Belle

I haven't seen him either. :(

And this, folks, is why I ignore OM. Threads are much more productive and helpful to me when they stay on topic and it's impossible to do that when people continue to fight with someone like that - it's futile.

Ted and Moony, John & Hope, Song and someone else, I'm drawing a blank.... I KNOW we're missing someone, though. I have been a bad girl this year and still haven't stocked up. I think I'll do that today before everyone starts rushing around like crazy. At least I'm still stocked up on batteries! I think they're predicting that it will fade away. A girlfriend is going to the Bahamas this week-end, so she's keeping a very close eye on him. :B)

Hitchhiker Laws Actually, for the most part, it IS illegal to hitchhike on most interstates, interstate highways and, especially when there are signs prohibiting pedestrians. I know we have all seen those signs at least a few times in our lives. The fact of the matter is, it IS and WAS dangerous to hitchhike. People are killed, women are raped, bad things happen to good people. Just because you didn't have a bad experience do not dismiss the entire argument that it's dangerous. Another fact is that news travels much quicker in our "information age" than it did back in the day. ;) Just because you didn't hear about these horrible things do not dismiss the entire argument that it's dangerous and that bad things didn't happen. I now think of that as "OM Syndrome". I didn't experience it, therefore you are lying. You thought it was a perfectly reasonable requirement. Fine. Others don't. They are just as entitled to their opinion as you are to yours. Why can't we just agree to disagree on here more often? WHY must everything be so black & white? so I'm right. You're wrong.? There was absolutely no reason to take such dangerous risks like that, especially for those who had their own transportation and/or the money to afford to get there safely and on time. At least LEAD is somewhat supervised. ANYTHING could happen on the road where nobody knows where you are, who you're riding with, what kind of vehicle you're in and with no cell phone to call for help if you needed to. Geeze, oh, Pete! This is getting really old! You said your perspective. People agree or disagree. Why must we continue to attack each other? We all have our own story we're living. We have our own perspectives on life. Neither one negates the other. Why can't we just agree to disagree on here more often? WHY must everything be so black & white? so I'm right. You're wrong.?

I think ammonia is the great window/mirror cleaner that doesn't make streaks. From an e-mail I got recently: This list didn't have it, but I use peroxide to clean my mirrors with, there is no smearing, which is why I love it so much for this.

I"ve been trying to find a company that offers auto and homeowners insurance that I can trust. I'd love to get the discount for using them for both, but so far that's been a no-go. I don't like or trust State Farm and Allstate. I use Cotton States for homeowners, but even with that the auto insurance has been very high. I had Geico for auto before, but so did my ex and they kept getting things mixed up between our accounts and it really peeved me to no end trying to get things straightened out. They also lost some "waiver" I sent to them THREE TIMES. I'm with Progressive now, but they are very expensive. They're very good, but I think I can do better rate-wise. So, what do you do and who do you use? What's reasonable?

ROFLMAO!!! QT, THAT is a priceless TWI story if I've ever heard one!

QT, that's exactly what I was trying to say. :) Thank you! It bothers me that it still bothers me more than anything else. It bothers me that the most inane thing can trigger those voices in my head. Like, I'll be cleaning my bathroom shower and hear Dottie telling some little girl to be sure to get the tracks really clean because "Rev Moynihan" really likes clean tracks. There really isn't anything they can say that would change how I feel. I wouldn't believe them anyway, I don't think. Certainly not most of them. I have talked to and cleared things up with some of the WC and other leaders who have come through my life, and I do adore and admire them, so I know it's possible. But honestly, those folks never really did anything close to what the others did in my life. I went through the same thoughts with my marriage, too. What was worse was not having anyone to talk to - especially nobody who could really understand where we were coming from. I could talk to my parents and friends, but they don't know or understand the cult. I couldn't trust anyone who was involved with the cult and so all I had was the great folks here at the cafe and boy, oh, boy, did they help!

