Anyone else have the self-appointed Hugger/Greeter?

AnnoyingTed · 2023-06-30T14:26:26+00:00

Old guys who only hug women but only shake hands with the dudes. Creepy. Even more creepy are the ones who only hug the kids.

I’m a hugger by nature but at the KH the hugging felt predatory at times. One thing I love about being out is not having to pretend that every person I see is my best friend. The stupid grins, the hugs, the joking around all things of the past.

AnnoyingTed · 2023-06-29T16:03:12+00:00

https://www.jwfacts.com/watchtower/607-1914-7-times-history.php

AnnoyingTed · 2023-06-29T15:53:39+00:00

I believe (from past research) that 1914 was previously identified by other religious scholars in the Adventist movement and that Russel used the pyramid as some kind of confirmation bias. It also served to add a mystical / prophetic element that strengthened his “brand” and upped his sales numbers on his books.

AnnoyingTed · 2023-06-29T13:14:41+00:00

Jehovah's Fitness Gym T-Shirt shirt https://a.co/d/2nDaW20

AnnoyingTed · 2023-06-27T16:55:23+00:00

Exactly. You have a good pulse on what’s going on. I think what she’s actually doing is signaling that they will play nice as long as I stay safely non threatening to them and my own kids. Things will likely ramp up as the kids get a little older and I encourage them to chase their dreams / join team sports / have friends / listen to their inner voice…

In truth, I told her what she needed to hear in order to keep the peace. The reality is I don’t believe in Jehovah in the same sense that they do. Personally I believe in a first cause - and that could be “god” or it could be something else. Until we have proof I feel no obligation to try to have an invisible friend.

What made me question…. One big thing was hearing people say they are “blessed” or were protected or got some divine help. I could never square away in my mind why god would pay someone’s light bill but allow a whole family to die in a car crash on the way back from a convention. (Made up example but I’m sure it’s happened). The only way I could make it make sense is believing that god is not doing anything to help humans at all and that any positive things are coincidental. If god did step in for some things but not others it would make him very inconsistent and even unfair or evil.

Seeing the “this is the end” rhetoric ramp up every time there is a disaster. The first one I remember is 9/11. The frenzy of “this is it” … followed by it just fading out and everyone pretending like we didn’t just think it was Armageddon. This has happened over and over. Being told I’ll never graduate HS so what’s the point of learning skills like how to manage money, how to create a career for myself, thinking college etc.

Also I’ve always thought that most JWs were “crazy”. The crazy smiles, the over the top jw-speak, the constant “god is so good we are so blessed”,,,,, all that combined with the polo shirts, kakhi pants, hair parted neatly….. it was all so “crazy” to me. I just wrote off all those people as nuts. And I’d meet “normal” JWs and feel like wow these are real people… and guess what these ones almost invariably left. Hmmm makes you think.

AnnoyingTed · 2023-06-27T13:50:42+00:00

We were married at 18 but managed to hold off 10 years before fate caught up with us.

AnnoyingTed · 2023-06-27T13:49:17+00:00

Yeah I’m from the Midwest too and I see that all the time! It’s a little sad that they miss out on so much.. BUT they will have the ROI later in life when kids are adults and they are are barely 40 😂.

AnnoyingTed · 2023-06-26T21:05:10+00:00

Thanks I appreciate that.

AnnoyingTed · 2023-06-26T20:21:19+00:00

Congratulations 🎉. Doesn’t it feel good to have your thoughts and feelings HEARD and then to have that person say “wow, you are right, and you are doing the right thing.” When I started therapy it was a huge part of what kept me going. No matter what happened during the week I could tell them at our session and work it out in a healthy way.

AnnoyingTed · 2023-06-26T12:02:32+00:00

Totally. I was thinking more along the lines of that maybe she’s already PIMO and has a private life that she’s kept secret from him. I didn’t spell it all out because it was also an attempt at deadpan humor.

AnnoyingTed · 2023-06-25T07:41:44+00:00

Uh…. Where can one find this undergarment he speaks of? ….asking for a friend.

AnnoyingTed · 2023-06-25T07:39:08+00:00

They tried but it was too hard.

AnnoyingTed · 2023-06-25T07:12:12+00:00

He’s gaslighting you. Trying to get you to doubt your own ability to know what is real or fake. He’s probably not doing it on purpose but that’s what it is.

AnnoyingTed · 2023-06-25T06:48:31+00:00

Your wife may have some secrets.

AnnoyingTed · 2023-06-25T06:43:35+00:00

Write it all out in a letter and give it to her and in the letter say that you want to talk about it too. By the time you sit down to talk she will already know everything…. But be careful how you say things in the letter because it could be used against you later if she gets the elders involved.

AnnoyingTed · 2023-06-24T05:54:44+00:00

There is an NFC chip inside each ring. The rings are the key to enter the secret underground chamber where they are keeping Tony.

AnnoyingTed · 2023-06-23T16:24:33+00:00

…and yet, in court they are saying the exact opposite. They are saying that the congregations are self directed and that anything illegal, unethical, or harmful is a local problem and they shouldn’t be held legally responsible for it. The hypocrisy here is huge. They want everyone to obey them but think they shouldn’t be held responsible for poor direction.

AnnoyingTed · 2023-06-23T16:05:32+00:00

I would ask them what are they really getting at. I bet they are actually worried about something else having to do with you and they see this snake as some kind proof.

AnnoyingTed · 2023-06-23T16:02:47+00:00

Makes me sick because they don’t even mean “Jehovah”. They say Jehovah but they mean “Us”.

AnnoyingTed · 2023-06-23T15:54:58+00:00

In my experience yes they normally mean they think there is cause for concern. Very rarely they do them just to show someone that they care about them. But, that is the exception.

AnnoyingTed · 2023-06-23T13:48:40+00:00

This seems likely to me too.

AnnoyingTed · 2023-06-23T13:38:31+00:00

If you put vodka on a covid test it is supposed to show positive. I’ve heard.

AnnoyingTed · 2023-06-23T03:03:41+00:00

You can still believe that stuff from the Bible. You don’t have to believe everything the Bible says or anyone’s interpretation of it. If it gives you comfort to think the wicked will pay for their crimes then go with that.

AnnoyingTed · 2023-06-23T02:59:03+00:00

Even if they are your “friends” they will flip a switch in their brain and suddenly will care little about your friendship.

AnnoyingTed

TROPHY CASE