Sentient Portraits of a Damaged Sanity
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Below are the 20 most recent journal entries recorded in
Palehorse Redivivus' LiveJournal:
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| Saturday, September 20th, 2008 | | 1:46 am |
| | Monday, June 23rd, 2008 | | 1:59 pm |
| | Thursday, January 24th, 2008 | | 5:09 am |
New site up and running, woot!
I haven't been very active on LJ for a while... mostly because I've been working like a madman on our new website. I (and my developing carpal tunnel :D) are pleased to announced that we're up and running!
The site is focused on personal development with leanings toward spirituality and metaphysics, and is centered primarily on Gehenna's tarot readings and my blog and articles.
We're kicking around lots of ideas for making this a great resource and implementing them as quickly as life allows, and we've got lots of original material in the works in the coming weeks. So be sure to bookmark us and keep checking back!
http://beyond-within.com
Real entry to come soon, I swear! :P Current Mood:  accomplished | | Saturday, December 1st, 2007 | | 1:20 pm |
Within Temptation, Birmingham 11/28
Just to irritate Liz, instead of going into the epic tale of how I ended up on another continent like one would expect... have another concert report! :D
So, two nights ago I saw Within Temptation at the Carling Academy in Birmingham. Tab and I were originally supposed to go together, but unfortunately she wasn't able to make it. Her presence was greatly missed, but she insisted I go anyway, for that is the Heavy Metal Way. Or something. Thats a helluva good woman right there, in any case. :P
So I caught a cab into Birmingham... who had no idea where the Academy was, and apparently didn't have the GPS system that all other cabs that I've been in have. Maybe this wasn't a taxi at all, but rather a random guy who needed some cash and some company on a lonely Wednesday night; I'll never know. A call to Tab got me the name of a major street to give him so I could walk the rest of the way. We get into Birmingham, and he drops me off on what he claims is said street, and the pub Tab gave me as a point of reference "should be right at the light, but if I try to turn around and get there it'll take all night" because, as I found out, Birmingham is about as congested as LA ever was. So I exit into the now pouring rain, call T back and start describing where I am... and get a response something like "err... wow." Neither of us had any real idea where the hell I ended up, but after finding and chasing another cab for half a block, and convincing him of my plight even though he wasn't taking customers, I finally got my wet, cranky arse to the venue. I figure this all qualifies as one of those "would be a lot funnier if it wasn't me" stories, so I post it for the benefit of whoever is still actually reading my semi-annual blogs. Don't say I never did nuttin' for ya.
The Academy was probably one of the better venues I've been to; it had the more intimate vibe of a smaller club but is a pretty big facility with a big stage. Despite my ordeal getting there I managed to get up pretty close, about 50 feet from the stage. Beer was pretty cheap by concert standards if you ignore the US/UK exchange rate, heh. The 69 Eyes opened; I'm not a fan of theirs but they put on a pretty good show and got a great response for an opening band. The guys themselves looked like a punk, a biker and a more standard metalhead decided to form a band, and this is what resulted. Heavy music, lots of 3 part harmonized singalong choruses, and the vox sounded a bit like Roy Kahn from Kamelot, but without Kahn's vocal range.
After much shuffling of gear WT came out to a huge ovation; their stage flanked by huge gargoyles and a backdrop based on their cover art. This crowd was what a crowd should be at a metal show -- a sea of waving arms, jumping, clapping,throwing up horns and singing along to every song (even the new stuff), the whole time, even up in the balcony... and it was a long set. The energy from the crowd was phenomenal, and the band even moreso. There are live bands and studio bands -- WT needs to be seen live. Of all the shows I've been to I'd say the "holy shit" factor was rivaled only by Iced Earth and Maiden. I wasn't actually expecting that from them either since their music is rarely very fast and they have a female singer, but wow. Speaking of Sharon, she not only has a great voice (and even moreso live), she's an awesome frontwoman as well, with much running, jumping, headbanging, egging the crowd on and generally seeming like she's having a blast up there. Very cool... and even more impressive when I found out later that she had been feeling like hell this week.
As for the setlist, I can't find one for our particular show but this one from last month looks close enough if its not completely correct, heh. Yeah... if I can't remember what I had for breakfast yesterday I'm sure as hell not gonna remember the entirety of a 2+ hour set two days later. So.
