CELESTIAL SAINTS AND ANGELS BEGIN FOLLOWING NFL FOOTBALL

Arch Angel Gabriel, the "Saint" invoked when praying for "Good News," held an Omniscience ( Known on Earth as a "Press Conference" ) in Heaven today, confirming an ongoing rumor that several Saints and Angels have formed an Ad Hoc Club, "The Celestials," a group in Heaven that follows and celebrates the National Football League's New Orleans Saints and their Perfect 2009-2010 Season.

Asked whether the Father, Son, or Holy Spirit were involved, Gabriel replied, "The Holy Spirit and Our Lady were both deciding forces in establishing the new club and are very active members."

Other members of The Celestials are, in no particular order:

* Our Lady of Perpetual Succor, who is providing "Constant Help" to the New Orleans Saints, according to the Omniscience. She said "Our Lady of Prompt Succor is another dedicated member, which was not too surprising since she is the Patroness of New Orleans.

* Saint Dismas, also affectionately known as the "Good Thief," who has been aiding "Special Teams" as they recover fumbles and make interceptions. Saint Dismas said "It's wonderful to be stealing out in the open again, without having to worry about that dang cross! The appreciation for the Saintly football thievery has been unheralded." "I can't wait to rip off Tom Brady's helmet a few times."

* Saint Jude Thaddaeus, who signed up to assist New Orleans Saints Football Coach Sean Payton with "Difficult Situations" and "Impossible Plays." Jude said he has had light duty thus far, but expects things to get busy when "Some Patriots visit the Saints in the Superdome."

* Saint Joan of Arc, who is leading a crusade in Heaven much like her battles in her home town "back-in-the-day," the country now known as "France." Joan said, "It's thrilling to get people all riled up again. I'm not saying Heaven's not fun, because it definitely is, but it's kinda cool to be out and about with the people again, too."

* Saint Christopher, the saint "banished by the Vatican in 1969," who is guiding the New Orleans Saints as they travel near and far, and from goal post to goal post. When asked about whether he is even truly a Saint, Chris replied, "I'm a Saint alright and I do go down to Purgatory to visit with the bonehead Pope who tried to kick me out of Heaven." He quickly added, "But, I'm not bitter!"

Numerous other Saints and Angels are members of The Celestials, but did not reply in time to be included in this Omniscience.

To honor and wear your favorite member of The Celestials, visit http://www.saintsforsinners.com/ and collect them all, and remember that "the saints are the sinners who keep on trying."

( The Infant of Prague and Saint Expedite contributed to this Omniscience )

WHO DAT!

Tips for Managing the In-Laws, by Saint Elizabeth of Hungary

Having Trouble Managing or dreading dealing with the "In-Laws" during the upcoming Holidays? Saint Elizabeth of Hungary feels your pain and can help you grin and bear it!

Way before Zsa Zsa Gabor was disqualified in the Miss Hungary Beauty Contest in 1936, the people of Hungary had Elizabeth of Hungary as their role model.

Elizabeth was born in the 13th Century, and, according to the http://www.saintsforsinners.com/ story about her, (featured in its entirety, at left) her parents went about arranging her future marriage when she was a mere 4 years old!

Although that plan did not work out, Elizabeth still married early, became Queen, had 3 kids and lived a happy life. That is, until her husband died while he was on a crusade. It was then that things got difficult with the in-laws.

Elizabeth's brother-in-law, Henry, kicked Elizabeth out of her castle, along with her 3 kids, one of whom was the rightful heir to the throne!

She persevered, however, and soon becme part of a Franciscan Order where she worked hard to help the poor, teaching them how to fend for themselves in difficult times. She did, after all, have first-hand knowledge of that, "thanks" to her mean old brother-in-law, Henry.

Sadly, she wound up with another loser, Conrad of Marzburg, who was violent and cruel, and beat her mercilessly..

But Elizabeth of Hungary still managed to practice what is sometimes called "mindfulness" these days, (loosely defined here as a principle, Buddhist in origin, that is sort of like repeating a mantra that says "mind over matter") and again persevered through her hardships.

Elizabeth died at the young age of 24. She went on the fast track and became a saint only four years later.

