S.O.B. (Standard Operational Bullshit)

My mom has a boyfriend. As she said, he is "old school." LOL Gotta love it. She has known him forever; before she ever met my dad. So, I guess that's OK. She said they nearly had to take a drive down here to Cowlumbus for me to meet him before he would take my mom out to dinner. They settled for my middle sister meeting him instead as she lives the closest. My response to Mom telling me this, "A phone call to me wouldn't have sufficed in his book?" She says he's very nice, and he will be there for Christmas.

I had a couple of witty things that I had been wanting to blog that have gone swirling through my mind over the course of the afternoon. Now that I have sat down to do this, not a sight of them. ~sigh~

I would much rather use the little >< (have to put them that way or they are misconstrued to be code) but that is not allowed here.

Oh yeah... one of those items came back to me ~shudder~

Disclaimer: Any former members of The Way International, proceed with caution. Religious dogma and cultish triggers ahead.

I had a PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) moment when I opened my mail this afternoon. All relating back to my time in that crazy little place called The Way International. Or TWI, as we escapees/exilees refer to it.

After the huge fallout from when TWI imploded, a bunch of splinter ministries formed. Someone signed me up for teaching CDs from one of them. In the mail today, I received a "Christmas Card" from this ministry. Being that we cultists did not celebrate or acknowledge Christmas.... go figure.

Anyway, inside this card was a little pocket-type calendar for 2008. The cover was imprinted with 2 Corinthians 9:8.

The first page, use this address for "Abundant Sharing" translated - "Send me your money" (as Mike Muir begins to scream in my head).

Next page (s) the prayer list...
1. Word over the World
2. ******* Family
3. Doulos of Christ
4. Lights of the World
5. Advanced Class
6. Foundational Class
7. Yourself
8. Your Family
9. Your Fellowship

Oh FUCK! Talk about "triggers."

Next page... The twelve principles of how the Word of God interprets itself:
1. Just as it is stated
2. Men's additions
3. The context
4. To whom it is addressed
5. The correct administration
6. Original biblical meaning
7. Defined internally
8. First occurrence
9. Other occurrences
10. Scriptural agreement
11. Problem verses
12. Complementary Scripture

eh, not QUITE like it was stated in the old, original cult, but still close enough to make me shudder...

Then, the calendar pages... At the top of each "Speaking in Tongues..." and a different blurb for each month related to speaking in tongues (what it is, what it does for you, etc)

As we (the cult) did not celebrate Christmas, Jesus Christ's Birthday is listed as being September 11. (Stolen from the work and research of E. W. Bullinger, I might add.) and December 25th is listed as being "The Holiday." Hey, this is an obviously more liberal bunch than the original bunch of cultists. In the previous incarnation, in any reference to December 25th, it was known as "Ho Ho Day."

I literally did freak when I saw that prayer list.

The only thing missing from the old days was "The Word of God is The Will of God."

It wouldn't surprise me if The Way had trademarked that particular phrase.

That can be about the only reason that I can think of off the top of my head why it would not have been used.

As it is coming up on 11pm EST, and I would have been due to get off work in two minutes if I had gone to work, I suppose I will go ahead and dish on why it was that I boycotted work today.

We received a Christmas bonus with our paychecks today. Mine was all of $25. Because I'm contingent. Fucking assholes. I was embarrassed to take that thing to the bank. And, it's my daughter working at the bank. I was going to take it to Chase (the bank it was written on) and cash it, but the $5 fee to do so and the gas expended to get there would have made it really not worth the effort. My son-in-law was incredulous. My boss was down-right pissed! So, they appreciate me $25 worth. Well, that will be about the quality of work they'll get out of me for the next 18 days, too. I will live down to their level of appreciation. I guarantee it.

I'm contingent. That's why I covered 96 fucking hours this last two weeks.

I'm contingent. That's why I'm in two to three times a week to make sure labs are getting done.

I'm contingent. That's why I went and did a 2nd quarter IPP that was due at the beginning of the month that one of their valuable nurses couldn't manage to do though it was her assigned job.

I'm contingent. I'm not worth a shit to them, so I'll be fucked if I'll do a thing for them.

So, that's why I wouldn't go to work today. I decided to let two of their valuable nurses handle things.

I have not yet begun to be an A-word.