( Setlist )
After the show I and a small but determined group of people found where it was assumed the band would come out afterward. We waited for about an hour; as dedicated as we were fucking cold, and did end up meeting Jeroen, Ruud and Stephen. Very cool guys who you wouldn't guess were in a goth metal band if you saw them on the street, heh. Seeing that all I had on me was my phone, a really nice guy I met offered to take pics for me on his cam and send 'em later. Every show I've been to in the states hasn't allowed cameras, but I've been to two here now where there was no problem bringing them in, so must remember this for future reference. I got scolded by Ruud too, lol... I took my glasses off for pics out of habit, but I think I mildly offended him because he was like "fine, I'm gonna take mine off too then!" and afterward said they were nice and I should keep 'em on. Maybe I should replace "scolded" with "hit on." o_O Unfortunately didn't get to meet Sharon; as mentioned they were saying she had been feeling like hell since a big show they did earlier in the week that was taped for a DVD, so afterward they put her straight on the bus and to bed without even a shower, heh. I don't know if the other two guys ever came out, but after that I thanked my photographer and new best friend (hee) and headed out to figure out how I was getting home.
( Best of the phone pics )
( Better pics of me and WT guys ) | | Wednesday, November 14th, 2007 | | 5:28 pm |
"Airplane! Airplane!" "...No dear, that's a train."
Hi, I'm Jon -- you may remember me from such blogs as... this one! From when I bothered to update, oh, sometime before the last ice age! :D If anyone hasn't heard by now I'm living in the UK, but thats a story for another entry. Hehe... Last night I went to my first show here -- Iced Earth, Lamb of God and Heaven & Hell (Black Sabbath with Dio), at the NEC Arena in Birmingham. I doubt I'll do a separate entry to review IE's "Framing Armageddon," so what the hell, I'll say a few words about it here. It seems to be getting mixed reviews, and that's pretty much what it gets from me. Its a good album, but I don't think it quite lives up to the original Something Wicked trilogy, or the almost ten years of hype behind its eventual release. Of course, the most notable factor is the absence of Barlow -- this album needed Barlow. Barlow was able to help tell the story with his delivery alone; Ripper's delivery just doesn't have that versatility. He doesn't really do "evil," and doesn't portray the same degree of feeling, both of which this story would've benefitted greatly from. All that nonwithstanding, the damn thing has still been in our player for most of the past two weeks, lol. It has a lot of good moments; the song "Ten Thousand Strong" is a good thrasher with an awesome, Blind Guardian-esque chorus. The use of tribal drums and various other ethnic stuff is a cool touch, as well. All told I look forward to seeing what Schaffer can do with the second half of the storyline. So, on to last night's show! I liked the NEC; it was a smallish arena that struck a happy medium between an arena show and a small, more intimate club venue. Being that this is Europe, and Birmingham is the birthplace of metal I think I expected a more lively crowd, but it was only slightly moreso than your average Hollywood show. If I was closer to the rail I may have tried to do something about that myself, but alas. IE actually went on early, and we got there a bit late. So, we only caught a few songs, but they were only on for a half hour anyway. They managed to pack a helluva lot of energy and epic into that half hour though. They need to do a headlining tour! *decrees* Setlist: Invasion (intro) Motivation of Man Setian Massacre Burning Times Declaration Day My Own Saviour A Charge to Keep Ten Thousand Strong Lamb of God was next; have never really gotten into them so I don't have a whole lot to say. They got probably the liveliest response of the night, mostly because their singer did the most crowd interaction (read: commanding us to get off our fucking asses!). After they finished, we happened to overhear some kids saying they found out we could get our tix upgraded to move from the side seats, where we were, to the floor. Tab had already commented on the crapness of our original seats, a point with which I readily concurred, so we rejoiced at this prospect, and move we did, just in time for Sabbath. Sabbath put on an awesome performance. I haven't actually heard much Dio-era Sabbath, but I was diggin' it SO much more than when I saw them with Ozzy at Ozzfests '05 and '02. What Ozzy's drunken-karaoke-like performance did to drag the vibe of the show down, even at 65 years old, Dio's high energy, soaring vox, crowd interaction and stage presence really presented Sabbath as they should be seen, and at a level of intensity the other members are still capable of. I liked Vinny's drumset -- some of his cymbals were iron crosses, and he had all sorts of shit around and behind him to beat on. One vertical stack of drums I thought was about to fall over, but apparently it's designed to sway like that because he kept standing up and pulling it forward for easier pounding; cool stuff yo. Setlist: E5150 (intro) The Mob Rules Children Of the Sea I Sign Of the Southern Cross Voodoo Drum Solo Computer God Falling Off the Edge of the World Guitar Solo Die Young Heaven and Hell Shadow of the Wind Neon Knights Obligatory Lessons of the Night: --Leather pants will keep you nice and warm in frigid weather. --The UK has magical flying trains. Possibly built by JK Rowling herself. --Even though he left the band in '03, Barlow still lurks at IE gigs... for some reason. And uh... polices people. Even on other continents. --Note to self for future shows: it is theorized that a plate of Tab's Orgasm Brownies might get us backstage. "Lemme through! I have brownies!" Failing that -- replace "brownies" with "b00bz." Hee. In our new position we were about 50 ft from where Tony was standing, so I was able to get quite a few pics, mostly of him, on my phone. A bit blurry and grainy, but recognizable! ( Observe! )
