2014 was the year that Aurora Borealis gave some Canadians and Americans the first celestial light show of their lives.
It was the year we rode out a press-fueled Ebola scare.
And day-yum, in 2014, we had one of the best crops of strawberries in years!
t
all of the wts tactics and procedures are based off of your most basic mlm (multi-level marketing) schemes.
take your pick of amway, or any of the other vitamin or financial mlm's.
they all work the exact same way.
A lot of JWS are (or at least were) into MLM schemes, and some exJWs as well.
The WTS is changing its business model, it seems, because MLM is no longer as successful as it once was - people can't afford the 'front load' anymore, as is well-demonstrated by that link, Julia Orwell.
(Friggin' fascinating, blog, btw! I have my own Mary Kay story to tell and lol, I got them GOOD. Why did she insist on recruiting a CMA student? drrr! She would not let me *just* be a client. I bought enough product at about 40%, to supply myself and friends for a couple of years, and make back my investment *plus*. I sold at parties for 2 months and doubled my front load, then quit. Those sales meetings were crAzAY! There was no religion, of course (we are a more secular culture), but other than that, yup, the Pink Truth is spot on as my experience, too! Anyhoo, I left with a few hundred bucks in my pocket, enough product to last me years, and most importantly, the last laugh! That was 1986.)
Back to the OP. It willl be interesting to see 'how the worm turns'. The WTS is busily buying and selling, building and developing real estate, and focusing even more on donations. Field service is being replaced by Info Carts and the new re-brasnding of JW.org is coming along quite nicely. It's accepted and LOVED by the sheeple. I also found one of the quotes from a recent Watchtower (TM) suggested to *me* that they may be leaning towards instituting tithing. There was a particular emphasis on those who make more $$$, giving more $$$. hmmm. Random thoughts.
t
JWdaughter - yes, I got one at a yard sale, what a mess! But they clean up very nicely. Have been on a 'use cast iron' campaign all my life. ;P THe Lodge stuff is quite pricey, indeed. I am always on the lookout for one, though, at the thrift store and such.
My Lodge cast iron skillets, naturally non-stick.
I can make beautiful pan-seared just about anything: fish, steak, you name it!
Even scrambled eggs turn out wonderfully and you don't have to worry about all the toxic crap from teflon.
Oubliette - That's all I use - mine are ancient skillets, and I have several sizes (they are so heavy, but that's okay). But I would LOVE to get ahold of one of the Lodge Dutch ovens!
tal
i would like your thoughts, please..
Everyone has their back story, and I really do feel that going to a memorial service, where *every single person, blood and otherwise* has shunned me since I was 20 years old, would be letting them re-offend me with their abuse. The last time, my grandfather's (maternal), it took me months to recover. And that wasn't in a KH, it was just the visitation at the funeral home. I was the ONLY ONE who visited Grampy at least 5 days a week in the nursing home. But I learned that night, to do my grieving alone.
Also, some parents don't deserve respect. Don't forget how many of us were sexually abused, and nothing was done. We have parents, parents who either knew, covered it up, or participated, so don't judge anyone if you have not walked a mile in his or her shoes.
I encourage anyone who is an Adult Survivor, either male or female, to search old content/threads for people's stories, and some really healing discussions. :))
So when y'all say 'of course', it makes me cringe. There is no 'of course' or so-called 'normal' behaviour in cults.
peace and love
**Edit: Grampy wasn't a JW, he liked Herbert W. Armstrong and the WWCOG, but he wanted to have a JW memorial service. He believed they had 'the Truth', but wouldn't give up tobacco. I miss you, Grampy!
during one of those meetings that took place before my jc, one of the elders, who was a good friend of mine back then and used to come up with a few outlandish personal views about some teachings, attempted to counter one of my arguments like this:.
eden - "well, if the truth doesn't change, why is it that what we teach as 'truth' has changed over the years (several examples given)?
how can we dogmatically claim at any given moment that we have 'the truth' if our teachings keep changing?".
Sounds like Circular Reasoning (or circular logic).
Jehovah is omniscient, infallible, etc.
Therefore, the present truth from Jehovah is always the truth.
from Wiki, a definition:
My Blundstones, and the Motorola T720.
.
.
This little gem lasted almost 5 years, and was dropped countless times. One day, the hinge just fell apart in my hand. No wonder Motorola went out of business - they didn't make good use of the concept of 'planned obsolescence'.
;p
edit: I hate that the company name becomes a link? I did not do that.
who can forget the opening credit to the wonder years.. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ob59hsrafu.
.
That album, Hortensia, "Les Mad Dogs, Les Englishmen, and Joe Cocker!" I always loved his version of She Came In Through the Bathroom Window on that.
i don't think i've started but one or two threads before.
i find myself sitting here listening to beautiful instrumental christmas music and feeling down.. you see, i was "in" for over thirty years.
thirty years with no christmas.
You're a good mom, and I am sure your parents would be proud. That was very moving, your daughter's JC brought back a lot of memories (but she has parents who really DO love her), and smiling through a bit of mist here. Missing the mom I never had (hey we are never too old for that), and thank you for sharing and being inclusive. xo
i would like your thoughts, please..
No. I am not welcome at joyful celebrations, so I refuse to attend their 30-minute memorial infomercials.
