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Kil
Evil Skeptic

USA
13476 Posts

Posted - 01/17/2011 :  16:40:40  Show Profile  Visit Kil's Homepage  Send Kil an AOL message  Send Kil a Yahoo! Message Send Kil a Private Message  Reply with Quote
I just rented the room that my ex moved out of yesterday (whew!!!) to a 20 year old Saudi Arabian Shiite Muslim named Yaya, here learning english before he goes to Indiana to attend the university he has already been accepted to.

I usually split utilities but he upped the rent a few dollars to cover them because he just can't afford much more than I'm asking. He lives in an international "homeshare" now in Culver City but he goes to school in Santa Monica. He has no furniture and normally sleeps on the floor so he doesn't need a bed, (the room is unfurnished) and wants to have conversations with me to help him improve his english. He also doesn't buy food he says, except for tea, and subsists on snacks from places like 7/11. No deposit accept for part of his first months rent.

I had to ask him if he cares that i am of Jewish descent and he said from the part of Saudi Arabia he is from and the kind of Muslim he is that he was brought up to respects all faiths. I told him I'm an atheist, and he said that doesn't matter to him either. He will pray quietly in his room. I told him that if I am to help him learn english, he must teach me about his faith.

So there you go. Really. Am I nuts?

Uncertainty may make you uncomfortable. Certainty makes you ridiculous.

Why not question something for a change?

Genetic Literacy Project

H. Humbert
SFN Die Hard

USA
4574 Posts

Posted - 01/17/2011 :  17:46:55   [Permalink]  Show Profile Send H. Humbert a Private Message  Reply with Quote
I was chatting with the superintended of my building, who is a young immigrant in his early twenties with a wife and newborn, and he mentioned that he was a Muslim, although not a particularly fanatic one. He says he often gets grief from family and friends because he likes to drink and gamble, both things frowned upon in Islam. I mentioned that I was an atheist and he seemed similarly nonplussed. It's important to remember that, like for the majority of Christians, most Muslims are not especially fanatical, perhaps more so for those Muslims who choose to live abroad.

But, yeah. An atheist and a devout Muslim living together? Sounds like you have the makings of a screenplay for the next "Odd Couple," Kil.

"A man is his own easiest dupe, for what he wishes to be true he generally believes to be true." --Demosthenes

"The first principle is that you must not fool yourself - and you are the easiest person to fool." --Richard P. Feynman

"Face facts with dignity." --found inside a fortune cookie
Edited by - H. Humbert on 01/17/2011 17:50:37
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Kil
Evil Skeptic

USA
13476 Posts

Posted - 01/17/2011 :  19:07:04   [Permalink]  Show Profile  Visit Kil's Homepage  Send Kil an AOL message  Send Kil a Yahoo! Message Send Kil a Private Message  Reply with Quote
Originally posted by H. Humbert
But, yeah. An atheist and a devout Muslim living together? Sounds like you have the makings of a screenplay for the next "Odd Couple," Kil.
Yeah. I know... The bummer is that I must find a roommate to start in July. So I have to go through this again. But I will get some time to recover from the last year of living with my ex wife who became my ex wife for a reason. That part is a good thing. It's been pleasantly un-naggingly quiet around here. And my cat is now free to roam around outside of my room. And the cat box and his food is out of my room too!!! I might even move a couple of my guitars back to their homes in the living room.


Uncertainty may make you uncomfortable. Certainty makes you ridiculous.

Why not question something for a change?

Genetic Literacy Project
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Dave W.
Info Junkie

USA
26020 Posts

Posted - 01/17/2011 :  20:24:24   [Permalink]  Show Profile  Visit Dave W.'s Homepage Send Dave W. a Private Message  Reply with Quote
Nuts? No. Sounds fascinating.

But you really need to learn that "except" is not spelled "accept."

- Dave W. (Private Msg, EMail)
Evidently, I rock!
Why not question something for a change?
Visit Dave's Psoriasis Info, too.
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Kil
Evil Skeptic

USA
13476 Posts

Posted - 01/17/2011 :  21:42:42   [Permalink]  Show Profile  Visit Kil's Homepage  Send Kil an AOL message  Send Kil a Yahoo! Message Send Kil a Private Message  Reply with Quote
Originally posted by Dave W.

Nuts? No. Sounds fascinating.

But you really need to learn that "except" is not spelled "accept."
What are you talking about?


Uncertainty may make you uncomfortable. Certainty makes you ridiculous.

