The picture says it all.
Maureen: I'm going to work at NPR!
The response:

2:51 p.m. Central We're live, ticking away the final moments of 'Across The Nation' with host Bob Dunning, discussing Obama's nomination. Lino should be on in about five minutes to promote the Maureen's final show. Here's what we do know about what kind of show it will be:

• We will have the winning entry from the "Write Maureen's Resignation Letter" contest.
• Yesterday, Maureen said that the last day would be like the last day of school, with no actual work being done, so she might not answer any phones today.

That's really all for now. We'll find out soon!

2:57 p.m. "This is the big goodbye show," Lino said during the promotional portion of Dunning's show. "Pray for her soul." Indeed we will.

3:03 p.m. "Some sad bittersweet happenings here," Lino says to start the show. "Our producer Maureen McMurray who is with us right now is quitting...you have to do the next three hours of the show, you can't just leave." Lino just said we should be taking a lot of calls today, so it should be a call-filled show. And then, just Lino and Lou.

3:05 p.m. Lino has just promised many special guests. We'll probably be saddled with Gus though, or some of the regulars. Can't see a big name dropping by today, except for maybe Tom Falcone or Jim Breuer. Rulli also just stated that the goal at the end of the show today would be to make Maureen cry, so we should be getting some sweet sendoff. "Could pull hair out of your eyebrows until you cry," Lino said.

3:09 p.m. Looks like Danny and Maureen have dinner plans after the show. Any chance for a proposal? I say no, but hopefully we'd still find out, despite McMurray's departure tonight.

3:12 p.m. Maureen is reading some of the entries to the aforementioned resignation letter contest. One stated, "I'm going to be sittin with satan at the public radio station," and had a bunch of rhymes. Another one said gave some basic number stats, Mastercard commercial-style, followed up with "Hearing that you and Lou and our listeners are going to miss me? Priceless ... Thank you for letting me believe that just Jesus rolled the stone away." Lino also had Maureen yell anything she wanted for recording purposes, with Maureen dropping a bunch of lines on him. We should have the spirit of Maureen live on for quite some time.

3:19 p.m. Looks like U.S. Army Sergeant Paul's rosary made it, and by the description, it sounded really nice (the rosary was made with precious stones from Afghanistan). Hopefully Lino lets us know how you can contact Paul, so maybe you could buy a rosary from him yourself. "This is gorgeous," McMurray said of Paul's wonderful gift.

3:27 p.m. One listener, Shawn, sent T-shirts from the New Orleans Jazz Festival, along with a picture of himself and a Bishop, so we wouldn't think he was a weird person. Man, I wish I had thought to send a gift. Looks like Lou got a gift, addressed to "Stud." The anonymous gift was a supply of Jones Soda (great soda), to which Lou informed us that he got into a argument with a listener about the existence of Jones Soda. Wow, we have good memory spans.

3:28 p.m. Lou just went to get the promised first guest. They joked earlier, and brought out nobody, a reference to Maureen's birthday, when no guests showed up. As to who the guest is, Maureen had no idea, although I think they are actually serious about having someone this time.

3:30 p.m. Maureen begrudgingly guessed that "A family member" was the guest. After Lou took his sweet, precious time, Lou brought back ..... Nobody. Ouch.

3:35 p.m. Wheel of News time, with Maureen's great intro. It almost reminds me of the scene from Waynes World, where the show went corporate with Noah's Arcade, and they had some lame Michael-Bolton esque rocker singing "Waynes World! Wayne's World! Party time! Excellent!" I hope someone picked up that reference, otherwise, I've just shown myself to be an incompetent, out of touch guy. After further thought, I just described myself to a tee.

3:47 p.m. Dr. Dario, who won an award for bedside manner during college, agreed with Lino that men should get engagement rings back after broken relationships. As a formerly engaged man, I have to agree with him. But part of me is thinking now, if everything is lining up for Maureen to get proposed to on the air? Reading a story about engagement rings from the wheel of news, joking with Maureen about having a guest..maybe it's just me, but i could see them "joking" about a guest coming in, Maureen not believing them at all, and Danny, who is already supposed to meet her at studio after the show for dinner, pops in early and proposes. I think that would be a great way to send Maureen off, and I could see Lino and Lou, out of the goodness of their hearts, setting that up. We await with baited breath.

4:04 p.m. Lino still promising special guests. But having delivered nothing twice, my hope for Danny proposing is dwindling. However, with Lino keeping at this, I can't believe that he would not deliver at some point today, even if it's late in the show after so many disappointments.

4:10 p.m. Gus's song was replayed, with the gem of the line "At least old Lino, he never kissed you, Oh Maureen, we're gonna miss you."

4:11 p.m. The special guest is Ron, the program-director! Didn't think she'd get to say goodbye to him, but Ron came through after so many disappointments of his own. "It's been nice to see her here every day," Ron said. Ron gave Maureen a Proclamation of Gratitude, complete with a stamp! Ron read the proclamation over the air, which part of it read, "do hereby declare May 7 to be forever known as Maureen McMurray day."

