What are you?

I have been on here for a long time, enjoyed the interactions with many posters. Many have come and gone since I have been here. Some I communicate with privately; have formed friendships that are inspiring. It is a wonderful place to interact with people from who-knows-where.

In the profile is a place to put one's name. I always miss it when people will not share this info. Putting a name to your handle seems to give one a face, like you are a real person, after all! Otherwise, you are faceless - people may not know whether you are a male or female! and I know some like it this way...but it is still unnerving at times: who am I talking to, anyways, a male or female? Sometimes the name would indicate it but other times it does not.

Anyhow, I just thought I would share this - do not know if anyone else shares this concern, but it does disturb me.

Blessings,
ginnyrose

by ginnyrose on 2012/8/4 5:26:08

I have been on here for a long time, enjoyed the interactions with many posters. Many have come and gone since I have been here. Some I communicate with privately; have formed friendships that are inspiring. It is a wonderful place to interact with people from who-knows-where.

In the profile is a place to put one's name. I always miss it when people will not share this info. Putting a name to your handle seems to give one a face, like you are a real person, after all! Otherwise, you are faceless - people may not know whether you are a male or female! and I know some like it this way...but it is still unnerving at times: who am I talking to, anyways, a male or female? Sometimes the name would indicate it but other times it does not.

Anyhow, I just thought I would share this - do not know if anyone else shares this concern, but it does disturb me.

Blessings,
ginnyrose

__________________

I have wondered about this myself. As you know I have shared with you it is a personal conviction not to email privately with a male unless my husband is involved and it does make it really hard when I don't know for sure if the person is a male of female. Screen names are a funny thing, I choose mine when I signed up because it is my name. Maryjane is my actual name but I will admit that for a long time now most around me call me just Mary :)

God Bless
maryjane

I agree!

Yet, venues such as this are confusing in where they fall on the "social networking" continuum. I love sharing my faith with you all without necessarily knowing the details regarding individual IDs.

It is sometimes hard to know where the boundaries cross. I rather enjoy sharing my faith without sharing my "self" - I don't know if obscurity is a help or hindrance. But, I do know how I can often get in the way of myself when it comes to my relationship with the Lord.

I respect that SI does not pressure users to divulge too much personal information (this is part of what makes it legit to me). I'm not a Facebook user and am still horrified at how quick we are to blast our images and (what we idealize to be) our identies all over the marketplace. Whoa, when the chickens come home to roost and the social networks start to reap the benefits of encouraging high profile virtual communication. I. e., you may find your image on a cereal box one day and have no idea how it got there.

I don't worry about this happening on SI. We all have a love (and possible slight obsession) with the Word of God in common. If only I could find a local church with at least a smidgeon of the enthusiasm found here for God's Word and Spirit.

Love-in-Christ,

KP

Thank-you, Tom for your kind words.

QUOTE:
______________________________________________________________

They seem to think that they get less respect as female,
______________________________________________________________

This is true, but should it matter? The reality is that if I oppose someone's post/ideas it is not because of gender but because of the idea shared! If there are those who reject what I say because I am a female, that is up to them - my life does not begin and end with who accepts or rejects me! Not all females accept me, either.

I find it creepy, too, when I respond to people when I have no clue what they are. I have to read their writings a long time before I may get a hint of that. But to have females masquerade as males - Oh, oh...oh...

I have wished from the beginning that I could share my real name and email, but because I have shared personal prayer requests, I have felt it would cause my children to feel betrayed if our total family identity were made public to "strangers"....Obviously my screen name indicates that I am a female, but I have often wondered the same thing.....would there not be a way in the profile section to at least indicate which gender one is???

Perhaps, I should modify my request...Some people have good reasons why they do not list their name in their profile. But could you at least choose a handle that would inform others whether you are a male of female?

Males and females thinking processes are different and it helps a lot to know what you are responding to. Maybe this does not seem important to some but it does to me.

God bless and y'all have a good day in the LORD tomorrow!

ginnyrose

For the record, I'm female. I chose the name enid, because it was my mother's middle name. So, I assumed everyone knew it was a female name. Wrong!

I have lost count of the times I have been called brother on this website. And I will correct people when they make that mistake, so that there is no confusion.

