#The reason I am still Catholic is that I happened to be very open with my mom about whatever fears I had around religion growing up

[allieinarden]

If you are scrupulous, the gulf between what you were taught about religion and what you think you were taught about religion could be huge. It is, of course, fully possible that you were given bad doctrine by clueless individuals, but if you still have access to the people who schooled you in your faith—family members, family friends, mentors with whom you remain in touch—it might be worth asking them what they meant by some of the things they said. The scrupulous mind tends to draw very extreme conclusions. You might be shocked by some of the clarification that you get.

[bkyngw]

wow thanks to all of you who gave me [checks notes] 20 notes on my fucked up fantasy magical system post with my doomed old man yaoi couple. im glad you like My Guys.

Under the cut are clearer notes that I transcribed including additional information. I admit this is a First Draft kind of list and not 100% set in stone, mostly trying to brainstorm ideas and i will eventually refine it to fit the story i want to tell.

BRIDES

Also referred to as “Dolls” as a pejorative.

According to the biggest religion, they are individuals who are “chosen” by god to become vessels of magic power.

Brides become physically indestructible and immortal. Their body stops growing/changing at the age they are Chosen except for their hair (on their scalp) which continues growing and also cannot be damaged/cut. This is how ages of Brides are usually visually determined

Brides cannot hear any human voice except for their Spouse, and become mute.

They are tied to a handler, or “Spouse/Husband” in order to be able to regulate their power or else they will die. A Bride refusing to get married and dying is considered heretical since they are seen as they are seen as “wasting their gift from god.”

Brides are compelled to follow orders from their Spouse.

The High Church are the only ones who can officiate “Marriages” to bind Brides to their Spouses. (Or are they…?)

Brides are very rare. 1-2 pop up every century on average (author's note: i am still deciding on the frequency)

Selection of Brides are arbitrary based on ethnicity or location, but the average age people get chosen is between 15-25, mostly women. Occasionally men, and that opens a whole other bag of homophobic worms.

Male Brides are usually married into the Church (re:the pope) as to not challenge patriarchal norms. There are specific circumstances where Male Brides are sublimated into a “women”’s role but thats not usually desirable

Asa and Theo’s Marriage is a Hot Political Opinion Topic among general society

this world/region is “culturally” this religion, so Chosen Marriages heavily influence what is expected of normal marriages (PATRIARCHY 2: ELECTRIC BOOGALOO!!)

Other religions exist, but they’re either results from schisms (Re: Catholics vs Protestants) or basically discriminated against/ wiped out

The general unspoken opinion is that once Chosen, Brides are no longer human but basically objects that people use for power/utility/status/war

Bride abuse is extremely common and normalized.

Very difficult to kill a Bride, however they will die if they eventually run out of magic (Their Half-life is extremely long), killed with a rare enchanted weapon specifically for Killing Brides, or a Secret third thing (!).

Married Brides are usually passed down through generations of the Spouses’ family. It is highly unlikely a Bride will be traded off or given away UNLESS the family is under extreme pressure or forcibly taken.

If a spouse dies unexpectedly (murder/assassination/etc) before the above is formalized the Church will marry the Bride back into the Spouse’s family. This is to prevent assassinations among the privileged class to free up Brides for Marriage.

Brides from lower class families are usually taken from their homes by the Church and married off to Powerful families who contribute to the Church’s power. Dowries are usually paid to the family but it’s basically hush money.

If a Bride happens to be from a family with status they are usually married back into their family.

Reasons why Asa and Theo’s Marriage is considered “progressive”:

Asa is not from a highly wealthy or high-status family

Theo is from a well-off (but not High Status) family

Theo is a male Bride formally Married to a Spouse and not to the Church, and did not formally take a “women”’s role.

Asa and Theo’s dynamic is seen as unusual/deviant from this society’s expectations of Marriage; Asa gives Theo more agency than what Brides are usually afforded.

Asa and Theo’s Many Issues With The Church:

Theo is considered EXTREMELY POWERFUL by Bride standards.

The church and people in power are internally divided on their Marriage - some are waiting for Asa to die naturally so they can marry Theo into the church “Peacefully” and others want to excommunicate Asa or kill him to do it sooner. Some people want Theo's power for themselves.

Asa has had a couple attempts on his life in the past but they were unsuccessful.

Asa is sitting on the fact that Marriages are Basically a Fucking Lie Made Up To Oppress People which scares the church and also makes them mad. As far as anyone knows Asa and Theo's Marriage was officiated by the church but that is not true. How this develops is Spoilers, and would be revealed in their Story (lmao)

[gisellelx]

Every once in a while, I reread one of your stories and I can’t help but check your website for any updates for One Day 😇 Just curious: are you still working on it? No pressure whatsoever of course!! I love the way you portray Carlisle in that fic & am already super thankful for those first 8 or so chapters! Anyways, hope you are doing well & thanks for providing us with so many high-quality fics!

- Sannehale

Ah, this ask made my year. (Also now I realize your two blog names. Sneaky!)

Yes., yes I am. It was actually open on my laptop even as this ask came in. My prereader is asking about it too--I stopped giving her chapters because I was realizing that I got a lot of enjoyment out of sending them to her and that was filling enough void that it cut off my writing mojo. I'm thrilled though, that she can't see where it's going.

I'm stuck on chapter 16 (of likely 23-25) at the moment because a whole bunch of dominos have to fall in order to get to several reveals that are going to happen in very fast succession to move the story out of the second act. Also the second act/B story was hard because I am not a romance writer! 😆 It's not the genre I read and I'm not very good at writing it, but the middle of this story called for a romance and so there is one. Or so I hope.

I've also gone back and shored up some things that needed shoring--introduced a few of the characters who turned out to be important earlier on, and added another character in Bella's research mentor, Amy Jackson. I'm worried that I'm under-utilizing her at the moment.

This ask, though, prompted me to back out to the card view in the Scrivener project and I realize I actually did leave myself the breadcrumbs necessary to get myself out of here. Maybe I'll put my shoulder to the wheel and see what happens if I just follow the outline I laid out.

Anyway. I feel like I shouldn't end an ask without giving a little bit of some of the over 40,000 words that are written and not posted. So here's a tiny bit. This actually may not stay in, and in any event doesn't spoil anything--it's also the headcanon behind this chapter of Montage, though this scene was written years ago and my headcanon about Carlisle's name and his parents' names goes back over fifteen years now.

Of course, I knew a lot more than most people who were hunting down a relative from the 1600s. I clicked on the link for church records, and then delimited my search. If Carlisle was 367, that put him in 1644. That seemed reasonable. I filtered the results by the location, London, and then 1640 to 1650.

CULLEN, I typed. CARLISLE.

Zero hits. I frowned at my screen for a long moment and then practically slapped myself in the head. Of course there were no hits for Carlisle Cullen. Wasn’t this the very thing we’d been arguing about for months, now? I backspaced over the first name, and changed it to WILLIAM.

There were only three hits. Astonishing. I had assumed that Carlisle would have done his due diligence. He’d had hundreds of years to track this information down—why hadn’t he? William Cullen number one was in the baptismal records of St. Luke’s Catholic Church. He had been baptized in 1642. That would make him nearly the same age as Carlisle, no luck there. William Cullen number two, however, was on over seventy pages of documents—the records of St. James Aldgate, listed as parish pastor. And William Cullen number three almost caused my heart to stop.

Born 17 February 1644. Died 8 August 1667.

Twenty-three years old.

My heart, pounding, I clicked on the church register, enlarging it so that it filled my screen. The handwriting was old, faded and pixelated, but it was tidy and easy to read. Carlisle Cullen, it read, with William crammed onto the line before the first name, in the same handwriting but obviously a different pen—the lines were narrower, slanted slightly differently. Born and baptized on February 17, 1644. Father, William Cullen number 2. And mother…

My heart sped. There, in the same scrawly hand—his father’s hand, I realized, it must be—was written the words, Sarah Cullen (Crawforth).

