Something I wrote some years ago, 2001?2002?, found and wish to share.
(it’s part of my Autobiography)
Shortly after I had returned home from rehab in a wheelchair I discovered the Society for Creative Anachronism. About one and a half blocks from my house was the local community theater, which my mother had season tickets for. The theater sat on the north side of a park, and my mother had to walk past the park to get home. One Sunday, after an afternoon matinee, she was coming home and saw a group of people at the park ‘fighting’ like they were knights, so she went over to ask about them. They told her the basics, and then asked if she would be interested, my mother said she wasn’t personally interested, but that her son, me, would be. When she got home she told me about the group in the park, so I high tailed it over there. I was immediately met by pleasant and warm people, they answered my questions, and in short, hooked me into joining a group that I have joyfully stuck with for over 30 years now.
About the same time, I was becoming more and more deeply involved in the history re-creation group called the SCA for short. I joined a club of CB owners that monitored channel nine, reserved by the FCC for emergencies only. I logged in many hours, and from time to time was actually a help to people in need of assistance. I became a local ‘celebrity’ not just for my dancing, but also because I was interviewed for the local paper concerning being disabled, and still be productive. I got CPR certified from a chair, I was quoted on the purpose of the disabled club on the college campus, and even used in an ad for the local rehab center. Apparently, I wasn’t one to just sit still and let life go by, or let others fight for my rights, I was an active part of the changes around me that not only benefited me, but many others to follow. But, this too had to come to an end. I was so active, helping others, so busy ‘living’ I was neglecting my own health and this eventually lead to me loosing a leg, and becoming bed bound for over a decade. This status of being ‘forced’ to slow down wasn’t a bad thing, it was just hard to go from a very socially and physically active life style to a sedentary life, laying in bed day after day, month after month. This consequence of my active life caused me to quickly begin to feel I was going to go crazy, so I began to inquire about being able to connect to the internet. Up till then I had run a small, but popular, Bulletin Board System, or BBS, that I ran off my Commodore computer. A computer that many ‘IBM types’ looked down on as a ‘game machine’. But, after seeing I was able to do many things with an ‘inferior machine’ they accepted me. about 15 days after being on bed bound status I began making calls around to the local ISPs in town, but they all insisted that I could not get on the internet, but they’d be more then happy to sell me a computer for $2,000-3,000 that could! Finally, I looked in the phone book’s white business pages and found an ISP that was based in Oklahoma City, but had local numbers over five states. I explained my dilemma, almost sure by now that the internet was out of my reach, but the tech was friendly, and was able to forget that I was using a OS he was unfamiliar with, and we talked ‘basic programming’ abilities that all computers understand, and it was decided that I had a good chance of getting a Commodore on the internet, a, so far, unheard of task. He gave me a user ID and password and I attempted to log in to the internet, and I did, with flying colors!. I had two phone lines, so I let the guy know that I could connect, and although I was limited to text only, unable to do the ‘precious’ ANSI, I was still able to connect and do email, IRC chat, and ‘gopher’ which was basically text only access to any college on the nets, and their computerized library. This amounted to being able to read books without having to check them out. I soon found a niche in the IRC world, able to program scripts to protect myself from hackers and jerks. I soon was known for being immune to two very serious, at the time, problems that all PC and Mac’s seemed to suffer from. One is viruses, Commodore’s are immune to a virus, even though we COULD write them and pass then onto IBM’s and crash their systems. I never wrote a harmful program, feeling there was no reason to use my scripting skills to harm others, when I studied scripting to protect myself from the same harm. The second thing that became very obvious was that a hacker’s favorite trick was to ‘flood’ a channel with garbage, knock everyone off, and ‘take over’ that chat. It seems my system was ‘too stupid’ to be flooded, so I became a valuable asset to chat rooms, as I could hold the chat during any attack, and still be there when the regulars came back. It wasn’t long before I started looking towards other chats, no adult chat, not ‘local dating’ chats, but one dedicated to the SCA. I was awake a lot in the beginning, like I said I went from a very active life to a sedentary life, so I had 20 hour days at the keys. I spent a lot of that time between people dropping in to chat studying the commands available to me that would help make my chatting safer. Every time I entered a help chat I was tossed out because ‘you can’t get a commodore on the nets’, and if I could, I must be some kind of hacker, an evil person fooling them so I could take over their chats. Basically, rather then admit they had no answers to my problem, I was banished from help. So, I had to learn as much as I could on my own. I learned 2 things real quick, the terminology that PCs used, and something I knew years before, but now I saw evidence of it…all computers use a single common language, and other then some small difference in some of the wording, or ‘format/look’, any computer could be programmed to emulate any other. Something most should have realized by seeing how both Steve Jobs and Bill Gates rose to be such big people in the computer world. They ‘borrowed’ and ‘traded’ ideas and equipment showing that there was a universal language of all programming. 0 and 1, in various combinations.
I spent the following years managing a SCA dedicated chat, through good and bad, thick and thin, and always with the help of some very special people who had the same basic dream I did. A safe place on the internet to talk with others in the SCA, swap information, tales and history research, as well as our favorite recipes. Come on, you can’t talk about only history 24 hours a day, people have lives, don’t you know. That chat soon had a web page, an email list, forums, it just seemed to grow bigger with each passing year, and luckily for me, I had a great bunch of people that supported the different areas that were the ‘Silver Channel Chat’. Although we have had people who didn’t like the way things were run, or some of the rules of conduct, we have never seen anyone achieve the same level of popularity, or ‘meager-system’ that Silver Channel became. And, I think that this adversity, these differences in our concept of the chat is what made it what it was, a safe place to go to for chat with friends, old and new, a way to communicate with other people in other Kingdoms, so we’d have a better chance of finding a local group and friends when we moved from one part of the world to another. It’s the differences that make us the same, yet unique. I have a great pride in this chat and all that grew from it’s inception. But this is not a personal pride, it’s pride in the people who made it possible, a pride in the ideals of chivalry and honor, that I personally hold dear, that the people who chat here display. We are a group of varied cultures, historic interests, and personal ideas of right and wrong, meaning there is rarely a boring time in the chat, as long as we have a few people there willing to talk.
I just have to put my 5 cents in (inflation, ya know). My feelings on a Mosque at ground zero are: Let them do it! I admit I am an ‘intolerant Christian’, and do not agree with their beliefs, but they have the same rights, in the great country, to open a center of worship as any other religion. I feel the REAL problem is that we Americans have not and can not get to the people responsible for the deaths and destruction that occurred sept. 11th. And frustration over this fact, this inability for closure has some acting out and attacking the nearest thing they can find to the image of they ‘enemy’. Muslims are not evil, Islam is not our enemy. Yes, persons claiming Allah as their deity claim responsibility, does that make ALL followers of Allah ‘bad’? Are we so stupid as to repeat history? Did we not learn from the Japanese internment camps of the 40′s? One bad apple doesn’t HAVE to ruin the whole barrel.
