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The storm (Hurricane Isaias) came through Friday night. The eye of the storm hit shore about 40 miles to the east of Pensacola, so we were on the "weak" side of the storm. I have been through hurricanes several times in the 63 years I have lived here, but last night was especially scary for me. The noises of branches, and other things, blown around by the storm was very unnerving. I think there are two reasons why I was so much more afraid last night. First: Previous storms have come through at night, when I was already asleep, and not hearing everything. Whereas last night the storm started about 7:30 and lasted until after 9:00. So, I was still awake and could hear the debris blown against the bulding. Second: When I built the house we had before we moved to the retirement complex, I framed it up with 2x6 timbers rather than the standard 2x4 lumber. The main reason was to allow two extra inches in the walls for insulation. But it had the added advantage thet 2x6 lumber is much more sturdy than 2x4 lumber. The thicker walls, with brick on the outside made the house much quieter. Also, there was significant "tree cover" between the house and the open part of Pensacola Bay. So, even though the wind might have been strong in the bay, the tree barrier between the bay and the house acted as a shelter for the house. In 2004, when hurricane Ivan struck, the Interstate 10 Bridge across Pensacola Bay had sever sectons of the roabed come off of the bridge structure into the water in the bay just north of the bridge. After the storm had cleared out leaves in the trees, I could see that bridge from my front porch. But, when Ivan hit, the power went out about 8:00 P.M., and I went to bed and slept through the storm. If I had realized the wind and storm surge were that bad 100 yards away from me I probably would not have slept so well. There is quite an open area behind the single story apartment I am in no, so there was nothing to lessen the wind when it got the the bulding my apartment is in. The power is still out throught the whole comples (about 500 resdents). The administration has a fairly large generator on site, but it only has enough output to power the administration building, and the walkway lights. The individual apartments are still without power. We do not know how long it will take for total power to be restored. A big problem in restoring power is the number of trees that have come down blocking the roads. There are a lot of "live oak" trees in the area. Oak is a very strong wood. And a mature "live oak" will cover a very large area with its limbs. But, the root system does not go deep. Even the oldest, most mature, live oaks only have roots going down abou 12 to possibly 18 inches. When you have an upper "foiliage ball" of 100 feet in diameter pushed by 100+ mph winds, the root system many times is not well anchored enough to keep the tree upright. So, a lot of imposing looking oak trees are blown over by the wind. Many of these pull up a root ball over 20 feet in diameter, but only 12 to 18 inches thick. So, the county has to clear the roads before Florida Power can get to everything to restore power. When Ivan hit (in 2002) it took almost two weeks to get the trees out of the way so traffic could move about. Hopefully, it will not take two weeks this time since we were on the weak side of the storm. My heart goes out to all of the Brothers and Sisters living east of us. I have confidence that the Society will appoint a "Relief Committee" (if it has not already done so) to care for Jehovah's dear ones between here and Panama City who have suffered worse damage. I am at the administration building, which is powered by their generator. There is an eight foot table with an electrical extension cord running to it, with probably 50 cell phones & laptops plugged in to it with everyone re-charging their cell phones, etc. My laptop says its battery is at 80% charge now, so I might need to unplug and let someone else plug in. I am accessing the internet through my cell phone which can operate as a "WiFi Hotspot." They have some etnernet connections available, but I do not trust a public network, so I am using the hotspot in my cell phone (even if it is slower than a wired connection). At least the administraton was able (with their generator) to serve us lunch yesterday and breakfast this morning. That is all I can report for now. The local Congregation cancelled the Mid Week Meeting Thursday night since everyone needed to prepare for the storm. They also cancelled the meeting today because (1) there is not power at the Kingdom Hall, and (2) the streets are not clear enough yet to allow ones to drive safely to the Kingdom Hall. Hopefully, we will be able to have our Mid Week Meeting later this week. Thanks, Jim

