That's my kind of priest.

So, I went to church today to thank the Great Birder in the Sky for saving me from another serious car crash (I have been in one minor fender bender and just missed three serious crashes in the last month...more on that later). There was a missionary priest at Holy Name Cathedral today --anyone who regularly attends a Catholic Church in Chicago knows that once a year every parish brings in some missionary, usually from some place you've never heard of and would never want to go to -- to ask for donations for their mission work.

Today, it was an Indian missionary who has worked inPapua New Guinea for ten years. (Note to self: How bad off is your country if India is sending you missionaries?) Anyway, this priest is telling how he has gotten malaria four times in the last ten years, has to travel in a dugout canoe, all the great work they have done building schools, medical clinics, yada yada yada, when he starts to explain the design on his vestments (aka "priest outfit")...my ears really perked up because he started talking about PNG's national bird, which is apparently one of the Birds of Paradise. Then I notice that this guy has a freakin' Bird of Paradise on his vestments...how cool is that? Some missionary is talking about Birds of Paradise at Holy Name Cathedral -- I don't care if that guy is teaching cannibals how to boil water, if he's wearing birds on his clothes during Mass, I'm giving him some cold, hard cash. Kinda makes the malaria thing worthwhile...