Epic overload! Team effort required! Current Mood:  contentCurrent Music: Iced Earth -- Framing Armageddon | | Monday, November 13th, 2006 | | 11:25 pm |
See through their lies and their ever staring eyes, now is the time to defend your ground.
After some consideration I have decided to take the unusual step of making all future entries friends only. It has come to my attention that there's been an individual poking around in my blogs who shouldn't be. Normally this would only be irritating as a matter of principle and not really worth much thought or mention, but the visits have been compulsive, even when I haven't posted in weeks. Needless to say this goes way beyond irritating and straight into the "fucking creepy" file, so I figure I should probably address it now before anything more comes of it. To them I will say only that my thoughts, my life and anything me-related are no longer your concern. I wish you well, but I need you gone -- completely, utterly and immediately. To everyone else: I apologize for the small bit o' drama; normally I'd much prefer to address these things directly and privately, but to do so in this case could only be a step backward. Otherwise, I doubt there's anyone else reading this that I don't have friended, but if so feel free to add me; I don't bite *that* hard. All that said, nuttin' more to see here, thanks for reading, more of the same regularly scheduled wackiness to come soon, etc. etc. Current Mood:  irritatedCurrent Music: Megadeth -- She-Wolf | | Monday, October 23rd, 2006 | | 8:27 am |
"Scream for me Irvine California!"
Well, as predicted Maiden r0xx0red our proverbial b0xx0rz, but I think that pretty much goes without saying. 'Twas fookin' awesome getting to see a real Iron Maiden show finally, after the Ozzfest clusterfuck of last year. Hell, after that I almost felt like I owed it to 'em to be there. So, after meeting up with Heather, the Mighty Metal Maiden from the Mesa, we were off in search of beer and Irvine Meadows. One missed exit and six or seven heart attacks later, we made our triumphant arrival. Security at the gate was pretty much nonexistent, which was simultaneously convenient and unnerving... I mean what if Sharon Osbourne was hiding in the bushes, ready to sneak in and start some shit? (I kid... she'd be summarily killed and eaten on sight, muahaha). We found out about the show and/or got our tix a bit late, and it sold out completely, so we ended up in the Lawn section... though luckily we managed to find a little clearing with good sound and decent visibility, without having to squish in all nice and cozy with a bunch of random strangers. In spite of the still cramped conditions and the steep-ish hill we were standing on, I must say Heather's ability to headbang without falling over and causing a mighty epic avalanche of humanity was paralleled only by the guy next to me doing the windmill and whipping me in the side of the head continuously. I didn't much care about that though; we're all friends here, right? Heh. I wish I could still do that dammit; I should've waited till after that show to lop off half my hair, but alas. Gimme a year or two and I too shall be whapping people gleefully once again. But I digress... We missed the opening band(s?) but were told we didn't miss much. Maiden came out to a pretty decent response, even from a soCal crowd, I thought, and started out by playing the new album in its entirety. I can't say *too* much about it because I don't have it yet, but I can say that hearing it live impressed me enough to bump it to the top of my "New CDs that are Vital to My Well Being" list. Then they launched into some of their more classic shyte, which got a pretty awesome response even where we were. I know *my* voice hasn't fully recovered yet. So here be ye olde setlyste... which I'm yoinking from a track listing from the new CD and from memory, but if I leave anything out I'm sure someone else who was there will punch me or something. Different World These Colours Don't Run Brighter Than a Thousand Suns The Pilgrim The Longest Day Out Of the Shadows The Reincarnation of Benjamin Breeg For The Greater Good of God Lord Of Light The Legacy Fear of the Dark Iron Maiden Two Minutes to Midnight Hallowed Be Thy Name The only complaint was that it was a lot shorter than a lot of us apparently thought it'd be. After the second time they left the stage there was a big "TROOPER!" chant, but then the house lights came on and we were all like "wait, wha...?" Other than that, f'n great show all around, but I wouldn't have expected any less. On the way out we managed to run into Aliisa, a longtime myspace friend o' mine, which added another shot of epic into an already awesome evening; 'twas very cool getting to meet her finally too. After that it was off to Denny's for the traditional post-show chicken strips, and back home to fall over dead. Current Mood:  tired | | Thursday, October 19th, 2006 | | 11:45 pm |
Chuck Norris lost his virginity before his dad did.
