just spoke to a woman about seeing an apartment. even though i told her i'm presently making 40 grand a year and i manage two sprint stores that if i don't have a job before i move to buffalo then she won't show me anything.
'why don't you get yourself settled in buffalo first and then give me a call?'
explain to me why i would get 'settled' in buffalo in some apartment or another, and then prospect your shitty ass four hundred and fifty dollar a month apartment?
i stoutly informed her that
that whole conversation made me extremely pissed and dissapointed and nervous that i would not, in fact, find a job.
Fellyconnelly's Journal
My Podcast Link
06/14/2007 10:07 #39655
job/apartment anger06/13/2007 16:08 #39643
times a drawin closer...Category: moving
i'm excited as pie. blueberry pie maybe. or cherry. i love cherry pie. ala mode. or maybe half a slice of blueberry and half a slice of cherry with a big fat scoop of vanilla perched melty like all on top and in between the two.
okay yeah.. my point was....
oh yeah
i just made a double appointment to go check out a couple of apartments on monday.
first thing first we have 367 elmwood - elmwood village.
Then we have 950 Delaware (sheldon apartments) on the corner of hodge.
they are both run by esquare capital - which i hear is supposed to be a good/gay friendly company, yes? no?
anyway - so they are both about $665 a month.... which rather frightens the hell out of me - but they include heat... so what... would that be equivilant to a $600 a month apartment?
okay yeah.. my point was....
oh yeah
i just made a double appointment to go check out a couple of apartments on monday.
first thing first we have 367 elmwood - elmwood village.
Then we have 950 Delaware (sheldon apartments) on the corner of hodge.
they are both run by esquare capital - which i hear is supposed to be a good/gay friendly company, yes? no?
anyway - so they are both about $665 a month.... which rather frightens the hell out of me - but they include heat... so what... would that be equivilant to a $600 a month apartment?
dragonlady7 - 06/14/07 23:18
(And, er, by "real good" in my previous comment, I just want to clarify that I meant like, real fancy, like super-specialized and high-falutin kinda crap, like, you're the only person in the world who can do the kind of advanced-degree-type-forty-years-experience stock trading MBA whatever that you do. Those jobs? Not so much around here.
Also jobs here tend to pay less but it's totally way cheap to live here. By "buy your friends a round" standards we're about a quarter the cost of living of NYC, and probably half the cost of Chicago, so...)
I live in a tiny house. The square footage that I heat is probably... oh... under a thousand, that's my uninformed guess. (The house is thirty feet long by thirty feet wide, and it's one storey that's heated.) It's reasonably well-insulated. In February my gas bill was $180. This year was atypical in that it was very, very cold from January thru March, but barely dipped below freezing until January-- we had a green Christmas, I swear some of my flowers were still blooming. But it was extra-horrible from mid-January onward. You just can't predict the heat bills. But they'd probably average out around $75 if I did the math. Really depends on your square footage and insulation, though.
(And, er, by "real good" in my previous comment, I just want to clarify that I meant like, real fancy, like super-specialized and high-falutin kinda crap, like, you're the only person in the world who can do the kind of advanced-degree-type-forty-years-experience stock trading MBA whatever that you do. Those jobs? Not so much around here.
Also jobs here tend to pay less but it's totally way cheap to live here. By "buy your friends a round" standards we're about a quarter the cost of living of NYC, and probably half the cost of Chicago, so...)
I live in a tiny house. The square footage that I heat is probably... oh... under a thousand, that's my uninformed guess. (The house is thirty feet long by thirty feet wide, and it's one storey that's heated.) It's reasonably well-insulated. In February my gas bill was $180. This year was atypical in that it was very, very cold from January thru March, but barely dipped below freezing until January-- we had a green Christmas, I swear some of my flowers were still blooming. But it was extra-horrible from mid-January onward. You just can't predict the heat bills. But they'd probably average out around $75 if I did the math. Really depends on your square footage and insulation, though.
dragonlady7 - 06/14/07 23:13
Yeah... (e:Zobar) and I have a totally sweet deal on our house and I love the yard and wouldn't move for the world, but... if we did... it'd be probably to either Elmwood near Bryant and Summer... or to perhaps a nice little ghetto on the West Side. (The West Side is a crapshoot. Approximately every three houses are totally awesome and gorgeous; the one next door will be so-so but nice, and then every fourth one or so will be an actual working crackhouse. You really can't tell from the address, you have to go there.)
In re: your next post, jobs can be hardish to find if you want something real good, but I think managing a Sprint store is totally the kind of job that's all over in Buffalo. I mean, if you're really qualified? Hells yeah.
Buffalo has this reputation for being a place in which it is difficult to find work that is not McDonald's or equivalent, and I think the reputation is stronger than the actual fact. I do not presently know anyone who is unemployed who does not wish to be. I know a few underemployed persons who would like to trade up, but mostly they're either not looking super hard or aren't very good at looking.
