waysider

Yes, there was, indeed, an almost desperate attempt to keep the class set in stone. Wierwille never said that the class was God-Breathed but he surely did not go out of his way to dissuade those who did. People watched that class with an almost hypnotic fixation, hoping to catch some glimpse of a deep and mysterious meaning that had been hidden from mankind. "Did you notice how he raised the pitch of his voice as he expounded on----------------?"(fill in the blank) "Did you see how he scratched his nose with his RIGHT hand?" "Did you hear him say 'Sits there like a duck'?":-) We were encourage to watch the class over and over and told that if we did so, new "gems" would rise to the surface for our discovery each time. "It's The Word---------" was just a catch phrase, folks. As such, it has no definitive meaning of its own until you put it in a specific context. The context that Wierwille set it in was that of allegiance to PFAL, TWI and the business of promoting them. (ie: It was a sales campaign slogan, at least in the context that he stated it.) After all, aren't we really talking about what it meant in the context where Wierwille placed it? Hmmm?

After countless painful attempts as a pre-TWI youth, having completed the PFAL class, I finally mastered that elusive and embarrassing Windsor Knot, which was so critical to being able to stand before the branch and lead "Farther Along". Yes, finally I could stand before God and the World(or at least the Cleveland Branch) and know that I knew that I knew that my necktie was, indeed, pleasing and beyond reproach in the eyes of all who beheld it. Alright, some may argue that I learned that in an extraneous and peripheral manner rather than the PFAL class. May I just remind you? God moves in mysterious ways.

Hey, there, Kathy Any room you choose to enter is brightened by your presence. OOPS! My Granddaughter, Clara Belle( that's short for Helen.) just informed me, "That is WAAAAAAY too EMO", Grandpa. (I guess that means "emotional".) OK--- guess I'll just have to settle for one of these: EMO?--- Where do you suppose these young 'uns get this stuff?

Jonny, Jonny, Jonny!!! Ya got me in stitches, as usual. I almost said your story was a "real gas" but "backed" out at the last moment. Dude, ya gotta soak 'em over night to "eliminate" that problem! Yup. Learnt that in Fellowlaborers.( but not right away!) Hmmmm!--- Maybe something good "came out" of it after all.

Well, yeah. That and the pineapple on pizza thing.

(in reference to meatza pie and rice pizza) Meatza pie was supposed to be pizza that had a crust made out of ground meat.(precooked) Rice pizza had a crust made out of boiled rice. Not too bad, actually. Sorry, can't help you with recipe or prep details as I was always a "breakfast detail" person. There aren't very many Fellowlaborers who post here because our numbers were never very big to start with.(maybe 250 at the most, at least in Ohio.) There are a few, though, and maybe they remember details.

"Fun Meals" OMG! In Fellowlaborers, we only had red meat once a week. (When we were lucky) All breakfasts and suppers were pre-planned and portion controlled.All 50 of us had to prepare and eat exactly the SAME thing at the SAME location, at the SAME time.(6 to a house/8 houses.) Using proper "Christian Etiquette" as defined by the book by the same title. Here are some of the really "groovy" things we ate: Oat groats( what the heck are they, anyway?) Wheat berries ( ditto to above) Stone milled oats Flax seeds---LOTS of flax seeds(gotta keep those innards oiled, doncha know) Home grown sprouts( with almost every meal) Mush, mush, and more mush Millet, millet, millet, millet and , of course, the ever popular------millet! But, there were also the exotic dishes, too. Things like: "Meatza" Pie Rice Pizza( sorry, dmiller, no pineapple or Canadian bacon) Broccoli surprise Potato soup with home made croutons (fancy word for burnt toast) And last but least-----Wilted Swiss chard---Yum!, Yum! Oh yeah, and that bulgar wheat stuff which we called VULGAR WHEAT! nicely displayed and served "swimming" in a bowl of fig poop. <_<

How can I say this politely? Oh, what the heck------ it's just a bunch of pretentious crap! Suppose you have a job that requires you to measure things with a ruler. After you make your measurement, your boss has to then remeasure, using his/her OWN ruler. Why? Is THEIR ruler somehow superior to YOUR ruler? Maybe somebody ought to contact the people that make rulers. Maybe your bosses' 5mm reading is more significant than your 5mm reading. Come on. 5mm is 5mm, does it matter whose ruler you used to measure it? In the regular, non-religious world, it's known as *micro-management* and it's practitioners are referred to as *control freaks*. *Spiritual understanding* my butt! It's another way of telling you they are going to twist and distort reality until they convince you to denounce your own logic (and common sense) and accept theirs. "Spiritual anger"---What a hoot. It just means they themselves are angry and want to dump the blame on someone or something other than themselves. I think that might be known as "passing the buck". Now, there is such a thing as understanding things that are spiritual, but somehow I don't think that is what they(TWI ) had in mind. As always-- That's just my opinion.( but bear in mind that it's tempered with "spiritual understanding".) <_<

" Friday the thirteenth comes on a Monday this month." ----------POGO--------------------------------------------

Choo! Choo! ( getting a bit "off track" here.) Anybody know why red-eye gravy is called---red-eye gravy? Just wondering. I mean, I've consumed plenty of it in the wee hours of the morning when my eyes were quite red but always wondered about the origin of the name.

Socks Never mind the topic discussed at the campfire. The question that burns within me and pleads for an answer is---- Did you make s'mores?

When my son was in Scouts, it used to rub me the wrong way when leaders who were not in full uniform (Sneakers, ball cap , shirt not tucked, etc.) would salute for the pledge. Ironically, it was not because of the heart of the law but because of the letter of the law. Now that the letter of the law has changed, maybe this won't seem so bad. Just a thought.

Uh huh---Uh huh And how do you perceive this situation? Please. Make yourself comfortable on the couch and tell me about your childhood.

"The Secret To Life In the Mojave"-----by Flipper

If you know your answer is correct, you can go ahead and post a new tune. Of course, if you are wrong, you are banished from the kingdom, whipped with a wet noodle and forced to listen to Yanni CDs until your eardrums bleed! :)

In retrospect, I see that I should have inserted the word "propaganda" after "White Supremacy" like I did after "John Birch". I was stating that he had ties to the propaganda. I was not stating he had active ties to the "white supremacy" movement, specifically. My apologies for any misinterpretation this caused.

" You do err, not knowing the Scitpures."

And here it is (with an introduction by Petula Clark)

You are correct, my friend, although the piece was actually written by Christian Petzold and found among the collective possessions of J. S. Bach. It was written in 3/4 time and recorded in 4/4 time. Lyrics were added by Linzer and Randell. Rock on, GSG!

The secret to living a 'holy life" is to learn the fine art of rationalization. (And then master the practical application of said rationalization.)

I asked my grandson Cletus(That's his name.) "Geeze, Grandpa Waysider, don't you old guys know nothin'?", he said. "Scritpures are fuzzy little critters that live in caves and only come out in the darkest part of the night on account of their bein' so painfully shy." "They have cute little bobbed tails and call back and forth to one another with a call that sounds something like this: Wacko!---Wacko!---Wacko!" (Dang kid's been watchin' too much of that there Recovery Channel.)

Well, there's still plenty of good seating available in "The Reading Room". :)

Little Black Egg-----------The Nightcrawlers How gentle is the rain That falls softly on the meadow? Birds, high up in the trees Serenade the flowers with their melodies. Oh, see there beyond the hill The bright colors of the rainbow? Some magic from above Made this day for us Just to fall in love.

Blast that dag- gone comma! Does the word "big" modify the word "boys" or the word "club"?

dmiller As always, thank you for your kind assistance.