3. When customers' dissatisfaction devolves into personal attacks, adulterating food or drink is a convenient way for servers to exact covert vengeance. Waiters can and do spit in people's food.

This is the way they live! http://www.rd.com/advice-and-know-how/waiters-share-restaurant-stories/article82785.html

Fighting for fighting's sake.

Healing.

There are important issues to be addressed. Many are already flying around the blogosphere/web/water cooler with increasing urgency. Stephen Covey would counsel us to seek first to understand the other before pressing our own point. That is uncommon wisdom. The marketplace rewards drama. Ratings drive programming; us-vs-them theater brings in revenue.

Us-vs-them is also a lot more fun, if we are to be totally honest. What possible gain do we as a society enjoy by staring at Jerry Springer's latest "Transgender Nazi Steelworkers Face the WWII Veterans' Association" episode? Yet millions of eyes glaze over to reruns of such spectacles, while uninsured children suffer without care and global security concerns remain hazy to the average citizen.

Don't we prefer to naysay, rather than consider? (If you spontaneously said "No", I would ask you to think about your answer in context of the question.) When a hot issue arises, energy rises likewise in the adversaries...not for a breakthrough solution to the crisis, but to more firmly resist the other.

Think about bipolarized news programs such as Hannity and Colmes. (No offense, gentlemen, I do watch your show.) These are often little more than verbal tag-team wrestling, in which one host supports a right-leaning or left-leaning guest and the other attacks. Each makes excellent points from its perspective, but the middle ground is as unfriendly as a DMZ. When is the last time such a program ended with consensus? We'd love to see one relieved handshake and, "You know, you've really opened my eyes on this issue!" It can't happen. If consensus rises, ratings fall; sales are close behind.

This forum won't point out how unbelievably stupid the "other" is (to the left from the right and vice-versa, to the male from the female and vice-versa, to the European from the American and vice-versa, etc.) Rather, it seeks the common ground we too casually ignore. Solutions are to be found in mature dialogue, with all parties capable of listening and conceding within their respective and respectful comfort levels.

Our energy should pool into solution finding, not dissipate into soundbites of pop culture. Instead of hand-wringing between sitcoms over issues of terrorism and its roots, instead of waiting for our weary military to solve the problem by shooting every last one of "them", instead of evading unpleasant facts (how about the concept of accountability on all sides in every conflict?)...why don't we wade in and begin to unravel the snarl of hurts and hatreds? The world would call Americans cowboys. Well, let's cowboy up.

The stakes are high.

Please don't discount this blog as a bleeding-heart soapbox. I've paid my dues over a (more or less) honorable US military career including years as a commando and experience within the intelligence, diplomacy, security, and cultural-linguistic realms. I've held both extreme liberal and extreme conservative views during seasons of my life. I've lived among foreign nationals in over thirty nations. More importantly, I've listened to the best and worst of what they had to say about their view of the world and of "us". Most importantly, because I listened, I've been heard as well.

We have entered the third millenium, all six billion of us together. Remember what they say: "Third time's a charm!" This might be seen as an unprecedented time in history to develop evolved, human-based conflict resolution.

You never know. We might start an intercontinental grassroots movement that values and incorporates all sorts of dissimilar members into a functional, citizens' United Nations...global peacemaking from the people up.

While Jill and Madelyn have been away, I've gone over to Nick and Julie's after work each day to play a little Xbox. We play Star Wars Battlefront. It's my game. Let me say that again, IT'S MY GAME! But for some reason, I'm having trouble beating Nick at it, and it's getting to be a little tiresome.

But I'm not worried. I know what I've been doing wrong and I've taken care of it. Here are some images of what's going to happen to Nick the next time we play.

So Far, Nick has been too scared to take me on in Battlefront II. But I understand why; it's a little more complex than the first game.

Standing in my room

anger in the air

I am alone

The darkness surrounds me

my fury blinds me

the devil whispers to me

sickeningly sweet whispers of revenge

the angel left me long ago

Standing in this hall

knife in my hand

I wait for them

they turn the corner

and I am ready

The devil whispers to me

egging me on in my anger

the angel lowers her head to cry

Standing on the edge of the cliff

blood on my hands

I am to blame

regret envelopes my heart

tears cloud my eyes, but do not fall

The devil has abandoned me now

the angel is somber by my side

watching as I take the step

karma doesn't care whether you believe in it or not. karma just is. and karma doesn't give a fuck.

i used to find such problems with the fact that very few things in life are considered "just" or "fair." someone might wrong me, and i would grit my teeth against the desire to "get even." in some cases, even getting even wasn't enough to satiate my thirst - i wanted blood, i wanted tenfold what had been done to me, to send shockwaves throughout human kind that some atrocities should never, never be committed against me nor any other human being. i wanted the kind of justice that existed in the countries that we never talked about in our study books, the kind of capital punishment that cut the hands off of every heathen who stole, and castrated every adulterer. i had such plans, such divisions on how to communicate the crossing of an imaginary line, fully prepared to devote my resources to making someone else's life a living hell should they cross me. if they did not die, they would certainly have wished it.

self-actualization teaches you to get to a point where vengeance feels necessary for vindication.

i used to be really big on pro-life issues, for example. i dragged my boyfriend to a pro-life rally on campus, the ones with the huge posters of bloodied, dismembered fetuses, and i pointed to all of the diagrams and proceeded to describe to him every step that is endured in the infanticide. as we were walking back to my dorm, he asked me if i believed in the death penalty. well, of course i did - who in their right mind thought that murderers and rapists should be allowed to rot in a prison somewhere on taxpayers' money?