Shawnna: If you were to pick a picture, word, or phrase that conveyed strength, what would it be? Palehorse Redivivus: Chuck Norris Shawnna: I'm not getting Chuck Norris tattooed on my body. Palehorse Redivivus: but he works as a picture, word and a phrase simultaneously! Shawnna: And he kills my ovaries! Palehorse Redivivus: actually with chuck tattooed on your body they might go into overdrive and start making babies on their own... Shawnna: Then keep him the fuck way from me! :: hides :: Current Mood:  amused | | Tuesday, October 17th, 2006 | | 7:32 pm |
Demonic clown and shapeshifter, little man gone insane
Well, I'm still not fully recovered, and I don't know how the hell I made it to work on Monday, but I'm back from Sacramento. Before I start on the post, a few things I need to toss in...
If anybody from norCal happens to see this, Shawn and Joel can still use all the help they can get with this haunted house. They're looking for more actors, makeup artists, people who know anything about electric and lighting... basically if you can help, they can use you. My bro and I are hoping to get our asses up there to help out on Halloween weekend, though I doubt I'll be able to do Halloween itself. If you're interested, hit me up and I'll give you Shawn's number and any other info you might need. I guarantee you'll have a blast; this thing is about as huge, elaborate and well put together as it can get while still operating out of a private home.
Alright, so we got there late Friday night, started painting early Saturday morning and pretty much didn't stop until Sunday evening, with a few hours of sleep and a few meals in between. Heroic amounts of coffee and speed metal were a big help in the "not falling over dead" department, too. With what relatively little time we had, and being my first time painting anything that big, I wasn't entirely sure we'd have something presentable by Sunday, but we were all really pleased with the way everything came out. So behold the fruit of our toil...
( Abandon all hope, ye who enter here... ) Current Mood: contentCurrent Music: Metallica -- Live Shit | | Friday, October 13th, 2006 | | 1:27 am |
As the red day is dawning, and lightning cracks the sky...
I don't think I've updated this thing since before summer ended, and I'm not about to go into everything thats happened since then at 2am, but that's not really why I'm here anyway.
Does anybody else get the sense that the world is going f'n crazy? I've had too many people mention picking up on the same thing in various ways for it to be coincidence, so I felt compelled to write about it here; maybe make some sense of it, maybe let a few know that they are not personally going crazy; maybe not. I have been seeing people act out in all sorts of bizarre ways; random people on the street, as well as those I know well enough to know it's way out of character. Freak accidents, people feeling almost like they're under attack because so much is going wrong, relationships suddenly changing or ending, peoples internal issues becoming increasingly unbearable... the list goes on.
I was thinking and meditating on this the other day, and what I kept getting was "the lid is being blown off." Unresolved issues, repressed negativity, tension, insecurity, subconscious baggage... all being forced to the surface in ways that can't be ignored anymore, and being reflected in peoples' internal states and life circumstances. I've definitely been feeling it myself; I'm changing, life is changing, everything is changing. There have been a few nasty explosions, but all in all I consider myself very fortunate right now, and life is on a generally positive upswing. I'm becoming more of what I AM, but that means things that don't resonate with these changes are falling away -- sometimes violently so.
