Matching Tracksuits

fun in fours

g

More Pack Nonsense

Tuesday 04 October 2022

You'd think a man would eventually learn. After setting the date for Jesus's return at least five times that I know of, David Pack has set yet another date just days after his latest failure. Jesus was supposed to come back a little over a week ago, on 26 September. This last Saturday, Pack explained he'd learned a lot of new things in the previous week. God had blinded him before; now he can see.

If you listen to him talk about the prophetic world he's created for himself and his followers, it's easy to see how far from reality the man has strayed.

The 1,335 days, the ten-day period, the fifteen-day kingdom -- all his followers know exactly what he's talking about (well, perhaps not exactly as those who have recently left point out that Pack has been changing these doctrines on a whim over the last few years) but no one else knows. It might as well be gibberish. It might as well sound like this:

But like all good cult leaders, he's not afraid ultimately to tell his followers where their place is:

"Shut up and learn." That's their job.

Monday Evening Thoughts

Monday 03 October 2022

A couple of hours after dinner as the Girl went to do homework and relax after volleyball practice, the Boy, K, and I along with a good friend of the Boy's went to the local YMCA for some swimming. It's an outdoor pool but we're in South Carolina: it's chilly but only at first. After a bit of movement, the water is fine.

We've been trying to go to the Y like this regularly, but Monday night is just about the only night lately that we can definitely make it -- that we can schedule it well ahead of time. And so we go and swim some laps, then the Boy frolics about in the water as we swim a bit more, then we head home. At this point, some thirty years after I last swam regularly, I can manage for an entire workout what I used to do for a warm-up. It's discouraging in a way, but when we began doing this a few weeks ago, I couldn't even do that. So there's progress.

Tonight, as I was swimming backstroke for a change, I noticed that the moon is almost full. A full moon in early October can only mean one thing for me: it's almost time for the Feast of Tabernacles, the eight-day festival I grew up celebrating in the sect in which I was raised. It's been nearly thirty years since I last attended that ridiculously warped version of a Jewish festival I grew up attending annually. Nearly thirty years and the realization that it's about time (its first day was always a full moon in mid-September to mid-October) still creeps up somewhat unawares. Certainly, I still keep up with a few of the little groups that try to cling to those old cultic ways, but it's not something I think about regularly.

I do find myself wondering how things might have turned out if Tkach, the leader of the organization after its founder died, had not made the changes in the early nineties that led the sect to abandon all its heretical teachings and embrace plain vanilla Evangelical Christianity. Would my parents have remained in the group? Would I have remained for some period? Would I have become the skeptic I now am? Would I now be getting together lesson plans for a substitute teacher to fill in while I headed off for my religious conference (as it would have likely been seen)? Would I have gone to Poland after college and met K? Would I have enrolled in graduate studies at Boston University in the philosophy of religion (only to drop out after a year)? Questions without answers.

I am, of course, very glad I'm out of such a warped religion, but there is a certain nostalgia that accompanies this. The Feast was the greatest week of the year. It was Christmas and a beach vacation combined. How could one not miss that in some way?

Sunday Selling

Sunday 02 October 2022

It's that time of year again -- popcorn sales. I don't really like it; the Boy doesn't enjoy it; K puts up with it to help. But today, we took a two-hour shift with a friend at the booth in front of a local Cabella's outdoor shop.

We shocked ourselves with what we sold: over $850 in sales and donations.

It was really a learning experience for the Boy: like me, he doesn't like talking to strangers all that much, so to come out of that a bit and approach shoppers with the proposition of spending more money -- I was proud of how well he did.

In the evening, we went to our favorite park for a walk.

And the Girl? She had a sleepover at a friend's last night, came home in time for a late lunch, then headed to work.

Yard Renovation

Saturday 01 October 2022

Collateral Damage

Friday 30 September 2022

One advantage for our neighbors: all this wind has blown down the excessive Halloween decorations of one of our friendly neighbors.

Before the Storm

Thursday 29 September 2022

Abandoned House

Wednesday 28 September 2022

Volleyball Tuesday

Tuesday 27 September 2022

The Girl's team played Woodmont High today -- where three of her former teammates play. Mauldin is the team to beat right now, and when the home team went up four points on us, the crowd was going wild.

Then our girls got their act together and won by four points.

There's always a bit of an advantage, I think, being the underdog on the home court. You really have nothing to lose, and if you hype yourself up enough (and you actually have the skills), you can convince yourself you can win. And then when you are winning, when it looks like you might pull off an upset (at least one set), your confidence soars. Until you start making mistakes, the favorites start coming back, and you start doubting yourself.

So Mauldin came from behind to win the first set 25-21, and in the second set, they did what I believe they felt they'd do the first set: they won 25-15. The third set was 25-18 or something like that, but they came close to losing the first set due to underestimating the opposition.

"Plus," the Girl explained, "everyone thinks we're the team to beat, so they play their best against us."

After a tough club season last year, it's good to see the Girl winning again.

Evening Swim Plus

Monday 26 September 2022

Monday for us is YMCA night -- swimming. The outdoor pool is still open, and while the air is cool, the water is surprisingly warm. Sometimes we go as a family (minus the Girl, who's always doing something else), and sometimes it's just the boys, along with a friend from time to time.

I try to swim some laps, but I usually get to about 500 yards, and I'm exhausted. My arms burn; my pulse is racing; my legs hurt.

What gives me a sickening feeling is the thought that when I swam competitively in high school, we used to do 600-yard swim/kick/pull (200 yards of each) as the first part of our warm-up.

Still Off

My favorite cult leader predicted a specific date for Jesus's return yet again. It was supposed to happen today. That's at least 5 days I know of that David Pack has predicted Jesus will return. He's batting a solid 000. Why anyone still supports the hack is a mystery to me.

Evening Walk

Sunday 25 September 2022

We've overseeded our front yard and seeded our backyard. Not "overseeded" because after we started having our yard sprayed for weeks regularly, everything in the backyard died. Because it was all weeds.

This means, though, that our dear Clover is an inside dog for the next month or so as everything takes root and grows. So we take her on a lot more walks, which means we get to see lovely fall scenes like this.