Why not question something for a change?

Genetic Literacy Project
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H. Humbert
SFN Die Hard

USA
4574 Posts

Posted - 01/17/2011 :  22:32:25   [Permalink]  Show Profile Send H. Humbert a Private Message  Reply with Quote
Not to pick on Kil's writing, which I very much enjoy, but I had to read the first sentence a few times before I understood that his ex-wife hadn't just moved out yesterday, which I found perplexing...


"A man is his own easiest dupe, for what he wishes to be true he generally believes to be true." --Demosthenes

"The first principle is that you must not fool yourself - and you are the easiest person to fool." --Richard P. Feynman

"Face facts with dignity." --found inside a fortune cookie
Edited by - H. Humbert on 01/17/2011 22:32:42
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the_ignored
SFN Addict

2562 Posts

Posted - 01/17/2011 :  23:42:39   [Permalink]  Show Profile Send the_ignored a Private Message  Reply with Quote
That's Kilbonics for you.

In relation to this topic, kind of, here's a link to a good ol' Canadian show: Little Mosque on the Prairie.


>From: enuffenuff@fastmail.fm
(excerpt follows):
> I'm looking to teach these two bastards a lesson they'll never forget.
> Personal visit by mates of mine. No violence, just a wee little chat.
>
> **** has also committed more crimes than you can count with his
> incitement of hatred against a religion. That law came in about 2007
> much to ****'s ignorance. That is fact and his writing will become well
> know as well as him becoming a publicly known icon of hatred.
>
> Good luck with that fuckwit. And Reynold, fucking run, and don't stop.
> Disappear would be best as it was you who dared to attack me on my
> illness knowing nothing of the cause. You disgust me and you are top of
> the list boy. Again, no violence. Just regular reminders of who's there
> and visits to see you are behaving. Nothing scary in reality. But I'd
> still disappear if I was you.

What brought that on? this. Original posting here.

Another example of this guy's lunacy here.
Edited by - the_ignored on 01/17/2011 23:44:35
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Kil
Evil Skeptic

USA
13476 Posts

Posted - 01/17/2011 :  23:55:47   [Permalink]  Show Profile  Visit Kil's Homepage  Send Kil an AOL message  Send Kil a Yahoo! Message Send Kil a Private Message  Reply with Quote
Originally posted by H. Humbert

Not to pick on Kil's writing, which I very much enjoy, but I had to read the first sentence a few times before I understood that his ex-wife hadn't just moved out yesterday, which I found perplexing...


Well. There you go. I see what you mean. But here's the thing. My ex-wife really did just move out yesterday. (Michelle is not my ex-wife. She was my girlfriend. And I'm happy to say that we are still very good friends. When she moved out I did my ex a favor by allowing her to move in because she needed a place. That turned out to be a mistake that I will not soon make again). Had I gone over my post a few times, I'd have caught it. When I write something like a Kil Report, I not only read them many times on the computer (usually in word) but I also print them out because I catch more errors or sentences that are unclear, or even simple grammatical mistakes that way. Sometimes, I just don't like the way it reads and I go back and write a paragraph or sentence over again. And after all of that, I give it to Michelle or Tim to look at before it goes to Dave for a final edit and if needed, he corrects any spelling errors too. I'm a hopelessly poor speller...

But here on the forum you pretty much get the raw me, which this time meant a spelling error and a very unclear sentence.

Oh well...

Uncertainty may make you uncomfortable. Certainty makes you ridiculous.

Why not question something for a change?

Genetic Literacy Project
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sailingsoul
SFN Addict

2830 Posts

Posted - 01/18/2011 :  15:51:20   [Permalink]  Show Profile Send sailingsoul a Private Message  Reply with Quote
This could be a good thing or not. Time will tell. If it turns out to be a bad idea, then maybe you should not be the one who chooses your third roommate. this would make it two in a row. However it sounds intriguing. Good luck. SS

There are only two types of religious people, the deceivers and the deceived. SS
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perrodetokio
Skeptic Friend

275 Posts

Posted - 01/18/2011 :  21:27:54   [Permalink]  Show Profile Send perrodetokio a Private Message  Reply with Quote
I agree with Humbert. "...like for the majority of Christians, most Muslims are not especially fanatical"

At least that has been my experience over time, living in three continents and various countries.

I think it's a really good opportunity to leran from each other.

Cheers!

