Posts by Ephanyminitas

40

Ozzie's Weekend Poll #21

by ozziepost in

jw
friends

we've brought forward this weekend's poll because we're sure to have other things on our mind tomorrow!

just in case you missed it, try this link: .

http://sunday.ninemsn.com.au/sunday/cover_stories/article_1149.asp

Ephanyminitas

I say number 17: Why can't I wear a beard? I have a bit of a goatee on my chin, and so help me, if it was good enough for Jesus and the early Christians, it's good enough for me.

Ephanyminitas, who doesn't even believe in Jesus ...

26

Honestly, what would you do?

by Tinkerbell4125 in

many of you know, i have siblins that are j.w.s and some that are not.

since i disassociated myself, i am shunned by my j.w.siblins.

my non-jw siblins and my j.w.

Ephanyminitas

"Should I continue to put myself in a position where I would be exposed to that?"

Yes. Remember that what they are trying to do is bother you, to make you feel shame. If you decide not to attend a function because they -- your Witness family -- will be there, then they have succeeded. Remember that is it THEY who are wrong -- not you. The shunning might hurt, but stand up for yourself and what you believe. If you give in, then you will just bolster their belief that they are right and you are wrong.

Were I you, I would attend the event and treat them just as you might treat anyone else. Now, I don't know if they are pleased to be doing what they're doing, or if they only do it because they are supposed to; but you are under NO obligation to avoid them or treat THEM badly. Just briefly say hello to them, and say that you hope they are doing well (and, oh, how little Johnny's grown). DON'T say or ask anything, of course, that would require them to make any sort of response at all. Take control of the situation; otherwise, THEY will.

By doing this, you might been asked by someone else to tone it down because you're making your Witness family members uncomfortable. Reply that you are simply being friendly, because despite how they treat you, you are still their sibling, and you will treat them as such. There is, after all, no reason for you to shun them. Be nice. They're your family. I wouldn't spend a lot of time with them at all, but I see no reason why you shouldn't say your hello's and whatnot. Watch 'em squirm.

So in short, stand your ground and be a part of your family. Don't turn and run away with your tail between your legs. If you look happy and pleased with your decision, they will notice. They will notice that, hey, you don't look so unhappy after all -- even when being shunned.

6

Bronze Goddess of Fire...DEAD! :o(

by Funchback in

sad, but true.

"aunt esther" died a few days ago from complications of diabetes.

if i remember correctly, she played a jw in the movie 'friday'.

Ephanyminitas

I was going to post this until I searched for it and saw it here. I too remember her appearance in "Friday." As I recall, she asked the "householder" if he was ready for "Jehovah's return." My cousin and I laughed at that one! Where's he been?

Ephanyminitas -- proud heathen

63

Totally happy in your marriage?

by Lost Diamond in

how many of you are totally, incredibly happy in your marriage?

how many of you feel that your spouse is your absolute soul mate and you couldn't even imagine your being married somebody else?

talking with the women at work, i'm surprised at how many are not totally happy.

Ephanyminitas

Sigh. "I'm totally happy in my bachelorhood. Life's wonderful just like it is," says COMF. I wish I could apply this to myself.

I've been in one serious relationship, but that fell through. (Fortunately, though, we're still very close friends.) So I'm 24, new in school, and searching for my significant other. I really just left the Society, so I'm starting over. It'd be nice to find somebody that is also an ex-Societite, but that's unlikely.

Part of my problem -- other than the fact that I have no social life right now, and my extreme shyness -- is that I'm very picky. I think this is a result of having thought I found the "real thing," but having that fall through. After over four and a half years in that relationship -- and just as much time growing -- I know what I want (pretty much) and I'm looking only for that. I know what I need to keep me happy.

But I suppose it's better to just enjoy the time I have now to be single. You can't beat the independence, right? Sigh.

Since I was a child, I've wanted to find that one special person, marry, and be happy. I'm just wired for that kind of set up. (I don't mean to imply that I believe in there being only One Special Person for each of us. That's superstitious and untrue, whereas I'M concerned.)

So, special lady, here's to you. I hope I'll find you.

E (who wonders why Marriage is grouped with Retirement)

Edited by - ephanyminitas on 21 September 2002 15:43:6

5

"Super Smash Bros. Melee": "Gree...

by Ephanyminitas in

to those of you that are big "super smash bros. melee" fans (as am i!

but i'm sitting at a computer right now (duh) listening to the green greens theme -- the orchestration of classic nintendo themes is excellent -- and i just noticed that it sounds a bit like a kingdom melody.

of course, it's tons catchier than a k.m., but you get the point.. while i'm on the topic, are there any other ssb:m fans in the audience?

Ephanyminitas

Truth be told -- and certainly it always should be -- I'm not much of a game buff. The fighting genre just isn't my type of game. I'm more of a Mario 2-D platformer (though I _will_ be checking out "Super Mario Sunshine") kinda guy. So not having knowledge of fighting games, I can't say fairly whether "Melee" is comparitively good or not. I'm a hardcore Nintendo fan, I admit.

So these factors -- being a Nintendo fan (lotsa nostalgia in "Melee"), loving the Mario Bros. (go Luigi!), and liking head-to-head combat (did I mention that?) -- they combine into me liking "Melee." I simply love it.

