I read forum postings for their entertainment or informational value only and don't care if what I'm reading is "true" or not.

If the poster is asking a question I don't consider whether the question is "real"--I just give my best answer if I feel like answering and move on.

People usually reveal more of their true natures than they think they do, anyway, even when they are trying to be false--ESPECIALLY if they are trying to be false. That's what I consider the single most interesting thing about internet discussion forums. yours in Chaos, Scarlett

You're forgetting the parable of the "prodigal son", though. Each person moves toward understanding in his or her own way and at his own pace.

If Nob hadn't wanted for humans to understand him, he would not have sent his avatar in human form to teach them. If he didn't have respect for human intelligence (which according to the story he created "in his own image") his avatar would not have been a well-educated and well-spoken man.

Human understanding involves questioning and investigation, and never arrives via blind acceptance.

If after a life of questioning sacred writings, a person finds a greater understanding of and love for divinity, is it "too late"..? If the answer is "no", then let the people argue. They'll either get it at some point or they won't.

I do consider it sort of annoying when people try to pick everything in a text apart and argue each little point--but it's just annoying like listening to a bunch of little kids screaming and yelling when one has a hangover is annoying. Kids are gonna be kids and it's wiser to let them go on with their childishness even when they're being annoying. I hope this was helpful. yours in Chaos, Scarlett

Hello! :)

There's no point in wasting a bunch of time or getting all stressed out about any of these things, the way I look at it.

It's not like I do this every week, every month, or even every year, but on the other hand I've never had a refusal yet, ya know?

I mean, of course it's a lot easier for a female to be direct when seeing attention from the opposite sex. Men have more to lose, so they have to be more strategic, but not much more. (Remember that scene in the movie "Tootsie" where the lady confides in Tootsie that she just wants for a man to tell her that she's really beautiful and that he wants to make love to her...? And so, out of his disguise as a female he says those exact words to her, and she slaps him? I don't envy guys at all when it comes to getting "dates", or whatever you want to call it. But then again they can pee standing up, so it all evens out.)

One of the last times I used this approach, it was someone I had known for a couple of weeks. He was very shy, but he was definitely interested. So one evening after he had walked me to the local liquor store and back, as we were approaching my house, I stopped walking. He stopped too and gave me a curious, somewhat frightened look. I said, "You're going to kiss me now."

And he did. We ended up living together for 12 years and for the most part, it was a blissful relationship between two highly compatible individuals.

Anyway, a guy doesn't have to get all gross or scary when he's telling a lady that he finds her attractive, but he shouldn't agonize over it too much, either. Nor should he just give up if he gets an initial refusal--sometimes a female has to think things over for awhile to see how the idea sits with her, right? xoxoxo

Hello, nice to meet you. :)

Obviously somebody has it in for Juice, lol.

I've actually been pissed at him for years now because I can't be as happy watching the "Naked Gun" movies anymore. :(

Luckily for me I work at home, but in office settings in the past my theoretical leanings (I won't call it "belief" because I really try to get along on as little belief or "faith" as possible) have ALWAYS caused me problems and I ALWAYS end up getting the sh1t end of the stick. (Yes, I said "always". People can tell just by the way I DON'T say anything that I'm "not one of the cool kids". If I try to play along, that gives me away just as quickly.)

But that's not religion, that's just how offices are, especially if there are a lot of female employees. Females tend to try to make their workplace into a "family". (Lest it sound like I'm bashing females, I'm not--this is a fact and can be looked up. There have been a number of studies done regarding this subject.) While men usually keep a distance from their coworkers, colleagues, and underlings, women want to be in their coworkers' business, and they give each person a "role" in the office family. There's no way one can escape it. (I am typically cast as the scapegoat, in case you are wondering.)

In one of the last office settings I worked in, I was getting hassled by a lesbian coworker who was a Wiccan. It was extremely stressful. She would do things like take little objects from my desk or purse and do spells on them, and put them back. I would get to that office at 0500, and often be the very first person there. One time this lady got there before me and marked things--the doorknobs, the walls, and the bathroom sink and mirror--with blood. I'm not sure why she did this but I think it was directed at me, because an hour later, when everyone else started coming in, it was all gone.

