xVOWx

Members
  • Posts

    17
  • Joined

  • Last visited

Everything posted by xVOWx

  1. E-hugs for everyone! All better? No, I'm sorry! Quin, I can understand the feeling of a strong sense of apprehension, though for entirely different reasons. I hope all goes well for you. Anatess, may your sons sense of compassion for the smaller things never leave him. There are too many cruel people in this world. As for FB, well, I can't say much. I have a 'no family' policy when it comes to social networking sites. It's for their protection . Oh, and this thread idea is GENIUS..... just saying. I suppose I should help keep it alive by sharing my own overly dramatic plight. I apologize if it's too sarcastic or long winded for any ones taste, but I have tried to style it to be somewhat entertaining: I guess this is my journal. Something to get me typing every day, even if it is all convoluted nonsense. Why am I doing this now? Well, at this point in my life I hate my job. I used to love it, minus the drama. But now it’s toxic. The sword of Damocles is ever looming over my head. I risk getting fired because my vastly inferior “superiors” don’t like my personality. It doesn’t matter how much I’ve given to the company or my team. It doesn’t matter that when refuse hits the fan I’m constantly reliable. It doesn’t matter that my shenanigans are innocuous. All that matters is they don’t like me, as a person. Mostly because I dare to challenge authority, but not in any truly aggressive manner. No, it’s because I see through the lies. Their lies. Petty people playing petty games. They are incompetent and they know it (and they know I know it). They don’t like that. Not one bit. Like Pol Pot, free thought is threatening to them. So is the belief of equal treatment. And I’ve seen them get rid of other hard working, honest individuals because those people dared to voice how they were sick of being treated like a peon. What was I talking about? Oh yes, the sword of Damocles. That ever looming dread that makes me sick to my stomach. Wait, let’s back up again, why is this blade that threatens my corporate existence threaded so precariously above my head? An office prank. Juvenile but harmless. The kind that people have been pulling around my place of employ since day one. The kind that everyone (but me) still pulls. However, because I was too foolish to accept the warning signs that ’the powers that be’ were gearing up for a witch hunt, their scarlet brand already hot in the waiting fire, I carried on as if nothing was amiss. Now I’m on a ’final warning’. No verbal, no written. I also live in Utah, which means no labor laws (none that actually protect employment, anyway). Slavery never ended in Amerika, it only changed form, but that is another rant entirely. What caused this situation? I’ll get into that story some other time. Oh, and if I come off as bitter it’s because I am. I taste it constantly. Like I just got punched in the mouth and my gums are bleeding. This might turn out to be a good thing. I’ve known for a long time that this place is no good. Every one who has left says the same thing, no matter what job they got it was a markedly superior atmosphere. The (potential) other part of a silver lining: it’s slowly getting me to not only consider what I should be doing with my life, but motivating me to take steps to get there. Even if they are small steps. Like writing again. P.S. If they really want to punish me they’ll keep me there, in my own private hell.
  2. I was surprised by all the FB posts about it. People from different points around the valley were discussing it but I think I napped right through it. I live near downtown Salt Lake.
  3. JimmiGerman, I was having the same problem when I needed to recover my password (running win8, it occurs in all browsers I have installed). If you keep clicking on the edge of the text box you can find a 'sweet spot' that will allow you to enter the text. The overlapping text can make it difficult to confirm if what you are typing is correct, but once you find the indicated spot the typing fields function as if there is no text overlap. Hope this helps!
  4. I actually find this approach admirable. You are finding ways to keep your children integrated in the family tradition, despite their ulterior perspectives. I’ve noticed many parents try to use force/discipline in response to deviation; it’s true, you can in fact beat a square peg into a round hole, but you destroy the peg in the process. As for my Ishtar tradition, I mostly just visit my mom (which I try to do frequently on Sundays anyway). Although I put up a cynical front, I do secretly enjoy the fact that she still does the whole ‘easter basket’ thing.
  5. As others have mentioned, creative endeavors can be wonderful coping mechanism. They can bring meaning and purpose to the pain. I myself compose music and do a bit of writing from time to time. It’s no cure, but finishing/working on a project not only helps me to work through my emotions, but it can bring a sense of satisfaction to an otherwise dreary moment in time. Though many of us are alone, sometimes it helps to know we are not alone in our loneliness. The moment is gone. Lost in a sea of despair. A torrent so vile it swallows my world. Like a plague sweeping the many realms of my heart. All good is laid to waste. All remains are left to decay. It is the dream killer. A reality forged by the hardest of truths. A nightmare born upon waking. A darkness that blots out the sun.