A quick “Open in New Tab” allowed me to pull all the records from the 1600s from St. James Aldgate and in five minutes, I had a birth date of November 15, 1620. And a death date, which was of course expected, of February 17, 1644. But it was the annotation here which was breathtaking—in a different handwriting, written by the midwife? Some other member of the parish?

Died babe in arms.

Tears sprang to my eyes, and with blurry vision, on a hunch, I ran one last search. Then I printed the pages with the documents, shoved them in a folder, and headed for my car.

[iris-sistibly]

Since I'm rewatching Maria Clara at Ibarra on Netflix, at dahil may time ako for today's bidyow I'm just gonna give my two cents on this comment:

I think we can all agree that Maria Clara did NOT deserve to suffer the way she did, and yes she deserves to be happy with the only man she ever loved. But Maria Clara's story is the story of many women who were oppressed, and abused by priests during the Spanish era and sadly, this reality STILL exists even up to this day. And as much as I fucking hate to admit this, there are still many untold stories of women (even boys and young men) who were sexually abused by these disgusting hypocrites who call themselves instruments of God, and what's more painful is that the victims are silenced and the abusers get away with it because *coughs* ✨the Church protects them✨

Don't get me wrong, I was baptized and raised as a Catholic myself, but I refuse to ignore cases like these which thankfully in the modern times are being addressed and taken actions of, but I'm not sure how many of these mga sugo ng Diyos are actually punished for their crimes (*clears throat* Church is still quite influential af even in the 21st century 🙃).

Ibarra is a good man with good intentions for San Diego, yet he was framed and accused of being a heretic and filibuster by [again] these fugly Church peeps because they wanted the Filipinos to remain indios: uneducated and poor af. Juan Crisostomo Ibarra is the image of those people who only wanted to help their fellow Filipinos, yet are the ones who are being punished for the most nonsense reasons, and the very people who called themselves his friends and supporters are the same people who turned their backs on him because they were afraid of suffering the same fate as Crisostomo (and Don Rafael) .

In the show, I saw myself in Klay (except that I passed my Noli, El Fili and Rizal lessons 🤣) my only drive to read Noli and El Fili was to pass my Filipino subject. I did not have a full grasp of the lesson that Rizal was trying to teach. The moment I passed my subject, I was like "Oh good! Finally!" but I didn't take those learnings by heart. And I said the very same thing Klay said in the earlier episode, "What's the point of studying Noli and El Fili when I can't even apply it on the course I'm taking or my job when I graduate?" And I admit, history wasn't my favorite subject, I found it boring. I missed the whole point of what my teacher was teaching me.

I could go on and on about the characters of the novels and the show but to sum it all up, every character and events are the very images of every Filipino, their struggles, and the truth about what was really happening in our country. Rizal's Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo weren't the kind of novels you expect them to be, it is not a stereotypical love story, and it wasn't written to make the readers OR the audiences happy. These novels are here to teach the Klays like you and me not only about our history but also open our eyes to the reality of how this cancer of the society still exists and if we, the Filipino people don't do something to "cure" this, our country will NEVER progress.

As much as I wanted Ibarra and Maria to have a happily ever after they both deserve, I am glad that GMA 7 actually didn't stray away too much from its source materials, because now I understand why I had to learn those books. I understand now why Rizal was named national hero, his novels paved the way for the Filipinos to finally stand up and fight the oppressors.

However, as much as it pains me of how tragic Rizal's novels are, at least in the show, they got a happy ending. Just in a different timeline and universe but still, happily ever after.

[holocene-sims]

next // previous

june 17, 2021 12:00 p.m. st. francis catholic cemetery

dear grant,

by the time you read this, i don’t know where you’ll be in life, but i can’t imagine this becoming irrelevant. at least for me, while i'm writing this, it’s one day after i overheard you and your best friend henry talking in your room. you said, “i don’t believe in god but i think i'm missing something because you and everyone else i know seem to think he’s real.” and i know you were talking about me before that.

it’s not the first time i've heard you really confused about, well, what’s out there. you asked me a while ago why i was so comfortable not trying to treat my cancer and just letting myself go naturally. i told you that’s something you have to do sometimes in difficult situations, but that’s not really the full story. i'm okay with it because i believe in something better. it’s not about whether i'm right or not, or whether god and a heaven are really out there. it’s just about believing in something and feeling comfortable in it.

but you know, i think being able to say i believe in god and a heaven and that jesus christ died for me is a sign of privilege. lately, being sick is the first thing in my life (my life, we're not talking about everything else bad in the world) that has ever made me question anything about my beliefs. i've always been able to get away with saying there’s a god-made reason for everything and that everything will turn out okay. it’s not so easy to rationalize anymore when you’re facing something really bad.

i don’t think you have the same privilege i do. you've had a much harder life than me. i can’t understand why, but mom is terrible to you. why would you believe in a benevolent god who loves you and wants the best for you when you’ve spent your whole life suffering? it doesn’t make any sense, does it? it doesn’t make sense to me either. i'm sorry if my beliefs ever made you feel worse. as much as i believe, i can poke a lot of holes in my beliefs. it’s been a while since i've been able to really say that god has a plan. i think he’s out there and i think he loves us, but i don’t think he controls us. if he does, then i have a serious problem with what he’s done to you. there’s a theory about that concept of god not being in control, but i can’t remember what i read. i'm sure you could talk to father lonergan about it, though. he���s kind of secretly sacrilegious in his beliefs, more than you’d think.

anyway, don’t feel bad for not being able to believe in what a lot of us believe in. i promise you you’re not the only one, and you won’t hurt anyone for not believing. uncle paddy is an atheist and no one gives a fuck. i know you take after the way he talks, so maybe that’ll make you feel better :) our grandma also knows a suspicious amount about old irish paganism and folk beliefs and she’s always been very open-minded towards other religions, so don’t confuse yourself thinking she’s all that devout and worried about your eternal salvation. i don’t know what she actually believes, but i don’t think it’s what she says out in the open. you should ask her about it when you’re ready.

most of all, i'm not hurt by you having different beliefs. the only thing that hurts me is that you’re confused. i don’t want you to feel that way. no matter what, i can accept anything that happens to me because i think there’s something better after this, but you don’t have something to cling to, to make you feel comfortable. i don’t get the impression you really like the fully scientific belief either. not to put words in your head (feel free to mark up this letter and tell me how wrong i am) but i think you’re scared that there’s nothing out there at all, that all there is in life is without purpose and meaning. if the universe did create itself (which it did, i'm not an idiot), then you still have to grapple with how the event that made such a beautiful universe also created evil.

neither explanation satisfies you, does it?

again, there’s a reason we believe in all these things. it’s seriously not about correctness. all belief systems are equally "right." it’s just about that believing does something for us. you don’t even have to believe in the same thing forever. i just hope you find something that brings you comfort. i don’t want you to suffer. and i don’t want you to feel like i'm not with you anymore.

that’s the other thing about believing in heaven for me. the thing that makes me most scared of dying is leaving everyone behind. and i'm actually scared of that. i won't tell you that now because it doesn't make me feel any better to see you scared. i don’t want to say goodbye to you, to kelly, our grandparents, to our cousins, to my friends...but i have to. i have to, but i hope and believe i'll see you all again someday. i don’t just want to have something nice beyond this. i want the reunion of family and friends. i actually want that most of all. if i could only have any one benefit of the afterlife, i'd take the reunion. i don't know how that would works or if it's real, but i pray it is, and i pray that you will all be there regardless of your beliefs.

i love you very much <3 see you in the future. just don’t make it anytime soon, okay?

- your favorite sister, elizabeth

[msfbgraves]

So Terry threatened the LaRusso Mob family—to annihilate them all? So why did they offer Daniel as the bartering piece? Why not something else? Or even, someone else, like another of their children instead? What made them choose their youngest child—is it because he’s an Omega, and they felt like Terry, being an Alpha, wouldn’t be able to resist him?

Terry needs to expand his territory, as he is trying to explain to John Kreese as well. Stay small and relatively contained - there's too many newcomers coming in, they will get attacked, possibly usurped, if he does nothing. He later says as much to Daniel. The problem for the LaRussos is they have just had a lot of infighting. Someone thought that because Don LaRusso hadn't waged war in two decades, he couldn't.