"how can you be against abortion but for the death penalty?"

self-righteous me, i'd never considered.

since then, i've become a little less radical with my political beliefs, and i've turned full-circle on the death penalty issue. it's not a question of a desire to be a contradiction-free individual; if you think long enough, there are probably things that each of us does on a daily basis that invalidates some previous act or word. however, the philosophy itself - the issue at the crux of both controversies - is either right or wrong and cannot be both. i said that i believed in pro-choice because i valued the sanctity of all human life, and i didn't think that it should be anyone's place to decide who lives or dies. i can also say that i am against the death penalty because i value the sanctity of all human life, and i don't think that it should be anyone's place to decide who lives or dies. if i continued to believe that the death penalty was morally justified, however, i would have completely invalidated my argument on abortion - an issue that i just haven't been willing to budge on.

that small grain of understanding - valuing the sanctity of all human life, and knowing that it is not man's place to decide who lives or dies - has bled over into other areas of my life. while i believe that laws and rules are necessary to implement order in a society that isn't prepared for transcendental anarchy, i don't think that most of our correctional system is doing the proper good. we have prisons to keep the menaces of society from hurting more people - this makes sense. but sentencing someone to death, what is that supposed to solve? what is that meant to accomplish? the reasons are somewhat biblical. somehow, we have lost sight of the fact that most of our laws are man's laws and not God's laws. to convince yourself that you are so righteous that you have the ability to take someone's life from them is to put yourself on God's level, yet the bible makes clear the idea that we and God are on frighteningly unequal footing. God is perfection; we, on the other hand, are so far from it that it can make you physically ill at times. our own life being a gift, we are in no position to decide such things of another human being, regardless of the behavior of any one person.

george lucas admits that he considered calling the third of the original star wars movies "revenge of the jedi" - this title can even be seen in some early advertising and concept art. however, upon further consideration, lucas decided to change the title of his movie "return of the jedi" - "revenge," after all, is something that a jedi simply never seeks.

not that i'm suggesting that anyone get their moral standards from a series of movies that was originally going to showcase the acting talent of chickens, but there is certainly truth to lucas's code for these fictional freedom-fighters.

in my later years, i've learned that revenge is not the way to go. i can look back on my relatively short life of twenty years, and i can see all the damage that it has wreaked upon my life, both directly and indirectly. there are people who are so hurt by my deliberate actions that the mere thought of an occasional cordial greeting is repulsive to them; on the flip side, there are people whom i will probably never forgive for inflicting the kind of unnecessary torture upon me. on the whole, however, i like to think that i am generally forgiving, and often give chances where no good reason dictates that i should.

getting angry at the people who have hurt you in your life, and especially taking it to the level of wanting to hurt them back, possibly worse, hasn't given me anything to be proud of in life. in fact, it's done quite the opposite. i've resolved myself to believing that life is typified by suffering: you will get hurt, you will be dumped, you will lose, you will be treated with un-called-for disrespect, you will get sick, you will feel pain. all of these things are assurances - you are assured that they will happen. the sooner you embrace such a reality, the better off you're apt to be. no longer should you waste time complaining to yourself and the miserable company you manage to keep around you how "unfair" life has turned out to be. life isn't fair, i remember learning this one as a small child. my father said to me, "you know what happened to the the man who said life isn't fair? he's dead." at first, i didn't quite understand what was supposed to be gained from such a morbid statement; today, it speaks volumes to how little influence we have over what we consider the injustices in life to be. life is like a careless mother, steadfast marching on and trampling her children underfoot as they fall from her grasp.

