by outsmartthesystem 33 Replies latest jw friends
I actually enjoyed the 1-day quick builds. I could be useful and happy and generous and friendly. The cause was a noble one. The people generally upbeat and focused.
Then came the comittees and organization.
"We can do much better than THAT if we are ORGANIZED!"
And it started to go downhill from there.
Way downhill.
I loved quick builds. I think I got to try just about every trade and learned alot. I worked in the kitchen for most of them and as a young teen age girl who didn't have any friends, I enjoyed working with the older ones. One old brother took the time to teach me how to make a really awesome soup and I learned that I love serving good food to people. My mother thought working the night shift would keep my sister and I out of trouble ( worked for me not my sister LMAO) and I loved it.
I stopped going when I was about 21. The last build I went was with my father, who was studying at the time. My father is a very skilled tradesman and was very much needed on site. Someone got wind that even though he had been invited, he was not baptised and therefore was not allowed on the site. They made his study conductor, a very nice young man who didn't have a mean bone in his body, ask him to leave the site immediately. My father was understandably mortified and we left. We didn't even go back to the house we were staying in to get our stuff. His study conductor jumped into our car as well and we drove the long hours home.
I wonder if my dad ever thinks about that now that he is a baptised witness for the organization that threw him off a job site.
That being said, I have more good memories of quick builds than bad.
Bobbi
Maybe God gave you special holy spirit like the WTS interprets this scripture and how it will happen in the "new world."
*** w11 12/15 pp. 18-19 Faithful Ones of Old—Guided by God’s Spirit ***
Holy Spirit Made Bezalel Qualified
6 The experience of Moses’ contemporary Bezalel reveals much about the way God’s spirit can operate. (Read Exodus 35:30-35.) Bezalel was appointed to take the lead in making the necessary furnishings for the tabernacle. Did he have knowledge of crafts prior to this vast project? Possibly, but in all likelihood his most recent job was that of making bricks for the Egyptians. (Ex. 1:13, 14) So how would Bezalel fulfill his complicated task? Jehovah “proceeded to fill him with the spirit of God in wisdom, in understanding and in knowledge and in every sort of craftsmanship and for designing devices . . . to make ingenious products of every sort.” Whatever natural aptitude Bezalel may have had was enhanced by holy spirit. The same is true of Oholiab. Bezalel and Oholiab must have learned well, for they not only performed their duties but also taught others what to do. Yes, God put it into their hearts to teach.
I think blondie might be the FDS....she is the only person who TRUELY provides meat in the due season.
The same Holy Spirit that Blondie mentioned appointed my ex a MS 3 times and an elder once. Guess it has a racy side.
At 16 I was the 2nd in command of the painters and decorators for very similar reasons to the original post, nobody wanted to do it. When we went to different halls, there was a professional internal decorator on the team but she was a SHE.
By the second build I had accidently given the wrong paint out and told someone to GLOSS a wall.
That took some doing to fix.
"Here I am send me" is just dumb. I got better by the way, the deep end will do that to you. The third build I got to, NO paint materials had been ordered. Being slightly smarter at 17 I got all the old orders out and ordered all the generic items again in the same quantity. I should not have had that much responsibility with peoples donated money.
I often think of those times as the best years of my life, they were. But they were also built on a lie. Ironically lots of organisations and charities build buildings, some in a weekend. I am sure it is a fun and warm experience for them too. I am also sure there are plenty of cock ups.
The last big project I did involved painting a ceiling with gold paint. At this point I was 'in charge' (yuck) of a few people. I thought it would be funny to write my name in gold on the ceiling... there was much hilarity... until people walked in and could read it even after the ceiling had been fully painted.
Good times, good people, good motives, badly wrong.
Snare x
Seems they are supposed to train those they send out? I believe I have better qualifications after watching Home Improvements on TV where they hang drywall than someone that is trained at a quick build. At least the program details all the pitfalls at all steps, not just throwing the damn stuff up and hoping the screw holes show through, the joints crack, and they get it cut wrong because they tried taking shortcuts.
And hanging drywall is actually fairly simple. You simply cut it to size (making sure you trim it neatly and allow for openings for electrical), screw it in at the studs (and you need to know how many screws per linear meter you need), and then tape and mud the joints. You need to mud the screw holes as well. This is simple but requires 3 progressively thinner coats of mud with progressively bigger putty knives to ensure the joints are not obvious. Get the mudding wrong, you will have visible cracks, tape falling off after it's painted, and a sloppy job.
However, I will not bother applying this for the Kingdumb Hell. Rather, I would use this skill (and refine it, as it does take practice to get the mud to the right consistency) to barter when the dollar becomes toilet paper.
I enjoyed quickbuilds and went to all of the ones in our state, before during and after as my Dad was a coordinator.
It was great to check out all the teenage boys.
I like Bobbi found menial kitchen or sweeping up tasks then dropped them after half an hour and went for another walk . lol
The witlesses whos hall we were helping to build were always so grateful that they put on the most awesome food - that was definetely a plus.
Also it got me out of preaching and we got to attend the Sunday watchtower and dedication talk in our old jeans.... Until they changed that after a few years.
Man you really got to see peoples personalities for real when they were at quickbuilds, some 'Bros and Sis' were real control freaks and arrogant,argumentative arseholes!!
Spiritual paradise.... my arse! Who'd wanna be in paradise with these freaks?
I wonder how many of the one day wonders have real structural problems now?
Oz
Stacks of new lumber, esp 2X4's contain a lot of moisture. When they are enclosed quickly after installation they can cause future mold problems. Look for tiny black spots coming through interior paint. This means it has probably flourished inside the walls.
