waysider

"O'Shanta McLachaseetay For Yea, me lads and lassies-------------" Sorry. Got a bit carried away then,didn't I? Nope. No Irish here. Nary e'en a wee bit.

Likeaneagle----- Your incident reminds me of the guy who beats his wife until, one day, she threatens to blow his cover and leave him. "Oh, Honey",he says, "I can change and I promise things will be different." Well, things are better---------for a while-------------and then one day,out of the blue, the woman finds herself searching for her sunglasses to hide her blackened eyes in shame. She is sure it must be her fault because he promised he would change. TWI is not going to change. They can say,"I promise things will be different." til the cows come home, but those problems are so ingrained in their very fabric of thinking that it's only a matter of time until the "sunglass search" would begin. I have been out of TWI for a long time but I still remember that whenever adultery was taught, there was almost always a smugness that implied,"If you are REALLY spiritual, you will see that it is referring to "spiritual" adultery and idolotry. What a crock of horse hooey. They tried to make you feel inferior because you saw it for what it actually was! Even in CF&S, VPW taught that intercourse was a "spiritual "event.(his words) Well,gosh, what woman wouldn't want to share a "spiritual" event with the greatest MOG to have walked the Earth in the past 2,000 years? Did that sound cynical enough? They are not likely to change because, quite simply, it would negate the doctrine they have spent the last umpteen years drumming into their followers minds. As to inviting you back: Who knows, maybe your return would be regarded as some kind of spiritual "score". I don't know if that's the case, but think back on the trophy mentality that permeated the organization during your association with them.

RG For what it's worth, I still believe that at least that part of it was not a myth.

Hi Joe! Just wondering if your handle is a hint that you play bass. Ya know, like"Play me a 1/4 note "walking bass".? This next tune is in AMajor so jump right in when your ready. (That would be a D harp for all you cross harp players.) Anywho, welcome to our little juke joint.

Who the he!! cares?!!! It was probably "borrowed" like everything else he said anyway!

Shortfuse---------I know what you mean about "the last jar of mayo" kind of thing. My experience was quite different so I will try to recount it as best I can 35 years after the fact. I spoke in tongues very shortly after being witnessed to. No one led me in . Then I manifested in a believers' meeting just because the meeting leader said "someone bring forth-------" (That drew some memorable looks on unsuspecting faces.) I told my twig leader and he instructed me in how to do a "lift list". I knew very little about the organization and even less about VPW. I had seen his photo in The Way Mag and that is what I tried to visualize for my lift list.(This was my first time doing a lift list thing.) Instead, I saw an image of him wearing that silly neck scarf that I later found out he liked to wear. He had a menacing smirk on his face and he was -----well------flipping me the bird.He was uttering a well known phrase that starts with" f "and ends with "you". It was very vivid and not based on any previous experience or knowledge. This exact experience never happened again but I can still see that image in my memory like it was yesterday. I felt at the time that it was a sign that something was very wrong with what I had become involved in. I talked to my twig leader about it and he said I should chalk it up to unrenewed mind. This was a concept to which I was extremely new also, but he seemed to know what he was talking about so I put it on the back burner( but it resurfaced from time to time, not the image, just a recollection of having had the experience.) I've had similar types of experiences through the years but nothing ever even came close to the intensity of that one. It was like opening your front door to leave for work, still half asleep, and being confronted, face to face by a snarling gorilla. I know that is probably not a very good depiction of what happened but it's the best I can do. Waysider

Told the repo man this mornin' "Go ahead and take the damn TV!" I'm tired of lookin' at stuff I can't get When there's things we really need. They oughta have a "Poor Folks' Channel" For people down on their luck Where they don't advertise not one thing that costs you more than a buck. I've got 14 dollars in the bank, Fifteen hundred worth of unpaid bills(just this month) Told my baby,"It's gonna be alright" (But I don't believe it will.) --------That's from "$14 in The Bank" by Paul DeLay-----It's one of my favorite P.D. songs Sad, sad news in the music world today. I just learned that the Gentle Giant himself, Paul Delay passed away last Wednesday ,3/07/07, in Portland, Oregon. Paul had just played a gig and felt under the weather. He thought he might have bronchitis so he went to the hospital. It turns out he was in the very last stage of leukemia. That was on Monday and he passed away on that Wednesday. He was only 55. There will be a special memorial concert in Portland on April first, but I don't know any details. Besides being perhaps the greatest harmonica player that ever lived, he was a super "all around nice guy." I have a couple Paul stories, but I'll save them for another time. May you rest in peace,Paul. You will be missed in a very big way.

That's how it is livin' "life by the drop".------------SRV

Bolshevik I feel for ya, brother Passing up a free ride is not a matter to be taken lightly. But, you're young and the road that lies ahead is probably rife with all kinds of crazy twists and turns. Keep your eyes on the road and your hands upon the wheel. Note to self: Spend less time listening to old "Doors" albums.