"judge not, lest ye be judged." it sounds so simple, so elementary. "don't tell people that they're doing shit wrong, because chance are you're also doing shit wrong too." this is the kind of basic logic that four year-olds are capable of mastering. yet it seems the simplest of truths are the ones that are first lost in the complexities of adult life.

my life, once freed from vengeful occupations, has been much more fulfilling.

i've found that karma is the one thing in this life that can be a bigger bitch than me.

karma is a tricky concept. i don't necessarily consider it a godly force, but a force, nonetheless. even the agnostics point to a balancing force that keeps the universe in order; if such forces exist, i'd have to say karma is among them. now, karma doesn't have perfect aim, and it isn't all that accurate, but it's akin to trying to hit a football field with an asteroid - where accuracy suffers, other factors can ensure success. in my life, i can admit that i'm not perfect and have felt first-hand experiences of karma. there were times i lied, and times that i was lied to. there were times when i was critical of someone, and they were critical in return. there were times when i led someone on, and other times when someone else led me on. the correction factor is alive and well in this sector of the universe, at least. we may not be able to control when and how it happens, but rest assured that before time ceases to exist, a check will come to balance.

that fact alone should be enough to scare some people into submission. but there are those among us who believe that we can come and go as we please, fuck everything, and leave before the bills catch up to us. my only response to that is to shrug with indifference. some people get off easy in this life; it happens, we see it all the time. my only consolation is that, in the kind of afterlife that i believe in, there is eternal justice. so confident am i in the abilities of this final corrective factor that i no longer see it as my job to exact any form of justice on anyone in my life. to do so would be wasteful of my precious time and counter-productive. what's best for me is to find out as quickly as possible which human avenues are dead ends or voids and to walk away. it may go against every fiber of passion in my body, but i can't argue that this is perhaps the best way of dealing with such things.

for those who think themselves self-righteous, i caution a careful eye to the individual endeavors. be careful of what you do today - it may be done to you tomorrow.

Dans ce tome 2, le conflit déclenché entre la Monoposie et la  Confédération de l’Ouest prend toute son ampleur. La célèbre chanteuse, Tho-Radia, transfuge de la Monoposie est devenue l’idole des foules de la  Confédération de l’Ouest tandis que le professeur Barzavotzig, défiguré, retourne à la vie grâce à un ancien amour, elle aussi passionnée par les sciences.

L’univers décalé et déjanté de Stéphane Presle continue à revisiter l’absurdité des totalitarismes et des guerres. Avec humour et cynisme, les ambitions humaines dévoilent leurs mesquineries et leur folie. Le dessin de Jérôme Jouvray, diffusé grâce au succès de « Lincoln », accompagne finement, avec sa fausse naïveté, le naufrage délirant de ce monde

Bienvenu en Monoposie ! Vous n'allez pas être déçu !

L’idole dans la Bombe, tome 2 (S : Stéphane Presle ; D : Jérôme Jouvray) Futuroplis, juin 2008, 72 pages (en 20 x 28,5 cm)

In a dark room

A room where sorrow roams

where hatred draws it's fury

There she sits

alone

Hatred turns to madness

and hatred of life

becomes love of death

the blade is her weapon for vengeance

vengeance by death

The angel of death comes

a question on his lips

she accepts, and he flies her away

nestled in his arms

she laughs at what she has left behind

Now they know

Now, they have payed

"Help us, O God of our salvation, for the glory of thy name: and deliver us, and purge away our sins, for thy name's sake. Wherefore should the heathen say, Where is their God? let him be known among the heathen in our sight by the revenging of the blood of thy servants which is shed. Let the sighing of the prisoner come before thee; according to the greatness of thy power preserve thou those that are appointed to die; And render unto our neighbours sevenfold into their bosom their reproach, wherewith they have reproached thee, O Lord. So we thy people and sheep of thy pasture will give thee thanks for ever: we will shew forth thy praise to all generations." (Psalms 79:9-13)

So with that somewhat long introduction to the second chapter of Revelations (this post and the two previous ones), we next start to read about the 7 churches of Asia, laying out the battlefield of the 7 days of the Gospel day, and the vengeance of God against false Christianity and all false worship. Note: within each message to the churches of Asia is a prophesy or warning of what will come next - the consequence of which is described in the next "church age" message. Please understand, God first holds the Church accountable to his message, so it is appropriate that the Revelation of Jesus Christ should be addressed first to those who profess to be part of the Church.

And so, in our next post we start with Revelations the 2nd chapter and the first verse: "to the church of Ephesus write..."

With the coming of the new graphical update, a lot has changed. Emotes look different, chat screens are slightly touched up and have more characteristics, Players look more detailed and lively. New shading, textures, and many other things have been added.
This new post will not be nearly as long as some of my others, but i will show you many screenshots I have taken in HD.

Our tour will start in lumbridge and go through al kharid, then to canifis, and back around to edgeville and then a special place ;D

Notice the Difference between light and dark, characters look more realistic than flat.

Large difference to the old Lumbridge, there is also a new npc in Lumbridge and you can now enter/exit Lumbridge from behind the castle.

Huge change in water scheme, it looks highly realistic and you can even see through it unlike the old water. If you ever notice the fountain in Varrock, you will see the water flowing from the spouts.

Water again, the water in al kharid in this particular spot has a sparkle to it, signifying the sun is shining or it is an oasis of some sort.

Land in HD is very different, you can see slopes and landforms with great ease now.
Also, as an added note, if you are passing through the shantay pass, there is now a "Quick Pass" Option very similar to the gate near lumbridge.

The difference between light and dark is VERY hard to notice now, everything is dark in the right places, this is a perfect example of how well light and dark combat on surfaces in the new detail.