"Yes I have a belief in a creator/God but do not know that he exists." Bill Scott

"They are still mosquitoes! They did not turn into whales or lizards or anything else. They are still mosquitoes!..." Bill Scott

"We should have millions of missing links or transition fossils showing a fish turning into a philosopher..." Bill Scott
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Bill scott
SFN Addict

USA
2103 Posts

Posted - 01/19/2011 :  11:06:58   [Permalink]  Show Profile Send Bill scott a Private Message  Reply with Quote
Originally posted by Kil

And my cat is now free to roam around outside of my room. And the cat box and his food is out of my room too!!!






You are nuts. When I got married my wife already had a cat. I could not stand having a litter box in the same house as I was living in, let alone in my bedroom. I ended up cutting a hole in the garage door and installing one of those swinging doors so we could put the litter box out in the garage. Worked great for 9 months and then the cat died. Even out in the garage it still annoyed me. Maybe my smeller is more active than is yours but I don't know how you lived with that box in your room.

"Lets get one thing clear, Bill. Science does make some assumptions." -perrodetokio-

"In the end as skeptics we must realize that there is no real knowledge, there is only what is most reasonable to believe." -Coelacanth-

The fact that humans do science is what causes errors in science. -Dave W.-

Edited by - Bill scott on 01/19/2011 11:24:06
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Dude
SFN Die Hard

USA
6891 Posts

Posted - 01/19/2011 :  16:16:40   [Permalink]  Show Profile Send Dude a Private Message  Reply with Quote
Spend $2 more on dust free, ordor eliminating, scoopable litter.

I have a cat, one litterbox (I do scoop it at least once daily, mostly two times), and there is no detectable odor because of the better cat litter.


Ignorance is preferable to error; and he is less remote from the truth who believes nothing, than he who believes what is wrong.
-- Thomas Jefferson

"god :: the last refuge of a man with no answers and no argument." - G. Carlin

Hope, n.
The handmaiden of desperation; the opiate of despair; the illegible signpost on the road to perdition. ~~ da filth
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Kil
Evil Skeptic

USA
13476 Posts

Posted - 01/19/2011 :  18:56:56   [Permalink]  Show Profile  Visit Kil's Homepage  Send Kil an AOL message  Send Kil a Yahoo! Message Send Kil a Private Message  Reply with Quote
Originally posted by Dude

Spend $2 more on dust free, ordor eliminating, scoopable litter.

I have a cat, one litterbox (I do scoop it at least once daily, mostly two times), and there is no detectable odor because of the better cat litter.


I do all of those things. But still, the bedroom isn't the place for cat food and a litterbox.

Uncertainty may make you uncomfortable. Certainty makes you ridiculous.

Why not question something for a change?

Genetic Literacy Project
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Kil
Evil Skeptic

USA
13476 Posts

Posted - 01/19/2011 :  18:58:31   [Permalink]  Show Profile  Visit Kil's Homepage  Send Kil an AOL message  Send Kil a Yahoo! Message Send Kil a Private Message  Reply with Quote
Looks like my roommate to be flaked out on me. Didn't show up with the deposit and didn't return my call or my email to him. So the room is still for rent.

Kids... I don't care where they are from. Kids...

Uncertainty may make you uncomfortable. Certainty makes you ridiculous.

Why not question something for a change?

Genetic Literacy Project
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Bill scott
SFN Addict

USA
2103 Posts

Posted - 01/20/2011 :  05:42:03   [Permalink]  Show Profile Send Bill scott a Private Message  Reply with Quote
Originally posted by Dude

Spend $2 more on dust free, ordor eliminating, scoopable litter.

I have a cat, one litterbox (I do scoop it at least once daily, mostly two times), and there is no detectable odor because of the better cat litter.






Spend $2 more on dust free, ordor eliminating, scoopable litter.


We did. It was better but still did not make it as though the box was not in the house. And even with the better litter the option of having it in a bedroom was that is was not an option.

I have a cat, one litterbox (I do scoop it at least once daily, mostly two times), and there is no detectable odor because of the better cat litter.