They were wrong. But it does mean the Don has had to kill former allies, which can't be good for any empire. He's strong but bleeding.

And Terry's reputation is of him being absolutely feral. He came to the Don to extort him. Pay up, or I will attack this time.

Problem with that is that Terry will lose people too. A lot of people. And who is to say that he can ward off any other mob organisations when that happens? Can he recover quickly enough? Terry is banking on the Don thinking that he doesn't realise that - to put it differently: if Terry doesn't understand that nearly killing himself to get the LaRusso territory is a stupid idea, and attacks anyway, that would be really bad for the LaRussos. They just can't weather another full blown war, not now. Wars get started for stupid reasons all the time. So Terry's reasoning is: "If the Don thinks I am stupid enough to attack him, he probably can be extorted right now."

The Don is like: "Interesting. By the way, my beautiful omega son is on the marriage market, and he comes with access to all my territory and absolutely zero cost to either of us. Here he is now."

If Terry were going to attack him, he couldn't care less about that. Could maybe even claim Daniel as a prize afterwards. That's not good news, but it is information. And it would mean that the Don would have to prepare for war fast: that means all hands on deck, Luigi, Vanessa and Miguele included, and that means that at least one if his children will die. Probably not Vanessa, but Luigi will likely not come back from it.

But... Terry seems interested. That means that this young Alpha understands that he has far more to gain by expanding his territory without incurring a lot of losses. The problem is the option isn't normally open to him, not on this scale. He doesn't have enough to offer for an equal partnership. And if he threatens another big mob stronghold he'll get laughed in the face. In fact, had he tried this before the Italian uprising, he wouldn't have stood a chance. But he saw an opportunity and pounced on it - clever! In fact, Don LaRusso is lucky the Chinese aren't also trying to attack him right now. They're not as well informed as this Irishman, grazie a Dio! In fact, the LaRussos could use some of Terry's people, and at least they're all Catholic. It could work. The Chinese or Russians or Yakuza are too big a cultural gap.

But you need something very strong to keep this together, and that means marriage, and more important than that, puppies.

Of course, the best solution would be to trick Terry into doing something stupid so he can be killed without triggering war. And if that doesn't work, he must prove to be trustworthy as a mate for Daniele. Because Daniele is the only one who could have Terry's puppies.

And it would still be an ego boost for Terry, having all but forced the Don to give him his son to stop him from attacking. Makes him look powerful. Which is advantageous for the Don as well because again, he's in a weakened position if he does nothing and doesn't want anyone else to try to attack him, at least not right now. He'll recover soon enough but he can use all the help he can get.

As for giving Terry anything else - that would weaken the LaRussos too much right now. Besides, he's a single Alpha, stands to gain a lot from this at zero cost, and Daniele is a very beautiful omega. There are other interested parties, far richer than him (but not mafia, which at the moment is a problem).

It's an offer he can't refuse, and they both know it.

[pot-black]

So I think its time for me to provide some insight into a very controversial subject.

I am speaking of course, about wearing shoes inside the house in the United States: Yea or Nay?

Now, this has been discussed before. You may have seen posts saying it is unequivocally a Thing we Americans do. Your first reaction may have been, "Since when! I don't know anybody who does!"

You may also have seen claims saying it is just a thing that happens in some states. Places without wet climates that get snow regularly. Only to then see rebuttals claiming to be from Arizona (a dry, warm state) that say the shoes come off at the door or New York (a cold, wet state) that say everybody they know wears shoes inside.

So what gives? Are people lying? Does one particular side just have a disproportional representation on the interweb? No, no those aren't the answers. I think you'll find, this is one of those norms that is not decided by geographical location, and with your indulgence, I would like to explore the factors that may better lead to this behavior. That is to clarify,

The practice of wearing outside shoes inside, and around the home.

But before I jump into the reasons, I would like to clarify the terms. Most people hear "outside shoes worn inside the house" and immediately jump to horror at tracking, mud, snow, wet or dirt all over one's home.

Let me reassure you. Nowhere have I personally seen that or read that to be a normal behavior. Except for very specific circumstances, like carrying a heavy load inside that can't be put down or running inside to grab or deliver an object, where one will be returning outside in less than a minute, American's are very conscious about tracking visible dirt inside one's home. It's the dirt one doesn't see that is the subject of debate.

So the first reason is Culture. (logically) There are some nations that have a particularly ingrained culture of which shoes inside the home are a big no-no. Certain Asian nations like Japan make up the top of the list, but the particular nations aren't important here. Immigrants from those nation's brought the practice with them when they came to the United States, and now, generations down the line, those families still follow this cultural norm.

Second reason is Dog Ownership. There's no way around it, Dogs are dirty animals. Think about the dirt they roll in or the smell they get when they are wet. There are some dog owners who clean them every time they bring them in, or put shoes or rain coats on the dog to prevent them from getting dirty, but most dog owners I know don't have the time for that. In my experience, a home with an active dog going in and out, is also a home that wears shoes inside.

Third is Family Size. I don't know how relevant it is, but this is an observation from a Catholic Family (I'm non-practicing). The chances of a family wearing shoes in the house increases with the number of children. My dad has seven siblings, I have three, and one of my Uncle's has five children. In all of our home's, shoe's are worn inside. This is perhaps because with so many children constantly running in and out of the house, it's very easy for parent's attitude to nonvisible dirt to lax. I can't count the number of socks I ruined growing up from leaving without shoes. And at my uncle's house, it is not uncommon to have shoes be left in the yard. Sacrifice's have to be made somewhere, or else parents have to be a strong disciplinarian.

Fourth is Flooring Type and Age. Most people who have carpeted floors or carpets on the floor will be families that say shoes off at the door. Whereas most people with a hard floor like vinyl, stone, tile or wood, won't mind having shoes be worn in. The age of the floor also plays a roll. The older a carpet is, the more likely it is to be dirty, and also the more likely a homeowner will be open to wearing shoes on it. Age also can decide a homeowner's views for a hard floor.

Residence Location. "Oh but didn't you say this was not decided by geography?" I did and this isn't geography, rather Population Density: Rural, Suburban, and Urban. Each have their unique qualifiers. People who live In a rural location, which I am defining to be one needs bottled water for the walk to the closest neighbors, are more likely to be shoes off at the door. That far out it is more likely their shoes will be dirty, and they might take pride from keeping a clean home. Urban residents, people whose closest neighbors are a wall away, are also most likely to be shoes off at the door, for the same reasons as the rural people. The dirt may be different, but urban areas are undeniable filthy, you can feel it on your skin after a day in the city. Plus, when you may have neighbors who live beneath and above you, the polite thing to do is to take one's shoes off, so as to not make noise. Suburban residents are people whose neighbors are a five minute walk at most. Suburbs aren't particularly wild or dirty places, and the people who live in them aren't typically traveling in places where one's shoes would be getting particularly dirty (rural is self-explainable, but though the dirt on public transportation may be invisible, who wants it in the house?). For this reason, most suburbanites may wear shoes into the home.

Occupation also phrased as Farmer? or Collar Color. The job one work's can decide whether an American takes off their shoe's. It is safe to say that Americans who have a job that requires manual labor, blue collar workers, take their shoes off at the end of the workday before entering the home. I do. Like farmers. Every farming family I know takes their shoes off at the door. Every farmhouse usually has a mudroom for the express purpose of removing one's shoes, which is also usually the customary way to enter the home. Now simply living on a farm doesn't fall under my umbrella, I'm talking about those who make their living that way. Historically other occupations in American history also uniformly fall under this norm. Anyone who lives in places with a large mining or industrial background may be aware of the room known as the Pittsburgh Potty, named so after the Pennsylvania city which has a rich history of both occupations. The Potty would be a toilet and sink or shower in the basement of the home. Although the reason it was there was often due to it being an easy addition to homes built without indoor plumbing, the practical usage was so that workers could take off their shoes and wash up at the end of the workday before going upstairs to the home proper. Some continue to be used for that purpose to this day.