Canifis's feeling is now well expressed in it's surroundings. Everything looks and feels dark and foreboding.

Look at the difference between the walkway and the the grass. Surfaces now blend together in a natural way instead of unnatural like before.

The ectofuntus looks MUCH more creepier now, and the enviornment around it helps support that.

This one amazed me. Even a large, irregular, man-made landform takes up this area, it blends in naturally with the environment around edgeville. Good Job on this one, Jagex, it worked well.

The abyss looks Extremely scary now, the creatures clawing at you as you run in the dark realm trying to find a way to where your altar is. The abyss doesn't have a major graphical improvement, but it still looks better.

And now, for the special treat. Even though it isn't very special.

The blood altar. This area looks more polished than it did before. Before, it looks somewhat pink instead of red and dark. The blood didn't flow very well as a liquid substance. Now it does.

Sorry for the lack of fullscreen mode shots, I play on swiftkit and there's an error with the screenshot tool at the moment, and i cannot printscreen anything so i am sorry for that.

That's all for now, hope you enjoyed.
~Brendles

On Sunday night, driving back to Lincoln, there was a sweet application of the sermon.  One of my friends with me told me that his roommates hated me.  "They say all you do is preach at them," he said.  That's funny, considering I don't know these guys very well at all and have never had a spiritual conversation with them.  So, thanks to Psalm 69 and the truths that Piper spoke, I was able to forgive them, shrug it off, and pray that God would change their hearts.  I am not called to hate them back.  I am called to love, forbear, and forgive.

Romans 12:19 says, "'Vengeance is mine, I will repay,' says the Lord."  O, that I will always leave matters into the Lord's hands and not try to get even with my enemies.

We all know Vengeance samples, no need to introduce em. And this is my re-up of the whole collection.
I've uploaded it to new upload service called UploadJockey, which mirror files thru several file host shares. Just because of fact that some of use doesn't prefer RS or MS. And most important thing is that given links are interchangeable, so if you download one part from Rapidshare, you can freely download other part(s) e.g. from Badongo, it will work! Enjoy!

P.S. If links got deleted somehow, just drop a msg in comments and ill re-upload em.

Vengeance - Dance Ultra Voice

• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/8979581/VENG.DNC.ULTR.VOC.1-CMT.part1.rar
• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/9700783/VENG.DNC.ULTR.VOC.1-CMT.part2.rar
• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/8096061/VENG.DNC.ULTR.VOC.1-CMT.part3.rar
• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/9492421/VENG.DNC.ULTR.VOC.1-CMT.part4.rar

Vengeance - Effects Vol. 1

• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/9058870/VENG.EFF.1-CMT.part1.rar
• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/6717049/VENG.EFF.1-CMT.part2.rar
• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/2191635/VENG.EFF.1-CMT.part3.rar
• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/1180938/VENG.EFF.1-CMT.part4.rar
• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/9945676/VENG.EFF.1-CMT.part5.rar

Vengeance - Effects Vol. 2

• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/5732595/VENG.EFF.2-CMT.part1.rar
• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/2474135/VENG.EFF.2-CMT.part2.rar
• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/5996103/VENG.EFF.2-CMT.part3.rar
• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/8869732/VENG.EFF.2-CMT.part4.rar
• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/9758817/VENG.EFF.2-CMT.part5.rar

Vengeance - Electro Essentials

• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/6423848/VENG.ELE.ESS-CMT.part1.rar
• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/3591999/VENG.ELE.ESS-CMT.part2.rar
• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/2747744/VENG.ELE.ESS-CMT.part3.rar
• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/7312919/VENG.ELE.ESS-CMT.part4.rar

Vengeance - Essential Clubsounds Vol. 1

• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/2828677/VENG.ESS.CLB.1-CMT.part1.rar
• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/6045043/VENG.ESS.CLB.1-CMT.part2.rar
• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/8395451/VENG.ESS.CLB.1-CMT.part3.rar
• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/6454208/VENG.ESS.CLB.1-CMT.part4.rar

Vengeance - Essential Clubsounds Vol. 2

• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/1335131/VENG.ESS.CLB.2-CMT.part1.rar
• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/3437424/VENG.ESS.CLB.2-CMT.part2.rar
• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/5252890/VENG.ESS.CLB.2-CMT.part3.rar
• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/7972161/VENG.ESS.CLB.2-CMT.part4.rar
• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/7652724/VENG.ESS.CLB.2-CMT.part5.rar

Vengeance - Essential House Vol. 1

• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/4619400/VENG.ESS.HOU.1-CMT.part1.rar
• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/2860166/VENG.ESS.HOU.1-CMT.part2.rar
• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/7959951/VENG.ESS.HOU.1-CMT.part3.rar
• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/3743018/VENG.ESS.HOU.1-CMT.part4.rar
• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/9847069/VENG.ESS.HOU.1-CMT.part5.rar