If this hits a chord with anyone reading, all I can say is... ride it out. Try to remain as objective and non-reactionary as possible. If relationships, or anything else for that matter, are changing or ending, don't try to hang on to what was; figure out what IS, and be that, come what may. Things may be happening to bring out parts of ourselves we ignore, repress or otherwise would rather not confront directly, in a big way -- now is the time to confront, resolve and release those things. Above all, love and be true to yourself always.
There are a lot of specific people I'm thinking of as I write this, so if you're reading and going "yep," know that you're probably one of 'em. In a lot of instances I haven't said much because I've been preoccupied myself, but if that's the case, or if I don't know about your specific circumstances but you still resonate with this, by all means get in touch. Mutual support and confirmation are what makes these periods of sifting a bit more tolerable, and that's also something I'm still learning about myself.
In other news: tomorrow I'm off to Sacramento till late Sunday; I've been invited/recruited/coerced to paint murals and backgrounds for a haunted house thingie going on up there. Painting + good company + free beer = woohoo! And I = not hard to please. :D Current Mood: exhausted | | Saturday, September 2nd, 2006 | | 9:09 pm |
I am your antichriiiiist! I will destroy mankiiiiind!
Okay I lied about that "real post soon to come" thing; here's another bit of random wackiness. Separate conversations, within about fifteen minutes of each other:
Shawnna: Let's see... with my natural talent with words, and your pure sacrelige, we could come up with something great!
Rain: Anyway *does the dance of evil luck so you'll get the job you want* Me: evil luck?
Rain: It's the only kind of luck with you Why does everybody think I'm the f'n Antichrist?! You people are gonna give me a complex! :P Also, just because I almost forgot about this until the story was brought up earlier, and it totally needs to be saved for posterity... The Undisputed Best Pickup Line Evar™ was used on me (repeatedly) a while back. ::drumroll:: "WAKE YER FUGGINASS UP!!!" (editor's note: yes, "fugginass" is now one word.)I totally need to make that part of my regular repertoire. According to my calculations, it will make the woman in question, as well as all women within a five mile radius, uberhawt for me within approximately three seconds. Hell, I think I'm getting a little turned on just writing this post. o_O ::plots:: And on a completely unrelated topic... I know there's a reason I don't date much, but I can't quite put my finger on it. :D Current Mood: amusedCurrent Music: Within Temptation | | Tuesday, August 29th, 2006 | | 5:51 pm |
Semi-Annual "I'm Not Dead (Yet)" Post™
Lots to say, and vacation posts still to be posted, maybe. My brain's just been rather scrambled lately, and the task of translating it into English far too arduous to be bothered with. People have been asking why I dropped off the face of the earth. I haven't really; the problem was that despite two reinstallings, my AIM only works about half the time for some reason, and not very well at that. So I mostly stopped using it a few months ago, and jumped ship to MSN. AND YOU SHOULD TOO. Add me as Palehorse Redivivus or my email if you feel compelled. Until I get around to a real post, here's some food for thought: would road rage not be SO much more fun with medieval weapons? Blowing people away is the lazy man's way to relieve tension, but taking a flying leap off the roof of your car with a spiked mace and a mighty battle cry is EPIC. Think about it. Current Mood:  contemplativeCurrent Music: Testament -- Hail Mary | | Saturday, August 5th, 2006 | | 5:12 pm |
And I would let the whole thing keep... if I could just sleep.
Well, I managed to make it back in one piece without being killed and/or eaten by those whose homes I invaded. I still maintain, however, that all internet people (including me) are crazed axe murderers. The fact that the trip went off without a single axe-murder, I can attribute only to the principle of Mutually Assured Axe-Murderage. Or something like that. I'm not sure I've fully recovered yet, but I'm leaving tomorrow around noon for another week or so. *dies, twice* Therefore, the editing of pics and the pic-filled recounting of wacky adventures will probably have to wait a while. I should probably be unpacking and/or repacking, but... I dun wanna. Packing sucks. And according to SOME people, I suck at packing. Dammit. *shakes fist* Feeling a bit weird mentally. It seems like I just left for WI yesterday, and yet it feels like I've been gone forever... "home" feels strangely foreign. I reeeally need to get out of f'kn' SoCal. It seems like circumstances might be coming together in such a way as to make this a more realistic possibility, but I guess that remains to be seen. *crosses fingers, toes and everything in between* Alright, off to do the whole "running around like a chicken" thing I s'pose... Current Mood:  weirdCurrent Music: Savatage -- Poets and Madmen | | Monday, July 10th, 2006 | | 6:41 pm |
Darkness gathers in the midwest...
