found more computer stuff; religious order continued

Today I found the monitor, the laptop, a few accessories like the mouse and the cords and the speakers, and the data disks. I'm not sure if the other hard disk is in one of those boxes, but I have a vague idea where it could be if it isn't. That disk malfunctioned (when I still lived at the other apartment) and I was going to try to salvage it - it looks like it was going to cost a lot of money to do that.

I haven't tested any of them yet. I'm dreading that project. I know it's possible to freeze electronic devices and they will still work, but I don't know the details, and I'm afraid it's not good to freeze and thaw them over and over again.

However, I'm happy I found them. That project is one of the important things I wanted to get done during my vacation, and I did it.

***

The Order: I said it was vaporware. It's actually paperware. I've written more of the details in a notebook. It's a collection of things that I think are so important, everybody should be doing them - or at least, that's how I was looking at it to help me focus on what should be included in the rules, and what shouldn't.

Because I've been studying the Ichazo's Instincts recently, I noticed that the 'belief clusters' could be grouped by instincts: self-preservation, social, and sexual. My strongest area was self-preservation. I had the largest number of specific beliefs in that area, beliefs about what type of food is good for you and what's healthy for the body. I'm still not sure whether my second strongest instinct is sexual or social - and no matter how much I think about it, I'm still not sure of the answer yet. 'They' keep wanting to insist that it's the sexual instinct, and I'm inclined to agree with that, but I'm not sure.

From the Riso and Hudson enneagram book (which is still in storage somewhere, and I can't look at it) I remember that later in the book, they showed connections between the enneagram and things that other authors had written. Each enneagram type has some kind of relationship with either the protective figure or the nurturing figure. I don't remember the name of the theory this was connected with.

Anyway, I categorized the 'rules' (I can barely write right now because I am being bombarded with some kind of garbage and they're messing up all of my sentences) into six groups, by the three instincts and then by 'positive' or 'negative' for each one - which was similar to 'nurturing' or 'protective.' Let me explain it differently. You can talk about 'good things to do' or 'bad things to avoid / problems to solve'. I was vaguely thinking of 'nurturing' or 'protecting', but also thinking in terms of 'positive' or 'negative' for each one. Was the rule warning someone about a danger or problem that should be avoided, or was it talking about the 'right things to do' or 'healthy things' in that category?

I'm running out of time, but I'll log in again - I have another hour.

Back again... So, I noticed that the needs of different instincts can be in conflict with each other. Depending on which instinct is your strongest one, you choose what to do to serve that instinct (I am still having a lot of trouble writing: this is all a bunch of puppet-words crap and I can't write it in my own words. Every word is a battle and they are blanking me out and just putting words in my mouth.). An example is when the sexual types are seeking 'intense experiences,' they might use recreational drugs, which is in conflict with self-preservation, since it can be dangerous to their health.

The idea was that the religion is supposed to support all three of the instincts, so that they can avoid common dangers and can get what they need. There are big, obvious problems going on in society that are preventable and avoidable - it's possible to prevent children from ever becoming overweight, if you follow a few simple rules during pregnancy and early childhood (DON'T GIVE THEM BABY FORMULA! BREASTFEED THEM! THE END!). And yes, the all caps thing is kind of a joke, because it might not be that simple. Anyway, prevent the big obvious problems going on in the modern world, and make sure people have what they need and feel more fulfilled in life.

There will always be people who don't like the lifestyle of a particular religious community, and decide they want to leave it. If they grew up in a family that followed these rules, they would still be better off, for the rest of their lives, because they were protected during their early childhood, the most vulnerable time when the most permanent damage can be done to a person.

If the computer works and I get it up and running again, it might not be a good thing. It's possible to waste huge amounts of time just passively surfing the internet and reading one random thing after another. I kind of liked it that I had to stay focused on my minimal number of books that I had, and I was studying bookkeeping and doing the Schaum's Outline exercises. Still, I had to get the computer stuff out of storage so that I wouldn't be worried about it freezing (even though it's already too late and they've already frozen many times).

There are unsettled issues and unanswered questions, and I wrote down those topics. Should the order require people to do X? Should it forbid them to do Y? Compliance is a gradual process that takes years. I myself am NOT compliant with many or most of the rules I was writing. It took several decades for me to learn the things I know now, and believe the things I believe now.

So I see compliance as something that you do as a series of achievements, and, while it won't be exactly like this, I'm thinking of the Boy Scouts and their merit badges. You gradually get one merit badge after another. You don't just jump into it and comply perfectly with all of the rules from the very first day. It's a lifestyle change and it takes a long time, and it is greatly helped by having social support - for instance, it's very hard to cook healthy foods every day, so it would be helpful to have a group of people who shared cooking duties, or a store where all of the 'approved' foods were sold, or something like that. I don't want to command people to do something, but then it's impossible for them to actually do it. I want it to be possible and I want it to be easier for them to do it, so it's more likely to actually happen. I want to have realistic expectations. That's why it will be a gradual process of achieving compliance with the various rules over time.

I'll explain more about it later.