Vengeance - Essential House Vol. 2

• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/3382656/VENG.ESS.HOU.2-CMT.part1.rar
• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/5457027/VENG.ESS.HOU.2-CMT.part2.rar
• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/3018906/VENG.ESS.HOU.2-CMT.part3.rar
• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/2565400/VENG.ESS.HOU.2-CMT.part4.rar
• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/9921891/VENG.ESS.HOU.2-CMT.part5.rar

Vengeance - Minimal House

• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/8962952/VENG.MIN.HOU-CMT.part1.rar
• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/3070717/VENG.MIN.HOU-CMT.part2.rar
• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/9368969/VENG.MIN.HOU-CMT.part3.rar
• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/4966032/VENG.MIN.HOU-CMT.part4.rar

Vengeance - Ultimate Bass

• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/2543653/VENG.ULT.BSS-CMT.part1.rar
• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/8393262/VENG.ULT.BSS-CMT.part2.rar

Vengeance - Vocal Essentials Vol. 1

• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/6644689/VENG.VOC.ESS.1-CMT.part1.rar
• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/3487728/VENG.VOC.ESS.1-CMT.part2.rar
• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/5697879/VENG.VOC.ESS.1-CMT.part3.rar
• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/6859869/VENG.VOC.ESS.1-CMT.part4.rar
• http://www.uploadjockey.com/download/9734070/VENG.VOC.ESS.1-CMT.part5.rar

Total size: 3,75GB

www.magesy.com

YOu can check Kathy's Night of Champions post and ROnald's How to watch Night of Champions for free.

Katherine's Night of Champions 2008
Ronald's Watch Night of Champions 2008

my gramma was so wonderful to be around. she was kind, always had a hug. she loved "the peoples' court' and 'hee-haw' and 'mama's family'. we used to camp with her in her pop-up at wallowa lake & roller skate on her wood floor. she nursed my first bee sting i got (in my belly button) while lounging in a hammock in her backyard. she baked us a bunny shaped coconutty cake every easter. she wasn't afraid to speak her mind & boy, could she be blunt (i got that gene). she doted on her weiner dog, trudy (sister to ours) was devoted to the Lord & loved her husband. she lost grampa ted after over 50 years of marriage. that next year brought with it the greatest test of endurance.

emotional stress turned physical & chemicals in her brain started getting off-balance. no one knew her depression had gotten severe. no one knew about the thoughts. not the cuban refugee family she took in to her home, not her pastor, not even her two sons. they would've removed the guns from the home.

i was called with the request to drive to her house as "there had been an accident". i pulled up in my white vw jetta & my mom held me & told me then...gramma was gone. i was confused. i sat on top my car hood with my knees up to my chin & rocked back & forth. there was no accident. she'd stripped her life from herself probably not b/c she wanted to die, but b/c she no longer wanted to live...and in doing so, stripped her life from everyone else who loved her. the tears just streamed as i watched her pastor & the elders haul off the carpet they'd ripped out of that tiny room. i'm just glad it was dark out. i'm even more grateful i wasn't the one to discover her. i loved my gramma & respected her. i honor her even today. i just wish she was still with me & i could share my life & family with her, like we do w/rick's grandmas (that seems like a selfish reason, doesn't it). she sure loved family. there are so many great memories i can recount, that the awful details are usually overshadowed in my mind...

but for the sake of discussion, honest reflection, & hopefully peace to a reader who's lost someone this way, let's bring the topic out into the light.

do people who do this go to heaven? to seek some answers (cause i know i have far from all the answers), i went to the Bible, God's Word. it says that to be absent from our bodies is to be present with the Lord, and there are so many that display his abounding mercy...but i didn't take much comfort in this passage: he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames. Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you? If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him; for God's temple is sacred, and you are that temple. ~ 1 Corintians 3:15-17.

this is the only place in the Bible where it refers to what may be suicide, although, it doesn't even state it as such, specifically. no where else in the Word {Christians' one & only true source of God-breathed, Holy Spirit inspired ancient text} does it state or even imply that suicide in & of itself, is a sin worthy of eternal damnation...an unpardonable sin. sheesh, even in judges 16:28-30, samson is granted by God the strength to do this. suicide, if unpardonable, would be not just mentioned as such, but woven throughout text.

i know from experience about the kind of God i serve. i don't care if people call me biased or subjective. everyone of us is, really. God is just & merciful & kind. he is the essence & exemplification of love. he reaches to us beyond the point of our carnal death & gives us a chance to be judged, for the good, bad & ugly. not one of his kids will escape accountability. committing suicide? yeah, that too. they'll have to answer for it to their Creator himself. sin cannot go unpunished. it was his life to make, & his to take, in his time. but for him to 'sentence' hell because of this would be unjust & uncharacteristic.