So I'm sure you'll find something, but landlords are not exactly laid-back people, on the whole.
Yeah... (e:Zobar) and I have a totally sweet deal on our house and I love the yard and wouldn't move for the world, but... if we did... it'd be probably to either Elmwood near Bryant and Summer... or to perhaps a nice little ghetto on the West Side. (The West Side is a crapshoot. Approximately every three houses are totally awesome and gorgeous; the one next door will be so-so but nice, and then every fourth one or so will be an actual working crackhouse. You really can't tell from the address, you have to go there.)
In re: your next post, jobs can be hardish to find if you want something real good, but I think managing a Sprint store is totally the kind of job that's all over in Buffalo. I mean, if you're really qualified? Hells yeah.
Buffalo has this reputation for being a place in which it is difficult to find work that is not McDonald's or equivalent, and I think the reputation is stronger than the actual fact. I do not presently know anyone who is unemployed who does not wish to be. I know a few underemployed persons who would like to trade up, but mostly they're either not looking super hard or aren't very good at looking.
So I'm sure you'll find something, but landlords are not exactly laid-back people, on the whole.
james - 06/14/07 09:36
That is a mighty fine location on elmwood. It is a short walk to Allentown, a short walk to the elmwood shops, bars, restaurants, etc. esquare is down with all your pets, heat including, sapho loving company. So you should be set with them.
Congrats
That is a mighty fine location on elmwood. It is a short walk to Allentown, a short walk to the elmwood shops, bars, restaurants, etc. esquare is down with all your pets, heat including, sapho loving company. So you should be set with them.
Congrats
fellyconnelly - 06/13/07 18:06
oh and elmwood village apartments are between bryant and summer... is that good as well?
oh and elmwood village apartments are between bryant and summer... is that good as well?
fellyconnelly - 06/13/07 18:04
they are both 1 bedrooms. and yeah - we kinda fell in love with the elmwood ave apartments from the moment we saw them.. so many great reviews too.
(and i would officially be an estripper!)
they are both 1 bedrooms. and yeah - we kinda fell in love with the elmwood ave apartments from the moment we saw them.. so many great reviews too.
(and i would officially be an estripper!)
jim - 06/13/07 17:45
(e:james) and I just moved out of 950 delaware. The rental company is really nice, they allow pets, pretty good experience. But our 1 bedroom apartment there had a very small kitchen, and because our unit had a balcony they were going to jack up our rent so we decided to move.
You can't go wrong renting from them, but it is probably possible to get something cheaper elsewhere.
(e:james) and I just moved out of 950 delaware. The rental company is really nice, they allow pets, pretty good experience. But our 1 bedroom apartment there had a very small kitchen, and because our unit had a balcony they were going to jack up our rent so we decided to move.
You can't go wrong renting from them, but it is probably possible to get something cheaper elsewhere.
jenks - 06/13/07 17:24
hodge is a nice area. What's the cross street for 367 elmwood?
And 665 including heat?! That sounds pretty good to me. How many BR?
Good luck! have fun! And honestly, i found a lot more just driving around looking for signs, and looking in artvoice, than going through real estate companies.
hodge is a nice area. What's the cross street for 367 elmwood?
And 665 including heat?! That sounds pretty good to me. How many BR?
Good luck! have fun! And honestly, i found a lot more just driving around looking for signs, and looking in artvoice, than going through real estate companies.
06/11/2007 15:51 #39609
here is a great story!Category: randomo
nerves abound folks, time is flyin and felly is still apartment and job less!
you know if i'm referring to myself in the 3rd person i must be going nuts.
in one week from now i'll be in buffalo checking out apartments. i told my mother this mornign that i was not in any way interested in staying with my grandparents. she gratefully understood.
anyone know of any campgrounds near buffalo that i can stay at?
i spent a good 5 hours sitting in the garage painting last night. i was listening to a harry potter book on tape to keep my mind from going nuts as i was doing some detail work on the branches of a tree. Could you imagine painting tree branches for 5 hours without developing an annoying eye twitch? yeah i guess i'm just floored that it happened.
also - i have decided that for my big going away bash i am getting a kareoke machine. because the idea of some of my friends getting smashed out of their mind and singing 'girls just wanna have fun' makes my stomach tingle with glee. or maybe thats just the pizza that i had for lunch.
okay i get to leave work in no more than 20 minutes.
OH WAIT! i have an amazing story that I have to pass along.
