So why can't I get along with clergy?!? Inbox

Yesterday I went to lunch at a local reunion of all the Anglican/ Episcopalian clergy in the Bolivian diocese which was being held at the Bishops house here in Cochabamba. After lunch the bishop’s wife walked into the house with this gigantic cast on her hand. I thought for kicks I would squeeze her “cast” and ask her if it hurt. “Ha-ha” right? Well as luck would have it when I squeezed the supposed cast the bishop’s wife let out a blood curdling scream. Apparently the cast was not a cast but a bandage instead. Nothing is what it seems any more. Give me the days when a cast was a cast and sharp, shooting, exquisite pain is what it seems! Anyway the bishop’s wife started screaming and crying then all of a sudden she bent over and latched her jaws onto my arm and held this excruciating grip for what seemed to be an eternity. I really did not know what to do at this point. “What would Jesus do?” Then later I took my parents to dinner with all the priests that were united for this weekend meeting. I took my parents because my father is an Anglican priest and he did not have a ride as he was from out of town. My mother who is also an ordained deacon was part of the group. So there I am in the middle of all these priests and the bishop. Well, as any one in their proper mind would do I ordered several beers to take the edge off the pressure of the company that I was in. So after a couple of mean liters the bishop asked me how my trip went to Chile and if I had ridden any funiculars. I then told him that we had indeed ridden a funicular to the top of the center hill of Santiago to where there is a big statue of the Virgin Mary. But what I apparently said was “I went up to the virgin but I did not get up on top of her…heh-heh…hiccup!” At this point I felt my parents sphincters tighten from 8 feet away and one of the younger priest dropped his head to the table and lost himself in uncontrollable laughter. Unfortunately he was the only one that really laughed. Their were two other priests that gave up a couple of nervous snickers and everybody else was silent. The Bishop then looked at me sideways and said “Amen brother.” As if to say “It’s a good thing you did not!” If Gym would have been there he would have been right proud of his little bastard. Steady as she goes! FeO2