dahlia

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  1. Like
    dahlia got a reaction from Maureen in Ponderings on nudity and modesty   
    You realize that many cultures breastfeed in public and no one thinks twice? I have had mothers nurse in my classrooms; I have seen sisters nurse in RS - as long as they are covered (and in many cultures they do not cover), what is the issue? It is how God made woman to feed babies. In fact, in countries with uncertain water safety, they are better off nursing than using expensive Western formulas to feed kids. 
    As for Snigmorder's post about  all depictions of nudity in art as being pornography - what. the.heck? I guess you can think what you want, but people who see the world differently are not complacent or tolerant of immodesty and nudity. Wow. No art classes for you, huh? 
  2. Like
    dahlia got a reaction from seashmore in You know I'm gonna be difficult, but did I go too far?   
    So the other night I took our very young missionaries to dinner. I think the Church is taking them out of middle school these days... Anyway, I got a call tonight asking me if I would go with them on a lesson to someone nearby.  Let's just say that after some questioning on my part (because I knew where this was going), I find out that the investigator is black (of course, they never ask me to go to anyone else) and a single mother (of course, because that just perfectly fits the narrative about what black women are [and yes, I know there are white single mothers, but white women aren't defined by single motherhood as are black women].
    I debated if I should just beg off because I was tired from work, or if I should speak some truth and educate these guys. Well, I choose to educate. I tried to do it very nicely, recognizing that they are both young and not used to diverse populations.  But I can.not tell you guys how tired I am of being asked to go see the black investigator, who is always poor and uneducated. No. Don't want to do it. These people aren't my friends. They won't become my friends. They aren't people I socialize with, they don't want to socialize with me. We don't have anything in common. 
    Why, in name of all that's holy, do I, in one of the whitest states in the Union, have to meet every black investigator some Utah boy runs into? Do these people not understand that doing this appears as racist? It's not that I think these sweet boys are racist; I do think they don't understand what it looks like to the 'other' to be dragged around to all the other 'others' and never asked to meet anyone else. 
    There's also something else. Many of the black people here come from Chicago as a number of (stupid, #*#*# lib communities) invited them down for the Section 8 housing and a better life in the cornfields. However, what most of them have done is to bring Chicago crime with them. You're aware of Chicago crime statistics, no? I live in a wonderful area where the UPS guy can leave your package at the door, where people are friendly and hard working, and then there are... the Chicagoans.  It's like the worst of Philly (where I lived for years) dropped into a sea of innocents.  I don't care if the investigator is a woman. The Chicago people brought their female criminals, too. And if the woman isn't a criminal, her boyfriend is. I know you good people will say I'm exaggerating, but unless you've lived in a big city with a majority black criminal element, you have no idea how real this is. And if you want to say everyone can change, perhaps, but they can do it without me. At 63 and living alone, I don't plan on being anyone's victim.
    I know we are children of God and all that, but I just don't want to meet with these people. I told the missionaries that I would be happy to meet the investigator if they ever get her to church. Obviously, with this attitude, she is probably better off without me anyway. Was I wrong to tell the elders my real reason for not wanting to meet their investigator? 
  3. Like
    dahlia got a reaction from Sunday21 in Ponderings on nudity and modesty   
    You realize that many cultures breastfeed in public and no one thinks twice? I have had mothers nurse in my classrooms; I have seen sisters nurse in RS - as long as they are covered (and in many cultures they do not cover), what is the issue? It is how God made woman to feed babies. In fact, in countries with uncertain water safety, they are better off nursing than using expensive Western formulas to feed kids. 
    As for Snigmorder's post about  all depictions of nudity in art as being pornography - what. the.heck? I guess you can think what you want, but people who see the world differently are not complacent or tolerant of immodesty and nudity. Wow. No art classes for you, huh? 
  4. Like
    dahlia got a reaction from Sunday21 in You know I'm gonna be difficult, but did I go too far?   
    So the other night I took our very young missionaries to dinner. I think the Church is taking them out of middle school these days... Anyway, I got a call tonight asking me if I would go with them on a lesson to someone nearby.  Let's just say that after some questioning on my part (because I knew where this was going), I find out that the investigator is black (of course, they never ask me to go to anyone else) and a single mother (of course, because that just perfectly fits the narrative about what black women are [and yes, I know there are white single mothers, but white women aren't defined by single motherhood as are black women].
    I debated if I should just beg off because I was tired from work, or if I should speak some truth and educate these guys. Well, I choose to educate. I tried to do it very nicely, recognizing that they are both young and not used to diverse populations.  But I can.not tell you guys how tired I am of being asked to go see the black investigator, who is always poor and uneducated. No. Don't want to do it. These people aren't my friends. They won't become my friends. They aren't people I socialize with, they don't want to socialize with me. We don't have anything in common. 
