Shotgun

Isn't that what George W. is working on?

"Extinction may be the only cure for this disease we call mankind."

Sure. I thought you'd never ask!

I prefer silk scarves and a riding crop... Sissy.

As long as it involves whips and chains...

Personality and attitude, and maybe their eyes too.

Intelligence... or, more specifically, modest intelligence... also a good sense of humor and an open mind.

Oh. I thought this thread was gonna be about you coming out of the closet. Sorry, my mistake.

Ha! You are a "cat guy" NOW! But that's good because women like men who like cats. That's cool that you took the little guy in and made a friend.

My kitty, Moonshine, made me smile this morning. She came in with a guitar string (her fetch toy) and demanded that I play with her (by meowing loudly over and over). I was annoyed at first because I was trying to do something, but finally I stopped and played fetch with her for a bit. She's so cute running up and down the stairs to fetch the string, that I couldn't help but end up with a big smile on my face.

"Scooter" was pretty funny. I'll have to try that one sometime too... My mom used to have a crazy little dog named Scooter.

I agree... Though I don't think it is proven... but I do agree that religion was most likely developed as a way to soothe the discomfort of "knowing essentially nothing about who we are and why we're even here," as Jeffrey put it. It can be uncomfortable at times... but it also makes the mystery that much more interesting.

I'm gonna give my opinion on this issue. First of all, God is the creator, the allmighty and he can do and undo anything, is HIS will and no one has a say on that. "Designing" an imperfect creature is not for God to amuse himself, but for US to endure and become better souls, so the next question would be: Why God wants that?, well, the answer is on the opening paragraph of my reply. It seems to me that the answer to everything in Christianity (especially when presented with a problem that goes against logic) is something like "That's God's plan. It is not for us to question, only to accept and believe." It's an easy answer for everything, but it just doesn't work for me.

Hey, 11 jumps in 15 years isn't so bad. That's almost one a year! And you've even managed to take some mighty nice photos during those 11 jumps!

But taking enjoyment in the suffering of others would in itself be sinful, Hmm, this might be true... So then why would a perfect God design an imperfect creature??? Can anyone answer this??? There just doesn't seem to be much logic in Christianity... But then I guess that is why they rely on faith.

So... if God is perfect, and he designed Man perfectly in his image, then why would Man have chosen sin? I am assuming that sin would be considered an imperfection, so if Man chose sin through his free will then Man is not perfect.... So why would a "perfect" God design an imperfect creature? What exactly was his purpose in doing that - just for the amusement of watching us suffer?

Where's the fun in that? besides....isn't drunkenness one of the effects of alcohol? That's what I was wondering too... What "effect of alcohol" do they get if not the drunkenness??? Anyhow, I can inhale alcohol just fine without the use of a machine!

So, you were drunk when you flew Delta?

I agree with this... but "open communication" doesn't mean that you are necessarily having sex with other people. (I think I made it sound that way in my posts, but Bill gave a much better explanation.) I think the most important thing (as Bill said) is the "talk to me *before* you do anything" - this involves having a great deal of respect for your partner and having very good communication between the two of you - if you don't have these two things then an open relationship will probably not work. (For that matter, I don't think a monogamous relationship will work very well without respect and communication either.) I don't know... It's so hard to define a relationship! I see now that by saying I am in an open relationship, it conjures up visions of wild swinger parties (and for some, perhaps that is what it means), but for me it is more like... Being able to tell your S/O when you feel attracted to someone else, or that you have been flirting with someone over the Internet, etc. And if you have a desire to act on those feelings, being able to discuss that with your S/O and see how they feel. Sometimes this will still cause jealousy, but I would personally prefer to deal with the jealousy that comes from that situation than to deal with the kind of jealousy that comes from wondering if your S/O is attracted to someone else - the paranoia and delusions that evolve when there is a lack of communication in a relationship... Anyhow, I'm certainly not saying this type of relationship is for everyone. For those who can actually make a monogamous relationship work, I think that is great... I just see so many "monogamous" relationships that are not really monogamous at all, and I have a hard time understanding why these people choose to be deceptive rather than just be honest about their desires. (But I know they are not ALL that way!) And my "ideal relationship" that I've tried to describe is just that - "ideal"... So far I have never seen it working exactly the way I think it should. (Actually, I see very few things in life that are working exactly as I think they should! ) I am currently in what started out as an open relationship... though I don't know if I would still consider it to be. Neither of us see other people, but neither of us seem to have any desire to. But I think we do allow each other a lot more freedom than a lot of couples do... Anyhow, I don't want to talk too much about my relationship on a public forum.

Well, that's not what I had in mind (because if this was the story, then you would be a big fan of United!), but it does make a better story than the other one.

I recently flew from CA to NC and back on United and was impressed with how friendly they were (and no, I wasn't drunk )... But I seem to have "hit or miss" service with all the airlines. I was very anti-Delta for a while because they pissed me off SO bad, but then after having problems with other airlines too I realized they all seem to have their good and bad moments... So... now I'm curious to know what United did to upset you? Is it a good story?

Thanks, Bill... I think that's an excellent explanation.

Perspective too. It depends on where you are in life too. A 20yo hottie with 50 guys hitting on her is all about dating. At 29, when all the 29yo guys are after the new 20yo girls and the phone stops ringing, then it's "Why don't these guys want to commit?" A 25yo guy with a hot 25yo g/f isn't going to do better. When he's 35, he may want to revisit the roaming. His 35yo wife, with 2 kids, feels a little panic. Who has the insecurity? Depends on where you are in life. I think you and I are talking about two different things... It sounds like you are talking about people who are single but "dating". There is a big difference in that and in having a committed, yet "open" relationship. The kind of guys I tend to meet when I am single (and not looking for commitment) usually have no problem with me dating other people too.

I think "swinging" implies that you either have group sex with other couples/individuals or perhaps swap partners with other couples or something along those lines... I suppose that could be a part of an open relationship if you're into that sort of thing... But I think being in an open relationship doesn't necessarily mean you're into "swinging"... it might just mean that you occasionally go on a date with (or sleep with) someone else without your partner around (but your partner does know about it). It doesn't have to imply that you're into anything kinky. I guess the pros (of both) would include more freedom, maybe more honesty in the relationship (because you don't have to pretend that you're never attracted to anyone else - though it IS possible to have an honest monogamous relationship where you admit to your partner when you're attracted to someone else but you don't act on it). Cons (also for both) would be an increased chance of AIDS or other STD's (of course, that is also a problem in dishonest "monogamous" relationships - probably more so because you are not aware that your partner is sleeping with someone else), and the possiblitly of jealousy (which, again, can be a problem in any relationship).

Yes... and I have always suspected that religion, especially Christianity, has played a huge role in the "social conditioning" that has people finding deception more acceptable than open relationships. (Though I don't really understand why... Isn't lying as much of a sin as adultery is???) Several of those have been on my list of things to read for some time now... but since I have little time for reading these days, it will be a while before I get to them. (Hmm, maybe I should be reading instead of PW'ing? ) Let me think about that... I'd have to get permission from my husband.