[lilkim (OP)]

I have often wondered about soo many things and never quit know if some of them are real or just what someone might believe.

A couple of these things are:

Ghosts or spirits..the land of limbo..ect...I "know" some shows (most) shows are fake and just for entertainment, but I don't "know" if the people i know and trust are real when they share experiences they have had or if it just thier imagination. I do "know" what I have experienced and even though it was ME that experienced it I still "don't" "know" that it was real or MY imagination. I did not believe in such things till it happened and then when it did I do not understand why I am still not convinced....so confusing.

Another thing i wonder about is general public gestures...like when you walk by someone and automatically say hello or how are you...why do we do it when most of time we really do not care nor want a reply, i understand the politeness behind it all, but doesn't it just make everyone fake???

If the universe is infinate how can there be a heaven or hell, a top or bottom??? and if our fate is destined from birth than why is there choice??
Would that mean that we are either "born" good or evil?

B free!!!

[moonfire]

public gestures are something we have been taught to be polite, but not always are people polite with responses or nonresponses...

who says heaven or hell has a top or bottom?  We are both good and evil!  We make a choice to be either...right now I am a good girl who chooses to be bad...

"Lo" Loretta

[Hadrian]

BOOOOOOOOOOO![][:p][]

What you do speaks so loudly that I cannot hear what you say.

[moonfire]

Now little Imperor...erm...you are being impolite...where are your manners?lol

"Lo" Loretta

[neilep]

I actually think public gestures are very worthwhile....it's nice to be nice !!....I ALWAYS smile when I meet someone...every single time...even to the cold hearted bitch behind the counter in the post office !!,......and I ALWAYS get a smile back every time...I even talk with a  smile....it's uplifting for those I'm speaking to and I always watch their mouths....a smile soon comes back at me....and then I say to myself.."I made that smile".....

Walking down the street saying hello, or good morning to someone who catches your eye I think is a nice way to start the day. Whether the inference is intended or not I think is besides the point.....I truly believe that if we all said hello, or just smiled that little bit more then a happier place we'd all be in.

As far as heaven and Hell or Ghosts are involved....I can't prove they don't exist...neither is there any proof that they do exist...so...speculate away like humans have done for thousands of years.

Men are the same as women, just inside out !

[Hadrian]

quote:Originally posted by moonfire

Now little Imperor...erm...you are being impolite...where are your manners?lol

"Lo" Loretta

Wooooooooooooooooooooo!

What you do speaks so loudly that I cannot hear what you say.

[moonfire]

You are a bit wild young man and you need to be tamed a bit dear emperor!  LOL

"Lo" Loretta

[cranial_implant]

Has this thread lost it's way ?

forgive me. I'm just the new boy !

My head is not what it used to be.

[lilkim (OP)]

It is nice to be nice and can sometimes feel good until someone is not so nice....but as for gestures....yes, we are taught to be so, but it still poses the question about if it makes it fake....sure some people like to say hello, but there are others that just do it out of habit or "training" and like i said do not really want an answer...and i did not mean that heaven was top or that hell was bottom, i meant them seperatly...

B free!!!

[ukmicky]

quote:Originally posted by cranial_implant

Has this thread lost it's way ?

forgive me. I'm just the new boy !

My head is not what it used to be.

It happens

Michael

[another_someone]

quote:Originally posted by lilkim
Ghosts or spirits..the land of limbo..ect...I "know" some shows (most) shows are fake and just for entertainment, but I don't "know" if the people i know and trust are real when they share experiences they have had or if it just thier imagination. I do "know" what I have experienced and even though it was ME that experienced it I still "don't" "know" that it was real or MY imagination. I did not believe in such things till it happened and then when it did I do not understand why I am still not convinced....so confusing.

Another thing i wonder about is general public gestures...like when you walk by someone and automatically say hello or how are you...why do we do it when most of time we really do not care nor want a reply, i understand the politeness behind it all, but doesn't it just make everyone fake???

If the universe is infinate how can there be a heaven or hell, a top or bottom??? and if our fate is destined from birth than why is there choice??
Would that mean that we are either "born" good or evil?

There are a lot of questions there, and I wont even attempt to approach all of them.

Firstly, we cannot say whether the Universe is infinite, but what we can say is that the visible universe must be finite, because it is limited by the speed of light and the age of the universe (about 14 billion light years).

On the other hand, since we can see equally far in all directions, we cannot discern one direction being different from the other, and so there is no observable top or bottom (in fact, even on the Earth, there is no top or bottom, only arbitrarily assigned North and South poles – but in the universe, we do not even see poles).

With regard to saying 'how are you', you have to be careful, with all human speech, to separate the words from the meaning.  In whatever we say, the intonation of voice, context, and so many other things can carry meanings that can even be contrary to the actual words we use.  As you rightly say, when we say 'how are you', we are not really enquiring about the person state of wellbeing, but are simply saying 'I come in peace, and friendship, and mean you no harm'.  The words themselves are throwaways, it is the context and tone of voice that really matters.

