Posts by Mamacat

41

What Things Were You Shocked To Find Out About, While In The Org.

by Warlock in

these are just 3 things that i was shocked to learn when i was in the org.

they may not seem like big things to some, but they are to me.. 1. speakers at the d.a.

had food catered to them.

Mamacat

I was shocked and hurt when I saw pictures at a jw friend's house of a gathering they had for all the kids a few years before. Everyone was there! Well, except me. It stung the worse because it was held less than a mile from my house. I asked my mom about it, and she didn't know anything about it. We were not invited, and I didn't understand.

Also, just being brought before the elders to talk about my short haircut. I was 14, and I had gotten my haircut to just below my ears. They told me it was a worldy sign of lesbianism to have such short hair and asked me if there was something I needed to discuss with them. I asked them if it was so wrong, why were all the sisters complimenting me on it...then they wanted those names. My mom just looked on while they were harrassing me. I told them I liked my hair short, and asked if there was something written about not having short hair. Then, they went on to say that since I was in high school they wanted to make sure I was presenting Jehovah well to my classmates.

25

Stay at home Dads and Moms

by jayhawk1 in

jw
friends

for those who read what i say, may know i am going to college full-time.

what you do not know is i have had a role reversal that started today.

my wife has taken a full-time job during the week while i work at a part-time job on the weekends.

Mamacat

I think it's great that you are staying home with your daughter. I've been a sahm for most of the 11 years since my oldest son was born. Time is something that you can never get back.

I agree with the others...have a schedule for cleaning and laundry. I also have a big calendar where I write down activites and appointments as soon as I know about them. You might not need such a big calendar as I have (I have 4 boys), but definitely somewhere to write down any appointments or school functions.

Also, my boys all have chores...well, except the baby. They do things like load the dishwasher, put away dishes, set the table, vacuum, dust and carry the laundry up and down the stairs. It may take your daughter longer to do something than it would for you to do it yourself, but it's a great way to learn valuable lessons and responsibility.

Best of luck in your new position!

6

City Confidental episode

by pratt1 in

.

did anyone see the city confidential episode where a dub woman from (i think) boise, idaho was killed by her russian born ballet star husband?.

i seems pretty clear the he killed her, but he is now saying that she was killed by the watchtower, bible and tract society, because she married him - an unbeliever.. does any one have any personal knowledge about this case?

Mamacat

It's a documentary show on A&E. I haven't seen this one. I think this is the right episode synopsis, but it doesn't mention she was a jw.

http://www.aetv.com/city_confidential/city_episode_guide.jsp?episode=136602

16

Letter to the Editor about jw's

by Mamacat in

jw
friends

this was in our sunday paper.

i remember once in field service, an elder ran over a trashcan and never even stopped to set it back up, so this comes as no surprise to me.

how rude.

Mamacat

This was in our Sunday paper. I remember once in field service, an elder ran over a trashcan and never even stopped to set it back up, so this comes as no surprise to me. How rude. I'm glad this woman thought to write the paper about it.

http://www.ydr.com/letters/ci_4210701

There were witnesses
Daily Record/Sunday News

Aug 20, 2006 —

"Thorns" to the couple driving a blue car that was handing out unsolicited "invitations" to an upcoming religious event door-to-door in North Hopewell Township below Winterstown on Aug. 12 between 10:30 a.m. and 11 a.m.

Our two children "witnessed" your damaging our flower bed and house number sign as you backed down our driveway. Did you have the common decency to stop and inform us of your accident? No. You had to know - you were on a steep bank as you backed onto the road. Our attempts to locate the car were fruitless. Thankfully, the damage was repairable.

In the past, we have always been very courteous to uninvited visitors from this religious organization. If you truly feel the need to continue to share your information regarding Jehovah door-to-door in the future, then please respect the property of others and have a conscience. KIMBERLY P. GRIFFIN
FELTON

62

Worst Thing Youve Done In A Meeting?

by chuckie77 in

jw
friends

whats the worst thing youve done during a meeting?

years ago, when i was a bit more wicked/naughty/younger than i am now, i thought i would take some drugs just prior to the meeting to see if it would make things any more interesting.

it didnt, but at least i enjoyed the kingdom melodies tapping my foot to the beat and bopping my head!!