About 3 houses down and across the street live these group of weirdo hippies. i mean these guys even have one of those purple hippie vw busses! anyway the other night there was firetrucks heading out that way. i got very nervouse because this place is right across from the bed and breakfast that jess runs - and she would have had to be institutionalized if anything happened there.
so apparently this is what happened.....
their cat died. so they decided that, instead of burying the poor thing, they should cremate it. yes... they decided to cremate their own cat. So they had a memorial service and played guitars for the cat and sang like the hippies that they are.......but apparently they waited too long to cremate it - as in it had been dead for a few days and started to fill with decomposition gases. so they tossed the cat in a ditch and poured gasoline over it. when they threw the match at the gasoline soaked/gas filled dead kitty the sucker exploded. EXPLODING CAT! the explosion managed to ignite a nearby ranshackle shed and thus the fire department.
this story was related to jess by the guests at the bed and breakfast that sat there and watched the whole thing happen.
am i sure that i want to leave this town?
you know if i'm referring to myself in the 3rd person i must be going nuts.
in one week from now i'll be in buffalo checking out apartments. i told my mother this mornign that i was not in any way interested in staying with my grandparents. she gratefully understood.
anyone know of any campgrounds near buffalo that i can stay at?
i spent a good 5 hours sitting in the garage painting last night. i was listening to a harry potter book on tape to keep my mind from going nuts as i was doing some detail work on the branches of a tree. Could you imagine painting tree branches for 5 hours without developing an annoying eye twitch? yeah i guess i'm just floored that it happened.
also - i have decided that for my big going away bash i am getting a kareoke machine. because the idea of some of my friends getting smashed out of their mind and singing 'girls just wanna have fun' makes my stomach tingle with glee. or maybe thats just the pizza that i had for lunch.
okay i get to leave work in no more than 20 minutes.
OH WAIT! i have an amazing story that I have to pass along.
About 3 houses down and across the street live these group of weirdo hippies. i mean these guys even have one of those purple hippie vw busses! anyway the other night there was firetrucks heading out that way. i got very nervouse because this place is right across from the bed and breakfast that jess runs - and she would have had to be institutionalized if anything happened there.
so apparently this is what happened.....
their cat died. so they decided that, instead of burying the poor thing, they should cremate it. yes... they decided to cremate their own cat. So they had a memorial service and played guitars for the cat and sang like the hippies that they are.......but apparently they waited too long to cremate it - as in it had been dead for a few days and started to fill with decomposition gases. so they tossed the cat in a ditch and poured gasoline over it. when they threw the match at the gasoline soaked/gas filled dead kitty the sucker exploded. EXPLODING CAT! the explosion managed to ignite a nearby ranshackle shed and thus the fire department.
this story was related to jess by the guests at the bed and breakfast that sat there and watched the whole thing happen.
am i sure that i want to leave this town?
fellyconnelly - 06/12/07 20:04
James: i do not doubt in my mind that your vision of the event was exactly as it happened.
Jim: it must be the italian in him.
Drew: we move to buffalo in july
paul: we won't be bringing our cats until we are settled, though we do have the typical lesbianic layer of cat hair permanantly affixed to our clothing.
James: i do not doubt in my mind that your vision of the event was exactly as it happened.
Jim: it must be the italian in him.
Drew: we move to buffalo in july
paul: we won't be bringing our cats until we are settled, though we do have the typical lesbianic layer of cat hair permanantly affixed to our clothing.
theecarey - 06/12/07 00:08
oh damn, thats fuunny! what a story!
oh damn, thats fuunny! what a story!
paul - 06/11/07 20:11
If you don't have any pets with you, you could stay at our house, we have plenty of room. Unfortunately, I am deathly allergic to animals. You could even have your own bed, and 1 of 3 guest rooms to choose from.
If you don't have any pets with you, you could stay at our house, we have plenty of room. Unfortunately, I am deathly allergic to animals. You could even have your own bed, and 1 of 3 guest rooms to choose from.
drew - 06/11/07 18:43
Hilarious.
I thought you were already in Buffalo. Where are you? How long will you need a place to stay?
Hilarious.
I thought you were already in Buffalo. Where are you? How long will you need a place to stay?
jim - 06/11/07 16:54
His flailing, it went on and on.
His flailing, it went on and on.
james - 06/11/07 16:13
In the theater of the mind, I like to imagine these hippies standing around in a circle with the gasoline drenched cat in the middle. They are singing as they throw the match on and KABOOM!
THe hippies are then covered in fur and mysterious green goo.
You have made me laugh before in your journal. But never have I uncontrollably bounced up and down in my chair flailing my arms.
God bless you Felly. ;_;
In the theater of the mind, I like to imagine these hippies standing around in a circle with the gasoline drenched cat in the middle. They are singing as they throw the match on and KABOOM!
THe hippies are then covered in fur and mysterious green goo.
You have made me laugh before in your journal. But never have I uncontrollably bounced up and down in my chair flailing my arms.
God bless you Felly. ;_;
06/06/2007 12:07 #39544
Religion: Theory and EvolutionCategory: religion
Due to some of the recent discussions of religion on the estrip, I have decided to write a bit about my own religious views.
I'll begin with something my mother once told me. It went something like
"I don't need a roof over my head to believe what I believe" in reference to going to church.
I grew up attending church. Or Sunday school at the very least. I have to confess that a great deal of my superficially religious nature had to do with the activities at the church, rather than the religion itself. My Sunday school teacher was a wealthy woman who used to set up an assortment of activities that peaked my interest. Picnics, trips to Darien Lake (what is that religious week that they have? Kingdom Bound?) We went to Toronto to see Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dream coat.