Today, November 17th, is Saint Elizabeth of Hungary's "Feast Day," a day to celebrate her life, her virtue, and her example.

Saint Elizabeth of Hungary asks all of us, who may be grousing about the Holidays and the in-laws, to just "suck it up and deal," adding, "If your in-laws may be annoying to you, you're probably annoying to them too. Call it a wash!" Saint Elizabeth reminds us to "rise above other peoples' differences that seem irksome, and celebrate differences instead!"

FAIRGROUNDS RACING ....

In just a few days, (Friday, November 6, 2009, to be exact!) the New Orleans Fairgrounds Race Course http://www.FairGroundsRaceCourse.com will begin its Annual Meet for 2009-2010.

We are excited to announce that Apprentice Jockey Dustin Dugas, whose racing helmet is featured at left, (with a Saint Joseph medal dangling on it) will be racing in New Orleans again this season.

In the very first race, Dustin will be riding "She Said What," a 2 year-old maiden bred and owned by Adele B. Dilschneider, a person who is most likely of German descent, just like the founder of SaintsforSinners, Rob Clemenz.

She Said What is trained by A. M. Stall, Jr., and this Maiden Claiming race will be a great contest to ring in the new racing season!

Because Dustin is our favorite Jockey we will be betting on She Said What in this inaugural race at the Fairgrounds.

http://www.SaintsforSinners.com has been designing special Saint George (Saint George is the patron saint of horses) medallions and hopes to have some of the other jockeys wearing them on their helmets for safety and good luck.

To be fair, we should acknowledge that it was good ole Dustin Dugas who started the habit of wearing a saint medallion on his helmet but we're going to see if we can turn it into a trend.... A jockey thing!

We can't wait to get to the New Orleans Fairgrounds Race Course this Friday, November 6, 2009, at 1:00 P.M. to get this party started. Good luck, Dustin. SaintsforSinners wishes you a safe, prosperous, spectacular season at the Fairgrounds.

Catholic Analysis: The Irony of Inertia

Catholic Analysis: The Irony of Inertia

THIS ONE'S FOR RUSTY ... A LOOK AT SAINT CECILIA

Rusty took the www.SaintsforSinners.com "Who's Your Saint Quiz" today and I thought Saint Cecilia, patron of Musicians and Music Lovers, was the perfect fit.

He asked for a photo so here she is, Rusty, featured at left. Thanks for taking the quiz and visiting www.SaintsforSinners.com

OUR MAGICAL NIGHT AT GIANTS STADIUM with BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN & THE E STREET BAND

Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band ended an era with their final performance at Giants Stadium on Friday, October 9th.

We were honored to be invited backstage for food and drinks and "Meet and Greets" with the band and others.

I was with attorney http://www.gjtbs.com/ Rick Duplantier (featured, at left, far right), tru TV's http://www.trutv.com/ Senior Vice-President of Operations, Rob Pumo, and Vanessa Procopio, the Senior Film Editor for Showtime Television's http://www.sho.com/ outstanding Docu-Series, "Brick City."

It was, by far, the best display of talent, I have ever had the privilege to see and hear. I'm talking about Bruce and the E Street Band, not my accomplished pals!

How we found ourselves in the thick of it all was through the kindness and generosity of my friend, Soozie Tyrell, http://www.soozietyrell.com/ the violinist and vocalist for the E Street Band.

[ ASIDE: Soozie Tyrell's wonderful album "White Lines" is available on her web site and even has a song about a saint, called "Ste. Genevieve." It is a hauntingly beautiful song about a river that floods and how the people are affected who live nearby, choosing to endure the hardship of loss rather than just walk away from the land they call "home." In other words, in 2003, Soozie Tyrell prophetically wrote an anthem of inspiration for all the people who lost their homes and livelihood in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and the ensuing flood of the great city of New Orleans, Louisiana in August, 2005.]

Now, back to our story.... Thanks to Huffington Post www.HuffingtonPost.com/holly-cara-price writer Holly Cara Price's marvellously meticulous maneuvering through the maze of Giants Stadium's procedures and precautions, we were able to get our tickets and passes to enter the Stadium. My briefcase of hand-painted red and black http://www.saintsforsinners.com/ Holy Spirit medallions, however, was not so lucky: "NO BAGS ALLOWED!" That was a huge disappointment because the 3 readers of this Blog (you know, me, myself, and I) are all pretty much very "into" hand-painted saint medallions from http://www.saintsforsinners.com/ .