4:18 p.m. Ron expressed his gratitude to Maureen. After a holy hug and kiss, he said, "You have been a really important part of this channel from day one, and you will be missed...On behalf of the Holy Father himself, who just called off the air, we wish to offer you the best in your new job ... NPR is very lucky to have you."

4:25 p.m. Maureen nailed all seven sacraments in first question of The Inquisition, besting Big Guns Jack. Major props to Maureen for nailing this one on the last day. I couldn't even get all of them.

4:40 p.m. We're on to question six, and Maureen is ahead by one. I really hope she wins this one.

4:46 p.m. We're really into this one, with the score tied up between Maureen and the listeners. and my Sirius radio keeps losing signal. Even though the antenna is actually sitting outside, in the open, with no structures hanging over it, it still loses signal on occasion, which is irritating. Wrangler John just got hung up on, and for some reason, that's my favorite part of the show. For question nine, Melanie from Texas has to figure out how many books are in the Old Testament. (39 is my guess, although I could be really wrong, like that time I moved to Pittsburgh). 46 was the correct answer from Maureen, with Melanie throwing her son under the bus, saying that 54 was his answer, not hers.

4:54 p.m. Maureen took the game, besting the listeners 5-4! She did get the last question wrong, concerning the brothers of thunder (the listener said Macabee, she said Andrew and James). "Crazy, I can't believe it," Maureen said of her victory. I'm so glad I'm keeping up with this, instead of building B-section pages, wondering why BluMunkee hates me.

4:58 p.m. It's time for another very special guest. It would be great if it was Breur, just for the randomness and the fact that Jim's show ends at 5, but I don't know if this is another joke or not. As Lou opens the door slowly, it's .... nobody. C'mon Lino, give us Danny and a proposal! Regardless, we're down to one hour of TCG show, with Maureen's crying being on top of Lino's list of things to do. We've also got the contest winner set to be unveiled. It should be a great hour of Maureen after the break and the news!

5:05 p.m. Apparently Lino Rulli is a cheapskate, because he didn't pay for Maureen's breakfast this morning. I think this signifies that something big will happen in this final hour. Maybe I'm being too optimistic, but Lino will do something really nice for Maureen by 7 p.m. eastern, 6 p.m. central. Maybe Lino should have paid for breakfast. It's disturbing and sad!

5:12 p.m. It's the late Tom Falcone! Agnostic Tom showed up to surprise Maureen, and now Lino is cranking out the charity factor. There was also a sympathy card thrown in for Maureen, which should get the tears cranking out. Hopefully we'll get pics of those tears streaming down her face. It also got Maureen to call her mom back, which she did to gripe about Lino not paying, and apologize for Lino being a cheapskate (I still think he should have paid, but I guess I am not forgiving enough).

5:20 p.m. We've got momma McMurray on the show, who found it in her heart to forgive Lino for being a cheapskate over the $11 breakfast. Mom also said that Maureen always defends the faith at home, even wishing that Lino was there to help defend the faith. We've also got many mentions of linofans.com, none of which insult lazy Dan! We're definitely making progress.

5:24 p.m. Danny is in the building! Oh please give us a proposal!

5:28 p.m. Apparently Danny was privy to Lino's cheapskateness earlier in the day, receiving a text message proclaiming such (Lino is apparently taking Maureen and everyone out to dinner tonight and is paying, so he's really not a cheapskate). Danny does have a great sense of humor though, joking around with Lino ('I thought the show was all about you' he said to Lino after Lino said the show was all about faith and forgiveness).

5:38 p.m. "You've seen the pope 3-4 times in person...and you were mad I didn't pay for an $11 omelot," Lino told Maureen. The group of people Lino gathered today was a nice send-off... Tom, Ron earlier, Danny ... they all make for a nice last show with Maureen. One caller had a brilliant idea: "The Catholic Guy" with Lou, along with Maureen the producer and Tom answering phones...and no Lino to be found. I'd compare that to the Bulls after Michael Jordan retired, but that might be giving Lino a little too much credit.

5:44 p.m. "May the Lord bless you and keep you," Deacon Joe blessed Maureen on the way out. Nice. Then he got hung up on. Nice.

5:45 p.m. 15 more minutes. This depresses me to no end.

5:53 p.m. Poor Maureen...she's starting to cry due to guilt from not thinking anyone was going to do anything for her. But regardless, I don't think we're going to get that proposal, but maybe tonight at dinner? Can't wait to find out tomorrow.

5:56 p.m. Maureen's final words: "When I first got this job, I had no idea what it was going to be ... I did learn so much from this show and channel, and yes, I don't know what else to say because I'm going to start crying." And from Lino: "My first real gig in radio ... the success of this show, the show wouldn't be successful without you."

6:00 p.m.


That's midnight striking on the best producer saying goodbye to us. God bless you Maureen.
We will always have a special place in our heart where we love you. Thank you.

