{"id":806,"date":"2012-06-13T06:44:06","date_gmt":"2012-06-13T06:44:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/forumarchives.tmsites.net\/index.php\/2012\/06\/13\/sacraments-of-the-catholic-church\/"},"modified":"2012-06-13T06:44:06","modified_gmt":"2012-06-13T06:44:06","slug":"sacraments-of-the-catholic-church","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/forumarchives.tmsites.net\/index.php\/2012\/06\/13\/sacraments-of-the-catholic-church\/","title":{"rendered":"Sacraments of the Catholic Church"},"content":{"rendered":"


\nMy dad is the only person I know who told a priest to go to hell. Years later after I was born, he shared, \u201cVera, the priest said the devil was inside of me, so I told him if that was the case, than the devil is inside this church.\u201d Ralphie discloses while reaching into the left pocket of his Capri shorts. His beige cutoffs are worn over his morning sweatpants, \u201cAnd I said this in front your<\/em> mother and your<\/em> conservative Catholic grandmother.\u201d <\/p>\n

\tHe takes out a plastic bottle of Popov vodka, untwists the red cap and continues, \u201cVera, it\u2019s ok for people to grow long hair because Jesus never had a crew cut or Mohawk. His hair is down in every picture.\u201d Ralphie, who hasn\u2019t shaved in a few months and wears a wrinkle floppy hat he got complimentary for attending the Padres home opener game, swigs the liquid from the pint, yells at the bitter taste, and places the economical pick-me-upper back in his pocket.<\/p>\n

\tOne time, I bought him a bottle of Smirnoff as a payment for watching my dog while I was at work. Without taking the container out of the brown bag, he drank a mouthful, made a sour face, and asked why I bought him the \u201cgood\u201d brand. <\/p>\n

\t\u201cSo the priest didn\u2019t like your hippie comment about Jesus,\u201d I reassure.<\/p>\n

\t\u201cNo.\u201d Ralphie replies, wiping his mouth with his dominate hand. \u201cHave you ever heard a snake talk?\u201d Without waiting for my answer, \u201cThey hiss; they bite; they slither, but they don\u2019t talk. Paaaleaseee!\u201d He spits, exaggerating the intended polite word. Around his neck, the blue and gold Mardi Gras beads tangle with his San Diego Charger lanyard, which has no keys attached on the hook. <\/p>\n

\tRalphie continues with another rhetorical question, \u201cAren\u2019t apples supposed to be healthy? Doctors require us to eat them every day!\u201d He shouts this, pounding his wooden cane repeatedly on the hallow floor in order to formulate his point.<\/p>\n

\t\u201cThe priest was upset because you questioned the Holy Bible.\u201d <\/p>\n

\t\u201cNot quite,\u201d Ralphie jams his hand on his hip and dramatically leans, taking pressure off his right leg.<\/p>\n

\t\u201cSo tell me Ralph,\u201d I\u2019ve been calling my dad by his first name since I was able to fit in a crib, \u201cwhy did you tell the priest to go to hell?\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\u201cBecause,\u201d he slobbers in a sassy tone, \u201cI did the sign of the cross with my left hand, not my right hand. I tried to explain I do everything with my left hand. I write with my left; I kick with my left; I throw a blow with my left.\u201d He punches the air still holding his cane. \u201cThe Catholic church threw guilt down my throat because I\u2019m not right handed. It\u2019s not like I was going to change the prayer. It\u2019s not like I was going to say and he sits at the left hand of God<\/em>.\u201d This coming from the same man who receives communion wearing a yamaka. They sell them two for five dollars at the corner store. Ralphie believes this is a worthy bargain.<\/p>\n

\t\u201cLook at all the left handed presidents: Obama, Clinton, Ford, Bush.\u201d He pauses to lick his chops. \u201cNot the one with the fun bar hopping twins,\u201d he flaps his Daffy Duck lips, \u201cbut his old man.\u201d<\/p>\n

\tRalphie raises his arm, tilts his head back, and drips the last of the distilled liquor on his tongue, \u201cAll my sins are forgiven.\u201d<\/p>\n

\tRoughly, 10% of the population is left handed, a very small portion one would agree. In baseball, every major league team has at least one left handed pitcher. If not, that deprived team is at a great disadvantage. If you are serious about forming a dominant team to take on the casinos, it\u2019s going to take some serious soul searching finding interested and discipline advantage players who are left handed. Not only must they understand the game of craps, but they must demonstrate skill, influencing the dice and nature of the game. However, southpaws add tremendous depth to any team, making the team a true threat to the casino. They will stand SR1 and SR2, giving the team benefits on both sides of the stickman. Skilled left handers are out there (i.e. the wonderful Timmer and the notorious Nick @ Nite). It will require time, and patience to find them, and as Ralphie shows us, left handed people are a very rare and unique breed.<\/p>\n

\n

Replies:<\/h3>\n
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Posted by:<\/strong> Guest on June 13, 2012, 10:55 am<\/p>\n

Great post!!! And if there are three words to describe me it is rare,unique, and left handed.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n

Posted by:<\/strong> Timmer on June 13, 2012, 8:48 pm<\/p>\n

Another great post and a wonderful read, VeraS.<\/p>\n

\tYour father sounds like a down-to-earth guy who calls it like it is…<\/p>\n

\tAnd thanks so much for your kind words about us "lefties!" <\/p>\n

\tIn addition to Nick At Night, my Dream Team teammate Dice Pilot is also a "lefty." <\/p>\n