I had decided to pass out Holy Spirit medals because the Holy Spirit seems to me, to represent rebirth and renewal. And, although Giants Stadium will be hit by the wrecking ball soon, its Spirit will always endure, very much like a "spirit in the night (all night)." We painted them all red and black because they looked great and it was not too difficult to get dozens of them ready to be given away.

Fortunately, Holly once again made things work out and like a twinkle of the nose of "Samantha" on "Bewitched," Holly fixed everything and Holly, Roy Bittan's wife Susie, and I walked back into the stadium with my briefcase filled with medallions. As we walked, we looked at the Holy Spirit medals and also at the Backstage Passes and we all sort of stopped dead in our tracks... Both the medals I brought from New Orleans and the Backstage Passes were designed almost identically in red and black with a bird in the middle! That was like a message from the Holy Spirit Himself! It was time to soar high and have some fun!

Since Rick and I are New Orleanians, the first place we dragged Rob and Vanessa to, was, yes..., the bar! My friend Rob and Rick noted that a guy named Pat Riley was a few feet away. (This "Riley" guy is apparently involved with the sport of basketball.) E Street Guitarist Nils Lofgren was getting mobbed and patiently endured having his picture taken approximately 3 million times, it seemed. After we got our drinks, it was time to investigate our surroundings.

Across the hall was the swanky dining area for the crew and we soon found out that our triangular red and black passes with the bird in the middle allowed us entry. It was there that I had the pleasure of officially meeting E Street Keyboarder Charlie Giordano. Charlie became a member of the E Street Band after the untimely passing of musician Danny Federeci. http://www.dannyfund.org/ When I introduced myself as Rob from SaintsforSinners in New Orleans, Charlie instinctively reached into his shirt to show me he was still wearing the Saint Joseph medal he bought many months ago. Of course, it was old and tired looking to me, but it obviously still had its power since it has stayed on Charlie for a very long time. [ MEMO TO SELF: Paint a new Saint Joseph medal for Charlie! ]

While we were having a snack, Rick got kind of wispy because three feet away from him was BravoTV's www.Bravotv.com/top-chef Top Chef Tom Colicchio. That's Rick's favorite show! A short while later, Rick found his courage (it may have been Jack Daniels who found it?) and had a friendly chat with him and their photos taken together. After meeting Tom Colicchio, I fully understand the meaning of the phrase "piercing blue eyes."

Later, we met with Soozie, Susie, and Holly for photos and I gave Soozie medals for the band. Unfortunately, I goofed with the packaging and a lot of them got stuck together. So, a lesson was learned and next time I'm doing a distribution (like I do every year on Mardi Gras Day, for instance), the medals and chains will be boxed, like back-in-day when I gave the medal packages to Patti Scialfa at the 2006 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival.

Reviewing Bruce's last performance at Giants Stadium seems like a task I am not eloquent enough to describe. It was pure magic from start to finish. The crowd was always involved and I hope to add some fantastic streaming video of the crowd, if I can just figure out how to do that! I'll also be adding lots of photos, either to the Blog, the http://www.saintsforsinners.com/ web site, or both (probably both). It was a fantastic night and I'm grateful to Soozie, Holly, Charlie, Susie and all the others who who made it such a special and memorable time for us. Oh, what a night!

Saint Hugh of Lincoln Recommends Dawn Dishwasher Liquid

http://www.saintsforsinners.com/ representative Saint Hugh of Lincoln, has put out a plea, "Please use Dawn Dishwasher Liquid and by doing so, you will Save Ducks and other Fowl, like Ugly Ducklings that turn into Swans."

Known as the patron of Swans, and sick children, Hugh also urged parents to make sure their kids wash their hands many times a day, to help curtail germs and also, a nasty little bug called the "Swine Flu."