Mamacat

At the last District Convention I ever attended, right before my 17th birthday, I made friends with a guy that morning and we hatched a plan to get out of the assembly. I picked a fight with my mom and grandma (who always says rude and inappropriate things) and told them I was going to sit by myself because I had had enough. The guy and I left and took the subway there in Philly and ended up just hanging out in the city that day. (A major music fest was going on down the road a bit) We had a blast although he was a bit overdressed for the occasion, and we got back just in time for the last talk. Later, my mom was talking to me about the stuff I had missed, and I just bs'd my way through her questions. Thinking about it always cracks me up...I have this feeling that one day I should tell her about it since I definitely can't get in trouble for it now!

During the actual meetings, I never did anything gutsy. I used to sit and write poetry and song lyrics and draw goofy pictures. Sometimes, I'd write down a bunch of numbers and multiply them from sheer boredom. My mom was always too much into what was being said to think to see what I was writing.

26

Celebrating holidays

by dobbie in

jw
friends

just wondering if you still abstain from celebrating christmas birthdays etc or if you do celebrate them how long did it take to feel comfy with doing it after you'd left the jws?i'm fading at the moment but although me and hubby have talked about spending xmas with our nonjw families and i told him i was going to start sending bday cards to my family, the thought of it scares me like its a big huge sin.does it ever feel natural to celebrate holidays?i used to love all that sort of thing before i was a witness but when my mum and stepdad wished me happy bday last month it felt really odd and i was uneasy.i find it v confusing cos i can sort of see that jesus wasn't born in dec. but maybe he can have 2 bdays like the queen!also not being able to send fathers day cards this year was the final straw for me i felt so bad about it so i have lots of making up to do but just hope i can enjoy it all without feeling bad.

i know they say some bday things have pagan origins but there are things jws can have or do that also are pagan.wedding rings for example.thanks

Mamacat

I love birthdays and Christmas! I don't even care if I get presents...I just want to hear "Happy Birthday" and "Merry Christmas" At first, it was hard for me to say Merry Christmas back to people, like the cashier at the store. Now, I am the one who says it first to them. I'm the mom that makes up the cool little treat bags for all the kids for the class parties. lol I'm making up for lost time here.

Easter perplexes me...I don't understand the holiday. But we still do the Easter baskets for the kids. Halloween is a weird one for me too, but I do take the kids out trick or treating...I'm trying to get into it. I dressed up last year for the first time ever in my life! I think hearing how "pagan" these two holidays are for years made me cynical of them.

30

WAS THERE ANY MENTAL INSTABILITY IN YOUR CONGREGATION?

by badboy in

jw
friends

any takers?

Mamacat

There was a guy in the hall who was a little "off" as everyone liked to say. He used to stare at people a lot and sometimes he'd just say totally off the wall and inappropiate things. He had a thing for my friend's mom and wouldn't get it that she didn't like him for a long time. My mom always said that he had done a lot of drugs before becoming a dub and he had 'emotional problems' because of it, so it seemed that people excused his behavior. He would disappear for a few months at a time, which I later found out was because he was checked into mental hospitals.

Later, he decided to get married to a woman from a congregation some 200 miles away. My mom and I and a few others from the hall went to the wedding. The sister was 18 years old, and he had to be at least 35 at this time. (I have nothing against big age differences, but this is important for later.) She moved in with him but things fell apart within 6 months. The story was that she locked him out of the house and was screaming, accusing him of all sorts of perverted things that weren't true and that she was just too young to be married. She went back to her family, he becomes a MS.

Later still, he married my cousin..she's a distant cousin, but we grew up together and are about the same age. He was in his 40's at this time, and my cousin was early 20's. She kept trying to get in touch with me, but I had moved away, so I never did get to speak to her at this time. Then, I hear that they are divorcing and it's just horrible and my cousin is absolutely crushed. No one would tell me what in the hell was going on though.

