EST + 5, I'm not sure about GMT. We're an hour ahead of Paris (or behind, I can never remember). I know we're five hours ahead of Washington, DC. Right now, it's 1515 in Togo.
Posts by fader
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22I'm lonely
by fader ini'm lonely.
not much to do here in togo.
can't even think of anything to say to start some sort of interesting conversation so that i could post replies and 'talk' to people.
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22
Fruits of the Spirit, which is hardest for you?
by dh inlove, joy, peace, long suffering, kindness, goodness, faith, mildness, self control.
which do you find most difficult?.
(please correct me if i got them wrong, it's been a while since my mom made me recite them)
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fader
Mango. I'm allergic.
j/k
Self-control -- what can I say? I'm italian!
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22
I'm lonely
by fader ini'm lonely.
not much to do here in togo.
can't even think of anything to say to start some sort of interesting conversation so that i could post replies and 'talk' to people.
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fader
Hi. I'm lonely. I think I said that already. Not much to do here in Togo. Can't even think of anything to say to start some sort of interesting conversation so that I could post replies and 'talk' to people.
What am I doing in Togo? Am I really in Togo? (In case you guys think I'm full of ...) Yes, I am in Togo. I work here (got here in September 2003, after doing 2 years in Uganda -- back when I posted on here as Freedomrules) and will be here until September 2005.
Married, 2 kids. Just found out one more on the way. Ex-JW (fader, hence the new name). My dad was disfellowshipped last summer (I posted about that in July of last year when I was Freedomrules). He's getting reinstated soon, they tell me.
Oh well, nothing much more to say. The time difference makes it difficult for me to reply to most of your stateside posters...
Sigh,
Lucia
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30
Puppetry Of The Penis........
by morty inhas any one seen this stand up show yet???.
i have been offered free tickets to go see this show on the weekend....all i want to really see is, how they make a hamburgar out of a weiner??.
it is suppose to be one hell of a show, and cannot wait to see it..... we had the show in town for only 2 nights and sold out in 1 day, so they offered it for another 3 nights and sold it out as well.... can't wait, but want to know if i will need sunglasses or not??.
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fader
I went back in DC this summer. It was okay, they just do about of different things with their penises (they call it genital origami). It's worth going because it's different, but at the end of the day I didn't think it was that great. But hell, if the tickets are free??
And apparently size doesn't matter!
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22
South Beach Diet update again
by Mulan ini have gotten a couple of pm's wanting to know how i am doing on the diet.
tomorrow starts week 4, and as of today i have lost 8 pounds.
the last time i tried to lose weight was on weight watchers and it took me about 4 months to lose 8 pounds and then nothing more would come off.
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fader
Congrats to all of you making a life-style change! At the risk of sounding like an infomercial, I figured I'd share my experience with Atkins (especially since someone asked).
I started Atkins July of last year, when I weighed aroudn 180 lbs (I'm 5'3" so it didn't look good, trust me). I now weight 137 lbs or so, with about 15 more to go. I lost weight very rapidly initially. Now I lose no more than a pound a week, which is fine with me, I'd rather taper off gradually anyway, and besides that's what Atkins recommends.
There are four phases with Atkins: 1. Induction 2. On-going Weight Loss 3. Pre-Maintenance 4. Maintenance.
Most people assume Induction, the most austere part of the diet, is the Atkins diet. That is not the case. The purpose of the Induction phase is to jump start your metabolism and to switch your body from burning carbohydrates as a source of fuel to burning fat. Induction typically lasts 2 weeks, although it is safe to do longer. The first 4 days to 1 week, you won't feel great. Your body has to switch its fuel source, and many of us are addicted to carbs, so you feel a bit hungover , tired and irritable. However, once you get over that hump people tend to feel great. I did. I had a ton of energy, slept well and was losing weight effortlessly. During Induction you are limited basically to proteins and carbs in the form of salads. I always ate more than the recommended amount of salads. The way I figured, if I was cheating by eating extra salad, I really wasn't doing too bad. I ate a variety of protein: fish, chicken, beef, turkey etc. Some people worry about the amount of fat you are taking in. I really didn't. Atkin's book, New Diet Revolution, gives a very informative explanation behind the science. It's interesting because this same diet has been in use in Europe for years now for people who suffer from diabetes.
As you progress through the other phases you gradually reintroduce some carbs, but you can pretty much kiss sugar and refined flour and pasta etc, away for good. As much as I used to love those things, I dont' miss them, I don't crave them and on the few occasions when I've accidentally eated things with sugar in them (I took a swig of my son's drink one day -- I mistook it for mine) it made me sick.
The key is finding substitutes for the things I like. Every once in a while I want something sweet: so I eat sugar free jello, or eat something with a sugar substitute. Atkins Nutriotionals makes great substitute products. I absolutely adore the Endulge Caramel Nut chews. They taste just like Snickers.