Saint Hugh of Lincoln first got on board as a supporter of Dawn Dish Washing Liquid, in 1989, when he learned that Dawn was very effective in saving thousands of birds, ducks, and other creatures after they were coated with oil and debris from the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill, that also killed thousands of poor animals. When he learned that the makers of Dawn will donate $ 1.00 each time a person buys a bottle of Dawn and goes to http://www.dawnsaveswildlife.com/ and enters some numbers from the bottle at it, he felt that that was a good reason to support Dawn. According to Andrew Adam Newman, www.AndrewAdamNewman.com a guy who writes well and covers issues about Advertising at The New York Times, www.nytimes.com the fund raising effort has already brought in nearly $ 90,000.

Hugh says that Dawn's parent company, Proctor & Gamble, is, although "not exactly the greatest thing since sliced bread, they are definitely very generous and steadfast in their work to help ducks survive after being stricken with oil." Hugh knew that Proctor & Gamble conducted tests on animals and this put him in a dilemma where he was asking himself, "Self, should I stay or should I go with Dawn?" His answers came from near and far.

Hugh's friend at http://www.saintsforsinners.com/, Saint Francis of Assisi, is a saint who is really into animals and ecology and "Mother Earth" and "Sister Moon" lingo, so he called on him and they had a chat. Afterward, Francis sent Hugh down to observe Kathy Guillermo, who is a VP at PETA www.peta.org and works in the animal laboratory investigations wing. Hugh heard Kathy say "Anything a company does to help animals, we applaud." She added that she "may have issues with their policies in their entirety," but "in any case they're helping." So Hugh decided to get behind the fund-raising efforts and encourage people to buy Dawn Dish Washing Liquid from this day forward. Plus, he said, it's kind of fun to sing "Dawn de dawn dawn!" and that seems to happen a lot when I wash dishes from my last supper.

There's a New Kid in Town and her name is Melanie Oudin from Marietta, Georgia

The 17 year-old United States Tennis Pro Melanie Oudin has once again, proven, there's a new kid in town at the United States Open.

Melanie reached her first U S Open Quarterfinal by beating Russia's Nadia Petrova (1-6, 7-6, 6-3) today, September 7, 2009.

According to USTA tennis legend Mary Carullo, Oudin is the "most wanted" tennis player when it comes to media interviews at Arthur Ashe Stadium in Queens, New York.

The www.SaintsforSinners.com Blog you are reading now was way ahead of the popularity swirl and first posted a post about Melanie Oudin on June 27, 2009, when it let the public know that Saintly Twins Cosmos & Damien were traveling by bus to London to watch Melanie play at Wimbledon. Cosmos & Damien also noted that Melanie is a twin and her twin sister's name is Katherine. We saw Katherine watch Melanie win her match today in New York and then shed tears of joy because she was so proud of her sister. Cosmos & Damien are very fond of Katherine, as it is has been reported that Katherine has plans to be a medical Doctor like them, only not as surgeons but as an Obstetrician.

Tennis Commentator Mary Jo Fernandez says Melanie's success is a "Cinderella story continued."

All the saints at www.SaintsforSinners.com are cheering for Melanie to win the U S Open, and while its founder, Rob Clemenz, also hopes she wins her first Grand Slam, he can't help but wonder, "Have Melanie Oudin and her boyfriend Austin Smith, been reading this blog, and is Austin wearing one of our medals?

robclemenz@SaintsforSinners.com - Lifting Spirits, One Saint at a Time...: Move It On Over, Boudin, Melanie Oudin Also Declared Thoroughly Good!

robclemenz@SaintsforSinners.com - Lifting Spirits, One Saint at a Time...: Move It On Over, Boudin, Melanie Oudin Also Declared Thoroughly Good!

Very cool heavenly help for you and your pets: SaintsforSinners medallions

Very cool heavenly help for you and your pets: SaintsforSinners medallions

Posted using ShareThis

A Believe-It-To-See-It Person, New York Mets Pitcher Tug McGraw

Today is "Baseball Day," The "All Star Game" plays tonight in Saint Louis. All of us at www.saintsforsinners.com predict that the American League, will win the game, again. A week from today, we will celebrate the 40th Anniversary of the day America's Apollo 11, and its Lunar Lander arrived on the Moon with Neil Armstrong, and Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin and Michael Collins on board.