I wish that our government had been able to catch and punish the persons responsible for the Sept. 11th tragedy, but the didn’t, and never will. This Mosque may even turn out to be the beginning of a healing we as a nation need. Get passed the skin tone, the clothing and cultural differences and grow to be a stronger nation.
Jay
I recently regained possession of my handicap van w/lift, and am on Craig’s and a local beep beep site to sell it. As soon as it’s sold, I pay of my oppressive masters and use the rest (if there is any left) to move back to USA, or that country south of the US border…Texas.
My goal is to be moved before Thanksgiving, in a small apartment of my own. I’ll share it with a bird or some fish, NO more humans! After I get things together, you know, dinning room set (all 6 plates et al), cook ware, and a decent expandable table, I plan to invite friends and family over at least once a month for a free meal.
I always enjoyed cooking, and cooking for 2+ is easier then just self all the time.
I may be moving farther from Pennsic, the opposite of my previous life-goal, But, God willing, I’ll return to Pennsic at least once more before I die. Like in 30 years or so…
I hate to admit I screwed up. I came to Ohio/Midrealm, my head full of hopes and dreams. I soon lost my #1 reason for living here, and soon after found I was unable to enjoy #2 reason (Pennsic) for purely financial, and health, reasons. I made ‘friends’ that used me up, tossed my aside when I could give (or take) no more. I*’ve burned out on having a roommate that is human. Humans being so flawed, and I, being regretably human, just do better alone. Living-space wise.
I have gone back to my original ‘self’ and am continuing my pursuit of theological studies to maybe become a preacher. In my research I discovered I am OK, ‘normal’ in that God has blessed some with the ability to live without a SO companion. And it appears I am one of the blessed. If I wasn’t so social, in need of people, I could have been a hermit. Living in a cave, or simple log cabin, dealing with people only when I had to for supplies or to barter/trade at the post every few months.
Yeah, Right!
Anyway, you see things are looking up, and will continue to improve as time goes on. I can’t say I’ll miss the people or places here, but I will miss being a 6 hour drive from Heave…er, Pennsic!
Why is it that people come into English speaking chats to complain about how bad America is? People from other countries love to bash America, and it makes me wonder:
Do they live in such a great land?
How many LEGAL immigrants cross their borders for free food, money, cheap housing, things that make their country look like paradise compared to the country they left?
Instead of complaining how bad WE are, why aren’t they bragging about the good/better things they have? Are they, overall, better off? or are they bitching out of jealousy? ‘Ignorant’ illegal immigrants come to America every day to take advantage of what we have. A welfare system so lax it accepts NON-residants and ignores tax paying native born. If the system took care of Americans and stopped giving free rides to immigrants (Illegal, of course), maybe we’d see have less people crossing borders and more Americas off the streets, homeless.
America’s BIGGEST problem, flaw, is we try to take care of others, and ignore our own. We are, after all, the land of opportunity, a land founded, developed and run by immigrants and children of immigrants. Why stop now? Who knows, in a generation or two, American congress will have so many minority members THEY can fix things for the people ‘back home’ to immigrate to? Wait a minutes, I think we already have that. And it’s not getting better…for native born, several generations established AMERICANS! Things are what they are. If you live in such a great country, open your borders so there is a flood of immigrants sneaking across your borders, applying for free welfare food and monies and cheap housing (yes I know, said cheap housing are slums, but STILL better then where they came from).
Part of the problem is all the jobs ‘no one else will do’ are filled by illegals. If these jobs HAVE to be done, and were allowed to be done by HOMELESS Americans, at a slightly higher cost granted, we’d have less homeless Americans, and also fewer illegals inhabiting our ‘slums’.
I guess I could rant for DAYS on this SMALL part of the issue, but the point is: If you have it so good, why are you complaining about how bad others may or may not have it? Tell us how great you have it, encourage tourism to your country, or better yet why not tell us HOW you live in Utopia so we can join the ranks of the privileged other counties that are so far superior to America. So we can, in turn, contribute more to helping poor, oppressed starving, politically alienated people who come to our shores for a better life, even in a slum, with 25+ people living in a small apartment.
I am going to TRY to earn enough money to stay on line and in supplies for my crafts to keep me sane until I find a way out of this place and into a place of my own again.
To that end, I have TRIED to utilize eBay to sell some of my crochet, only to lose money. I put up 10 items, mainly crocheted hats, only to discover that NO one even looked at the ads. The price I was asking was FAR below the going price, just $5 for the item(s) and $5 for shipping. SO … if anyone has any ideas, suggestions, telepathic messages to pass on to help me be a better salesman, PLEASE let me know.
Also to the end result of supporting myself, a mere $50 a month, I am going to start a new Topic/folder for the posts. A ‘Craft Showcase’ of sorts, I guess.
I am just going along when suddenly I read Horton hears a…WHOA!’ Wait, back, up here, Horton…hears…a…who, First off, this is major here, folks! Let me start off with the first two words…Horton and Hears, I had NO idea Horton COULD hear, I know, look at those ears, but I really didn’t have a clue he could hear. It’s a good thing I don’t have knees and that I was sitting down at the time, because I would have had those knees knocked out from under me other wise. This is a revelation in and of itself, Horton heard something. And, then he heard a WHO of all things! I mean, of all things to hear, a Who? How could such a thing happen? And on top of that to Horton?! He could have heard a what, a why, even a where, but he was blessed and actually heard a WHO! Again,that knees thing here, folks. Now, after letting this all sink, in, I then learn this is a movie made about the incident, and rightly so they should make a movie. This is an amazing thing people. And, are you sitting down? The movie is based on a BOOK! Oh, man! And you know what they say, the book, has got to be better then the movie. I don’t suggest you try this one on tape while driving, the reality of it would cause so many fatal accidents, I’m sure. Every ‘page’ a shock,every line a challenge to your concepts of reality.
And this is what woke me up this morning and gave me the desire to start my day, Horton Hears a Who.
As some may know already, the last day of March we had a break-in and theft of items here. Bad news, it was someone we trusted, a neighbor named Cindy Polston. good news they were caught on webcam and ‘turned themselves in’ to my mercy. Best news, I have no mercy for those that lie to me, steal from me, so after viewing the web video, I called the police and had her arrested. By the time we got everything straight, handed in copy of break-in and theft to cops, did the ‘picture line up’, everything, the suspect was on the run. Now normally, such an action is a misdemeanor even though she took narcotics. But, since she stole from a disabled person, it is a felony. Let’s hear it for the ADA protecting disabled and elderly. At first we [roomie and I] requested she be treated gently, as she still has 2 teens at home, and felt part of the problem was the father/husband has a history of drug use. After thinking thing over, and being told by the cops the suspect was well taken care of by family, she was VERY practiced at staying hidden from the law, ect, and that Cindy Polston only ‘turned herself in’ after being told [through family] that if she didn’t, she’d spotlighted on the local ‘most wanted/crime stoppers’. It was felt she didn’t want people to see what she looked like so she could continue to ‘con’ people into trusting her in the future.
