u/SammyStands

Hi All,

After months of pondering, I'm taking the plunge, leaving the RCC and joining y'all as of this coming weekend. I already am sure that among the mainline Protestant denominations this one is closest to my needs. I'm still dealing with some residual anxiety, but I know this is the right move for myself and my family.

I'd love your suggestions for reading material to help acclimate me to the church.

I have a copy of the BCP, Jonathan Gibson's "Be Thou My Vision," and just ordered a copy of "Walk in Love."

I'm interested in learning more about the history and theology of Episcopalianism, and would also love to read any books about Episcopalian prayer that you might suggest.

Any and all thoughts are appreciated, as are your prayers.

Hi All,

Just curious, what are your favorite Olivetti machines and why? Anyone have one of their standard manuals?

I bought an Olivetti/Underwood portable (I think 315?), found the typing action to feel shallow and kind of mushy. Given how much others seem to love them, I'm wondering what I'm missing.

Thanks!

Hi All,

In elementary school in upstate NY in the 80s, we watched (on 8 or 16mm film) a movie that was made with stop-motion. The main character was a child mouse about 8 years old who desperately wanted a toy called MAGIC MACHINE. His (or her, can't remember the gender of the character) father warned them that toys are never as special as they seem at first, and the little mouse went nuts, screaming, demanding it. Finally, he gets the toy, and it breaks almost immediately, and the moral is learned. 

I was reminded of this today when a colleague at work tried to fix a busted "Magic Mouse" for my IMac, and I started chanting "MAGIC MACHINE, MAGIC MACHINE" at him a la the film. What was this movie, and does a copy exist online? My brother remembers this film too, so I'm not hallucinating it.

Thank you!

Hi All,

In elementary school in upstate NY in the 80s, we watched (on 8 or 16mm film) a movie that was made with stop-motion. The main character was a child mouse about 8 years old who desperately wanted a toy called MAGIC MACHINE. His (or her, can't remember the gender of the character) father warned them that toys are never as special as they seem at first, and the little mouse went nuts, screaming, demanding it. Finally, he gets the toy, and it breaks almost immediately, and the moral is learned. 

I was reminded of this today when a colleague at work tried to fix a busted "Magic Mouse" for my IMac, and I started chanting "MAGIC MACHINE, MAGIC MACHINE" at him a la the film. What was this movie, and does a copy exist online? My brother remembers this film too, so I'm not hallucinating it.

Thank you!

Hi All,

Might have a line on a Hermes Ambassador that looks like it's in decent shape (it's a bit beat up in the pictures, but it allegedly works fine). Seller is asking $300 - seems a bit high, what would be a fair amount for one of those in OK shape?

Anyone have any experiences with this machine, what are your thoughts?

Thanks!

Hi All,

Not a shooter myself, but collecting info to hopefully write a western novel in the near future.

I'm curious about the concept of converting older revolvers from a historical perspective.

For example, it looks like I can easily order an 1851 Navy revolver that has been converted from a cap and ball style to a cartridge style, in .44 ammo, or .38spl. This is apparently what Clint Eastwood was wielding in The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly.

How many cowboys would have actually been running around with a cap and ball revolver that had been converted to cartridges? Is that entirely a modern innovation so that people can fire their favorite guns without having to fiddle with the cap and ball ammo, or were there men who had used a certain type of revolver during the war, then continued using it via conversion into the 1870s and 1880s?

I imagine that if you needed access to easily-reloaded guns, you would want a cartridge revolver rather than a cap and ball, so either conversion would have been desirable, or entirely new guns would have been purchased.

Thank you in advance for your thoughts!

Hi All,

I asked about pre-planning/pre-paying for my parents a couple weeks ago, and y'all convinced me to advise them to pre-plan. I am handling the arrangements for them, currently waiting for a call back from the funeral home they chose.

My question:

They would like their ashes to be co-mingled when they both go. They will be able to be buried in a national cemetery when they pass, because my father is an honorably-discharged vet.
Is the best way of handling this to cremate whoever dies first, then hold on to their ashes until parent #2 passes, and then bring those remains to the funeral home to be comingled? OR, is it better to cremate and then bury whoever passes first, then have the remains removed from the plot when parent #2 passes and take care of it at that point?

Also, in terms of the container; should I ask for a larger box now, or just have a temporary box now, and a more permanent one later?

Thank you all for your help!

Hi All,

Just hoping to get some opinions from those who are going through this situation or have recently been through it.