Wealth. The wealth of a resident is definitely a factor, but I don't think one can draw uniform divisions from it. A family with money will most likely have a nice house, and may say shoes off at the door to keep it nice. But they may also not care, as they have the money to pay someone to keep the floor clean or to replace the floor is it becomes damaged or worn. A family without money may not have new floors or have floors in the best condition due to age or wear. They may say shoes off at the door to lessen the work to keep it clean or prevent further wear on the floor, but they also may not care because the floor is already worn or old.

An active wood burning stove or fireplace*. Yes this is a factor, though not a very big one. It also may technically be related to geography, as it would only really be found among rural people in states that have cold winters. In places like that, houses that are designed to be heated by wood will have a central chimney. As the fire burns, the stone or metal flue will radiate the heat from the exhaust. This means that the wood has to be carried though the house and stockpiled inside, typically from a stockpile which is against the house outside, but can also be located in the yard. These treks are typically done without taking one's shoes off, even for snow or wet. It's not unusually to track leaves or to drop wood dust and dirt on the floor. These also tend to spread across the floor near inside stockpiles. With the level of constant clutter and dirt that is ever present in these houses in the cold months, it is also not unusually for the norm to be shoes on.

The last reason I have is probably the biggest. While all above are reasons one can point to to justify wearing shoes in or taking them off, if you ask the average American who wears them in why they do so, you are most likely to get this response. Convenience/Does Not Care. These people don't really have a justifiable reason. They wear shoes in because they don't want to be bothered with taking them off every time they enter the house. Point out that it is cleaner or healthier all you want, chances are they have heard it before or are aware. They just don't care. They aren't militant about it. They understand and respect that some homes have shoe's off policies, and will take their shoes off when asked while visiting. But in their own home they leave them on, and they will assume the same at other homes unless informed different. Chances are high this just how these people are raised.

To end though, this is no worry. Most Americans will tell visitors whether the household is shoes on or off. But a word of warning, just as it it a faux pas to wear one's shoes into a no-shoes home, it is also one to take one's shoes off without being asked in a shoes-on home. Host hospitality will typically excuse it, but it is seen in the light of making oneself too at home, like putting one's feet up when sitting down.

[scentedchildnacho]

Neighborhood pomegranate....it isn't really tart till you reach the center...abdul baha I told them I was interested in actions at a distance that had subconsciously affected my life like meeting the hare Krishnas in san Diego so he told me he recommended an author on out of body experience in Baha'i

He also told me to remember to ask will there be enough for my death...on protestant Catholic wars....

The wars for territory in northern Ireland from what I read weren't religious....Anthony King the upper classes had stuff on what a nation is and decided to see if they could do something all more experimental then religious

The french enlightenment was the worst thing that ever happened to women....its just to research and experiment because and has no feeling at all

All very modern ...

It can here kind of appear about God but it is all random and darwinism...it's too see if they can re start a monopolization

It just affects the people mother earth isn't in anyway bothered or disturbed

Violence for God i believe in Uncle Sam and david myths and ideas of experimenting on populations so they do most of the war for the invader...

Gods people are always an experiment to the upper classes and that's not democracy

Harper's ferry I believe in very shocking return violence about modern day slavery....

They wanted to know what I would do for a job....so I said I was influanced by what barak Obama would do for Muslims in executing Osama bin laden there was this private small beautiful fortune here after and a lot of slave driving expectations tended to be gone for social program opening

So after being allowed China labor unions on gesture and ergonomics find jobs calling people mad fools that expend and dissipate energy to do something simple

I have wanted a good....job....the ideas of urban agriculture produce the same amount of profits and actual material distribution but it's impact on the worker is dramatically reduced by realistic management

It is more a labor union for just compensation and asking what a wage realistically does...

But for now natchez Mississippi told me to realize that the economy shifted to an information economy and that all meditative experience is an economic component

But no matter object experiment there is still paternal battery ideas that women and children aren't owed for creating collectively a meditative media experience

So for now I'm mostly interested in who I may interact with.......to see corporately or governmentally I can find to tap into a reservoir of unpaid wages....because it didn't occur to people to do

Its more viewing finance as dark matter and trying to find that universe

Ephesians I am the body of Christ and drugging me with pills and stealing my blood will isolate an enzyme that will save the whole world

Harper's ferry though asking for wages though I think is viewed as naive and just an instigator to end financial markets and start a mass exodus out of the geography

They wouldn't stop impoverishing and experimenting on us and I think something warns that they need to die for crimes against humanity

Hidden African populations....

I am from Wisconsin so if I want to be poor and do Georgia o keefe and federal art grants I get experimented on....if they were immigrants nightmare of cutting ones own throat etc

The immigrants are very brave about wanting to be personnally promoted and I have to go to jews to remind me there are 10000 people at that school sure my production is free...

I told her I had to stay at a shelter but thats better for me right now...places more monetary are very despiritualized right now and if your too alone you can get really attacked if your not careful

I told him I had read about....Gideon and there appears an energy in the southwest states participants can't really stay sane under without calls to Muslim prayer

Its kind of everything has people kind of at each other for no reason it is kind of out of mind crazy like a poem by Michael ondaatje on something wanting to snipe at rats

Some of it is maybe al quaidas

So it would suprise you that issues of the jail like a fuck can attack you....if you dont learn anti trust contracts....criminally insane people are around people shouldnt have to put in jail anymore

Union rules more people are usually threats of more immediate consequences so bad behaviours stop .

[expfcultragreen]

[Ambling rhetorical tone....not your white ex arguing with you tone...old man sucking on grass tone...get the jeff bridges in big lebowski AI v.o. dialed in]

A dude died doing a sun dance recently, some older dudes kept yelling at him that if a native dude didnt finish they couldnt do it again for 8 years, that the tradition was riding on him etc.

His widow says, it must be that he died because someone there had their period "which is unlucky". Sure. In my culture, its amazing luck to get it or be having it 🤷

Is it unlucky because the tradition since colonization is to implicitly harass women about how they should be pregnant instead, by acting like periods are evil magic that shouldnt be happening/present and that is deeply unwanted and suspicious? How many nonnative guys was he being made to compete against btw, in this sacred ceremony?

How rude of me

Like, is the widow going to spend the rest of her life hating the period-haver for this because the old guys who are actually responsible have been telling you your whole life that periods are bad

Btw do you have to do a time out when you get yours? Really drives the point home that if you were just pregnant right now youd be with friends and family like usual

Is that how it was known who was having their period? Having to isolate means everyone knows your ovulation cycle too, anyone can track it

The culture i was raised in, as many have noted, is the opposite of this: my theory is that its paramount that unwanted suitors be anaware of your ovulation timing so the move is to never let on when youre having your period, no matter how much discomfort youre in, so that your fertility optimums cant be tracked by others

Which is a different kind of stigmatization, but, theyre still lucky to get and have, it means an unwanted suitor didnt get you, it means the future is wide open like you could even have a bunch of kids because youre young and healthy* (if you were neither you wouldnt be having it; *this is exclusive of people who stop having it for medical reasons because it sucked so bad somehow, eg going on t and/or getting a hysterectomy, which, remember that missing ut' book cover about antitrans whatever? ive never known a trans guy who did the yeet but ive known a cisish gal who did and it was because for her periods werent a marker of health and sucked haywire-bad but also its worth noting that she was raised catholic which is not my own culture so i cant really speak to that....she says in catholicism periods are a punishment from god for what eve did or smthn 🙄 sounds like more incentivization for pregnancy, to escape gods monthly wrath reminder or whatever)

So like basically she'd rather beef some random person for a mystified bodily function, than the dudes reportedly insisting that her partner not stop participating, bummer....its just 8 years, he's dead

Why is it my place to see a news item if its not my place to comment? Like why was this public information, why do i know someone there was reportedly having their period, thats pretty fine grain stuff isnt it?