RG-----There is an R&B artist named Mel Waiters who released a CD about 3 or 4 years ago that included a tune called " The Smaller the Club, The Bigger the Party." On that note, welcome to our little "club". Ladies clearly ruled the early blues roost. There was Ma Rainey, Bessie Smith, Mamie Smith, Memphis Minney and later we had Little Esther, Big Maybelle, Big Mama Thornton, Koko Taylor and on and on. Some of the more current one you might enjoy are Katie Webster, Lady Bianca, Teeny Tucker and Saphire: The Uppity Blues Women. I'm sure I left out at least a couple hundred. If it's blues women who also play or played guitar that interests you, you might want to check out Memphis Minney, Del Ray, Etta Baker, Ana Popovic, Deb Davies or Joanna Conner. Anyway, welcome to guitar talk.

CALICO She brings me bits of calico To mend my tattered dreams And reads to me From weathered books now bursting at the seams Of a magic land where nightbirds sing In broken metered rhyme And shadows dance on autumn nights In syncopated time She doesn't laugh but understands When like a child I cry She hides the pain I've brought to her And smiles a carefree lie For deep within, we two are one Yet can not understand We've not been born We're centuries old We're buried 'neath the land.--------------------------------Waysider

Hey! Anybody ever done this? In the '70's, it seemed like everybody played at least some basic guitar. We would get together in a circle(5 or 6 of us) and someone would start a basic chord pattern. As we continued to play that pattern, we would go around the circle giving "words of prophesy".(sung, not spoken) It's probably not too unlike what rappers do with rhyme and challenges. I don't know how much God was actually involved but we sure had a bunch of fun. We probably would have gotten the boot if HQ had found out :)

Are guys allowed in this forum? Just askin' :) I think a lot of the male dominance attitudes that have prevailed in TWI over the years came directly from VPW. "Dr. said this is how it's supposed to be so that's how it is." The problem with that is that much of the type of thinking he had on the subject stemmed from his own personal life experiences. He was not unique in that respect. He grew up in rural America during The Great Depression. Lots of people from that background had/have a similar outlook on the subject. What seperated DocVic trom the average Joe, on this topic, was that he used and abused Gods' word to justify his own opinion and then proselytized others to adapt to this approach. That's just my opinion. I think it might be beneficial to look at the issue as it relates to specific subcatagories such as: 1.) In the marriage 2.)In the workplace 3.) In society in general 4.) In positions of political authority I'm sure there are other subcatagories to add to the list. That's my 2 cents.(probably over priced at that)

Bolshevik Sometimes my posts are not a true representation of what I'm trying to say. In other words, sometimes I'm a bit of a clutz at conveying my point. I surely had no intent of saying anything that might seem condesending or offensive. I offer my appologies if I have done so. My comment on democracy was not directed at you but at the quotation in your post. From your posts, you seem to be a fine young man who has a sincere desire to do "the right thing" for yourself and your family. There is a real shortage of that sort of thing in the world today. HMMM! Can't seem to find an emoticon with an olive branch, so I guess I'll just have to settle for:-------- ----------- Peace,brother!

Bolshevik Talk about boredom! Imagine having a believers' meeting 3 times a day, 7 days a week for 3 years straight.(bare minimum). To add to the tedium, we were taught that the "mannies" were never to address a specific situation but were to be general in nature.(kinda like a horoscope,huh?) Can you imagine if the manifestations actually DID address current issues? "Yea, mah peeps, get off thy tushies and and go get jobs If thou shalt do so, surely wealth shall befall thee(after thine ABS be laid at the feet of the Holy Ones.)" I still believe in divine inspiration(revelation) because I think I've seen it in my own life. I don't, however, believe that our speaking in tongues or operating believers' meetings has any bearing on whether or not God decides to reveal something to you nor do I think it has any effect on our ability to receive. I remember a particular instance when I had a very vivid thought(like an image you might see in a daydream) and it took me totally unawares. I was very new to TWI at that time(probably about 1 or 2 weeks after I was witnessed to) I don't think I even spoke in tongues yet at that point. I did not fully understand what it meant and even felt guity about it for years to come because it involved taking action which I did not take but should have. I posted on it in one of my early posts. When I came to GSC and saw some of the escapades of TWI that I was unaware of, I thought to myself,"Holy crap! so THAT'S what that was all about!" I'm sure others have similar anecdotes they could relate. But,yeah, real or not, I don't think TWI had any special insight on the proper way to operate or understand the manifestations. It (their version of it) was really just a formalized type of ritual annointed by the "holy" powers at TWI

Bolshevik Forget about that tricking the adversary/ sitting on the fence stuff. When I was "in", the thinking was that if life was throwing you some curves, it must be because you were "moving" The Word and the Devil was trying to stop you. Then the line of thinking was that if life was throwing you some curves, it was because you had done something wrong and it was negating your"believing". Sometimes life just sucks. It's not your fault, Gods' fault or even the Devils' fault. Life just isn't always fair. Do what you feel in your heart is the right thing and don't try to read a bunch of spiritual mumbo- jumbo into it. That stuff about the adversary being involved in every aspect of life is nothing more than an attempt to control you and force you to conform to TWI doctrine. Here is a little side note for you. Recently in Ohio, three graduate students were killed in a tragic car wreck. They were stopped at a red light when a car slammed into them. All three were from China. One of the philosophical struggles their families is trying to cope with is trying to understand what they did wrong to attract this tragedy. It seems that ideolgy is also present in Eastern religious thinking as well. Focus on what you know to be the best and most logical course of action to take (and then ask God for his blessing on your decision.) Don't try to play "spiritual chess". That's just my opinion and everybody's got one. Now on the democracy thing: The USA is NOT a democracy, it is a republic. That's a lesson for another time.