My parents are in their 80s, are currently healthy and living on their own. During one of our normal phone chats a month or so ago, they asked me to assume power of attorney for them. I'll be visiting them in August (they live across the country), and will begin the process of helping them plan their funerals and end-of-life plans. I will also help them find an attorney to sort out wills for each of them, and will make sure that I have info on all of their expenditures/pensions, as well as passwords for various websites, etc. I'd read somewhere about registering my power of attorney paperwork at their bank, with their utilities, etc.

From a legal perspective, what other things I should be encouraging them to think about and thinking about myself? All advice appreciated.

Many thanks in advance.

https://preview.redd.it/w6bcljr7x8dh1.png?width=534&format=png&auto=webp&s=3e4a56cfd20b791cd6121940c16efa3394f3cd4a

Hi All,

Question re. a Royal QDL - I've managed to deal with weird margins (thanks to Duane from Phoenix Typewriters, RIP) and some other problems, but this one remains, so I figured I'd ask here.

If I type very slowly, everything comes out in a straight line. If I type quickly, alignment goes awry. (Just to be clear, for the capitalized words here, I had the caps lock down, so there was no weird shifting going on for the capital letters.) See the lower-case letters near the top in "Cremony" and "Mommsen," and "Vincent," and upper-case in "THE MEMOIRS" or "THE HISTORY."

If the issue only exists if I type quickly, is that something that can be fixed, or is it just a quirk of the machine? Also - occasionally some red sneaks in (barely visible here in the "A" of Adams), but this issue has mostly resolved itself as I've used the machine. Worth fiddling with, or leave it alone?

Thank you in advance!

Hi All,

After years of avoiding the topic, my (43) elderly parents (84/81) are finally willing to have end-of-life discussions when I visit them across the country in a few weeks. At their request, I'll be assuming power of attorney, and working with them to prepare financially for what happens if one or both of them becomes infirm or dies. They are currently in good health and living on their own. I have numerous siblings, but my parents have asked me to help them with this, so I want to do right by them.

My question, and I apologize in advance if I offend anyone: is pre-planning and paying ahead of time actually a good idea, or is it just another way for elders to be taken advantage of?

I've read that there are unscrupulous funeral homes that pull shenanigans to avoid actually delivering on prepaid services. (Switching LLC names, for example, or putting things in the fine print of contracts that allow them to weasel out when the time comes.)

Assuming everything is above board, I'd love to be able to help my parents purchase burial plots, determine whether they want to be cremated, voice how they are to be interred, etc., and potentially pay up front so that when the time comes I know exactly what to do and just can call the funeral home and set things in motion. What I don't want is for them to shell out money, then discover that the home has gone under, or is unwilling to honor what they previously agreed to.

Can I get honest thoughts from y'all on this? Many thanks in advance.

Mid-40s, M, looking for a gym. Have literally never worked out before and need to start. I hate physical exercise, but it's time to get serious.

Any good places for a newbie, and also, personal trainer recommendation?

Thanks in advance!

Hi All,

I'm a gay Catholic, and although I love my faith, the church's anti-gay stance has finally worn me down, and I'm ready to find a community in which I can fully participate. I also have two kids that I want to raise as church-going Christians.

I've been looking into Episcopalianism and Lutheranism as faiths that will be familiar to me as high church and sacramental in nature, and there's a pretty good chance that is the direction I will go. That being said, I happened to be reading an old novel last night in which a character attended a Wesleyan chapel (in England), and the description of the sermon was very attractive to me. The pastor reflected on three words ("He made summer"), quoted from Spenser, drew from the Gospel of John, it was beautiful. I then looked up John Wesley, learned a bit about him, read one of his sermons, which I found to be very compelling.

A couple questions I had:

1. Are there any converts from Catholicism to Methodism here who can speak about their experience?
2. What are the best books I should read to learn more about Methodism and its principles?
3. The UMC in my town is very "modern," for lack of better word - they sing Rock/Pop style songs, have neon lights all over the church, host chats about anti-racism or cancel culture as the opening portion of a Sunday service, and generally seem to want to cater to 20-somethings as their main focus. Up the mountain there is what I assume is a more "traditional" UMC, which sings old-school hymns, seems more structured in general, but based on video evidence, has no one in attendance under the age of 65. Is this generally how Methodist churches run these days? (One extreme or the other?) I ask because the latter church appeals to me, but it will likely be gone in a decade, and the former does not appeal to me at all.

Thank you in advance!

Hi All,

I posted this on /Lutheranism, and someone pointed out that there was an ELCA-specific sub, so figured I'd try it over here as well.

These questions are specifically directed to Lutherans in LGBT-affirming churches. (I understand and respect that there are Lutheran denominations that feel differently about this question, so I'm directing this to those who attend affirming churches.)