It wasn't until about tenth grade when, in my social studies class, we started to study world religions from an educational position. It was at this point that I started listening. I started quietly questioning what they were teaching me.
Throughout the years I have become very interested in religion, but from a more open minded, historical and didactic point of view. I took a course in the Bible in college and got an A. I have probably watched every program that has ever been on the History channel about religion. But my curiosity has always been in the historical rather than the religious. To be precise, the evolution of religion to what it has become today, and the theories and gospels that have been dropped along the way.
I read in a book of fiction recently (one of the slew of post - DaVinci Code religious conspiracy theory books) something that I actually found as an interesting theory. At the risk of an argument, I will summarize.
The theory went as follows: Jesus was an ordinary man who had a religious inspiration about the way to live life. It was a beautiful and inspirational way to live without judgment of others, and love for one and all. When Jesus died, he was not resurrected to walk the earth in the flesh. The resurrection of Jesus was intended to develop into the rebirth of his principles into the traditions of his followers. It was the state of the world, and the requirement for a more authoritative message that prompted for the ascension of Jesus as the Son of God, in order to generate Christianity as force to challenge the pagan religion of the Romans as well as Judaism.
Now I'm not saying that this is in fact my belief, but I will say that this speculation touches me more than the contradictory and ever evolving verses of what has become the bible. The bible is an amazing volume of poignant and moral (and not so moral) stories that serve as a guideline for living a life of love and peace. But the idea of taking said Bible and following it as if it were law is quite absurd to me. I am very much in the conviction that religion is an individual experience, not one of sheep following sheep blindly without question.
Okay on that note I'm going to stop, as I could probably go on forever, and I've probably made enough enemies for the day.
I'll begin with something my mother once told me. It went something like
"I don't need a roof over my head to believe what I believe" in reference to going to church.
I grew up attending church. Or Sunday school at the very least. I have to confess that a great deal of my superficially religious nature had to do with the activities at the church, rather than the religion itself. My Sunday school teacher was a wealthy woman who used to set up an assortment of activities that peaked my interest. Picnics, trips to Darien Lake (what is that religious week that they have? Kingdom Bound?) We went to Toronto to see Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dream coat.
It wasn't until about tenth grade when, in my social studies class, we started to study world religions from an educational position. It was at this point that I started listening. I started quietly questioning what they were teaching me.
Throughout the years I have become very interested in religion, but from a more open minded, historical and didactic point of view. I took a course in the Bible in college and got an A. I have probably watched every program that has ever been on the History channel about religion. But my curiosity has always been in the historical rather than the religious. To be precise, the evolution of religion to what it has become today, and the theories and gospels that have been dropped along the way.
I read in a book of fiction recently (one of the slew of post - DaVinci Code religious conspiracy theory books) something that I actually found as an interesting theory. At the risk of an argument, I will summarize.
The theory went as follows: Jesus was an ordinary man who had a religious inspiration about the way to live life. It was a beautiful and inspirational way to live without judgment of others, and love for one and all. When Jesus died, he was not resurrected to walk the earth in the flesh. The resurrection of Jesus was intended to develop into the rebirth of his principles into the traditions of his followers. It was the state of the world, and the requirement for a more authoritative message that prompted for the ascension of Jesus as the Son of God, in order to generate Christianity as force to challenge the pagan religion of the Romans as well as Judaism.
Now I'm not saying that this is in fact my belief, but I will say that this speculation touches me more than the contradictory and ever evolving verses of what has become the bible. The bible is an amazing volume of poignant and moral (and not so moral) stories that serve as a guideline for living a life of love and peace. But the idea of taking said Bible and following it as if it were law is quite absurd to me. I am very much in the conviction that religion is an individual experience, not one of sheep following sheep blindly without question.
Okay on that note I'm going to stop, as I could probably go on forever, and I've probably made enough enemies for the day.
drew - 06/06/07 21:04
Ok, here's the scoop on Q.
Of the four Biblical Gospels, 3 are similar, Matthew Mark and Luke. John is pretty different, and likely written at a later date. By looking at what's in the other 3, scholars have concluded that Matthew and Luke both had access to Mark and used it as a source. They also each had an independent source that nobody else used. Matthew and Luke also had a source in common, besides Mark. The Scholars called this "q" short for the German word for source. Nobody has a copy of Q, it may or may not have existed, it is our best guess.
Even the most skeptical of scholars give earlier dates to the New Testament. There are multiple attestations to it in the 2nd century.
The different translations have actually helped us understand what the early texts said. This is because most translators did not do translations of translations, but worked from the original languages. There are, of course, a few variants, and the footnotes of a scholarly Bible will point these out (Oxford NRSV is kind of the standard English translation--I can show you the best Greek if you want). Anyway, by comparing early translations, we are able to see that the Greek text was pretty well established. Almost all modern translations have gone back to those early texts, rather than doing the copy of a copy thing.
