices than your average bong-smoking hippie, i stand by mb's assertions, because i like to watch the fallout when unsuspecting fundamentalists try to save him.
3) i accompanied my roommate to ash wednesday services because she promised we could go out for lattes afterwards. but i washed off the ashes even though you're not supposed to, because i am terrified of breaking out and being left with a zit-cross on my forehead.
4) i bought a virgin mary candle from the latino section of my local supermarket to mark my friend's confirmation, and laughed a little, but it's my living room sporting the bobblehead jesus on the mantle. i can't put him away; he was a gift, and besides, i need him to guard the menorah on holidays.

yeah... happy ash wednesday, for anyone who's counting. what's your sacrifice? i knew a guy who used to give up swearing every lent by replacing all obscenities with the name of someone he didn't like ("i ann-burgess hate him so much! i'd like to ann-burgess his ann-burgess...") personally, i will be giving up spewing sacrilege online. right after this.