\tJust like Nick At Night, Dice Pilot’s shot from stick right is a thing of beauty! <\/p>\n

\tThe students attending the GTC Las Vegas classes will get to see these two great "lefties" in action when the instructors demonstrate their shots during class.<\/p>\n

\tI believe Brothelman, our own "Mr. Las Vegas," is right handed, but has trained himself to shoot left-handed from stick right. Quite an accomplishment!<\/p>\n

\tThanks again for another great post, VeraS!<\/p>\n

\t \ud83d\ude0e \ud83d\ude0e \ud83d\ude0e<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Posted by:<\/strong> Dr Crapology on June 14, 2012, 1:22 pm<\/p>\n

And the beautiful Alligator Rose also shoots left handed. She also has a sharp eye to help me when we practice. <\/p>\n

\tMy grand son (age 8) is a lefty—just hope his parents will allow me to teach him the GTC skills when he is of age. <\/p>\n

\tDoc<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Posted by:<\/strong> Guest on June 14, 2012, 4:55 pm<\/p>\n

VeraS,<\/p>\n

\tThat was a fun post to read, Keep it up, I enjoy your posts. Yes, true left handed shooters are rare but are out there. I have seen Timmer and DP in action and they have amazing shots. Every team needs a few good lefty’s.<\/p>\n

\tDoc, get your grandson throwing. Remember, Dom used to pitch pennies as a kid. Now look at him. Hey, you never know.<\/p>\n

\tFF<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Posted by:<\/strong> Dice Pilot on June 14, 2012, 8:34 pm<\/p>\n

VeraS:
\n\tAnother great post! Thank you for sharing the history about your father and his experience dealing with the church. I was reading along and was wondering how you were going to weave this topic into the game of craps. I was hooked from the beginning until the very end. <\/p>\n

\tI put together our dice team with just that in mind. Three left and three right hand shooters. Some of us can throw from both sides to fill in any gaps. The key to a successful team are the personalities and the ability to work together. Betting progressions, protection, evaluation and goals can all be worked out in team practice sessions.<\/p>\n

\tKeep up the good work and see you soon at a refresher class in the near future.<\/p>\n

\tDicepilot<\/p>\n

\t"A dream you dream alone is only a dream. A dream you dream together is reality."
\n\tJohn Lennon<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Posted by:<\/strong> OneMoonCircles on June 15, 2012, 4:35 am<\/p>\n

Goldfinger throws either way but I think he prefers SL. I throw both ways too but prefer SR where I am more proficient. Throwing lefty is more natural to me and I golf and bat lefthanded. I also play cards lefthanded and most leftys play righthanded. <\/p>\n

\tOMC<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Posted by:<\/strong> Dominator on June 15, 2012, 1:14 pm<\/p>\n

Hi Vera<\/p>\n

\tAgain, just a great post! I forgot, what grade do you teach? Your kids must love your stories!<\/p>\n

\tReading your post made me think of my Dad, a guy who went to church everyday … not like his son \ud83d\ude00 . Then the comment of me pitching pennies brought back something I thought about the other day watching people play the Italian game of Bocce Ball.<\/p>\n

\tNow these older guys were rolling the ball on grass, but in my Father’s town in Italy, the game was played on rocky ground, you couldn’t roll the Bocce ball. So my Dad taught me the game on our drive way that was stone and the throw he taught me was an underhand throw with back spin … sounds familiar. So what you had to do is loft the ball in the air with rotation and try to land it at a spot close to the target ball. <\/p>\n

\tSo many things have brought me to this place in my life, so again thanks Vera for the memory!<\/p>\n

\tDominator<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Posted by:<\/strong> VeraS on June 15, 2012, 5:53 pm<\/p>\n

Thank you everyone for the kind words and for sharing your experiences as well. <\/p>\n

\tTo answer your question, Dom, this year I taught 9th and 12th grade English. In the past, I’ve taught all grade levels in middle (6th-8th) and high school (9th-12th). I read this story to some of my students, and they couldn’t stop laughing. One student even cried.<\/p>\n

\tI also shared the story with family and friends who know my dad. They said it was a very accurate depiction of him.<\/p>\n

\tHope all is well with the GTCers. Thanks again for the support.<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Posted by:<\/strong> Skinny on June 16, 2012, 1:21 am<\/p>\n

Wow Dom,<\/p>\n

\tYou just reminded me of something I had not thought about in years. I learned to play bocce the same way. Throwing it underhand, I guess technically it could be called backhanded, with backspin off my right foot. As close to shooting right handed from SR as you can get with a round ball instead of a pair of dice.<\/p>\n

\tI don’t remember who taught me to play. It may have been my grandfather, uncle or one of my older cousins. But it was probably in the driveway part of my grandparent’s backyard which was gravel. The other part of the backyard, where there was soil, is where my grandfather had his garden for tomatoes, peppers and fig trees.<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Posted by:<\/strong> Dominator on June 16, 2012, 1:04 pm<\/p>\n

Your students are very lucky Vera to have such a teacher such as you!<\/p>\n

\tYes Skinny, the old Italians threw it off their right foot as you and I do. The thought came to me when I witnessed the game recently on a flat grass surface. I wondered how these guys who rolled the ball like a bowling ball would do if they played the way I was taught. Then our throw came to me and I said to myself that so many things in our youth makes us what we are today<\/p>\n

\tDominator<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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