Yes, the canon was formally voted on at Nicea. However, there was wide agreement much earlier than that. If we look at the "excluded" texts, most of them were written at a later date, and by people that had no connection at all to Christ.
It's fun to look for conspiracies, but if they were being conspiratorial, they did a lousy job of it. After all, they did not do anything about the inconsistancies among the 4 gospels, or the different theologies held by Paul, John, and James. They also left letters explaining why some books were left out and others included.
Same thing about the bishops "deciding" that Christ was the son of God at Nicea. That's like saying that Newton "decided" that gravity was real when the apple hit him. The ideas had been there for a while--yes, there were people contesting them. (By the way, some argued the opposite position--that he was only divine, and not human). They weren't "decided" at Nicea, so much as "codified."
Yes, history is written by the victors, but its pretty much all we have.
As for other theories:
If Roman soldiers knew anything, they knew how to kill people.
If Jesus had a kid, SOMEONE would have mentioned him/her.
Thanks for listening.
Anyway, thanks for reading. I get into this stuff, but I know I am in the minority.
And yes, I do understand that I can be wrong on just about anything, but I have put some time and energy into this stuff.
Ok, here's the scoop on Q.
Of the four Biblical Gospels, 3 are similar, Matthew Mark and Luke. John is pretty different, and likely written at a later date. By looking at what's in the other 3, scholars have concluded that Matthew and Luke both had access to Mark and used it as a source. They also each had an independent source that nobody else used. Matthew and Luke also had a source in common, besides Mark. The Scholars called this "q" short for the German word for source. Nobody has a copy of Q, it may or may not have existed, it is our best guess.
Even the most skeptical of scholars give earlier dates to the New Testament. There are multiple attestations to it in the 2nd century.
The different translations have actually helped us understand what the early texts said. This is because most translators did not do translations of translations, but worked from the original languages. There are, of course, a few variants, and the footnotes of a scholarly Bible will point these out (Oxford NRSV is kind of the standard English translation--I can show you the best Greek if you want). Anyway, by comparing early translations, we are able to see that the Greek text was pretty well established. Almost all modern translations have gone back to those early texts, rather than doing the copy of a copy thing.
Yes, the canon was formally voted on at Nicea. However, there was wide agreement much earlier than that. If we look at the "excluded" texts, most of them were written at a later date, and by people that had no connection at all to Christ.
It's fun to look for conspiracies, but if they were being conspiratorial, they did a lousy job of it. After all, they did not do anything about the inconsistancies among the 4 gospels, or the different theologies held by Paul, John, and James. They also left letters explaining why some books were left out and others included.
Same thing about the bishops "deciding" that Christ was the son of God at Nicea. That's like saying that Newton "decided" that gravity was real when the apple hit him. The ideas had been there for a while--yes, there were people contesting them. (By the way, some argued the opposite position--that he was only divine, and not human). They weren't "decided" at Nicea, so much as "codified."
Yes, history is written by the victors, but its pretty much all we have.
As for other theories:
If Roman soldiers knew anything, they knew how to kill people.
If Jesus had a kid, SOMEONE would have mentioned him/her.
Thanks for listening.
Anyway, thanks for reading. I get into this stuff, but I know I am in the minority.
And yes, I do understand that I can be wrong on just about anything, but I have put some time and energy into this stuff.
fellyconnelly - 06/06/07 19:31
good call man... lots of historical stuff that i would go into in epth right now but fortunately for us all i am supposed to be working/closing my store!
good call man... lots of historical stuff that i would go into in epth right now but fortunately for us all i am supposed to be working/closing my store!
metalpeter - 06/06/07 19:08
I am the first to admit that I don't know much about the history of different religons. But it does sound like and interesting subject. Along with the theory you have said there are a few others that when you say them people think you are blastfamous but you really aren't. One of them (can't think of the name of it, but it does have a name) is that when Jesus was stabed he was stabed in the side but not in the heart cause if his heart would have been puncherd he couldn't have come back to life. There are many theories about Mary Magdelin I guess the biggest one is the one used in the DaVinci code that she had a kid with Jesus. In terms of History scholers do belive that there may be what I was told is called the Q source. If my memory is correct there are different bible stories that tell the same thing but with varations. Some scholers belive that some of the stories where taken from this one source. I wish I could remember it better. I guess the one thing about my belief system that I wish more people would remember is 3 things.
1) The Bible (any realigous book) was written by men and not god.
2) It was supposidly written around 400 years after Jeusus died
3) It was translated into many different langauges and there are different versions of it
: For your own personal beliefs it is good to keep those things in the back of your mind but when you start to think someone isn't living the way they should then you need to think about those 3 things and understand that you might be wrong.