Any ways, we got a subpoena today, but had been advised we did not have to show for the grand jury because of my unique health issues. The officers in charge would, with the video, easily be able to convince the jury there was more then good cause to charge Cindy Polston with breaking and entering, theft of narcotics. I mentioned to the Officer in charge that I noticed how Cindy wasn’t happy when faced with having her face and crime published, and had thought that before she ‘came in’, I might publish the video of her, to 1] help find her and 2] warn others of her ways. The officer said he was glad I had told him before doing anything. I have every legal right to have done so, and could not be charged with any crimes, legal or moral. But, to wait until the trial was over, and she is convicted before going forward with my plans to protect other potential victims. To do so before could cause an issue in the juries minds on punishment. At first, as I said, I was wanting to go easier on her for the kids, but this kind of thing, trouble with the law, wasn’t new to any of the family. I’d like her to finally get to pay for what she did, and could have been doing for a while. She likes to work in environments where she has access to drugs and disabled/elderly persons, having worked at nursing homes in the past, always ‘asked to leave’ for unknown or unspoken reasons. I can’t just sit back and be too ashamed I was tricked like some child, and I can not face myself if I let her continue to do these things to more people. She may very well do just that, and the people she abuses next time may not have access to the nets, or just never looked at or heard of the video, but than again, there’s always that chance they do and do, or a friend tells them because they ran across it accidentally, and avoid the problems my roomie and I went through for three months before we caught her red handed.
The video will come out soon enough after the conviction, maybe before her release from custody, if there is any time [I'm told, 1st offense and all, it'll be very light], so be looking for it, and remember, that cheap lil web cam and a freebie motion detector program can saver you money, drugs, sanity, lives
Since He DOES hear you when you call on His name. NO matter what, why or how: If God had a cell and prayers were text messages,
His days would be filled reading a lot like this:
Dear God, forgive me, she made me go it
OH God, OH God, HARDER! OH God
Can you make if big, God? I mean really thick and veiny?
God are you there? it’s me, Murrey
God thank you for this food we are abou…it that kale? %@*$ you!
Oh, God, now where do I hide the body?
OH Jesus! I’m horny!
Yo, God, where’s that monster truck I asked for?
OK, God, maybe not ‘veiny’, but thick still works for me
God, why did you kill my puppy? Thanks, I was getting bored of it anyway
God, why am I such a nerd?
and the ever popular damn series
damn it (why would he do that to a chair?)
damn you (OK, He DID say you have that power to condemn or save, but indiscriminately, and over a roll of dice, or flip of a card, or forgetting to use a turn signal?)
Remembering that the ‘You’ is implied, and the ‘you’ is God, as is “God, could you please take the time to get out the big book of life and death and write this guy’s/woman’s/car’s/dog’s name in the bad side?”
Of course, if you said ALL those words, being polite and grammaricly correct, you may realize just how stupid you are to think God would condemn any one or thing just because they pissed little old you off!
Would you waste your time answering most of these ‘calls’? Would you even look at ‘that guy’s text’ after a few hundred ‘bad numbers/calls’?
See what I’m talking about? It’s not some innocent wording, He takes you serious everytime you call, and you expect Him to ‘pick up’ every time you called for help. How does He know when ou are asking, thanking, or just being mindlessly irreverently saying a name just for effect? Name dropping isn’t looked to highly upon, and dropping His name in an irreverent way is looked ever less highly upon.
Don’t you think about what you say? Do random words, phrases and Bull Sh*T fall out of your mouth like useless trash to the point that people have stopped listening to you?
And, of course, for the non-believer, you may not believe in God, but He believes in you. You may not look to God for anything, but He’s watching everything you do and say. That’s not to mean ‘behave and don’t do wrong’, just play nice, and thank God when others play nice right back.
Rev. Ulfie BST
(go ahead, make fun of being a B.S.T.)
This is not something you can avoid by deciding not to get Sondra angry. You have no choice and no control. She’ll get angry all by herself, and if you just happen to be standing in the middle of her road, you get the full fall-out.
My roomie can just stand there yelling at me, calling me names, for no apparent reason. If she finally sees how forlorn I am, and if I haven’t apologized for anything out of abject fear or actual guilt, she’ll say, “I’m not mad at you.”
“Well, you’re yelling at me.”
Now she’s mad at me. “This is not yelling. Why do you always think it’s about you?”
“Like I said, you’re yelling at me.”
It doesn’t take much added volumn for a quiet talker to be ‘yelling’, just because it can’t be heard after so many yards away, doesn’t mean it’s not yelling. It’s a matter of loudness compared to regular levels/tones of voice.
“Why is it always you?” And now she’s pissed off at me.
Sondra always thinks she’s right, and I let her think so for the most part, no arm no foul for most things. Sondra thinks I think I’m always right. You hear this all the time. But Sondra really thinks she’s right. Oddly enough, Sondra does have a calmness about her that suggests that she really does know something I don’t. I’m not a total loss, but Sondra is so completely confident in areas I’m not, like the social graces. I just avoid all that stuff and concentrate on computers, and others things I know she doesn’t understand as well as I do. Sondra acts aloof from this typical stuff because it frightens her.
And then she needs me around.
Honestly, I get angry always being in the wrong. Worse, I hate it when I realize that Sondra has somehow convinced me of this. It’s a very short and dangerous trip to the land of no self-esteem. Once upon a time Sondra could have told me potatoes grow on trees and I would have believed her or at least let her think I did. I honestly didn’t care one way or the other her opinion on potatos..
What is it with Sondra trying to emasculate me? Is it all just Sondra, or just the ones over a certain age? It always starts with small things: how stupid I am, or demeaning my clothes.
“I can’t believe you’re going to wear that, I can’t believe you’re going to eat that,” It’s always something I’ve done.
She will bitch and complain about having to do some task, so I’ll do it, and then she’ll complain about how I did it or that I’m doing something for myself that has no relation to her.
These compulsions are really about a her desire to control something.
Me, being a empty-headed, forgetful jerk is all related to our lack of concentration.
“Gosh, I just wasn’t thinking. I totally forgot. I didn’t mean to forget X-Y-Z. That was not my intent.”
“Well, what the hell was your intent?”
Sure, Sondra expects me to think all of the time, to rememer evertythink I nee for myself and help her remember her stuff too, but who could? It takes a lot of energy that would be better spent trying to find the latest thing she somehow misplaced.
Here’s what also gets under my skin. If I am such thoughtless jerk, what is Sondra? It seems to me Sondra gets off the hook all the time. My friend’s apologies are much quicker than mine. Maybe it’s because she’s so used to being right. I don’t think I am wrong more than Sondra. I just take the
blame more than Sondra.
