Belle

I like this book Sugars and Flours: How They Make Us Sick, Crazy, and Fat. I disagree with a total vegetarian diet. When one goes vegetarian, vegan, whatever....there are a lot of things that have to be carefully monitored and compensated for because things that our bodies need aren't included in that diet. My girlfriend went vegetarian, but when she got pregnant she wasn't able to get enough protein in her diet and other nutrients that the baby needed to develop properly and healthily. Consultations with professional nutritionists confirmed that she needed to add meat back into her diet for the safety of her baby. Ron, I was wondering where you got grass fed beef. :) That splains alot. Sounds like you live in paradise!

Quality of life....ahhhh.....the freedom and fresh air is certainly refreshing! I switched jobs shortly before my divorce. I took a pay cut because it was worth it, imo. I went from a two hour commute, $200/month in tolls, $200/month in gas, wear and tear on my car, long working hours, business dress and corporate red tape, b.s. and abusive management. It was as stressful and oppressive as TWI. Now, my commute is only 20-30 minutes each way, I get to wear jeans and shorts to work, I make my own hours, it's a small company so there's no stockholders to appease, I report directly to the CFO and there's hardly any red tape, no toll roads needed, great co-workers and a very fun, family-like, supportive environment. I'm also very much appreciated and respected. I have a house that's MINE and live in a wonderful neighborhood where all the neighbors know one another and my house is the "hang out" for all the mom's when they want to get away from the men and kids. My neighbors two houses down have adopted me as their grandchild and we take very good care of one another. We also take cookies or dishes to new neighbors and welcome them into the neighborhood - everyone does. We have awesome post-hurricane parties, too! I've renewed my relationship with my family and extended family and my bestest girlfriend from kindergarten through my total immersion in TWI. No longer micro-managed and struggling to keep up an impossible pace and live up to an impossible standard. I make my own decisions and have enough money to enjoy dog training and activities with my Vixen and nobody can tell me it's a waste of my time and money. As Mr. Strange says, "Lucky I'm sane after all I've been through. I can't complain but sometimes I still do. Life's been good to me so far." Ahhh, yes......life is very good.....just like my signature says.

Well, when I read it, I read it as Y including him/herself in that group....kind of "tongue in cheek" and not as an insult. :unsure: That's why I asked. Y'all may be correct, but doesn't Y deserve the right to clarify before everyone gets all up in arms?

My favorite is the couple on their honeymoon: The husband says, "Honey, let's set up a code for the rest of our marriage. Every night, if you want sex pull on my penis twice. If you don't, pull on it one hundred times."

Roy, you are definitely a great asset to our cafe and I'm so glad that you post here. :) You're a wonderful example of loving and caring for your fellow man. I have been through all those steps, too and am still working my way through some of them.

Those damh triggers!! We all have them, don't we? And some of mine are the most innocuous things that would surprise most folks and, in the course of "normal" life when it happens, I have to excuse myself from the situation because noone would understand why I suddenly became upset. This morning, my pastor was preaching about "Please Be Patient With Me, God Isn't Finished With Me Yet". It was a great message and he talked about how we never reach perfection and that he's got just as much to deal with, work on and overcome as the rest of us. I admire that and, coming from TWI, can appreciate it more than probably most in the congregation. BUT, somewhere toward the end of the message, he said, "The reward for a job well done is more work" and I cringed. :o It was lke fingernails on the chalkboard and took a while for me to refocus on the teaching. I could go my whole life without ever hearing that said again. "Get over it" is another one of mine, but we've already been there - discussed that. :B) I'm hoping that some will fall away and not be as intense as time goes on.

Before we all jump to conclusions again: Y, would you please elaborate and explain what you mean by this?

I wonder if part of the emotional temperature here lately is because of the posters who have been posting just to stir sh1t up and allowed to stalk posters, post hateful, venomous posts and otherwise contribute nothing of value. Sort of like inciting riot. The mood of the boards has seemed to change to me based on how active those particular posters are. It's a lot like when Refiner and the other JW's were here. They were starting fights, but that defensive, aggressive attitude flowed over into all the other threads and sections of the board - even the threads where they weren't even posting. It's kind of like being in a meeting with a total @$$hole - the whole meeting turns sour and then everyone takes that bad attitude and experience back to their own departments and pretty soon nobody is smiling, happy or positive in the whole company for that day. My former boss is like that ... he's a seagull manager - flies in; sh1ts all over everyone's desk and leaves. Usually by the time he leaves there are petty arguments going on within everyone else in the department even though we always got along well - especially when he wasn't around. Oh, and for the record....absolutely nothing sogwap posted has anything to do with why I started that "get over it" thread. :)

Excellent point, WG! I think that's why most of us were attracted to TWI - to have a better relationship with God, but that was replaced with Bible worship and a sense of urgency to peddle TWI and their classes. Lord knows, Jesus certainly wasn't a part of any focus. These are great posts, y'all. Thank you! djs, I understand your dilemma. :) You and your family are in my prayers. It's scary to think about leaving and hard to imagine that there's something better out there and had to think about how you'll be treated and will never see those folks again if you do decide to leave. It's a big decision.