    Why, in name of all that's holy, do I, in one of the whitest states in the Union, have to meet every black investigator some Utah boy runs into? Do these people not understand that doing this appears as racist? It's not that I think these sweet boys are racist; I do think they don't understand what it looks like to the 'other' to be dragged around to all the other 'others' and never asked to meet anyone else. 
    There's also something else. Many of the black people here come from Chicago as a number of (stupid, #*#*# lib communities) invited them down for the Section 8 housing and a better life in the cornfields. However, what most of them have done is to bring Chicago crime with them. You're aware of Chicago crime statistics, no? I live in a wonderful area where the UPS guy can leave your package at the door, where people are friendly and hard working, and then there are... the Chicagoans.  It's like the worst of Philly (where I lived for years) dropped into a sea of innocents.  I don't care if the investigator is a woman. The Chicago people brought their female criminals, too. And if the woman isn't a criminal, her boyfriend is. I know you good people will say I'm exaggerating, but unless you've lived in a big city with a majority black criminal element, you have no idea how real this is. And if you want to say everyone can change, perhaps, but they can do it without me. At 63 and living alone, I don't plan on being anyone's victim.
    I know we are children of God and all that, but I just don't want to meet with these people. I told the missionaries that I would be happy to meet the investigator if they ever get her to church. Obviously, with this attitude, she is probably better off without me anyway. Was I wrong to tell the elders my real reason for not wanting to meet their investigator? 
  5. Like
    dahlia got a reaction from Jane_Doe in Starbucks & beer   
    Is this where I ask how do you know what Starbucks coffee tastes like?   
    Even though I am not in Utah, my ward is filled with Utahans because they come here from BYU to go to grad and med school. So, I'm always trying to figure out if what they do is Mormon culture gone crazy or proper Mormon behavior.  I bought an expensive liquor for my son the other Christmas because that's what he wanted. I don't have an issue getting 1 bottle of something for a gift, but probably wouldn't want to be seen with a shopping cart full of cases of beer (which was in front of me the other week). 
  6. Like
    dahlia got a reaction from Backroads in Starbucks & beer   
    Is this where I ask how do you know what Starbucks coffee tastes like?   
    Even though I am not in Utah, my ward is filled with Utahans because they come here from BYU to go to grad and med school. So, I'm always trying to figure out if what they do is Mormon culture gone crazy or proper Mormon behavior.  I bought an expensive liquor for my son the other Christmas because that's what he wanted. I don't have an issue getting 1 bottle of something for a gift, but probably wouldn't want to be seen with a shopping cart full of cases of beer (which was in front of me the other week). 
  7. Like
    dahlia got a reaction from Backroads in Starbucks & beer   
    I work on a smoke free campus. That's supposed to include outside of doorways and at bus stops around campus. I regularly use a particular entrance for one building and the smokers are lined up near the top of the driveway into the building (they can't get too close). I can only hope they are not doctors and nurses. I don't think smoking is a thing of the past; it's just hidden. I also lived in Seattle for years and all the tourist literature said what a healthy town it was. Actually, I saw more people smoking there than I did in cesspits like DC and Philly. 
    My stepfather died from lung cancer. Of course we asked him to quit over the years, but nope. My mother says she is down to 3 cigarettes a day. Big deal. What do you want, a medal?
  8. Like
    dahlia reacted to my two cents in Starbucks & beer   
    Starbucks - I've gotten something from there (hot chocolate or muffin) maybe three times tops.  For me, it's not about others wondering what I'm ordering, it's about what business I want to support with my money.
    Providing alcohol for others - I wouldn't.  What's wrong with helping people see you can have an enjoyable time without the stuff?  Why would I use my money to provide someone something that's not good for them?  There are other ways to be hospitable.
  9. Like
    dahlia reacted to zil in Can everyone become God?   
    In a sense, yes.  By which we mean that one must accept all the ordinances and covenants, and be the sort of person who keeps them - in other words, one must abide the law of the kingdom in question.  Now that might sound like we're saying a person from [insert some other religion here] cannot go to the Celestial Kingdom, but as you know, we believe in proxy ordinances.  If a person is the sort of person who obeys a Celestial law, then they will, as they are taught, accept the ordinances and keep the covenants, and continue on in being a Celestial sort of person, and be sealed to an eternal spouse, and be exalted in the Celestial Kingdom.  If they're not that sort of person, if they don't accept the teachings, ordinances, and covenants, then they won't.
