Posts by fiddler

30

How do you cope with impaired mobility?

by compound complex in

greetings, my aging friends!

before asking you this question, i tried to do some research on the thought that 'hard work never killed anyone,' but, man, can it cripple you!

what i wanted to figure out is something better than you're getting older and tireder.. many of us have done hard physical labor most of our lives and see no prospect of retirement.

fiddler

This thread certainly hit a nerve...or something! I am 56 soon to be 57 and over the last year I have lost about 15 lbs, started riding a bike, got a dog and so am walking said dog but now I'm experiencing sometimes excruciating knee pain! It is really irritating to me because I am not obese and I am active but this crops up all the same. I love getting out in nature riding my bike, walking my dog and hiking and so having my knees go out at this point just sucks!

i currently am wearing a knee brace and I either ice or apply heat (ice seems to be best) but it isn't going away. This us a fairly recent thing so I'm still trying to figure things out.

67

Anyone recall a time when your congregation came to the aid of a Brother or sister in need??

by jam in

i'm not talking about a individual, but a congregation as a whole.. i'm talking about a brother or sister that really hit hard times.. have there ever been an occasion where the brothers (elders).

decided to dip into the kh funds and help one in need????.

example, brother loose his job, get evicted, family of four or.

fiddler

The individual JW's are basically good people and yes, I both was the recipient of help with food during hard times and also returned the kindness to others. It was sometimes an announcement made at the service meeting back in the day...I do wonder if that would be allowed now. Mostly it was the 'sisters' that thought of and arranged such things. I remember helping out the family of one of our elders who had ALS. It was the sisters that did ALL the helping. Those of us who helped were taught to 'bag' the patient (compressing a bellows to give air to the patient) and suction mucous from his airway...something I never thought I could do but learned to do it. I was able to suction and make small talk over the Jeopardy game on TV without missing a beat at one point. I am glad I was able to help in this way but it was during a particular day that everyone was at a memorial service for another elder that I had a situation where the ALS brother needed to use the potty and he had weakened to a point that I couldn't hold him up. I kept him discreetly covered but still...it was just a terrible situation. I called the Kingdom Hall where the memorial was being held and asked for emergency assistance! Another elder was dispatched and he was absolutely....horrified....ashamed.....I don't know what but he was totally unaware that the sisters were doing all this caregiving and none of the brothers had offered any help whatsoever. The ALS brother died not too long after....

My experience with individual witnesses is that they are caring people but the corporate nature of the Watchtoer society gets in the way of natural affection.

9

Portland, OR water officials confirm diagnosis of stupidity

by JeffT in

they did this once before a couple of years ago.

do they think the ducks get out of the water to go to the bathroom?.

ps: i think the kid is an idiot, but he's nineteen.. .

fiddler

I'm from the Wolf Creek water shed area (of Oregon) and all I can say is: What about all the bird droppings and raccoon pee and possum pee .... And, and .... Yep! Bureacracy at it's finest!

23

136th Gilead Class Graduates-JW.Org

by Brother Mike in

i just found this video they released on their official website.

sorry if this was already posted.

(if not i thought some might have some thoughts about it).

fiddler

Most of the graduates are from either Africa or politically upset places (probably better ways to phrase that). As was pointed out, only one couple from USA and one from Canada. None from the UK. Hmm....interesting demographics.

55

THE GRAND APOSTATE "WALKOUT" - January 1, 2015

by RagingBull in

jw
friends

after knowing ttatt for many years now...i had made up my mind long ago that after 2014, i would no-longer subject myself to the boredom, pain, and frustration of following this cult...the wt...the borg.. so...i made up my mind that since the wtbts/gb makes such a big deal as to the "significance" of the year 1914 and this year 2014, there can be no greater time for me to leave it all behind.

i daydreamed of how awesome and telling it would be if everyone that could ( because i do know that some have personal circumstances of their own, as i did too) would just .... walkout...never to attend/step foot in a kingdom hall from that moment on.. independence day of sorts?

there is too much evidence, too many videos, blogs, books, news reports and lawsuits for me to keep lying to myself.

fiddler

This does seem to be a pivotal year........kind of like 1999. I left that year, not by any sort of plan. I just did...and so did a LOT of others. I'm thinking this might be a year like that for the Watchtower. 1999 was a BAD year for the Watchtower.

49

My personal movie review: Darren Aronofsky's NOAH

by Terry in

jw
friends

noah, my movie review.

you may have already judged this film and you've never seen it!

like many of its critics, you think you know what you're going to see and .

fiddler

Good review Terry! I haven't seen the movie but want to. It was the Genesis accounts that always baffled me the most when I was a JW and after getting out, reading The Book of Enoch accounts fleshed out the stories quite a bit. Aronofsky seems to be throwing a lot of that in and that is as it should be. Not much of a story just from the Bible account. Also the fact that he's had boots on the ground doing anthropological work and field biology....a serious man indeed. Being a so called 'tree hugging' Pacific Northwesterner I think I will like this particular Bible film. Thanks for the review!

71

What is the main "idea" of the bible?

by KateWild in

as jws we were often told what the theme of the bible is, we were taught that it was the promised seed.. i was recently asked the question.... what is the main "idea" of the bible?.

for me the whole purpose of the bible is about control.

it features a god that punishes and rewards.

fiddler

To 'a watcher':

"His own marvelous personality! "

You must be joking. The god of the Bible has the personality traits of the likes of Hitler!

20

3 year olds giving talks now....

by EndofMysteries in

i thought i was young giving one at 6 or 7 years old, now there are 3 year olds giving talks.

.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vnyjkzxg-j8.

fiddler

The positive side of this (maybe) is that he is intelligent. That intelligence may manifest in his leaving the cult sooner than later. The downside is that truly gifted and intelligent children in the religion probably suffer even more than the rest.

13

The great flood happened about 13,000 years ago....

by EndofMysteries in

i just learned this information the past couple of days but it seems it's been out the past couple of years.

many many articles about some asteroid/meteor event about 13,000 years ago.

http://www.popsci.com/science/article/2012-03/space-rock-impact-could-have-caused-ancient-cooldown-new-evidence-says.

fiddler

If you look at google earth night view you'll see that people (lights) are all around the edges of continents. Humans seem to migrate to the edges...I think that fact hasn't changed over the history of humankind. What stands out to me with this knowledge is this:

The coastal regions would have been impacted the most during the rapid meltdown of the last ice age. What happened at that time...my bet is extraterestrial impact...was catastrophic. Many people (those that survived because they were away hunting or whatever) from diverse places would have fantastic flood and inundation stories. It does not 'prove' the Bible flood story as the be all end all story. It is just one of many.

32

Do You Honestly Believe That You Would Have Officially Left The JW Religion If They Didn't Shun You?

by minimus in

jw
friends

i left as an inactive person.

i pretty much have been left alone by the elders and witnesses, as far as being hounded.. i know of many that either disassociated or got disfellowshipped.. i'm wondering if you think you would have remained a jw, in name only, if the religion (cult) didn't shun and penalize as they do..

fiddler

If they stopped shunning and people could talk freely the religion would fall apart. This is their last line of defense against reality. They'll not give up shunning.

In answer to your question, shunning or not shunning did not factor into my leaving. I would have left anyway.