our lives are so valuable...often underestimated...& extremely important to God! read Psalm 139. to me, suicide can be the ultimate act of selfishness...but i think our Father looks beyond the sin at the time of death, & sees what mere man cannot: the whole person, their lifestyle, their love for him. he takes into account their suffering from mental illness or severe depression & applies the blood of his Son, Jesus to that final sin. so what if they aren't alive to ask for it!?! his grace reaches beyond that technicality. his grace always looks at the heart.

his blood is not partial. it does not flow down our hearts full of sin avoiding a few choice acts. it cleanses all. that's why i love to sing songs about it. the suffering & the blood of Jesus is worth squat if we humans can determine that some sins it does not cover ("how could he forgive a child molester or murderer?" "how could he forgive one who doesn't ask for it because they're dead now?"), & some it does cover. what if i'm saved, (i'll use a lame example for lack of time) i'm driving & completely envying the person driving next to me. i end up rubber-neckin' & crashing into a pole & i die? would a gracious God just look at my last sin of envy & say to me at the throne, 'well in spite of your life of obedience & humility and your heart of love toward me & toward the least of these, you never repented of that last sin...so, since the wages of sin is death...'

absurd. that clearly goes completely against his character displayed throughout the entire Bible.

we all tend to 'heirarchy' the wrong we commit to help us feel better about our 'little pet sins', but to God, it is what it is ≈ that which separates us from him, and calls for a perfect atonement. envy, greed, suicide, homosexuality (sexual sin is different, but not worse to God. see 1 corinthians 6:18-20), disobedience, slander, drunkenness...you name it, it's all sin. if we live this way, refusing to acknowledge/accept Christ's atonement, it is serious business (see 1 corinthians 6:9-11).

the Word states there is o n e sin that's unforgivable, unpardonable & results in hell: blaspheming the Holy Spirit ~ (my paraphrase: completely & permanently denying Christ, even after you know the truth in your spirit). this may seem contradictory to the scripture above naming many sins that can lead to eternal separation from God, but this one refers to a blanket statement, covering all of those listed, as examples. hell is for the unrepentant of heart that denies Christ. anyone who has guilt for their sin, confesses with humility & repents...("such WERE some of you" oh, please don't miss that part!)...he is immediately restored to right standing with God. my heart leaps for joy to read this again.

Christ words on this sin can be read in mark 3:22-30 & matthew 12:30-33 . dr. henry morris & author & theologian, dr. f.f. bruce shed some further light on that 'unpardonable' sin ~ to read their insights on the subject, click here (but come back!).

so yeah, i'm biased here. i miss her. but not so biased, i'm blind. i have faith (evidence of what i can't see) that the saved don't have to worry about heaven vs. hell when they die. they are free of every pain in their new bodies, enjoying the gift of eternal life. in my humble opinion, this is the bottom line: whether it was a life of a Christian taken by God in his timing, by someone else or by their own hand, that life...that blood is covered by the blood of their Savior. period.

oh...my gramma's name?

grace.

now, as for whether or not we know if someone's really saved before they die?! ...well, that's a topic for another day. i'm way past my wordcount on this one, but i'd loooove to read any comments on today's.

Blogger General’s Warning: This product may contain spoilers as well as peanuts and other assorted tree nuts. Spoilers have been proven by the Department for Public Broadcasting, the Postmaster General, and Suzie that sits behind you in third-period English to significantly lessen the impact of books, stories, movies, and other narrative medium. And also to cause warts. Do not consume products that may contain peanuts and other assorted tree nuts if you are allergic to them, as this may cause a severe allergic reaction. You have been warned.

The year is 1814. Napoleon has been removed from the throne of France and exiled to the Isle of Elba, and a young sailor named Edmond Dantès has just returned home to Marseilles after months at sea aboard the merchant vessel Pharaon. Everything is looking up for young Dantès: he has been promised the captaincy of his ship, he is set to marry his true love, and his aging father is there to be proud of his son. However, not everyone is so proud of young monsieur’s success. A conspiracy is hatched to defame Dantès and he is arrested and imprisoned on false charges.

For fourteen years, the once-hopeful man rots in the deepest dungeon of the island prison, the Château d’If . He befriends a peaceful abbè in the neighboring cell, and they adopt one another as father and son. The priest educates Edmond, and tells him of a fabulous treasure: the inheritance of a great family, hidden on an island and forgotten by time. With this fortune, a man would be able to unleash great blessings on his friends… or powerful retribution on his malefactors.

At long last, this tortured man escapes from prison. With his new-found wealth and education, he casts away Edmond Dantès and returns to France as the Count of Monte Cristo, to visit his wrath upon those responsible for his suffering:

“I wish to be Providence myself, for I feel that the most beautiful, noblest, most sublime thing in the world, is to recompense and punish.” –Edmond Dantès

Alexandre Dumas wrote these words in 1844, basing his tale (more loosely than a Hollywood adaptation) on the true story of a shoemaker named François Picaud from the archives of the Paris police. This absolutely gut-wrenching tale of revenge, egotism, and impatient despair has climbed to a well-deserved position as one of my favorite stories of all time. Dumas writes with incredible feeling, bringing the reader to care passionately for the Count and his quest, so that we begin to feel, as the Count does, the horrible cost to those he once loved that must be exacted for him to complete his vengeance.