I am the first to admit that I don't know much about the history of different religons. But it does sound like and interesting subject. Along with the theory you have said there are a few others that when you say them people think you are blastfamous but you really aren't. One of them (can't think of the name of it, but it does have a name) is that when Jesus was stabed he was stabed in the side but not in the heart cause if his heart would have been puncherd he couldn't have come back to life. There are many theories about Mary Magdelin I guess the biggest one is the one used in the DaVinci code that she had a kid with Jesus. In terms of History scholers do belive that there may be what I was told is called the Q source. If my memory is correct there are different bible stories that tell the same thing but with varations. Some scholers belive that some of the stories where taken from this one source. I wish I could remember it better. I guess the one thing about my belief system that I wish more people would remember is 3 things.
1) The Bible (any realigous book) was written by men and not god.
2) It was supposidly written around 400 years after Jeusus died
3) It was translated into many different langauges and there are different versions of it
: For your own personal beliefs it is good to keep those things in the back of your mind but when you start to think someone isn't living the way they should then you need to think about those 3 things and understand that you might be wrong.
fellyconnelly - 06/06/07 18:18
As I have indicated, I do not necessarily believe in this theory, but it interests me enough to allow myself to be open to it. I agree that the theory does not follow what we have been taught in history. I also see that there is a great deal of history that is being rewritten as we speak. The axiom 'History has been written by the victors" has been found to be true on many occasions when searching through the rubble of ancient civilizations. Why, then, should we discount any possibility of an altered history when considering religion?
At the Council of Nicaea - wherein said canons of what was to be the bible were decided upon, it was decided that Jesus was the son of God.... by bishops. And even at that, it has been proven that there were many bishops that were prevented from reaching the council until after the vote had been made. But all that is another story that I will not get into right now.
Truth is a constant factor that exists at many levels; it is in our interpretation of the details that confusion exerts influence and our faiths fragment.
For myself, someone who had struggled for a long time with religion, I find peace in following the teachings of love and compassion for all, without having to adhere to the beliefs that have been outlined by various religions.
As I have indicated, I do not necessarily believe in this theory, but it interests me enough to allow myself to be open to it. I agree that the theory does not follow what we have been taught in history. I also see that there is a great deal of history that is being rewritten as we speak. The axiom 'History has been written by the victors" has been found to be true on many occasions when searching through the rubble of ancient civilizations. Why, then, should we discount any possibility of an altered history when considering religion?
At the Council of Nicaea - wherein said canons of what was to be the bible were decided upon, it was decided that Jesus was the son of God.... by bishops. And even at that, it has been proven that there were many bishops that were prevented from reaching the council until after the vote had been made. But all that is another story that I will not get into right now.
Truth is a constant factor that exists at many levels; it is in our interpretation of the details that confusion exerts influence and our faiths fragment.
For myself, someone who had struggled for a long time with religion, I find peace in following the teachings of love and compassion for all, without having to adhere to the beliefs that have been outlined by various religions.
joshua - 06/06/07 15:52
YOU THINK DIFFERENTLY THAN ME - CLEARLY I AM HATFIELD AND YOU ARE MCCOY! Mwahahah.
Yeah, I think denying the ressurection would rankle Christians - its one of the single most important articles of faith in all of Christianity, and most Christians would argue that beyond the ressurection being an article of faith, it is a historical fact based on documented eye-witness accounts. Ultimately, I suppose either you believe it or you don't.
To be honest though, I agree with virtually everything you wrote and am particularly interested in the historical angle.
Actually, this afternoon NPR had a panel discussion about religions role in society - slightly skewed (everybody on the panel was either liberal or a member of the "left hand of God") but still an interesting and level-headed discussion that I thought had alot of value. One of the panel members suggested that Europeans, while vastly secular, are more educated about religion than most Americans. Personally I thought this idea was counterintuitive and simply wrong, but it got me thinking about how more secularized societies than our own approach religion. Generally speaking, its my understanding that secular people are more prone to approach religion from a historical perspective. One of the more interesting historical tidbits for me is how the Roman Emperor Constantine affected the spread of Christianity - without him Christianity as it is and has been might have been vastly different. Another more controversial topic might be the Apocrypha and how the early church manipulated what the Bible would contain based on what they thought was and wasn't heretical.
For religious people... true believers, religion is (in my own view, anyway) not an intellectual exercise outside of knowing the content of the Bible. The larger meaning of the faith is contained within the experience of having a personal relationship with God. I think all religious people should at least have some understanding of other faiths, because there are some lessons to be learned and since religion has been the most powerful force in human history (for both good and bad, admittedly) the more everyone knows the better.
I also grew up attending church (e:felly) - my family are members of the United Church of Christ... one of the more liberal and gay-friendly denominations I might add. We did not grow up as members of your stereotypical "christian right," in other words, hehe.
Maybe some wouldn't admit it, but I believe everybody struggles with understanding God, or if not g-o-d then the concept of a higher power. Personally I find myself wondering alot about the concept of a loving God versus the concept of a punitive God (biggest religious topic (e:jason) and I talk about), the afterlife and whether or not the major world religions really are that mutually exclusive. I think there are some positives to take out of most religions that Christians, Buddhists, Hindus can all appreciate. You can imagine my twin brother and I with a joint talking about these religious things - sometimes they get too deep and way too theoretical, haha!