I never cleaned the litter box once. It was my wife's cat and I think she realized she had accomplished a small victory with me by just getting me to allow the cat to come live with us in the first place, so she never asked me once to clean the box. She was pretty good at keeping it clean. When it was out in the garage it was OK but I still knew it was there. You could have an industrial strength ventalation unit hooked up to that box and I will still not settle easy with the concept of that "material" sitting around in my house waiting for someone to come clean it up. Now I have seen on tv people who toilet train their cats. That's an interesting option to consider if you want to live with cats.

http://www.citikitty.com/


I guess the part that bugged me the most was finding small pieces of litter throughout the house that had been tracked in by the cat. Think about it. The cat is in the litter box and does it's business. It then buries the deposit using it's paws. It probably steps in a previous deposit on the way in and/or on the way out of the box. And then with this smelly stinky litter still embedded in it's paws it leaves the box and proceeds to jump on all the furniture, beds, kitchen table and counter-tops etc... Yuck! I see people who get freaked out if their kid forgets to wash his hands after taking a wiz who then allow a cat, who has just walked out of it's litter box, and still has dirty litter in it's paws, to walk all over the kitchen counter, or table, or their beds and not even bat an eye. WTH!

"Lets get one thing clear, Bill. Science does make some assumptions." -perrodetokio-

"In the end as skeptics we must realize that there is no real knowledge, there is only what is most reasonable to believe." -Coelacanth-

The fact that humans do science is what causes errors in science. -Dave W.-

Edited by - Bill scott on 01/20/2011 06:32:51
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Dude
SFN Die Hard

USA
6891 Posts

Posted - 01/20/2011 :  11:32:46   [Permalink]  Show Profile Send Dude a Private Message  Reply with Quote
Originally posted by Bill scott

Originally posted by Dude

Spend $2 more on dust free, ordor eliminating, scoopable litter.

I have a cat, one litterbox (I do scoop it at least once daily, mostly two times), and there is no detectable odor because of the better cat litter.






Spend $2 more on dust free, ordor eliminating, scoopable litter.


We did. It was better but still did not make it as though the box was not in the house. And even with the better litter the option of having it in a bedroom was that is was not an option.

I have a cat, one litterbox (I do scoop it at least once daily, mostly two times), and there is no detectable odor because of the better cat litter.



I never cleaned the litter box once. It was my wife's cat and I think she realized she had accomplished a small victory with me by just getting me to allow the cat to come live with us in the first place, so she never asked me once to clean the box. She was pretty good at keeping it clean. When it was out in the garage it was OK but I still knew it was there. You could have an industrial strength ventalation unit hooked up to that box and I will still not settle easy with the concept of that "material" sitting around in my house waiting for someone to come clean it up. Now I have seen on tv people who toilet train their cats. That's an interesting option to consider if you want to live with cats.

http://www.citikitty.com/


I guess the part that bugged me the most was finding small pieces of litter throughout the house that had been tracked in by the cat. Think about it. The cat is in the litter box and does it's business. It then buries the deposit using it's paws. It probably steps in a previous deposit on the way in and/or on the way out of the box. And then with this smelly stinky litter still embedded in it's paws it leaves the box and proceeds to jump on all the furniture, beds, kitchen table and counter-tops etc... Yuck! I see people who get freaked out if their kid forgets to wash his hands after taking a wiz who then allow a cat, who has just walked out of it's litter box, and still has dirty litter in it's paws, to walk all over the kitchen counter, or table, or their beds and not even bat an eye. WTH!


Bill, I have some bad (and good) news for you. (good first) The number of pathogens that cats carry that also are active in humans is very small. You could, potentially, be exposed to some parasites that use cats as part of their life cycle, but those are rare and limited to cats who go outdoors. You have a higher chance of contacting those parasites by walking barefoot in your yard. Cats are, generally speaking, clean animals. Especially indoor cats. Sure, the poop stinks, but it isn't causing you any harm.

Now the bad- I assume you keep your toothbrush in your bathroom? Do you keep it sealed in a container or do you leave it out (or even inside your medicine cabinet)? Unless you seal your toothbrush between uses then you are placing human fecal and urinary tract material (from anyone who uses your bathroom) into your mouth every time you brush. When you flush your toilet some of the stuff in it becomes aerosolized (a small amount to be sure) and then lands on surfaces nearby. Human fecal material can cause many diseases in other humans.

You are more of a danger to yourself, by shitting in proximity to your toothbrush, than an indoor cat.


Ignorance is preferable to error; and he is less remote from the truth who believes nothing, than he who believes what is wrong.
-- Thomas Jefferson

"god :: the last refuge of a man with no answers and no argument." - G. Carlin

Hope, n.
The handmaiden of desperation; the opiate of despair; the illegible signpost on the road to perdition. ~~ da filth
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