I'm 43, a gay Roman Catholic. I love many aspects of my church, even given its hostile stance towards gays, but I am at a point where I feel the need to fully participate in the life of the church with my husband and kids. Until this point, I've been attending an RCC parish on my own, but after a lot of prayer and thought, I'm ready to find a church home where I can feel like a full member of the church, do some significant volunteering, and raise my children as churchgoing Christians. (Their religious education to this point has been a combination of occasionally attending church with me, hearing me pray, reading children's Bibles and singing along to hymns that I sing around the house. They have not been baptized.)

I looked closely at the Episcopalians, given the many liturgical parallels between that church and the RCC, but have found that the few Episcopalian churches in my area are overwhelmingly old (literally not a child in sight at any of their services) and also extremely political. There are two ELCA Lutheran churches in my area that had kids visible at their online services, and which also focused on the Gospels in their homilies. There is a third, older congregation in the area, but when I covered for a musician friend there last year, the pastor spent her lengthy homily attacking the RCC and its practice of confession, so I'm only looking at the other two congregations.

1. Are there any former RCs here? If so, how did you choose the Lutheran church?
2. For all former RCs, was it a tough shift to Lutheranism theologically speaking?
3. Am I allowed to bring some of my RCC practices with me? (Crossing myself, kneeling in church, praying the rosary, praying to saints for intercession, etc.)
4. How does the Lutheran church do when it comes to teaching kids about the faith?
5. Where should I start in terms of learning about Lutheranism before making any decisions?

Thank you in advance, and God bless you all.

Hi All,

This question is specifically directed to ELCA Lutherans in LGBT-affirming churches. (I understand and respect that there are Lutheran denominations that feel differently about this question, so I'm directing this to those who attend affirming churches.)

I'm 43, a gay Roman Catholic. I love many aspects of my church, even given its hostile stance towards gays, but I am at a point where I feel the need to fully participate in the life of the church with my husband and kids. Until this point, I've been attending an RCC parish on my own, but after a lot of prayer and thought, I'm ready to find a church home where I can feel like a full member of the church, do some significant volunteering, and raise my children as churchgoing Christians. (Their religious education to this point has been a combination of occasionally attending church with me, hearing me pray, reading children's Bibles and singing along to hymns that I sing around the house. They have not been baptized.)

I looked closely at the Episcopalians, given the many liturgical parallels between that church and the RCC, but have found that the few Episcopalian churches in my area are overwhelmingly old (literally not a child in sight at any of their services) and also extremely political. There are two ELCA Lutheran churches in my area that had kids visible at their online services, and which also focused on the Gospels in their homilies. There is a third, older congregation in the area, but when I covered for a musician friend there last year, the pastor spent her lengthy homily attacking the RCC and its practice of confession, so I'm only looking at the other two congregations.

1. Are there any former RCs here? If so, how did you choose the Lutheran church?
2. For all former RCs, was it a tough shift to Lutheranism theologically speaking?
3. Am I allowed to bring some of my RCC practices with me? (Crossing myself, kneeling in church, praying the rosary, praying to saints for intercession, etc.)
4. How does the Lutheran church do when it comes to teaching kids about the faith?
5. Where should I start in terms of learning about Lutheranism before making any decisions?

Thank you in advance, and God bless you all.

Hi All,

Background:

14-mo baby boy, goes to daycare during the week, eats/drinks well, sleeps well (goes to bed ca. 7pm, wakes up ca. 7am), has generally been a very happy and healthy baby. When he has a cold or other illness, he can be fussy, but again, generally very happy baby.

Over the last few weeks, he has been more fussy in general, and at certain times of day, demands to be picked up. He is not content to be held on lap while you're sitting, only wants to be carried while you stand up. Any deviation from this = screaming, tantrums, etc. Generally, if he becomes completely unreasonable, we pop him in his crib for a couple of minutes and he will calm down and then be ok.

He was sick last week and over the weekend, seems better now, but has been screaming/tantruming non-stop if not held while standing. I'm currently out of town for work, husband reports that baby is not responding to the "pop him into the crib" approach, is just tantruming non-stop whenever not being held. He is still falling asleep at naptimes, and is eating. Obviously it's not possible to hold him 12 hrs a day, so there's a lot of yelling going on.

My guess is that there is some residual discomfort from last week's cold that we're not aware of, or that possibly he's teething. Husband is concerned that it might be some sort of phase rather than a temporary discomfort. (He said it seems like the baby's personality is different.)

Has anybody else experienced this at this age, and is it more likely to be discomfort, or some sort of separation anxiety? Thanks in advance.