I guess the key to my success on Atkins has been flexibility. If I go out with people are they order pizza, I eat it too. I just dont' eat the crust.
Again, I know I sound like an infomercial, but it worked phenomenally well for me, has improved my outlook on life, my sex life, my self-image, etc. I won't say that this diet will work for everyone, but it will work for a lot of people. And if I can do it all the way over here in Togo, you guys can definitely do it in the US.
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14
OK, Who is reading the "DA VINCI CODE?" and blown away by some of the stuff
by NoBorg income on, any searchers of the sacred divine in here?
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fader
I read it right before I went to France last month.
Definitely interesting, some historical truths (the theory about the holy grail being the search for the remains of Mary Magdalene, etc.) but other than that, pure, amusing, well written fiction.
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fader
In no particular order:
1. Whitewater rafted on the Ganges
2. Whitewater rafted on the Nile
3. Bungee jumped into the Nile.
4. Went to Benin for the Christmas Day 2003 Cotonou plane crash to help in the recovery effort.
5. Smoke. (still do)
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69
How old were you when you left?
by somebodylovesme ini only know a handful of witnesses, but i do know several ex-witnesses.
all of them left in their late teens, which (as i've read here) is pretty common.
i know there are a lot of people here who left later in life.
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fader
baptized at 14, officially inactive at 19.
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3
used to be Freedomrules
by fader ini've been lurking for a while because i couldn't log on, but i'm glad to be back, with a new log-on.
i used to be in uganda, now i'm in togo, and let me tell you: best way to fade from the 'troof' is to move to africa.
couldnt' even tell you where my publishers card is right now!
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fader
Thanks! You have no idea what a solace this board is to me. Like I said, I live in Togo. Even though I'm far from home, this board makes me feel like I'm connected to the world, on top of being able to communicate with people who understand my background and the lingo.
As a reminder:
I was raised a JW, my parents converted when I was 4, so it's all I know. When I was 14 I got baptized, because all the kids in my circuit were and because my sisters wanted to and they were younger than me so I had to beat them to the punch. I tried really hard to be a good Witness, studied like a fiend, even tried to drop out of school so I could be a regular pioneer. I desperately wanted to go to Bethel, and was always mad that single women couldn't go. I did temp work at the Branch in Italy for a while. Then when I was 17 (I think), I confessed to the elders that I had made out with a boy (including some heavy petting) and I was privately reproved and had my privileges removed. I continued to study diligently and started having my own doubts about different things (I had one of the best WT libraries outside of Bethel, I swear!). At 18 I decided I had enough. I moved to India with my parents and started to skip meetings and basically acted like a spring that'd been held back for 18 years. I did everything I was told not to do my entire life. And believe it or not, I finally started to like myself! I realized that for years I'd lived as a hypocrite and hated myself (that's why I attempted suicide at 16). Realizing I didnt' need to be a Witness freed me, and made me happy, something I hadn't felt my whole life. I felt lost for a while, and then I went back to the US and went to college. I bought a copy of Crisis of Conscience and surfed the web and found others like me. I was afraid of apostates for so long. My best friend from the Cong in Rome started to fade at the same time as me, and we really helped each other out. She was a lot older than me and a former RP. Everyone said she was a bad association so I was automatically drawn to her.
So I went to college and met the man of my dreams (and married him) and now I live and work overseas and love my life and myself, all because I lost the shackles. My whole family are still in, although my Dad got disfellowshipped in July (I mentioned that back when I was Freedomrules). He's about to be reinstated, my sisters are RPs, one sister married a bethelite; they go to Patterson every month as temp workers. My other sister, I found out today, is dating an elder from some cong in Arizona.
I hope they're happy. I don't think all of them are. When you've lived the nomadic life we've lived, the religion can be a real source of community (my sister told me as much) and they don't feel like they have anywhere to go.
I felt that way at the beginning, but it's been 8 years now, and my life is better than I ever imagined. The Society tries to give us this crap about how ex-witnesses are miserable and poor and hate themselves. Well quite frankly, they were wrong on all three counts when it comes to me.
Here's wishing everyone is as happy as I am to be free!
fader
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used to be Freedomrules
by fader ini've been lurking for a while because i couldn't log on, but i'm glad to be back, with a new log-on.
i used to be in uganda, now i'm in togo, and let me tell you: best way to fade from the 'troof' is to move to africa.
couldnt' even tell you where my publishers card is right now!
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fader
Hi everyone! I've been lurking for a while because I couldn't log on, but I'm glad to be back, with a new log-on. I used to be in Uganda, now I'm in Togo, and let me tell you: best way to fade from the 'troof' is to move to Africa. Couldnt' even tell you where my publishers card is right now! I'm free and I love it.
Best wishes all, I'm so stoked to be back!
fader aka Freedomrules