Handsome then - handsome now, with handsome offspring to boot! What a good looking, crew! Are you teaching them to fish so you can say, "Junior, you've been fishing, haven't you?" when they are late for dinner? ;)

I think mine just played some people laughing when I finished. :ph34r: Or it said "Effen Idiot" Maybe it was both.... :unsure:

I'm shocked! I've been a Cingular customer for many years and have never had a problem. My whole family, as a matter of fact, have been on Cingular and have found them to be the best in customer service, the quickest to answer the customer service calls and the most cheerfully helpful. I really don't ever get dropped calls either. In fact, when I started online dating my cell phone minutes went sky high and I was shocked to get an outrageous phone bill ($400, I think). I paid the bill because it was my fault for not paying attention and then called the customer service dept. to switch to a better plan for my now new needs. The rep gave me a $200 credit on my account to help with the bill and would have waved the whole thing if I had called before I paid it. I got the latest and greatest in cell phones last year for free when I re-upped my contract for another year, too. I'm sorry to hear that everyone has had a hard time with them. It sounds like bugs in the switch from AT&T to Cingular which is never easy. I remember when Daddy was responsible for a smooth transition from small, locally owned back to regional, big name bank back in the day when banks first started buying each other out. It was horrible! Hopefully they'll get things straightened out and back to the Cingular that I continue to know and love.

I took it several times. No comment. Did someone switch the espresso to decaf this morning?

Absolutely Beautiful, Mark!! I love it! Looks like you have a great treed lot that is absolutely peaceful and pleasant. LAE, I LOVE the trees and red brick! I really miss brick down here in FL. It's so rare to see it and I think it's just loverly. I'm in the process of digging out some huge, old, straggly azalea bushes in the back yard and having a patio put in. A co-worker gave me a whole mess of really nice pavers and a neighbor handy-woman is going to help me prepare the yard and place them for a patio. THEN, I'ma gonna git me some kind of water feature to put out there. I'll be able to hear it in my bedroom when it's cool enough to sleep with the windows open. I can hardly wait! I'm also landscaping the front yard. It's a small yard that is mostly dominated and shaded by a huge oak tree. Nothing with any kind of root system can be planted under the oak because of all the intricacies of the oak's roots, so I'm planting a mass of ferns under it and will line the ferns with caladiums and/or monkey grass when I'm done. Here's the front yard. I don't have back-yard pictures yet, but it's a totally blank slate now and I'm excited about making it into "my" little piece of heaven. It's so much fun and so rewarding! Pity the TWIts who have to rent are missing out on all the fun of homeownership. :( I also painted and redecorated my guest bathroom. I love it, but I'm not finished with a few additional minor things I want to do. (It used to be that awful blue us girls wore as eyeshadow when we first started wearing make-up. )

I understand that ALL of us have done things we aren't so proud of regarding our actions while involved with TWI. And everyone on here, pretty much, has acknowledged that as well as apologizing when they have the opportunity. I also understand that TWI is trying to be "kinder and gentler" and "pretending" to not be so involved in micro-managing the lives of their followers. BUT, they aren't doing anything to rectify the damage, are they? If they were genuinely sincere, wouldn't they address and acknowledge the areas where they KNOW they screwed up? "We're sorry for subjecting anyone, especially CHILDREN to porno under the guise of a Biblical class" "We're sorry for ruining lives by forcing people to sell their houses." "We're sorry for counselling people to send their "unruly" kids away instead of lovingly helping them." "We're sorry for pitting husband against wife." "We're sorry for expecting you to live up to unrealistic standards and then making you feel like crap for not living up to them." And on and on.... When Bob and Dottie Moynihan were sitting in my house confronting me about sending true Biblical research to a friend at headquarters - Bob very sarcastically said, "IF .... IF..... IF I ever hurt someone, I'm sorry" <_< Seems to me the very same verses they used to condemn me actually apply to them: Pride goeth before a fall.... stubbornness is as of the sin of witchcraft.... before destruction the heart of man is haughty, and before honour humility... But the tongue can no man tame; [it is] an unruly evil, full of deadly poison. It's amazing to me how the things they said to me directly, in teachings and in merely offhanded comments still come back to me - sometimes in the most awful ways and places. My memory sucks! But the things I wish I could forget seem to stick around forever and surface when I least expect them and sometimes when I least am able to "deal with" them. I don't know what, if anything I'm asking.... Just hearing Paul Brooks and the Moynihan's abusive comments in my head this morning set me off, I guess...