I ended up getting fired from that job because of my "violent, self-destructive jokes"--it was basically because I came in on Halloween with "Crow" makeup. (You know: The Crow, a cartoon character. He's awesome!)

Anyway: Don't ever suppose that discriminatory or abusive behavior is exclusive to Christians; it's definitely not.

NOTE: I'm not expressing a bias against Wiccans or religious people in general, here, either! I don't care what people believe in or how they worship, or if they worship at all.

Everyone has a right to his or her own beliefs. In the office setting, however, I prefer for people to behave in a professional manner. In the past when I have employed people or managed them, I try to discourage in as gentle a way as possible those who make their religious leanings so obvious that there's no way to overlook them. I try to discourage people from forming cliques based on religious affiliation. I do this in the name of professionalism and a calm, friendly, organized work environment.

If someone challenges me, it's usually someone who has fundamentalist Christian beliefs. I will, once the conflict gets to a certain point, take that person into a private setting and allow him or her to vent for a time--I force myself to listen to whatever the person says, and give him/her ample opportunity to express whatever it is that he wants to express.

Once it seems like he's finished and said everything he wants to say, I'll say something like, "So, I'm getting here that you feel that everyone should be proud of his beliefs and be able to express them in the work setting regardless of whether it's considered appropriate by others or not?"

The answer will always be a vehement "yes".

I will then say, "Do you know what the Temple of Set is?"

The answer will always be a somewhat confused-sounding "no".

I will then say, "The Temple of Set is a church for those of us who tend toward atheistic or agnostic, intellectually-based Satanism. Would you be comfortable if I displayed the upside-down pentagram in a frame behind my desk? When I take off early on May Eve, would you like for me to wish everyone 'season's greetings' and tell them where I'm headed, maybe invite them to the bonfire?"

That usually shuts em up. yours in Chaos, Scarlett

In the above scenario, I would not be ok with it. I would think it was inconsiderate behavior on the part of my mate.

Whether the person is a "friend" or not is not the issue, really--it's the behavior, regardless of the emotions involved. I would not expect for my boyfriend to be ok with me going over to some guy's house in the middle of the night; if it was enough of an emergency that me going there DID seem warranted, my boyfriend would be going with me.

A real friend has respect for the relationship, if you see what I'm sayin.

My boyfriend's lady friend might call late at night if the situation warranted, but if she came over late at night, or if my boyfriend went over to her place late at night--that's gonna cause a problem. I have guy friends who are in relationships, and I show respect for their relationships by not imposing on them in that manner.

Anyway, these are just my opinions, of course. I hope it's useful to you. yours in Chaos, Scarlett

I have never had any sort of problem approaching anyone. I spend a lot of time alone because I work at home and there's no one here but me and my pets, so when I'm out in the community I always smile, wave, chat with people, and try to get to know everyone. I consider people interesting and I always want to hear what's going on with them. If I'm in a bar or nightclub I will always talk to whoever is sitting near me, or to the bartender if there's no one else there.

I don't do this as a means of picking up a potential sex partner, however. I consider it in poor taste to troll the community looking for casual sex, right? I have to live with these people, and might even need to rely on them for help at some point, so I figure if I stir up a bunch of drama in the community I'll suffer for it later. Therefore a local (eligible) guy will have to give me the eye on multiple occasions before I'll even entertain the idea of a shag with him. The last time I actually took someone up on an offer like that was when I was A LOT younger, too. These days I'm more than content to keep things cool with my neighbors and wait until I see my favorite boyfriend.

Sometimes people get the wrong idea and my friendliness makes them suspicious or whatever, or I'll run into someone who's terminally lonely and I won't be able to shake that person, but it's never been that big of a problem. (If worse comes to worst and the person ends up being a nut--well, that's why I always carry a weapon, right..?)

yours in Chaos, Scarlett

You know the saying: "If you don't use it, you'll lose it"...?

This is particularly true when it is regarding our hands.

I have been having increasing symptoms of arthritis in my hands for about the last five years. I also have an arthritic knee and ankle from being in a motorcycle crash back in the early 1990s.