I’ve never gotten over being shocked that someone as physically small as my roomie can make me so angry–and get me to believe it’s all my fault. I’m the one who’s always getting punished.
When I’m working on te computer and get stuck for a few minutes thnking about things, she’ll, in all inoccence, tell me how to do it right.
I have no idea why I listen to her when I already know whate I’m doing. If she had been fixing the computer and I’d told her the same thing, she would have jumped me. When she screws up, she just says, “Aw, well, this was stupid,” and then just moves on.
I go, “Hey! Hey!” I wait for these moments. When she’s finally wrong, fm ready to bring up all the other times that she accused me of doing the same stupid thing and how I had to humiliate myself begging for her forgiveness.
But she won’t cop to anything.
The only time I get an apology is when she’s made the same type of mistake I have, close enough to when I did it, so there’s no way she can say, with a straight face, that she doesn’t remember. Although, she has tried. But, all said, I deal with it the best I can, because I do love her, she is the best and closest friend I have right now. And I know she loves me. Why else would we still be living under the same roof? When things and times are darkest, who else has an easy hug and a simple, sincere ‘I love you’?
I, like most others, can do with a little extra income. So I sign up to get paid pennies to read an e-mail, maybe a dollar or two to take a survey. I don’t make all that much, but it’s something. When I ask others to check it out it isn’t because I am getting rich quick, but because it only takes a little time, and even at 1 cent a day, if you do it every day, one day you have something to get something special. I am not asking you to sign up because I think you need the money, but for a rather selfish reason, I get a referral fee for every person that signs up under my referral. If you don’t want to waste your time with the emails and spam, then just sign up, confirm, wait a day or two and unsubscribe. I get a few extra much needed bucks, and you helped a friend. How hard was that?
So if you see me ‘advertise’ something I am doing, please support me? Check the list of sites on the right, click, join, confirm, unsubscribe oif it’s not for you, and know you helped someone.
for many years I had spent as much as 14 months in the hospital, averaging 6
months a year. This was before I had the internet, and I spent the majority
of my hospital time sleeping, and later working out on weights, getting in
shape for re-entering ‘the world’. As a consequence, I have had a lot of
time to think, to question, and to ponder the human race, where we are (in a
world view, as well as national view), what our cultural differences say
about us. To help me understand ‘where we come from’ as a species, what has
brought us to the point we are at now in history, I looked back in time,
researching history. Seeing where human kind first came up with ‘rules of
conduct’ and later, laws for a country. When it was just a single family,
the parents set down rules for their children for their safety. When parents
became elderly grandparents, they passed on their wisdom to the children at
the ‘home fires’ while the parents were out hunting, gathering, and securing
necessities. A written language was not known yet, so the stories and tales
around the fire was their history books, the memories and wisdom of the
grandparent.
Later, as the world population grew, and other families might move into an
area where a family already had settled, because of plenty of good flora
and fauna, there began ‘community rules’ to insure the safety of all, and
equality for all, thus sharing the resources, responsibilities, and gained
the benefits of group cooperation, so the men of a family didn’t always
have to be hunting, but could remain home in the event of illness or injury,
without endangering the family unit by not being able to provide the
‘daily bread’. Man was, and is, both a solitary animal, and a social animal,
we do many good things in small groups, but the larger the group, the more
negative things happen, criminals arise, some out of laziness, others out
of desperation (Think Les miserable). So larger groups on humans require
more rules and laws, defining things a bit clearer, or adding a new law as
a new form of crime is discovered to ‘loop hole’ the justice system.
In our lives, we have seen the need to set a rating system on movies shown
at theaters, them these ratings have been applied to music, then TV shows,
now there is talk of applying the same rules/ratings to Web Pages. Is the
next step chat rooms? Do we need to go that far? Do we hang a sign on our
front doors warning people that no one under 17 should enter without a
parent or guardian because of the topics and words used?
I don’t think that just because TV networks are allowing more things, just
because they can set a rating to warn people that they allow foul language,
and just for higher ratings, which equates to more money, that the rest of
us should lower our standards. Besides, when was the last time someone
came up to me and offered to pay me $$ for advertising for them, or
‘lobbied’ for foul language by slipping a few large bills in my pocket,
in hopes I would lower my standards, sell out? I do not and will not
compromise my honor for a few bucks. Or even for a lot of bucks. When this
chat was started it was based on #1 the S.C.A., #2 a safe place to come and
chat about common interests without having to see foul language, or put up
with someone coming into channel just to offend others, or looking for a
‘date’. And when we allow people to freely cuss and be offensive, we loose
sight of why we came to love this place and return to it often to chat with
our friends in a safe and friendly environment.
This is a time in our nation’s history when we are being told Global Warming is mainly our fault, and that the cost of fuels for our cars is not going to do down significantly ever again. Yet we pay out so much money for times and events that waste gas and time. Of all the sports I have seen and heard of one seems to be aimed at wasting gas with the least benefit. I am speaking of auto racing, everything from NASCAR and stock car to dragging and go-carts. I am sure that car manufacturers will argue, as they use these races as testing grounds for newer engine designs and such, but it being the most cost effective to them doesn’t mean it’s less wasteful when it comes to fuel.
I propose that all true Americans should not go to these races and events, and by a system that I have yet to figure out, boycott companies that sponsor these cars and events. We can not boycott them all at once unless your bumper-stickers say things like “Be American, Buy UNamerican”, and other such unrealistic things. I don’t care if you believe in global warming or not, I’m not sure what to believe on that myself. But I do believe in cheaper gas and being less wasteful. If we Americans use less gas, and American being the world’s largest consumers of gas, the prices could go down significantly, and STAY down. Unless, of course, OPEC doesn’t lower the amount of oil allowed to be produced, in an effort to keep the prices up.
Die-hard NASCAR fan or not, what is more important? Entertainment as thought provoking as watching paint dry, or cleaner air and bigger bank balances? You decide whether you really want to go green, or just talk the talk? This IS something we can ALL do with no effort or pain or loss of time.
The dead walk among us. Zombies, ghouls—no matter what their label—these somnambulists are the greatest threat to humanity, other than humanity itself. To call them predators and us prey would be inaccurate. They are a plague, and the human race their host. The lucky victims are devoured, their bones scraped clean, their flesh consumed. Those not so fortunate join the ranks of their attackers, transformed into putrid, carnivorous monsters. Conventional warfare is useless against these creatures, as is conventional thought. The science of ending life, developed and perfected since the beginning of our existence, cannot protect us from an enemy that has no “life” to end. Does this mean the living dead are invincible? No. Can these creatures be stopped? Yes. Ignorance is the undead’s strongest ally,
knowledge their deadliest enemy. That is why this book was written: to provide the knowledge necessary for survival against these subhuman beasts.