    Another way to say this might be to say that there is only one entrance to the Celestial Kingdom - Jesus Christ.  All must get past him, and the way by which we do so is the same, and he will judge.
    Please note that I believe there have been, are, and will be many people who do not find The Church of Jesus Christ in this life (through no fault of their own), but who live the celestial law (as well as a mortal can) and who will ultimately be exalted in the Celestial Kingdom.  I believe there are many Mormons who do/have not and will not.  But the conditions are the same either way, and they are outlined in scripture - all will end up in that kingdom whose laws they choose to live.
  10. Like
    dahlia reacted to The Folk Prophet in Receiving the Sacrament in another church   
    Saw IV?
  11. Like
    dahlia reacted to Vort in This sentance contains threee errors.   
    German walks into a bar and orders a martini. Bartender asks him, "Dry?" German responds, "Nein, danke, one iz zufficient."
  12. Like
    dahlia reacted to person0 in What's your impressive food or drinks   
    My ancestor once tried some fruit from the Tree of Knowledge, I hear it's delicious but have not yet tried it myself.  
  13. Like
    dahlia got a reaction from Sunday21 in Receiving the Sacrament in another church   
    Yes, I can. I think Jesus would be ecumenical and wouldn't want to offend anyone. My 2 cents. As for President Monson, I have no idea. He's more steeped in Mormon theology than I am.
    Also, guys - I ask a little question and when I come back people are arguing and apologizing... what the heck? 
  14. Thanks
    dahlia got a reaction from Bini in Why Feminism is Bad   
    Girls? You mean women? And every woman who goes to work, tries to tell a doctor who thinks she's 'imagining' her symptoms, or is told she shouldn't do this or that because she is a 'girl' is affected by feminism.
  15. Like
    dahlia got a reaction from Maureen in Receiving the Sacrament in another church   
    Yes. I didn't even think of that. I was just wondering if it was theologically taboo to take communion elsewhere. I'm not sure I agree with others that there would not be a spiritual benefit to it, tho. I think receiving the Sacrament is always beneficial and I was glad to take it before I was baptized LDS. 
    And I chose 'Methodist' because it was the first thing that came to mind.
  16. Like
    dahlia reacted to Jane_Doe in Slice of life in my ward   
    I accidentally attended the wrong ward last week (got times wrong *blush*).  The thing that finally made me realize that it wasn't my ward wasn't the fact that I didn't recognize the bishopric, the RS presidency, or anyone else in the ward.... but the fact that there were not nearly enough screaming children
  17. Like
    dahlia reacted to NeuroTypical in Slice of life in my ward   
    The sisters in my ward set up an informal "Sisters of the X Ward" facebook page.  Lots of us brothers are members, half because our wives don't do facebook and they want us to tell them what's happening, half because it's a great resource for free stuff as the sisters clean house but don't want to do a yard sale.  
    One of the sisters posted, asking if any other sister wants to take a conceal carry class with her.  Apparently she's having a hard time finding a lady to go with her, because so many of the sisters already have their permits.  
  18. Like
    dahlia reacted to anatess2 in Why Do You Watch?   
    Because there's nothing better to do.
  19. Like
    dahlia got a reaction from unixknight in Feeding People is Cultural Appropriation?   
    Are you kidding? Do you know which party was the party of segregation? Of the Klan? The South is/was full of Democrats who flew the Confederate flag. Blacks continue to vote leftist because they are ignorant of the history of political parties in the US and think the Democrats are on their side.  I'm not one of them.
  20. Like
    dahlia got a reaction from classylady in Garsh, that dollar sign is so tricky!   
    Guilty as charged. I think I write the amount 1st, because that's what I'm thinking of, and then the dollar sign. But I only do it informally, I wouldn't write it that way for work or an article. As I guess you know, I'm not a millennial. I didn't go to public school, and trust me, I had the benefit of much parental correction. Maybe I'm an outlier. 
    My old lady rant is the inability of people to recognize the difference between 'lose' and 'loose.'  You did not loose 10 pounds. Good googa mooga. Where's the death penalty when you need it? 
  21. Like
    dahlia got a reaction from my two cents in So what is nice about your State/Province/County?   
    Getting the gun issue out of the way first, my son said his dream is to have a weapon in every room. We're working on it, even tho we live in Iowa. Not a lot of crime, but there is some. It's easy to get concealed carry. The police at the university where I work carry weapons. The rule was changed to allow this after VA Tech. Students aren't supposed to carry, but the legislature is working on changing that. Apparently the univ admin hasn't read the news about shootings on campuses around the country. I'm not going to be a victim because some leftist doesn't understand the Constitution.