While it may be a conscience decision if we decide to watch such an execution or not - we have to remember that, as an organization, we are not opposed to capital punishment. Key Beliefs on Capital Punishment Biblical Basis: According to official publications on the Watchtower Online Library, Jehovah's Witnesses believe God authorized human governments to use capital punishment—particularly for murderers—dating back to the command given in Genesis 9:6. Role of Government: They view secular governments as "superior authorities" permitted by God to execute justice and punish wrongdoers, and they do not believe the Bible condemns governments for utilizing the death penalty. Political Neutrality: Jehovah's Witnesses do not actively campaign or lobby either for or against the death penalty in political arenas, leaving the implementation of criminal justice up to state authorities. Personal View: While the organization recognizes the scriptural allowance for capital punishment, individual members may hold varying personal views on the matte As someone who is in a congregation that includes a prison with 'death row' as part of our territory, we have some brothers who are part of our congregation on death row. While these brothers regret what they did before knowing the truth and have no desire to die, they do not disagree that the state has the right to execute them for what they did. This past year, one of our brothers was executed.

So, Cowboy Pie? Not to be confused with a cow pattie...

Yes, as she often informed me, one has ground beef traditionally while the other has ground lamb, (hence the word shepherd, she would say😅)

Is that like sheperd's pie?

Some congregations have a welfare fund for those in real need. Please ask your elders about this it may help get you through hard times. If no help is available please pm me I will do what i can to help.

An unfair pizza.

Fair enough, if someone wants to watch it, they're free to do so.

We can't make a blanket statement and judge everyone by our understanding. Since the Bible is silent, we are left with Bible principles. We can take those Bible principles and apply them only to ourselves. As for me (and my household) my conscience does not allow for [insert topic here]

seems they like jws as clients https://e-hotelarz.pl/artykul/122568/analyses-and-reports-why-does-the-hotel-industry-want-to-welcome-jehovahs-witnesses.html

As of v15.7, JW Library checks the signature on the JWPUB archives and does not allow direct installation of any that are not signed by the official key. That is why one can roll-back to an older version of JW Library and install those very same JWPUB archives.

My wife used to make Cottage Pie, it was comfort food for her...and filling for everyone else.

Thanks, Sister Cheryl, I am not trying to get rid of my BabyGirl, but others have suggested it. As for the weather, it is too cold for me to sleep and I am using the keyboard now to try and keep my hands and cold fngers moving. My computer was not charging,but it has a partial charge now n I will get it to charge again so I can zoom the meeting later. Thankfully, my dog is sleeping. Her sleep cycle is affected by my insomnia and she was hungry-barking a while ago, but I am out of food for her. I will get some later today. I got her twelve years ago when she was two. If I had any idea what these dozen years would bring,well, we never know what those critical times could result in. I am trying to call in some debts that are owed me to get some oil delivered. I lived in a cold water flat years ago and should be able to survive for awhile. Hope the weather is mild where you are.

In the hands of imperfect and deeply flawed humans, yes these things have ruined the world

I couldn't imagine watching it, even if I was the family member of the victim or the prisoner. But capital punishment for civil murder was done away with here in 1976, before my time. And the last actual execution was in 1962. Other than this livestream, which I'll obviously pass on, I think I don't have to worry about it.

You do make excellent points. Every time I watch Active Shooter video training at work, I cannot help but think about how I could use my chemical knowledge to rescue people in that situation at work (not trying to be a hero). Either putting everyone to sleep until the SWAT team arrives or making a knockout substance out of common household/office cleaning agents [which may or may not kill the active shooter]. Would my conscience bother me in that scenario? Probably not...

I agree with you... This ain't no video game where you can reload the executed!

Do you have a video of Noah and his family building the Ark with modern equipment? 🤣

Very good point. I appreciate the insight and correction. While i cannot imagine anyone wanting to experience such a traumatic event, it’s not my place to keep them from expressing their free will. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

In this day and age, perhaps it is.

If someone I loved dearly was murdered and their killer was executed, I can see myself potentially attending the execution. That would be my right as a victim, no? If someone I loved was being executed, I might attend to show my loved one my love. This does not mean I approve or disapprove of the crime or punishment. Notice who attended the public execution of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (John 19:25) 25 By the torture stake of Jesus, however, there were standing his mother and his mother’s sister; Mary the wife of Cloʹpas and Mary Magʹda·lene. 26 So when Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to his mother: “Woman, see! Your son!” https://www.jw.org/finder?wtlocale=E&pub=nwtsty&srctype=wol&bible=43019026&srcid=share Was their attendance inappropriate? They were not Christians at that time, does that make a difference? Perhaps attending a public execution is not as simple a yes or no decision.