Survival is the key word to remember—not victory, not conquest, just survival. This book will not teach you to become a professional zombie hunter. Anyone wishing to devote their life to such a profession must seek training elsewhere. This book was not written for the police, military, or any government agency. These organizations, if they choose to recognize and prepare for the threat, will have access to resources far beyond those of private citizens. It is for them that this survival guide was written—private citizens, people with limited time and resources who nonetheless have refused to be victimized.
Naturally, many other skills—wilderness survival, leadership, even basic first aid—will be necessary in any encounter with the living dead. These were not included in this work, as they can be found in conventional texts. Common sense will dictate what else should be studied to complement this manual. Subsequently, all subjects not directly related to the living dead have been omitted.
From this book, you will learn to recognize yourenemy, to choose the right weapons, about killing techniques, and about preparation and improvisation when on the defense, on the run, or on the attack. It will also discuss the possibility of a doomsday scenario, in which the living dead have replaced humanity as the planet’s dominant species.
Do not discount any section of this book as hypothetical drama. Every ounce of knowledge was accumulated by hard-won research and experience. Historical data, laboratory experiments, field research, and eyewitness accounts (including those of the author) have all served to create this work. Even the doomsday scenario is an extrapolation of true-life events. Many actual occurrences are chronicled in the chapter of recorded outbreaks. Studying them will prove that every lesson in this book is rooted in historical fact.
That said, knowledge is only part of the fight for survival. The rest must come from you. Personal choice, the will to live, must be paramount when the dead begin to rise. Without it, nothing will protect you. On the last page of this book, ask yourself one question: What will you do—end your existence in passive acceptance, or stand up and shout, “I will not be their victim! I will survive!” The choice is yours.
When I was born I spoke baby talk, a language that we all know and understand, a universal language that even transcends countries. But miraculously at 24 months of age, we forget this language and begin to pick up the language of our parents and culture. If we are lucky, we grow up in a bilingual or multilingual family.
Anyway, I have endeavored to learn a bit of each language, just for fun, never learned enough to get my face slapped though. Currently I am working on Danish and Canadian. But, my proudest accomplishment in language study are the two ancient and nearly dead languages of Subtle and Hint. Subtle is the older of the two, and Hint derives from it, and although a more accurate language, it still has a vagueness that links it directly to Subtle, and can be understood by people who know Subtle. But, there aren’t many people who speak these two languages, so at times people never understand me when I speak to them. I have found that most people prefer the two more modern languages of Blunt and Todapoint. Now, Todapoint is a very clear, concise and easy to understand language, it lacks the offensiveness that comes with the usage of Insult and Foul that Blunt includes. And, it seems there are way too many who speak Blunt more then any other language, thinking that the usage of Insult, Foul and Offense makes them memorable, but at the same time they lack the understanding that it also makes one unlikable.
Now Polite is one of the languages that evolved from Subtle and Hint, and has served the human race well as Polite and Diplomacy have kept people memorable, and well liked, even loved in some instances, by both their countrymen and other culture’s countrymen. It’s really an easy language to learn, but can be hard to remember in times of stress, or when confronted by a crowd attacking you with Blunt, Insult and Foul. Sometimes a deep study of Diplomacy is the only way to avoid being provoked by the Foul and Insult speakers. Being a Polite speaker isn’t always enough. Learning Diplomacy includes some martial art and yoga type meditations to help focus on the issue at hand, and makes it easier to remain speaking Polite in the face of the very Foul and Extremely Insulting speakers.
I have studied both Polite and Diplomacy, and have even gotten a degree in these studies to the level that I can teach it, along with Subtle and Hint, although, Subtle and Hint are not easy to teach, as it takes a mind-set far removed from modern lifestyles, and therefore a totally foreign concept to some of the younger generations. But, do not give up hope, for in time, even the Blunt speaker has a chance of becoming a Polite speaker given time, and will power to avoid the usage of Foul and Insult. Like any other bad habit, you just got to want to learn, change, and be a better person.
I have ranted at times, typed an article while consumed by the flamed passion of my beliefs, filled with a desire, be it anger or joy, to express something that weighs heavy on me. Some times these times are inspired by the news, some times by a person or persons’ words that give me a fill of emotions and ideas. I don’t sit in front of my keys trying to find a pleasant way to express my feelings so as to avoid hurting anyone. Many times the only people that are offended or hurt by my words are because they feel bad or guilty because they see themselves depicted in my words as the ‘negative’ character. I have had problems being ‘bashed’ by people who refer to historic times and events that are 100 or even 1000 years ago, and saying because group A did bad things to group B, that means all of modern group A deserve to have bad things done to them by modern Group B. Not only is that childish, but if you KNOW what history says about the times, you know it was wrong, even if you yourself have never felt personally attacked, you know better then to attack all of Group A today. I see that as not only worse then the historic group A, but hypocritical of them to say they were and are innocently persecuted and in the same breath attack and persecute people in Group A. Now, to get a few things straight, if you are Pagan, Wiccan, a Witch, you need to confine your hatred to the only belief system that was there in the beginning, but also has changed very little in it’s long life.
Also, realize that when you say you belong to a special belief system, you can expect to hear about some bad examples of your professed group, as we all have extremists in our groups. If I am expected to take the brunt of your anger at a couple of closed minded jerks that verbally threatened you last week, then you should in kind be willing to take the brunt of my anger because another person CLAIMING to be of your group/system was threatening me. Enlightened people look at the idiot before them and walk away, knowing in their hearts they are following their beliefs of non violence and nothing said to such a person will ever change their opinion. Verbal or physical, violence is violence. Abuse doesn’t have to be physical and leave bruises, but also the emotional and intellectual that leaves scars that never heal, and never show. I get upset at the extremists, and I try to make it clear that it is the extreme left or right wing factions that I am speaking of. If you read any of my articles and don’t think I made it clear, try to remember that just because I have a problem with your neighbor, it doesn’t mean I am going to set fire to all the houses on your block.
I find being upset at a group takes a lot of energy, it tears at my beliefs of love and non-violence. But, if I use a single shot weapon instead of a machine gun, or ‘area’ bomb, I can more easily ‘kill’ the bad ones, and not have to sacrifice everyone around them. Like a surgeon using a laser to remove a cancer without destroying major parts of the body by focusing his bean to a pin point instead of a #2 pencil. My targets are the small minority within every group that makes the rest of the group look bad. I can not hurt an innocent person, I have no power to offend someone that doesn’t fit the ‘profile’ I am describing. And, yes, I am guilty of a flaw, but it comes from repeated encounters with a certain phrase used by some people, but, I do not instantly pounce them until I am sure they are the type I try to avoid. I am speaking of the people who claim ‘non-believers’ (any belief) are not open minded, but when asked to listen open minded, they can’t. The hypocrites that are in every group, the minority, the ‘One Percenters’ that make all the news headlines and top story on the TV news. I have had a pagan friend that Christian bashed in front of me all the time, and he never knew I was a Christian…because, according to him, I didn’t act or talk like the stereo-type he bashed, but that he thought I was of his faith because I was a good person, what he claimed everyone in his pagan group were like. I just didn’t fit his prejudiced views of Christian, I fit the ideals of his belief system. He never stopped to think about the times a radical pagan group did a terrible crime in the name of their beliefs, using the same names he claimed to follow.