Have you been breaking into my e-mails?? :o This past month in my personal life has been a battle over "black & white" thinking and none of it TWIt-related. :ph34r: I think it's TWIt residuals causing it, though. I remember Paul Brooks constantly said, "The more of the word you learn, the more black & white the world becomes." In TWI they tried to make things cut and dried, but there was so much "read between the lines" crap and "unwritten policies" that it's no wonder we have screwed up thinking. <_< We adopted an "all or nothing" mentality and attitude. Remember, "if you don't at least give the minimum - the tithe, then you might as well not give anything!" "If you don't plan to go to the Advanced Class, then you might as well not even take the foundational class." "If you aren't trying to get better and grow then you're going backwards" In TWI we HAD to be on the go - we had to give 100% or more 100% of the time. THere was nothing BUT extremes in TWI and many of us have held on to that "all or nothing" mentality. TWI was either all good or it was all bad. Marriages are all good or all bad. Kids are perfect little angles or annoying little devils. You either knew and lived the word or you were a spiritual hitchhiker. Mediocrity was not tolerated and "good enough" was NEVER "good enough". I'm still working on seeing and appreciating the "shades" and variety of color in life. Some areas have become beautifully rainbows, but others, such as my own personal evaluation of myself and my life, are still black & white.

Good question, Catcup. :) I've met LOTS of people (girls and guys) online whom I've also met in person. I've got quite a few friends, too, whom I've never met in person. I think a pretty good deal of it comes from the ability to read and get a "feel" for people. If you're a bad judge of character in personal, face to face interaction, then definitely DO NOT trust yourself to be a good judge of character online. If you're usually a pretty good judge of character (none of us is perfect), then apply the same techniques to your online correspondence. The folks I've met on GSpot I've "known" for years on here before we ever met in person. YEARS - so there's a lot of history and correspondence between all kinds of people to observe so that we have a pretty good idea of what the people are like. I felt completely safe contacting George when we were in Seattle. I had already figured he was much more fun and laid back than he wanted us to think on here. ;) BUT, he was even MORE fun than even I suspected - and full of extremely interesting information. The Weenie Roast was like that for me, too. Everyone was a delight to meet in person! There's always going to be at least one encounter with someone who turns out to be nothing like you suspected, but usually those people have everyone else fooled too. That kind of person is just really good at hiding their true nature. I've met a couple of people here that developed into more than just "friendship" interests. Because there's usually going to be a few people on here who know that person, I always check for "references", if you will, to make sure I've got an accurate perspective on who the person is "in real life". I've contacted many of you about other posters when they've expressed an interest in me privately. But even that's not entirely reliable because how someone was "when you knew them" doesn't mean they are still like that today. I also let a few people know who I'm seeing (real and online names), what we're doing, etc. One very kind friend on here called me not a few times to check on me the first time someone came to visit me AND the first time I went to visit him. I do that with local meet ups as well. I've dated quite a few men I've met online through dating websites and through non-dating websites. First, we move from e-mail to IM and I IM a while before swapping phone numbers. After we talk on the phone for a bit and if we're still interested. THEN we meet at a neutral, public place the first few times - I don't let them pick me up, know where I live or work. If I'm really not sure if we're compatible, we meet for coffee downtown and if things go well from there, we may walk around the public park or move on to dinner. If not, we split and it's only been a short time and a few bucks. I don't move as slowly as my former manager does, but I still go through the steps. He'll "talk" to someone for at least amonth before meeting in person. I'd just as soon meet in person as quickly as possible because the "chemistry" has to be there too. I'm very much "me" online and friends tell me I type like I talk. I am selective about how much personal stuff I share online, GSpot is a bit different because of the format here, but everywhere else online I'm much more selective about who and what I share. It takes a LONG TIME for me to share really personal information online. I run a website that is made up of a group of "friends" who all met on another online site. We all "clicked" in one way or another and really enjoy conversing, but couldn't/wouldn't get into really personal stuff on such a "public" website. I started the website; it's very private and membership is by invitation only. We've all known each other for about three years now and are like one little family, but not one of us has met in person. We share marriage problems, parental unit problems, job issues, etc. It's married and single folks from 21 years old to 60 years old, so there's the gamut of perspectives and life issues. We share jokes, philosophical thoughts, self-help projects, personal issues..... just everything about life. I feel completely safe around them, but it's been a long time in developing that kind of kinship. Sites like myspace are a waste of time regarding anything "substantial" friendship or relationship wise, imo. They are not conducive to REALLY getting to know people - it's all for show and fun. You can't get to know someone for who they really are through that kind of environment. I liken it to the local bar where the music is too loud, people are coming and going, dressed to impress and there's no substance to anyone you could meet there. If I visit a site like that, it's just to look around and have fun. Nothing more, usually - not always, but more times than not, imo. I saw a news report on a girl who had gotten to be good friends with another girl through myspace. She wanted the friend to come visit her and when the girl said she wouldn't be able to do that because of money and her mother's protectiveness. The "girl" came back later and said her daddy would buy the plane ticket and call her mom to prove it would be safe. The "dad" did call the mom and put her totally at ease with the whole situation, but it turned out that the "dad" was actually a predator and there was no "daughter" that the other young girl had been corresponding with. I think a big problem is that we tend to be very secretive and private after all the interference we experienced in TWI. It makes us want to protect ourselves and keep EVERYTHING about our private lives from other people. That is not safe when it comes to online friendships. We don't have to give out the nitty gritty details, but we DO need to let folks know that we're "getting to know 'so & so' better" in offline conversation. That way, if they know something about 'so & so', they can tell you. LOL! I've written a book, haven't I? Sorry!