I never update this damn thing anymore, but... heading out for a few weeks; farewell my minions! Try not to miss me too much. Send me love and shyte. Better yet: gimme a call. *pointed look in someone's general direction* Not back, avenge death. Pants = windex. Etc. etc. And as a parting gift... check this shyte out. I had heard of Apocolyptica already, but I only knew that they covered Enter Sandman; not that they were an actual group who played shows, heh. But you really haven't lived till you've seen guys who look like rockstars headbanging with cellos. And replicating guitar solos note for note with said cellos. O_o *joygasms* Heeee. Be well, all! Lataaaaa... \m/ Current Mood:  hyperCurrent Music: Dragonforce -- Inhuman Rampage | | Sunday, April 9th, 2006 | | 5:01 am |
Prepare your bladders... FOR IMMINENT RELEASE!!!
For I have returned. I wanted to toss this in first so it'll hopefully catch the attention of those who may not otherwise read the rest of the entry -- but my 2nd Annual Summer Invasion™ is already in the initial planning stages. I didn't say "east coast" because it's looking like it may not be limited entirely to the EC this time... or on the EC at all depending who else, if anyone, jumps in on this. In any case the last one turned out to be so much cheaper than I expected that I'm willing to go a bit bigger this time, depending. So, roll call kiddos: if for whatever reason anybody should happen to want a visit from a crazy wookie this summer, gimme a yell, and it may happen On a similar note, Spring Break is also upon us. A smaller scale Wacky Hippie Adventure would be nice, and I'm definitely in the mood, but short on feasible ideas. Bleh! Anyway, my puter randomly died a few weeks ago, but hath now been resurrected. I dunno what the guy did to it, but it hasn't run this fast since I got it, AND he managed to salvage all my personal shyte. We are pleased. But that's why I've been slackin' on the updates even more than usual. Updates, updates... Had a lengthy battle with what I'm pretty sure was the bubonic plague, but I'm pretty much back to normal... for me anyway. An old, old friend has recently resurfaced... and suddenly life has gotten a bit more interesting. I am now known as "princess" in some circles. And on a completely unrelated note, if a few certain people happen to be done away with in the near future... I totally had nothing to do with it. :D I've been doing a lot of deliberate internal rearranging, much of it based on the premises from my last post. At the moment the changes are slightly uncomfortable, but ultimately I think the outcome will be a Very Good Thing™. In any case the implications are definitely interesting. Post-grad plans have pretty much become definite, but as a courtesy I should probably let a few people in on these things before I start broadcasting it to the intarwebz. I am still irritatingly vague. Surprise surprise. There is a method to this madness believe it or not, but as always anyone who cares is welcome to inquire for details within. The Renn Faire doth approacheth! Not sure on the date yet, but I'll be there with ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) purplecleo, her band of merry minions and possibly Britt if I succeed in my evil scheme to con her into going. So who else is gonna be there, eh? Dragonforce is finally doing a tour here... and apparently their soCal shows sold out in approximately 3.2 seconds. It's encouraging to see a band like them selling shows out so quickly over here, but... sunuvabitch! Have I mentioned the Minibosses here yet? They're a band from AZ that covers oldschool Nintendo theme music in a somewhat metal-ish fashion. The other significant thing about them is that they totally delight me. AND WILL DELIGHT YOU TOO. ::glare:: As big a theological geek as I am, I should probably say something about the whole recent "Gospel of Judas" phenomenon. The media is predictably and irritatingly hyping it as "the new shocking find that will rock Christianity to its foundations lyke omgzorz!!11!1!" Now, I'm all for the idea that Christianity in general could use a good rocking right now, but the GoJ is none of the above. Its been known about at least since Irenaeus, and has been in modern posession for at least a few decades if I recall. The idea that there was a private agreement between Jesus and Judas to do what needed to be done is also not new, though perhaps the most interesting thing about the GoJ is the fact that it shows there was a Christian group who believed this at least as early as the 3rd century. As I've leaned this way myself for a while, here's a good article that explains the reasoning behind this theory. And I think that's it for now. | | Wednesday, March 15th, 2006 | | 5:18 am |
| | Monday, February 20th, 2006 | | 12:07 am |
Fear is withering the soul at the point of no return; we must be the change we wish to see.