Im familiar with the norm that people are expected to not comment regardless, but, i dont share it, and here i am on my own blog and not the comment section of any piece about it or the inboxes of anyone involved

Some advice from season 18 episode 4 of americas next top model: if youre trying to relate to people you cant talk down to them; people have very contrasting ideas of what condescension is like/looks like/feels like....kid gloves vs courtliness

It would simply be more polite to not comment, i suppose? But these ARE my thoughts, and i find it condescending when people politely refuse to comment

[newmiriamsmysteries]

[Blurb - "My Name Is..."]

The Officer looked at me intently from across the table.  His cheeks were puffed and red from carrying around his hefty frame.  His belly hung over his belt, his shoulders nearly broke the seams on the suit jacket he wore.  He was definitely a desk cop.  A manila file folder sat open before him, I could see my own mugshot and criminal record looking back at me.

Nathaniel stood by the door looking defiant at my being there.  His arms crossed over his chest and his shirt sleeves rolled up to his elbows.  His tie was loose and hung around his neck.  His hair was a mess from too many nights of sleeping on the couch in his office.

  “Let’s try this again,”  The Nameless Cop began.  I sat back in my seat, my teeth clenched and eyes narrowed.  This was not how I wanted to spend my Friday night -

“What’s your name?”  The Cop asked me, I kept silent and glanced at James.  The Detective nodded but offered no words. 

“My name is Miriam Wallace,” I said flatly.  

“Can you tell me, Ms. Wallace, what it is you do?”  The Cop questioned. 

“Miss.  It’s Miss Wallace.”  I replied, the Cop huffed but didn’t comment.  “I’m a Private Investigator.  My License number is 137596.”

“Go on.”  The Cop said.

“You want more?”  I asked, my eyes widened.  I took his silence to mean he did.  “I was born in Louisiana to Detective Robert Wallace and his wife, Monica. I have one older brother and one older sister. I moved to Williamsport when I was eighteen years old.”

“I am told by Detective Walton,”  The Cop said, gesturing his eyes to Nathan who hadn’t moved from his post by the door.  “That you are on Retainer for this very Police Department as a Crime Scene Investigator and Paranormal Consultant?” His eyebrows raised as he read the last part.  

“I can see ghosts.”  I shrugged.  “I also move in Paranormal circles.  I know Williamsport’s resident Vampire Clan and Werewolf Pack.  So if that’s all -  I’d like to get going, I’m late for dinner.” I started to get up.

“Uh-uh.  Sit down.”  The Cop said.  I sighed and did.  

“Captain, I don’t think this questioning is necessary.”  Nathan finally spoke up.  “I can make a full report of the situation for you.  There’s no need to keep her any longer.” 

“You would go to bat for your pet freak, wouldn’t you, Walton?”  The Captain said and looked back at me, “You were found standing over the body of a murdered man outside of an underground club known as ‘Heartbeat’.  Gunpowder residue on your hand.  Care to explain it.”

“Self defense,”  I said with another shrug.  My eyes narrowed as he called me a ‘freak’ and anger flared in my chest.  

“He was a Vampire, he was coming for me, I shot him,”  I added evenly.  

“But if he was a ‘Vampire’, how is he dead in my Morgue?”  The Cop asked.  

“My gun fires specially made silver bullets, forged in Holy Ash from the Local Catholic Diocese.  One perfectly aimed shot - one dead Vampire.” 

“You don’t get it, do you?  You’re under some serious charges, Detective.  You’ve got a murder wrap hanging over your head and all I have to do is say the word.  You’ll be on trial by next week and dead a week later.”  The Captain threatened.  

I stood up, put my hands on the table, and leaned forward.  “No, Captain, you don’t get it.”  My voice was cold and even. My anger had turned to rage as it grew within me and I didn’t like the feeling.

“I can read you like an open book.  I can feel everything you’re feeling.  I know everything you’re thinking.  You’re scared.  You don’t want to believe in the monsters.  You want to close your eyes and forget they exist.  Well, guess what, pal, I am one of those monsters.  The only reason why this city is still standing is because of me.  If anything happens to me, not only would you have the Alpha of the Wailing Moon Pack on your ass; but you’d also have Vampires making meals out of the very citizens you swore to protect.  Do you want that... Captain?”  

Nathaniel sighed and put his face in his palm.  The Captain stood up and met me face to face.  I wasn’t expecting that.  “Sit.  Down.”  He growled.  

I pushed back off of the table, grabbed my leather jacket from the back of my chair, and shrugged it on over the little black dress and tall boots I’d been wearing.  

“Catch me if you can,”  I said before pushing past Nathaniel and leaving the interrogation room.

[the-almighty-gob-john-langley]

The Enemy Within.

The Enemy Within.

Be honest, the world is screwed, isn't it? Fings ain't what they used to be, and all that. If you've lived for any length of time and have witnessed how much the world has changed for the worse over the past twenty-four years, you'll catch my drift, as they say. As you will have no doubt noted from my previous blog post - 'Pussies Galore'- and those before it, I'm not over enamored with the millennials, and their progeny.

I guess, today I want to talk about the growing face of Islam on this planet as a first point, and then segue back into this new age of the millennial and offspring. As with most of my posts, I start off with the outline of an idea and then commence a journey of mystery, whereby, I haven't the faintest idea as to what the outcome will be. I just hit the keys and autopilot provides the context in whatever form it takes. Another way of putting it would be that a variety of news sources and public opinion provide each piece of a jigsaw puzzle I fit together in such a way that the finished item provides me with a satellite view of the world below.

Right now I see a planet in an equal amount of pieces as the puzzle before me that matches the picture on the surface, and it isn't in any way good for humanity. It reminds me of many years back when I was trying my hand at being a bus conductor in Aldershot for a few weeks. I say few weeks because 05.30 starts and me simply didn't get on during that part of my life. Anyway, they still don't, and what's more to the point is that my trainer was a guy named Keith; and this is something that's stuck with me like glue ever since, he said, because he was rather biblical at times, that there was a paragraph, I believe, within the Bible stating that an army would eventually rise powerful from the East and, I'm paraphrasing, seek to conquer the world.

Anyone who knows their Bible back to front may have far more knowledge than this particular lapsed Catholic tapping away here and now. However, being as far distanced from Catholicism as Bristol is from Bejing I'm more inclined to believe that in this instance, my own personal biblical scepticism is slowly igniting from its back burner position, and the global fan has started to spin, with particles of Islamic State shit flying around the world and landing in too many countries for me to be in any way comfortable with. Admittedly, in some minds I could have phrased that better, and am I therefore apologetic in any way? Absolutely bloody not!

To be absolutely clear, I have nothing against the Islamic religion per se. As with most world religions their believers are by nature good, decent people who work hard, are family-orientated, and believe in goodness and kindness to all in the name of their prophet, Allah. But, like fundamental Christians, some take their beliefs to the extreme. You see, religion in this century is like a bad photocopy. The further it is away from the original the harder it becomes to read, and is therefore open to some very distorted misinterpretations, of which, I suggest, the fast-growing Islamic faith has become far more radical than any other, in most certainly my time.

Like myself, you've more than likely noticed how the term 'invasion' has become increasingly frequent in our terminology when referring to migrants entering British shores. The 'illegals' who skirt normal border controls as seen at airports and ferry terminals and become unaccounted for - nearly all males with no documentation that would prove age or identity, and it doesn't take too much of a stretch to open our eyes further than England to see that the same is happening in most other countries of Europe, and beyond. Look, you know as well as I do that migration from one country to another is nothing new where humans are concerned, it's been going on since time immemorial. However what's happening currently could be described as wholly disproportionate, and with good reason. So, I get it when people use the word 'invasion'. I can understand when people become angry and frustrated because of the additional pressures put upon our infrastructures to a point that we can least afford, and this is where I believe the millennials and their progeny have a lot to answer for that the Blair government opened Pandora's Box to find.

It was under that governance Britain flung open its arms to all and sundry. "Britain is open" it was said, and that was it. Like January sale time they came in droves from abroad, and we welcomed those with skills and talents that would benefit our economy by settling here and raising families. Nothing wrong with that, you'd say, and I would agree. Well, to a point. Ask anyone who lived through the Second World War and survived, and you'd no doubt be told in no uncertain terms that Britain had a backbone then. It was a proud nation with people who fought for their country and won against the aggressor, and, as I've said in my book 'The Sexual Philanthropist' (published on Amazon, because there's nothing quite like a direct plug) people knew what hardship, and I mean 'real' hardship was. Ask those same people now, and you'll no doubt be told the same country that they were proud of has gone to the dogs, and from being a wealthy country that supported its people we have now become spineless; arguably one of the poorest, and no longer care.