In just a few hours, we'll be without Maureen. It's 12:45 p.m. central time, which means that Maureen will be done with The Catholic Guy in five hours and fifteen minutes.

We'll see you in about 2 hours and 15 minutes for the live-blogging. Until then, give Bob Dunning a listen. After the North Carolina and Indiana primaries, he should put on a great show.

Producer Maureen McMurray, along with John Kennedy, the producer from 'Seize The Day' (Gus's dog-and-pony show), appeared on the best three hours of morning radio, Dave and Susan Konig's 'Speak Now.'

When asked about what she is going to be doing at NPR, McMurray revealed the type of show she'd be working on.

"I'm going to be producing a variety show. I'm really looking forward to it, no offense to anyone I've left behind."

After Susan asked about people's reaction to McMurray leaving, Maureen said that people had a positive attitude, joking with her about leaving. But when it came to their sadness about McMurray being gone, she stated that nobody would care.

"Honestly, they're going to forget in a week...We've had people come and go on the show before, and nobody cares," a laughing McMurray said.

Dave played a great clip, featuring Maureen, about giving Wedding vows. I wasn't able to catch more specifics (I've got no pause or rewind button on my Sirius), but the clip had Maureen reading these extremely sappy, pseudo-meaningful wedding vows to the groom. The groom replied with something short and sweet, which prompted outrage from McMurray, who yelled "That's a hallmark card! I stayed up all night writing this f****** thing."

Classic.

Playing off of Gus's reading of Pope Benedict's homily earlier this year, audio of "Gus Loyd " (I think it was Dave doing a great impression) reading the lyrics from "Be Our Guest" from Beauty in the Beast made an appearance. I seriously hope that Lino replays the segment, as hearing a mock Gus Loyd recite Disney lyrics makes for quality radio.

McMurray did give a final sendoff to listeners, which was very sweet and touching.

"I have two things. One I want to say ... I really did learn a tremendous amount of Catholicism. I got to go to the Vatican with Lino, and it was incredible. In terms of listeners on our show ... that is probably one of the saddest things about leaving. I'm really going to miss the listeners alot."

Before McMurray's appearance, Susan Konig talked about the worst send-off (The Washington Post giving the best send-off) after leaving a job. At Seventeen magazine, Konig was taken out for coffee, and told that her position was being eliminated. On her last day, Konig said that the editor-in-chief actually called her in the office, and told her that she was a 'bad writer' (not true).

"She decided to knock me down a few pegs," Konig recalled. "... I said to her, 'If I'm such a bad writer, I'm going to take all the writing for the next issue with me." Konig did say that the security guard, Stitch, that removed her from the building seemed a little sad. An older man, he showed great remorse in having to remove Susan from the job.

Man, talk about being on the edge. Lino kept any true fan hanging on yesterday. There are certain moments in our lives that are frozen. I can remember where I was when my wife told me she was pregnant with each child, when she called to tell that we were approved to adopt a child we fell in love with. These thoughts crossed my mind as Lino began his discourse yesterday. Panic and Prayers. Please Lord, don't take TCG show. It brings so much joy to me.
It was horrible timing too. The 5 pm hour for me. I like to be home to eat with my family. When Lino started to make the annoucement I drove slower so as not to make it home before the announcement. No good, Lino still talking and I'm home. Quickly grab my stilleto, I will put it into my home kit and listen while I wash up for supper. Acquiring Signal!!! Oh man, the kids must have messed with the antena!!!! What the heck!!!!! What is Lino saying!!!! Crap I'm going to miss it!!! Quickly, back to the truck, plug in the stilletto, turn on the radio. Whew, no announcement, Lino still rambling. Quickly, run into the house, log onto sirius.com while explaining to my wife over the cries of 5 hungry kids why it was important for me to listen. Logged in. Lino still rambling. Come on now, Lino, say it, JUST SAY IT. Get it over with like ripping off a bandaid!!!! Phone rings. It's work. They need to talk to you. You've got to be kidding me.!!!!!! I'm waiting for news that will profoundly affect my life. !!!!!! I really have no idea what was being asked of me. Although one was ear was near receiver of the phone, all audible senses were focused on my computer speakers. Did Lino say he planned to continue to do the show. Yes, Yes, YES!!!!!! Thank You Lord!!! Yes, now we can eat. Sorry, Dad got a little nuts, it's just that well things just got crazy!!!!

On the heels of Maureen's announcement concerning her departure, Lino decided to make his own announcement.

By now, I'm sure everyone knows that Maureen is leaving on Wednesday to host an unknown show on NPR (which we'll do our best to figure out).

No word on what kind of sendoff she'll get, although I can guess that it will probably be fun and silly for the first 2 hours and 50 minutes, followed by some sort of emotional goodbye.

Either way, the countdown is sadly on.

We'll definitely soak in these last three days with you Maureen. Hopefully you'll email the show when Danny grows some chest hair as a result of asking you to be his wife.