Posts by Xander

17

Wasted life as a JW?....Be Optimistic!

by ISP in

jw
friends

its not too late to learn or be educated or retrained etc!

its easy for me to say i guess...but it cannot be anymore.

times have definitely changed.. in the uk most folks planned on retiring at 60..possibly 55. it was important to get ahead while in your early 20s and hope to be coining it in your 30s, 40s.

Xander

Sorry if I gave the impression I was mopy.

I get pissed off from time to time, true. But, my outlook is generally positive. As I've posted in another thread (wow - posting a lot today), I have found a lot to live for, which is a nice change.

And to Francois: mmmm...I wouldn't say 'let' them. I grew up in the JWs.

#1 I didn't know any better - I led a SUPER sheltered life, and my parents certainly never let me question they might be wrong - even my dad who was not a JW. Kinda upset at that, but nevermind.

#2 I was still living under my parents roof - they kind of get defacto control of your life, then I got married and thought what my wife wanted was a stable 'godly' marriage. (Don't worry, we got better)

Generally, though, I agree with you. It didn't take long into my adult life before I started doing some research and making some decisions - some of my OWN decisions.

EDIT: Strange that last sentence made me feel a little prideful, but I think I like that. I mean, it feels strange to say "I'm making my own decision" and really, REALLY mean it. Not like when you said you were 'making your own decision' not to celebrate a birthday. Or to tell your school counselor it was 'your own decision' not to pursue college courses when they know damn well you'd excel at them.

33

Did Bradbury deserve the gold?

by Princess in

jw
friends

did steven bradbury deserve the gold?

was he really the fastest?

the silver medal winner was from seattle.

Xander

"set up us", actually. Crap, you got me Guilty as charged

EDIT: After all, "you have no chance to survive make your time"

17

Wasted life as a JW?....Be Optimistic!

by ISP in

jw
friends

its not too late to learn or be educated or retrained etc!

its easy for me to say i guess...but it cannot be anymore.

times have definitely changed.. in the uk most folks planned on retiring at 60..possibly 55. it was important to get ahead while in your early 20s and hope to be coining it in your 30s, 40s.

Xander

I'd forward that this is not as easy at is sounds, but a worthy task.

I'm going to school full time, and working full time. And, I have a house to take care of and wife. It's hard, and I'm pissed at the (b)org for not letting me go to college sooner, when I could have done it with a large scholarship (yup, one of those - course, I didn't have a full ride to a state college like my wife had to turn down, but it still sucks). However, I'll get by, and hopefully will have some good career opportunities in the future.

33

Did Bradbury deserve the gold?

by Princess in

jw
friends

did steven bradbury deserve the gold?

was he really the fastest?

the silver medal winner was from seattle.

Xander

"a cunning, intentional, ozzie ploy to snatch victory. Inspired thinking."

*snork*. Damnit, yeah, I forgot about those psychis Ozzies. Of *course* he stayed behind because he could see the accident before it happened. Of course, like the JWs, he couldn't see *exactly* when it would be - just 'soon', so he had to stay WAY THE HELL back to avoid it.

How silly of me to doubt him, I stand corrected . Bradbury deserved the gold.

10

Newbies: what your future may be.

by refiners fire in

jw
friends

i been out of the org a full 20 years.. what progress have i made?.

well, im not angry anymore at the org.i dont even hate the gb.

i learnt a lot from reading all those old watchtowers about mind control.

Xander

Originally posted by:refiners fire

Now, see, I never said live an 'ordinary existence'. I'd argue, actually, that no existence is ordinary. I mean, look at what can be done - where you can go!

I think a lot of the worlds' problems would be solved if people just traveled more. I mean, how can you hate a world that has Virginia's Eastern Shore? Or the Smoky Mountains? Or the entire friggin state of Oregon for that matter? And that's just in the US alone.

No, now that I can get out and actually *experience* it - no restrictions - this is a pretty marvelous world we're in. Not just the land, mind you, but the people. People are *amazing*. (I hope this isn't tainted too much by my beliefs - happily pagan now, the planet, it's people, and human society turns out to be a wonderful/magical/exciting place to be every day!)

I just get pissed off from time to time that the organization I grew up in was preventing me from seeing this world as anything other than a potential cinder (to be rebuilt, of course, by God fearing people who never had a moment of fun in their entire @^#!@*&*&@$ - gah, nevermind, getting OT.....)