We once had a military force made up of all the services. Admittedly previous wars have necessitated conscription, but look at us now, we could barely fight our way out of a paper bag if this country found itself at war with Russia, China, or the full force of the Islamic State that's more than likely our greatest threat and brings us slam, dunk, right back to illegal migration and the potential enemy within. Of course, it would be ludicrous to suggest that every illegal migrant that steps onto our beaches is an Islamic extremist, or has the potential to become one. Conversely, with no identification to show on their arrival, we have absolutely no idea as to who is entering this country, or what their real motivation is for doing so. Let's face it, any line can be spun when well rehearsed from where it originated, right? 

I'm sure we would all like to believe that even those who have entered legally, and settled with families, who drive taxis, work in our restaurants and takeaways, are university students, or lecturers, and engage in other lines of legitimate employment aren't sympathetic to the Islamic State? Don't believe me? Okay, look online for the propaganda videos where Islamic scholars speak between themselves and with other scholars in broadcast interviews as to how Islamic State infiltrates every aspect of both British and European nations alike.

Be my guest, and Google search the problems our European counterparts are experiencing with migration - the fights, looting, riots, sexual offenses, and other criminal activities that are taking place because of migrants choosing to ironically leave the hell holes of their own countries to replicate the same in the European countries they have moved to.

Again, I'm making it very clear that not all migrants are of the Moslem faith, as many are not. However, take to Google once more and you will find videos of Moslem groups, in some cases numbering hundreds, taking their prayers on the streets. Peaceful, law-abiding, and wishing no harm to anyone Muslims abide by the teachings of their prophet Allah in everyday life. Yet, take a look at Birmingham recently, where shopkeepers are being intimidated by fellow Moslems into removing bottles of Coke from their shelves because of the Gaza conflict, and tell me the lava isn't beginning to trickle out from the mouth of the Islamic State volcano. Further abroad, read reports of Islamic intervention in other countries, such as drones being flown into parts of Pakistan, aside from what's happening in the Middle East right now, and terrorist activities stopping goods from reaching other parts of the world by sea.

Meanwhile, back in our country, we have Millennials and their Gen X and Z progeny assuming in complete naivety and misguided optimism that somehow it will all stop if they either march through our streets - that in their blind innocence somehow delusionally believe that Hamas aren't jumping for joy by all the publicity they're being given, or that conflict can be abated by talking to their leaders. Get fucking real! 

These people are the same Islamic terrorists who, in parts of Africa think nothing of burning down Christian churches, massacring villages, raping and murdering women, recruiting men and children by force to become their soldiers, or face immediate death. Of course, we don't have to think about such things while we live in comfortable abodes, with central heating; a cushy lifestyle by comparison; watch Love Island and the soaps; take summer holidays, or attend Glastonbury.

As long as it's not on the news we don't much care unless we have a particular interest. In pretty much the same way the millennials and Gen progeny don't really care about the defense of this country. Yet, if only in voice alone they'll happily, and without a second thought given, defend a Middle Eastern country run by a terrorist regime - oblivious to the fact that the overarching Islamic State, of which Hamas is part, is slowly building a global army all over Europe, including here in the UK.

Like it, or not, we are on the cusp of a war that will see the slow build-up of terrorist activity over here that will make the Ariana Grande atrocity look like a practice run, and apart from the limited military and police resources we have, do you, or have you any idea what will happen? Well, let me tell you. All your pacifist-type tree huggers, millennials, and their progeny will either be hiding in their wardrobes with a thirty-six pack of their favourite loo roll or running out on the streets waving any white piece of material they have to hand because they all have a mental health issue, while the law-abiding, peace-loving Moslems most of us know will be found dead. Never say never.

[sambltrs12]

Samantha Ballesteros 

G11-St. Francis

/\/\/\ Blog /\/\/\

Autobiography

My name is Samantha Ballesteros but you can call me Sam. I am 16 years old and I live in Brgy San Jose Cuyapo Nueva Ecija. I was born on December 12 2005. My mother's name is Leah Ballesteros and my father's name is Marvin Ballesteros and I have one brother and his name is Dale Kian Ballesteros. My hobby is playing badminton and watching movies. And also I love dogs because they make me happy. I'm a Bts fan that's why my favorite color is purple. I had a happy childhood living with my family. I remember during weekends we usually spend our day in the park. We helped each other in our daily activities. My family was a happy and loving family.

I start studying when I was five. My grandparents are the ones who served as my babysitter since my parents weren't home for work so they enrolled me in a Daycare Center. You may not believe this but my grandma told me that I always cry in school because im scared to those people that I'm not familiar with. My elementary days are incredibly awesome I gained many friends, I achieved honors and awards. It's been quite that studying six years on the same school but it's totally fine with me because I have friends to laugh with, have fun with, and learn with. I graduated from San Jose Elementary School and became a high school here in Saint Pius X Institute and I can say that I enjoy studying here and even though it is difficult sometimes I enjoy it and I learn a lot. Attending a catholic school helped me to grow academically, in my faith and as a person, giving me high moral standards. I am motivated to create the best possible future for myself and have worked very hard to set that up and achieve my goals in life.

The saddest part that happened in my life was when my mother left me when I was a child and my mother and my father separated. For me, it's hard to grow up without a mother who supports you, I always wonder if there is still a chance for us to meet because until now we still have no communication with each other. So I feel a little bad for her because of what she did to us but I also thought that God will not give it to us if we can't do it and there is no reason. So even though it's hard, I try to fight and never lose hope that one day we'll meet again and I'll feel the love of a mother for her child. That's why I'm so grateful to my dad and my grandparents who took care of me from the beginning until now and I love them so much.

Even though that's what happened in my life, I'm still thankful because there are good things that have happened to me since I was a child until now. I remembered that every my birthday there was always a lot of food prepared with cake and balloons, I always played with my friends, wandered with my parents and happily bathed in the rain as cold as ice because that was one of my favorite things to do as a child. One of my best childhood memories are those playing in the park, learning to ride a bike, handwriting lessons and buying ice cream. I enjoyed my life the way I want and to be with people I love.

These memories leave an everlasting impression in my life. During my childhood I was carefree and had no worries at all. I used to wander like a deer in the open fields. There are a certain incidents that are still fresh in my memory. One of these is when we were playing and while running I stumbled and crippled. I'm always thinking that time flies when you're having fun, I treasure every moment I experienced and it was so happy and I want to go back. But now I'm enjoying life and studying to graduate and get a job soon and fulfill my dreams.

[my-mt-heart]

Thanks so much for this @indigoraysoflight and @kryptoniancape. It sounds like this was a difficult one to record, but it reflects exactly what I'm feeling right now and I wish AMC would give it a listen.

Having context for the scene where ghost!Isabelle tells Daryl to bet on hope doesn't really make a difference because the imagery is so deliberate, both on screen and in the leaked sides. The EPs are forcing sexual tension between them, which is infuriating for all the reasons you mentioned. It disrespects Daryl's backstory, cheapens the intimacy that Caryl built with each other over the course of 11 seasons, and reduces Isabelle to a misogynistic trope. I am not here for an absurd story about Daryl turning into the ZA's most eligible bachelor, Carol going to hell and back for her soulmate without any reciprocation, or a nun questioning her faith of over a decade for a man she just met a few months ago. I'm not here for any story being told by a showrunner who has no clue what the hell he's even writing or who he's writing for. He's never been a woman, he's never been a nun (or Catholic), he's not interested in Caryl's bond, not familiar with the flagship show, not supportive of Melissa/Carol and I could go on.