Everyone has their own laws. In ancient Israel, things were worse. Laws are laws.

September 2026 Global Temperature Update, Second Warmest September on Record +1.63°C Temperature Mean September (1880-1920)NASA Current Record (2023) (+1.73C) +1.51°C➖ For the Year Hottest year (2024) 1.56c Second hottest year (2025) 1.46c Third hottest year (2023) 1.45c +1.48°C👇 Last 12 Months

El Niño 3.4 now at +3.4C above average. EL NIÑO/SOUTHERN OSCILLATION (ENSO) DIAGNOSTIC DISCUSSION issued by CLIMATE PREDICTION CENTER/NCEP/NWS 8 October 2026 ENSO Alert System Status: El Niño Advisory Synopsis: El Niño continues to strengthen, with a strong-to-very strong El Niño likely through January-March 2027 (remaining greater than an 83% chance). El Niño strengthened further last month, with sea surface temperature anomalies exceeding +4.0°C in portions of the eastern equatorial Pacific [Fig. 1]. Most Niño indices increased in the past month, reaching +2.1°C in Niño-3.4, +3.0°C in Niño-3, and +3.9°C in Niño-1+2 [Fig. 2]. The equatorial subsurface temperature index (average from 180°-100°W) was well above average [Fig. 3], reflecting a deeper-than-average thermocline. Subsurface temperatures remained in excess of +10.0°C at depth in the eastern Pacific Ocean [Fig. 4]. Low-level westerly wind anomalies and upper-level easterly wind anomalies stretched from the western to the east-central equatorial Pacific. Enhanced convection and rainfall persisted from the central to the eastern Pacific, while anomalies remained suppressed over Indonesia [Fig. 5]. The traditional and equatorial Southern Oscillation indices were significantly negative. Collectively, the coupled ocean-atmosphere system reflected a strengthening El Niño. The CPC Official ENSO outlook, which synthesizes multiple models from North America and abroad, indicates El Niño will continue to strengthen through the end of the year [Figs. 6-7-8]. Chances remain high for a historic event that would exceed the strength of previous El Niño events dating back to 1950 (+2.5°C or more for a 3-month RONI value😞 the chance is 54% for September-November, 83% for October-December, and 70% for November-January. With an event of this magnitude, the chances of experiencing impacts consistent with El Niño are larger, though not guaranteed (see CPC outlooks for probabilities of seasonal anomalies). In summary, El Niño continues to strengthen, with a strong-to-very strong El Niño likely through January-March 2027 (remaining greater than an 83% chance). This discussion is a consolidated effort of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), NOAA's National Weather Service, and their funded institutions. Oceanic and atmospheric conditions are updated weekly on the Climate Prediction Center web site (El Niño/La Niña Current Conditions and Expert Discussions). A probabilistic strength forecast is available here. The next ENSO Diagnostics Discussion is scheduled for 12 November 2026.

I'm not anti-AI, but I am for reasonable and educated use of it. It's a disruptive technology, same as nanotechnology, but in the hands of the right people, it could streamline research processes and lead to discoveries there. It will likely also lessen administrative burdens, etc. Lots of uses. However, if it's generative and it's pulling from local watersheds, where the balance is already tenuous... there I have an issue. You're not wrong though that many technologies have caused great harm to our earth. I posted about this because I didn't know. It never dawned on me that generative AI was different than my general use of the computer. It wasn't until someone brought it to my attention (in a less than kind way I may add) that I wondered if others like me didn't know. When I went down the rabbit hole of research, I was appalled at what I found, and truly gutted that I'd used enough AI equivalent to what a whole household would use for 3 days! Meanwhile people in places the world over are walking miles to draw water. I know I mentioned the images with lipstick, but it's far deeper. I was trying to keep the post light, because I know Jehovah will sort everything out in the end... but in the meantime, I want to be a responsible steward of the gem that our earth is.