It can be comical at times, but still, I have no problem in correcting the error if need be.

God bless.

Just wanted to clarify, I don't have a website, but do visit that one.

Well, in the spirit of confession I'm a sister.

Just wanted to add something else of what I am. I'm black.

Does it matter? No. But, just thought I'd add it.

God bless.

Married, straight, white, conservative, Christian male.

How else can I offend you today. :)

Hello all,

My SI name is browny because it WAS the color of my hair (now it's gray & beautiful)

Grateful to know the Lord is still counting my hair, and always will take care for me, Even when I get older and older, grayer and grayer, wiser and wiser, and my roots go deeper and deeper in His Word,
What a blessing getting older and being a daughter of God!!
He understands ALL my troubles and ALL pains I feel in my body.
And there is such a wonderful future to come with Him and His children! Looking back over the years, I can see His love and care in many difficult years and His faithfulness and help in many valley times.
He is the One Who is lifting UP my head, He is my strenght, He is my Rock.

And...O Yes, I am a woman, knowing the Lord since 1977..A LONG way back.

browny

This is such a funny thread.

You know, saints...when we all communicate, it sometimes feels like I am having fellowship with one Body. Really, it does.

You all are like different angles and curves of one beautiful Body. Please do not take any sentiment from this. This is what can be so amazing about this SI (and I'm not easily amazed, either). We all have so much in common, it is incredible!

Love-in-Christ,

KP

I'm a newbie here.....and Yes, it is a bit disappointing when I find one's profile is completely empty.....especially when you like something they have written and want to respond to someone who is presenting themselves as a real person.

But I understand why a lot of people try to remain private on the Net. I will never be a part of Facebook and I shutter to think of how many Ch'tn friends I have who just tell ALL on FB.....no boundaries or wisdom operating there. I think a huge portion of these Ch'tn baby boomers and younger people are terribly naive. I hope they don't have to suffer repercussions down the road for their having divulged too much.

As for one non-Ch'tn forum I visit for the wide variety of news items, I also will never ever become a member there. I can tell there are a few real Ch'tns on that site and I would enjoy meeting them via cyberspace, but they also have to put up with being trashed continually by non-Ch'tns. I guess they have tougher skin than I do.

I am female and my profile tells you the things that are presently important to me. I will not be sharing info that is best kept to myself...but I plan on having some good fellowship with many of you and want to know who you are. You will also be able to know who I am if you're interested.

Blessings to all of you....from a "boomer" who resents getting older in the worst way...ha.

dottiejean

I just wanted to bring this back up, as I think it is important that we have some visability of each other when we are discussing on the forum. At the very least we should know if you are male or female and the rough location you live. If the logon name makes it clear like mine (Dave = male) great, but otherwise how about adding gender to the profile as a must or signing a name at the bottom as many do.

My name is Todd- middle aged- happily married; 4 grown children. 3 grandkids (one more on the way) that call me Papa T. I would have preferred to use "TK" as a username here but it was taken so i had to settle for TMK.

some randoms:

1. I would rather write than talk.
2. I wish I was better at math. If so, I probably would have tried to be an astronaut.
3. I regret not playing college baseball and HS football.
4. The older I get, the more artistic I get.
5. I don't mind vacuming the house- in fact I kind of like it. What I can't stand is wrapping the cord back up and putting the vacum back where it belongs.
6. I have only had one really bad nightmare many years ago.
7. I try to self-diagnose physical problems using the internet and then I freak out because I think I have some dreaded condition. Hasn’t turned out that way yet, though.
8. Guilty pleasure: I have read (or listened to) all the “Cat Who…” books by Lillian Jackson Braun(except the last couple that stink and weren’t really written by her anyway). I am somewhat ashamed to admit this.
9. When people I care about get sick, I get angry. Sometimes I even yell at them. I am still self-psychoanalyzing this quirk.
10. My brother and sister say that I used to torment them when we were younger. I didn’t torment; I just exploited their weaknesses.
11. The worst I ever got it from my dad was when I screamed at my mom for not having my baseball uniform washed. I didn’t realize dad had gotten home early. He came around the corner and doom was pronounced. And no, it wasn’t Buoy or Lifeboy or Palmolive soap, it was the dreaded Board of Education.
12. When I was about 4, we lived in the country and I was playing Zorro wearing my mom’s long leather boots. I was a ways from the house and my foot went down a deep hole to my hip and I couldn’t get out. I began screaming for my mom and she ran down the long lane in only her slip to pull me out. Her hair may have been in curlers too.
13. I am currently reading Anna Karenina by Tolstoy (everyone keeps saying it is the best novel ever written so i thought i would give it a shot). On page 260 of about 760 but i am in it for the long haul.
14. No matter how many times my wife tells me not to bother her when she is cooking, I simply have to bother her. At least two suggestions from me are mandatory.