I guess what I was trying to say was that Doc Vic may have stummbled upon the plans for a "better mouse trap" before he realized that people were already lined up to buy it. Once he did,though, he acted quickly to expand his product line, increase production and make his move to corner the market. Mice are clever critters,though. If you continue to use the same trap with the same bait, they start to see through the deception.

I think the "Jesus Freak" movement started in about '67 or '68( at least any large scale activity) When did Elton John release "Tiny Dancer" ? It has a line in the song that refers to the movement already in progress. When I came on board with TWI in mid '72, New Knockwurst was already being promoted as the modern day Holy Land. I can definately remember people we referred to as " Jesus Freaks" at least 2 years before my involvement with TWI Now here is a side note: In the '60's, it was common to refer to someone who got high as being a "freak". I know our older posters are saying DUUH! but there are a lot of younger people here too who may not know that. So, for someone to say they were a "Jesus Freak" was, in a sense, saying that their "high" came from Jesus (and the movement) not from drugs. When I went to ROA '72, it struck me that it was fashioned after some of the music festivals I had been to but there was a distinct absence of drugs.The euphoria that permiated the weekend was supposedly fueled by a new-found awareness of all things spiritual. I don't know if that helped but there it is anyhow.

Speaking only for myself, my main interest is in seeing what, if any, involvement the organization (ie: The Way) had in these events and subsequent events. I don't mean to sound like I am defending TWI, but did this individual act soley on his own? I mean, we have all heard of tragic incidents that have involved Postal workers, but they were acting as individuals. Anyone know how the "ministry" factored into the events or legal proceedings? Bolshevic--------If you are reading this post, perhaps it sheds some light on the "spiritual scanner" question. Bumpy--------I have no intention of "attacking" you. In fact, let me say "thank you" for opening this line of discussion

Now, ya see, here's what I don't get. They are "tapped in"/ Gettin'" heavy revvy"/ and have their "spiritual scanners" on high beam and yet they still need to come to GSC to see what's going on in "the world"?? Get out,folks, and join the Flat Earth Society. At least they have a cool website.

Jonny---------Nice to "see" you. Sounds like your son is in for some weather extremes that may be new to him. Are you still blowing any harp? I get to Harp-l .com every now and then . Maybe we could bring some harp talk here to the thread and "bend" a few ears. Kathy-------Yeah, I agree with you 100%. That's why I said the criteria is somewhat "loose". I have never been a big advocate of treating music like some sort of competition. It's like hanging a Picasso on the same wall as a Monet and asking,"Ok, which one is better.?" In high school we had band as well as individual competitions, but they were rated on a system that used very finite and technical criteria. We were rated on tone quality, articulation, use of dynamics,etc. These things are objective not subjective. Lots and lots of the artists we remember so fondly from our pasts would get the bums' rush on American "Idle". Dooj-------That's not a derail. That's what this thread is all about, yakkin' about guitars and music in general because it holds a special place in our hearts. There is nothing like one-on-one instruction but it's not the end all answer. I have been a long time user and advocate of homespuntapes.com. They produce video/ dvd lessons that you persue at your own pace. They are very well engineered and taught by some of the leading performers of their respective instuments. They have different levels, so you have to pay attention to the level of difficulty system to find what is right for you.(Can you imagine taking a lesson with Doc Watson, Roger McGuinn, Tony Rice, Tom Rush or Jorma Kaukenen?) That's the kind of stuff they offer. Sorry, I know that sounds like a commercial. Stick around and check out some of the YouTube links and what-not.

dmiller---- There is a very loose criteria used to determine eligibility for induction. First, 25 years must have passed since the release of your first record(No problem there) Secondly, your work must be thought of as having had some sort of profound significance and influence on the furtherance of rock and roll.(the general public is just beginning to see how large a role Ronnie Specter played in the history of rock and roll) Thirdly, I think, and this is just my opinion, that having been married briefly to legandary record producer Phil Specter helped her initially but also set her up to play second fiddle in the publics' eye over the years. Hall Of Fame or no Hall Of Fame, the lady has one very fine and powerful voice. She released an album last year called "Last of the Rock Stars" which received rave reviews. I confess, I have not heard the album in its entirety. What I did hear,though, was well worth the price of admission.

Of course, they can't say they were wrong because they already taught us that if a prophet gives erroneous prophesy, he is not really a prophet(I don't remember what class that's in) HMMM! Maybe they could just say they were wrong about THAT one and then they would be free to change anything they wanted.

I'm no chemist, but I should think if one would inhale something 6x heavier than air, their vocabulary would be somewhat---------umm------limited.

Ooh! Ooh! Call on me Teach! Call on me! Nah. I better bow out on this one. If I spill the beans, somebodys' liable to whine about it.