40 years ago, in 1969, a young Lefty Relief Pitcher for the New York Mets, Tug McGraw, was walking through an airport and stopped to look at a http://www.nytimes.com/ newspaper headline that proclaimed, "Men Walk on Moon. Astronauts Land on Plain, Collect Rocks, Plant Flag." The Mets were having a pitiful year and seemed incapable of winning. But Tug McGraw saw the headline and was inspired and said "If we can get a man on the moon, we can win the World Series."

According to the former Mets Pitcher, Tom Seaver, Tug was "very emotional about it." Yet he believed it, and eventually saw the New York Mets come from behind and win the 1969 World Series. They became known as the "Miracle Mets." Tug McGraw went on to have an illustrious pitching career with the New York Mets and the Philadelphia Phillies. He even coined an optimistic mantra, "Ya Gotta Believe!" that later became the title of his autobiography. Obviously, Tug was a "believe-it-to-see it" person; he was a Maverick and did not kowtow to pessimism or hopelessness. After retiring as a player, Tug remained involved in baseball. In 2003, he was working with the Philadelphia Phillies spring-training program, near Tampa, Florida. He underwent surgery, paid for in large part, by his son the famous Country Singer and performer, Tim McGraw. Sadly, the cancer spread and Tug McGraw died in 2004. The Tug McGraw Foundation was created ( http://www.tugmcgraw.org/ ) with its Cancer Research Center established at Duke University and also with the dual goal of working to heighten the awareness of cancer and also help improve the quality of life of those afflicted. His son, Tim, ( http://www.timmcgraw.com/ ) serves as the Honorary Chair of the organization, and baseball analyst John Kruk, ( http://www.ballhype.com/ ) who will surely be watching the game tonight, serves on its Advisory Board. Sportswriter Alan Schwarz noted today that president Barack Obama, an admitted baseball nut, sometimes called the "Fanatic-in-Chief" will be in Saint Louis for the game and will meet with both teams. Schwarz asked some of the players selected to play in the All Star Game what sort of questions they might ask the president. Tampa Bay Rays First Baseman Carlos Pena said he would ask whether the president, "Are you a see-it-to-believe-it person or a believe-it-to-see-it person?" Ya gotta believe the president, like Tug McGraw, is a believe-it-to-see-it person, Carlos!

Extreme Changes in USA's Organ Donation Policies Urged by Saints Cosmos & Damien

"America MUST re-mix, re-make, and re-model its antiquated organ donation protocols," according to http://www.saintsforsinners.com/ representatives, Saints Cosmos & Damien ( C & D ) ."

C & D were twin Doctors who were born in the 3rd Century. The Doctor Duo are typically represented by medical emblems, which is why the insightful drawings, at right, feature sutures, staples and a scalpel, all of which can be used in organ donation operations.

Cosmos wryly stated, "those tools can be used for organ donation work but the truth is, America is still back in the 2nd Century when it comes to the amount of progress made with organ donation promotion and awareness." Damien agreed, saying "The whole American organ donation procedure is so atrociously bollixed up, galley-west, higgledy-piggledy, and, not to mention, skimble-skamble, it is downright shameful."

We asked what they meant and C & D chimed, "The 'Opt-In' to Organ Donation Procedure should be an 'Opt-Out' Procedure. That way people will have to basically say they are against organ donation, which very few will, and you will have many more organs to use, and thus, less people, dying, while waiting, to get an organ they need transplanted. This is not Rocket Science, Gee Whiz!"

Cosmos said that "the good people of Belgium, Norway, and Spain, all have switched to Opt-Out, and this has saved countless live."

SaintsforSinners contacted a few of the patron saints of lawyers, Saint Thomas More, Saint Genesius, and Saint Ives, and all 3 agreed that the procedure could be changed in one day at Capital Hill and save thousands of lives with a simple stroke of a pen."