Then, I moved back to the area a few months later and I hear you can look up to see if sex offenders live in your area and see their pictures, etc. I decide to look and see if any live by me. OMG There was this guy accused of lewd conduct with someone under 14. I brought it up to my mom who finally told me the story as to why my cousin's marriage with him broke up...um yeah, I think I had figured it out the second I saw him in the sex offender's registry! I think of all the times he would stare at me when I was younger and offer to work with me in service and drive me in his van! :::shudder::: I never went because he always creeped me out.

I wonder if anyone ever did go with him back then...my mom tried to say that since he was an active witness back then, of course nothing happened. She seems to forget he was 'active' when he was married to my cousin and got jailed for this stuff! I still have no idea if the victim was a jw, or if he met her somewhere else.

48

Kingdom Hall Experiences

by KW13 in

jw
friends

what things happened at your meetings that annoyed you?.

was it at a hall ya visited?

did it happen more than once?.

Mamacat

Oh, and in response to whether the spankings are still going on.... My mom has taken my 4 year old to the meetings a few times when he has stayed with her. She knows better than to ever hit him, and it's once in a great while, so I gave her permission to take him. I was glad she thought to ask me first, but she won't be taking him again because of what happened the last time.

There is a boy there that is about 2 years older than him, and the boys like each other. My mom usually sits in the second school when my son went with her because 'surprise, surprise', he can't sit through a 2 hour long meeting either! His friend's mom brought the son into the second school and spanked him for talking during the meeting. My son started screaming and crying right along with his friend because he didn't understand what was going on. My son has never been spanked, and he's really only seen a child get one smack on a clothed or diapered butt in the past. From what I understand, the boy was laid over his mom's lap and his pants pulled down and he was hit 3 or 4 times.

I asked my mom if the spankings still go on all the time, and she said there are quite a few in her hall that do. I didn't appreciate having to explain to my son why some parents hit their kids. It wasn't something I thought about when I said she could take him there. All those poor kids :(

48

Kingdom Hall Experiences

by KW13 in

jw
friends

what things happened at your meetings that annoyed you?.

was it at a hall ya visited?

did it happen more than once?.

Mamacat

I always ended up being taken to the back to be spanked too. I just could NOT sit still. I don't know what little kid can. My mom stopped most of the spankings after I went to school though because she got questioned about bruises on me.

Our old hall was set up weird. There were wide stairs when you came in the door and the stage and chairs were all upstairs. Downstairs was the 2nd school, bathrooms and library. I was going downstairs to use the restroom. I was about 9, and my friend's mom came out of the hall carrying his little sister and yelling at her that she was going to get it good. She passed me on the stairs, and she had a look of pure rage on her face. She held the girl up in the hallway as she spanked her and the girl slipped and fell on the floor. She was about 3 or 4, and she hit her head on the cement and was knocked out. The mom just stood there staring at her, no attempt to pick her up or check to see if she was breathing, nothing. I ran upstairs and got someone, and the girl was fine, thankfully. I would think that having something like that happen might make you look into some other type of discipline, but the spankings never stopped until a few years later when the mom took off with some guy and left the husband with the 4 kids.

On a different note, while helping to clean the hall, I would always find toenail clippings in this one area. I always tried to figure out who it was since most of them always sit in the same seats, but I never figured out who it was. ICK

18

Gen Xers--Who remembers when Smurfs were Demonic?

by apostawriter in

jw
friends

when word came down that a smurf jumped up in the middle of a meeting, yelled 'i've had enough of this shit!

' and stormed out, i was probably 9 years old.

at the time i had a smurf record.

Mamacat

I remember that they were supposedly demonic, but I never heard the accompanying urban legends. My mom made me throw my Smurf underwear into a trash bag and then she shattered the cute little Smurf glasses we got at a fast food place. I believed what I was told about Gargamel being the devil though. I must've been about 8.

When I lived in Germany in the late 90's, Smurf stuff was everywhere. I bought myself a Smurfette figurine.