I don’t document the groups that sacrificed people in their ‘holiest of days’ or how they burned criminals, and say that is just cause to insult modern pagans because if they are true to their beliefs, they ‘must do it too’. All our religions have changed over time, the criminal is no longer burned in the fall, blood sacrifices are no longer made, even in some orthodox Jewish communities. Times change, the ‘rules’ change. It was once thought that witches could curse a person, or their cow, and Christians could buy their way into heaven. But neither is true any more. The only people that still believe these things are few, and they are idiots. If you are attacked because you proclaim your faith, then you should feel lucky, and I say ‘welcome to the world of the Christian’, we are all persecuted for our faith, by one person or another, and most times, we are BOTH attacked by the same person, as they are closed minded, narrow minded, and outside their very small circle of friends, no one is going to Heaven. Yeah right. So you see, you are not the only victims, everyone outside a small minded group are the victims. But, I follow my belief system and do not argue with them, such people are incapable of independent thought, therefore unable to learn something new. I do not get angry at them, although I WILL type about this group and let people know to be on the watch, and remember they do NOT represent anyone but themselves, their own selfish needs.
Now, I know I have used the word Christian, with out a capital C, but that is because it is a general word for a very large group of people of many varied opinions/denominations. I do not consider myself ‘Christian’ as the word/group has a bad rep in many ways. I do not claim a denomination anymore, although I was raised in a denominational church. That was simply my foundation, from which I have built my own personal beliefs in a deity and a Faith. Again I will say this: a Religion is rituals and routines that we do on special days or times of the year to help remind us of what our faith is about, whereas Faith is a lifestyle that we live 24/7, publicly, and privately. I am a person who tries very hard to follow the rules of God, and the teachings of Jesus Christ. But, I am not a Christian. My faith is based on the same central concept as yours…to do no harm, to love one another. We do not have the right to judge another person just by the color of their skin, way of dress, or holy symbol they wear. We can, however, make a decision on individuals that open their mouths and spew out garbage, and claim it is all in the name of some deity. I understand your anger at such people, the same people spew the same garbage at me. But, rather then get mad, I try to politely let people know that i had a bad experience with ‘one of those’ I don’t attack a different person for saying something similar later, before they can make themselves clear that they are thinking a certain way or not. Sometimes an opening statement is misleading, but the next line can clear things up. Like I said about the ‘open mind’ remarks. I give the person claiming they are enlightened the chance to prove they are, if they show they are hypocrites, then I try to control my mouth and let them rant on like an idiot. These kind of people will never learn or understand. And, some times we all get over sensitive because of what seems to be constant judgments, and we lash out at people before hearing them out completely. I find that to be a shame when we get to that point, because we then become like the people that we let get to us, we lower ourselves to their level, but instead of making them equals to us, we become worse, because at least we KNOW better, and shouldn’t do to them, or others, the way some people mistreat us.
I will not swear to this, but in the pagan beliefs I have looked into, I don’t recall it ever saying the followers are to expect to be mistreated or persecuted or not. If not, I would hope the followers would have the common sense to realize that no matter what name they wear for their faith, they will always meet opposition. I do know in my belief system that I am promised that I WILL be attacked, persecuted, mistreated and hated just because of the name of my beliefs. No, this isn’t why I don’t claim the title ‘Christian’ I don’t claim that name/title/designation because it is a misnomer, and many people have pre-conceived ideas based on that word. The other night I was talking to a nurse and letting her know how I felt about some things going on in the world, basically, small talk, but current news topics. She looked at me, and unsure of my beliefs, asked if I was a Christian, I sure sounded like one, but I didn’t come out and say it. I think my words and actions will tell people who I am, and they will place a title or label on me according to how they think, how they see me. If I do not mention any god directly, I am often mistaken for a person of pagan beliefs. I don’t find this an insult, as the people who has told me/ask me later, because I thought like they did, actually WAS what I ‘preached’, these people were good people, people I would not be ashamed to ‘take home to mom’ or be seem with in public. I don’t care if they are Christian, pagan, or agnostic. We all believe in loving other people, I even love my enemies, we both believe that what we do comes back to us, both the good and the bad.
I once had a friend call me his ‘Zen-Christian-Pagan’ friend, because I seemed to embrace both Christian and pagan beliefs, in a Zen way. But, much like my history group, which I describe as ‘re-inacting the best parts of the middles ages’ (that means leaving out religious hatred, the plague, ect), my beliefs are based one many different religions, taking the best from them all…no, not picking and choosing what I want to believe….because the best of them all is the same word: LOVE. We all strive to do good things to others, out of love for a fellow human, and also to our pets, animals. We both use the herbs of the planet for healing. I think things have come full circle for some of us, and the others are still on the track, but not done coming back to their beginning yet. Pagan beliefs are becoming more popular, because of the good at it’s central core, and Christians have lost their way, but we are the newest of religions, so are still growing up, not yet reached our full maturity. For with that maturity comes the ability to love another unconditionally, to return to the original teachings of Christ. I don’t think he intended for a ‘universal church’ to get into a position of power and dictate what is and isn’t allowed, what will allow you entry into paradise, and what will have you barred, just because a man said so (excommunication). But rather, to read, study, research, and, above all, ‘pray’ for guidance. Someone with an open mind would easily find the truth that is woven through the Bible. and knows that no matter how a man may have tried to interpret it, that no mortal man has the power to obscure the real meaning that was intended from the moment it was written down. If I doubted this, I would set to learning Greek and Aramaic and Hebrew and translate it myself, so I would know what was originally said. Well, maybe I wouldn’t learn the 3 languages, but you know me, and I would find translation programs, and have them help me to translate the original writings, in their original languages. I have, however, been fortunate enough to have a sister that has studied these languages, and she has helped me to understand some of the things written in the Bible. She has explained things that were confusing in the current English language. We have not always been able to translate any language 100%, as some languages just do not have an equivalent in an other language. But, we can at least find a similar meaning, and create a new word that expresses the untranslatable word. The Eskimos have many different words for snow, each one referring to a slight difference, yet to translate into English we’d have to say ‘wet snow’ or ‘fluffy snow’, creating a 2-word phrase that relays the closest meaning.