33

Did Bradbury deserve the gold?

by Princess in

jw
friends

did steven bradbury deserve the gold?

was he really the fastest?

the silver medal winner was from seattle.

Xander

Well, what does the medal show?

He *was* the first to finish the race, he gets the gold.

And, to be fair, the silver medalist was interviewed later and seemed happy with his medal. (And he's either a REALLY good actor - most Olympians aren't, and you can tell when they are disappointed - or he actually was REALLY perfectly happy with Silver)

Now, Bradbury has to be fully aware the only reason he got the gold is because he was so far behind, he missed the accident, and that will probably bug him forever (it'd bug me - but then, if I had been one of the Russian gold medalists in the pairs event, I'd ask for the silver instead of the gold).

10

Newbies: what your future may be.

by refiners fire in

jw
friends

i been out of the org a full 20 years.. what progress have i made?.

well, im not angry anymore at the org.i dont even hate the gb.

i learnt a lot from reading all those old watchtowers about mind control.

Xander

I guess the question is...

what would the alternative have been?

It seems you'd pretty much be in the same position, but with a proxy to blame everything on (that mean ol' nasty debil hisself).

Is that really better?

Perhaps I lucked out and left early (well, after 21 years or so, but hey, it could have been worse), but it seems that there is a lot more opportunity to participate in LIVING now.

Haven't registered to vote yet, but plan on. Not that I'm big into national politics, but local politics fascinate me. There was a school project once (Gov class) where we had to go to local city council meetings and take notes. I *LOVED* this. I want to be a part of that, and now...guess what...I *can*.

Birthday parties, ehh? Yessiree, parties for me - now that I know associating with 'wordlings' won't make my eyes fall out or something. Sure I'll take that Christmas bonus. And games, too - this summer, I'll be running out to my local Best Buy and picking up Doom 3. And I won't worry about 'stumbling' someone.

And, how about that Buffy? Or R-rated movies? Tell you what, Matrix *ROCKED*. And 'Le Pact De Lupus'? Yup - looking good. How about that 'Queen of the Damned'?

And how about all that nasty, kinky sex? Couldn't do that while in the (b)org - okay now

And, you know what is best...

When someone lies to me now, I can call them on it. I don't belong to an organization any more that requires me to accept what I'm told and not question things. I look things up. I take nothing for granted, and when I'm right, it makes me feel good, instead of feeling betrayed. And when I'm wrong, it *still* makes me feel good that I've underestimated someone.

Yeah, I am still bitter at the organization that took the best years of my youth [>:(] (I'm sure in further posts here, I'll vent quite a bit), but I still have the rest of my life, and I'll be damned if I let a cult take it from me again.

14

Why are people so determined to be miserable?

by Sunchild in

jw
friends

as i was reading through a few of yk's words of wisdom, i found myself wondering about that very question.

how often have you heard these statements given by christians in particular (and sorry to pick on you guys, but it's the easiest example):.

"when i get to heaven....".

Xander

It's called asceticism, and is very common in fundy religions.

Basically, the thought process that the more extreme your self-denial, the holier you are.

My family was like this - even outside of being JWs, they always found something to be miserable about, whatever was happening. (Gee, wonder why my parents marriage didn't work out.....hmmmmm......no, huge fights and pouting matches on a continuous basis can't possibly be it - must be Satan! Look, how holy are we that Satan himself is testing us!)

24

The Shower Test

by closer2fine in

jw
friends

the shower test .

your best partner in life will be those who chose a) chest and e) privates.

your best partner in life will be those who chose b) face and d) hair.

Xander

Is there really this much variety?

I mean, I wash my hair first because, well, when I get in the shower, it gets wet first.

Who the hell washes their ARMPITS first?! Shoulders?!?! Face I can see, maybe, but c'mon, there can't be that much variety....

67

Spirits/Entities - A question for all.

by Nemesis in

i would like to ask a question if i might: how do ones here view spirits?

(not the alcoholic kind) i have left the org.

now for at least 5 years, although i did go to the memorial last year, but not where i used to go to the hall; i was not df or da.. .

Xander

1) Yes, the doctors are a good idea. They might be able to help

2) If they don't, I'd go find a witch (or Shaman, if you have Native Americans who offer their assistance in such matters handy). They can usually help with this kind of thing.