Theology sub-items:
15. I am an old-earth creationist (75% convinced). I am not dogmatic about it.
16. I had an experience with God several years ago at a youth seminar in Ripley, WV and the fire has not gone out since. The website www.fireonthealtar.com had a lot to do with this personal revival. I found this website (sermonindex) later.
17. After much study and debate, I no longer believe that hell is a place of conscious eternal torment (70% convinced). I am not dogmatic about it.
18. I no longer believe in the dispensational view of the end times (i.e. the view portrayed in the “Left behind” books). I am not dogmatic about it.

TMK, I feel compelled to respond...

About:

#1: Really?

4. I am experiencing the same - did not expect it 20 years ago. I just thought I was a strange person...maybe life's experience has taught one to think outside the box with no serious fears of consequences.

5. I don't like to wrap up the cord, either, and I am a woman!

7. We work at self-diagnosis as well - have saved ourselves a lot of money in doing so. And besides all of our doctors have either died or retired and the young do not know much...

10. I used to get mad at my sister - she was just stubborn - nothing wrong with me, you know. There was five years difference between us...once I heard my aunt tell my mom how her girls fight so much. Not having a sibling old to fight with I told mom I think that sounds like fun! Had plenty of experience since then! Oh, mom and dad did not think it was funny...

15. Maybe when you get old enough you will believe in a young earth...once you mature?

17. I want to believe like this, too, but I find the evidence too compelling otherwise to do so.

18. I find the "Left Behind" books B.O.R.I.N.G... My favorite fiction book is "Home for Christmas" by L.C. Douglas. Otherwise they tend to be children's books, so go figure - maybe I am not as old as my birth certificate says...

God bless - fun post, BTW, TMK.

ginnyrose

GR wrote:

"15. Maybe when you get old enough you will believe in a young earth...once you mature?"

Anything is possible!! The other day I was reading about a quaking aspen that they estimate is 80,000 years old, which, if true of course, poses some problems for YEC.

17. keep researching!

______________________________________________________________
QUOTE:
"Anything is possible!! The other day I was reading about a quaking aspen that they estimate is 80,000 years old, which, if true of course, poses some problems for YEC."
______________________________________________________________

Maybe their testing apparatus is faulty... My tools do not always work properly - gives me fits sometimes. Like yesterday. I was embroidering something when my needle hit the bobbin case - would not run without doing so. I turned off the machine, restarted it, took the plate off, removed the embroidery unit, the bobbin, everything I could think of. Put it back together and it worked - have no idea why or what I fixed but it works. Vexing. Maybe their machinery works like that, too, but they do not know it. But will not lose any sleep over it...

This is a fun thread.

Ginnyrose- your description of how you got your embroidery machine to work made me laugh! That's usually what I do to get my computer and printer working. :)

I have been called brother, when I am in fact a sister.

I haven't posted too many times here. I think I have probably posted mostly when I was feeling discouraged.
There were also times that I was challenged and found myself in a discussion too great for me to think through, so I opted out.

I would love to change my name if I only knew how! Is that acceptable?
I don't want to be an all lowercase onemite. My identity as a daughter of the Lord deserves the dignity of capitalization!

I also think that the Profile section would be more interesting if people used it more often, but I understand why some do not, as I have left it blank on purpose.
Perhaps, in some future time I will be more at liberty to leave more information about myself on the web, but for now I will have to leave it blank.

Quote: Married, straight, white, conservative, Christian male.

How else can I offend you today. :)

Work in Oil industry performing Hydraulic fracturing.