How many modern Druids have original Druidic books that they have translated into their home language? How many modern Druids can read Druidic writings? Yes, I know, these are trick questions. The point being, how closely have you investigated your beliefs to find the origin, to translate from it’s oldest books explaining the faith? Who wrote these books, when, and why? Is there a chance that someone with hatred wrote some of the books? Could an extremist have translated any of the texts so say things the way they wanted it to read? I have found that the majority of modern pagan texts are based on modern discoveries, the same ones that prove the history written in the Bible. many pagan beliefs today are based on researching history books, and playwrights (like Shakespeare), and archeological evidence. I do not see pagan as a religion, but a faith, a lifestyle. It’s based more on environmentalist issues, herbal healing, disregarding medical science when possible. And Old Testament rules for conduct. The same laws that all humans should follow, don’t hurt, cause or allow harm to another. Treat all people equally, with love, compassion and respect. I don’t have to go into the ‘thou shalt not covet’ issues, again, simple rules of civilized conduct that make us different from the animals, be they real animals, or human animals that live only by the pain and misery of others, robbing them, killing them. People really don’t care what brand of jeans you are advertising for with their name on your butt, all they care about is that you are abiding by the rules of modesty and are wearing ANY jeans…period. The details shouldn’t get in the way of your faith. And, the way I have heard it most of my life, pagans are ‘better than that’ when referring to some historic Christian mistake. That means they are ‘better then the fundamentalist’ that attack and condemn us all equally. You can’t just say you are better then that, you have to show it, by being it. I know, it’s not always easy, but, if your faith is strong enough, you can do it, and every time you do, it becomes easier. But, be careful of becoming proud or arrogant, because that is a flaw that you also should be better then to fall into.
There are so many different books out there that explain one pagan belief or another, but not a single one that is accepted and the ‘definitive writings’ that represent them all. This makes it hard to say anything with any certainty, as some book out there will say you are wrong. It all depends on which book(s) you read and took to your heart, as you felt comfortable with this person/peoples ideas of the faith system. But, boil them all down to a singular concept they all agree on, and I believe you will find ‘do no harm’, to love and repect others’ and their rights to be different. Too many focus in on the differences, and pick at these, instead of focusing in on the similarities we have, and getting along. Like I said, it’s not the details that matter, it’s the central core, the foundation statement or concept that matters, to ignore these when you strike out at an ‘outsider’ that doesn’t know, you only prove that the faith you claim to follow is only a title, a badge, but not something you practice. How you practice your faith is more important then the words many times. A good example is what you should strive to be.
I do not hate anyone, I love all people, friend, enemy and stranger. That isn’t to say I never hated anyone, just that I learned to not hate, because hate only hurts the person who does the hating. And the few that I did hate, I hated for a short time, and the reason I felt go much anger was because they had hurt me seriously, almost ending my life…these were people I trusted, ‘friends’. If a stranger did the same thing, I would not hate them, I would only hate what they did, and hate the thing that made them do this ‘evil thing’. In today’s world, that amounts to ‘greed’ because the money gives them drugs, or power, or material things, or all these and too many other reasons.
Wisdom is a Lady clothed in truth and honesty, her face is marked with life ‘s experiences, her eyes full of compassion, her mouth lined from laughing at her own mistakes.
In her right hand is a scroll of common sense, and a scroll record of other’s mistakes in her left, from which she learns from.
A man will make mistakes and learns, but if he repeats his mistakes he has not gained wisdom. Common Sense should light one’s path so that they do not stumble on the same obstacles over and over again.
Knowledge can be taught, Wisdom learned from experience, yours or others’. But Common Sense is a gift from Lady Wisdom. Her gift is rare in these current times, and as precious as a jewel, one that sparkles in the light of truth.
Lady Wisdom is not proud or boastful, but rather giving, loving and generous. Sharing freely with all who are sincere in their quest for Her, and will follow her example. Wisdom is to be shared, not withheld from anyone, but freely given to help others. No monitory price can be put on Wisdom, the price is paid by the giver, and the price is love, self sacrifice and a desire to help another.
Many search for knowledge in hopes that it will gain them Wisdom, yet Wisdom eludes them. Wisdom brings with it insight and Empathy. Insight to understand those things that knowledge can not comprehend, and empathy to feel compassion and have an even deeper understanding.
To Know – To See, To Understand – To Foresee, To Feel – To Be
Knowledge Wisdom Compassion
Be careful of what you ask for, because you may end up with more then you bargained for. With Wisdom comes a burden, a heavy responsibility. A lofty goal that begins with you laying prostrate, humble before the universe, begging Lady Wisdom to touch you, fill you.
It is hard to put into words an indescribable experience, and that is what I am going to attempt to do here for you. For half of my life I have kept a secret, a deeply spiritual and personal secret that I have rarely shared. And then only with people that I knew would understand, in essence, people that didn’t need to hear my story. At firstill. And in the end, when my task is done, I will be ready to re-join my Lord and Savior in His Heavenly Home. I joyously accept what life has for me, the pain, the suffering, the disappointments, and even the condemnation from people who hate me only because I love God and His Son. I gladly take this, knowing that the reward that awaits me is a place that Jesus Christ has set aside for me in His Father’s house. I know what awaits me, the only thing that matters anyway, to be filled with the Love, Joy and Peace that only Father, Son and Spirit can give me. I pray to God that He take me, use me as His tool to do His will on earth, as it is in Heaven. The Lord has Blessed me many times over, He has loved me, even though I am unworthy of His love, being a sinner. I am disabled, yet God has made me free to do so much more then a full and healthy body could ever do without His loving blessings. God has always had a plan for me, a goal He wants me to reach, and all things are possible with God’s help. Some ask me “look at your life, disabled at 20, recurring illness for over 20 years, you’ve lost your leg(s)! Yet you cling to this ‘god’ and claim He is a loving God, would a Loving God allow such misery to one of His followers?” All I can say in return is, God does love me, and I don’t feel miserable, I don’t think that God ‘took’ anything from me, not my legs, my health, but rather He has given me the strength to survive all this time after time, and the wisdom to see the light of His love in all things. God never hurt me, I did, other people did, but my God gave me the ability to live through it all, He blessed me with a good mind, capable hands and remarkable health, considering all of my medical history. Would they have been able to face the Life I live? Would their ‘god’ give them strength, love, and a reason to keep going? Or would they rather die? Become bitter at life, at everyone around them, even cursing the ‘gods’ they followed?
There are really only 2 ‘gods’……The One True God, Jesus Christ, Lord and Savior…the other is Lucifer, Satan, Prince of Lies, ruler of all things dark and unnatural. I choose ‘The Great I Am’ And I laugh at Satan, he has no power over me, no hold on my soul. I willingly give myself to God, and He joyfully takes me to Him, embracing me, I am held tight and secure in his arms, surrounding me with Love.