  6. Gretsch59, incase you are concerned about not "fitting in" let me assure you that there are all kinds of Mormons, by using myself as an example. Culturally, I'm quite distant from most Mormons myself. I'm (more or less) your typical vegan, straightedge, hardcore/punk/metal guy. I keep my hair in a mohawk most of the time. My dress usually consists of a mosh hat (military cap) and a faux leather jacket covered in spikes and studs. At least 60% of my friends are atheists. It's not uncommon for me to be hanging out with my friends at a bar (I'm the guy that only drinks the water) and despite how drunk they get, I'm often the most obnoxious one. My idea of a good time is throwing down in a mosh pit. One of my major hobbies is composing deathmetal songs. I crack jokes on the daily that would make the devil blush. Needless to say, when I'm around other Mormons, I don't fit in, but that's ok, because fitting in is irrelevant. Allow me to elaborate. Mormonism, or The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, which I will hereto refer to as "The Church" and the teachings of, as "the gospel", is for everyone, regardless of culture/sub-culture/lifestyle. You said you are intrigued, that's good enough for now. No one becomes perfect over night, and very few people immediately change their lives upon introduction to the gospel (that's not to say that you can't, or that you shouldn't, but it would be an unrealistic expectation indeed). Take that interest and build on it. Just because you are not ready to turn a 180 doesn't mean you can't go to church, participate, study the scriptures. Try not to make your goal or perspective to be one of 'fitting in', but instead take what you can from these new ideas/teachings/philosophies for your own personal growth. In time you may find that you not only want to, but CAN change certain aspects of your lifestyle. And if not, at least your time spent studying the gospel has added to your life experiences. My point is, maybe you will (and maybe you won't) be a black sheep if you got involved with, or joined the church. While the black sheep might not always feel understood, or even welcome by the rest of the flock, when it is lost The Shepherd calls it's name all the same. Perhaps now He is calling yours. Oh, and as far as your friends are concerned. Changing your lifestyle doesn't mean abandoning your friendship. It just means being strong enough to live your own way, while they live theirs. If they are truly your friends they will support you in any new journey you decide to take. And if you find yourself at a place in your life where you WANT to change, but your friends hinder your personal development, I leave you with a lyric from Seven by xDeathStarx - "Break the bones in the hands that hold me back."
  7. The logical part of my brain is just screaming that the idea of 'being happy' as a commandment, in the sense that it would be a sin to not be happy (which would be the case if it IS a commandment), is incredibly asinine. Here's a hypothetical explaining my thought process: Oh, my wife cheated on me/Oh, I got hit by a bus/Oh, I'm clinically depressed/Oh, my name is Job/i.e. there are an infinite number of things that can happen, outside of your control, that would create severe emotional trauma in which the receiver of said trauma would have a limited capacity to control 'how they feel'. Our emotions are ours, even more than our actions, and to put such a blatant restraint on our emotional experiences I think would qualify as an affront to our agency. That being said, I would not doubt that we are divinely expected, in a very limited capacity, to strive to be happy, as intentionally feeding greatly negative emotions can be destructive. Personally, I'm more creative/motivated/productive when I'm slightly miserable, and prone to being slothful when in a state of comfort/joy. I could simply be misunderstanding the concept of happiness as a commandment though.
  8. Everyone has been saying that, is this one to wait for Netflix?
  9. All things in the universe exist either in a state of thought, energy, or matter (which is merely condensed energy). As our spirits are more than mere thoughts, but the very core of our being, it is reasonable to assume it is made of some kind of matter that science has yet to understand. This is nothing new, in fact, as there are many types of matter and energy that we still have yet to begin to understand (dark matter/dark energy are good examples). As far as how a soul "fits" within a body, it could be a cohesive interaction, such as how two different liquids with the same density can be mixed together. One interesting idea is that the amount of empty space between atoms and even sub-atomic particles is so vast that we are, in fact, more empty space than not. It is entirely possible that the soul is made of a type of matter that is able to exist within this empty space without interfering with what we perceive to be our solid bodies, or "normal" matter. Just a thought.
  10. BATMAN: The Dark Knight Returns 1&2 - Based off of the comic of the same name... I'm a nerd hahahaha
  11. Answering someone else's prayers (yard work, ugh)
  12. Lady Luck smiles on everyone at least once in their life. Just watch out when she frowns :S
  13. Honestly, I have no problem with Santa, or elves, or any other goofy thing associated with Christmas as it's essentially just a hijacked pagan holiday (the winter solstice). I personally think Christians of all denominations should take a much bigger interest into Hebrew holidays as that is our true theological roots. No, I don't mean to sound like a scrooge lol, these are just my thoughts.
  14. Took the words right out of my mouth.
  15. I support school faculty members who are competent with their firearm and have a CFP, to be allowed to carry on campus while doing their job. I believe self defense is a right, not a privilege.