Saint Catherine of Siena, our patroness of "Girl Power," and a saint invoked against bodily ills stopped by and said, "It truly is shameful that simple steps could be taken to bring organ donation programs to the 21st Century, but they have not been taken, apparently because many American lawmakers are too busy philandering and moralizing, all in the same heated, horrendous, hypocritical breath. It's shameful that stories about Organ Donation in America are less likely to be in the news than stories about the two-timing trysts of Senators and Governors. "

Testimonials - Saint Raphael, a Patron of Healing, Invoked for Happy News!

http://www.saintsforsinners.com/ 's Saint Raphael, a Patron of Healing, a Saint Invoked for "Happy News!"

NOTE: Totally True Story!

SaintsforSinners Saint Raphael, featured twice, left, has "The Power."

The actual Testimonial has been scanned and also appears at left, along with some beautifully elaborate decoration.

A lady in New Jersey, Michele Logan, had been ordering medals and in one of her packages, I decided to include a "FLOOD MEDAL," one of the saint medals dug up out of the muck of my home office that got flooded from floor to ceiling. For some reason I could not let the bulldozer obliterate my Saints medals, so, I spent a day digging for them and "recovered" them. There are photos of my day in the muck on the site. I am happy I dug them up and have kept them.

I grabbed a medal from the bucket of flood medals, enclosed it in a bag, and noted it was Saint Raphael, who is known as the patron of healing and the saint invoked for happy news. I wrote on the bag and sent it off to New Jeresy

I did not know that Michele was a Registered Nurse. I did not know she had come down to New Orleans to volunteer after the flood. It turned out that the rusty, ruined, saint Raphael medal, a flood medal, meant more to her than the nicely painted one she received from SaintsforSinners. She wrote to say how much she appreciated getting the medal and that she found it to be very significant, since I had so many Saint medals to choose from (thousands). Michele took it as a "sign" and that was great. Receving heart-felt notes from strangers is probably the gas that has kept SaintsforSinners running, through the many obstacles, over the years. I don't go to our Testimonials pages very often, because, to be honest, I can't seem to prevent myself from getting too emotional, but itis clear that many, many people have been helped by our hand-painted saint medallions (and, it turns out, the "flood medals" too).

Yesterday, I sent out a bunch of e mails to people who have visited the web site and who I sort of "knew," even though we have never actually met, face-to-face. The responses were nice. I got an order from a guy who I went to school with but never had the chance to get to know, and that was fun for me somehow. I guess I took it as a sign he was saying "Hello" and "I wish we had gotten to know each other" or "How are you doing?" or some other pleasantry. It is quite possible I read too much into things these days!

This morning I went to check my e mails and was pleased to see another order had come in and that some folks had responded to my e mail. One lady was from New Orleans and she had a "Rush Order" of sorts. She was going out of town on Monday and really needed, coincidentally (?), a Saint Raphael medal to take to someone. So, we made special plans to meet up early tomorrow, Saturday morning, for her to get the Saint Raphael medal package. When you run your own business, which SaintsforSinners is, after all, you work pretty much every day. To quote the performer Bruce Hornsby, "That's Just the Way It Is. Somethings Never Change." ( I'm not complaining! )

After making the plans to get Saint Raphael to the lady, I then went back to check on my e mails and found the 2nd note from Michele Logan, part of the illustration above, a note about the power of her Saint Raphael medal, along with a lovely story of her friend who is living well with cancer, and whom she has given the medal to, who wears it "right next to her Tiffany bracelet." Michele wrote about how she started to understand the SaintsforSinners concept, which was, initially, that folks would "wear the medal and then share it with someone you love." The Basic Rule being this: If someone comments that they like your medal, you ought to pass it on. All of the Saint Raphael issues coming in one-after-the-other, the cynic in me says "coincidence." Thankfully the bigger part of me says, "Not!"

It's nice to be re-affirmed every now and then. Michele's notes let me know that it is not me, Rob, running this SaintsforSinners Show, it is, and I will quote Michele, "I have to believe a higher power with a plan." Funny how another friend, named Michele, has been saying the same thing to me for a very long time.

Thank you, Michele Logan. You made my day! rob clemenz @ SaintsforSinners

Guardian Angel Weighs In On Morbidity, Mortality, Obesity on Lifetime Television Show Drop Dead Diva

The Guardian Angel, featured left, will have a starring role on the Lifetime Television Show, "Drop Dead Diva," it was reported today. The program will air at either at 8:00 or 9:00 on Sunday nights, depending on where you live.

