Christian Mingle Inspector

[Quixote1818]

[TlalocW]

1. This reminds me of my high school friend, Brett

He attended a community college, worked some odd jobs for a few years, then in his early 20s decided to go to Baptist Bible College in Springfield, MO, to become a youth pastor. He's religious but not in your face about it. However, he's not that good of a researcher so he didn't know about all the rules until he was already heading there. No listening to certain radio stations (there was a list), tv stations (likewise), no movies, buying popular music, etc. He happily signed then ignored all of them because he loves music and movies. He even built his own recording studio in his campus apartment out of scrap wood and other throwaways so he could record his own songs. The one sticky point was that men had to be clean-shaven, and he always preferred a couple days' growth on his face. So he went to our small town doctor, the only Jewish guy in town, and asked him to write a note saying he had some kind of skin condition that was exacerbated by shaving. Doctor said, "Let me get this straight. You're asking me, a Jew, to lie to some Baptists for you? Okay." I visited him once while he was attending and went to his classes with him and got a lot of strange looks because I was in a t-shirt, jeans, and tennis shoes, while they were all in ties and slacks. The weekend came, and we wanted to do something fun, but one of his college friends wanted to join us so we couldn't do movies, etc. because the guy could have narc'ed on Brett so it was off to Silver Dollar City, which I think is kept in business mainly due to the proximity of Baptist Bible College, and it's on the okay list. I learned that you could go up to just about any guy on campus and ask him what his high score is, and he would know what you're talking about and would tell you - at SDC, there's a boat ride through a long tunnel where you have light guns which you shoot at targets as you drift by, registering your score on the gun.

TlalocW

[Nitram]

4. Great stories, Tlaloc, thanks for sharing.

[SWBTATTReg]

2. Sounds like the Springfield MO I know...

Visited friends and family there. Have family located all around Springfield MO. It's the center of the bible thumping country. Nice people, not in your face people, but still. Don't let religious dogma detract from real life, eh? There are some things more important to worry about then the beard growth on someone's face, eh?

Come on now, let's be real. Unfortunately, this constitutes a big part of MO, and drives a lot of our state's economy, e.g., limit on gambling boats, formerly no alcohol on Sundays (eliminated years ago, although you still can't buy booze until after a certain time on Sundays). I love MO, but these people don't rule my life, and I'm one to tell them off if I need to (which I have, in running them off and keeping them from bothering my elderly father (located somewhat close to Springfield MO), they were hitting him up for donations!

Hypocrites. After that, I lost almost all of my respect for these slime bags, especially after trying to take advantage of my dad in his 'senior' moments.

[TlalocW]

5. I had some fun there while visiting Brett

I attended a few classes with him, including a Spanish class, which was one of my majors. The teacher divided us up into groups to do an in-class assignment so I helped Brett's group, which meant they were done first, so one of the guys in the group started to chat me up.

Him: Where did you go to college?
Me: Pittsburg State in southeast Kansas then I did some grad work at Oklahoma State.
Him: Oh, OSU! Good ol' Eskimo Joe's (famous restaurant/bar/place for bands to play)
Me: Oh, you know it?
Him: Yeah, I'm from Tulsa. If they had a good band playing, my friends and I would go.
Me: Oh, I'm living in Tulsa now.
Him: Oh, really? What church do you go to?
Me: (forgetting where I was) Oh, I don't attend church. I prefer sleeping in on Sundays.
*uncomfortable silence as it dawns on me what's happening*
Him: Well, if you're interested there's a good church at 101st and...
Me: That was your church, wasn't it?
Him: Yeah, but I think...
Me: (realizing how to shut him up) Actually, I guess I do attend a church every now and then - St Francis de Guadalupe - a Spanish-speaking CATHOLIC church so I can practice my listening skills.
Him: ... Oh. * Turns to talk to someone who doesn't hang out with Catholics *

After class, Brett told me he was having to keep himself from laughing out loud at the predicament I got myself in as well as how I got myself out of it.

TlalocW

[Jeffersons Ghost]

6. Did you spend time in England? The phrase you use, "chat me up" is more typical of England than USA

[TlalocW]

7. Well...

Not so much but often to make myself feel more British, I do take the pram out of the boot of my car to put in the lift to go up to the flat because carrying it up the apples and pears would be too tiring. But once there, I'll watch telly while eating bangers and mash with spotted dick from the corner sweet shop for afters.

I've long been an Anglophile. Have had a British penpal since high school. Love Monty Python and other British comedy. I even chose to read, "Return of the Native," by Thomas Hardy in high school for a project because it was the subject of a Python skit ("Novel Writing," where it's treated as a sports event with a stadium of people watching Thomas Hardy write). So, I'm sure some more British-sounding phrases have permanently attached themselves to my vocabulary. Ooh, and there was a British Christmas Faire here in Kansas City this past holiday season so that was fun.

Never bee though. One day.

TlalocW

[Nitram]

3. Hilarious!