I have to use my hands to make my living, as I write and do medical transcription. I could still write if I lost the ability to type by using voice recognition computer software, but I wouldn't be able to transcribe anymore.

Therefore, when my hands start hurting it puts me into this like state of near-panic, right? (lol!)

Taking some drug on a regular basis for arthritis pain is not a good idea, in my opinion. Consider that if it IS arthritis, it's not going go away no matter how much you dope yourself up; it's not like an infection, in other words, or a cold. It won't be "cured" by the drugs. The drugs will only mask the pain, and at some point you'll need more drugs because the pain will get worse.

To get my hands working I massage them and exercise them. I don't take anything for the pain other than the occasional aspirin, naproxen (Aleve), or ibuprofen (Motrin), and I don't take any pain reliever on a regular basis, or every day.

Another thing you might want to try that has worked really well for me is to run cold water in the sink and put your hands under the cold water. Once your hands start to feel cold from the water, turn the hot water on and let the hot water run over them--as hot as you can stand. Once you do this a couple of times, if this is truly arthritis pain, you'll notice a big difference.

The pain you're describing doesn't sound all that much like arthritis, however. It sounds more to me like either carpal tunnel syndrome or (more likely) trigger finger syndrome. If it's just in one hand and localized to one part of the hand, do as another poster here has suggested and see another doctor for a second opinion.

A friend of mine who wrenches on bikes for a living and plays the guitar developed trigger finger and ultimately had to get surgery on his hand. That fixed the problem and he doesn't suffer anymore.

So do see another doctor and see what that doctor says. If you do have trigger finger syndrome instead of arthritis, a simple surgical procedure might put you back to normal.

I hope this helps. Good luck! yours in Chaos, Scarlett

There's nothing really to worry about unless you wake up, hear a noise, look outside and see the crowd with torches and pitchforks. THEN (and only then) you know it's time to run. Otherwise, just do what any sane and rational person would do and enjoy the non-attention!

If they really considered you inconsequential, they would make eye contact and smile--that's how you can tell. People will always make an effort at least to sell things to a person they consider to be truly lowly. If no one is looking at you and no one is talking to you, and if they seem to look through you when you try to talk to them: You're important, baby! Use that sh1t! Use it for all it's worth! I hope this was helpful. yours in Chaos, Scarlett

I have no idea what you're talking about! "Dull"...? "Drab"...?

One thing I have noticed (which is quite ironic in my non-humble opinion) is that sites that are for the over-18 crowd ONLY end up being very boring because you can't cuss.

On a site that's for 13 and up--lots of cussing. On a site that's for 18 and older: No cussing allowed.

That seems strange to me, but not "dull", since it's not endemic to the site, but to the internet in general.

Anyway, who would want for you to explain or understand the reason for a site being "dull" or "drab"..? (Not me!)



Are you that guy who IMed me this morning and accused me of being a hypocrite because I have a boyfriend, and yet still belong to an internet social site..? COME ON NOW!! CONFESS!

(If it was you, no big deal. I do stuff like that myself every so often!)



It's been my experience that the words "true" and "genuine" are very much abused--usually by those in sales. But what are ya gonna do...? I mean, you know: The Apocalypse, right?

I hope this was helpful! and good luck to you in your search! yours in Chaos, Scarlett

You have filtered me out of your profile, so I respectfully decline the invitation to comment on same.

But: Welcome! I hope you have fun here. yours in Chaos, Scarlett

Where do I lie...? Well... if I told you, that would reduce the effectiveness of my lies, wouldn't it?

Greetings! ;)

Ok: ROFL. I hope that is more clear!

Did your friend ever get her house cleaned up?

Ok, well... moving on. That was my day.

To paraphrase the Dalai Lama:

The greatest love that exists is between two individuals who only want each other and don't need each other at all.

I agree with that.

yours in Chaos, Scarlett

L O L (lol)

I know you are feelin me.

On another forum (not this one) a guy kept saying he was gonna kill me. I messaged him with my address and said, "Come on homeboy it's been awhile since I shot somebody!" lol xoxo (for some reason he never showed up)

(the dollar store -- a haiku)

There is a strange smell
permeating all the aisles
and it might be you......

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