The Guardian Angel will be in the body of a young boy named Fred, played by the actor Ben Feldman. He will be a pivotal character in the show, which will try to reinforce the age old theme about how at the end of the day, kindness, love, generosity, and virtue far outweigh good looks, lots of money, and/or a perfectly fit, gorgeous body.

Since the role of Fred is a bit of a stretch for the Guardian, two Saintly Coaches from SaintsforSinners will be guiding him in his performance, Saint Rosalie and Saint Lucy. Saint Rosalie, who is a saint invoked against vanity, was born with great grace and beauty that soon became a curse. She was able to see shallowness in horrible ways and her exquisite beauty only led her to become estranged from society (kind of like Michael Jackson was but in a different way). Rosalie opted to go and hide her pretty face from the world. She went to live in a dark cave, never to be tormented by people who only wanted to be around her because she was "da Bomb." Rosalie is able to give the Guardian keen insight.

Saint Lucy will help give the Guardian better vision. Lucy is a Saint invoked for better vision or eyesight. When she gouges her own eyes out and carries them around on a plate, the Guardian gets to learn that "beauty is only skin deep." Lucy said, "My eyes without my head are less than attractive."

At http://www.newyorktimes.com/ , the writer Alessandra Stanley, is plugging "Drop Dead Diva" as "a light-hearted romantic comedy" that is grounded in reality. Although this tale has been told before and in myriad ways, there always remain people who need a dose of "reality" every now and then.

Italian Immigrant Gisella Civale Goes Back to Roots with Family Recipe

www.DolceNonnas.com 's

Delicious Marinated Vegetables Praised by

www.SaintsforSinners.com 's

Saint Rosa of Lima and Saint Phocas the Gardener.

There may not be an official patron saint of vegetables or even vegetarians, but those of us at SaintsforSinners think that Gisella Civale's mother, Maria DiGiorgio, may one day be fit for the job. Raising 7 children with humble grit and determination, she may be considered as a patron Saint of Traditions and Family as well.

We're holding off on contacting the Papacy though, because 97 year-old Maria DiGiorgio's is among the living in Beechurst, New York, and thus not yet quite qualified for Sainthood.

We spoke with Maria's daughter, Gisella Civale, today and she told us about the delicious, delectable vegetable dishes her mother and her family has made for decades, both in New York, and abroad, in the Region of Campagna, Italy.

The recipes were so good, Gisella said she decided, at age 59, to try and prepare them and offer the healthy foods to the world.

She has succeeded with her plan. Her jars of Dolce Nonna tangy eggplant, sweet-tart peppers and tender green beans are available on the Web and in numerous stores, with more placement to undoubtedly come. They're also very prominently featured today in the http://www.nytimes.com/ "FOOD STUFF" section, written by Florence Fabricant (ASIDE: How is that for an awesome name, "Florence Fabricant"?!)

In 1958, Gisella came to America with her parents from Italy, and she says she is "carrying a tradition" and offering "thanks to her Heritage and her family, including her Mom's side, the DiGiorgio's, and her husband's the Civale's." Her daughter, Wendy Civale, is also very active in the Dolce Nonna family enterprise.

In these difficult financial times, Gisella noted that "the tough get going' and find ways to "stretch the dollar." One jar of her marinated vegetables can offer a complete, healthy, inexpensive meal for a family in many ways, and by creating a delicious salad or adding pasta.

SaintsforSinners 's Saint Rose of Lima and Saint Phocas the Gardener are "down with her plan."

Phocas said that Gisella's simple, kind-hearted way reminded him of his childhood in the 3rd Century, when he would grow extra crops to feed the people.

Sadly, Phocas wound up digging his own grave, in the end, by feeding the very soldiers sent to behead him, which they did in 303. "It was not very nice, how those soldiers treated me," Phocas said, but "Dolce Nonna's pursuit of doing good work, providing healthy sustenance in times of need, by using vegetables grown from the ground, and nurturing crops of food like I did back-in-day, only serves to remind me that, with all its sham and drudgery, it is still a beautiful world."