Sorry for this long comment but I'm like you - I could go on forever. When it comes to TV I'm a horrible, unrepairable History Channel/National Geographic Channel/Science Channel/Discovery Times Channel junkie.
YOU THINK DIFFERENTLY THAN ME - CLEARLY I AM HATFIELD AND YOU ARE MCCOY! Mwahahah.
Yeah, I think denying the ressurection would rankle Christians - its one of the single most important articles of faith in all of Christianity, and most Christians would argue that beyond the ressurection being an article of faith, it is a historical fact based on documented eye-witness accounts. Ultimately, I suppose either you believe it or you don't.
To be honest though, I agree with virtually everything you wrote and am particularly interested in the historical angle.
Actually, this afternoon NPR had a panel discussion about religions role in society - slightly skewed (everybody on the panel was either liberal or a member of the "left hand of God") but still an interesting and level-headed discussion that I thought had alot of value. One of the panel members suggested that Europeans, while vastly secular, are more educated about religion than most Americans. Personally I thought this idea was counterintuitive and simply wrong, but it got me thinking about how more secularized societies than our own approach religion. Generally speaking, its my understanding that secular people are more prone to approach religion from a historical perspective. One of the more interesting historical tidbits for me is how the Roman Emperor Constantine affected the spread of Christianity - without him Christianity as it is and has been might have been vastly different. Another more controversial topic might be the Apocrypha and how the early church manipulated what the Bible would contain based on what they thought was and wasn't heretical.
For religious people... true believers, religion is (in my own view, anyway) not an intellectual exercise outside of knowing the content of the Bible. The larger meaning of the faith is contained within the experience of having a personal relationship with God. I think all religious people should at least have some understanding of other faiths, because there are some lessons to be learned and since religion has been the most powerful force in human history (for both good and bad, admittedly) the more everyone knows the better.
I also grew up attending church (e:felly) - my family are members of the United Church of Christ... one of the more liberal and gay-friendly denominations I might add. We did not grow up as members of your stereotypical "christian right," in other words, hehe.
Maybe some wouldn't admit it, but I believe everybody struggles with understanding God, or if not g-o-d then the concept of a higher power. Personally I find myself wondering alot about the concept of a loving God versus the concept of a punitive God (biggest religious topic (e:jason) and I talk about), the afterlife and whether or not the major world religions really are that mutually exclusive. I think there are some positives to take out of most religions that Christians, Buddhists, Hindus can all appreciate. You can imagine my twin brother and I with a joint talking about these religious things - sometimes they get too deep and way too theoretical, haha!
Sorry for this long comment but I'm like you - I could go on forever. When it comes to TV I'm a horrible, unrepairable History Channel/National Geographic Channel/Science Channel/Discovery Times Channel junkie.
drew - 06/06/07 14:42
First of all, if a Christian considers you an enemy for disagreeing with you--they aren't very good students of the Bible. So no, you aren't an enemy.
Secondly, I agree with most of your post.
Finally, while your theory is intriguing, there isn't a lot of evidence to back it up. Because you have studied a lot, I am sure that you know that the earliest and most reliable accounts of Christ and the church were Paul's letters, and then the Biblical Gospels. I'm not saying that there weren't other books. We both know that there were others, but most of those came later.
Proving the actual resurrection is tough, but the first followers of Jesus were convinced that they saw an actual resurrected body, and were willing to (and did) die to defend that idea.
That being said, I wouldn't mind if a lot of people followed the way of Jesus for other reasons. I just don't think your theory squares well with history.
First of all, if a Christian considers you an enemy for disagreeing with you--they aren't very good students of the Bible. So no, you aren't an enemy.
Secondly, I agree with most of your post.
Finally, while your theory is intriguing, there isn't a lot of evidence to back it up. Because you have studied a lot, I am sure that you know that the earliest and most reliable accounts of Christ and the church were Paul's letters, and then the Biblical Gospels. I'm not saying that there weren't other books. We both know that there were others, but most of those came later.
Proving the actual resurrection is tough, but the first followers of Jesus were convinced that they saw an actual resurrected body, and were willing to (and did) die to defend that idea.
That being said, I wouldn't mind if a lot of people followed the way of Jesus for other reasons. I just don't think your theory squares well with history.
06/03/2007 17:43 #39515
New Paltz PrideCategory: gay
first of all thanks paul again, as the restore key just kept me from being a very cranky dyke on Pride day!
the parade was today. but first.....
KITTEN!
cute as hell, I know. so anyway... on to the parade....
a truck (float) in our parade.
this was the grand marshal though i'm unsure as to who he is supposed to be.
I love these drummer women. they are an all female brazillian drummer group and they rule.
this is one of the hudson valley drag queen personalities. she is at all the gay events. i wish i cared enough to look up her name.
then after the parade came the festival in the park
i am not sure who these horses were but i loved them...