First of all I wanted to say a big thanks to everyone who sent birthday wishes and/or dog-related condolences. You're all awesome and I luffs ya. :D
So, I got kidnapped last night by my minions and their minions for a late b-day adventure, which consisted of Greek food and a Karaokee bar. Most of the pics came out shit for some reason, but I'll inflict a few upon you all anyway.
( Da pics... )
That aside, life lately has been... eh. Up and down and back again. Certain things I've been waiting on for bloody ever have come together. Other things still not as quickly as I might like, but all told, things are on an upswing, for the moment. The problem is scraping the motivation together to keep them that way. There seems to be a huge amount of shifting going on lately... some of you may be feeling it too in various ways. I hope to write more (and more specifically) about that and various other things soon, but eh, not now. On a possibly related note I've felt like hell for about the past week, with the migraines and the flu-like symptoms and the hey hey hey mmglaven, but I'm feeling pretty good now... just kinda drained and... woozly. ::woozles:: I realize this paragraph is going to make varying degrees of sense to various people and none at all to others, but that's quite enough outta me for now.
And with that, I'm off to make a valiant attempt at productivity. Current Mood:  blahCurrent Music: Within Temptation -- The Silent Force | | Sunday, February 12th, 2006 | | 3:09 pm |
| | Sunday, January 29th, 2006 | | 7:10 pm |
For all of your that I've coerced into throwing up the horns at various times, you've finally been immortalized on my myspace page. For those of you I haven't yet -- your time will come. Muahaha.
Just thought I'd toss that out here, since some of you who're on there and don't have myspace will get a kick out of it.
(and rotnmusic, I haven't forgotten about our philosophy thread; will hopefully finish those replies in the near future.) Current Mood: amusedCurrent Music: Nocturnal Rites | | Tuesday, January 24th, 2006 | | 3:57 am |
As alternative gods multiply science stands accused... of theocide!
Theology Geek Survey™! Are you mono or polytheistic? I'm probably closer to panentheism. than anything. Do you subscribe to a major religion? Yes and no. I generally call myself an "Unorthodox Christian." I hesitate to label myself even as that though, because I have very little in common with any sect of modern Christianity, and don't relate well to what most people think of when they hear the term. Additionally, much of my theology comes from a time when there was no pretense of a definitive expression of Christian belief and practice, no creeds and no Bible; just a lot of sects who often believed and practiced very different things. I view the latter developments as more political than divinely mandated; thus I have no qualms about drawing from a number of them, and many other influences as well. How do you feel about Jesus? I like the guy so much I adopted his look. :D Seriously though, I believe him to be the best example we have of who God is, what he wants from us -- and who WE are, or can be. He was someone who subdued/transformed the ego so fully in favor of union with the divine Logos that he could truthfully say "I and my father are one." I also believe that the implied part of that is "...and so are you, you just don't know it yet." He was the first to "rend the veil," or destroy the illusion that God and man are separate. I believe that resulted in a permanent alternation of humanity's collective consciousness, even though his followers have been doing their damnedest to stitch that veil back up ever since. What holy book do you feel is most accurate? (Bible, Koran, etc) I feel this is an odd question. I'm partial to the Bible in that it's probably the one I have the least number of irreconcilable differences with as far as holy books go. But since it is a compilation that spans centuries and a whole lot of geography, I evaluate all the books based on their own merits, and the same goes for books that didn't make it in. Most of those books are not without their strengths and weaknesses, but to me the main strength is the record(s) of that Jesus guy; my take on him already having been stated. Do you believe in reincarnation? I believe it's one of potentially limitless possibilities. Do you believe in the traditional heaven and hell? Nein. But I can also be a smartass and say that what's "traditional" now wasn't 2000 years ago. I also have to toss in the statement that the idea of eternal torment may well be the most thouroughly destructive and poisonous idea ever conceived, and the proof spans much of recorded history. Do you believe in ANY heaven and/or hell? Yep -- "the kingdom of Heaven is within." My take on the afterlife is very open-ended, with everybody getting whatever it is they need to progress in their spiritual evolution. I think it's very likely that after death, people gravitate toward places and situations that most reflect their own beliefs and condition; in other words "like attracts like." For the average person this isn't such a bad deal, for the saint, all the better; for the sociopath, not so much. In all cases it is a learning experience and a push to keep progressing. Another possibility I like to kick around is that after death, we're opened to the perspective of everyone we've