Even discounting my ‘vision’ of Heaven and Hell as fantasy, there are still things that I have seen and experienced that have no logical or scientific explanation. The people that can look me in the eye when I am feeling Spirit filled and run in fear from the presence of God, proclaiming that they know I have Jesus on my side, even when I have not told them anything yet. The times that I have seen people who are filled with the Spirit and I can see a lovely purple glow or aura, halo around them. I like Amethyst, and personally think of it as a special Gemstone. Later I found out while reading Revelations that the Kingdom of God has 12 foundations, each made from a precious gem, and the 12th and final foundation is Amethyst. The 12 foundations being, from 1st to 12th: Jasper, Sapphire, Agate, Emerald, Onyx Carnelian, Chrysolite, Beryl, Topaz, Chrysoprase, Jacinth, Amethyst. I have seen people addicted to drugs suddenly ‘cured’ of their craving for the drug, simply because their friends Prayed with and for them. My own battles with health issues has shown me that some power greater then me was there, comforting me, filling me with peace, and laying healing hands on me, for I have suffered through things that no man should have survived. Doctors are amazed at this, only a few claimed it was their skill, most admit it was God’s will, and His blessing that gave them the ability and me the strength that saved my life time after time. Miracles happen all around us all the time. Most are taken for granted, like the beautiful sunrise, the way a flower will bloom in the hottest, driest deserts. Most miracles happen unseen, unnoticed, because we are so busy with our own concerns, our petty lives, ignoring the obvious that is always right there in sight, within reach.
I was raised in a Christian household, but religion was never forced on me, as soon as I was old enough to drive, I was given a choice, and most times I took the right one and went to church. I am not a big church-going person, feeling more comfortable sitting under a tree, enjoying God’s beautiful creation, sharing the Word of God with others. God has never and will never force Himself on anyone, but rather gives all the same freedom of choice to decide for ourselves. God could so easily cause an undeniable miracle that would leave no doubt of his existence, but if He did so, would that not mean He ‘demanded’ our worship? Isn’t that the way of dictators? To show great power, and have people fall on their faces out of fear, too afraid to go against the dictator with so much power, he holds each person’s life in his hands. This is not a willing following, but one based on fear, and intimidation. This is not God’s way, He simply loves us, despite our sinful ways. But rather, He waits until a person is ready, willing to listen to the Truth, then God reveals Himself to that person. The eyes open and truly see, the ears become open, and not only do they hear His Word, but they listen, understand, and are filled with the joy that only knowing God can give one.
I have been shot, stabbed, attacked and beaten nearly to death, yet with the acceptation of the car accident that broke my back and left wrist, I have never broken a bone, or sustained any real damage that a few weeks couldn’t heal. I’ve had infections that were fatal to others, other infections that had no cure, total unknown bugs that should have killed me, and yet I lived through it all. I have faced death several times, and I never backed down, Death, be he an Angel from God, or a malevolent being, never took me, he seemed to only be able to look at me, allow me to see him, but he was unable to touch me, take me. The power of God defeats Death, death has no sting, no power to take me away from God’s will. With God, there is no death, pain, crying or suffering.
Imagine a Hollywood searchlight so bright and strong that when it’s pointed at the moon, it could make a new moon look like a full moon. Now imagine you are standing 10 feet from it, and the light represents God’s love. Now imagine a box so air tight, not even ‘night goggles’ would work, total and utter lack of all light. The light is God, the box is hell. Just think, you will one day have to answer for your life, the decisions, the good and bad you do in this life. You go before God, and if you have not loved Him, done right with your life, to be sent to hell, your decision. Imagine how full of love you’d feel in the presence of God, then an eternity in Hell KNOWING what you can never have again. This is how my visit to the other side was like to me, the overwhelming Love of God, then the hatred and agony of Satan’s domain.
God is pure, unconditional love, no room for vengeance, hatred or condemnation. He has only asked us to do ONE thing……love one another. God has no room for revenge, executions, killing of any sort. When God set down the commandments, he really was serious about it, He simply does not want us to kill. God did set down many laws, and the punishment to expect for each, and the sacrifice that one should give to be forgiven. But, with the coming of Jesus Christ, God removed some of the ‘rules’ because all His restrictions were so the chosen people of God, the blood line from Adam and Eve would stay pure so that Jesus would be born of the right blood, thereby fulfilling His promise to us. With the coming of Christ things changed, dietary restrictions lifted, and many other small things. But His 10 commandments were to stand as guidelines of proper conduct for living. And then Jesus, and only Jesus, condensed the 10 down to two basic easy to remember commandments. 1-Love God with all you heart, body and soul, 2-Love one another as you wish to be loved.
Be ever vigilant for His second coming, be ever prayerful, your heart, mind and mouth full of words of praise to the Lord. God has given you everything you have that is good. Without God, you are nothing. When God stands with you, no one can stand against you. The Lord God has given us more then just free will, a wonderful gift in itself, but also the ability to doubt, and yet still believe. I can question things I have been taught or read about God, and not be questioning God Himself, or his Holy Word. I question man’s interpretation, our view point of God, our human desire to make sense out of the incomprehensible, and inadvertently ‘making God in our (mental) image’. God gave us such a complex mind. This mind tries to make sense out of chaos, like when you see a cloud, or one of those textured walls and ceilings, your eyes see chaos, no pattern, yet your mind picks out shapes that we are familiar with, trying to make sense of it all. We are held back by our limited ability to understand the fullness of God, so some try to set a finite definition on an infinite being. Doing this is the same as setting exact measurements and size limits on the universe, a task that can not be done, since the universe is infinite and larger then ‘not only what we can conceive, but also more then we can imagine it to be’.
Many of you know me as a patient and caring person, passionate about history, honor and helping to maintain a History based chat that people can feel safe coming to. Some may know of my personal beliefs. Do not confuse ‘religion’ with Faith. Faith is belief in an abstract concept with no concrete evidence. Religion is more like the rituals or routines we say or do on certain ‘holy’ days or times of the year. Rituals are to help us remember the reason for our belief, but Faith is a life style that is done every waking minute of our life, in public among strangers as well as in the privacy of a building with others that share our belief system, and even when we are alone at home.
I have studied several of the ‘major’ belief systems and a few ‘dead”, ancient beliefs and had concluded early on that none are 100% right, yet all are correct in the central ideas that are the cornerstone these faiths’ are built on. The base of all beliefs (worth following, IMHO) is to LOVE one another, to ‘do no harm’. Yet some insist on assaulting with words a belief they disagree with. Thereby proving that they truly are NOT the person they claim to be, they just like the ‘Title’ and how comfortable the ‘Label’ feels on them.
The larger a group becomes, be it centered on a belief, interest (like history), or political ideals, the more often you will see varied personalities, from fundamental to radical fanatic. You will find bad people in a good group, and good people in bad groups. Sometimes it is impossible to tell which is which. For this, you may have to study, research or maybe even enter the group as an open minded observer to find the truth of things. To look at a group from the outside and judge them by the more obvious person(s) (good or bad), alone. This is a common and sometimes fatal mistake. To declare to have an open heart and mind, and expect others to do the same in turn, it also includes being open to the beliefs you disagree with most. If you actually sit down and communicate with them, you may learn to respect the person, and understand their beliefs better. Not saying becoming converted to, but simply understand and respect, instead of uninformed hatred or disagreement.