I'm trying to show up for Melissa, Carol, and Caryl the way I would've done for the original spinoff, but especially after they got treated like shit in 2022, so why is AMC making it so fucking hard? It shouldn't be a battle for them to treat Melissa/Carol like she's just as vital to the show as Norman/Daryl or to honor Caryl's relationship with each other. It shouldn't come as a shock that fans don't want Daryl to question where his home is or for him to be shipbaited with a nun. Multiple factions of TWD's audience from Caryl fans to Daryl fans to Rickyl bromance fans have been vocal about that since S1 aired, so how are we even here right now, struggling to find the appeal of the show two weeks before it premieres? Why are they wasting time and money marketing to a very narrow (ageist/misogynistic) demographic who won't stick around long-term anyway?

What happened to "To find home is to find each other?" Where is that show? Because that's the only version of S2 I want to watch. Norman and Melissa are the only two people I want to hear from to promote their show because they know how to do that when given the space together whereas every time Gimple, Zabel, and Nicotero try to latch onto them, there's a huge disconnect.

You mentioned how important it still is to speak up about what's working and what's not working for us, which I've never been shy about so here's an overview again....

What's working: Letting McReedus' chemistry do the heavy lifting when it comes to promo, content that highlights Carol/Melissa, positioning McReedus/Caryl as equals, positioning Caryl's bond as the heart of the story, and positioning Caryl as romantic/highlighting their soulmatism

What's not working: nunbaiting, friend-zoning Caryl, Daryl being torn, Daryl not reciprocating Carol's efforts to get back to him, reducing Carol to a subtitle, Norman and Melissa having separate title cards instead of being equally billed, positioning the show as Daryl's/Norman's when it should be his and Carol's/Melissa's equally, Zabel's writing, Zabel opening his mouth, Gimple acting like a leech

Like you both said, McReedus, Caryl, and their fans deserve so much better.

Nine Lives Two Mics (Caryl Podcast) | New Episode

🎙️The Ever-Changing Promo For “The Book of Carol”🎙️

We share our thoughts on the teasers, promos, and the overall marketing strategy for  “The Book of Carol”. Trigger warning: This episode gets very heavy so please be mindful of your mental health before tuning in.

Your feelings are valid, no matter what they are. If you’re excited for the show, we’re truly happy for you. If you’re anxious and on the fence, we see you and we get it. The common throughline of this spectrum is that we all love Caryl deeply & want them to have a beautiful & all-rounded story. We’re in this together (even if it feels like Thanksgiving dinner sometimes). Please remember to be kind to yourself & those who don’t share your opinions. We’ll be here if you want to chat, feel free to send us an ask.

(If you need mental health support, check out this resource) 

Spotify | Youtube 

(this episode is not spoiler-free)

[hardynwa]

Naira redesign: ‘You will suffer’ – Fr Mbaka issues ultimatum to Buhari, Emefiele

Charismatic Catholic Priest, Rev. Fr. Ejike Mbaka has issued a stern warning to President Muhammadu Buhari over the continuous detention of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB. DAILY POST reports that Mbaka returned to his Adoration Ministry in January, months after he was suspended and sent to the monastery by the Catholic Bishop of Enugu Diocese, Most Rev. Calistus Onaga. In what could be considered a major message to the nation since he returned, the fiery priest, on Sunday, warned Buhari of dire consequences if his government continued to keep Kanu. He spoke while addressing thousands of his Adoration members. He did not spare the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, Governor, Godwin Emefiele, over the scarcity of the new naira notes. Mbaka said if Buhari and Emefiele did not take immediate measures, they would suffer. He said, “It is only in Nigeria that the court can set somebody free and the government will say ‘No’, keep that person. “We pray for the full release of Nnamdi Kanu; Ndigbo are suffering for what they know nothing about; students, workers will not go to work; everywhere is locked up on Mondays; our leaders don’t care; it does not concern them; how can you say it does not concern you? But you are a leader; you must care. “God set someone free and you say the person won’t be free, what God will do to you, you will regret your decision. “Why the judiciary? There are three arms of government- the executive, the legislature and the judiciary, and one arm will say the other is useless. I ask in the name of God and by the power of the Holy Ghost, that our leaders should release Nnamdi Kanu. “We cannot be distracted by new currency and fuel scarcity and there is a problem- the judiciary is dying. If the court can acquit someone and the government will say ‘No’, then the country is finished. It is a coup d’etat against the judiciary and as a man of God, I stand to say, release him. “Do the needful; our people are suffering, a lot of suffering in the country, perpetuated by our so-called leaders; I am not a politician, I am a prophet of God. My job is to speak when God is angry, I will represent the voice of God in anger, when God is happy, I will speak and represent the voice of God in joy. The poor masses are suffering. “If holding that young man will cripple this country, why not release him; Nnamdi Kanu’s case is like a trigger in the gun; you must be careful how you touch the trigger when a gun is loaded. “Don’t tell anybody he is a nobody; he represents a people and the court has said release him; why not release him, especially for health reasons? “I have to render my voice so that when tomorrow the leaders begin to suffer calamity, they will not ask ‘what did Fr. Mbaka say’.” On the naira swap, he said there was no justification for the sufferings the citizens were going through. Mbaka said, “People will suffer to make money and still suffer to take their money and there is still a country; tomorrow you will say Fr. Mbaka said; why do you force me to say something? I am giving both the President and the CBN governor a mandate from heaven, if they don’t want to react immediately and stop this self-imposed wicked suffering on the people, they will suffer. “What a rubbish; why do you multiply misery; people are sleeping in the bank to get their money; in which country has it ever happened? People are now selling money; not dollars; it is easier now to get dollars than to get naira; parents cannot have money to buy foodstuff for their children; I don’t know how many will be alive by the time the so-called new currency will come out. The new currency is not even good, the design very poor, the colour separation rubbish; “And everybody is talking election, election. Will dead men do the election? Men of God you better open your mouths; I have come back from monastery to see my people in suffering, in agony; it is time to tell Pharoah, ‘let my people go’,” he warned. He lamented that parents now spent their nights either in ATMs or in filling stations, stressing “you are killing people; what kidnappers are not doing; you are doing worse. People cannot access healthcare, by the time the doctor gets alert, the person is dead.” He said 99 percent of the population was ignorant of the new naira policy, describing it as “evil in the land. If you are not ready with the new naira, why not push out the old naira?” He said he was saddened that upon his return from the monastery, more Nigerians had lost their jobs. “Do you think that if this situation continues, that Nigerians will do election?” He queried. “What is happening now is a coup d’etat on democracy. But who will say it? To buy pure water, will you do a cash transfer? Why mess up Nigeria because you people are going? Why didn’t you start it all the while? 8 years was enough for you people to stabilise it, wickedness. No job, no food, no house. “The present government, I want to ask you, change, or you people will cry, what you are inviting, you cannot face it. “The Hausas are crying; the Fulani are crying; the Yorubas are crying; the Igbos are crying; the Niger Delta people are crying; the Middle Belt are crying, who are you now leading?” DAILY POST reports that this is not the first time Fr. Mbaka is coming hard on President Muhammadu Buhari administration. In April 2021, Mbaka had called for the impeachment of President Buhari over the rising insecurity in the country. However, the presidency later accused him of demanding for contracts. Read the full article

[littlefireofhestia]

hi! i'm sage and i was going through the "hestia devotee" tag and found a post of yours that said you were open for questions about her. i don't know how old that post is or if you're still taking questions, you can ignore this if you're not, but since i'm here i wanted to talk/ask about something.

i'm a baby witch (like the babiest of babies, almost a new born) and most of my experience is through reading and watching since i don't currently have time or resources to do any practice other than lighting incenses or candles or working with crystals. and i definitely don't know any form of divination, like tarot or pendulum, that would allow me to do actual deity work and properly communicate with them.

the thing is, i've researched deities from multiple pantheons multiple times, mostly out of curiosity, but the moment i came across a prayer to hestia my heart skipped a beat and i immediately felt a kind of comfort. it could have been nothing, but i still researched all i could about her and just. i've never felt this drawn to a deity before, much less felt a pull to actually worship one. but i feel very much that way about her.