Awesome!!!!! Great picture, too! Thanks for sharing with us, Oen. :)

Eight hours difference, eh? Tell us when you're going to be online and I'll bet you many of us will make an effort to be there. I can't during work hours (network nazi), but if'n I'm not workin' I would love to chat with you and will gladly rearrange my schedule to be able to do so. :)

Thank you, Paw. :) I think that some times we assume that we know what a poster was trying to say instead of asking for clarification. Also, folks who don't have much experience with posting on boards like this have to "find their feet" so to speak since communicating online is much different from communicating over the phone or in person. And, some folks are just better at communicating, period. We do need to be more patient with each other. What gets my goat is when victims are further victimized or told that they are ignoring their part in whatever happened. So often it's the same male posters who always jump in with derrogatory and condescension toward the victim. That's when the topic turns nasty and anyone who was sharing either shuts down or becomes venomous. I, too, cringe when new posters are attacked, questioned and accused of being WayGB or much worse. I agree with Linda that we should give people the benefit of the doubt. If they're fake it'll come out sooner or later.... I've had new people contact me privately because they're afraid to post on the boards and that's embarrassing for me because they should feel safe to post publicly. I'm guilty of not always being on my best behavior, but I will certainly try to be better and more conscious of how I respond and react. But I agree with Abigail about the harrassing posters: I've reported post after post and honestly don't see any value that these people bring to the board. They don't contribute to the topic on hand, all they do is attack and hurt. I think something should be done about these folks. I have them on ignore, but since people engage them in battle, it's impossible to really ignore it. It's not the same as heated discussions among differing viewpoints, it's flat out name-calling, harrassing and hate. It's still going on and I don't know what else to do about it.

Suda, I finished a bag of "happy junk", a bottle of "attitude adjustment" and a half gallon of "Carbon Copy Ice Milk" and I feel better than ever! Thank you!

Didja look at the links, David? At other places where the word and its variations are used? ;) Here's a few highlights for ya: Bob: Bullinger himself: The Evan:

ricky, is this how they're still teaching it?

Perzackly! Aren't you tired of seeing the same leading man in everything? Give someone else a chance. These guys are good and good to look at. :P

Louise, Darlin', there you are wrong. I have been required to endure said torture several times already. ;) That, my dear, is correct except I think it was prior to middle school, but who's counting?

When I'm good I'm perfect - when I'm bad, I'm really bad. That was fun, though.

Yeah, well.... What can I say? I think Kiefer Sutherland, Dennis Quaid or Jim Belushi would do a better job and be much nicer on the eyes. THIS: OR THIS? :wub:

Doesn't sound kindergarten at all, jaylawt! I've gone through the same things in the past few years. I've become very interested in the Dead Sea Scrolls and the Nag Hammadi Scrolls....all those historical things you've mentioned as well. :) Hey - we were never taught this stuff in TWI and we weren't even allowed to consider it, much less look into it on our own since it wasn't "research" put out by TWI. Now I feel like a kid in a candy store and last year I had so many books I wanted to read that I got overwhelmed and had to slow down. Ya can't read eighteen books at the same time. I go through spurts of spending a great deal of time "thinking out loud" in the doctrinal section. You'll find some very wise, very helpful, very kind and knowledgeable folks down there. Do a search on the Dead Sea Scrolls and the Nag Hammadi Scrolls here and you'll find some of the better links I was directed toward. It's been a while since I read the book, I don't remember where he said the Star of David originated. But, yes, it was a fascinating read and my favorite books usually are fiction written around true facts. My all time favorite book is "The Eight" by Catherine Neville. It's about Charlemagne's Montglaine Service and the rumors and mythology surround that. Flips back and forth between the Middle Ages, the French Revolution and modern times. ex10, I wholeheartedly agree with you about Tom Hanks. I pictured the leading man as much more handsome...he looks like a dirty dork in the previews. What a disappointment.

Jonny, yes, I have been both the "passer" and the "passee" on many occasions. Consider yourself lucky that you've never had to ask someone to "spare a square". I suspect a man needing TP would be in more dire straits than most situations where a woman would need it. My avatar is Ms. Vivien Leigh, herself. I love the character Scarlett O'Hara and hope to find my Rhett Butler some day. 'Tis not me, I'm afraid. Rascal, I really don't see where Jonny said that any of the information here was unimportant or that it should be ignored. He was telling TWINot that additional information about the Geer's "ministry" and Geer himself could be found by looking up those other folks as well. :( I've read and re-read his post and the ones after that and I just still don't see it. That's why I think you must have mis-read it. :) He didn't out and out post, "but look here, too" but he was by no means discrediting the stuff here - others had already pointed TWINot to that information. It's that protective "Mama" instinct in you and I know that. That's what makes you such a great asset to our cafe.

Tom, that young woman's site is absolutely incredible! What a brave woman! I want to order her DVDs just to support her! Incredible....absolutely amazing and scary how absolutely destructive mankind can be. Sounds like we need more folks like Rickover in power. :)

I seriously doubt that total strangers have a vested, honest interest and concern for my health. <_<

And I agree 100%!!!! Always have. :) Sorry, I didn't read Rascal's post that way, but, I"ve met her in person on quite a few occasions and I know her heart and how she communicates in person, so I didn't read her post that way. BUT, I can see how you saw it differently, not knowing her personally and her heart, how tender it is and how passionate she is about protecting people. That's one of the limitations we have here...would that it was really some kind of cafe where we could all sit around, pat each other on the back and share toilet paper under the bathroom stalls.....people could find the gum I keep putting under the counters.... That's why I stepped in. I suspect you two communicate very much the same way in person and would be the "mutual admiration society" if you could read her words like I do....and I use that personality to read yours, which helps me see through your "toughness" sometimes.

.....and the bats in the belfry yelled "MORE!!!! MORE!!!!!!"