Linda, you can also sift 20 Mule Team Borax over all the carpeted areas in your house - leave it in for a week, vacuum it up and re-sift more down into the carpet - It takes about a month to go through the eggs that may already be in there. I did it when we moved into a rental house that was loaded with fleas and it worked great. Diatomaceous Earth with Sevin is also great as Ron said.

How Fun, Chas! I've used almost all of the travel websites at one time or another. I don't have a preference for one over the other, but I'm usually not looking for a whole package, just a flight & rental car at the most. Here are some things I found on my search for ideas: We Go Places! - This looks like and AWESOME Resource! I've bookmarked it myself. Whale Tale Family Vacation Package Storyland

HAPPIEST OF BIRTHDAYS, DEAR FRIEND!!! I'm glad to hear it was wonderful! I tried to join those ladies and they told me I could, but would have to wear Pink & Lavender till I was "mature enough". I'm sure they'd tell you the same thing!! Here's an even better Birthday Hat for ya!

You totally rock, Roy!

I just find it extremely humorous that OUR experiences don't mean squat when others haven't had the same experience. It's hearsay coming from me, but the person calling it hearsay doesn't consider their information hearsay even though it's based on their experience. :blink: Also, I believe it has already been established that OM lives in another TWIt world than the rest of us. His experiences never parallelled anyone else's experiences and if it didn't happen to him, it didn't happen. Apparently Lorna feels the same way. And if people weren't kicked out for not selling their houses, then I have no idea what Paul Brooks was screaming about when he yelled at our whole FOUNDATIONAL CLASS that X family LOVED THEIR HOUSE MORE THAN GOD because they chose to keep their mortgage than to continue being allowed to attend TWIt fellowships, classes and functions. :unsure: And I'm not sure why Family Y was put on M&A status after they said they were trying to sell their home, but since it didn't sell within three months, they were accused of lying about trying to sell it and accused of loving mammon more than God. And there's Family Z, who - gasp! - BOUGHT a home after the no debt non-existent policy was put into effect. They were M&A as soon as it came out that they had bought the house instead of renting it. And family S sold their home very reluctantly after many, many confrontations by the HFC's. Then they moved from crappy rental house to crappy rental house for five years and being put on probation many times because of their "mental attitude" about money and resentment for having sold their home due to the pressure from leadership. Finally, they said "screw it" and bought a beautiful home. As soon as TWI came out and said they never had a policy on mortgages and debt this family was contacted by TWI and invited back to TWI. I'll never understand why they accepted the invitation. But, nope, there never was a policy on debt and home mortgages. Never once was it written down that TWI had a policy on debt and mortgages.... I guess all of us just imagined those things happening.

Velly Intellesting...... Especially since we KNOW how well TWI has taken care of seniors in the past, including Mrs. W. I hope those who know nothing but living in dorms, trailers and depending on TWI for food, lodging and care have loved ones who will care for them when they get kicked to the curb. <_< Funny, isn't it, how much TWI degrades and makes fun of the Catholic Church, but as time goes on, it becomes more and more obvious that they are cut from the same cloth? At least I know my ex's family will help him out if he has continued to stay in touch with them since moving to New Knoxville and forsaking the 401K he had started building with his former police department.

LOL! I think they meant "IRS" not "Illuminati".

My ex got custody of Uncle Harry in the divorce settlement.