i looked up ways to honour her and i'm genuinely shocked at how happy it's been making me. i'm finding joy in domestic activities i used to loathe, like washing the dishes or helping with house cleaning. i tried baking a cake all by myself for the first time and lit an orange candle for her while doing it. it turned out absolutely delicious, i discovered i actually really enjoy baking and even started my own cook notebook with some of my grandma's old recipes. i make a point to always tie my hair back when i'm doing something that makes me think of her or in her honour, like making tea or baking or making dinner for my family or cleaning, because i saw people talking about how she appreciates veiling but i don't know how to do it so i just tie my hair in a bun instead of putting on a scarf. and i used to hate tying my hair, but now i feel very good about it!

i've always struggled with feeling connected to religion and never really understood how that could bring peace to someone, but i haven't felt this grounded or loving towards my family and pets or in peace with myself as much as i have since i started doing things as acts of devotion to hestia.

now, on to the actual problem: i'm scared it's all in my head. i'm worried i'm not enough of a witch to worship a deity yet, since i'm still trying to learn ways of communication and can't directly ask her if she's with me. i'm scared that the little things i'm doing aren't enough and the comfort and faith i feel while doing them are my imagination and not actually her watching over me and appreciating my effort.

anyways, i'm really sorry for dumping these worries on you but i didn't see many hestia related blogs and i really needed to ask someone about this. is what i'm doing enough of a worship right now? do you have any tips on how to worship her better? thank you!

Hi Sage! I don’t know when you sent this ask so I’m sorry if it’s been a while since you sent it and my response is late. When I read this ask for the first time I nearly cried tears of joy. Before anything I do want to say that you’re doing amazing sweetie!

I’m always open to questions about Hestia.

First off, there is no prerequisite to worshipping deities. I am admittedly not a witch and worship the gods exclusively for religious reasons and not for witchcraft. I have not learned many divination methods yet (although I have used the very handy Greek Alphabet Oracle a few times) and my rituals are still relatively basic, mostly not even occurring on an altar. But I have felt Hestia. I have been in her presence. I have received dreams from other deities and signs. None of this is required to happen to believe in or worship the theoi, but I just want to assure you that beyond doing some research to figure out who you want to pray to and how to do prayer and ritual, there are no prerequisites to worship. My first prayer to Hestia was literally me throwing a scarf over my head and talking to her in the dark with a flashlight to represent a flame. No formal structure. Didn’t even know how to correctly hold my hands yet. And still she accepted me.

The vibe you get from Hestia is very much similar to my experience. I’ve been drawn to her for YEARS but didn’t know I could worship her. But she’s always felt like home and comfort and just right for me. I never ever had a reason why she was my favorite deity before becoming pagan. She just was. My connection to Hestia has been a fact for over a decade that I just didn’t know was religious until a year and a half ago. Me wondering if I could worship her is the reason why I started researching Hellenic Polytheism in the first place. She brought me to this faith and I am so thankful to her for that.

You finding joy in domestic activities you used to hate is something I’ve discovered through Hestia too, although it’s still a journey I’m early on due to depression and physical disability and having a lot of work to do on figuring out how to make things accessible for me. I’m excited to go further for and with Hestia.

I understand the thought about it being all in your head. I had those thoughts early in my practice too. Basically, belief is a process. It takes time to switch from whatever religious thought (or lack thereof) that you grew up with to polytheism and worshipping a variety of deities or even just one deity, and from there to truly believing in them. I’ve been practicing for a year and a half and it probably took me at least nine months to truly feel secure in my faith in the theoi. Research, pray, do ritual, devote acts to the gods, think about the gods, notice the influence of the theoi in your daily life, and gradually that belief will solidify. You may or may not receive signs, which may or may not speed this process up. I promise, if you want to believe in the gods, in Hestia, it just takes time.

Also on feeling that you aren’t doing enough, the video at the bottom of this post (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=odhRRYqQo8Y) might help. And I promise: you are doing enough, you are enough, just as you are.

Now as for worship tips. You are honestly doing great so far. Thinking of her while doing household chores and tasks or dedicating those tasks for her is a great way to worship her. I’d also recommend checking out her Homeric and Orphic hymns, one translation of which can be found here, and a copy of the Homeric hymns can likely be found at a local bookstore or definitely through online ordering. The Homeric hymns can also start to teach you some stuff about prayer structure, but prayer doesn’t have to be formal. Sometimes I just sit and talk to Hestia, or to any of my other deities. Tell them about my day, thank them for things in my life or the world, and sometimes asking them for things (although I find that I ask for aid much more rarely than when I prayed as the Catholic I was raised to be). I also have perpetually in progress playlists I have made for my deities, and if I want to spend some non-ritual time just focusing on a deity I’ll put on their playlist and read something religious or talk in religious discords. I actually had my most profound spiritual experience with Hestia while doing this.

Last but not least, worshipping Hestia, or any other deity, is something you have your whole life ahead of you to do. Take it at your own pace. Faith is all about the journey. The destination is irrelevant. There is no deadline or leveling up system, no authority checking your progress. As I have experienced time and time again, the gods will very much meet you where you are. A few months ago I was in a deep depression and did not do any ritual for several months. When I finally did a ritual again, I felt Hestia’s warm hand on my shoulder, as if to say “I miss you, welcome home”. I promise, Hestia will always welcome you home.

P.S. I know this ask is anonymous but Sage, feel free to message me with any additional questions about Hestia or worshipping deities in general. I’m here if you need any more help.

[heresylog]

Hello again Flower!

Thank you for your very thoughtful response to my question! I really struggled with whether or not to send a follow up because I honestly didn’t figure you’d respond to the first one. I’m in a bit of an ongoing conversion angst though, so here goes. I think I did a poor job explaining the heart of my trepidation about RCIA, it really seems to me that candidates are held to a higher standard then those born into the faith, and are singled out because of their not having the same background. Thus my confusion about sacramental stinginess.

At my church, RCIA candidates are dismissed before Eucharist every Sunday, and during Easter they were paraded around for weeks in various rites and initiations. I feel so ashamed at the thought that I am not good enough to receive and have to be singled out for all this special training and kicked out of mass. Like I don’t mean to say I’m too good for more education (a couple months ago I thought holy water was just a thing for the movies, Protestantism has a very very culture and even has fewer books of the Bible! It’s wild!), only that I don’t see why it’s so hard to join when it seems the standard seems lower if you’re grandfathered in. It makes me sad that I’m not allowed to participate and that the only way in is made to be such a lengthy and public initiation. The thought of having to go to the front of the church and be dismissed in front of everybody? Horrifying. And it really seems that this level of othering doesn’t happen to those who go the traditional route, their actual commitment or seriousness notwithstanding, whereas I would be sent to remedial religion school and not allowed to participate until I prove myself in a way that wasn’t necessary for others. Thank you again though, it was really cool to see your response!

This is another long one

I am not a fan of the dismissal during Mass. That is very old school. Nowadays most parishes don’t do this. I know why they do it but as you said it’s embarrassing for some people.

The reason people who are born into Catholicism stay for Mass is because of habit. If you were baptized Catholic but never received first communion, you probably went with your parents or grandparents to Mass and stayed the whole time. The type of parish you went to does not want that to happen, even to born Catholics who have not had first communion or confirmation. But they cannot kick out the ones not visible in RCIA.

It goes back to the sacredness of it. The parish is assuming as an adult convert you still don’t quite understand the severity of what you’re doing. Also, it’s probably going to be less embarrassing to leave beforehand and then being denied Eucharist one-on-one, especially for someone new in conversion. Oh goodness, this reminds me of myself as a kid. I was late to first communion and was embarrassed seeing my friends go ahead of me.

I am so thankful though that I didn’t go through it until later. I am also thankful that I went through the RCIA process as an adult so I understand the seriousness of confirmation and how permanent it is.

Confirmation is a sacrament and is a permanent admittance into the Church. Marriage is a sacrament and we don’t let teenagers go through with it so young. I wish the Church was more consistent with education of RCIA v teenage confirmation. Because you’re right, it’s a double standard.

If you want to talk more privately, my DMs are open.