Not having anything to compare too, I can't say whether the controls, etc., are good; but I've never had any problem with them. With Luigi, Falco, or even Jigglypuff, I'll kick ANYONE'S butt -- but only in that game. :-)

E

38

Last night my dad tried to commit suicide

by cruzanheart in

jw
friends

i'm still blown away by it.

when i went out the door this morning to take the kids to school (7:15 a.m.) i turned on my cell phone and there were two messages from his retirement home, both saying that he had fallen at about 4:30 a.m. and was being taken to the hospital.

i called the hospital and they told me that he said he had taken 18 xanax in an effort to kill himself.

Ephanyminitas

Cruzanheart,

You have my sincere condolences. I can only imagine what you're going through, but I know what your father is going through -- to an extent. See, I have depression and I too have tried to kill myself.

If you don't suffer with depression, you cannot understand it. Perhaps you can come close, but I doubt that you'll be able to comprehend how a depressed mind works. When I tried to kill myself (alcohol and sleeping pills, plus suffocation), I felt that there was no other choice. I felt that my world was crumbling down on top of me and no other solution would work. Really, it's difficult to explain the hopelessness of it all, but suicide does sometimes feel like the only way out. Heck, in some senses, it IS the only way out, but obviously, it's not the preferred way of handling problems.

One thing that comes to mind is that your father might not suffer with depression per se. Perhaps he was simply overwhelmed or felt trapped by something. A bout of extreme anxiety or pressure can do this to some people.

I don't need to tell you this, I know, but approach your father with concern, not anger. Yes, what he tried to do was selfish, but probably felt that his death would actually benefit those around him. Maybe he feels like a burden, maybe his faith is flagging, perhaps old age is frustrating him -- I can't pretend to know. But he needs more than anything to know that he is loved.

5

"Super Smash Bros. Melee": "Gree...

by Ephanyminitas in

to those of you that are big "super smash bros. melee" fans (as am i!

but i'm sitting at a computer right now (duh) listening to the green greens theme -- the orchestration of classic nintendo themes is excellent -- and i just noticed that it sounds a bit like a kingdom melody.

of course, it's tons catchier than a k.m., but you get the point.. while i'm on the topic, are there any other ssb:m fans in the audience?

Ephanyminitas

Ack! (o_o);; I'm wounded! Can someone help me ... please ... ?

Actually, I'm not an experienced fighting-genre type of person, so I'm willing to admit that, in a technical sense, SSB:M is probably not the best game; but I must say that I feel it's one of the most fun (and certainly Nintendo-nostalgic) games I've ever played -- especially with other people. It's just ... FUN, damn it all!

What is it about the game that you don't like? Or is it less of a this-and-that thing and more of a just-not-your-type thing? What fighting games DO you like, just out of curiosity?

Come on, SSB:M fans! I need your support!

-- Thus spoke Ephanyminitas.

Edited by - ephanyminitas on 19 September 2002 23:23:24

95

Tell us about your Profile Pic

by Beck_Melbourne in

jw
friends

just wondering about some of the profile pics...i think its nice to know a bit about the person you want us see, or the person you don't want us to see.

so what were you thinking when the pic was taken, how long ago, and where were you?

mine was taken last month, just after my 36th birthday.

Ephanyminitas

Oo, oo! Me too! I've changed pictures recently, so here's the skinny:

And my current picture is Little Boy Blue. He was the greatest parakeet I've ever known, and I still miss him a lot. He died a couple of years back, of respiratory infection. He was a very nice and sociable bird, always hanging out with me. He was calm and laidback -- so friendly. Sigh. I'll always remember him.

Edited by - ephanyminitas on 19 September 2002 22:43:8

22

American Idol, Who's watching?

by TheStar in

am i the only shmuck on this board watching this every week?

please say i'm not.

Ephanyminitas

Did y'all hear about the power dialers that were skewing the results?

"A NEW KIND OF TALENT. We were all aware that half of the television-viewing audience of the United States is obsessed with American Idol, but apparently there's a difference between being obsessed and being out of control. Producers for the show have acknowledged that the talent competition is being bombarded by 'power dialers,' who are able to cast as many as 10,000 votes a night from a single phone line, reports TV Guide Online. However, executives swear that the calls have a 'statistically insignificant' impact on the results."

Let's hope that they're right about the "insignificity" of those calls.

Not that I watched the show or anything. I only watched the first couple of episodes. I just couldn't watch those poor kids doing that to themselves.

E

Edited by - ephanyminitas on 19 September 2002 20:53:49

5

"Super Smash Bros. Melee": "Gree...

by Ephanyminitas in

to those of you that are big "super smash bros. melee" fans (as am i!

but i'm sitting at a computer right now (duh) listening to the green greens theme -- the orchestration of classic nintendo themes is excellent -- and i just noticed that it sounds a bit like a kingdom melody.

of course, it's tons catchier than a k.m., but you get the point.. while i'm on the topic, are there any other ssb:m fans in the audience?

Ephanyminitas

To those of you that are big "Super Smash Bros. Melee" fans (as am I!), I am sorry. But I'm sitting at a computer right now (duh) listening to the Green Greens theme -- the orchestration of classic Nintendo themes is excellent -- and I just noticed that it sounds a bit like a Kingdom Melody. Of course, it's tons catchier than a K.M., but you get the point.

While I'm on the topic, are there any other SSB:M fans in the audience? This is like my all-time favorite game.

Ephanyminitas (who, yes, is 24)