The Count of Monte Cristo contains many colorful and memorable characters. There is Edmond Dantès, embodying innocence, naivety, and bright-eyed cheeriness. Edmond has nothing but hope for his future. He is sharply contrasted by The Count of Monte Cristo, Edmond Dantès’ persona embittered by fourteen years of imprisonment. Monte Cristo is calculating, brilliant, and capable of both extreme generosity and startling violence.

The conspirators of Dantès misfortune, and the targets of his quest, are the Pharaon’s one-time purser, Danglars; the cousin of his fiancée Mercedes, Fernand; and his neighbor Caderhousse. Both Fernand and Danglars have become very wealthy during Dantès’ time in prison. Monsieur Danglars is now a Baron, having made his fortune through cunning speculation and banking maneuvers. Fernand is now the Count de Morcerf, a renowned General and military mind. Danglars and Fernand represent the Financial and Military arms of the aristocracy, respectively. Caderhousse, who was an unwilling participant of the conspiracy and strove to prevent the slander of Dantès, is the poor owner of a failing Inn. He represents the virtuous common man, falling on hard times despite his merit:

“It is thus that God rewards virtue, monsieur. Just look at me: I have never done a wrong action apart from the one I related to you a moment ago, yet I live in poverty while Fernand and Danglars are rolling in wealth.” – Caderhousse

These archetypes, the Military Nobility, the Corrupt Financier, and the Suffering Everyman, are social roles important to Alexandre Dumas. His father was the son of a Marquis of Normandy, and his mother an innkeeper’s daughter. This family background gave Dumas a unique first-hand perspective on both the peasantry and the nobility. The story can also be seen as a picture of “class struggle” of a sort, with the vengeful Count representing the empowered populace attacking the corrupt aristocracy and war-machine.

Revenge is the primary motif of The Count of Monte Cristo. Dumas explores how a blind desire for retribution, when that is all one lives for, is a poisoning influence that drives one to be willing to sacrifice all that one holds dear merely for the satisfaction of watching one’s foes fall. In fact, as the story concludes with Dantès’ vengeance completed, he comes to the realization that he has “gone beyond the limits of rightful vengeance and that he could no longer say 'God is for and with me.'” Leaving his two remaining friends on the isle of Monte Cristo and bestowing all his wealth unto them as a wedding gift, Edmond Dantès now sheds the Count of Monte Cristo as the Count buried Edmond Dantès. Taking only his loving slave Haydee, Dantes sets forth on a journey of redemption for his soul. He leaves his friends with these words:

"There is neither happiness nor misery in the world; there is only the comparison of one state with another, nothing more. He who has felt the deepest grief is best able to experience supreme happiness...Tell the angel who will watch over your life to pray now and then for a man who, like Satan, believed himself for an instant to be equal to God, but who realized in all humility that supreme power and wisdom are in the hands of God alone."

…

…okay.

Page-and-a-half semi-intellectually rant? Check. Jibber-jabber completed, it is now time to set that aside to talk about how I felt about the book.

The Lord of the Rings aside as my permanent unimpeachable favorite of all time, The Count of Monte Cristo is my new favorite book. The passion of Dantès is sweeping, soul-stirring even. You can’t help but empathize with his lust for retribution, his desire to see those who have destroyed his life crushed like grapes in the winepress of vengeance (ooh, I’m feeling poetic.) I felt the pangs of regret as the Count began to realize that to satisfy his wrath, he must sacrifice both himself and all those he holds dear. He must wrap himself in darkness, bury his heart beneath a cloak of hatred. As Dumas writes:

"And now, farewell to kindness, humanity and gratitude. Farewell to all sentiments which rejoice the heart. I have substituted myself for Providence in rewarding the good; may the God of vengeance now yield me His place to punish the wicked."

The bottom line of the sordid tale of Edmond Dantès is this: be wary of feeling empowered to deal death in judgment. Edmond’s quest for vengeance did not bring him the closure he sought, and in fact cost him much that he had hoped to reclaim. Only at the last line, when Edmond discovers that true value is found in charity, love, and brotherhood, does he realize this truth, one of the most meaningful lines ever written:

Until the day when God will deign to reveal the future to man, all human wisdom is contained in these two words,—‘Wait and hope.’

שלם

Dorfman humbly confesses that "the truth is that I had expected, after the terror attacks of September 11, 2001, that Death and the Maiden would be staged even more than it has been in the past. It deals, after all, with the central dilemma of our times: how to make sure that, when grievous harm has been done to us, we do not turn into the monster who has given us such pain? How do we separate justice from revenge? How do we ensure that our rage does not make us blind? How to keep the innocent from suffering as we seek to avenge the dead?" Dorfman's questions are probing and provide food for thought.