OK, there is also another aspect of what is being said when one says 'how are you', and that is a cultural aspect.  One of the things the Brits hate is when Americas say 'have a nice day'.  Many Brits will suggest it is because it is phoney, because the person saying it does not mean it (just as you are saying 'how are you' is phoney), but the truth be told, whatever would be said in that context would not be meant literally (if someone says 'good bye', do they really mean 'God be with ye'?).  What really irks a Brit by that is 'have a nice day' it is not a British expression, and so it culturally identifies the person saying it as being alien (in this case, of being American).

So, when you say 'how are you', you are saying two things – you are saying 'I come in peace', and you are saying that I belong to the tribe of people who great each other with 'how are you', and if you also belong to that tribe, then I have identified myself as belonging to the same tribe (or at least, of belonging to a tribe that shares the same cultural values) as yourself.

George

[Karen W.]

Wow George, I generally mean, How are you doing? If by chance and it often happens the stranger says, well, not to good actually, then I usually stop and listen to the soul as they seem to need to talk! I usually ask if there is something I could do for them or if they needed some help! I love meeting new people! I must say though that My mother hated this quality about me as she thought it was not safe to be so friendly to strangers. She might be right, but I can't help myself, I love people!
  I agree with you for the most part, but would be wrong to assume everyone who used that term could fall into that catagory! See what I mean?....Karen

[neilep]

George is of course right..by the way..How are you George ? []

I won't discuss the nature of the Universe because..well..the Uni is well big and it's a well big topic along with God and stuff !..probably the two biggest subjects...along with the nature of life and what colour shorts I'm wearing today....and why..as hard as you try you just can not get the last centimetre of toothpaste out of the tube ![]

I have to say....though the saying ' Have A Nice Day ' makes me cringe, it is quintessentially American....but how often is it actually said ?.....I've been fortunate (boast mode) to have visited the states 4 times now...all different areas and I didn't register my ears being bombarded by the said phrase !..Yes it was mentioned..but not that often........

...same applies to ' Y'all come back now '..in fact...I don't think I have ever had this said to me.....Probably because I'm an anti-social obnoxious fart !![]

There DOES seem to be an air of disingenuity behind these terms but I think in the grand scheme of things they are more positive than negative..

What about Canada ?...are those phrases indigenous to the states ?



Men are the same as women, just inside out !

[moonfire]

Yes, generally it is a fake action sometimes, but I, like Neil, will smile until someone smiles back, or be so nice to them it hurts and they have no choice but to be nice...hehe  

Karen, same way with me.  I feel like a person is reaching out and needs their life touched when they are saying something like that as well...to me it is a signal that they need help!

Ian, this is a very scientific thread...it is proven thread after thread...hehe  It evolves and it has grown already...life is in the thread!  Viva Life!  LOL



"Lo" Loretta

[another_someone]

quote:Originally posted by Karen W.
Wow George, I generally mean, How are you doing? If by chance and it often happens the stranger says, well, not to good actually, then I usually stop and listen to the soul as they seem to need to talk! I usually ask if there is something I could do for them or if they needed some help! I love meeting new people! I must say though that My mother hated this quality about me as she thought it was not safe to be so friendly to strangers. She might be right, but I can't help myself, I love people!
  I agree with you for the most part, but would be wrong to assume everyone who used that term could fall into that catagory! See what I mean?....Karen

Not sure that what you are saying contradicts what I said, although it does add to it.

You have implicitly acknowledged that the normal response you expect is not a detailed discussion of the minutiae of their wellbeing.  What you are talking about is what your response is to an abnormal response to 'How are you doing?'.  What you are suggesting is that if someone replies 'well, not too good actually', that this is abnormal enough to be treated as an alarm call that requires some exceptional action.  I would generall agree, although one has to make a judgement also as to what is normal for that person (i.e. if that person always responds in that way, then it is no longer abnormal for them, and is no longer appropriate to be treated as an alarm call).

George

[Karen W.]

Yes, I do believe your right, and I also really mean it when I say good day, or how are you today Sir! If I don't want to know I don't ask to begin with! I guess I am a bit weird that way. I just play it by ear as to where that conversation might go. I have had very intense deep conversations with people I have only greeted with a friendly how are you! People are really wonderful and amazing beings. They facsinate me!

[lilkim (OP)]

Wow...that was great George, i did not know that...but very interesting.

B free!!!

[another_someone]

quote:Originally posted by neilep
and why..as hard as you try you just can not get the last centimetre of toothpaste out of the tube ![]

So, tell me, if you cannot get the last centimetre out, how do you know there is a centimetre in there (and does it not rather depend upon how thinly you spread it) []

George

[lilkim (OP)]

lololol...cut it open and see if it really is in there...

B free!!!

[neilep]

LOL...that's exactly what I did George and lilkim...i opened it up and squeezed it out...it was a whole centimetre !!..that's almost a whole weeks worth of tooth-brushing for this fresh breathed  orally hygienic fella ! []

Men are the same as women, just inside out !