affected for good or ill, as well as the divine perspective, in an experiential way. Once again one's experience of this would be directly proportional to the life he's lived, and the end result would be justice and tranformation. Do you think the god(s) are vengeful or nice? I believe "God is love." Thing is, that love is a fire (a spark of which is contained in all of us) that keeps burning until the human ego is consumed and transformed. This is the cause of much outward manifestation of conflict and "vengeance." Essentially it is man in conflict with his own true nature, which puts him in conflict with his fellow humans and external nature. Do you believe in angels? I definitely allow for the possibility and even lean toward it, but as with most things, technically the jury's still out until one personally introduces himself. Do you believe in miracles? For this question I like to use my videogame analogy. If you're a character in a game, then no matter how complex the game is, you can still only act within its parameters, and thus your choices are limited by certain rules. Then again, if you know the programming code, suddenly a lot more options are opened up; you can make the game do pretty much whatever you want. Performing a miracle is thus a matter of uniting with God, having one's consciousness transformed by gnosis, cracking the code, call it what you will. Through you, God's will is then able to bend the parameters of the design. Do you believe in predestination? Not in the Calvinistic sense. ::shudders:: Let's just say I currently allow for the possibility of pre-incarnation agreements, plans and things of that nature. Do you believe in original sin? Not in the sense of a perfect humanity that "fell." I believe this experience of duality (or "the knowledge of good and evil" if you will) was a preplanned and necessary step in our development. Though I do speculate that we may all be sitting around one day having a good laugh about what the hell we were thinking when we signed up for it. Do you believe in freedom of will? I believe "free will" isn't as free as it's cracked up to be. The vast majority of people are controlled to a huge extent by any number of influences, starting with their own biological drives. Becoming free is a process that starts with recognizing our own prison. The only truly free will is God's will; thus uniting with the Logos is the key to true freedom. Do you believe in souls? Yessir. I also believe the soul is, at the deepest level, an aspect, or fragment of God. What do you think will happen to you when you die? Whatever is best suited to my continued evolution. Do you think there will be an armageddon? I think the most interesting thing about "armageddon" is that a careful reading of the text reveals that it doesn't happen. The armies are gathered and "fire from Heaven consumes the enemies of God" before anything else can happen. The fire is gnosis that transforms one's understanding; the enemy of God is the human ego. I'm hoping this means that if an armageddon-like scenario does play out (and let's face it, given the state of geopolitics, there are any number of ways it could at present), some sort of intervention will take place before the red button is pushed. But alternately, armageddon is a battle that can be fought internally, and if it is won by enough of us, it won't have to play itself out on the world stage. Why do you think we exist? To experience. Do you believe in life on other planets? Since we are, to quote a wiseman named Warrell, "just a speck in the spectrum," I don't see how there could not be. Do you believe in evolution? Of species? Yes, though the jury's still out on macroevolution. Bio isn't really a big subject of interest for me though. In short: I don't care. Heh. Do you think religion and science will always oppose each other? I think the idea that they do is the result of illusion. From a recent essay: "[Religion and science] are simply two different ways that humans seek to explore our world and explain our experiences within it. In short, science seeks to explain how things work, and religion seeks to offer glimpses at a greater meaning behind it all. Any conflict between the two, more than anything else, is a good example of what happens when human egos collide. However, as much as the two disciplines differ in their approach and methodology, I believe that given enough time and knowledge of both, a synthesis may one day be possible. In pondering this apparent dilemma I can’t help but get a mental picture of a mountain, scientists on one side and mystics on the other, starting out worlds apart, but ultimately converging upon the same peak: the true nature of reality itself." What would you say to God if you met him/her/them today? Heh... let's just say I'd have quite a few pointed questions about the way the last few years have gone, and leave it at that. Anything else we should know? "Love your neighbor as yourself" is one of the highest ideals, but it cannot be fulfilled without the implied and oft overlooked statement: you first have to love, respect and accept yourself, which is arguably even more difficult and worthwhile. Only when you fully love yourself will you be completely well equipped to give and receive love. Current Mood: contemplativeCurrent Music: Nevermore - The Sanity Assassin |
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