"Although it continues to be performed extensively around the world, the play has not had any major revivals, at least in the States and in England, in the last five years. There are signs that this is beginning to change."

I ask Dorfman whether he would change the end of the play, considering the events that have taken place since its conception. "No," he assures me, "I think it is more relevant than ever: or can anyone deny that we live in a world where far too many victims are forced to coexist with the men who destroyed their lives and ravaged their bodies?"

Paulina, the play's main protagonist, represents the courage and the pain of the survivor who attempts to recover normality in her life; she is both physically and mentally bound by her painful memories. Dorfman describes his strong emotional connection with the character: "I love Paulina. She is one of my favourite characters - perhaps the most rebellious of all the upstart women I have notoriously created. But I wouldn't say she is all courage, bravery and pain. Fortunately, she is all too human, imperfect, difficult, complicated, devious. This, for me, draws her closer to us."

I cannot help but think that this is in fact how most women are and I generalise when I think of all the times that women are categorised as difficult and imperfect creatures. However, as hard as I try, I cannot imagine another woman with Paulina´s determination and coldness.

Dorfman explains: "I'm sure that many women (and many men, why not?) see her as representative of the suffering women of the world and, more specifically, of Chile. And that is a legitimate way of embracing a character. For me, above all, she is a full human presence, given representation by the depth of her personality, the ferocity of her devotion to rescuing the woman she once was, before the basement, before that doctor." 

Herkunft und Jahr: Südkorea 2003

Originaltitel: Oldboy

Regie: Park Chan-wook

Darsteller: Choi Min-sik, Yu Ji-tae, Kang Hye-jeong, ...

Genre: Thriller

Inhalt:

Ohne ersichtlichen Grund wird ein Mann mittleren Alters (Choi Min-sik) gekidnappt und für 15 Jahre in einem gefängnisähnlichen Raum eingesperrt. Wieder frei ist er nicht nur auf der Suche nach seinen Peinigern, sondern versucht auch noch den Mord an seiner Frau aufzuklären...

Kritik:

"Oldboy" ist Poesie. "Oldboy" ist erschütternd. "Oldboy" ist bewegend. "Oldboy" ist ein Meisterwerk.

Wertung: 10/10

IMDb

While he was thus enjoying all the comforts a thought arose in his wandering mind for no reason "What if a hungry tiger suddenly appears from nowhere, jumps on me and eats me up ?" No sooner had this thought formulated itself than the 'apsara' vanished and a tiger pounced on him, killing him and making a good meal of him.

The traveller actually happened to be under a 'kalpavriksha', a wish-fulfilling tree mentioned in our holy scriptures. We too are, in a sense, living under a 'kalpavriksha' which is nothing but our own minds. The mind has the strength to fulfil our 'sankalpa' (desires, expectations or imaginations) one way or the other, if not instantly atleast in time. The wonderful power of the human mind was clearly seen, experienced and confirmed by the ancient rishis (seers). Later generations of 'Mahatmas' and Gurus have also confirmed the importance of the power of the human mind. They also gave great importance to the purification of thoughts. Human thoughts, good or bad, strongly determine the happiness or misery of the whole world. The advanced state of the whole world today is only the net result of the preponderance of good and healthy thoughts in the human mind as a whole. From the crude methods of the ancient people of making fire, to the present ways of producing atomic energy; from the old bullock carts to the present outer-space vehicles, all such scientific developments have come from wonderfully developed and refined human thoughts.

Sri Sri Paramahansa Yogananda writes in his Autobiography of a Yogi in one of the chapters of the said book that my Guru was a peerless interpreter of the scriptures. Many of my happiest memories are centred in his discourses. But his jewelled thoughts were not cast into the ashes of heedlessness. In one of the discourses, Sri Sri Yukteswar pointed out to his disciple that he is not here. As usual, he was keeping relentless track of his attention. "Guru Ji" My tone was a protest, I have not stirred; my eyelids have not moved; I can repeat each word you have uttered.

"Nevertheless you were not fully with me. Your objection forces me to remark that in your mental background you were creating three institutions. One was a sylvan retreat on a plain, another on a hilltop, still another by the ocean." In the exact sequence Sri Sri Yukteswar had indicated, these visions took ultimate form. First came my founding of a Boy's Yoga School on a plain in Ranchi in India. Then an American Headquarters on a Los Angeles hill top and then a hermitage in Encinitas California overlooking the vast Pacific.Thoughts are special powers in subtle form. When they manifest as 'karma' (activity) we can recognise their power. Karmas form habits. Habits make our character. Character determines the final result success or failure.

Thoughts that arise in the mind spread everywhere like electromagnetic waves, remaining in and around our subtle bodies, producing similar results in us and others also. If we entertain thoughts of hatred, vengeance, anger, fear and sorrow, they will produce harmful effects, first for us and then for others. Conversely, if we foster good thoughts of love, co-operation, mutual help and charity, they will benefit us and many others also. In short, thoughts are the` seeds of our fate.