    So, Iowa is probably the last place on earth where I thought I'd live. A good thing about it is the people - friendly, hard working, literate, just nice to be around. It's also cheap. We've got 3 properties between us and will buy more when I retire. We'd never be able to do that in Seattle (where we lived before coming here and which I love) or the east coast (where I'm from).
    I don't eat meat now, but I did when I first moved here; they have some great meat out here. I had to get used to the county beef and pork producers having a big grill outside the grocery store. People like the little stuff - homecoming, first day of school gets in the newspaper, the county fair, etc. My UPS boxes stay on my front until I come home. I'm glad I'm here (don't ask in Jan & Feb, tho, 'cause it gets right cold and snowy then).
  22. Like
    dahlia got a reaction from Backroads in So what is nice about your State/Province/County?   
    Getting the gun issue out of the way first, my son said his dream is to have a weapon in every room. We're working on it, even tho we live in Iowa. Not a lot of crime, but there is some. It's easy to get concealed carry. The police at the university where I work carry weapons. The rule was changed to allow this after VA Tech. Students aren't supposed to carry, but the legislature is working on changing that. Apparently the univ admin hasn't read the news about shootings on campuses around the country. I'm not going to be a victim because some leftist doesn't understand the Constitution.
    So, Iowa is probably the last place on earth where I thought I'd live. A good thing about it is the people - friendly, hard working, literate, just nice to be around. It's also cheap. We've got 3 properties between us and will buy more when I retire. We'd never be able to do that in Seattle (where we lived before coming here and which I love) or the east coast (where I'm from).
    I don't eat meat now, but I did when I first moved here; they have some great meat out here. I had to get used to the county beef and pork producers having a big grill outside the grocery store. People like the little stuff - homecoming, first day of school gets in the newspaper, the county fair, etc. My UPS boxes stay on my front until I come home. I'm glad I'm here (don't ask in Jan & Feb, tho, 'cause it gets right cold and snowy then).
  23. Like
    dahlia got a reaction from Vort in Garsh, that dollar sign is so tricky!   
    Guilty as charged. I think I write the amount 1st, because that's what I'm thinking of, and then the dollar sign. But I only do it informally, I wouldn't write it that way for work or an article. As I guess you know, I'm not a millennial. I didn't go to public school, and trust me, I had the benefit of much parental correction. Maybe I'm an outlier. 
    My old lady rant is the inability of people to recognize the difference between 'lose' and 'loose.'  You did not loose 10 pounds. Good googa mooga. Where's the death penalty when you need it? 
  24. Like
    dahlia got a reaction from Sunday21 in So what is nice about your State/Province/County?   
    Getting the gun issue out of the way first, my son said his dream is to have a weapon in every room. We're working on it, even tho we live in Iowa. Not a lot of crime, but there is some. It's easy to get concealed carry. The police at the university where I work carry weapons. The rule was changed to allow this after VA Tech. Students aren't supposed to carry, but the legislature is working on changing that. Apparently the univ admin hasn't read the news about shootings on campuses around the country. I'm not going to be a victim because some leftist doesn't understand the Constitution.
    So, Iowa is probably the last place on earth where I thought I'd live. A good thing about it is the people - friendly, hard working, literate, just nice to be around. It's also cheap. We've got 3 properties between us and will buy more when I retire. We'd never be able to do that in Seattle (where we lived before coming here and which I love) or the east coast (where I'm from).
    I don't eat meat now, but I did when I first moved here; they have some great meat out here. I had to get used to the county beef and pork producers having a big grill outside the grocery store. People like the little stuff - homecoming, first day of school gets in the newspaper, the county fair, etc. My UPS boxes stay on my front until I come home. I'm glad I'm here (don't ask in Jan & Feb, tho, 'cause it gets right cold and snowy then).
  25. Like
    dahlia got a reaction from Sunday21 in Home Teaching someone who doesn't want it   
    I used to have more free time and was happy to see my RS sisters and do VT. Now I'm working a full week, and living alone, my 'free' time is spent doing laundry, going to the grocery store, batch cooking my meals for the week, making lunches, cleaning house, etc. None of that is done for me, as it much of it is for the men in the ward who work. I'm lucky to make it in to church.
    I told the bishop I can't take it any more. No more VTs coming in and no more me going out to VT. Maybe when I retire, but not now. I had a visiting teacher who was so sweet and would send emails and phone calls; we got along great. And even tho we asked to stay with each other, apparently I have a new VT I haven't heard from yet.
    If your family is OK with emails or cards, etc. just do that. Maybe they're happy to say 'hi' at church. You can't make people do what they want to do.