Char played later after we left.
this is qi. i wish i could describe qi, but there are no words that could possibly get you to truly wrap your mind around that which is qi. this picture, however, is probably the closest that i could put up here without legal implications. please take in the hair, the yell face, the half pointing finger and the starbucks cup of straight scotch. this is qi.
my drummer ladies played too!
which led to....
in new paltz, gay parades turn into hippie festivals...
lauren likes to dance too!
michael (one of our current fruits) came out of nowhere with a water bottle full of tanqueray and a splash of tonic.
got home and found our other fruit - steven, at home... steven doesn't do the pride thing.
so yeah those are a couple of our current fruits that we need replacing...
i'm doing something. or should be doing something now anyway.
the parade was today. but first.....
KITTEN!
cute as hell, I know. so anyway... on to the parade....
a truck (float) in our parade.
this was the grand marshal though i'm unsure as to who he is supposed to be.
I love these drummer women. they are an all female brazillian drummer group and they rule.
this is one of the hudson valley drag queen personalities. she is at all the gay events. i wish i cared enough to look up her name.
then after the parade came the festival in the park
i am not sure who these horses were but i loved them...
Char played later after we left.
this is qi. i wish i could describe qi, but there are no words that could possibly get you to truly wrap your mind around that which is qi. this picture, however, is probably the closest that i could put up here without legal implications. please take in the hair, the yell face, the half pointing finger and the starbucks cup of straight scotch. this is qi.
my drummer ladies played too!
which led to....
in new paltz, gay parades turn into hippie festivals...
lauren likes to dance too!
michael (one of our current fruits) came out of nowhere with a water bottle full of tanqueray and a splash of tonic.
got home and found our other fruit - steven, at home... steven doesn't do the pride thing.
so yeah those are a couple of our current fruits that we need replacing...
i'm doing something. or should be doing something now anyway.
fellyconnelly - 06/04/07 10:49
there are so many wrong comments i could make about packing fruits, but i won't make them because its just wrong....
qi is a character... you should be scared... we've been friends for about 8 years, and i've been scared plenty of times...
kitten is the cutest ever. (its a he though)
painting is very exciting!
there are so many wrong comments i could make about packing fruits, but i won't make them because its just wrong....
qi is a character... you should be scared... we've been friends for about 8 years, and i've been scared plenty of times...
kitten is the cutest ever. (its a he though)
painting is very exciting!
theecarey - 06/03/07 22:24
ooh, I like the drumming.
qi looks like a character. I think I am scared.
kitten is mad cute. *gushes* - look at the dots on her belly :D
art project. I relocated all of my art supplies away in the basement. Feeling like I want to paint now..
"fruits' are cute. Pack them up and bring 'em with you!
ooh, I like the drumming.
qi looks like a character. I think I am scared.
kitten is mad cute. *gushes* - look at the dots on her belly :D
art project. I relocated all of my art supplies away in the basement. Feeling like I want to paint now..
"fruits' are cute. Pack them up and bring 'em with you!
jim: that is absolutely wonderful of you. i'll try not to have wild crazy parties and trash the apartment every other weekend so your name won't be tarnished. (and if i do, i'll be sure to invite you!)
Tiny: i have tried BMG. it is one of the 9 gazillion search engines i have used!
Ladycroft: July 1 is our move date, and hey, it can't hurt, right? oh and i digs the new avatar!
James: this is exactly the reason that i wasn't worried until this snatchy bitch had to rain on my high hopes parade... i dunno about buffalo suburbs, but i would love to see money crawling... i imagine it would look like caterpillars, yes?
The job situation is a little odd in this town. But if you made 40k a year at your last job you only need to make 27k a year to live the same lifestyle you did in New Paltz.
But if you are looking for a job like the one you have now it shouldn't be a big problem. The suburbs are crawling with money and thus plenty of high end cell phone users.
It might be difficult if you are a steel or auto worker as their employed number have gone from thousands to 6.
i don't know what you're moving or when this place will be finished, but the guy next door is remodeling the upper. the girl downstairs might move up there, but either way one of those will be open. we have a nice little community within the houses my landlord owns and the new guys. i can ask if you're interested.
Have you tried the BMG group apartments? (http://www.bmgapt.com/controller.jsp) Most of their places seem to include all utilities and somewhat cheaper rates than the ones you are mentioned...
If you decide to move in to one of the ESC places, talk to the manager Tracy and tell her that we told you about the place, and use us as references. You can give her my name (Jim Lindley / 604.6696) or just say Jim and James from #4 sent you. She really liked us, and it might help you to know someone she knows were good tenants. Can't hurt at least.
nah, this was rienes realty or something. An ad in the paper that i called about. esc didn't ask about buffalo employment - but it seriously makes me wonder about whether that is going to hurt my chances.
i'm starting to get really nervous about this whole job thing.
Was this ESC?